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arxiv 2507.08789 v2 pith:AR27RB63 submitted 2025-07-11 gr-qc astro-ph.HE

Potential science with GW250114 -- the loudest binary black hole merger detected to date

classification gr-qc astro-ph.HE
keywords gw250114detectedwhatblackconstraineddateeccentricityestimate
verification ladder T0 review T1 audit T2 compute T3 formal T4 reserved
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On January 14, 2025 the LIGO interferometers detected a gravitational wave from the merger of two black holes, GW250114. Using publicly available information, we estimate that the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of GW250114 was $\sim 80$. This would make it three to four times louder than any other gravitational wave detected to date. GW250114 therefore offers a unique opportunity to make precise measurements of its source parameters and to test general relativity. In anticipation of its public data release, we analyze a set of simulated signals that have parameters similar to what we estimate for GW250114 and explore what new insights may be gained from this significant event. We investigate how well the component spins may be constrained, whether any eccentricity may be measured, what quasi-normal modes (QNMs) may be detected in the post-merger signal, how well the black hole area theorem may be constrained, and what constraints may be expected on sub-dominant inspiral-merger-ringdown modes. We find that it should be possible to measure a non-zero eccentricity at $20\,$Hz ($e_{20}$) if GW250114 has $e_{20} \gtrsim 0.05$. We also find that at least one overtone of the dominant QNM should be detectable in the ringdown of GW250114, with a Bayes factor of $O(10^3)$ after marginalizing over all timing uncertainties.

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Cited by 5 Pith papers

Reviewed papers in the Pith corpus that reference this work. Sorted by Pith novelty score.

  1. Constraints on Line-of-Sight Acceleration from O1-O4

    astro-ph.HE 2026-06 unverdicted novelty 6.0

    All known compact binary mergers show line-of-sight accelerations consistent with zero under a new time-domain Doppler-shift model, with current detectors only sensitive to high-acceleration scenarios.

  2. Black Hole Spectroscopy and Tests of General Relativity with GW250114

    gr-qc 2025-09 accept novelty 6.0

    GW250114 data confirm the remnant is consistent with a Kerr black hole and bound the dominant quadrupolar mode frequency to within a few percent of the GR prediction, with constraints tighter than prior multi-event catalogs.

  3. GW250114: testing Hawking's area law and the Kerr nature of black holes

    gr-qc 2025-09 accept novelty 5.0

    GW250114 data confirm the remnant black hole ringdown frequencies lie within 30% of Kerr predictions and that the final horizon area is larger than the sum of the progenitors' areas to high credibility.

  4. Compactness Inference in Gravitational-Wave Mergers with PhenomDECO: Catalog Benchmarks and Robustness Diagnostics

    gr-qc 2026-06 unverdicted novelty 4.0

    Compactness inference on GWTC-3 events confirms consistency with binary black hole sources after frequency-cut diagnostics show low-compactness modes are noise artifacts.

  5. Compactness Inference in Gravitational-Wave Mergers with PhenomDECO: Catalog Benchmarks and Robustness Diagnostics

    gr-qc 2026-06 unverdicted novelty 4.0

    PhenomDECO analysis of GWTC-3 events finds all considered signals consistent with binary black holes once low-frequency noise effects are addressed via higher starting frequencies.