Chris Impey Wins 2026 Lewis Thomas Prize Honoring the “Scientist as Poet”

“Seen from a trillion miles away, Earth would be a single pixel in an image, a pale blue dot. None of the great construction feats of human civilization—the pyramids of Egypt or Great Wall of China—would be visible.”

—Chris Impey, Worlds Without End

The Rockefeller University has announced that U of A Distinguished Professor of Astronomy Chris Impey has been awarded the 2026 Lewis Thomas Prize for Writing about Science. This prestigious international honor, presented by The Rockefeller University, recognizes the rare individual who bridges the worlds of science and the humanities—what the prize describes as the “scientist as poet.”

The award ceremony will take place on March 9, 2026, at The Rockefeller University in New York City, where Professor Impey will deliver a public lecture exploring his career as both scientist and writer.

Established in 1993, the Lewis Thomas Prize celebrates scientists who possess what Lewis Thomas himself embodied: the ability to communicate complex scientific ideas with elegance, clarity, and poetic resonance. Named for the physician-scientist, educator, and writer who won the National Book Award for The Lives of a Cell, the prize honors those who can make science accessible while preserving its wonder and inspiring reflection on our place in the cosmos.

Lewis Thomas wrote, “We must rely on scientists to help us find the way through the near distance, but for the longer stretch of the future we are dependent on the poets. A poet is, after all, a sort of scientist, but engaged in a qualitative science in which nothing is measurable.” Chris Impey exemplifies this synthesis.

Explore the Lewis Thomas Prize

Over his career, Impey has authored more than 220 refereed publications on observational cosmology, galaxies, and quasars, with research supported by over $20 million in NASA and NSF grants.

Impey has also shaped his career around a deep commitment to education. He has won eleven teaching awards and revolutionized astronomy education through online learning. His four online courses have enrolled over 370,000 students worldwide. Impey’s innovative approach to science education earned him recognition as an NSF Distinguished Teaching Scholar, the Carnegie Council’s Arizona Professor of the Year, and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor. A past Vice President of the American Astronomical Society, Impey received the society’s prestigious Education Prize, recognizing his lifetime contributions to astronomy education and public outreach.

Professor Impey has written over 100 popular articles on cosmology, astrobiology, and education, along with two textbooks. His creative work includes the science fiction novel Shadow World, which explores humanity’s future among the stars. His nine popular science books have brought cutting-edge astronomy to general audiences.

Explore Chris Impey’s work and publications.

Impey’s latest book, Worlds Without End, explores the search for Earth-like planets and the possibility of life beyond our solar system, weaving together exoplanet science with reflections on humanity’s place in the universe.

What makes Impey’s work so compelling is his ability to help readers see themselves in the cosmos, inviting them to experience the universe’s strangeness and beauty firsthand. In Worlds Without End, he writes:

“Let’s imagine the view from the most earthlike of these planets. The small star looks like a blood orange in the sky and bathes the scene in ocher light. Three of the other planets are suspended in the sky, each appearing larger than our Moon. A year is a week in this planetary system, so the planets move perceptibly from moment to moment. It would be an arresting but alien scene.”

The Lewis Thomas Prize recognizes Impey’s exceptional scientific contributions, and also his gift for helping all of us comprehend our place in the cosmos.