High Resolution Site Analysis for Cosmic Explorer: Great Plains Colorado
Presentation Time: Tue, 05/05/2026 - 15:30
Keywords: site selection, geospatial analysis, Boolean constraint mapping, Cosmic Explorer, Eastern Colorado
The Cosmic Explorer is a gravitational wave observatory concept that consists of two facilities, each having an L shaped detector, one with 40-kilometer arms and the other with 20-kilometer arms. This project is an intermediate between the previously completed National Site Selection and field investigations, using 10-meter Boolean constraint mapping and systematic computational alignment generation to evaluate eastern Colorado. Fourteen constraints were considered including terrain (Topographical Position Index, and Local Moran’s I), energy infrastructure (oil wells, pipelines, and windfarms), flood zones (NHDPlus and FEMA), transportation infrastructure (interstates, railroads, and building footprints), protected areas (wildlife, and historic), and mines. Once the Boolean output was produced considering all of the criteria, a convolution-based algorithm evaluates all valid L configurations at one-degree increments and finds all L’s that land on only suitable areas. Compared to the New Mexico case, some buffer distances, such as for wind turbines, were decreased, and non-interstate major roads were also not considered, making the criteria for the Colorado case less conservative. The Boolean mapping result showed 46,747 square kilometers of suitable areas throughout the state, with a large contiguous suitable area east of Colorado Springs between the US-24 and US-50 highways. This area matches the national search, which had a large suitable polygon in a similar position. The 10m resolution presents a more accurate assessment of potential observatory configurations by including infrastructural criteria and improves on the New Mexico analysis by adjusting the criteria.
