In 2016, he was awarded an ERC Advanced Grant (2017-2023) to coordinate a team of researchers based at ENS de Lyon with the aim of furthering the understanding and role of inhomogeneities in general relativity. Today, Thomas Buchert, a professor at Claude Bernard University Lyon 1 and member of the Astroens team at the CRAL - Lyon Astrophysics Research Centre - is once again in the spotlight for his innovations in relativistic cosmology.
He has just been awarded the Tullio Levi-Civita 2023 International Prize in Mechanical and Mathematical Sciences. The prize was awarded for the year 2023, but was allocated at the end of 2024 for reasons linked to Covid.
Recognition for innovative results of great value
Awarded since 2010, « The International prize "Tullio Levi-Civita" will be awarded to scientists who have distinguished themselves for their innovative high-value results which will have to be considered as important by the International Scientific Community and have appeared both in scientific journals and in volumes with international distribution », as stated in the regulation book for the call for applications.A major contribution to Relativistic Cosmology
With over 100 peer-reviewed research articles and more than 60 invited papers and conference contributions, Thomas Buchert convinced the jury with his extensive contribution to theoretical cosmology. His favourite areas include the mathematical aspects of general relativity, as well as applications to dynamical theories of large-scale cosmic structure, dark energy and dark matter.« His contribution [...] particularly significant, addressing the global properties of world models, averaging problems, and cosmological backreaction. His analysis of statistical cosmology with innovative mathematical techniques [...] has brought a deep understanding of cosmic structures’ dynamical and statistical morphology. These results significantly impacted observational cosmology, particularly in analyzing galaxy surveys, supernova surveys, and the Cosmic Microwave Background ».