Richard O'Shaughnessy
Associate Professor
School of Mathematics and Statistics
College of Science
585-475-5965
Office Hours
Monday 2-4 By appointment
Office Location
Richard O'Shaughnessy
Associate Professor
School of Mathematics and Statistics
College of Science
Education
BA, Cornell University; Ph.D., California Institute of Technology
585-475-5965
Areas of Expertise
Gravitational Waves
Astrophysics
Computational Relativity and Gravitation
Black Holes
Mathematical Modeling
Select Scholarship
Journal Paper
Zlochower, Yosef, et al. "Hybrid Waveforms for Generic Precessing Binaries for Gravitational-wave Data Analysis." Physical Review. (2020): 11. Web.
Abbott, R., et al. "GW190521: A Binary Black Hole Merger with a Total Mass of 150 Msun." Physical Review Letters 125. 10 (2020): 101102. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, Richard Udall, and Karen Jani et al. "The American Astronomical Society, Find out More The Institute of Physics, find out more Inferring Parameters of GW170502: The Loudest Intermediate-mass Black Hole Trigger in LIGO\'s O1/O2 data." The Astrophysical Journal 900. 1 (2020): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "Hybrid Waveforms for Generic Precessing Binaries for Gravitational-wave Data Analysis." Physical Review D 102. (2020): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard and Daniel Wysocki et al. "Impact of Subdominant Modes on the Interpretation of Gravitational-wave Signals from Heavy Binary Black Hole Systems." Physical Review D 101. (2020): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, Prakash Nepal, and A Lundgren. "A Semianalytic Fisher Matrix for Precessing Binaries with a Single Significant Spin." Classical and Quantum Gravity 37. 11 (2020): n/a. Web.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "Monte Carlo Simulations of Black Hole Mergers in AGN Discs: Low \\chi_{\\rm eff}χ eff Mergers and Predictions for LIGO." Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 494. 1 (2020): 1203-1216. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and K. Belczynski et al. "The Formation of a 70 M ⊙ Black Hole at High Metallicity." The Astrophysical Journal 890. 2 (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Search for Multimessenger Sources of Gravitational Waves and High-energy Neutrinos with Advanced LIGO during Its First Observing Run, ANTARES, and IceCube." The Astrophysical Journal 870. 2 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and Jacob Lange et al. "Inferring Parameters of GW170502: The Loudest Intermediate-mass Black Hole Trigger in LIGO’s O1/O2 data." The Astrophysical Journal. (2020): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard, Daniel Wysocki, and Ben Farr et al. "Black Hole Coagulation: Modeling Hierarchical Mergers in Black Hole Populations." The Astrophysical Journal 893. 1 (2020): n/a. Web.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Optically Targeted Search for Gravitational Waves Emitted by Core-collapse Supernovae During the First and Second Observing Runs of Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo." Physical Review D 101. 8 (2019): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "Monte Carlo Simulations of Black Hole Mergers in AGN Discs: Low \\chi_{\\rm eff}χ eff Mergers and Predictions for LIGO." Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 494. 1 (2020): 1203-1216. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard and Jacob Lange et al. "Assessing and Marginalizing Over Compact Binary Coalescence Waveform Systematics with RIFT." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard, Patrick Brady, and Hong Qi. "Testing the Black Hole No-hair Theorem with Galactic Center Stellar Orbits." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Search for Gravitational Waves Associated with Gamma-Ray Bursts Detected by Fermi and Swift During the LIGO-Virgo Run O3a." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Population Properties of Compact Objects from the Second LIGO-Virgo Gravitational-Wave Transient Catalog." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Tests of General Relativity with Binary Black Holes from the second LIGO-Virgo Gravitational-Wave Transient Catalog." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "GWTC-2: Compact Binary Coalescences Observed by LIGO and Virgo During the First Half of the Third Observing Run." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Gravitational-wave Constraints on the Equatorial Ellipticity of Millisecond Pulsars." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "GW190521: A Binary Black Hole Merger with a Total Mass of 150 M☉." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, B. Mckernan, and K.E.S Ford. "Black Hole, Neutron Star and White Dwarf Merger Rates in AGN Disks." Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 498. 3 (2020): 4088-4094. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Prospects for Observing and Localizing Gravitational-wave Transients with Advanced LIGO, Advanced Virgo and KAGRA." Living Reviews in Relativity. (2020): n/a. Web.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "Application of the Third RIT Binary Black Hole Simulations Catalog to Parameter Estimation of Gravitational Waves Signals from the LIGO-Virgo O1/O2 Observational Runs." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and Jacob Lange et al. "Hubble Constant Measurement with GW190521 as an Eccentric Black Hole Merger." Astrophysics. (2020): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, P. Drozda, and K. Belczynski et al. "Black Hole - Neutron Star Mergers: The First Mass Gap and Kilonovae." Astrophysics. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "GW190521 as a Highly Eccentric Black Hole Merger." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Properties and Astrophysical Implications of the 150 M☉ Binary Black Hole Merger GW190521." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Combining Electromagnetic and Gravitational-Wave Constraints on Neutron-Star Masses and Radii." Solar and Stellar Astrophysics. (2020): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Erratum: "Searches for Gravitational Waves from Known Pulsars at Two Harmonics in 2015–2017 LIGO Data" (2019, ApJ, 879, 10)." The American Astronomical Society. (2020): n/a. Web.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Evolutionary Roads Leading to Low Effective Spins, High Black Hole Masses, and O1/O2 Rates for LIGO/Virgo Binary Black Holes." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "A Guide to LIGO-Virgo Detector Noise and Extraction of Transient Gravitational-wave Signals." Classical and Quantum Gravity 37. 5 (2020): n/a. Web.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Model Comparison from LIGO-Virgo Data on GW170817\'s Binary Components and Consequences for the Merger Remnant." Classical and Quantum Gravity 37. 4 (2020): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "Inferring the Neutron Star Equation of State Simultaneously with the Population of Merging Neutron Stars." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2020): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "IMR consistency tests with higher modes on gravitational signals from the second observing run of LIGO and Virgo." Classical and Quantum Gravity 36. 24 (2019): n/a. Web.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, Jacob Lange, and Daniel Wysocki. "Reconstructing phenomenological distributions of compact binaries via gravitational wave observations." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology 100. (2019): n/a. Web.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Wide nutation: binary black-hole spins repeatedly oscillating from full alignment to full anti-alignment." Classical and Quantum Gravity 36. 10 (2019): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "Accelerating parameter inference with graphics processing units." Physical Review D 99. (2019): n/a. Print.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Search for Gravitational Waves from a Long-lived Remnant of the Binary Neutron Star Merger GW170817." The Astrophysical Journal 875. 2 (2019): n/a. Web.
O\'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "Anisotropies in the Astrophysical Gravitational-Wave Background: The Impact of Black Hole Distributions." Physical Review Letters 122. (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "A Fermi Gamma-Ray Burst Monitor Search for Electromagnetic Signals Coincident with Gravitational-wave Candidates in Advanced LIGO's First Observing Run." The Astrophysical Journal 871. 1 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "A gravitational-wave measurement of the Hubble constant following the second observing run of Advanced LIGO and Virgo." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Search for gravitational waves from Scorpius X-1 in the second Advanced LIGO observing run with an improved hidden Markov model." Physical Review D 100. 12 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Search for intermediate mass black hole binaries in the first and second observing runs of the Advanced LIGO and Virgo network." Physical Review D 100. 6 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "All-Sky Search for Short Gravitational-Wave Bursts in the Second Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo Run." Physical Review D 100. 2 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Search for Subsolar Mass Ultracompact Binaries in Advanced LIGO’s Second Observing Run." Physical Review Letters 123. 16 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "All-sky search for long-duration gravitational-wave transients in the second Advanced LIGO observing run." Physical Review D 99. 10 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Directional limits on persistent gravitational waves using data from Advanced LIGO's first two observing runs." Physical Review D 100. 6 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "IMR consistency tests with higher modes on gravitational signals from the second observing run of LIGO and Virgo." Classical and Quantum Gravity 36. 24 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Tests of General Relativity with the Binary Black Hole Signals from the LIGO-Virgo Catalog GWTC-1." Physical Review D 100. 10 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Gravity and Light: Combining Gravitational Wave and Electromagnetic Observations in the 2020s." Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics. (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Search for the isotropic stochastic background using data from Advanced LIGO’s second observing run." Physical Review D 100. 6 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "All-sky search for continuous gravitational waves from isolated neutron stars using Advanced LIGO O2 data." Physical Review D 100. 2 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Searches for Gravitational Waves from Known Pulsars at Two Harmonics in 2015-2017 LIGO Data." The Astrophysical Journal 899. 2 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Narrow-band search for gravitational waves from known pulsars using the second LIGO observing run." Physical Review D 99. 12 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "Accelerating parameter inference with graphics processing units." Physical Review D 99. 8 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Search for Transient Gravitational-wave Signals Associated with Magnetar Bursts during Advanced LIGO’s Second Observing Run." The Astrophysical Journal 874. 2 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Low-latency Gravitational-wave Alerts for Multimessenger Astronomy during the Second Advanced LIGO and Virgo Observing Run." The Astrophysical Journal 875. 2 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "First Measurement of the Hubble Constant from a Dark Standard Siren using the Dark Energy Survey Galaxies and the LIGO/Virgo Binary–Black-hole Merger GW170814." The Astrophysical Journal 876. 1 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. (The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations). "Open data from the first and second observing runs of Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Hierarchical Black Hole Mergers in Active Galactic Nuclei." Physical Review Letters 123. 18 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "On the properties of the massive binary black hole merger GW170729." General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology. (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Search for Gravitational-wave Signals Associated with Gamma-Ray Bursts during the Second Observing Run of Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo." The Astrophysical Journal 886. 1 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Search for Eccentric Binary Black Hole Mergers with Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo during Their First and Second Observing Runs." The Astrophysical Journal 883. 2 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Binary Black Hole Population Properties Inferred from the First and Second Observing Runs of Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo." The Astrophysical Journal Letters 882. 2 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Erratum: “Searches for Gravitational Waves from Known Pulsars at Two Harmonics in 2015-2017 LIGO Data” () 2019, ApJ, 879, 10." The Astrophysical Journal 882. 1 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "GWTC-1: A Gravitational-Wave Transient Catalog of Compact Binary Mergers Observed by LIGO and Virgo during the First and Second Observing Runs." Physical Review X 9. 3 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Tests of General Relativity with GW170817." Physical Review Letters 123. 1 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard, et al. "Second RIT binary black hole simulations catalog and its application to gravitational waves parameter estimation." Physical Review D 100. 2 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Multiband gravitational-wave event rates and stellar physics." Physical Review D 99. 10 (2019): n/a. Web.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Radio Counterparts of Compact Object Mergers in the Era of Gravitational-Wave Astronomy." The American Astronomical Society 51. 3 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Searches for Continuous Gravitational Waves from 15 Supernova Remnants and Fomalhaut b with Advanced LIGO." The Astrophysical Journal 875. 2 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Astro2020 Science White Paper: Radio Counterparts of Compact Object Mergers in the Era of Gravitational-Wave Astronomy." Astrophysics. (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Constraining the p -Mode-g -Mode Tidal Instability with GW170817." Physical Review Letters 122. 6 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "Properties of the Binary Neutron Star Merger GW170817." Physical Review X 9. 1 (2019): n/a. Print.
O'Shaughnessy, Richard and et al. "ngVLA Key Science Goal 5 Understanding the Formation and Evolution of Black Holes in the Era of Multi-Messenger Astronomy." American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #233. (2019): n/a. Print.
Coughlin, , et al. "Constraints on the Neutron Star Equation of State from AT2017gfo Using Radiative Transfer Simulations." MNRAS 480. (2018): 3871. Print.
Veitch, John, et al. "Robust Parameter Estimation for Compact Binaries With Ground-based Gravitational-wave Observations Using LALInference." Physical Review D 91. (2015): 42003. Print.
Huerta, Eliu, et al. "Accurate and Efficient Waveforms for Compact Binaries on Eccentric Orbits." Physical Review D 90. (2014): 84016. Print.
Aasi, J, et al. "Improved Upper Limits on the Stochastic Gravitational-Wave Background from 2009-2010 LIGO and Virgo Data." Physical Review Letters 113. 23 (2014): 1101. Print.
Aartsen, , et al. "Multimessenger Search for Sources of Gravitational Waves and High-energy Neutrinos: Initial Results for LIGO-Virgo and IceCube." Physical Review D 90. (2014): 102002. Print.
Aasi, J, et al. "First All-sky Search for Continuous Gravitational Waves from Unknown Sources in Binary Systems." Physical Review D 90. 6 (2014): 62010. Print.
Currently Teaching
ASTP-619
Fundamentals of Theoretical Astrophysics II
3 Credits
This course will provide students with the in-depth background on Classical, Statistical, and Nuclear physics required for modeling many astrophysical systems. Particular attention is paid to topics related to the physics of stellar remnants (e.g., white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes) and the physics of compact object mergers.
ASTP-790
Research & Thesis
1 - 3 Credits
Masters-level research by the candidate on an appropriate topic as arranged between the candidate and the research advisor.
ASTP-791
Continuation of Thesis
0 Credits
Continuation of Thesis
ASTP-890
Research & Thesis
1 - 6 Credits
Dissertation research by the candidate for an appropriate topic as arranged between the candidate and the research advisor.
ASTP-891
Continuation of Thesis
0 Credits
Continuation of Thesis
IMGS-740
Imaging Science MS Systems Project Paper
3 Credits
The analysis and solution of imaging science systems problems for students enrolled in the MS Project capstone paper option.
IMGS-890
Research & Thesis
1 - 6 Credits
Doctoral-level research by the candidate on an appropriate topic as arranged between the candidate and the research advisor.
IMGS-891
Continuation of Thesis
0 Credits
Continuation of Thesis
MATH-251
Probability and Statistics
3 Credits
This course introduces sample spaces and events, axioms of probability, counting techniques, conditional probability and independence, distributions of discrete and continuous random variables, joint distributions (discrete and continuous), the central limit theorem, descriptive statistics, interval estimation, and applications of probability and statistics to real-world problems. A statistical package such as Minitab or R is used for data analysis and statistical applications.
MATH-790
Research & Thesis
0 - 9 Credits
Masters-level research by the candidate on an appropriate topic as arranged between the candidate and the research advisor.
PHYS-790
Graduate Research & Thesis
1 - 4 Credits
Graduate-level research by the candidate on an appropriate topic as arranged between the candidate and the research advisor.
In the News
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June 12, 2023
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Gravitational-wave detectors start next observing run to explore the secrets of the universe
According to scientists from across the globe—including those working on the project from RIT—this observing run by the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA (LVK) collaboration features upgraded instruments, new and even more accurate signal models, and more advanced data analysis methods.
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March 22, 2023
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RIT honors 14 researchers added to prestigious PI Millionaires group
RIT faculty members, who led research initiatives as principal investigators, were honored at a reception on March 21 to celebrate the individuals who helped the university reach record awards surpassing $92 million and place among the top private research universities in the country.
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January 27, 2023
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RIT scientists reach a milestone in the search for continuous gravitational waves
Scientists on the hunt for a previously undetected type of gravitational waves believe they are getting close and have refined techniques to use in upcoming observational runs. Researchers from the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA Collaboration outlined the most sensitive search to date for continuous gravitational waves from a promising source in a paper recently published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters.
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June 29, 2021
Team presents at ‘Quarks to Cosmos’ meeting
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January 27, 2021
Team publishes study on gravitational wave observations