This list of astronomy awards is an index to articles about notable awards for contributions to astronomy. The list is organized by region and country of the sponsoring organization, but awards are not necessarily limited to people from that country.
Award | Sponsor | Country | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Petrie Prize Lecture | Canadian Astronomical Society | Canada | Outstanding astrophysicist [1] |
National Prize for Exact Sciences | National Prize for Sciences | Chile | e.g., Astronomy, physics, mathematics [2] |
Annie Jump Cannon Award in Astronomy | American Astronomical Society | United States | Woman resident of North America, within five years of receipt of a Ph.D., for distinguished contributions to astronomy or for similar contributions in related sciences which have immediate application to astronomy [3] |
Barringer Medal | Meteoritical Society | United States | Outstanding work in the field of impact cratering and/or work that has led to a better understanding of impact phenomena [4] |
Beatrice M. Tinsley Prize | American Astronomical Society | United States | Outstanding research contribution to astronomy or astrophysics of an exceptionally creative or innovative character [5] |
Brouwer Award | Division on Dynamical Astronomy, American Astronomical Society | United States | Outstanding lifetime achievement in the field of dynamical astronomy [6] |
Bruce Medal | Astronomical Society of the Pacific | United States | Outstanding lifetime contributions to astronomy [7] |
Bruno Rossi Prize | High Energy Astrophysics division, American Astronomical Society | United States | Significant contribution to High Energy Astrophysics, with particular emphasis on recent, original work [8] |
Carl Sagan Medal | Division for Planetary Sciences, American Astronomical Society | United States | Outstanding communication by an active planetary scientist to the general public [9] |
Carl Sagan Memorial Award | American Astronautical Society / The Planetary Society | United States | Leadership in research or policies advancing exploration of the Cosmos [10] |
Chambliss Amateur Achievement Award | American Astronomical Society | United States | Achievement in astronomical research made by an amateur astronomer resident in North America [11] [12] |
Chambliss Astronomical Writing Award | American Astronomical Society | United States | For astronomy writing for an academic audience [13] |
Clifford W. Holmes Award | RTMC Astronomy Expo | United States | Individual for a significant contribution to popularizing astronomy [14] |
Dannie Heineman Prize for Astrophysics | American Astronomical Society / American Institute of Physics | United States | Outstanding work in astrophysics [15] |
Edgar Wilson Award | Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory | United States | Amateur comet discoverers [16] [17] [18] |
George Ellery Hale Prize | Solar Physics Division, American Astronomical Society | United States | Outstanding contributions over an extended period of time to the field of solar astronomy [19] |
George Van Biesbroeck Prize | American Astronomical Society | United States | Long-term extraordinary or unselfish service to astronomy, often beyond the requirements of his or her paid position [20] |
Gerard P. Kuiper Prize | Division for Planetary Sciences, American Astronomical Society | United States | Outstanding lifetime achievement in the field of planetary science [21] |
Gordon A. McKay Award | Meteoritical Society | United States | Student who gives the best oral presentation at its annual meeting [22] |
Gordon Myers Amateur Achievement Award | Astronomical Society of the Pacific | United States | Significant contributions to astronomy or amateur astronomy by those not employed in the field of astronomy in a professional capacity [23] [24] [25] |
Gruber Prize in Cosmology | Gruber Foundation / International Astronomical Union | United States | Discoveries leading to fundamental advances in our understanding of the universe [26] |
Harold C. Urey Prize | Division for Planetary Sciences, American Astronomical Society | United States | Outstanding achievements in planetary science by a young scientist [27] |
Helen B. Warner Prize for Astronomy | American Astronomical Society | United States | Young astronomer (aged less than 36, or within 8 years of the award of their PhD) for a significant contribution to observational or theoretical astronomy [28] |
Henry Draper Medal | National Academy of Sciences | United States | For investigations in astronomical physics [29] [30] [31] [32] [33] |
Henry Norris Russell Lectureship | American Astronomical Society | United States | Lifetime of excellence in astronomical research [34] |
J. Lawrence Smith Medal | National Academy of Sciences | United States | Investigations of meteoric bodies [35] |
James Craig Watson Medal | National Academy of Sciences | United States | Contributions to astronomy [36] |
Jessberger Award | Meteoritical Society | United States | Outstanding research by a mid-career, female isotope geochemist [37] |
Jonathan Eberhart Planetary Sciences Journalism Award | Division for Planetary Sciences | United States | Recognize and stimulate distinguished popular writing on planetary sciences [38] [39] |
Joseph Weber Award for Astronomical Instrumentation | American Astronomical Society | United States | Design, invention or significant improvement of instrumentation leading to advances in astronomy [40] |
Karen Harvey Prize | American Astronomical Society | United States | Significant contribution to the study of the Sun early in a person's professional career [41] |
Klumpke-Roberts Award | Astronomical Society of the Pacific | United States | Outstanding contributions to the public understanding and appreciation of astronomy [42] |
LeRoy E. Doggett Prize | American Astronomical Society | United States | Individuals who have significantly influenced the field of the history of astronomy by a career-long effort [43] |
Leonard Medal | Meteoritical Society | United States | Outstanding contributions to the science of meteoritics and closely allied fields [44] |
Leslie C. Peltier Award | Astronomical League | United States | Amateur astronomer who has contributed observations of lasting significance [45] |
Marc Aaronson Memorial Lectureship | University of Arizona | United States | Individual or group who ... has produced a body of work in observational astronomy which has resulted in a significant deepening of our understanding of the universe [46] |
Marcel Grossmann Award | International Center for Relativistic Astrophysics | Rome, Italy | Institutions and individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to astrophysics. [47] |
Masursky Award | Division for Planetary Sciences, American Astronomical Society | United States | Outstanding service to planetary science and exploration through engineering, managerial, programmatic, or public service activities [48] |
Meteoritical Society's Service Award | Meteoritical Society | United States | Promote research and education in meteoritics and planetary science in ways other than by conducting scientific research [49] |
Newton Lacy Pierce Prize in Astronomy | American Astronomical Society | United States | Young (less than age 36) astronomer for outstanding achievement in observational astronomical research [50] |
Nier Prize | Meteoritical Society | United States | Outstanding research in meteoritics and closely allied fields by young scientists [51] |
Nininger Meteorite Award | Center for Meteorite Studies, Arizona State University | United States | Outstanding student achievement in the “Science of Meteoritics” as embodied by an original research paper [52] |
Paul Pellas-Graham Ryder Award | Meteoritical Society, Geological Society of America | United States | Best planetary science paper, published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, and written by an undergraduate or graduate student (as first author) [53] |
Richard H. Emmons Award | Astronomical Society of the Pacific | United States | Outstanding achievement in teaching college-level introductory astronomy classes for non-science majors. [54] |
Rittenhouse Medal | Rittenhouse Astronomical Society | United States | Outstanding achievement in the science of Astronomy [55] |
Robert J. Trumpler Award | Astronomical Society of the Pacific | United States | Recent recipient of the Ph.D degree whose thesis is judged particularly significant to astronomy [56] |
Vera Rubin Early Career Prize | Division on Dynamical Astronomy of the American Astronomical Society | United States | Excellence in dynamical astronomy [57] |
Whipple Award | Planetary Sciences Section, American Geophysical Union | United States | Outstanding contribution to the field of planetary science [58] |
Award | Sponsor | Country | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Aryabhata Award | Astronautical Society of India | India | Notable lifetime contributions in the field of astronautics and aerospace technology in India [59] [60] |
Kyoto Prize in Basic Sciences | Inamori Foundation | Japan | Earth and planetary sciences, astronomy and astrophysics (one of four prizes) [61] [62] |
Shaw Prize | Shaw Prize Foundation | Hong Kong | Outstanding contributions in astronomy, life science and medicine, and mathematical sciences [63] |
Award | Sponsor | Country | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Paolo Farinella Prize | Europlanet Society, European Science Foundation | Europe | Significant contributions in the fields of planetary sciences, space geodesy, fundamental physics, science popularization, security in space, weapons control, and disarmament [64] |
Tycho Brahe Prize | European Astronomical Society | Europe | Pioneering development or exploitation of European astronomical instrumentation, or major discoveries based largely on such instruments [65] |
Fritz Zwicky Prize for Astrophysics and Cosmology | European Astronomical Society | Europe | Those who have obtained fundamental and outstanding results related to astrophysics and/or cosmology [66] |
Janssen Medal | French Academy of Sciences | France | Those who have made advances in astrophysics [67] |
Lalande Prize | French Academy of Sciences | France | Scientific advances in astronomy (given from 1802 until 1970) [68] [69] |
Prix Guzman | French Academy of Sciences | France | Person who succeeded in communicating with a celestial body, other than Mars, and receiving a response [70] |
Prix Jules Janssen | Société astronomique de France | France | French astronomer or astronomer of another nationality in recognition of astronomical work in general, or for services rendered to Astronomy [71] |
Valz Prize | French Academy of Sciences | France | Advances in astronomy (given from 1877 until 1970) [72] [73] |
Karl Schwarzschild Medal | Astronomische Gesellschaft | Germany | Eminent astronomers and astrophysicists [74] [75] |
Ludwig Biermann Award | Astronomische Gesellschaft | Germany | Outstanding young astronomer [76] |
Kavli Prize | Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters | Norway | Outstanding contributions in Astrophysics (one of three prizes) [77] |
Friedmann Prize | Russian Academy of Sciences | Russia | Outstanding work in cosmology and gravity. [78] [79] |
Balzan Prize | International Balzan Prize Foundation | Switzerland | Outstanding achievements in the fields of humanities, natural sciences, culture, as well as for endeavours for peace and the brotherhood of man [80] [81] |
Eddington Medal | Royal Astronomical Society | United Kingdom | Investigations of outstanding merit in theoretical astrophysics [82] |
George Darwin Lectureship | Royal Astronomical Society | United Kingdom | Distinguished and eloquent speaker on the subject of Astronomy including astrochemistry, astrobiology and astroparticle physics [83] [84] |
Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society | Royal Astronomical Society | United Kingdom | Achievement in astronomy or geophysics [85] [86] |
Herschel Medal | Royal Astronomical Society | United Kingdom | Investigations of outstanding merit in observational astrophysics [87] [88] |
Jackson-Gwilt Medal | Royal Astronomical Society | United Kingdom | Invention, improvement, or development of astronomical instrumentation or techniques; achievement in observational astronomy [89] |
Price Medal | Royal Astronomical Society | United Kingdom | Investigations of outstanding merit in solid-earth geophysics, oceanography, or planetary sciences [90] |
Tyson Medal | University of Cambridge | United Kingdom | Student award for best proficient in Mathematics and Astronomy [91] |
Award | Sponsor | Country | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Bok Prize | Astronomical Society of Australia / Australian Academy of Science | Australia | Outstanding research in astronomy by an honours student at an Australian university [92] [93] |
Sandra Moore Faber is an American astrophysicist known for her research on the evolution of galaxies. She is the University Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and works at the Lick Observatory. She has made discoveries linking the brightness of galaxies to the speed of stars within them and was the co-discoverer of the Faber–Jackson relation. Faber was also instrumental in designing the Keck telescopes in Hawaii.
The American Astronomical Society is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC. The primary objective of the AAS is to promote the advancement of astronomy and closely related branches of science, while the secondary purpose includes enhancing astronomy education and providing a political voice for its members through lobbying and grassroots activities. Its current mission is to enhance and share humanity's scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community.
Dame Susan Jocelyn Bell Burnell is an astrophysicist from Northern Ireland who, as a postgraduate student, discovered the first radio pulsars in 1967. The discovery eventually earned the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1974; however, she was not one of the prize's recipients.
Michel Gustave Édouard Mayor is a Swiss astrophysicist and professor emeritus at the University of Geneva's Department of Astronomy. He formally retired in 2007, but remains active as a researcher at the Observatory of Geneva. He is co-laureate of the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics along with Jim Peebles and Didier Queloz, and the winner of the 2010 Viktor Ambartsumian International Prize and the 2015 Kyoto Prize.
The Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society is the highest award given by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS). The RAS Council have "complete freedom as to the grounds on which it is awarded" and it can be awarded for any reason. Past awards have been given for "outstanding personal researches in the fields of astronomy and geophysics" as well as general contributions to astronomy and geophysics "that may be made through leadership in research programmes, through education and through scientific administration". It has been awarded both for research that has taken a lifetime, and for specific pieces of research.
Brother Guy J. Consolmagno, SJ, is an American research astronomer, physicist, religious brother, director of the Vatican Observatory, and President of the Vatican Observatory Foundation.
Ferdinand Jules Quénisset (1872–1951) was a French astronomer who specialized in astrophotography.
Robert Charles Kennicutt, Jr. FRS is an American astronomer. He is currently a professor at Texas A&M University. He is a former Plumian Professor of Astronomy at the Institute of Astronomy in the University of Cambridge. He was formerly Editor-in-Chief of the Astrophysical Journal (1999–2006) and became a co-editor of the Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics as of 2021. His research interests include the structure and evolution of galaxies and star formation in galaxies.
Peter Goldreich is an American astrophysicist whose research focuses on celestial mechanics, planetary rings, helioseismology and neutron stars. He is the Lee DuBridge Professor of Astrophysics and Planetary Physics at California Institute of Technology. Since 2005 he has also been a professor at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. Asteroid 3805 Goldreich is named after him.
Price Medal is a medal of the Royal Astronomical Society, for investigations of outstanding merit in solid-earth geophysics, oceanography, or planetary sciences. The medal is named after Albert Thomas Price. It was first awarded in 1994 and was initially given every three years. In 2005 this switched to every two years, and from 2014 it has been awarded every year.
The Carl Sagan Medal for Excellence in Public Communication in Planetary Science is an award established by the Division for Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society to recognize and honor outstanding communication by an active planetary scientist to the general public. It is awarded to scientists whose efforts have significantly contributed to a public understanding of, and enthusiasm for planetary science.
The Société astronomique de France, the French astronomical society, is a non-profit association in the public interest organized under French law. Founded by astronomer Camille Flammarion in 1887, its purpose is to promote the development and practice of astronomy.
James Bailey "Jim" Kaler was an American astronomer and science writer.
Françoise Combes is a French astrophysicist at the Paris Observatory and a professor at the Collège de France where she has been the chair of Galaxies and cosmology since 2014.
The Prix Jules Janssen is the highest award of the Société astronomique de France (SAF), the French astronomical society.
The Lalande Prize was an award for scientific advances in astronomy, given from 1802 until 1970 by the French Academy of Sciences.
William J. (Bill) Borucki is a space scientist who worked at the NASA Ames Research Center. Upon joining NASA in 1962, Borucki joined the group conducting research on the heat shield for Apollo program spacecraft. He later turned his attention to the optical efficiency of lightning strikes in the atmospheres of planets, investigating the propensity that these lightning strikes could create molecules that would later become the precursors for life. Subsequently, Borucki's attention turned to extrasolar planets and their detection, particularly through the transit method. In light of this work, Borucki was named the principal investigator for NASA's Kepler mission, launched on March 6, 2009 and dedicated to a transit-based search for habitable planets. In 2013, Borucki was awarded the United States National Academy of Sciences's Henry Draper Medal for his work with Kepler. In 2015 he received the Shaw Prize in Astronomy.
The Valz Prize(Prix Valz) was awarded by the French Academy of Sciences, from 1877 through 1970, to honor advances in astronomy.
Nadia Drake is an American science journalist and contributing writer at National Geographic.
Академия наук СССР объявила конкурс на соискание премии им. А. А. Фридмана в размере 2000 руб., присуждаемой советским ученым за лучшие научные работы в области метеорологии. [The Academy of Sciences of the USSR announced a competition for the A. A. Friedman Prize in the amount of 2000 rubles, awarded to Soviet scientists for the best scientific work in the field of meteorology.]