VIGOR: Virtual Interaction with Gravitational waves to Observe Reality

A primary obstacle in physics-based outreach and engagement is the difficulty of facilitating intuitive interactions with physically-accurate representations of the relevant phenomena. We have been collaborating with a group at UT-Dallas to help develop a simulation called VIGOR: Virtual Interaction with Gravitational waves to Observe Reality, which can be used in both public and academic spaces to help facilitate understanding of gravitational wave astronomy. At UW Bothell we have engaged a team of undergraduate developers to help us build the application, with a primary goal of moving the app from a tablet-based simulation to a virtual reality environment. We present here a demo of the simulation, along with a sample in-class activity using VIGOR that we have developed.