Maarten Schmidt (IMAGE) California Institute of Technology Caption Quasars -- now known to be compact halos of matter that surround the massive black holes of distant galaxies -- were once thought to be stars in our own galaxy. Now, Caltech astrophysicist Maarten Schmidt, who showed that quasars are thousands of millions of light-years away from Earth, has been named one of the first recipients of the $1 million Kavli Prize for his contributions to the field of astrophysics. Credit Caltech Usage Restrictions None License Licensed content Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.