The sensitivity and reach of UCN$\tau$ and how we get there

There have been various measurements of the free neutron lifetime using either cold neutron beams, or ultracold neutrons (UCNs) stored in a trap. There is a ~$4\sigma$ discrepancy in measured lifetimes between the two methods. The UCN$\tau$ experiment uses an asymmetric magneto-gravitational trap to store neutrons, holds the neutrons for various times, and counts the remaining neutrons to measure the neutron lifetime. To date, UCN$\tau$ has acquired sufficient data to measure the neutron lifetime with a raw statistical uncertainty of about 0.35 s, and analysis of our 2016/2017 data set has established a current limit for our systematic uncertainty of 0.28 s. Moving forward, we expect to further reduce both the systematic and statistical uncertainties. We will present projections for how the systematic uncertainties can be better constrained, as well as discuss our plan for reducing the statistical uncertainty achievable during a run cycle.