Mulrey is a leading expert in this field and played a key role in multiple studies to understand these radio signals. She designed and implemented new measuring instruments and developed innovative methods to enable detections.
She is co-PI of the LOFAR cosmic-ray key science project, project leader within the Radar Echo Telescope and in the founding group to develop a cosmic-ray program at the Square Kilometer Array Observatory site in Australia. She made a number of contributions to the radio detection of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays and neutrinos, including via a balloon-borne antenna in Antarctica and an idea for a portable antenna array for calibration of air shower observatories. Additionally, she developed a method to calibrate radio antennas using the Milky Way as a reference and is a member of the Radio Neutrino Observatory Greenland and the Pierre Auger Observatory.
Besides her scientific achievements, Dr Mulrey is committed to educational and outreach activities. She chairs the Dutch Astronomy Inclusion and Equality Committee, where she works towards a more accessible and diverse academic environment.
MERAC Prizes
The MERAC Prizes are awarded by the European Astronomical Society (EAS). The prize includes a monetary award of €25,000. In addition, winners are invited to deliver a plenary lecture at the annual meeting of the European Astronomical Society in 2025, which will take place from 23 to 27 June 2025 in Cork, Ireland.
About Katharine Mulrey
Dr Mulrey obtained her doctorate from the University of Delaware and continued her career as a postdoc at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. After receiving an independent grant from FWO Flanders, she joined uu77 as an Assistant Professor in 2021 and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2024.
Her impressive list of distinctions includes the Langerhuizen Stipendium from the Royal Holland Society of Sciences and Humanities, the Anniversary Prize of the Network of Women Professors Radboud in 2023, and a NOVA grant in 2024 for the development of particle detectors for the Square Kilometre Array.