A GIS-based workflow for the remote evaluation of potential Cosmic Explorer sites

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Abstract:: Cosmic Explorer is a proposed third-generation gravitational wave observatory that will offer an order-of-magnitude improvement in broadband sensitivity over current gravitational-wave detectors. This leap in sensitivity results primarily from upscaling the LIGO arm length by a factor of ten. With its 40 km-long arms, Cosmic Explorer will detect gravitational wave sources from across the universe that remain unresolved by existing detectors. Selecting an optimal site for the observatory is both critical and challenging. Cosmic Explorer requires significant land clearance to host a detector of its scale, as well as minimal sources of ambient noise to achieve its high sensitivity. We present a Python-based workflow that integrates Geographic Information Systems (GIS) with publicly available national datasets on land ownership, transportation lines, and anthropogenic noise sources such as wind turbines and active mines to automate remote analysis of potential sites. Preliminary runs of our workflow evaluated nearly 6,000 sites in the contiguous United States that could physically host a 40 km interferometer, eliminated thousands of those due to limited land availability or proximity to noise sources, and identified a few hundred most promising for eventual on-site testing. This approach is scalable and cost-efficient and can be further developed to include additional site evaluation criteria, ultimately accelerating the site selection process for Cosmic Explorer.

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Abstract (Abstract_Tooba_Ansar.pdf, 37.4 kB)
Final Presentation - pptx (Final_Presentation_Tooba_Ansar.pptx, 33.8 MB)
First Interim Report (Tooba_Ansar_First_Interim_Report.pdf, 239.7 kB)
Interim Presentation (Interim_Presentation_Tooba_Ansar.pptx, 13.5 MB)
Second Interim Report (Second_Interim_Report_Tooba_Ansar.pdf, 5.2 MB)

LIGO Document T2500265-v1