Indian-American scientist wins prestigious Shaw Prize for Astronomy research

The annual Shaw Prize in Astronomy will be awarded to US professor of astronomy Shrinivas R. Kulkarni, who is of Indian descent, for his groundbreaking research on millisecond pulsars, gamma-ray bursts, supernovae, and other variable or transitory astronomical events.

Other Shaw Prize recipients include US scientists Peter Sarnak, who received the Shaw Prize in Mathematical Sciences, and Swee Lay Thein and Stuart Orkin, who received the Shaw Prize in Life Science and Medicine in equal shares. Kulkarni is the George Ellery Hale Professor of Astronomy and Planetary Science in the Division of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy at the California Institute of Technology.

“The Shaw Prize in Astronomy is awarded to Shrinivas R Kulkarni, for his ground-breaking discoveries about millisecond pulsars, gamma-ray bursts, supernovae, and other variable or transient astronomical objects. His contributions to time-domain astronomy culminated in the conception, construction and leadership of the Palomar Transient Factory and its successor, the Zwicky Transient Facility, which has revolutionised our understanding of the time-variable optical sky,” The Shaw Prize Foundation said on Tuesday here while announcing the Shaw Laureates for 2024.

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“The Shaw Prize consists of three annual prizes: Astronomy, Life Science and Medicine, and Mathematical Sciences, each bearing a monetary award of USD 1.2 million. This will be the 21st year that the Prize has been awarded and the presentation ceremony is scheduled for Tuesday, November 12 in Hong Kong,” the Foundation said.

As per the biographical information available on the Division of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy webpage at Caltech, Kulkarni completed his Master of Science degree from the Indian Institute of Technology in 1978 and went on to earn his PhD from the University of California in 1983. Among his many accomplishments, from 2006 to 2018, he served as the director of Caltech Optical Observatories.

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Run Run Shaw (1907–2014), a philanthropist and well-known figure in Hong Kong film and television, established the Shaw Foundation Hong Kong and The Sir Run Run Shaw Charitable Trust, two organizations devoted to advancing education, science and technology research, healthcare and social services, as well as the arts and culture. These organizations are listed on The Shaw Prize website.