LIGO and the LSCs Role and Interactions within the International Community

1
LIGO and the LSCs Role and Interactions within
the International Community

• Stan Whitcomb
• LIGO/Caltech
• Data Policy Review -- NSF
• 17 February 2009

2
Outline

• Benefits of forming an international network
• Overview of other GW interferometer projects
• Importance of LIGO in international community
• Beginning of an International Network
• Overview of LIGO-GEO and LIGO-Virgo MOUs
• Path to an international Open Data Policy

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Benefits of International Collaboration

• Network data far more useful than the sum of its
  partsone well-localized event is gt10 times more
  valuable than 10 poorly localized ones
• Coherent observations with detectors on
  intercontinental baselines essential for source
  localization (aperture synthesis)
• Analogy to radio astronomy Very Long-Baseline
  Interferometry (VLBI)
• Multiple detector orientations (in 3-D) gives
  more complete polarization information
• Network improves detection confidence, temporal
  and sky coverage
• Collaboration on observations, RD
• Coordinated efforts for problem solving, new
  developments
• Optimizes effectiveness of limited resources
• Competition versus collaboration
• Competition needed to check results
• Norm in many areas of physics, but not
  particularly common in astronomy

4
Other Gravitational Wave ProjectsGEO

• GEO Collaboration
• Univ of Glasgow, Cardiff Univ, Albert Einstein
  Institute, Univ of Birmingham, Rutherford
  Appleton Lab, Univ of Hannover
• GEO as a whole is a member of the LIGO Scientific
  Collaboration
• GEO making a capital contribution to Advanced
  LIGO
• GEO600
• Near Hannover
• 600 m arms
• No arm cavities
• Signal recycling
• Fused silica suspensions
• GEO-HF
• Proposed up-grade
• Pioneer advanced optical techniques

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Other Gravitational Wave ProjectsVirgo

• Virgo
• Italian, French, Dutch collaboration, located
  near Pisa
• Single 3 km interferometer, similar to LIGO in
  design and specification
• Advanced seismic isolation system
  (Super-attenuator)
• Operation in coincidence with LIGO since May 2007
• Future Improvements
• Virgo, Advanced Virgo (similar in scope and time
  to Enhanced LIGO and Advanced LIGO)

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Other Gravitational Wave ProjectsTAMA and LCGT

• TAMA
• University of Tokyo, National Astronomical
  Observatory of Japan,
• 300 m arms, optical configuration similar to
  LIGO, Located at NAOJ
• First large interferometric detector to
  operate/observe
• Now coming back on-line after extended
  commissioning break
• LCGT (Large Cryogenic Gravitational-wave
  Telescope, proposed)
• Promised initial sensitivity similar to AdvLIGO
• Underground (Kamioka mine)
• Test masses cooled to lt20K
• Funding turned down 4 timesfuture is uncertain

7
Other Gravitational Wave ProjectsAIGO

• AIGO (Australian International Gravitational
  Observatory)
• Australian Consortium for Interferometric
  Gravitational Astronomy(Australian National
  Univ, Univ of Western Australia, Adelaide Univ)
• ACIGA a full member of the LIGO Scientific
  Collaboration
• 80 m facility located at Gingin (about 100 km
  from Perth)
• Operated as a high power test bed for LIGO
• Site expandable to 5 km
• Limited opportunities for funding large projects
  within Australian systemwill need
  internationalpartner(s)

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Other Potential Gravitational Wave Projects

• China
• Interest by several groups in Gravitational Wave
  Detection
• Proposal to Chinese Academy of Science in 2005
  unsuccessful
• India
• Strong theory program at the Inter University
  Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA,
  Pune), currently an LSC member group
• Have been a couple of workshops aimed at
  exploring possibilities
• Russia
• Two active experimental groups in LSC (Moscow
  State University and Institute of Applied Physics
  at Nizhny Novgorod)
• Some feelers about the possibility of
  collaboration on a large detector

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Importance of LIGO in International GW Community

• LIGO largest detector array, highest sensitivity
• Great influence in setting the world GW agenda
• LIGO leading establishment of collaborations with
  other GW projects
• Collaboration with LIGO crucial to other projects
  and funding agencies
• LIGO is big enough to be generous in negotiating
  agreements
• LIGO led the formation of Gravitational Wave
  International Committee (GWIC)
• Leadership in establishing a culture of
  inclusiveness
• Growth of the LSC has been a strength for LIGO
• Other projects have begun similar accretions
• LIGO is first project to seriously consider
  public data release

10
Forging an International Network

• LIGO-GEO collaboration extremely tight
• GEO full member of LSC
• GEO data has same distribution/status as data
  from a LIGO detector
• Partnership in AdvLIGO (capital contribution)
• LIGO-Virgo collaboration expands detector network
• Not a merging of the two collaborations, but.
• All analyses, all observational publications to
  be joint after signing
• Joint collaboration meetings
• Intended to extend to AdvLIGO/AdvVirgo era
• MOU took nearly two years to negotiate
• LIGO-Virgo MOU explicitly invites other detectors
  to join when they reach a useful sensitivity
• Throughout MOU negotiations, kept other projects
  informed (shared drafts with GEO, TAMA/LCGT,
  ACIGA leaders)

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Key Points from the LIGO-GEO MOU

• All provisions of this attachment are
  reciprocal. Any provision for the treatment of
  GEO data by LIGO applies equally to the treatment
  of LIGO data by GEO. Responsibility for
  operation of the exchange lies with the LIGO
  Director on the one hand and the GEO Principal
  Investigator for Data Analysis on the other. In
  general, both projects agree that they will
  endeavor to distribute, analyze, and ensure the
  security of data received from the other project
  in the same way as their own.
• Analysis of data from the LIGO and GEO
  interferometers will be coordinated by the LSC.
  All scientists who are members of GEO will also
  by virtue of that fact be members of the LSC.
  The fundamental principle is that GEO and LIGO
  should be considered to constitute a single
  network of three sites and four interferometers
  data from all interferometers should be used on
  an equivalent basis,
• The LIGO Lab and the LSC have begun to establish
  data analysis agreements with other gravitational
  wave detections and astrophysics projects. All
  such agreements to share data with external
  projects will be made jointly by LIGO/LSC and GEO
  leadership,
• Any form of dissemination of the results of the
  analysis of the data covered by this agreement to
  persons outside the projects may be made only
  with the permission of both the Director of LIGO
  and the GEO Principal Investigator for Data
  Analysis. Scientific publications describing such
  results will be jointly authored by individuals
  identified by each Project. Any press releases
  based on the analysis of data under this
  agreement will be issued jointly and
  simultaneously by LIGO and GEO
• This MOU will remain in force until the parties
  mutually agree to terminate it.

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Key Points from the LIGO-Virgo MOU

• This agreement governs cooperative scientific
  work between VIRGO and LIGO. The terms governing
  work on data analysis are exclusive that is, the
  parties agree that all of the data analysis work
  that they do will be carried out under the
  framework of this agreement.
• After the data sharing provisions of this
  agreement go into effect, all subsequent
  observational data will be open to both
  collaborations, to be used in the framework of
  Joint Data Analysis Groups on all gravitational
  wave analysis topics. All gravitational wave data
  analysis will be carried out under the umbrella
  of this agreement between LIGO and VIRGO there
  will be no LSC-only or Virgo-only gravitational
  wave data analyses while this agreement remains
  in force.
• After the data sharing provisions of this
  agreement go into effect, all subsequent
  collaborative data analysis work with projects
  other than LIGO or VIRGO will be negotiated by
  and carried out by the LSC and VIRGO together
  prior agreements will remain in force
  automatically only for data collected earlier.
• The agreement described herein represents a
  scientific collaboration between independent
  projects, not a merger. Each project will
  maintain its own separate governance. Decisions
  on issues that bear on collaborative work will be
  made in discussion among the leadership of the
  projects, each representing their Collaborations
  position as determined according to their own
  governing structures.
• All data and their interpretation will be held
  strictly within the membership of the
  Collaborations until both Collaborations have
  given their permission for public release.
• Cessation of any data exchange may take place at
  the request of either LIGO or VIRGO

13
Current Model for Collaboration with Outside
Projects

• Developed in response to proposal for Target of
  Opportunity observations with SWIFT
• Intended to apply to other interested groups
• Various partnerships can be imagined, involving
  the sharing of LSC and Virgo GW strain data,
  proprietary information from non-L-V scientists,
  and/or specialized expertise for a joint project
  under the aegis of a LSC-Virgo working group.
  Such a partnership may lead to a publication with
  the full LSCVirgo author list plus the
  "external" scientist(s) involved in the work.
• Any partnership involving LSC and/or Virgo GW
  strain data must be part of the approved
  scientific program of the Collaborations
• As such, the decision to enter into a
  partnership (or not) should be based on
  scientific merit, LSCVirgo priorities, and
  practical considerations and must be made after a
  transparent and open evaluation process.
• The collaborative work should be a specific,
  well-defined project. The project and its
  duration must be governed by written and clear
  understanding among the involved parties, which
  should be in place before committing the
  Collaborations to the project and before any
  proprietary data can be shared or exchanged.
• The Collaborations will not enter into
  "exclusive" agreements. For example, a
  partnership with one particular astronomy team
  does not prevent the Collaborations from forming
  a partnership with another astronomy team doing
  similar work, if scientific merit and the other
  principles above call for it.

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Forging an International Open Data Policy

• Development of an Open Data Policy presents an
  opportunity of LIGO leadership in a new direction
• (but only if we can find a path others follow)
• Will require substantial modification to existing
  MOUs
• Will require agreement from projects and funding
  agencies with different priorities and scientific
  cultures
• Unilateral release of data may not be in the best
  interest of either NSF or the broader scientific
  community, must strive to achieve community-wide
  agreement
• Should clearly state principles that we adhere
  to, but we need to be open to negotiating the
  details

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How does the Proposed Data Policy Support the
Goal of an International Agreement?

• Phase in full release after detections become
  routine
• Provide time for community to discuss and adopt
  similar data release policy
• Removes the complicating issue of first detection
• Two year period before release
• Realistic estimate for LIGO data validation and
  cleaning, and for other projects as well
• Discourages an approach of holding back waiting
  for LIGO data to be released
• Continuation of policy of releasing data
  supporting detections by the collaborations
• As soon as possible after confirmation and public
  announcement (e.g., via GCN) to give the broader
  community immediate access to validated events
• Take advantage of realtime event identification
  efforts

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Final Thoughts

• International collaboration is essential to
  getting the most out of GW observations
• Negotiation of a common data release policy
  should be of the highest importance
• The GW community looks to LIGO for leadership
• But, LIGO and NSF must be willing and able to
  negotiate with other projects to achieve the
  optimum solution
• Details, details,
  details.