MSV-2035 Astronomy Document - Inside Design - FINAL - FINAL

Astronomy & Astrophysics 74 of the Observatory Management System (a scope-enhanced version of the TM System) (ii) as a major partner in the construction and delivery of the station digital hardware and firmware for SKA-Low (iii) as a contributor to the final PSS system and (iv) as a contributor to the Band-1 receiver system for the SKA-Mid. In addition, India will host one of the SKA Phase-1 Regional Data Centres, allowing priority access to SKA data of interest to the Indian astronomy community, including supporting the execution of post-processing pipelines. 5.1.3 LIGO-India The detection of Gravitational Waves (GW) by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) in 2015 opened a new era inAstronomy.At present GWfrom ninety mergers of compact binary stars have been detected. The field is however nascent and enormous scope for scientific discoveries lies in front of us. While the parameters and characteristics of the detected binaries (mass, spin, precession, and properties of dense nuclear matter) sample a wide range, a large number of detections will be necessary to get a concrete idea about the statistical distribution of these astrophysical parameters. This will, in turn, help us understand the origin and characteristics of these exotic objects, shine light on the evolution of the universe and perform a strong test of Einstein's General Theory of Relativity. In addition, there could be unexpected sources that could bring fundamental changes in our understanding of the universe. In the next few years, the upgraded network of detectors, which will include LIGO-India bringing in much larger network baselines, is expected to provide crucial information to address these astrophysical questions of profound interest. LIGO-India is a planned world-class multi-disciplinaryMega Science Project on Indian soil funded by DAE and DST under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Science Foundation (NSF), USA. It is designed to be an “L” shaped detector with 4km arms under ultra high vacuum, with high power continuous laser and highly sophisticated optics. It will be executed by four lead institutions in India (DCSEM, IPR, IUCAA, RRCAT) in collaboration with several institutions and universities in India and abroad. A site in the Hingoli District of Maharashtra has been identified for the project. The unprecedented precision technology that will be used in LIGO- India will enable development of skill sets that hold promises for a giant leap in future science and technology efforts in India. India has been playing a lead role in Gravitational Wave Astronomy for several decades. More than hundred researchers from India are currently part of the international LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA (LVK) Collaboration. These members, who come frommore than a dozen of institutions in India, have been participating in the LVKCollaboration through a single body, LIGO-India Scientific Collaboration (LISC). Many of these members were authors of the papers announcing the first detection of gravitational waves in 2015. LISC members are deeply involved in both theoretical and experimental aspects of GWresearch and they will be the primary beneficiaries of newGWprojects in India. LIGO-India is proposed to have the same sensitivity (A+) which the other two LIGO detectors plan to attain around the time LIGO-India is scheduled to come online. It is essential for all the detectors in a network to have similar sensitivities to ensure optimal scientific impact. The technology for A+ is nearly finalised. A 10-m prototype interferometer is under installation at RRCAT. The LIGO-India experimental community is likely to play an important role in future upgrades (e.g., LIGO-Voyager) and next-generation ground and space-based detectors. MEGA SCIENCE VISION-2035