Irwin Shapiro Awarded the 2013 APS Einstein Prize

Professor Irwin Shapiro has been selected to receive the 2013 Einstein Prize of the American Physical Society. Awarded biennially since 2003, the Einstein Prize consists of $10,000 and a certificate.

The recipient is chosen for outstanding accomplishments in the field of
gravitational physics. The citation will read: "For his contributions to experimental solar system tests of relativistic theories of gravity, and in
particular for proposing and measuring the Shapiro time delay effect."

The Shapiro time delay effect is a classic solar-system test of general relativity. Radar signals passing near a massive object take slightly longer to travel to a target and return than they would if the mass of the object were not present. Shapiro predicted the effect in 1964. Measurements taken at MIT Haystack Observatory confirmed his prediction.

The Einstein Prize will be presented in Denver at a special session during the April 2013 Meeting of the APS.

Shapiro is Senior Scientist and Timken University Professor of Astronomy,
and a former director of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.

He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science,
the American Physical Society and the American Geophysical Union, as well as
a member of the American Astronomical Society. He was elected a member of
the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1969 and the National Academy of Sciences in 1974. In 1999, Shapiro received the Secretary¹s Gold Medal for Exceptional Service from the Smithsonian Institution.