BlackHoles@Home: Difference between revisions
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== Why BlackHoles@Home? == | == Why BlackHoles@Home? == | ||
Solving the two-body problem in Newtonian physics is straightforward, the calculations fitting on the back of an envelope. While the two-body problem in Newtonian physics can be solved on the back of an envelope, in Einsteinian gravity the closest analogue is two orbiting black holes. Due to the complexity of solving Einstein's equations of gravity it took 90 years (1915-2005) to compute the motion of two orbiting black holes--a feat that required supercomputers. Unlike Newton's understanding of gravity, Einstein's equations predict that two orbiting black holes will emit gravitational waves, and since this emission saps the orbital energy from the black holes, they will inspiral and merge into a bigger black hole. | |||
Ten years later, in 2015, the 90-year effort was validated: humanity directly detected gravitational waves for the first time, emitted from the inspiral and merger of two black holes. This Nobel-prize-winning discovery brought the field of solving Einstein's equations on supercomputers into mainstream astronomy, as the gravitational waves observed must be compared with catalogs of supercomputer simulations to extract important information about the black holes. As gravitational wave telescopes become more sensitive, we need to both greatly increase the size of these catalogs and improve the accuracy of the simulations. | |||
BlackHoles@Home builds on efforts over the past 15 years to solve Einstein's equations on numerical grids that are roughly 100 times more computationally efficient than other techniques. Such improved efficiency, combined with advances in consumer-grade processors and memory chips, enables BlackHoles@Home to perform state-of-the-art black hole inspiral and merger simulations on consumer-grade desktops for the first time. | |||
In 2018, the idea behind BlackHoles@Home was first announced, and excellent progress toward our goal of launching a BOINC project has been made each year. We hope to have a fully functional and state-of-the-art app ready within the next year, and the BOINC project will be launched shortly after. | |||
== Goal == | == Goal == | ||
Revision as of 19:27, 14 March 2024
[[File:{{#setmainimage:bh.png}}|alt=BlackHoles@Home logo image|center|frameless]]
BlackHoles@Home will be a volunteer distributed computing project that needs your help to run Black hole collision simulations to maximize the science gained from gravitational wave observations.
Why BlackHoles@Home?
Solving the two-body problem in Newtonian physics is straightforward, the calculations fitting on the back of an envelope. While the two-body problem in Newtonian physics can be solved on the back of an envelope, in Einsteinian gravity the closest analogue is two orbiting black holes. Due to the complexity of solving Einstein's equations of gravity it took 90 years (1915-2005) to compute the motion of two orbiting black holes--a feat that required supercomputers. Unlike Newton's understanding of gravity, Einstein's equations predict that two orbiting black holes will emit gravitational waves, and since this emission saps the orbital energy from the black holes, they will inspiral and merge into a bigger black hole.
Ten years later, in 2015, the 90-year effort was validated: humanity directly detected gravitational waves for the first time, emitted from the inspiral and merger of two black holes. This Nobel-prize-winning discovery brought the field of solving Einstein's equations on supercomputers into mainstream astronomy, as the gravitational waves observed must be compared with catalogs of supercomputer simulations to extract important information about the black holes. As gravitational wave telescopes become more sensitive, we need to both greatly increase the size of these catalogs and improve the accuracy of the simulations.
BlackHoles@Home builds on efforts over the past 15 years to solve Einstein's equations on numerical grids that are roughly 100 times more computationally efficient than other techniques. Such improved efficiency, combined with advances in consumer-grade processors and memory chips, enables BlackHoles@Home to perform state-of-the-art black hole inspiral and merger simulations on consumer-grade desktops for the first time.
In 2018, the idea behind BlackHoles@Home was first announced, and excellent progress toward our goal of launching a BOINC project has been made each year. We hope to have a fully functional and state-of-the-art app ready within the next year, and the BOINC project will be launched shortly after.
Goal
BlackHoles@Home aims to reduce the cost of numerical relativity black hole and neutron star binary simulations by ~100x, through adoption of numerical grids that fully exploit near-symmetries in these systems.
With this cost savings, black hole binary merger simulations can be performed entirely on a consumer-grade desktop (or laptop) computer.[1]
Methods
- always including "why BOINC"?
- (Optional) insert MediaWiki image or upload
example MediaWiki image - impactful final statement
Project team / Sponsors
Prof. Z. Etienne. Primarily funded by NSF grant PHY-1806596. It is also funded by NSF EPSCoR Grant 1458952 and NASA grants 80NSSC18K0538 and 80NSSC18K1488.