<p>He shared the 2019 Nobel Prize "for the discovery of an exoplanet orbiting a solar-type star".  It was shared with Michel Mayor. Maybe Queloz did much of the work and Mayor thought he rightfully deserved some of the credit. Queloz only got a fourth of the money because the prize was split between Mayor-Queloz and James Peebles. Peebles got his half for "for theoretical discoveries in physical cosmology."</p>

<p>This was a very unique case because it involved no new physics really just the discovery of what most astronomers knew existed.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-02-03T21:09:06.160Z
Few expected the discovery of hot Jupiters.
ProfRob
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-02-03T15:35:10.677Z
2020-02-03T15:43:56.970Z
2020-02-03T15:43:56.970Z
Natsfan
<p>When Didier Queloz did the work that earned him a Nobel prize (along with Michel Mayor), he was still a PhD student. </p>

<p>Jocelyn Bell Burnell stated </p>

<blockquote>
  <p>I believe it would demean Nobel Prizes if they were awarded to research students, except in very exceptional cases</p>
</blockquote>

<p>What made this case so exceptional that he got the Nobel in spite of having been a PhD student at the time? Why wasn't the Nobel just awarded to his supervisor, Michel Mayor?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-02-03T14:41:23.273Z
Is there something that makes you think Bell's sentiments (which are from 1977 and refer to her own work, and as such could be mere modesty) are shared by the Nobel Committee? Also keep in mind that Queloz was awarded the prize in his early 50s, after he had done a good deal of other word studying exoplanets, whereas Bell was 20 years younger when Hewish was awarded the prize. I'm not saying Bell didn't deserve it, but I do think it's important to point out that the situations are quite different. Bell was only several years out of grad school, unlike Queloz.
HDE 226868
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-02-03T14:43:50.833Z
Well, that kind of leads to other questions (which are off topic here, I guess), such as "does the nobel prize reward a discovery or a career?"
usernumber
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-02-03T17:20:50.000Z
[Russell Hulse](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_Alan_Hulse) was also a PhD student (gaining his PhD in 1975 if the Wikipedia bio is correct) but working at Arecibo Observatory during the time of the discovery of [PSR B1913+16](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hulse%E2%80%93Taylor_binary) which lead to the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physics. So this is hardly unprecedented, given the small number of Physics Nobel Prizes that have gone to astronomy.
astrosnapper
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-02-03T18:04:01.407Z
Mossbauer received his Nobel Prize in 1961 for his graduate work (PhD awarded 1958). His adviser was not on the prize.
Jon Custer
<history>
Why did the then PhD student Didier Queloz get the Nobel prize?
usernumber
# Why did the then PhD student Didier Queloz get the Nobel prize?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-02-03)

When Didier Queloz did the work that earned him a Nobel prize (along with Michel Mayor), he was still a PhD student.

Jocelyn Bell Burnell stated

> I believe it would demean Nobel Prizes if they were awarded to research students, except in very exceptional cases

What made this case so exceptional that he got the Nobel in spite of having been a PhD student at the time? Why wasn't the Nobel just awarded to his supervisor, Michel Mayor?

**Tags:** history

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Is there something that makes you think Bell's sentiments (which are from 1977 and refer to her own work, and as such could be mere modesty) are shared by the Nobel Committee? Also keep in mind that Queloz was awarded the prize in his early 50s, after he had done a good deal of other word studying exoplanets, whereas Bell was 20 years younger when Hewish was awarded the prize. I'm not saying Bell didn't deserve it, but I do think it's important to point out that the situations are quite different. Bell was only several years out of grad school, unlike Queloz.  
> **username_0**: Well, that kind of leads to other questions (which are off topic here, I guess), such as "does the nobel prize reward a discovery or a career?"  
> **username_2**: [Russell Hulse](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_Alan_Hulse) was also a PhD student (gaining his PhD in 1975 if the Wikipedia bio is correct) but working at Arecibo Observatory during the time of the discovery of [PSR B1913+16](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hulse%E2%80%93Taylor_binary) which lead to the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physics. So this is hardly unprecedented, given the small number of Physics Nobel Prizes that have gone to astronomy.  
> **username_3**: Mossbauer received his Nobel Prize in 1961 for his graduate work (PhD awarded 1958). His adviser was not on the prize.  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_4 on 2020-02-03. Score: 1

He shared the 2019 Nobel Prize "for the discovery of an exoplanet orbiting a solar-type star". It was shared with Michel Mayor. Maybe Queloz did much of the work and Mayor thought he rightfully deserved some of the credit. Queloz only got a fourth of the money because the prize was split between Mayor-Queloz and James Peebles. Peebles got his half for "for theoretical discoveries in physical cosmology."

This was a very unique case because it involved no new physics really just the discovery of what most astronomers knew existed.

> **Comments:**
> **username_5**: Few expected the discovery of hot Jupiters.  

---

