Viola Gelli wins prize for best PhD thesis in astrophysics
Congratulations and an extra happy New Year to Viola Gelli for winning the "Livio Gratton" prize, Italy's top award for the best PhD thesis in Astrophysics. The prize was awarded for Viola's thesis "Dwarf satellite galaxies at high-redshift: physical understanding and JWST predictions".
Viola Gelli, postdoc at the Cosmic Dawn Center at the Niels Bohr Institute, has been awarded the prestigious Livio Gratton Prize 2025 for her outstanding PhD thesis in astronomy.
The prize, one of the most respected recognitions for early-career researchers in Italian astrophysics, is awarded every two years to the most meritorious doctoral thesis completed at an Italian research institution in the preceding biennium. This year the international jury selected Viola’s work from among 48 submissions. 
Bridging simulations and observations
Viola’s thesis, “Dwarf satellite galaxies at high-redshift: physical understanding and JWST predictions”, completed at the University of Florence, offers significant theoretical insights and predictive models for observations of the earliest satellite galaxies using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The work bridges simulations with cutting-edge observations, advancing our understanding of galaxy formation in the infant universe. For her achievement, Viola receives a €5,000 award and recognition from an international panel of experts.
Reflecting on the award, Viola shared that she was surprised and delighted when she first received the news, and immediately reached out to her PhD advisor to celebrate. Originally from Florence, she completed both her undergraduate and doctoral studies in physics and astrophysics before moving to Denmark for her postdoctoral research at the Cosmic Dawn Center, where she continues to explore the earliest phases of galaxy evolution.
About the Livio Gratton Prize
The Livio Gratton Prize was established to honor the memory of Livio Gratton, esteemed astrophysicist and former vice-president of the International Astronomical Union. It is jointly organized by the Associazione Eta Carinae and the Associazione Tuscolana di Astronomia “Livio Gratton”, with support from the INAF (Italian National Institute for Astrophysics) and the municipality of Frascati.
In addition to Viola’s win, the jury also awarded special mentions to other distinguished theses, highlighting the breadth of high-impact research in Italian astronomy. The official award ceremony took place on 17 January 2026 at the Auditorium delle Scuderie Aldobrandini in Frascati and was be streamed online for the broader scientific community. The event included a public lecture on multi-messenger astronomy following the prize presentation.
Tags: Grants & awards
