John C. Mather

Summary

John Cromwell Mather (born August 7, 1946, Roanoke, Virginia) is an American astrophysicist, cosmologist and Nobel Prize in Physics laureate for his work on the Cosmic Background Explorer Satellite (COBE) with George Smoot.

John Cromwell Mather
Mather in 2015
Born (1946-08-07) August 7, 1946 (age 77)
Alma materSwarthmore College
University of California, Berkeley
Known forCosmic microwave background radiation studies
AwardsDannie Heineman Prize for Astrophysics (1993)
Nobel Prize in Physics (2006)
Scientific career
FieldsAstrophysics, cosmology
InstitutionsNASA
University of Maryland
Columbia University
Doctoral advisorPaul L. Richards
Signature

This work helped cement the big-bang theory of the universe. According to the Nobel Prize committee, "the COBE-project can also be regarded as the starting point for cosmology as a precision science."[1]

Mather is a senior astrophysicist at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) in Maryland and adjunct professor of physics at the University of Maryland College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences. In 2007, Time magazine listed Mather among the 100 Most Influential People in The World. In October 2012, he was listed again by Time magazine in a special issue on New Space Discoveries as one of the 25 most influential people in space.

Mather is one of the 20 American recipients of the Nobel Prize in Physics to sign a letter addressed to President George W. Bush in May 2008, urging him to "reverse the damage done to basic science research in the Fiscal Year 2008 Omnibus Appropriations Bill" by requesting additional emergency funding for the Department of Energy's Office of Science, the National Science Foundation, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.[2]

Mather served as the senior project scientist for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) from 1995 until 2023, when he was succeeded by Jane Rigby.[3]

In 2014, Mather delivered an address on the James Webb Space Telescope at the second Starmus Festival in the Canary Islands.

Education and initial research edit

  • 1964 Newton High School, Newton, New Jersey[4]
  • 1968 B.Sc. (Physics), Swarthmore College (Highest Honors)
  • 1974 Ph.D. (Physics), University of California, Berkeley
  • 1974–1976 (NRC Postdoctoral Fellow), Columbia University Goddard Institute for Space Studies
  • Honors and awards edit

    Publications edit

    Appearances edit

    Mather is the Science Director of the National Academy of Future Scientists and Technologists.

    References edit

    1. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Physics 2006" (Press release). The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. 3 October 2006. Retrieved 2006-10-05.
    2. ^ "A Letter from America's Physics Nobel Laureates" (PDF).
    3. ^ Gutro, Rob (Jun 28, 2023). Adkins, Jamie (ed.). "NASA Names Dr. Jane Rigby New Webb Telescope Senior Project Scientist". NASA. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
    4. ^ John C. Mather on Nobelprize.org  , accessed 30 April 2020 "When I finished 8th grade, it was time to go to high school, and my parents decided to send me to Newton High School, where they thought we would get the best available education in our area."
    5. ^ "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement". www.achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement.
    6. ^ "NASA - Goddard Space Science is the Place for Awards This Season".
    7. ^ "PM gives away awards to prominent scientists". PIB. Government of India. 3 January 2010. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011.
    8. ^ University of Notre Dame. "Honorary Degrees". Archived from the original on 13 August 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
    9. ^ "AAS Fellows". AAS. Retrieved 29 September 2020.

    External links edit

    •   Media related to John C. Mather at Wikimedia Commons
    • John C. Mather biography at the Goddard Space Flight Center
    • Interview with John Mather from the SPIE Newsroom
    • Berkeley lab article
    • Mather's group's data that led to the Nobel Prize in symmetry magazine.
    • John C. Mather on the Infancy of the Universe at the National Academy of Sciences
    • John Mather Nobel Scholar Program
    • AIP Mather Policy Internship Program
    • John Mather Nobel Medal replica flown in Space Shuttle Atlantis
    • Replica of John Mather Nobel Medal in National Air and Space Museum permanent collection
    • John Mather commencement address at Swarthmore College from 2007 on YouTube
    • John Mather Nobel banquet speech from 2006
    • John Mather commencement address at the University of Maryland from 2008
    • John Mather visits German Embassy[permanent dead link]
    • John Mather in White House
    • John Mather Nobel Scholarship has new host
    • University of Maryland names John Mather College Park Professor
    • Daniel Chalonge Medal 2011 awarded to John Mather
    • National Geographic showcases John Mather
    • John Mather elected Fellow of AAAS
    • John Mather's 2021 Talk in the Silicon Valley Astronomy Lecture Series on 'How the Smooth Early Universe Grew into Everyone You Know'
    • American Astronomical Society hosts John Mather inspiring students[permanent dead link]
    • John Mather on Cosmic Complexity
    • John Mather 2012 delegate at the Blouin Creative Leadership Summit
    • John Mather in dialogue at Lindau Nobel
    • John Mather on Golden Age of Astronomy (video) on YouTube
    • Smithsonian presents John Mather
    • John Mather receives the Power of Excellence Award "for his excellence in his career and becoming a positive role model."
    • Southern Illinois University Shaw Lecture features John Mather
    • 2013 Albert Einstein World Award of Science Nomination
    • John Mather delivers 2014 UC Berkeley Regents Lecture (video) on YouTube
    • John Mather Biography and Interview on American Academy of Achievement
    • John C. Mather on Nobelprize.org   including the Nobel Lecture on 8 December 2006 From the Big Bang to the Nobel Prize and Beyond