How to Detect Gravitational Vibrations

NASA - October 18, 2012

A pioneering technology capable of atomic-level precision is now being developed to detect what so far has remained imperceptible: gravitational waves or ripples in space-time caused by cataclysmic events including even the Big Bang itself.

A team of researchers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., Stanford University in California, and AOSense, Inc., in Sunnyvale, Calif., recently won funding under the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program to advance atom-optics technologies. Some believe this emerging, highly precise measurement technology is a technological panacea for everything from measuring gravitational waves to steering submarines and airplanes.

"I've been following this technology for a decade," said Bernie Seery, a Goddard executive who was instrumental in establishing Goddard's strategic partnership with Stanford University and AOSense two years ago. "The technology has come of age and I'm delighted NASA has chosen this effort for a NIAC award," he said.



The NIAC program supports potentially revolutionary, high-risk technologies and mission concepts that could advance NASA's objectives. "With this funding and other support, we can move ahead more quickly now, Seery said, adding that the U.S. military has invested heavily in the technology to dramatically improve navigation. "It opens up a wealth of possibilities."

Read more>>

Follow me on Twitter. Please subscribe to our news feed. Get regular updates via Email. Contact us for advertising inquiries.