Birmingham Professor wins prestigious award for radar research

This summer, the German Institute of Navigation (DGON) recognised the contribution Professor Mikhail Cherniakov, Head of the Microwave Integrated Research Laboratory (MISL) at the University of Birmingham, has made to radar research by awarding him the first Christian Hülsmeyer Award at the 2017 International Radar Symposium.

The award was presented by Prof Dr Herman Rohling, President of the German Institute for Navigation, at an award ceremony held in Prague on Wednesday 28 June.

The Christian Hulsmeyer Award is an annual award recognising internationally leading work in the three areas of radar, research, teaching and experimentation.

The award is named after Christian Hülsmeyer, who patented and demonstrated the first radar system in 1904 as an anti-collision device for ships. Hülsmeyer’s work built on the fundamental theoretical work of the great mathematicians Carl Friedrich Gauss and James Clarke Maxwell, as well as the first practical demonstration of the transmission of radio waves by Heinrich Hertz.

Mikhail Cherniakov is Professor in Aerospace and Electronic Systems and is the Founder and Head of the Microwave Integrated System Laboratory (MISL), within the Department of Electronic, Electrical and Systems Engineering at the University of Birmingham. He heads the largest academic radar research group in the UK and directs research into a wide range of radar topics, including TeraHertz radar; automotive radar; passive satellite based radar; forward scatter radar; antennas; and signal processing.

Reflecting on his award, Professor Cherniakov said: “I feel proud that my contributions to the development of radar have been recognised by the German Institute of Navigation. The award was also a great opportunity to showcase the Microwave Integrated System Laboratory’s track record in developing cutting edge radar sensors and using them to develop solutions to real world challenges.”