Tuesday, August 2, 2016
L3ST Study Interim Report
The L3 Study Team Interim Report has been released and posted on the PCOS website. The L3 Study Team was charged to provide an analysis of potential US hardware contributions to the ESA-led L3 Gravitational Wave mission and an assessment of their consequences on cost, risk, and science return. Some highlights from the report:
• The science case for a space-based GW observatory, endorsed by both the 2010 Decadal Survey and ESA’s 2013 Cosmic Visions process, remains compelling. Realizing a mission that fully delivers this science in a timely fashion and with low risk should be the primary objective of US participation in L3.
• The L3ST concurs with the ESA’s GOAT report that meaningful participation of the US community in the design, development, and operation of L3 will result in a mission that is more technically robust and more scientifically capable.
• US contribution of central elements of the payload is an effective way to enable meaningful participation and provide impact on, and insight into, the final flight design.
• The US has strengths in a broad range of technologies relevant to L3. Opportunities should be sought to employ all of these strengths in the partnership regardless of the specific hardware items delivered.
A conclusion of our analysis is that multiple viable options of US participation in L3 exist, each with a different mix of cost, risk, and impact. While it is likely that the US will only contribute a subset of these items to the final partnership, continuing some level of development across the entire portfolio is an effective strategy to reduce overall mission risk as well as provide additional insight to the US science and technology communities.