Caltech professor to head Palomar Observatory

For astrophysicist Mansi Kasliwal, her appointment to the historic Palomar Observatory as the new director was a full-circle moment.

The California Institute of Technology announced her new position on Sept. 26, making her the first woman to lead the San Diego-based facility.

As a professor in Caltech’s astronomy department for a decade, Kasliwal first came to the observatory as a graduate student pursuing her doctorate in astrophysics.

“In many ways, I learned my ABC’s of astronomy at Palomar,” Kasliwal said in an interview. “So, my roots in astronomy are very closely connected to Palomar. I consider it my second home, my professional home.”

Kasliwal’s research experience has primarily focused on the discovery of new stars and cosmic fireworks, a term used to describe astronomical flashes that often resemble the fireworks we see on Earth. By utilizing Palomar’s three active research telescopes, including the famous 200-inch Hale Telescope, Kasliwal and her team undertake celestial cinematography in order to study and characterize different forms of cosmic fireworks.

“The fundamental question we’re trying to answer with this study is: where do the elements that you and I are made up of come from? How are they actually synthesized?,” she said. “Many of these [elements] are synthesized in these fleeting moments, which are cosmic fireworks, and you can see them in the act of being formed when you discover and characterize them.”

Kasliwal has published more than 480 articles in the field and was awarded the New Horizons in Physics Prize in 2022 for her leadership in “laying foundations for electromagnetic observations of sources of gravitational waves and leadership in extracting rich information from the first observed collision of two neutron stars,” according to Breakthrough Prize.

Celebrating its 77th anniversary this year, the Palomar Observatory has long served as a hub for astronomical research with longstanding domestic and international collaborations, including the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. The observatory has also been “excellent training grounds” for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows with some becoming Nobel laureates after working on doctorate theses at Palomar, Kasliwal said.

“For the past decade, I’ve had the pleasure of mentoring students whose PhD theses were at Palomar and mentoring postdoctoral fellows,” she said. “This is a great opportunity to more officially lead the scientific and strategic charge for the observatory.”

This past year, President Donald Trump and his administration have cut several federal grants for research across various fields in higher education institutions nationwide. Trump’s administration has cited what it calls waste and inefficiency in federal science spending, fueling deep cuts to staff levels and grant funding at the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, NASA and other agencies.

“Nationwide, the government has terminated hundreds of ongoing research grants that support work that the administration doesn’t like, and President Trump has released a budget proposal that calls for large reductions in funding for federal agencies that support university research,” a press release from Caltech’s Office of the President stated in June. “This includes core missions led by JPL and operation of our offsite observatories.”

Kasliwal said “it is indeed turbulent times” navigating the federal funding landscape. “But that said, I think the work that is done in Palomar Observatory has been very generously and kindly supported by philanthropists and private foundations,” she added. “We are hopeful that the combination of some continued federal funding, but also philanthropy, private foundations and worldwide partnerships will help us steer through the turbulence.”

As incoming director, Kasliwal said her main goal is to “keep the observatory scientifically vibrant and at the forefront of science.” Her priorities include supporting the observatory’s staff and embracing emerging technologies in the field.

“It’s now a little bit more on me to make sure [staff] are also happy and love what they do,” Kasliwal said. “And … to embrace new technologies, both hardware technologies and software technologies, to really apply that to astrophysics, so that we can unlock the mysteries of the dynamic universe.”

The Palomar Observatory is open to the public, offering a museum and guided tours of the facility. More information can be found on its website.

Camelia Heins is a Southern California freelance writer.