| Name | Occupation | Birth | Death | Known for |
|---|
| Buzz Aldrin |
Astronaut |
20-Jan-1930 |
|
Second man on the Moon |
| Zhores I. Alferov |
Scientist |
15-Mar-1930 |
|
Developed solar cells for the Sputnik program |
| Hannes Alfvén |
Physicist |
30-May-1908 |
2-Apr-1995 |
Renegade Swedish astrophysicist |
| Roald Amundsen |
Explorer |
16-Jul-1872 |
18-Jun-1928 |
First to reach South Pole |
| Anaximander |
Philosopher |
c. 609 BC |
c. 546 BC |
First to develop a cosmology |
| Aristarchus of Samos |
Astronomer |
c. 310 BC |
c. 230 BC |
First heliocentrist |
| Aristotle |
Philosopher |
384 BC |
322 BC |
Politics |
| Lance Armstrong |
Cyclist |
18-Sep-1971 |
|
7-time Tour De France winner |
| Louis Armstrong |
Jazz Musician |
4-Aug-1901 |
6-Jul-1971 |
Jazz trumpeter |
| Neil Armstrong |
Astronaut |
5-Aug-1930 |
|
First man on the Moon |
| Svante Arrhenius |
Chemist |
19-Feb-1859 |
2-Oct-1927 |
Explored electrolytic conductivity |
| Atahualpa |
Royalty |
c. 1502 |
29-Aug-1533 |
Incan king ransomed, killed by Pizarro |
| John Atanasoff |
Inventor |
4-Oct-1903 |
15-Jun-1995 |
Atanasoff-Berry Computer |
| Walter Baade |
Astronomer |
24-Mar-1893 |
25-Jun-1960 |
German-American observational astronomer |
| Harold D. Babcock |
Astronomer |
24-Jan-1882 |
8-Apr-1968 |
Solar radiation |
| Horace W. Babcock |
Astronomer |
13-Sep-1912 |
29-Aug-2003 |
Adaptive optics and the Babcock Model |
| Emile Baudot |
Inventor |
11-Sep-1845 |
28-Mar-1903 |
Baudot Code |
| Henri Becquerel |
Physicist |
15-Dec-1852 |
25-Aug-1908 |
Discoverer of radioactivity |
| Ingmar Bergman |
Film Director |
14-Jul-1918 |
30-Jul-2007 |
Scenes from a Marriage |
| Ludwig Biermann |
Astronomer |
13-Mar-1907 |
12-Jan-1986 |
Solar winds |
| Hiram Bingham |
Politician |
19-Nov-1875 |
6-Jun-1956 |
US Senator, discovered Machu Picchu |
| Adriaan Blaauw |
Astronomer |
12-Apr-1914 |
1-Dec-2010 |
Evolving galaxies |
| Niels Bohr |
Physicist |
7-Oct-1885 |
18-Nov-1962 |
Father of Quantum Theory |
| Bart Jan Bok |
Astronomer |
28-Apr-1906 |
5-Aug-1983 |
Bok globules |
| Alec Boksenberg |
Astronomer |
18-Mar-1936 |
|
Image Photon Counting System |
| John G. Bolton |
Astronomer |
5-Jun-1922 |
6-Jul-1993 |
First Director of Parkes Observatory |
| Ira S. Bowen |
Astronomer |
21-Dec-1898 |
6-Feb-1973 |
Debunked nebulium |
| Tycho Brahe |
Astronomer |
14-Dec-1546 |
24-Oct-1601 |
Copper-nosed Danish astronomer |
| Dirk Brouwer |
Astronomer |
1-Sep-1902 |
31-Jan-1966 |
Celestial mechanics |
| Ernest W. Brown |
Astronomer |
29-Nov-1866 |
22-Jul-1938 |
Tables of the Motion of the Moon |
| Catherine Wolfe Bruce |
Philanthropist |
22-Jan-1816 |
13-Mar-1900 |
Underwriter of astronomy |
| E. Margaret Burbidge |
Astronomer |
12-Aug-1919 |
|
Synthesis of the elements in stars |
| Geoffrey Burbidge |
Astronomer |
24-Sep-1925 |
26-Jan-2010 |
Quasi-steady state cosmology |
| James Cagney |
Actor |
17-Jul-1899 |
30-Mar-1986 |
New York tough guy |
| William W. Campbell |
Astronomer |
11-Apr-1862 |
14-Jun-1938 |
Stellar Motions |
| Albert Camus |
Novelist |
7-Nov-1913 |
4-Jan-1960 |
French author and Nobel laureate |
| Johnny Carson |
Talk Show Host |
23-Oct-1925 |
23-Jan-2005 |
Longtime host of Tonight Show |
| Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar |
Astronomer |
19-Oct-1910 |
21-Aug-1995 |
Evolutionary stages of stars |
| Graham Chapman |
Comic |
8-Jan-1941 |
4-Oct-1989 |
Monty Python's King Arthur |
| Carl Charlier |
Astronomer |
1-Apr-1862 |
5-Nov-1934 |
Motion and the Distribution of the Stars |
| Eric Clapton |
Guitarist |
30-Mar-1945 |
|
Slowhand |
| Arthur C. Clarke |
Novelist |
16-Dec-1917 |
19-Mar-2008 |
2001: A Space Odyssey |
| Claudius |
Royalty |
1-Aug-10 BC |
13-Oct-54 AD |
Roman Emperor, 41-54 AD |
| John Cleese |
Comic |
27-Oct-1939 |
|
Monty Python |
| Cleopatra |
Royalty |
69 BC |
30-Aug-30 BC |
Queen of Egypt |
| Michael Collins |
Astronaut |
31-Oct-1930 |
|
Apollo 11 command module pilot |
| Sean Connery |
Actor |
25-Aug-1930 |
|
James Bond |
| Jacques Cousteau |
Activist |
11-Jun-1910 |
25-Jun-1997 |
Oceanographer, environmentalist |
| Thomas George Cowling |
Mathematician |
17-Jun-1906 |
16-Jun-1990 |
Cowling model |
| Walter Cronkite |
Journalist |
4-Nov-1916 |
17-Jul-2009 |
America's most trusted newscaster |
| Paul J. Crutzen |
Physicist |
3-Dec-1933 |
|
Ozone depletion |
| Marie Curie |
Chemist |
7-Nov-1867 |
4-Jul-1934 |
Early nuclear chemist |
| Pierre Curie |
Physicist |
15-May-1859 |
19-Apr-1906 |
Early investigator of radiation |
| Louis Daguerre |
Inventor |
18-Nov-1787 |
10-Jul-1851 |
Invented Daguerreotype photography |
| Dante |
Poet |
1265 |
14-Sep-1321 |
La Divina Commedia |
| Paul Davies |
Physicist |
22-Apr-1946 |
|
The Mind of God |
| Willem de Sitter |
Astronomer |
6-May-1872 |
19-Nov-1934 |
Expanding space |
| Peter Debye |
Physicist |
24-Mar-1884 |
2-Nov-1966 |
Studied molecular structure, dipoles |
| Henri Alexandre Deslandres |
Astronomer |
24-Jul-1853 |
15-Jan-1948 |
Spectroheliograph |
| Rudolf Diesel |
Inventor |
18-Mar-1858 |
30-Sep-1913 |
Inventor of the diesel engine |
| Christian Doppler |
Physicist |
29-Nov-1803 |
17-Mar-1853 |
Discovered the Doppler Effect |
| Kirk Douglas |
Actor |
9-Dec-1916 |
|
Spartacus |
| Dr. Drew |
Radio Personality |
4-Sep-1958 |
|
Loveline |
| Frank W. Dyson |
Astronomer |
8-Jan-1868 |
25-May-1939 |
Six pips on the BBC |
| Arthur Eddington |
Astronomer |
28-Dec-1882 |
22-Nov-1944 |
Eddington luminosity |
| Albert Einstein |
Physicist |
14-Mar-1879 |
18-Apr-1955 |
Theory of relativity |
| Johann Franz Encke |
Astronomer |
23-Sep-1791 |
26-Aug-1865 |
Investigated comets and asteroids |
| Enya |
Musician |
17-May-1961 |
|
Orinoco Flow |
| Euclid |
Mathematician |
c. 365 BC |
c. 275 BC |
Father of geometry |
| Leonhard Euler |
Mathematician |
15-Apr-1707 |
18-Sep-1783 |
The Elements of Euclid |
| Michael Faraday |
Physicist |
22-Sep-1791 |
25-Aug-1867 |
Discovered electrical induction |
| Enrico Fermi |
Physicist |
29-Sep-1901 |
29-Nov-1954 |
First controlled nuclear chain reaction |
| Richard Feynman |
Physicist |
11-May-1918 |
15-Feb-1988 |
Surely he's joking |
| Leonardo Fibonacci |
Mathematician |
c. 1175 |
1250 |
Liber Abacis |
| Larry Fine |
Actor |
5-Oct-1902 |
24-Jan-1975 |
Larry on The Three Stooges |
| Alexander Fleming |
Scientist |
6-Aug-1881 |
11-Mar-1955 |
Discovered penicillin |
| Jodie Foster |
Actor |
19-Nov-1962 |
|
The Silence of the Lambs |
| Léon Foucault |
Physicist |
19-Sep-1819 |
11-Feb-1868 |
Measured the speed of light |
| Alfred Fowler |
Astronomer |
22-Mar-1868 |
24-Jun-1940 |
Celestial spectroscopy |
| William A. Fowler |
Astronomer |
9-Aug-1911 |
14-Mar-1995 |
Element generation within stars |
| Benjamin Franklin |
Diplomat |
17-Jan-1706 |
17-Apr-1790 |
American founding father |
| Sigmund Freud |
Psychiatrist |
6-May-1856 |
23-Sep-1939 |
Die Traumdeutung |
| Yuri Gagarin |
Astronaut |
9-Mar-1934 |
27-Mar-1968 |
First person to orbit earth |
| Jerry Garcia |
Musician |
1-Aug-1942 |
9-Aug-1995 |
Grateful Dead |
| Giuseppe Garibaldi |
Military |
4-Jul-1807 |
2-Jun-1882 |
Privateer, Italian hero |
| Lou Gehrig |
Baseball |
19-Jun-1903 |
2-Jun-1941 |
Played 2,130 consecutive games |
| George Gershwin |
Songwriter |
26-Sep-1898 |
11-Jul-1937 |
Rhapsody In Blue |
| Riccardo Giacconi |
Astronomer |
6-Oct-1931 |
|
Discovered cosmic X-ray sources |
| Terry Gilliam |
Film Director |
22-Nov-1940 |
|
Monty Python alumnus, Brazil |
| Maxim Gorky |
Playwright |
28-Mar-1868 |
17-Jun-1936 |
The Lower Depths |
| Stephen Jay Gould |
Biologist |
10-Sep-1941 |
20-May-2002 |
Evolutionary scientist |
| Cary Grant |
Actor |
18-Jan-1904 |
29-Nov-1986 |
North by Northwest |
| Jesse L. Greenstein |
Astronomer |
15-Oct-1909 |
21-Oct-2002 |
Co-Discoverer of quasars |
| J. B. S. Haldane |
Biologist |
5-Nov-1892 |
1-Dec-1964 |
Haldane's principle |
| George Ellery Hale |
Astronomer |
29-Jun-1868 |
21-Feb-1938 |
Palomar Observatory founder, astronomer |
| George Harrison |
Musician |
25-Feb-1943 |
29-Nov-2001 |
Beatle |
| Martin Harwit |
Astronomer |
9-Mar-1931 |
|
Helium-cooled rockets and infrared spectroscopy |
| Herbert A. Hauptman |
Mathematician |
14-Feb-1917 |
23-Oct-2011 |
X-ray diffraction studies |
| Stephen Hawking |
Physicist |
8-Jan-1942 |
|
Wheelchair-bound physicist |
| Chushiro Hayashi |
Astronomer |
25-Jul-1920 |
28-Feb-2010 |
Big Bang astrophysicist |
| Otto Heckmann |
Astronomer |
23-Jun-1901 |
13-May-1983 |
Investigated cosmic expansion |
| Werner Heisenberg |
Physicist |
5-Dec-1901 |
1-Feb-1976 |
Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle |
| Audrey Hepburn |
Actor |
4-May-1929 |
20-Jan-1993 |
My Fair Lady |
| George Herbig |
Astronomer |
2-Jan-1920 |
|
Herbig-Haro objects |
| Herodotus |
Historian |
c. 484 BC |
c, 425 BC |
The Histories |
| Caroline Herschel |
Astronomer |
16-Mar-1750 |
9-Jan-1848 |
Astronomer, sister of William |
| John Herschel |
Astronomer |
7-Mar-1792 |
11-May-1871 |
Discovered many moons of Saturn |
| Ejnar Hertzsprung |
Astronomer |
8-Oct-1873 |
21-Oct-1967 |
Hertzsprung-Russell diagram |
| Gerhard Herzberg |
Physicist |
25-Dec-1904 |
3-Mar-1999 |
Molecular spectroscopy |
| Thor Heyerdahl |
Explorer |
6-Oct-1914 |
18-Apr-2002 |
Kon-Tiki |
| Miguel Hidalgo |
Religion |
8-May-1753 |
30-Jul-1811 |
Father of Mexican independence |
| George W. Hill |
Astronomer |
3-Mar-1838 |
16-Apr-1914 |
A New Theorie of Jupiter and Saturn |
| Edmund Hillary |
Explorer |
20-Jul-1919 |
11-Jan-2008 |
First to summit Mt. Everest |
| Hipparchus |
Astronomer |
c. 190 BC |
c. 120 BC |
Cataloguer of stars, trigonometrist |
| Alfred Hitchcock |
Film Director |
13-Aug-1899 |
29-Apr-1980 |
Master of Suspense |
| Thomas Hobbes |
Philosopher |
5-Apr-1588 |
4-Dec-1679 |
Leviathan |
| Buddy Holly |
Musician |
7-Sep-1936 |
3-Feb-1959 |
Buddy Holly and The Crickets |
| Gerardus 't Hooft |
Physicist |
5-Jul-1946 |
|
Quantum physicist |
| Jack Horkheimer |
Astronomer |
11-Jun-1938 |
20-Aug-2010 |
Naked-eye astronomer |
| Curly Howard |
Actor |
22-Oct-1903 |
18-Jan-1952 |
Highest pitched Stooge |
| Moe Howard |
Actor |
19-Jun-1897 |
4-May-1975 |
Boss Stooge |
| Shemp Howard |
Actor |
4-Mar-1895 |
22-Nov-1955 |
Stooge who replaced Curly |
| Fred Hoyle |
Astronomer |
24-Jun-1915 |
20-Aug-2001 |
Opposed the Big Bang but named it |
| Tsien Hsue-shen |
Scientist |
11-Dec-1911 |
31-Oct-2009 |
Founder of Chinese space program |
| William Huggins |
Astronomer |
7-Feb-1824 |
12-May-1910 |
Spectrographic astronomy pioneer |
| David Hume |
Philosopher |
7-May-1711 |
25-Aug-1776 |
Empiricist nonpareil |
| Christiaan Huygens |
Physicist |
14-Apr-1629 |
8-Jul-1695 |
Wave theory of light |
| Eric Idle |
Comic |
29-Mar-1943 |
|
Monty Python |
| Karl Jaspers |
Philosopher |
23-Feb-1883 |
26-Feb-1969 |
Existential thinker |
| Terry Jones |
Comic |
1-Feb-1942 |
|
Monty Python |
| Charles K. Kao |
Scientist |
4-Nov-1933 |
|
Fiber optics |
| Pyotr Kapitsa |
Physicist |
8-Jul-1894 |
8-Apr-1984 |
Discovered superfluidity |
| Jacobus C. Kapteyn |
Astronomer |
19-Jan-1851 |
18-Jun-1922 |
Star streaming |
| Danny Kaye |
Actor |
18-Jan-1913 |
3-Mar-1987 |
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty |
| James E. Keeler |
Astronomer |
10-Sep-1857 |
12-Aug-1900 |
Composition of Saturn's rings |
| Grace Kelly |
Royalty |
12-Nov-1929 |
14-Sep-1982 |
American-born Princess of Monaco |
| Johannes Kepler |
Astronomer |
27-Dec-1571 |
15-Nov-1630 |
Laws of Planetary Motion |
| Donald E. Knuth |
Computer Programmer |
10-Jan-1938 |
|
The Art of Computer Programming |
| Vladimir Komarov |
Astronaut |
16-Mar-1927 |
24-Apr-1967 |
Pilot of Soyuz 1 plunged to his death |
| Robert P. Kraft |
Astronomer |
16-Jun-1927 |
|
Lick Observatory |
| Herbert Kroemer |
Physicist |
25-Aug-1928 |
|
Pioneer in laser technology |
| Stanley Kubrick |
Film Director |
26-Jul-1928 |
7-Mar-1999 |
2001: A Space Odyssey |
| Pierre-Simon Laplace |
Mathematician |
23-Mar-1749 |
5-Mar-1827 |
Traité du Mécanique Céleste |
| Max von Laue |
Physicist |
9-Oct-1879 |
23-Apr-1960 |
X-ray crystallography |
| Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier |
Chemist |
26-Aug-1743 |
8-May-1794 |
Father of modern chemistry |
| David Lean |
Film Director |
25-Mar-1908 |
16-Apr-1991 |
Lawrence of Arabia |
| Henrietta Swan Leavitt |
Astronomer |
4-Jul-1868 |
12-Dec-1921 |
Cepheid variable |
| Tsung-Dao Lee |
Physicist |
25-Nov-1926 |
|
Violations of parity law |
| Anton van Leeuwenhoek |
Scientist |
24-Oct-1632 |
26-Aug-1723 |
Master of the Microscope |
| John Lennon |
Musician |
9-Oct-1940 |
8-Dec-1980 |
Beatle |
| Tea Leoni |
Actor |
25-Feb-1966 |
|
Nora Wilde on The Naked Truth |
| Armin O. Leuschner |
Astronomer |
16-Jan-1868 |
22-Apr-1953 |
Astronomer at Berkeley |
| Jerry Lewis |
Comic |
16-Mar-1926 |
|
Muscular Dystrophy Association |
| James Lick |
Business |
25-Aug-1796 |
1-Oct-1876 |
Lick Observatory |
| Bertil Lindblad |
Astronomer |
26-Nov-1895 |
25-Jun-1965 |
Spiral structure of the galaxy |
| Astrid Lindgren |
Author |
14-Nov-1907 |
28-Jan-2002 |
Pippi Longstocking |
| Yang Liwei |
Astronaut |
21-Jun-1965 |
|
First manned Chinese spaceflight |
| John Locke |
Philosopher |
29-Aug-1632 |
28-Oct-1704 |
An Essay Concerning Human Understanding |
| Bernard Lovell |
Astronomer |
31-Aug-1913 |
6-Aug-2012 |
Radio astronomer at Jodrell Bank |
| Frank J. Low |
Astronomer |
23-Nov-1933 |
11-Jun-2009 |
Infrared astronomy |
| Auguste Lumière |
Inventor |
19-Oct-1862 |
10-Apr-1954 |
Co-Inventor of motion pictures |
| Louis Lumière |
Inventor |
5-Oct-1864 |
6-Jun-1948 |
Inventor of motion pictures |
| Martin Luther |
Religion |
10-Nov-1483 |
18-Feb-1546 |
Created Protestant movement |
| Willem J. Luyten |
Astronomer |
7-Mar-1899 |
21-Nov-1994 |
Stellar mortician |
| Donald Lynden-Bell |
Astronomer |
5-Apr-1935 |
|
Astrophysicist at Cambridge |
| Bernard Lyot |
Astronomer |
27-Feb-1897 |
2-Apr-1952 |
Sandstorms on Mars |
| Ernst Mach |
Physicist |
18-Feb-1838 |
19-Feb-1916 |
Optical and sensory perceptualist |
| Ferdinand Magellan |
Explorer |
1480 |
27-Apr-1521 |
Circumnavigated the globe |
| Christa McAuliffe |
Astronaut |
2-Sep-1948 |
28-Jan-1986 |
First teacher in space |
| Paul McCartney |
Musician |
18-Jun-1942 |
|
Beatle |
| William D. McElroy |
Biologist |
22-Jan-1917 |
17-Feb-1999 |
Bioluminescence |
| Gregor Mendel |
Scientist |
22-Jul-1822 |
6-Jan-1884 |
Discovered the laws of inheritance |
| Gerard Mercator |
Cartographer |
5-Mar-1512 |
2-Dec-1594 |
The Mercator Projection |
| Paul W. Merrill |
Astronomer |
15-Aug-1887 |
19-Jul-1961 |
S-process of nucleosynthesis |
| Charles Messier |
Astronomer |
26-Jun-1730 |
12-Apr-1817 |
Cataloguer of M objects |
| E. Arthur Milne |
Mathematician |
14-Feb-1896 |
21-Sep-1950 |
Kinematic relativity |
| Hermann Minkowski |
Mathematician |
22-Jun-1864 |
12-Jan-1909 |
Minkowski space |
| Rudolph Minkowski |
Astronomer |
28-May-1895 |
4-Jan-1976 |
Galaxies in collision |
| Marcel Minnaert |
Astronomer |
12-Feb-1893 |
26-Oct-1970 |
Solar spectrophotometry |
| August Möbius |
Astronomer |
17-Nov-1790 |
26-Sep-1868 |
Möbius strip |
| Mario J. Molina |
Chemist |
19-Mar-1943 |
|
Ozone depletion |
| Charlotte E. Moore |
Astronomer |
24-Sep-1898 |
3-Mar-1990 |
Technetium in the Sun |
| Gordon Moore |
Business |
3-Jan-1929 |
|
Co-founder of Intel, laid down Moore's Law |
| Patrick Moore |
TV Personality |
4-Mar-1923 |
|
BBC's The Sky At Night |
| William W. Morgan |
Astronomer |
3-Jan-1906 |
21-Jun-1994 |
Spiral arms of the Milky Way Galaxy |
| John Muir |
Activist |
21-Apr-1838 |
24-Dec-1914 |
Patron saint of Yosemite National Park |
| Fridtjof Nansen |
Explorer |
10-Oct-1861 |
13-May-1930 |
Polar explorer, Nobel Prize recipient |
| Isaac Newton |
Physicist |
4-Jan-1643 |
31-Mar-1727 |
Father of the clockwork universe |
| Nichelle Nichols |
Actor |
28-Dec-1932 |
|
Lt. Uhura on Star Trek |
| Seth Barnes Nicholson |
Astronomer |
12-Nov-1891 |
2-Jul-1963 |
Four satellites of Jupiter |
| Friedrich Nietzsche |
Philosopher |
15-Oct-1844 |
25-Aug-1900 |
God is dead |
| Leonard Nimoy |
Actor |
26-Mar-1931 |
|
Commander Spock on Star Trek |
| Alfred Nobel |
Inventor |
21-Oct-1833 |
10-Dec-1896 |
Dynamite inventor, established Nobel Prize |
| Tenzing Norgay |
Explorer |
15-May-1914 |
9-May-1986 |
With Edmund Hilllary on Everest |
| Daniel O'Connell |
Politician |
6-Aug-1775 |
15-May-1847 |
Irish hero, called The Liberator |
| Sean O'Keefe |
Administrator |
27-Jan-1956 |
|
NASA Administrator, 2001-05 |
| Wilhelm Olbers |
Astronomer |
11-Oct-1758 |
2-Mar-1840 |
Studied asteroids, comets |
| Jan Hendrik Oort |
Astronomer |
28-Apr-1900 |
5-Nov-1992 |
Theory of the origin of comets |
| Ernst J. Öpik |
Astronomer |
23-Oct-1893 |
10-Sep-1985 |
Andromeda Nebula |
| Donald E. Osterbrock |
Astronomer |
13-Jul-1924 |
11-Jan-2007 |
Director of Lick Observatory, 1973-81 |
| Jesse Owens |
Track and Field |
12-Sep-1913 |
31-Mar-1980 |
Four track and field medals in 1936 Olympics |
| Bohdan Paczynski |
Astronomer |
8-Feb-1940 |
19-Apr-2007 |
Gravitational microlensing |
| Michael Palin |
Comic |
5-May-1943 |
|
Monty Python |
| Eugene Parker |
Astronomer |
10-Jun-1927 |
|
Solar winds |
| Anna Pavlova |
Dancer |
12-Feb-1881 |
22-Jan-1931 |
Early 20th century Russian ballerina |
| P. James E. Peebles |
Astronomer |
25-Apr-1935 |
|
Galaxy formation |
| Pelé |
Soccer |
23-Oct-1940 |
|
Brazil's greatest soccer player |
| John S. Plaskett |
Astronomer |
17-Nov-1865 |
17-Oct-1941 |
Plaskett's star |
| Plato |
Philosopher |
c. 427 BC |
c. 347 BC |
The Republic |
| Pocahontas |
Royalty |
c. 1595 |
21-Mar-1617 |
Native American princess |
| Elvis Presley |
Singer |
8-Jan-1935 |
16-Aug-1977 |
Rock and roll icon |
| Richard Preston |
Author |
5-Aug-1954 |
|
The Hot Zone |
| Pythagoras |
Mathematician |
c. 580 BC |
c. 500 BC |
Pythagorean Theorem |
| Srinivasa Ramanujan |
Mathematician |
22-Dec-1887 |
26-Apr-1920 |
Self-educated mathematician |
| James Randi |
Magician |
7-Aug-1928 |
|
The Amazing Randi |
| John Rawls |
Philosopher |
21-Feb-1921 |
24-Nov-2002 |
A Theory of Justice |
| Martin Rees |
Astronomer |
23-Jun-1942 |
|
President of the Royal Society |
| Augusto Righi |
Physicist |
27-Aug-1850 |
8-Jun-1920 |
Electromagnetic waves |
| Gene Roddenberry |
Screenwriter |
19-Aug-1921 |
24-Oct-1991 |
Creator of Star Trek |
| Fred Rogers |
TV Personality |
20-Mar-1928 |
27-Feb-2003 |
Mister Rogers |
| Carlo Rubbia |
Physicist |
31-Mar-1934 |
|
Co-Discovered W and Z particles |
| Henry Norris Russell |
Astronomer |
25-Oct-1877 |
18-Feb-1957 |
Giant stars and dwarfs |
| Meg Ryan |
Actor |
19-Nov-1961 |
|
Sleepless In Seattle |
| Carl Sagan |
Astronomer |
9-Nov-1934 |
20-Dec-1996 |
Popular astronomer, host of Cosmos |
| Andrei Sakharov |
Physicist |
21-May-1921 |
14-Dec-1989 |
Developed the Soviet hydrogen bomb |
| Edwin E. Salpeter |
Astronomer |
3-Dec-1924 |
26-Nov-2008 |
Quantitative electron microscopic autoradiography |
| Allan R. Sandage |
Astronomer |
18-Jun-1926 |
13-Nov-2010 |
Quasars and Hubble-Sandage variable stars |
| Carlos Santana |
Musician |
20-Jul-1947 |
|
House is dark, pots are cold |
| Wallace Sargent |
Astronomer |
15-Feb-1935 |
|
Astrophysicist at CalTech |
| Giovanni Virginio Schiaparelli |
Astronomer |
14-Mar-1835 |
4-Jul-1910 |
Discovered canals on Mars |
| Frank Schlesinger |
Astronomer |
11-May-1871 |
10-Jul-1943 |
Stellar parallaxes |
| Maarten Schmidt |
Astronomer |
28-Dec-1929 |
|
Co-Discoverer of quasars |
| Arthur Schopenhauer |
Philosopher |
22-Feb-1788 |
21-Sep-1860 |
Philosopher of Pessimism |
| Erwin Schrödinger |
Physicist |
12-Aug-1887 |
4-Jan-1961 |
Schrödinger's wave equation |
| Karl Schwarzschild |
Astronomer |
9-Oct-1873 |
11-May-1916 |
Black holes, Schwarzschild radius |
| Martin Schwarzschild |
Astronomer |
31-May-1912 |
10-Apr-1997 |
Structure and Evolution of the Stars |
| Aleksandr Scriabin |
Composer |
25-Dec-1871 |
14-Apr-1915 |
Prometheus: The Poem of Fire |
| Frederick Hanley Seares |
Astronomer |
17-May-1873 |
20-Jul-1964 |
Astronomer at Mt. Wilson Observatory |
| Sir Run Run Shaw |
Film/TV Producer |
23-Nov-1907 |
|
Kung fu movie mogul |
| Iosif S. Shklovskii |
Astronomer |
1-Jul-1916 |
3-Mar-1985 |
Synchrotron radiation of the Crab Nebula |
| Frans Eemil Sillanpää |
Author |
16-Sep-1888 |
3-Jun-1964 |
The Loveliness and Wretchedness of Human Life |
| Frank Sinatra |
Singer |
12-Dec-1915 |
14-May-1998 |
It's Frank's world, we just live in it |
| V. M. Slipher |
Astronomer |
11-Nov-1875 |
8-Nov-1969 |
Interstellar dust |
| Louis Slotin |
Physicist |
1-Dec-1910 |
30-May-1946 |
Died tickling the dragon's tail |
| Socrates |
Philosopher |
469 BC |
399 BC |
Developer of the Socratic Method |
| Harold Spencer Jones |
Astronomer |
29-Mar-1890 |
3-Nov-1960 |
10th Royal Astronomer of England |
| Lyman Spitzer, Jr. |
Astronomer |
26-Jun-1914 |
31-Mar-1997 |
Father of space telescopes |
| William Spoelhof |
Educator |
8-Dec-1909 |
3-Dec-2008 |
President of Calvin College, 1951-76 |
| Bruce Springsteen |
Musician |
23-Sep-1949 |
|
The Boss |
| Ringo Starr |
Drummer |
7-Jul-1940 |
|
Beatle |
| Joel Stebbins |
Astronomer |
30-Jul-1878 |
16-Mar-1966 |
Photoelectric photometry |
| Jon Stewart |
Comic |
28-Nov-1962 |
|
Anchor of The Daily Show |
| Bengt Strömgren |
Astronomer |
21-Jan-1908 |
4-Jul-1987 |
Hydrogen stars |
| Otto Struve |
Astronomer |
12-Aug-1897 |
6-Apr-1963 |
Hydrogen in the interstellar medium |
| Chiune Sugihara |
Diplomat |
1-Jan-1900 |
31-Jul-1986 |
Helped Jews escape Lithuania |
| Rashid Sunyaev |
Astronomer |
1-Mar-1943 |
|
Sunyaev-Zeldovich effect |
| Ambrose Swasey |
Business |
19-Dec-1846 |
15-Jun-1937 |
Warner and Swasey Company and Observatory |
| Tacitus |
Historian |
56 AD |
c. 120 AD |
Historiae, Annals |
| George Takei |
Actor |
20-Apr-1937 |
|
Sulu on Star Trek |
| Joseph H. Taylor, Jr. |
Astronomer |
24-Mar-1941 |
|
Co-Discovered first binary pulsar |
| Nikolai Timofeev-Ressovsky |
Biologist |
20-Sep-1900 |
28-Mar-1981 |
Russian geneticist |
| Clyde W. Tombaugh |
Astronomer |
4-Feb-1906 |
17-Jan-1997 |
Discovered Pluto |
| Konstantin E. Tsiolkovsky |
Scientist |
17-Sep-1857 |
19-Sep-1935 |
Astronautics and rocket dynamics pioneer |
| Daniel C. Tsui |
Physicist |
28-Feb-1939 |
|
Fractional quantum Hall effect |
| Herbert Hall Turner |
Astronomer |
13-Aug-1861 |
20-Aug-1930 |
Stellar positions |
| Neil deGrasse Tyson |
Astronomer |
5-Oct-1958 |
|
Astrophysicist |
| Harold C. Urey |
Chemist |
29-Apr-1893 |
5-Jan-1981 |
Discovered Deuterium |
| Simon van der Meer |
Physicist |
24-Nov-1925 |
4-Mar-2011 |
Co-Discovered W and Z particles |
| Vangelis |
Musician |
29-Mar-1943 |
|
New Age instrumentalist |
| Martinus J.G. Veltman |
Physicist |
27-Jun-1931 |
|
Quantum physicist |
| Artturi Virtanen |
Chemist |
15-Jan-1895 |
11-Nov-1973 |
AIV method of fodder preservation |
| James Craig Watson |
Astronomer |
28-Jan-1838 |
23-Nov-1880 |
Claimed to discover the planet Vulcan |
| Alfred Wegener |
Scientist |
1-Nov-1880 |
Nov-1930 |
Continental drift |
| Ai Weiwei |
Artist |
18-May-1957 |
|
Chinese contemporary artist |
| Fred Whipple |
Astronomer |
5-Nov-1906 |
30-Aug-2004 |
Comet Guy |
| Otto Wichterle |
Chemist |
27-Oct-1913 |
18-Aug-1998 |
Invented soft contact lenses |
| Brian Wilson |
Singer/Songwriter |
20-Jun-1942 |
|
Troubled Beach Boy |
| Xerxes the Great |
Royalty |
519 BC |
465 BC |
King of Persia, attempted to invade Greece |
| Frank Zappa |
Composer |
21-Dec-1940 |
4-Dec-1993 |
Joe's Garage |
| Georgi Zhukov |
Military |
1-Dec-1896 |
18-Jun-1974 |
Soviet commander during WWII |
| Fritz Zwicky |
Astronomer |
14-Feb-1898 |
8-Feb-1974 |
Astrophysicist at CalTech |
