Astrophysics and Cosmology with Black Hole Mergers
Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy
Maya Fishbach explores the astrophysical and cosmological insights gleaned from the growing catalog of black hole merger events observed by gravitational-wave detectors.
Title: Astrophysics and Cosmology with Black Hole Mergers Abstract: LIGO and Virgo have observed over 70 gravitational-wave sources to date, including mergers between black holes, neutron stars, and mixed neutron star- black holes. The origin of these merging neutron stars and black holes -- the most extreme objects in our Universe -- remains a mystery, with implications for stars, galaxies and cosmology. I will review the latest LIGO-Virgo discoveries and discuss some recent astrophysical lessons, including mass gaps, evolution with cosmic time, and implications for cosmology. I will conclude by discussing what we can expect to learn from future gravitational-wave and multi-messenger discoveries.