A research paper by Associate Professor Masaomi Tanaka of Tohoku University (at the time of publication, of the Division of Theoretical Astronomy/Center for Computational Astrophysics of NAOJ) et al. “Kilonova from post-merger ejecta as an optical and near-Infrared counterpart of GW170817” was awarded the 2019 PASJ Excellent Paper Award. This award is given to the author(s) of the most outstanding and inventive paper(s) published by the Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan (PASJ) during the past 5 years, commending their contributions to the advancement of astronomy. In this paper, it is shown for the first time by observation and simulation that heavy elements are produced in large quantities by a neutron star merger. (News release on September 11, 2020)

Munehito Shoda (JSPS Research Fellow) at the Solar Science Observatory of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) was awarded the 2019 PhD Prize in the Solar and Heliospheric Division by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). This prize is awarded to one PhD student in each division by the International Astronomical Union to select the most remarkable work on astronomical research carried out in the previous year. Shoda received his PhD from the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Science in 2019 for his doctoral dissertation entitled "Fast solar wind driven by parametric decay instability and Alfvén wave turbulence."

Simulations of a dwarf galaxy by RIKEN astrophysicists have revealed the various processes by which moderately heavy metals such as strontium are birthed. They have found that at least four kinds of stars are needed to explain the observed abundance of these metals in dwarf galaxies.

Full Story: RIKEN Research: Simulation of dwarf galaxy reveals different routes for strontium enrichment

Astronomers at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) have analyzed the paths of two objects heading out of the Solar System forever and determined that they also most likely originated from outside of the Solar System. These results improve our understanding of the outer Solar System and beyond.

Full story: "Here and Gone: Outbound Comets are Likely of Alien Origin", NAOJ press release (January 17, 2020).

A research team including Akimasa Kataoka at CfCA/NAOJ has discovered evidence of asteroidal ice within a meteorite. Performing high-resolution CT imaging of a primitive, 4.6 billion year old meteorite, the researchers discovered micrometer-sized ultra-porous regions inside the meteorite. It is highly likely that the regions were originally filled with ice, which has since disappeared to form the ultra-porous regions.

The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration, the international research team that imaged a black hole, won the 2020 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics.

Summary

Prizes for Science and Technology (Research Category) in the Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) were awarded to researchers who have achieved outstanding results in research using the Subaru Telescope and the supercomputer "ATERUI." Award winners are: Dr. Michitoshi Yoshida (Director of Subaru Telescope), Dr. Masaomi Tanaka (Associate Professor at Tohoku University), and Dr. Yousuke Utsumi (Physical Science Research Scientist at Stanford University).