Application of the third RIT binary black hole simulations catalog to parameter estimation of gravitational waves signals from the LIGO-Virgo O1/O2 observational runs

TL;DR

This paper reanalyzes ten LIGO/Virgo gravitational wave events using a large set of numerical waveforms from the third RIT binary black hole catalog, providing updated parameter estimates and validating waveform accuracy.

Contribution

It introduces a reanalysis of O1/O2 events with the third RIT catalog's waveforms, offering new parameter estimates and convergence validation.

Findings

Parameter estimates are consistent with previous results.

Waveform accuracy is validated for current parameter estimation.

Additional events show closely matching parameters.

Abstract

Using exclusively the 777 full numerical waveforms of the third Binary Black Holes RIT catalog, we reanalyze the ten black hole merger signals reported in LIGO/Virgo's O1/O2 observation runs. We obtain binary parameters, extrinsic parameters, and the remnant properties of these gravitational waves events which are consistent with, but not identical to previously presented results. We have also analyzed three additional events (GW170121, GW170304, GW170727) reported in Venumadhav et al. 2019, and found closely matching parameters. We finally assess the accuracy of our waveforms with convergence studies applied to O1/O2 events and found them adequate for current estimation of parameters.