2023 McCrea Lecture: 'The Era of Multi-Messenger Astronomy'

About the lecture

Astronomer Professor Gregg Hallinan will give a talk on ‘The Era of Multi-Messenger Astronomy’, followed by a Q&A chaired by Dr Deirdre Coffey, Assistant Professor of Astrophysics and Space Science, University College Dublin.

Gregg Hallinan will introduce the topic of multi-messenger astronomy, including recent breakthroughs and future promise. He will also introduce one of the key upcoming telescopes for multi-messenger astronomy, the 2000-antenna Deep Synoptic Array (DSA-2000) radio telescope. The DSA-2000 will commence construction next year and will be the world's most powerful survey radio telescope, with a significant fraction of observing time dedicated to multi-messenger astronomy.

About the McCrea Lecture Series

The McCrea Lecture 2023 is held in honour of William McCrea MRIA (1904-1999), an eminent and influential astronomer. Last held in 2019, the McCrea Lecture has been a highlight on the astronomy enthusiasts’ calendars as it is an opportunity for people from various backgrounds, disciplines and professions to come together to discuss news and progress within space science.

The Astronomical Society of Ireland (ASI), founded in 1974, is a learned society that represents the interests of astronomers in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland by promoting research, education, and outreach. Consisting of a number of affiliated universities and other organisation representatives, the society is one of the oldest cross-border bodies on the island of Ireland.

About our speaker

Gregg Hallinan is a Professor of Astronomy at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and Director of the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO). His group searches for new and variable sources that appear in the radio sky. These include the electromagnetic counterparts of gravitational wave events and the magnetospheres of exoplanets. He has led the development of a new generation of radio telescopes, optimized for time domain and multi-messenger science, including the upcoming 2000-antenna Deep Synoptic Array (DSA-2000), which will be the world's most powerful survey radio telescope. Gregg completed his PhD at the University of Galway and moved to the US as a Jansky Fellow at the University of California Berkeley before joining the faculty at Caltech in 2012. He is a recipient of a Sloan Fellowship and the 2022 New Horizons in Physics Breakthrough Prize.

About our Chair

Dr Deirdre Coffey is an Assistant Professor of Astrophysics and Space Science at the UCD School of Physics, as well as a member of the RIA Physical, Chemical and Mathematical Sciences committee. Her research interests are in the field of star and planet formation, using world-class telescopes of the European Space Agency and the European Southern Observatory. Dr Coffey is also an Adjunct Fellow at the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS), in the School of Cosmic Physics. She completed her PhD at Trinity College Dublin.

This event is organised by the Royal Irish Academy’s Physical, Chemical and Mathematical Sciences committee and the Astronomical Society of Ireland. The RIA would like to thank Terry Moseley, the ASI Amateur Astronomer Representative, for his generous support of this event.