Exeter astrophysicist awarded prestigious French Academy of Science medal
A University of Exeter academic has been awarded a prestigious science award in France in recognition of her pioneering research into the structure and evolution of stars and planets.
Professor Isabelle Baraffe received the Medal of the Sciences of the Universe by the French Academy of Science on 28 October at the Institut de France in Paris. The Medal honours a scientist who has made a significant and promising contribution to the development of their field.
Professor Baraffe, a Physicist at the University of Exeter said: “This medal is very rewarding as it recognises many years of hard work with my collaborators, postdocs and PhD students to develop innovative models in my field. These developments required a lot of effort and involved risks. The medal from the French Academy of Science is thus a fantastic motivation for scientists to take the risk to push boundaries.”
Professor Baraffe is internationally recognised for her contributions to astrophysics, particularly in advancing theoretical models that underpin our understanding of exoplanets and stellar evolution. Her work bridges fundamental physics and observational astronomy, helping to explain how stars and planets form and evolve.
The French Academy of Science’s citation read: “The research of Isabelle Baraffe is devoted to the structure and evolution of stars and planets, covering a wide range of physical domains, with notable contributions to the study of exoplanets, brown dwarfs, and low-mass stars. She is currently developing innovative and promising multidimensional stellar and planetary models for the study of fundamental processes.”
The ceremony, held under the iconic dome of La Grande Coupole at the Institut de France, celebrated several recipients of the Academy’s annual medals and prizes.
