Jørgen received the award together with Douglas Gough from the University of Cambridge, UK and Conny Aerts from KU Leuven in Belgium.

The prize was given for the development of asteroseismology as a method, and the use of asteroseismology to the study of the Sun and other stars.

The award was presented by the Swedish Crown Princess Victoria and the award ceremony took place in Beijer Hall, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

The academic motivation for the prize in astronomy was given by Nikolai Piskunov from Uppsala University. Nikolai explained the application of asteroseismology to the study of stars, among other things. when using a watermelon. We can examine the surface of the watermelon in great detail but cannot look into the core. But if we beat on the watermelon, the sound can tell us about the properties behind the surface. Similarly, waves observed on the surface of the Sun and stars can be used to study the interior of the Sun and stars by a technique known as asteroseismology. This has provided detailed knowledge about the energy production of stars, the evolution and age of stars, the inner rotation of stars and the chemical composition of matter within stars.

It is a lifetime of research into the Sun and stars that Jørgen Christensen-Dalsgaard received the Crafoord prize at the ceremony at Kungl. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

In addition to the prize in astronomy, the Crafoord Prize in Mathematics was given to Claire Voisin of CNRS Paris in France.

Read more about the prize here.