One of the key science goals of advanced gravitational-wave detectors is to
observe a stochastic gravitational-wave background. However, recent work
demonstrates that correlated magnetic fields from Schumann resonances can
produce correlated strain noise over global distances, potentially limiting the
sensitivity of stochastic background searches with advanced detectors. In this
paper, we estimate the correlated noise budget for the worldwide Advanced LIGO
network and conclude that correlated noise may affect upcoming measurements. We
investigate the possibility of a Wiener filtering scheme to subtract correlated
noise from Advanced LIGO searches, and estimate the required specifications. We
also consider the possibility that residual correlated noise remains following
subtraction, and we devise an optimal strategy for measuring astronomical
parameters in the presence of correlated noise. Using this new formalism, we
estimate the loss of sensitivity for a broadband, isotropic stochastic
background search using 1 yr of LIGO data at design sensitivity. Given our
current noise budget, the uncertainty with which LIGO can estimate energy
density will likely increase by a factor of ~4--if it is impossible to achieve
significant subtraction. Additionally, narrowband cross-correlation searches
may be severely affected at low frequencies f < 45 Hz without effective
subtraction.Comment: 16 pages, 8 figure
