VINCENZO FERRARO PRIZE 2026
for young scholars in Space Physics
Art. 1 Subject matter and objectives
This Association intends to pay tribute to Prof. Vincenzo C.A. Ferraro, originally from Sorrento peninsula (Campania, Italy), an astrophysicist and pioneer in plasma physics, in order to encourage studies in the field of space physics.
Art. 2 Foundation of the prize
With this in view, the Vincent Ferraro Association, represented by President Maddalena Ferraro, establishes for the year 2026 a "Vincenzo Ferraro Prize” to be assigned, after evaluation by a qualified scientific panel, to a young scholar in the physics of space plasmas with particular reference to her/his doctoral thesis.
Art. 3 Participation
The PhD thesis must be focused on topics relevant to the study of space plasmas.
The prize is open to scholars under 35 who obtained a PhD in Physics or an equivalent degree from an Italian or foreign university after September 1, 2021. Multiple resubmissions are permitted, provided that the eligibility criteria applicable to each edition are met.
Art. 4 Prize
The amount of the prize is € 1000.00 (one thousand euros) gross.
Art. 5 Applications and methods of participation
Candidates must submit their application, prepared in Italian or English, including:
a) first and last name;
b) date and place of birth;
c) residence (and tax code if Italian);
d) the e-mail address to be contacted.
The application must be accompanied by:
e) Curriculum vitae (signed);
f) Doctoral degree certificate or a copy of PhD diploma;
g) PhD thesis in PDF format, or indicate links to download it;
h) Scientific articles (only if refereed) in PDF format, or indicate links to download them freely;
i) Signed statement certifying that the thesis has not won any prizes in other competitions and indicating the Supervisor of the Thesis and the University that issued the diploma.
The application and the attachments referred to above must be sent in an electronic format, subject “PREMIO FERRARO 2026”, to the following e-mail address r.bruno54@gmail.com before May 5 2026. The candidate must also send a simple e-mail to the same address confirming their application.
Art. 6 Constitution of the Committee
For the purposes of the assessment a judging panel is appointed, made up of experts nominated by the President of the Vincenzo Ferraro Association. The Chairman of this panel will be chosen by the members of the panel.
Art. 7 Criteria for awarding the prizes
The panel will decide solely according to scientific merit based on the CV, the quality of the PhD Thesis, any scientific publications. The decision of the panel is final.
Art. 8 Communication of outcome
All applicants will be formally informed of the outcome of the competition by this Association by email. The prize will be presented to the winner at the conference to be held in October 2026 on the Sorrento Peninsula in a special Award Ceremony intended to publicize the results of the competition.
If the winner cannot attend the Award Cerimony for any reason, the Committee reserve the right to choose another winner.
Travel expenses to collect the prize are the responsibility of winner. The accommodation expenses will be paid by Association.
Art. 9 Failure to collect prize
If the prize is not collected within 60 days from the date of the Awards Ceremony, it will be returned to the financial accounts of the Association.