NB Explains | Technology Day: PM lays foundation stone of LIGO-India project ; know why it is important

With an aim to make the nation among a handful of countries that have a Gravitational-Wave observatory, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday laid the foundation stone of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory – India (LIGO-India).

 

The Prime Minister also announced multiple projects related to scientific and technological advancement in the country, worth more than Rs 5,800 crore on the occasion of 25th National Technology Day.

 

 

LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory) is a physics experiment that detects cosmic ripples called gravitational waves, which carry information about their origins and provide clues to the nature of gravity.

 

It derives its foundation from the theories of Albert Einstein. According to Einstein's theory, when two massive objects collide, they create a ripple or a disturbance in the fabric of space and time. This disturbance propagates in all directions from the source, like waves of undulating space-time. These waves are known as gravitational waves.

 

 

Gravitational waves travel at the speed of light, and they carry information about their origins, which could help us learn more about the nature of gravity. Physicists believe that the most potent gravitational waves are generated by cataclysmic events, such as the collision of black holes, exploding stars, or colliding neutron stars.

 

 

LIGO-India will be an advanced gravitational-wave observatory to be located in India as part of a worldwide network. It is envisaged as a collaborative project between a consortium of Indian research institutions and the LIGO Laboratory in the USA, along with its international partners. The US will provide key components for the facility valued at $80 million, equivalent to Rs 560 crore. 

 

Last month, the Union Cabinet gave the green light for the project to proceed, with an estimated cost of Rs 2,600 crore and a completion date of 2030.  The observatory will feature a 4 km interferometer arm length and will be highly sensitive to gravitational waves generated by the merging of massive astrophysical objects like black holes and neutron stars. The Department of Atomic Energy and the Department of Science and Technology will oversee the construction of LIGO-India in partnership with the National Science Foundation of the US, as well as national and international research and academic institutions.

 

 

The LIGO-India Observatory will significantly improve the capability of the global scientific community in the field of gravitational-wave astronomy and astrophysics. It will also advance Indian science and technology in a wide range of cutting-edge fields, including lasers, optics, vacuum, quantum metrology, and control systems. Mega-science ventures like LIGO-India provide ideal learning platforms to create seamless ecosystems that connect academia, laboratories, and industry on a national and global scale.

 

Other projects announced on National Technology Day include Fission Molybdenum-99 Production Facility, Mumbai; Rare Earth Permanent Magnet Plant, Visakhapatnam; National Hadron Beam Therapy Facility, Navi Mumbai; Radiological Research Unit, Navi Mumbai; Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Visakhapatnam; and Women & Children Cancer Hospital Building, Navi Mumbai.