The Astrophysical Multimessenger Observatory Network (AMON)

The Astrophysical Multimessenger Observatory Network (AMON) aims to use the messenger particles of all four fundamental forces in order to discover energetic transient phenomena that would be extremely difficult to detect by any single observatory alone. AMON will link together several current and future high-energy (neutrino, cosmic and gamma-ray) and gravitational wave observatories into a single system with higher combined sensitivity than that of any participating experiment alone. We present the scientific motivation, design elements, and current and projected partner observatories of the AMON network. This project is being developed at Penn State, where it was initially funded internally. Currently, AMON is an official NSF particle astrophysics project. Signatories to the AMON Memorandum of Understanding include the IceCube and ANTARES neutrino observatories, the HAWC and VERITAS gamma-ray observatories, the Pierre Auger Cosmic Ray Observatory, and the Swift orbital telescope. AMON is an open network seeking for new triggering and follow-up observatories, as well as for collaborators interested in the AMON scientific goals.