Alessandra Buonanno

Prof. Dr. Alessandra Buonanno serves as Director at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert-Einstein-Institut) in Potsdam and Research Professor at the Department of Physics, University of Maryland. She also holds Honorary Professor positions at Humboldt University and Potsdam University, and is a Scientific Member of the Max Planck Society.

Her educational background includes:

• Ph.D. in Physics, University of Pisa, Italy (1993-1996)
• Master in Physics (Laurea), University of Pisa, Italy (1993)

Prof. Buonanno specializes in gravitational physics with expertise in analytical solutions to the two-body problem in General Relativity, modeling gravitational waves from compact object mergers, and testing fundamental physics through gravitational-wave observations. Her research integrates analytical and numerical relativity approaches to study black holes, neutron stars, and early universe cosmology.

She has received numerous prestigious awards including the Oskar Klein Medal (2023), Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize (2018), Dirac Medal (2021), and election to multiple national academies. Her work on gravitational wave modeling was instrumental for the LIGO-Virgo detections.

Prof. Buonanno's publications, including her notable 2017 article 'The dawn of a new era' in CERN courier, highlight the transformative impact of gravitational wave astronomy on fundamental physics and cosmology.

As Principal Investigator of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration and member of various international committees including the Kavli Prize Committee and Solvay International Scientific Committee, she plays a pivotal role in advancing gravitational physics research globally.