Black Hole Binaries

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Supercomputer hardware, innovative numerical algorithms and a better mathematical understanding of the nature of Einstein equations are bringing closer the day in which simulations of binary black holes could routinely help in extracting astrophysical information from data collected by interferometric gravitational wave detectors such as LIGO, VIRGO, GEO and LISA. The work in this project has as main objective the numerical computation of the last few orbits and the merger of binary black hole systems, as well as the extraction from these simulations of information relevant to gravitational wave astronomy. Explicit attention will be given to the needs of the data analysis community and to the development of flexible and collaborative software engineering.The broader impact of this work is the development and enhancement of infrastructure for collaborative research through the creation of flexible and reusable software tools. These tools will be used for numerical simulations in relativity and will contribute enriching the learning environment for undergraduate and graduate student training. The Pennsylvania State University, with its Centers for Gravitational Wave Physics and for Gravitational Physics and Geometry, offers a unique opportunity for synergy between diverse efforts ranging from computational physics through numerical relativity, mathematical relativity and astrophysics, to gravitational wave physics.