Observational limit on gravitational waves from binary neutron stars in the Galaxy

Using optimal matched filtering, we search 25 hours of data from the LIGO 40-m prototype laser interferometric gravitational-wave detector for gravitational-wave chirps emitted by coalescing binary systems within our Galaxy. This is the first test of this filtering technique on real interferometric data. An upper limit on the rate R of neutron star binary inspirals in our Galaxy is obtained: with 90% confidence, R < 0.5 h(-1). Similar experiments with LIGO interferometers will provide constraints on the population of tight binary neutron star systems in the Universe.