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Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) Icon

Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA)

How did the Universe begin? Does time have a beginning and an end? Does space have edges? These are the questions we've struggled to answer for centuries. Science and technology have now reached the point where answers to these questions are finally within our grasp. The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) may supply some of these answers as the mission studies the mergers of supermassive black holes, tests Einstein's Theory of General Relativity, probes the early Universe, and searches for gravitational waves -- the primary objective.

As the first dedicated space-based gravitational wave observatory, LISA will detect waves generated by binaries within our Galaxy, the Milky Way, and by massive black holes in distant galaxies. Although gravitational wave searches in space have previously been made, they were conducted for short periods by planetary missions that had other primary science objectives. Some current missions are using microwave Doppler tracking to search for gravitational waves. However, LISA will use an advanced system of laser interferometry for detecting and measuring them. And, LISA will directly detect the existence of gravitational waves, rather than inferring it from the motion of celestial bodies, as has been done previously. Additionally, LISA will make its observations in a low-frequency band that ground-based detectors can't achieve. Note that this difference in frequency bands makes LISA and ground detectors complementary rather than competitive. This range of frequencies is similar to the various types of wavelengths applied in astronomy, such as ultraviolet and infrared. Each provides different information.

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