Dr. Warren M. Washington (1936–2024), scholar and climate scientist

Dr. Warren M. Washington was an acclaimed climate scientist and scholar who advised six U.S. presidents on climate change and served as chair of the National Science Board.

Robin Warren (1937–2024), discovered cause of gastric ulcers

Robin Warren was a pathologist and researcher who won the Nobel Prize for his work in uncovering the cause of peptic ulcers, rewriting our understanding of gut health in the process.

Akira Endo (1933–2024), biochemist who found way to fight cholesterol

Akira Endo was a biochemist whose research led to the creation of cholesterol-fighting statin drugs, now some of the most widely prescribed pharmaceuticals in the world.

Peter Higgs (1929–2024), Higgs boson particle Nobel Prize winner 

Peter Higgs was a British theoretical physicist who won the Nobel Prize in Physics for proposing the existence of the subatomic particle that bears his name, the Higgs boson.

Herbert Kroemer (1928–2024), Nobel Prize winner for laser technology

Herbert Kroemer was a Nobel Prize-winning physicist whose work on laser technology changed the way semiconductors are designed. 

Don Catlin (1938–2024), leader of anti-doping sports research 

Don Catlin was a researcher of sports doping and steroids who pioneered methods to identify new and previously undetected steroid use in athletes. 

Hubert Reeves (1932–2023), celebrated astrophysicist and science icon 

Hubert Reeves was a Canadian astrophysicist who became a science icon thanks to his appearances on television shows and science documentaries, as well as his work discussing ecological issues. 

M. S. Swaminathan (1925–2023), led India’s “green revolution”

Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan was an agricultural scientist, plant geneticist, and humanitarian whose work and leadership during India’s “green revolution” helped fight famine.

Sir Ian Wilmut (1944–2023), Dolly the cloned sheep co-creator

Professor Sir Ian Wilmut was a British embryologist who led the Roslin Institute team at the University of Edinburgh that cloned Dolly the sheep in 1996.

Sliman Bensmaia (1973–2023), pioneer of touch-enabled prosthetics

Sliman Bensmaia was a neuroscientist and leading expert on the sense of touch who developed technology that allows prosthetic limbs to sense temperature and touch in a realistic way.

W. Jason Morgan (1935–2023), plate tectonics pioneer 

W. Jason Morgan was a geologist whose discoveries in plate tectonics helped revolutionize our understanding of the Earth.

John Goodenough (1922–2023), Nobel-winning lithium-ion battery creator

John Goodenough was a scientist who won the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work in the creation of the rechargeable lithium-ion battery.

Firouz Naderi (1946–2023), NASA Mars mission director 

Firouz Naderi was a scientist with NASA who led several missions to Mars.

Harald zur Hausen (1936–2023), Nobel Prize-winning virologist 

Harald zur Hausen was a Nobel Prize-winning German virologist who discovered the link between HPV and cervical cancer, and whose work led to the development of a vaccine against cancer-causing human papilloma viruses. 

Theodor O. Diener (1921–2023), scientist who discovered viroids

Theodor O. Diener was a scientist who discovered the tiny infectious disease agents now known as viroids.

Virginia Norwood (1927-2023), physicist, “Mother of Landsat”

Virginia Norwood invented the multispectral scanner that allows us to take detailed images of Earth from orbit. An integral part of the Landsat 1 satellite, the technology paved the way for the satellite scanners providing imagery of Earth to this day. She is known as the “Mother of Landsat” thanks to her breakthrough.

Morris Tanenbaum (1928–2023), inventions led to medical imaging tech

Morris Tanenbaum was an innovative thinker in the world of science and technology, helping the legendary Bell Labs make several technological leaps forward in the 1950s and 1960s. They include spearheading the creation of the first silicon transistor and gas-infused silicon transistor, and helping lead the team that invented the first high-field superconducting magnets. That advancement eventually led to the invention of today’s cutting edge medical imaging devices.

Paul Berg (1926–2023), Nobel-winning genetics scientist

Paul Berg was an American biochemist whose work in gene splicing helped lay the foundations for the biotech industry. 

Lenny Lipton (1940–2022), “Puff the Magic Dragon” lyricist

Lenny Lipton wrote the poem that became the lyrics to “Puff the Magic Dragon,” and he was a pioneer of 3D filmmaking.

Nick Holonyak Jr. (1928–2022), LED inventor

Nick Holonyak Jr. was an inventor who created the first practical visible-spectrum LED, now used in applications from light bulbs to traffic signals to medical devices.

Valery Polyakov (1942–2022), cosmonaut who took longest trip to space

Valery Polyakov was a Russian cosmonaut who holds the record for most consecutive days in outer space.

Frank Drake (1930–2022), pioneer in the search for extraterrestrial life

Frank Drake was the first scientist to use radio astronomy to search for signs of extraterrestrial intelligence.

Dave Smith (1950–2022), synthesizer pioneer

Dave Smith was an engineer known as the “Father of MIDI” for his innovations in electronic instruments.

Dr. Aaron Beck (1921–2021), father of cognitive therapy

Dr. Aaron Beck was a psychotherapist who was a pioneer in the development of cognitive behavioral therapy.

Steven Weinberg (1933–2021), Nobel Prize-winning physicist

Steven Weinberg was a theoretical physicist who won the 1979 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work with elementary particles.

Ei-ichi Negishi (1935–2021), top scientist revolutionized drug-making, made OLED TVs possible

Dr. Ei-ichi Negishi was a scientist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work, which paved the way for new medicines and OLED televisions.

Yuan Longping (1930–2021), created hybrid rice to ease famine

Yuan Longping was a Chinese plant scientist who created high-yield hybrid rice that helped alleviate famine in Asia and Africa.

Spencer Silver (1941–2021), co-inventor of Post-it Notes

Spencer Silver was a chemist who invented the adhesive used in Post-it Notes.

Charles Geschke (1939–2021), co-founder of Adobe

Charles Geschke was the co-founder of Adobe, the software giant that created Photoshop and PDFs.

Isamu Akasaki (1929–2021), inventor who made LED light widely accessible

Isamu Akasaki was a Japanese physicist who was part of the Nobel Prize-winning team that developed blue LED light, a breakthrough that led to the widespread use of LED today.

Paul Crutzen (1933–2021), Nobel laureate who warned of ozone depletion

Paul Crutzen was a scientist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1995 for his study of the damaged ozone layer.

Andrew Brooks (1969–2021), scientist who developed first COVID-19 spit test

Andrew Brooks was a research professor at Rutgers University and CEO of Infinity Biologix, who developed the first FDA-approved rapid saliva test for COVID-19.

Discover the legacies of the Challenger astronauts

On January 28, 1986, Americans turned on their TVs to watch the launch of Space Shuttle Challenger. The shuttle’s flight would turn out to be heartbreakingly brief before tragedy struck. Seventy-three seconds into the Challenger’s flight, the shuttle exploded. All seven astronauts on board were killed.

Narinder Kapany (1926–2020), physicist who co-invented fiber optics

Narinder Kapany was a physicist known as the “father of fiber optics,” who was one of the inventors of fiber optics technology.

Timothy Ray Brown (1966–2020), first person cured of HIV infection

Timothy Ray Brown was known as the “Berlin patient,” the first person who was known to have been cured of HIV infection.

Bob Gore (1937–2020), inventor of Gore-Tex

Robert W. “Bob” Gore was the former president and chairman of W.L. Gore & Associates, best known for inventing Gore-Tex fabric.

Joan Feynman (1927–2020), astrophysicist who explained the aurora borealis

Joan Feynman was a pioneering astrophysicist who discovered the science behind the aurora borealis and aurora australis.

Frances Allen (1932–2020), pioneering computer scientist

Frances Allen was a pioneering computer scientist and the first woman to win a Turing award.

William English (1929–2020), engineer who built the first computer mouse

William English was a computer engineer who built the first computer mouse.

Joanna Cole (1944–2020), “The Magic School Bus” author

Joanna Cole was a children’s author best known for her “The Magic School Bus” series.

Flossie Wong-Staal (1946–2020), pioneering HIV researcher

Flossie Wong-Staal was a molecular virologist whose research on HIV was crucial in the development of blood tests to detect the virus.

Grant Imahara (1970–2020), host of “MythBusters,” “White Rabbit Project”

Grant Imahara was an electrical engineer and roboticist who was best known for hosting “MythBusters” and “White Rabbit Project.”

William Dement (1928–2020), sleep doctor who coined the term “REM”

Dr. William Dement was a scientist who developed the field of sleep research and coined the term “REM,” or rapid eye movement, to describe the stage of sleep when dreaming takes place.

Floyd Zaiger (1926–2020), renowned fruit breeder

FloydZaigerwas a renowned fruit breeder who developed many new varieties of fruit including the Pluot.

Tomisaku Kawasaki (1925–2020), pediatrician who identified Kawasaki disease

Tomisaku Kawasaki was a Japanese pediatrician who was the first to identify the inflammatory syndrome in children that became known as Kawasaki disease.

S. David Freeman (1926–2020), ‘green cowboy’ who led the Tennessee Valley Authority

S. David Freeman was a renewable energy champion who led the Tennessee Valley Authority and advised presidents on green power.

Bruce Baker (1943–2020), invented Minspeak for nonverbal people's AAC speech devices

Bruce Baker was the creator of Minspeak, a communication system that allows people with disabilities such as cerebral palsy or ALS to communicate verbally.

Richard C. Friedman (1941–2020), doctor who showed homosexuality was biological

Richard C. Friedman was a psychiatrist whose groundbreaking 1988 book, “Male Homosexuality: A Contemporary Psychoanalytic Perspective,” showed that homosexuality was largely biological, rather than a perversion that needed to be cured.

Takuo Aoyagi (1936–2020), pulse oximeter inventor

Takuo Aoyagi was a Japanese engineer who developed technology that made the modern pulse oximeter possible, allowing us to measure the level of oxygen in the blood.