FOR TIME, MARICA BRANCHESI IS AMONG THE 100 MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE

There is the Italian researcher Marica Branchesi in TIME’s annual list of the world’s 100 most influential people. A new recognition, therefore, for the work done by Branchesi, researcher at GSSI – Gran Sasso Science Institute – and INFN, with the historical observation of the collision of two neutron stars: an event that introduced a new way of studying our universe, opening the era of multi-messenger astronomy. As a member of the LIGO/VIRGO collaboration, Marica Branchesi’s task was to coordinate the two scientific communities respectively observing gravitational waves and electromagnetic radiation. A coordination which has thus allowed for the extraordinary scientific result on the first observation of this astrophysical cataclysm with the study of different cosmic messengers: gravitational waves and photons. Branchesi was amongst the speakers of the conference that was held live in Washington D.C. in sync with many other conferences all over the world, on 16 October 2017, during which the discovery was announced to the world.