A decade after LIGO’s groundbreaking first detection of gravitational waves, Nobel Prize winner Kip Thorne will reveal the human drama behind one of science’s greatest achievements when he presents “Vignettes From The Birth of Gravitational-Wave Astronomy” on October 3 at Caltech’s Beckman Auditorium.
The 7 p.m. lecture, sponsored by Caltech’s American Institute of Mathematics, promises to explore the political battles, technological breakthroughs, and collaborative spirit that made routine observation of black hole collisions possible.
Thorne, Caltech’s Richard P. Feynman Professor Emeritus of Theoretical Physics, was part of the team that achieved direct detection of the ripples in spacetime that Einstein predicted. On September 14, 2015, LIGO made that historic first detection.
“With this discovery, we humans are embarking on a marvelous new quest—the quest to explore the warped side of the universe—objects and phenomena that are made from warped spacetime,” Thorne said following the announcement. “Colliding black holes and gravitational waves are our first beautiful examples.”
The achievement fulfilled Einstein’s legacy precisely 100 years after his general theory of relativity. Beyond pure science, Thorne co-authored the film treatment for Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar” and served as executive producer and scientific consultant.
Thorne’s presentation will explore the astrophysics of colliding black holes, observation techniques, mentorship, large-scale collaboration, and the creation of 21st-century technologies that made the breakthrough possible.
Kip Thorne presents Vignettes From The Birth of Gravitational-Wave Astronomy will run on Friday, Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. Beckman Auditorium, 332 S Michigan Ave, Pasadena, Pasadena. For more information, call (626) 395-4652 or visit https://events.caltech.edu/calendar/kip-thorne-presents-vignettes-from-the-birth-of-gravitational-wave-astronomy-1. Ticket prices: $25-$150
