Ernst Patzer Prizes 2025 awarded

In keeping with tradition, three scientists were once again awarded the Ernst Patzer Prize for the support of young scientists this year. Michael Cecil (MPIA), Elisa Schoesser (ZAH) and Xiangyu Zhang (MPIA) were honored at the award ceremony on November 28 as part of a festive colloquium at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA).

The Ernst Patzer Prize was endowed by the philosopher and art lover Ernst Patzer and established by his widow. The award is decided by a selection committee consisting of two members of the MPIA and one external member from Heidelberg institutes.

The Ernst Patzer Foundation awards its prizes annually to young scientists at the MPIA and other institutes in Heidelberg. The aim is to support research, especially in the field of astronomy.  The prizes are awarded to the best publications by scientists that were produced during their doctoral or first postdoc phase and that were also published in a renowned peer-reviewed journal.

This year's prize winners are:

• Michael Cecil from the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA) Heidelberg for his publication “Variability of the inner dead zone edge in 2D radiation hydrodynamic simulations”, 2025, Astronomy & Astrophysics, 692, A171
• Elisa Schoesser from the Center for Astronomy of Heidelberg University (ZAH) for her publication “Extremely iron-poor O-type stars in the Magellanic Bridge”, 2025, Astronomy & Astrophysics 696, L3
• Xiangyu Zhang from the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA) Heidelberg for his publication “Three-dimensional maps of the interstellar dust extinction curve within the Milky Way galaxy”, 2025, Science, 387, 120

 

 

KJ/HB