Vasily Belokurov, Amina Helmi, and Rodrigo Ibata win 2026 Kavli Prize in Astrophysics for Milky Way merger discoveries
By
Hamish Johnston
Summary
The 2026 Kavli Prize in Astrophysics has been awarded to Vasily Belokurov (University of Cambridge), Amina Helmi (University of Groningen), and Rodrigo Ibata (University of Strasbourg) for their work uncovering fossil evidence of past galactic mergers, proving that the Milky Way galaxy formed through hierarchical accretion. The article also notes that laureate Amina Helmi and prize committee member Per Barth Lilje are guests on the Physics World podcast.
Source
bskyVasily Belokurov, Amina Helmi, and Rodrigo Ibata win 2026 Kavli Prize in Astrophysics for Milky Way merger discoveriesow.lyKey quotes
· 1 pulledThe 2026 Kavli Prize in Astrophysics is awarded to Vasily Belokurov, Amina Helmi and Rodrigo Ibata, 'for uncovering the fossil evidence of past mergers proving that the Milky Way galaxy was built through hierarchical accretion'.
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