Friday, July 17, the project Einstein Telescope (ET) and Sardinia's candidacy to host it, with the site in the Sos Enattos area, were under the spotlight in Nuoro and Lula. Sardinia and Lusatia, the Saxony region, Germany, have jointly taken a new step towards ET, the future third-generation European observatory for gravitational waves. The main Italian and German research institutions involved in this research have signed, in Nuoro, a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) to strengthen scientific cooperation between the two candidacies and promote the construction of the infrastructure in the so-called "double L" (2L) configuration.
The signing ceremony, which took place at the end of a scientific workshop hosted by the Ethnographic Museum of Sardinia, involved theNational Institute of Nuclear Physics (INFN), L 'National Institute of Astrophysics (INAF), L 'Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV), the Technical University of Dresden and Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)The agreement, which follows the declaration of intent signed in January 2026 in Rome at the headquarters of the Ministry of University and Research, From Autonomous Region of Sardinia and by Free State of Saxony, has confirmed its intention to submit a joint application based on the 2L geometry, which envisages the construction of two interferometers, one in Sardinia and one in Lusatia. The proposal aims to leverage the geological characteristics and scientific expertise of the two regions, maximizing ET's scientific potential and consolidating European cooperation in frontier research.
The presidents of INFN, INAF and INGV attended the ceremony, Anthony Clogs, Roberto Ragazzoni e Fabio Florindo, the vice-rector for research and technology transfer at the Technical University of Dresden, Angela Rösen-Wolff, the co-scientific leader of the feasibility study for the Einstein Telescope in Lusatia, Christian Stegmann, the president of the Sardinia Region, Alessandra Todd, the State Secretary of the Saxon Ministry of Science, Heike Graßmann, the mayors of Nuoro and Lula, Emiliano Fenu e Mario Calia, and the mayor of the Saxon town of Ralbitz-Rosenthal, Hubertus Rietscher. Furthermore, during the morning, a short message from the Minister of University and Research was read, Anna Maria Bernini.
On the sidelines of the ceremony, a document was also signed a collaboration agreement between the Sardinia Region and the Umbria Region, in the presence of the presidents Alessandra Todd e Stefania Proietti.
In the afternoon the attention shifted to Squid, in the heart of the candidate site of SOS Enattos, where it was inaugurated the information point dedicated to the Einstein Telescope, at the “Giovanni Paolo II” Hall, in via Karl Marx 1. The day ended at the former Sos Enattos mine with the launch event of the future ET-SUnLab research center, construction of which is expected to start in the next few weeks.
«Today marks an important step forward in our bid to host the Einstein Telescope on our island. We have strengthened our collaboration with Saxony thanks to the Italian and German scientific communities, who today further cemented the agreement signed in January in Rome to pursue a joint bid. We have established a Sardinia-Umbria cooperation program, useful both for ET and to promote, support, and enhance scientific research and technological innovation through the development of specific joint projects and initiatives.he concludes Alessandra Todd (President of the Autonomous Region of Sardinia). Finally, we have validated the efforts we've made and the actions we've undertaken over the past two years with the inauguration of the ET information point in Lula and the launch of the construction site for the ET-SUnLab in Sos Enattos. In addition to having the best site, every day we're strengthening the infrastructure and technology base that will increase our chances of being a candidate..
The signing of this agreement represents a significant step because Sardinia and Saxony consolidate their commitment to submit a joint candidacy and cooperate to offer Europe the most scientifically sound and programmatically reliable solution. In light of the studies conducted to date, we are convinced that the construction of the Einstein Telescope using two L-shaped interferometric detectors guarantees the best conditions for the project's success. This vision goes beyond the collaboration between the two candidate sites and paves the way for a truly European research infrastructure, involving all partners in the creation of a large distributed network for gravitational wave research, with laboratories, technological infrastructure, and scientific activities in different countries, within which each will have the opportunity to contribute their expertise and draw value from it., explains Anthony Clogs, president of the INFN. "A great research infrastructure can only be born from great collaboration: this is how science works, and only in this way can we provide Europe with a unique scientific instrument, capable of producing new knowledge and consolidating Europe's leadership in fundamental research for decades to come.".
Today we are witnessing the best that Europe has to offer. With the signing of this agreement, two of Europe's most suitable and seismically stable regions, Sardinia and Lusatia, are joining forces to pursue one of the most ambitious scientific goals of our time by developing the most advanced technologies to detect the smallest ripples in space-time., points out Roberto Ragazzoni, president of INAF. The same spirit of curiosity that drove Galileo to gaze heavenward continues to inspire discovery and promote technological, economic, and social progress. Our quest to observe the events that have shaped the Universe—from the merging of black holes to spectacular phenomena like kilonovae—is not just about satisfying humanity's curiosity. It also aims to advance technology, strengthen European scientific cooperation, and create opportunities whose impact is still unforeseeable. This is fundamental research at its finest: history has shown us that its greatest achievements often exceed our expectations and open entirely new horizons..
The signing of this Memorandum represents an important step in the journey we are building together with our Saxon partners. Major research infrastructures are born not only from scientific excellence, but also from the ability to pool skills, experiences, and shared goals.Says Fabio Florindo, president of the INGV. INGV brings to this collaboration the wealth of knowledge it has gained from studying the Earth and its subsurface. For an infrastructure like the Einstein Telescope, the geological and geophysical characterization of the site is essential, and we have been working on it for many years with scientific rigor and a long-term vision. I believe the value of this agreement goes beyond the preparation of the respective applications. It is a concrete example of how collaboration between research institutions can strengthen Europe's role in major scientific challenges and create new opportunities for development and innovation for the regions involved..
"The Memorandum represents another milestone in our collaboration as candidate regions for the European Einstein Telescope project. Sardinia and Saxony share a common vision for this unique research infrastructure.", keep it going Sebastian Gemkov, Saxony's State Minister for Science, Culture and Tourism. "The agreement signed by leading Italian and German research institutions strengthens our joint bid to host an underground gravitational wave observatory, while deepening scientific cooperation beyond national borders.".
Our cooperation on the Einstein Telescope will become even closer in the years to come. It will go far beyond the construction of research infrastructure at our two sites, creating a bridge between science, innovation, and people across Europe., he adds Christian Stegmann co-director of the Einstein Telescope Lusatia.
"The cooperation agreement represents an important milestone in Lusatia's quest to host the Einstein Telescope. It underscores the European dimension of this unique research project and demonstrates our ambition to promote scientific excellence beyond national borders.", highlights Ursula Staudinger, rector of the Technical University of Dresden. As a leading university, the TU Dresden offers its strengths in areas such as high-performance computing, AI-supported data analysis, optoelectronics, and precision measurement. At the same time, the Einstein Telescope offers an extraordinary opportunity to further develop key technologies. We wholeheartedly support this joint European application..
Useful links:
Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)
Center for Geophysical Characterization for the Einstein Telescope (CCGET)
Photo 1 - Ribbon-cutting ceremony at Lula's Infopoint.
Photo 2 - SUnLab Project Launch Ceremony
Photo 3 - Group photo during the day on July 17th.