Arm length: 2 × 4 km
Site: Aundha, Hingoli district, Maharashtra (174 acres)
Contractor: Larsen & Toubro, 48-month schedule
Beam tube: 8 km, ultra-high-vacuum compatible
A laser-interferometer gravitational-wave observatory being built at Aundha in Hingoli district, Maharashtra, as a joint project between India and the international LIGO laboratories. It will be the third detector of its kind, and pairing it with the two American sites is what allows a gravitational-wave signal to be triangulated to a patch of sky rather than a broad arc — the reason the project matters more than a third data point would suggest. The site is 174 acres chosen for low seismic noise, with two 4 km arms. Larsen & Toubro won the construction contract in February 2026, covering the civil works and the 8 km of ultra-high-vacuum beam tube, on a 48-month schedule; groundbreaking followed on 23 April 2026. The official target is 2030, though the project scientist has said it could finish sooner.