Professor Maria Vincenzi from the Department of Physics at the University of Oxford received a New Horizons in Physics Prize at this year's Breakthrough Prize ceremony in Los Angeles, in recognition of her work building and analysing some of the largest supernova datasets in modern cosmology.
The New Horizons in Physics Prize, awarded annually by the Breakthrough Prize Foundation, recognises exceptional early-career achievements in physics. Professor Vincenzi shares the $100,000 prize with five colleagues — Dillon Brout, J. Colin Hill, Mathew Madhavacheril, Daniel Scolnic and W. L. Kimmy Wu — for contributions to measuring the expansion and composition of the Universe using two of cosmology's most powerful tools: the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and Type Ia supernovae.
Type Ia supernovae are thermonuclear explosions of dead stars. Because their intrinsic brightness is well understood, they serve as 'standard candles' — allowing astronomers to measure vast cosmic distances and track how the Universe has expanded over time. Together with Brout and Scolnic, Professor Vincenzi built and analysed the largest modern supernova datasets, including Pantheon+, now the most cited supernova analysis in cosmology, delivering some of the tightest constraints yet on dark energy and the rate of cosmic expansion.
'We are incredibly excited that Maria has been given this prestigious award,' commented the head of astophysics, Professor Pedro Ferreira. 'She is a leading light in supernova cosmology and has been at the forefront of some of the developments which are transforming the field. Maria is a truly inspirational colleague.'
The remaining prize recipients, Hill, Madhavacheril, and Wu, were recognised for complementary work pushing analyses of CMB data — the relic radiation left over from the Big Bang — beyond previous limits. Their work produced the most precise tests to date of the standard cosmological model, as well as of gravitational lensing of the CMB: the subtle bending of ancient light by the matter it passes on its way to us.
The prizes were presented at the 2026 Breakthrough Prize ceremony in Los Angeles on 18 April. Now in their 14th year, the Breakthrough Prizes were co-founded by Sergey Brin, Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg, Julia and Yuri Milner, and Anne Wojcicki.