European Gravitational Observatory


The European Gravitational Observatory or EGO is located in the countryside near Pisa, in the hamlet of Santo Stefano a Macerata in the comune of Cascina. In order to ensure the long term scientific exploitation of the Virgo interferometric antenna for gravitational waves detection as well as to foster European collaboration in this upcoming field, the Virgo funding institutions have created a consortium called EGO.

Overview

Virgo is a 3 kilometer interferometer built through an Italian-French collaboration, later extended to include the Netherlands, Poland, Hungary and Spain. The collaboration involves 11 laboratories in the member countries and more than 150 scientists.
EGO is established under Italian law. Its governing body is the Council composed of six members nominated by the funding institutions. The Council appoints a Director who is the legal representative and chief executive of EGO.
The Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee advises the Council on scientific and technical activities carried out by the Consortium. It is composed of up to ten scientific personalities.
EGO pursues these main objectives: