Unisa Astrophysicist Wins Prestigious Global Prize: “Much-Needed Visibility to My Work”

• Distinguished Professor James Chibueze, who is a part of Unisa's Department of Mathematical Sciences in the College of Science, Engineering and Technology, was awarded a prestigious prize
• The award also came with a financial grant that he plans to use to assist at least one African astronomy student
• The astrophysicist also noted that the opportunity to provide a lecture on the evening of the awards ceremony shines a light on his work

On 27 August, 2025, the University of South Africa's (Unisa) Distinguished Professor James Chibueze was honoured with the Royal Society Rising Star Prize. The award recognised his work on advancing African astronomy through pioneering research, capacity building, and international collaborations.

The Royal Society, one of the oldest scientific academies, is filled with the most notable scientists worldwide. According to the Royal Society's website, the prestigious prize was established in memory of Paul O'Brien FRS, who is described as one of the most imaginative and creative materials chemists of his generation.

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The Unisa professor, who is part of the university's Department of Mathematical Sciences in the College of Science, Engineering and Technology, not only received a medal but also a R332 000 grant and a personal gift of over R23 000. The award also came with a Prize Lecture, which Chibueze could deliver on the evening of the awards ceremony.

A proud Chibueze stated:

"I hope that this award and the opportunity to deliver the Prize Lecture provide much-needed visibility to my work and engender an increase in collaboration with more astronomers across the United Kingdom and the globe."

He noted that while the monetary prize would be invested in his research and used to attend various conferences, a portion of it would also support at least one African astronomy student financially.

At the moment, Chibueze's work focuses on the 3D morphology of our home galaxy, the Milky Way, and massive star formation.

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Sir Adrian Smith, the president of the Royal Society fellowship, congratulated the 2025 awardees and stated that they all made great contributions to science and applied it to benefit humanity.

"They have done so by furthering our understanding of the processes that govern the world around us, changing the practices of academia to build a more robust and inclusive research environment, and engaging new audiences."

Take a look at Unisa's College of Science, Engineering and Technology's X post honouring Chibueze below:

3 Other stories about astronomy

• In another article, Briefly News reported that on 28 February, 2025, South Africans got to see the Great Planet Parade, a moment when seven planets align in the sky.
• On Sunday evening, 7 September, 2025, South Africans will also witness the occurrence of a blood moon during a total lunar eclipse. People even joked about keeping an eye out for werewolves.
• A local woman made history by becoming the first person to earn an astrophysics doctoral degree from the University of Pretoria. She shared why she pursued her studies in radio astronomy.

Source: Briefly News