11/06/2026
Yesterday, astronomer Amina Helmi of the University of Groningen was named one of the winners of the The Kavli Prize in Astrophysics—an international prize awarded by the Academy of Science and Letters.
The is a globally renowned award recognizing groundbreaking research and this year Prof. dr. Amina Helmi
shares the prize for Astrophysics with Rodrigo Ibata and Vasily Belokurov for their pioneering work using ultra-precise measurements of stars to reconstruct the history of the .
Their research shows that our galaxy grew over billions of years through hierarchical merging—absorbing smaller galaxies.
🔭 By tracing stellar motions back in time, they uncovered evidence of a major merger around 10 billion years ago, which played a key role in shaping the Milky Way. Prof. Helmi’s work was crucial in confirming and detailing this event.
Known as the “archaeologist of the stars,” she has revealed that many stars in our galaxy are cosmic immigrants from ancient galaxies.
🔗 Read more about the prize and the laureates here:
Overview over the 2026 Kavli Prize in astrophysics