Kicking gravitational wave detectors with recoiling black holes

Understand

Binary black holes emit gravitational radiation with net linear momentum leading to a retreat of the final remnant black hole that can reach up to $\sim5,000$ km/s.

• Full numerical relativity simulations are the only tool to accurately compute these recoils since they are largely produced when the black hole horizons are about to merge and they are strongly dependent on their spin orientations at that moment.
• We present eight new numerical simulations of BBH in the hangup-kick configuration family, leading to the maximum recoil.
• Black holes are equal mass and near maximally spinning ($|\vec{S}_{1,2}|/m_{1,2}^2=0.97$).