The award recognizes his Physical Review Letters publication, “Implications of the Neutron Star Merger GW170817 for Cosmological Scalar-Tensor Theories,” co-authored with Dr. Bhuvnesh Jain of the University of Pennsylvania. The paper explores the profound implications of the 2017 detection of both gravitational waves and light from a binary neutron star merger. Dr. Sakstein’s research demonstrated that the near-simultaneous arrival of these signals places stringent limits on alternative gravity theories beyond Einstein’s general relativity, excluding them as viable explanations for the mysterious dark energy accelerating the expansion of the universe.
The Frontiers of Science Awards, bestowed by the International Congress of Basic Science, recognize scientific papers that have made a transformative impact on their field. Fewer than 30 awards are presented annually across all disciplines of the natural sciences. Dr. Sakstein will receive the award at the Third International Congress of Basic Science, to be held in Beijing, where awardees will be honored for their foundational contributions to modern science.