Long term study of the seismic environment at LIGO

TL;DR

This study provides a comprehensive long-term analysis of seismic noise at LIGO sites, crucial for optimizing gravitational wave detection by understanding environmental influences over nearly two years.

Contribution

It offers the first detailed long-term seismic environment data at LIGO, informing future interferometer design and noise mitigation strategies.

Findings

Seismic noise varies significantly with human activity and natural sources.

Long-term data reveal trends and fluctuations in seismic noise levels.

Seismic noise in the 0.1-10 Hz range impacts interferometer sensitivity.

Abstract

The LIGO experiment aims to detect and study gravitational waves using ground based laser interferometry. A critical factor to the performance of the interferometers, and a major consideration in the design of possible future upgrades, is isolation of the interferometer optics from seismic noise. We present the results of a detailed program of measurements of the seismic environment surrounding the LIGO interferometers. We describe the experimental configuration used to collect the data, which was acquired over a 613 day period. The measurements focused on the frequency range 0.1-10 Hz, in which the secondary microseismic peak and noise due to human activity in the vicinity of the detectors was found to be particularly critical to interferometer performance. We compare the statistical distribution of the data sets from the two interferometer sites, construct amplitude spectral densities of seismic noise amplitude fluctuations with periods of up to 3 months, and analyze the data for any long term trends in the amplitude of seismic noise in this critical frequency range.