Françoise Combes
Françoise Combes | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 12, 1952 France |
| Occupation(s) | Astrophysicist, Professor |
| Years active | 1970s–present |
| Known for | Galaxy formation and evolution, dark matter research, modified gravity theories |
Françoise Combes (; born 12 August 1952) is a distinguished French astrophysicist affiliated with the Paris Observatory and serves as a professor at the Collège de France, where she has held the Galaxies and Cosmology chair since 2014.
On 15 September 2017, the school formerly known as 'City of Success' in Montpellier was renamed High school Françoise Combes in her honor.
Education
Combes pursued her studies at the École normale supérieure from 1971 to 1975, obtaining the prestigious Agrégation and completing a doctoral thesis on galaxy dynamics and structure at Paris Diderot University.
Research
Her scientific investigations center on the formation and evolution of galaxies within a cosmological context, encompassing topics such as galaxy dynamics, spiral and barred features, and interactions between galaxies. These phenomena are examined through multi-wavelength observational data complemented by numerical simulations. She has made significant contributions to understanding the interstellar medium, focusing in particular on molecular gas that fuels star formation in nearby galaxies like Andromeda as well as in distant high-redshift galaxies.
Combes has actively engaged in developing various dark matter hypotheses and has explored alternative theories including modified gravity. Together with Daniel Pfenniger, she proposed a model suggesting that cold molecular gas constitutes a substantial fraction of elusive dark baryon matter.
Awards and honors
- 2023: Recipient of the Oort lecture prize
- 2023: Inducted as an international member of the US National Academy of Sciences (NAS)
- 2022: Awarded the Nick Kylafis Lectureship
- 2022: Named Karl Jansky Lecturer
- 2021: Honored with the L'Oréal-UNESCO International Prize for Women in Science
- 2021: Designated Fellow of the American Astronomical Society
- 2020: Awarded the CNRS Gold Medal
- 2019: Appointed Commander of France's National Order of Merit
- 2017: The Montpellier school 'City of Success' renamed High school Françoise Combes
- 2017: Recipient of the Prix Jules Janssen from the French Astronomical Society
- 2017: Awarded the Lise Meitner Prize by University of Technology CHALMERS, Gothenburg
- 2017: Granted honorary membership in the American Astronomical Society
- 2015: Elevated to Officer of the French Legion of Honour
- 2013: Winner of the R.M. Petrie Prize from the Canadian Astronomical Society
- 2013: Named Honorary Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society
- 2012: Laureate of the Prix des Trois Physiciens, ENS
- 2009: Officer rank in France’s National Order of Merit
- 2009: Elected member of Academia Europaea
- 2009: Awarded Tycho Brahe Prize by European Astronomical Society
- 2006: Knighted in the French Legion of Honour
- 2004: Member of the French Academy of Sciences
- 2001: CNRS Silver Medal recipient
- 1986: IBM Physics Prize winner
Works
Françoise Combes has authored more than one thousand scientific articles, multiple books, and contributed to numerous collective publications. Notable English-language titles include:
- Active Galactic Nuclei, ISTE Editor, 2022
- Active Galactic Nuclei: Fueling and Feedback, IOP Editor, 2021
- Galaxies, ISTE Editor, 2021
- Trous Noirs et Quasars, de Vive Voix, 2021
- Le Big Bang, Que-sais-je, PUF, 2019
- The Milky Way (co-authored with James Lequeux), EDP Sciences, 2016
- La Matière Noire, clé de l'Univers, Vuibert, 2015
- La Voie Lactée (with J. Lequeux), EDP Sciences, 2013
- Mysteries Of Galaxy Formation, Praxis, 2010
- Galaxies et Cosmologie (with M. Haywood et al.), Ellipses, 2009
- Contributor to Demain la physique, Odile Jacob, 2009
- Mystères de la formation des galaxies, Dunod, 2008
- The Cold Universe (with Andrew W. Blain), Springer, 2004
- Galaxies and Cosmology (with Patrick Boissé), Springer, second edition, 2004
These publications underscore Combes’ profound expertise in astrophysics and cosmology, marking important contributions to both scholarly literature and scientific discourse.