| Location(s) | Netherlands |
|---|---|
| Organization | Leiden University  |
| Telescope style | gravitational-wave observatory |
| Website | www |
MiniGRAIL was a type of Resonant Mass Antenna,[1] which is a massive sphere that used to detect gravitational waves. The MiniGRAIL was the first such detector to use a spherical design. It is located at Leiden University in the Netherlands. The project was managed by the Kamerlingh Onnes Laboratory.[2] A team from the Department of Theoretical Physics of the University of Geneva, Switzerland, was also heavily involved. The project was terminated in 2005.
Gravitational waves are a type of radiation that is emitted by objects that have mass and are undergoing acceleration. The strongest sources of gravitational waves are suspected to be compact objects such as neutron stars and black holes. This detector may be able to detect certain types of instabilities in rotating single and binary neutron stars, and the merger of small black holes or neutron stars.[3]
- ^ Schutz , Bernard (2009-05-14). A First Course in General Relativity (2nd ed.). Cambridge. pp. 214–220. ISBN 978-0521887052.
- ^ de Waard, A; et al. (2003). "MiniGRAIL, the first spherical detector". Classical and Quantum Gravity. 20 (10): S143–S151. Bibcode:2003CQGra..20S.143D. doi:10.1088/0264-9381/20/10/317. S2CID 250902916.
- ^ Van Houwelingen, Jeroen (2002-06-24). "Development of a superconducting thin-film Nb-coil for use in the MiniGRAIL transducers" (PDF). Leiden University. pp. 1–17. Retrieved 2009-09-16.