EM Detection of Gravitational Waves via Long-Wire Antennas
Abstract
We propose a novel low-cost terrestrial array for detecting gravitational wave phenomena via very low frequency (VLF) and extremely low frequency (ELF) electromagnetic signatures. The system consists of multi-scale Beverage-style long-wire antennas spanning 1–100 miles in the Nevada desert, oriented to capture transient chirped signals analogous to those reported by LIGO. This approach is grounded in the hypothesis that gravitational waves may propagate through spacetime as modulations of the ε0μ0 lattice — effectively behaving as electromagnetic phenomena in extreme regimes. Utilizing sensitive software-defined radio (SDR) front-ends and broadband correlation-based detection, this project aims to detect nonstandard gravitational events outside LIGO’s narrow band, including possible high-frequency or radiatively coupled signatures. The method offers a scalable and cost-effective alternative for probing the structure of spacetime, with implications for Charge Admittance theory and unification approaches to field dynamics.
Introduction
Gravitational wave astronomy, inaugurated by the landmark LIGO detections of 2015, remains limited by its reliance on highly sensitive but narrowband interferometric techniques. LIGO’s detection regime — optimized for mechanical displacements at kHz-scale resonances — may miss broader classes of gravitational phenomena, particularly those that couple electromagnetically or propagate via mechanisms not fully described by General Relativity.
Emerging theoretical frameworks, including Charge Admittance theory, suggest that gravitational interactions may manifest as field distortions in the coupled permittivity–permeability (ε0μ0) structure of energytime itself. This reinterpretation implies that gravitational events may leave measurable electromagnetic signatures — specifically in the VLF/ELF range — if they induce coherent modulation of the vacuum impedance or background field structure.
The Beverage-style long-wire antenna, originally developed for radio astronomy and ionospheric studies, provides an ideal geometry for capturing coherent, broadband EM disturbances across vast spatial scales. By deploying such antennas across remote, electrically quiet terrain and pairing them with modern SDR-based detection systems, this experiment seeks to capture previously unobserved gravitationally-linked signals. Specifically, the focus is on chirped or transient low-frequency events that may correspond to astrophysical collisions, sub-relativistic mass movements, or vacuum polarization transitions.
This project serves both as a practical probe of nonstandard gravitational coupling and a testbed for theoretical extensions of classical field theory. If successful, it would offer an electromagnetic signature-based approach to gravitational wave detection — radically simpler, cheaper, and more scalable than kilometer-scale optical interferometers — while opening an observational window into the physical structure of spacetime at energy densities far below the Planck scale.
Background Hypothesis
Gravitational waves are electromagnetic (EM) phenomena, propagating through the vacuum lattice (e₀μ₀ field), and thus should be observable using traditional EM detection methods — not only kilometer-scale interferometers like LIGO.
Experiment Concept: A “Poor Man’s LIGO” Using Beverage Antennas.
If true, this would:
Eliminate the need for exotic instrumentation that relies on spacetime deformation.
Enable use of conventional EM antenna technology at vastly lower cost and with greater deployability.
Requirements
| Antenna Type | Beverage Antenna (low-noise, unidirectional VLF/ELF) |
| Length | Modular: 1, 10, 50, 100 miles (directionally staggered for signal triangulation) |
| Target Frequencies | 0.1 Hz – 10 kHz (covering ELF to VLF chirps; check Schumann resonances) |
| Detector | Software-Defined Radio (SDR) + ultra-stable clocking (GPS-disciplined) |
| Signal Processing | Real-time DSP with chirp detection algorithms; match-filter against LIGO data for known events |
| Power | Solar + battery packs, minimal per module |
| Deployment Zone | Nevada desert – low EMI, legal land access, and stable dry ground |
Apparatus Design
Array Design:
Antenna Type: Beverage-style long-wire antennas, terminated for directionality.
Length Range: ~10 km to 200 km. Shorter sections can be used to estimate responsiveness at harmonic lengths.
Location: Remote Nevada BLM land, low-noise environment ideal for VLF experimentation.
Orientation: Multiple azimuths to maximize sky coverage and directional sensitivity.
Ground Coupling: Critical — Beverage antennas must be close (~1-2m) above ground for optimal low-angle reception.
Instrumentation:
Amplifiers: Low-noise VLF preamps
Filters: Band-pass filters centered on the 10–1000 Hz range.
Digitizer: High-resolution ADCs sampling at ~10 kHz or higher for resolution of chirp signals.
Timing: GPS-synchronized clocks for phase correlation with known LIGO chirps.
Data Capture: Rolling buffer for real-time comparison with LIGO’s public event alerts.
Signal Detection Strategy
Monitor LIGO Event Alerts (public API feed).
Compare captured waveform patterns in antenna signals (esp. chirp structures) to LIGO event signatures.
Triangulate timing and phase difference across antenna segments to estimate wavefront direction and speed.
Perform statistical cross-correlation of recorded EM events with LIGO gravitational events — ideally over months of data.
Confirm deviation from known EM interference (lightning, VLF radio, Schumann resonance, etc.)
Theoretical Challenge
The key scientific scrutiny here is: If gravitational waves are EM waves, why has no antenna ever detected them, even passively?
Possible answers:
Existing systems filter out ultra-low-frequency noise as irrelevant.
Long wavelength EM noise is often masked by natural EM background (Schumann resonances, solar wind).
LIGO’s chirps may still produce EM spectral fingerprints not previously identified due to lack of continuous wide-aperture listening.
Experimental Advantages
| Feature | LIGO | Beverage Antenna Array |
| Detection Mode | Optical interferometry | EM induction |
| Medium Sensitivity | Spacetime strain (10⁻²¹) | Electric field perturbation (V/m) |
| Frequency Range | 10 Hz–5 kHz | 1 Hz–30 kHz+ (VLF) |
| Deployment Cost |  Thousands | |
| Accessibility | Centralized, rare | Widely deployable |
| Replicability | Complex | Straightforward |
Principle of Operation
Beverage antennas are very long wave antennas – on the order of 2 to 5 wavelengths. If extended to extreme lengths (~1 to 100 miles), low-height wire antennas that are exceptionally sensitive to low-frequency, long-wavelength EM waves.
Resonant sensitivity of wire length to specific EM wavelengths
Chirp-based waveforms produced by inspiral events, where frequency increases as black holes/neutron stars merge.
Phase-coherent summing from a geographically spread array to detect EM chirp signals correlated with gravitational wave events.
Hypothesized Detection Spectrum
LIGO operates in the range of 10 Hz to ~5 kHz, with most black hole mergers peaking between 50 Hz and 250 Hz.
If gravitational waves are EM in nature, the corresponding EM wavelengths would be:
Using λ=cf where c = 3 x 108 m/s, 250 Hz=1,200 km, and 50 Hz=30,000 km
This is far beyond typical Beverage antenna designs — but we can adapt.
Plan
Literature Review on VLF detection experiments near LIGO events.
Build prototype 1–2 km antenna with digitizer to test background EM noise floor.
Time-synchronize with LIGO open data for events.
Cross-validate signal correlation with real events.
Expand array as needed based on signal fidelity.