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Object

Virgo

A circular, metallic structure with intricate grid patterns and evenly spaced markings is illuminated against a dark background, resembling the Virgo gravitational-wave detector.

European gravitational-wave detector near Cascina, Italy, operated by a consortium led by France's CNRS and Italy's INFN. Its three-kilometre arms came online in 2007 and joined LIGO in coincident observation in 2017, enabling sky localisation by triangulation. The three-detector network was what made it possible to point optical telescopes at the source of GW170817 within hours.

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