Alan J. Weinstein

Alan J. Weinstein is a Professor of Physics at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), affiliated with the Division of Physics, Mathematics and Astronomy. He leads the gravitational wave astrophysical data analysis group at the Caltech LIGO Laboratory and directs the LIGO Open Science Center (LOSC). His work focuses on detecting gravitational waves (GWs) using the Advanced LIGO detectors and studying their astrophysical sources.

Education: A.B., Harvard University (1978); Ph.D., Harvard University (1983).

Research interests include gravitational wave detection, multi-messenger astronomy, black hole mergers, neutron star dynamics, and testing General Relativity. He has pioneered GW analysis techniques and led the 40-meter interferometer prototype development. He co-chaired the LIGO Scientific Collaboration’s Compact Binary Coalescence working group (2008–2013).

Teaching includes courses on classical mechanics, quantum mechanics, and cosmology. He oversees the LIGO SURF program, hosting 30+ undergraduates annually. Awards include the Special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics (2016) and the Gruber Cosmology Prize (2016), both shared with the LIGO team.