09.07.2025 The preparatory phase of the Einstein Telescope (ET) project has been selected as one of the most promising outcomes of Germany’s national prioritisation process for large-scale research infrastructures. Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär, together with the Science Council and representatives of the evaluation committees, has presented the shortlist of the most promising projects from the national prioritisation process for large-scale research infrastructures. The preparatory phase for ET is one of the nine selected projects with correspondingly high international relevance. Federal Research Minister Bär said: „With bold investments in research and innovation, we are laying the foundation for remaining internationally competitive in the future. Research infrastructures play a key role…

26.05.2025 This year, the international Einstein Telescope (ET) Community gathers for its Symposium in Bologna, May 26 to 30, bringing together researchers from across Europe and the world. ET represents an ambitious new chapter in gravitational wave astronomy, aspiring to become a leading global observatory that will probe the universe’s most profound mysteries with unprecedented precision. “University of Bologna, INFN, INGV and INAF are very pleased to host the ET Symposium. In Bologna, a rich scientific history meets cutting edge research, and ET is a great example of this. We are delighted that our researchers are involved in several areas of ET research, and this symposium will be an important…

The German scientific community engaged in gravitational wave astronomy welcomes the statements in the coalition agreement saying “Wir beteiligen uns am Wettbewerb um einen Gravitationswellendetektor”1and “Wir befürworten die Errichtung des Einstein-Teleskops in Deutschland als europäisches Leuchtturmprojekt“2 as an important and timely step forward. We are pleased that this commitment acknowledges the strategic importance of ET for the future of fundamental science and technology development in Germany and Europe’s global leadership in this field. Germany is exceptionally well-positioned to take on a leading role in ET: With the coalition agreement now setting a clear direction, the German ET community hopes that the federal government will actively engage in shaping the project…

Methods and technologies developed for fundamental research can yield unexpected but highly beneficial outcomes for society and the economy. The German ET Community now formed an Innovation Scout Initiative that will help to identify and transfer technologies developed for ET from the Community to industry. The kick-off with the first Innovation Scouts was held in Aachen, at the invitation of RWTH.During the very productive meeting, participants discussed successful examples of technology transfer between academia and industry, highlighting the mutual benefits of such collaborations. Other key topics included intellectual property and patent law, with a focus on how best to protect and manage innovations. The meeting marked an important step towards ensuring…

The ETMOST meetings are online meetings, aimed at non-specialists sharing information on science and technology activities in the EMR region. With updates on astrophysics, geology, engineering, Gravitational Wave Science etc. The online series will cover all relevant aspects for people involved in ET activities in the EMR region. The meetings are being held once a month, on the third Wednesday afternoon 16:00 – 17:00 CET (sharp).Next meeting: Wednesday May 21st, 16:00, Tjonnie Li (KU Leuven) on Comparing the Triangle and 2L geometries. Details are available at https://indico.nikhef.nl/event/6353/ Contact: Achim Stahl (stahl(at)physik.rwth-aachen.de) & Stan Bentvelsen (stanb(at)nikhef.nl)

Award for experimental physicist from Hannover The Senate of RWTH Aachen University awarded Karsten Danzmann the academic degree of “Doktor der Naturwissenschaften honoris causa”. Danzmann is a director at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute) and director of the Institute for Gravitational Physics at Leibniz University Hannover. The honorary doctorate ceremony took place in Aachen on 9 May 2025. Karsten Danzmann receives the award for his outstanding contribution to the development of the technologies that led to the discovery of gravitational waves and that will significantly improve further research into them, as well as for his support of the Einstein Telescope project. “I am absolutely excited about…

Within the green energy deal of the German Federal Government, the installation of new and re-powering of existing wind turbines is seen as a high priority to reach the goal of 2% aerial coverage by 2032. This development is visible across the country, but also in the seismic data of the nationwide and federal states seismometer networks. Characteristic frequencies originating at wind turbines affect the seismic records and may hide weaker signals from physically interesting sources within and outside of the Earth. To mitigate these effects, the seismological community initiated different projects to understand the induced seismic signals and relate them to mechanical processes at the wind turbines. While the…

On 29 April, representatives from the federal and Saxon parliaments, relevant ministries, the region, and the scientific community visited the first exploratory borehole for the Einstein Telescope at the potential site in Lusatia. They were briefed on the current status, ongoing progress, and upcoming steps.The borehole, located in Hoske near Wittichenau, is being used to investigate the geological characteristics of the Lusatian granite and to assess the site’s suitability for the Einstein Telescope. It is planned to reach a depth of 300 metres and will be equipped with state-of-the-art sensors for long-term monitoring. Drilling has currently reached a depth of around 85 metres. The project is financed through federal funding.…

26.05.2025 With the Blue Book, members of the ET Collaboration present a comprehensive discussion of ET´s science objectives, providing state-of-the-art predictions for the capabilities of ET in both geometries currently under consideration, a single site triangular configuration or two L-shaped detectors.  The Blue Book is a milestone paper of the ET Collaboration and a major deliverable of the European ET-PP project. Nearly 200 key contributors have worked on this comprehensive ~600-page study, the result of dedicated efforts by the ET Collaboration´s Observational Science Board, coordinated by Marica Branchesi, Archisman Gosh and Michele Maggiore. The authors discuss  https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.12263

31.01.2025 The Science City Hamburg Bahrenfeld hosted the German ET Community, with more than 150 in-person participants underwriting the strong enthusiasm of the German community to work towards the realisation of the Einstein Telescope and the maximisation of its science. Highlights of the meeting included the keynote talk by Samaya Nissanke about Multi-Messenger Astrophysics today and in the ET era and talks about the status of ET and the ET Project by Harald Lück and Andreas Freise – and the social dinner on the Cap San Diego museum ship, which allowed the hosting city to showcase their strong maritime tradition. The German ET Community acknowledges the generous support by the…