AAS Prizes and Awards

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For his lifetime contributions to our understanding of the early universe and galaxy formation. Among his many seminal contributions was his prediction of the dissipation of small-scale temperature fluctuations in the cosmic microwave background, an effect that bears his name: Silk damping. Underpinning his scholarly impact is an extraordinary publication record that includes more that 800 refereed articles, of which about 200 are first authored, and eight books.

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For her fundamental contributions to advancing our understanding of the evolution and fate of compact objects in binary systems, with particular regard to their electromagnetic and gravitational wave signals.

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For her groundbreaking work on planet formation and protoplanetary disks. She has established herself as an expert in astrochemical signatures in circumstellar disks. Not only has she published impactful theory papers on disk ionization and chemistry, but she also is a successful principal investigator on numerous competitive observing proposals to use instruments such as ALMA, Swift, Herschel, and the Submillimeter Array. Her research promises to expand our knowledge about the chemistry, composition, and structure of the disks that give birth to alien worlds. By extension, we will learn more about our own solar system.

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For his extraordinary work on a broad array of cosmological problems. His insights into how to vastly speed up calculations of the effects of hydrogen recombination have proven critical to the interpretation of Planck data. His innovative new theory of radiation from spinning dust improved calculations of the effect of massive neutrinos on large-scale structure and clarified how the interaction of baryons with dark matter introduces fluctuations in the 21 cm radiation from the epoch of reionization.

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For her work on high-redshift star-forming galaxies and for pioneering new quantitative techniques for determining the importance of submillimeter galaxies in galaxy evolution. Her measurements of their bolometric luminosities show that submillimeter galaxies have enormous star-formation rates and represent the birth of the most massive galaxies in today's universe. She compiled the first complete sample of submillimeter galaxies, allowing her to construct their luminosity function as a function of redshift. In addition, she has helped establish the existence of protoclusters at high redshift and quantify their properties.

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For her pioneering use of large surveys to study low-surface-brightness galaxies and resolve stellar structures in the Milky Way's halo; for her leadership in developing Hubble Space Telescope surveys to create a legacy of data on resolved stellar populations of nearby galaxies; for using multiwavelength observations to create large-scale, innovative, and systematic probes of stellar evolution, of nearby galaxy star-formation histories, and of the interaction of stars and the interstellar medium; and for fostering junior scientists as leaders in these projects.

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For his invention of the interferometric gravitational-wave detector, which led to the first detection of long-predicted gravitational waves from astronomical sources by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO). The innovation, execution, and persistence in building LIGO set an example that inspires instrumentalists around the globe.

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For her unselfish service to astronomy on regional, national, and international scales, including strengthening public appreciation and support for astronomy, making our community more diverse and inclusive, and acting as a role model and mentor to generations of young astronomers.

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For his pioneering graduate textbook Exoplanetary Atmospheres: Theoretical Concepts and Foundations (Princeton University Press, 2017) — a clearly written, well-motivated introduction to the theory of exoplanetary atmospheres, a field of great current and future interest.

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For his successful recreation of, and improvement upon, Eddington's iconic deflection-of-light experiment during the 2017 total solar eclipse, which represents a tour de force in careful observing and calibration. His work on high-resolution planetary imaging demonstrates extraordinary technical proficiency, including the development of adaptive optics systems for image stabilization in small telescopes. This award also celebrates his passionate sharing of his expertise and excitement with both professional and amateur astronomers.

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For his critical contributions to key astronomical facilities in Chile to the benefit of the American astronomy community. He has been a driving force in Brazil, whose help in developing the Southern Astrophysical Research (SOAR) and Gemini telescopes ensured their construction. His continuing support has contributed to the ongoing operation of both facilities. He also helped obtain Brazilian support through the state of São Paulo for the Giant Magellan Telescope.

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For his outstanding scientific work as Principal Investigator of the Juno mission, which has provided a revolutionary new view of Jupiter, the largest and most dynamic gas-giant world in the solar system.

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For his leadership role in the development of the Advanced LIGO detectors, which have opened a new window on the universe. Coyne and co-recipients Peter Fritschel and David Shoemaker are coauthors of the LIGO team’s paper “Astrophysical Implications of the Binary Black Hole Merger GW150914,” one of the most widely cited astrophysics papers of 2016. It appeared in the 20 February 2016 issue of the Astrophysical Journal Letters and has been downloaded nearly 45,000 times.

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For his leadership role in the development of the Advanced LIGO detectors, which have opened a new window on the universe. Fritschel and co-recipients Dennis Coyne and David Shoemaker are coauthors of the LIGO team’s paper “Astrophysical Implications of the Binary Black Hole Merger GW150914,” one of the most widely cited astrophysics papers of 2016. It appeared in the 20 February 2016 issue of the Astrophysical Journal Letters and has been downloaded nearly 45,000 times.

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For his leadership role in the development of the Advanced LIGO detectors, which have opened a new window on the universe. Shoemaker and co-recipients Dennis Coyne and Peter Fritschel are coauthors of the LIGO team’s paper “Astrophysical Implications of the Binary Black Hole Merger GW150914,” one of the most widely cited astrophysics papers of 2016. It appeared in the 20 February 2016 issue of the Astrophysical Journal Letters and has been downloaded nearly 45,000 times.