Listening to the Stars
Douglas Gough, Jørgen Christensen-Dalsgaard & Conny Aerts
About This Prize
The 2024 Crafoord Prize in Astronomy was awarded to Douglas Gough (University of Cambridge), Jørgen Christensen-Dalsgaard (Aarhus University), and Conny Aerts (KU Leuven) “for their development of the methods of asteroseismology.” Asteroseismology uses the natural oscillations of stars to probe their internal structure, much like seismology uses earthquake waves to study Earth's interior. The laureates' foundational work transformed our ability to measure stellar masses, ages, radii, and internal rotation — revolutionizing our understanding of stellar physics and enabling precise characterization of exoplanet host stars.
★ Laureate Lectures
Douglas Gough
“Listening to the Stars – Physics from the Sun”
Gough pioneered the theoretical framework for helioseismology, establishing how solar oscillation frequencies encode information about the Sun's internal sound speed, density, and rotation profile.
Jørgen Christensen-Dalsgaard
“Listening to the Stars – Asteroseismology of Evolved Solar-like Stars”
Christensen-Dalsgaard developed the ASTEC stellar evolution code and led the development of asteroseismology for solar-type and red giant stars, enabling precise measurements of stellar ages and interior properties.
Conny Aerts
“Listening to the Stars – Asteroseismology of Fast Rotators”
Aerts pioneered asteroseismology for massive and intermediate-mass stars, developing methods to measure internal rotation and mixing in fast-rotating stars using gravity-mode oscillations.
◆ Invited Lectures
Laurent Gizon
“Helioseismology with Inertial Modes”
Gizon discusses how inertial modes — global oscillations restored by the Coriolis force — provide a new window into the Sun's deep convection zone and differential rotation.
Jaime de la Cruz Rodriguez
“A High-Resolution View of Solar Oscillations and Waves”
High-resolution spectropolarimetric observations of solar oscillations, waves, and magneto-acoustic phenomena in the solar atmosphere.
Saskia Hekker
“Internal Structures of Low-Mass Stars”
Hekker explores how asteroseismology constrains the interior structure of red giants and solar-like oscillators, revealing core hydrogen/helium burning phases and internal mixing.
Margarida Cunha
“Intermediate-Mass Stars as Physics Laboratories”
Cunha discusses how δ Scuti and γ Doradus pulsators serve as laboratories for testing stellar physics, including convective overshooting and diffusion processes.
Hugues Sana
“The Evolution of Massive Stars, Single and Binary”
Sana presents observational evidence for the high binary fraction among massive stars and its implications for stellar evolution, mass transfer, and the progenitors of gravitational-wave sources.
Georges Meynet
“Insights into the Interiors of Massive Stars”
Meynet discusses theoretical models of massive star interiors, including the effects of rotation, mass loss, and internal mixing on nucleosynthesis and the final fate of massive stars.
Vincent Van Eylen
“Understanding Exoplanets Through Asteroseismology”
Van Eylen shows how asteroseismic characterization of host stars enables precise determination of exoplanet radii, masses, and orbital eccentricities — critical for understanding planetary system architectures.
Andrea Miglio
“The Importance of Asteroseismology in the Study of the Milky Way as a Galaxy”
Miglio describes how asteroseismic ages combined with spectroscopic abundances and Gaia astrometry enable galactic archaeology — mapping the formation and chemical enrichment history of the Milky Way.
● Panel Discussion
Panel Discussion
Crafoord Prize Symposium in Astronomy 2024
A panel discussion featuring laureates and invited speakers reflecting on the past, present, and future of asteroseismology — including upcoming missions like PLATO and the synergies with Gaia and JWST.
Key Concepts
- • Asteroseismology: The study of stellar oscillations to infer internal structure, analogous to terrestrial seismology using earthquake waves
- • Helioseismology: Asteroseismology applied to the Sun, where millions of oscillation modes have been measured to map the solar interior in exquisite detail
- • p-modes: Pressure (acoustic) modes — standing sound waves that probe the stellar envelope and are the primary tool for solar-type oscillators
- • g-modes: Gravity modes restored by buoyancy, which probe the deep stellar interior and core rotation, especially important for massive and evolved stars
- • Mixed modes: Oscillations that behave as p-modes in the envelope and g-modes in the core, uniquely constraining the interior structure of red giants
- • Scaling relations: Empirical relations connecting oscillation frequencies (νmax, Δν) to stellar mass, radius, and surface gravity
- • Kepler & TESS: Space missions providing ultra-precise photometry that enabled asteroseismology for thousands of stars across the Milky Way
- • PLATO: ESA's upcoming mission (2026+) designed specifically for asteroseismology and exoplanet detection with unprecedented sky coverage