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LISA Pathfinder

LISA Pathfinder was a test mission of the European Space Agency ESA for the LISA mission. LISA Pathfinder demonstrated the functionality of crucial LISA technologies with which the first gravitational wave observatory in space will observe low-frequency gravitational waves.

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LISA Pathfinder

LISA Pathfinder war eine Testmission der europäischen Weltraumagentur ESA für die LISA-Mission. LISA Pathfinder zeigte die Funktionsfähigkeit von zentralen LISA-Technologien, mit denen das erste Gravitationswellen-Observatorium im All niederfrequente Gravitationswellen beobachten wird.

LISA

Über 20 Jahre wurde LISA (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna) als Konzept eines weltraumbasierten Gravitationswellendetektors gemeinsam von den europäischen und amerikanischen Weltraumbehörden ESA und NASA voran getrieben. Es soll ein interferometrischer Detektor aus drei Satelliten, angeordnet in einem Dreieck mit 2,5 Million Kilometer Kantenlänge entstehen, welcher vom Weltraum aus nach Gravitationswellen suchen soll. Zwischenzeitlich eLISA benannt, heißt das Projekt wieder LISA und soll 2034 starten. LISA-Website

European Space Agency

Europäische Weltraumagentur; beteiligt an Projekten wie dem Weltraumteleskop Hubble oder dem Gravitationswellendetektor LISA.

ESA-Webseiten

ESA (European Space Agency)

Europäische Weltraumagentur; beteiligt an Projekten wie dem Weltraumteleskop Hubble oder dem Gravitationswellendetektor LISA.

ESA-Webseiten

wave

In a general sense: any travelling pattern, whether or not it involves matter being transported as well. Simple examples are water-waves - wave crests and troughs travelling over a water surface, and a Mexican wave in a football stadium, with fans alternately standing up and sitting down - the pattern moves throught the stadium, not the fans themselves.

An especially simple form for a wave is a sinus wave, a regular pattern of wave crests and troughs.

waves (wave)

An especially simple form for a wave is a sinus wave, a regular pattern of wave crests and troughs.

space

In a strict sense: Space as we know it from everyday life: the totality of all locations in which objects can sit, with three dimensions. In a more general sense used by mathematicians, all kinds of sets of points are spaces - a line for instance, which has but a single dimension, or a two-dimensional surface, but also higher-dimensional spaces. Also, in such more general spaces, geometry can be different from the standard Euclidean geometry taught in high schools - such spaces can be curved.

LISA

The concept of LISA (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna), a space-based gravitational wave detector, has been studied jointly by the European and US space agencies ESA and NASA for 20 years. The planned interferometric gravitational wave detector should be composed of three satellites, positioned to form a triangle, with each side 2.5 million kilometers long. While called eLISA for some time, the project named LISA is expected to launch in 2034. > LISA website

gravitational waves

Distortions of space geometry that propagate through space with the speed of light, analogous to ripples on the surface of a pond propagating as water waves. For more informations about gravitational waves, please consult the chapter Gravitational waves of Elementary Einstein. Selected aspects of gravitational wave physics are described in the category Gravitational waves of our Spotlights on relativity.

frequency

Measure for the rapidity of an oscillation, defined as the inverse of the period of oscillation: A process that, in oscillating, repeats itself after 0.1 seconds has the frequency 1/(0.1 seconds)= 10 Hz. (The unit Hertz, abbreviated as Hz, is defined as 1 Hz = 1/second.)

For a simple wave, the frequency is given by the number of maxima going by a stationary observer in a second. Ten maxima going by per second correspond to a frequency of 10 Hz.

European Space Agency

The European Space Agency coordinates the space-faring activities of the European countries. It is a partner in projects such as the Hubble space telescope and the gravitational wave detector LISA. ESA website

ESA (European Space Agency)

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LISA Pathfinder

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