Who is Shrinivas R Kulkarni, winner of the Shaw Prize in Astronomy?

Srinivas R Kulkkarni is Professor of Astronomy and Planetary Science in the Department of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy at Caltech.

New Delhi: In a major development, Indian-American professor Shrinivas R Kulkarni will be awarded the prestigious Shaw Prize for his contribution to the field of astronomy. Kulkarni’s groundbreaking discoveries of millisecond pulsars, gamma-ray bursts, supernovae and other variable or transient objects earned him this prestigious annual award.

The Shaw Prize is an international prize awarded in only three fields: astronomy, life sciences and medicine, and mathematical sciences. The Shaw Prize, also known as the Eastern Nobel Prize, was established in 2002.

Who is Shrinivas R. Kulkarni?

Srinivas R Kulkarni is Professor of Astronomy and Planetary Science in the Department of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy at Caltech. He also served as Director of the Optical Astronomy Observatory at Caltech from 2006 to 2018.

According to a resume posted by Caltech’s physics department, Kulkarni was born in a small town called “Kurundwad” in Maharashtra and grew up in “Hubbali” in Karnataka. He earned his master’s degree from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, in 1978, then moved to the United States to earn his PhD from the University of California.

In 1987, Kulkarni joined Caltech and remains a loyal servant of the institution.

Shrinivas R Kulkarni: Key findings

• Srinivas R Kulkarni began his career as a radio astronomer studying the Milky Way using HI absorption. He observed the four spiral arms of the Milky Way.
• Srinivas R Kulkarni also discovered the first millisecond pulsar, a magnetized neutron star with a rotation of less than 10 milliseconds, called PSR B1937+21.
• Srinivas R Kulkarni, in collaboration with NRAO (National Radio Astronomy Observatory) and ISAS (Institute of Space and Astronautics), discovered that soft gamma ray repeaters are neutron stars.
• Srinivas R Kulkarni has recently discovered new groups of optical transients such as superluminous supernovae, calcium novae and photon-red novae.

Shrinivas R. Kulkarni: Honors

Srinivas R Kulkarni received major accolades during his lifetime.

• Srinivas R Kulkarni received the National Science Foundation’s Alan T. Waterman Award in 1992.
• In 1991, Srinivas R Kulkarni received the Helen B. Warner Award of the American Astronomical Society.
• Srinivas R Kulkarni received an honorary doctorate from Radboud University in the Netherlands in 2015.