Recent Advances in the Numerical Simulations of Binary Black Holes

TL;DR

This paper reviews recent progress in numerical relativity, highlighting breakthroughs in simulating binary black holes, which have transitioned from difficult problems to well-understood computational tasks, enabling significant scientific discoveries.

Contribution

It summarizes recent advances in numerical simulations of binary black holes and discusses future challenges in the field.

Findings

Binary black hole simulations are now routine.

Recent results include detailed gravitational wave predictions.

The field has transitioned from theoretical to practical computational methods.

Abstract

Since the breakthrough papers from 2005/2006, the field of numerical relativity has experienced a growth spurt that took the two-body problem in general relativity from the category of "really-hard-problems" to the realm of "things-we-know-how-to-do". Simulations of binary black holes in circular orbits, the holy grail of numerical relativity, are now tractable problems that lead to some of the most spectacular results in general relativity in recent years. We cover here some of the latest achievements and highlight the field's next challenges.