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.

Sammy Basso (1995–2024), progeria advocate and biologist

Sammy Basso was one of the oldest known people with the premature aging disease progeria, and he worked to find a cure for his own affliction. 

John A. Clements (1923–2024), doctor whose research saved infants

John A. Clements was a doctor and researcher who discovered the cause of neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) and helped develop life-saving treatments for it.

Tsung-Dao Lee (1926–2024), Nobel-winning physicist

Tsung-Dao Lee was a Chinese-born physicist who won the 1957 Nobel Prize in Physics for his discoveries on the nature of subatomic particles.

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.

Maxine Singer (1931–2024), biologist who helped map DNA 

Maxine Singer was a molecular biologist who helped map DNA and led the debate about the ethics of genetic engineering.

Dr. George Woodwell (1928–2024), pioneering climate researcher

Dr. George Woodwell was a pioneering climate researcher whose work helped lead to the banning of the pesticide DDT.

Ed Stone (1936–2024), scientist who led NASA’s Voyager mission

Ed Stone was a NASA scientist who led the agency’s pioneering Voyager missions and served as head of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for 10 years.

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. 

Arno A. Penzias (1933–2024), Nobel winner for Big Bang theory 

Arno A. Penzias was a scientist who shared the 1978 Nobel Prize in Physics for discoveries that helped prove the Big Bang theory. 

Mary Cleave (1947–2023), NASA astronaut on Space Shuttle Atlantis

Mary Cleave was a NASA astronaut who went to space twice on Space Shuttle Atlantis in the 1980s.

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.

Evelyn M. Witkin (1921–2023), discovered how DNA repairs itself 

Evelyn M. Witkin was an award-winning geneticist whose discoveries about how DNA repairs itself opened the door to advances in cancer treatment.

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.

Roger Payne (1935–2023), scientist who discovered whale song

Roger Payne was a biologist who discovered whale song and released a popular album featuring his recordings. 

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.

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. 

Ken Balcomb (1940–2022), scientist who worked to save orcas

Ken Balcomb was the founder of the Center for Whale Research, who worked to save wild orcas from extinction.

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.

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.

James Lovelock (1919–2022), ecologist known for Gaia theory

James Lovelock was an English ecologist known for his Gaia theory of the Earth as a living, self-regulating system.

John Froines (1939–2022), Chicago Seven trial defendant

John Froines was one of the defendants at the notorious Chicago Seven trial following the 1968 Democratic National Convention, as well as a chemist researching toxic substances.

Arthur D. Riggs (1939–2022), helped develop synthetic insulin for diabetes treatment

Arthur D. Riggs was a pioneer of biotechnology who helped develop synthetic insulin to treat diabetes.

Luc Montagnier (1932–2022), Nobel winner who co-discovered HIV

Luc Montagnier was a virologist who shared a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for co-discovering HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

Jeremiah Stamler (1919–2022), doctor who linked diet and heart disease

Dr. Jeremiah Stamler was a doctor whose research proved that cardiovascular disease was linked to our diet and lifestyle.

Sherif Zaki (1955–2021), CDC pathologist who studied Ebola, COVID-19

Sherif Zaki was a pathologist for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) who studied infectious diseases including Ebola, SARS, and COVID-19.

Peter Buck (1930–2021), Subway restaurant co-founder

Peter Buck was the co-founder of the Subway chain of sandwich shops.

Glen de Vries (1972–2021), businessman who went to space with Blue Origin

Glen de Vries was a businessman who recently went to space alongside William Shatner on Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin NS-18 mission.

Carolyn Shoemaker (1929–2021), astronomer who discovered many comets

Carolyn Shoemaker was an astronomer who co-discovered Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 and set a record for comets discovered.

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.

George Stranahan (1931–2021), physicist who founded Flying Dog Brewery

George Stranahan was a physicist and rancher who founded Flying Dog Brewery, one of the largest craft breweries in the U.S.

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.

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.

Millie Hughes-Fulford (1945–2021), first female payload specialist for NASA

Millie Hughes-Fulford was the first woman to go into space as a payload specialist, the scientists who work aboard NASA’s space missions.

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.