"Strange and wonderful": Nobel Prize rewards discoveries about the universe

Peebles, of Princeton University in the United States, was awarded half the 9-million-Swedish-crown ($910,000) prize while Mayor and Queloz, from the University of Geneva in Switzerland, shared the other half.

Using theoretical tools and calculations, Peebles was able to interpret trace radiation from the infancy of the universe and so discover new physical processes, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said, while Mayor and Queloz started a revolution in astronomy when they announced the first discovery of an exoplanet orbiting a solar-type star in 1995. Over 4,000 exoplanets have since been found in the Milky Way.

Peebles joined the award ceremony by telephone, saying that while awards and prizes are "charming", young people entering the field should do so "for the love of the science".