Kimberly Prather, an atmospheric chemist at UC San Diego, is one of 20 scientists being honored by the National Academy of Sciences for extraordinary achievements, it was announced Monday.
Prather was awarded the 2024 NAS Award in Chemical Sciences, which recognizes her research for “revolutionizing our understanding of atmospheric aerosols and their impact on air quality, climate, and human health.”
Her research focuses on natural and human-made aerosol particles and how these particles influence the atmosphere, climate and human health, according to a statement from UCSD. Early in her career, she developed a technique known as aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometry that provides real-time information on the size, chemical composition, and sources of individual aerosol particles — instruments of which are now widely used in atmospheric field studies around the world.
“Professor Prather is one of the most distinguished aerosol chemists in the world and this honor recognizes that her work stands out amongst all research in chemistry,” said Margaret Leinen, vice chancellor for marine sciences at UCSD and director of Scripps Oceanography. “The award also highlights the importance of Professor Prather’s work for humanity, calling attention to the role of aerosols in air quality, health and climate. We are proud that she has been able to do so much of this groundbreaking work at UC San Diego.”
Prather is a distinguished chair in atmospheric chemistry with joint appointments at Scripps and the department of chemistry and biochemistry, and is the founding director of the National Science Foundation Center for Aerosol Impacts on Chemistry of the Environment.
She is leading research on the transfer of coastal water pollution via sea spray aerosols in Imperial Beach, which continues to face the impacts of pollution from sewage spills in Tijuana.
In a 2023 study, Prather and colleagues used DNA sequencing and mass spectrometry to link bacteria and chemical compounds in coastal aerosols back to the sewage-polluted Tijuana River flowing into coastal waters, according to UCSD. The research led to the creation of the Meta-Institute for Airborne Disease in a Changing Climate — The Airborne Institute — at UCSD in March 2023, with Prather serving as co-director.
Additionally, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, she was a leading voice in communicating about airborne transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. This included teaming up with a coalition of scientists to “publish a call for clearer public health guidance on the role of aerosol transmission, submitting letters to leaders in the Biden Administration to address inhalation exposure of the virus, and delivering an air-filtration device to the White House to advocate for cleaning the air,” according to the university.
“Professor Prather has fundamentally changed how we think about clean air and human health,” said Dean of Physical Sciences Christine Hrycyna. “Her work on aerosols during the COVID-19 pandemic helped doctors, scientists and policy-makers understand how to slow transmission. This highly prestigious award from the National Academy of Sciences celebrates her innovative research and is exceptionally well-deserved.”
The winners will be honored in a ceremony during the National Academy of Sciences 161st annual meeting in April 2024.
City News Service contributed to this article.