The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (Lisa) has been given the green light to detect gravitational waves generated by black hole collisions. The mission, with a budget of €1.75bn, aims to answer important questions about the Universe's workings and history. Launch is expected no earlier than 2035.
What will be one of the most ambitious and most expensive space mission s ever mounted by Europe has just been given the formal green light. The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (Lisa) will try to detect ripples in the fabric of space-time generated when gargantuan black holes collide. These gravitational waves will be sensed by three spacecraft firing lasers at each other over a distance of 2.5 million km (1.5 million miles).
Scientists believe that studying gravitational waves will help answer important questions about the workings and history of the Universe. Officials at the European Space Agency (Esa) forecast a budget of €1.75bn (£1.5bn; $1.9bn), with additional contributions coming from member states including Germany, France, Italy, the UK, the Netherlands and Switzerland. The US space agency (Nasa) will be a major partner, too. While this sum is considerable, it does represent a life-time cost - and the complexity of the mission means it will not launch before 2035 at the earlies
Europe Space Mission Gravitational Waves Black Holes Laser Interferometer Space Antenna Budget Launch Universe
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