ITALIAN GOVERNMENT SUPPORTS THE ET PROJECT IN SARDINIA

Full support from the Italian government for the candidacy of the Sos Enattos site in Sardinia as the site of the future Einstein Gravitational Wave Telescope. This was confirmed by Prime Minister Mario Draghi in a letter addressed to INFN President, Antonio Zoccoli. The ET project has garnered the interest and willingness of the Region of Sardinia, as explained by Palazzo Chigi, which has pledged to support its implementation with 350 million euros, while the Ministry for the South and Territorial Cohesion will support the research infrastructure through the resources of the 2021-2027 Development and Cohesion Fund (FSC). In view of the timing of implementation of the project, which is scheduled to be built starting from 2027, additional resources may be found within the State budget. Prime Minister Draghi called on INFN to proceed with the development of Italy’s candidacy dossier, in conjunction with all the national and local partners, with a view to a final site selection by 2025. The Italian Sos Enattos site, which because of its geophysical and environmental characteristics is proposed as an ideal site for the future high-sensitive observatory, is competing with another candidate site in the Meuse-Rhine Euregion, on the border of the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium. The government’s support is an acknowledgement of the scientific and technological expertise of the Italian scientific community in gravitational wave research, of the importance of this research area, and of the role of large research infrastructures as a catalyst for economic and social progress at the local and national but also European levels.