Detecting Ripples in Spacetime with LISA

Conversation with Dr Oliver Jennrich

Credit ESA

The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) is the space based Gravitational Wave detector being built and launched by European Space Agency(ESA), with support from NASA.

In this conversation with Dr Oliver Jennrich, we cover his path to becoming LISA study scientist, the need for a space based detector and collaborations needed for this project.

• [00:10–00:40] Introduction
• [00:40–04:40] Dr Oliver Jennrich’s career highlights
• [04:40–16:00] Key concepts for LISA — Spacetime, Gravitational Waves (tides)
• [16:00–25:00] Ground based detectors (LIGO & Pulsar Timing Array)
• [25:00–26:20] Black Hole Blues
• [26:20–30:40] Timeline for building and getting LISA to orbit
• [30:40–32:00] LISA pathfinder & maturity of space industry
• [32:00–34:40] ESA & NASA partnership + ESA member states
• [34:40–38:40] Making sense of the Data to understand the Universe
• [38:40–40:05] Wrap up