Stephen Hawking
Born 1942 · Age 83
English theoretical physicist, cosmologist and author; Lucasian Professor of Mathematics (1979–2009); known for work on black holes, Hawking radiation, popular science books (A Brief History of Time) and public engagement.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Oxford, England
Stephen William Hawking was born to Frank and Isobel Hawking in Oxford.
Family moved to St Albans, Hertfordshire
Father became head of the division of parasitology at the National Institute for Medical Research; family relocated.
Started at St Albans School
Attended private school St Albans School after passing the eleven-plus early; continued secondary education.
Built a homemade computer
Along with friends and with help from teacher Dikran Tahta, built a computer from clock parts, an old telephone switchboard and recycled components.
Built a record player from spare parts
Constructed a record player from cheaply bought parts, demonstrating hands-on engineering skill.
Awarded scholarship to University College, Oxford
Took examinations in March 1959 and was awarded a scholarship to University College, Oxford.
Started undergraduate studies at Oxford
Began university education at University College, Oxford, studying physics (could not read mathematics there at the time).
Awarded first-class BA degree in physics (Oxford)
Completed undergraduate studies and received a first-class BA in physics from University College, Oxford; result enabled graduate study at Cambridge.
Began graduate work at Trinity Hall, Cambridge
Started doctoral studies in applied mathematics and theoretical physics at Cambridge (specialising in general relativity and cosmology).
Diagnosed with motor neurone disease (ALS)
Diagnosed with an early-onset, slow-progressing form of motor neurone disease; initially given a prognosis of around two years to live.
Publicly challenged Fred Hoyle's work
Gained a reputation for brilliance and brashness after challenging Hoyle and Jayant Narlikar at a lecture (June 1964).
Birth of first child Robert
First son Robert Hawking was born in May 1967 (note: sources list May 1967; this event indicates family expansion—see next event for exact date).
Married Jane Wilde
Hawking and Jane Wilde married on 14 July 1965 in St Albans.
Engaged to Jane Wilde
Became engaged to Jane Wilde in October 1964 (engagement noted in sources).
Won the Adams Prize (shared with Penrose)
Essay 'Singularities and the Geometry of Space–Time' shared top honours and won the Adams Prize.
Research fellowship at Gonville and Caius College
Received a research fellowship at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge following his PhD.
Awarded PhD from Cambridge
Obtained PhD in applied mathematics and theoretical physics (thesis: Properties of Expanding Universes), specialising in general relativity and cosmology.
Birth of son Robert
Robert Hawking, first child, born in May 1967.
Fellowship for Distinction in Science at Caius
Accepted a specially created Fellowship for Distinction in Science to remain at Gonville and Caius College.
Proposed second law of black hole dynamics
Postulated that the event horizon of a black hole can never get smaller (analogy with thermodynamics); contributed to four laws of black hole mechanics with Bardeen and Carter.
Birth of daughter Lucy
Lucy Hawking was born in November 1970; later co-authored children's books with her father.
Gravity Research Foundation Award for 'Black Holes' essay
Won the Gravity Research Foundation award for his essay titled 'Black Holes'.
Published 'The Large Scale Structure of Space–Time' (with G.F.R. Ellis)
First major technical book co-authored with George Ellis on the mathematical structure of cosmology.
Sherman Fairchild Distinguished Visiting Professorship at Caltech
Appointed to a distinguished visiting professorship at the California Institute of Technology and began regular ties with Caltech.
Announced Hawking radiation; elected Fellow of the Royal Society
Presented results that black holes emit radiation (Hawking radiation); elected FRS a few weeks after the announcement.
Appointed reader in gravitational physics at Cambridge
Returned to Cambridge to take a senior academic post (reader) in gravitational physics.
Awarded Eddington Medal and Pius XI Gold Medal
Received multiple awards recognizing contributions to astrophysics and cosmology.
Received Heineman Prize, Maxwell Medal and Hughes Medal
Awarded several major physics prizes in recognition of his work.
Appointed professor with chair in gravitational physics
Promoted to professor, furthering his academic standing at Cambridge.
Received Albert Einstein Medal and honorary doctorate from Oxford
Honoured with the Albert Einstein Medal and an honorary doctorate from his alma mater.
Elected Lucasian Professor of Mathematics (Cambridge)
Appointed to the prestigious Lucasian Professorship (held 1979–2009); inaugural lecture proposed N = 8 supergravity.
Birth of son Timothy
Timothy Hawking was born in April 1979 (sources mention April 1979).
Appointed CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire)
Appointed CBE in the 1982 New Year Honours (listed in text as awarded in 1982); recognition of services to science.
Decided to write a popular book to raise funds
Motivated by the need to finance family expenses and children's education, signed with Bantam Books to write A Brief History of Time.
Published Hartle–Hawking 'no-boundary' proposal (with Jim Hartle)
Co-developed the Hartle–Hawking state proposing no boundary to the universe before the Planck epoch.
Underwent tracheotomy and lost natural speech
After a tracheotomy he lost his voice permanently and began communicating increasingly via speech-generating devices.
Awarded the Wolf Prize (jointly with Roger Penrose)
Received the Wolf Prize in 1988 for contributions to gravitational physics and cosmology.
A Brief History of Time spent 237 weeks on Sunday Times bestseller list
Record-breaking run of 237 weeks on the list, cementing Hawking's public profile.
Published 'A Brief History of Time' (US April; UK June)
Published a popular science bestseller which brought international fame and substantial financial reward; as of 2009 sold ~9 million copies.
Appointed Companion of Honour (CH)
Appointed a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour in the 1989 Birthday Honours.
Conceded Cygnus X-1 black hole wager (1990)
Acknowledged he had lost an earlier wager with Kip Thorne about Cygnus X-1 being a black hole (bet made circa 1974).
Documentary 'A Brief History of Time' premiered
Errol Morris documentary featuring Hawking premiered; mixed commercial exposure but critical success.
Published 'Black Holes and Baby Universes and Other Essays'
Collection of essays, interviews and talks aimed at a wider audience.
Divorced Jane; married Elaine Mason
Divorced first wife Jane (divorce finalised 1995) and married nurse Elaine Mason in September 1995.
Delivered lectures with Penrose published as 'The Nature of Space and Time'
Cambridge Newton Institute lecture series (1994 lectures published 1996); Hawking and Penrose delivered talks exploring space–time nature.
Guest appearance on 'The Simpsons'
By 1999 Hawking had become a pop culture figure, guest-starring on the long-running animated series.
Jane Hawking published memoir 'Music to Move the Stars'
First wife's memoir described marriage and breakdown, later revised as 'Travelling to Infinity'. (Personal milestone impacting public profile.)
Published 'The Universe in a Nutshell'
Follow-up popular science book expanding on cosmology and theoretical ideas.
Ranked number 25 in BBC's 100 Greatest Britons
Public recognition through a UK-wide public vote placing him among top 100 Greatest Britons.
Consensus shifts against Hawking's information-loss claim
By 2003 many physicists thought Hawking was wrong about information being irretrievably lost in black holes.
Supervised 39 successful PhD students (career milestone)
By the time of reporting, Hawking had supervised 39 successful doctoral students over his career.
Announced reversal on black hole information loss (Dublin lecture)
Conceded long-held position and proposed new ideas about information and alternative topologies; later published 2005 paper on subject.
Published 'A Briefer History of Time' (with Leonard Mlodinow)
Updated and more accessible version of his classic to reach a wider audience.
Named Academician of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences
Elected an Academician (lifetime member) at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in 1986 (listed in text as 1986); lifetime membership noted.
Received Copley Medal (Royal Society)
Awarded the Royal Society's prestigious Copley Medal for contributions to science.
Published 'God Created the Integers'
Compilation of important mathematical writings and commentary.
Recorded voice used on Pink Floyd track and made multiple media cameos
Participated in popular culture projects including voice recording on Pink Floyd's 'Keep Talking' and many TV cameos.
Experienced zero-gravity flight
Participated in a parabolic flight over the Atlantic (modified Boeing 727) to experience weightlessness.
Unveiled the Corpus Clock; received Fonseca Prize
Unveiled the Corpus Clock (Chronophage) at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge; received Fonseca Prize in Spain.
Visiting research chair at Perimeter Institute
Accepted a visiting research chair at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada (reported 2008).
Retired as Lucasian Professor of Mathematics (mandatory)
Retired from the Lucasian Chair at Cambridge as per university policy, continued as Director of Research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology.
Awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom
Received the United States' highest civilian honour, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Held tongue-in-cheek time-travel party
Publicised a party after it ended to 'test' time travel conjecture; no one attended.
Published 'The Grand Design' (with Leonard Mlodinow)
Book arguing that spontaneous creation via laws of physics may explain the universe without invoking God; discussed M-theory and multiverse.
Guest appearance on 'The Big Bang Theory'
Appeared as himself on the popular sitcom, reinforcing his cultural prominence.
Awarded Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics
Received the Breakthrough Prize (2012) in recognition of fundamental contributions to theoretical physics.
Received Russian Special Fundamental Physics Prize
Awarded the Russian Special Fundamental Physics Prize in 2013.
Film 'The Theory of Everything' released
Biographical film based on Jane Hawking's memoir 'Travelling to Infinity' was released; Eddie Redmayne won the Academy Award portraying Hawking.
Argued partial information retrieval from black holes
Publicly stated that not all information is lost when something enters a black hole; discussed mechanisms to retrieve information.
Helped launch Breakthrough Initiatives
Participated in the launch of Breakthrough Initiatives, an effort to search for extraterrestrial life funded by Yuri Milner.
Hosted 'Genius' TV series
Hosted and narrated a six-part television series 'Genius' aimed at bringing science to the public.
Awarded Honorary Doctorate from Imperial College London
Received an honorary doctorate from Imperial College London in July 2017.
Created documentary 'Stephen Hawking: Expedition New Earth'
Produced a 2017 episode of Tomorrow's World about space colonisation.
Submitted final paper 'A smooth exit from eternal inflation?'
Final scientific paper (co-authored with Thomas Hertog) was submitted to the Journal of High Energy Physics roughly 10 days before his death.
Died at home in Cambridge
Stephen Hawking died peacefully on 14 March 2018 at his home in Cambridge, aged 76.
Final paper published posthumously (April 27, 2018)
His final paper 'A smooth exit from eternal inflation?' was published in the Journal of High Energy Physics on 27 April 2018.
Announcement of ashes to be interred at Westminster Abbey
It was announced that Hawking's ashes would be interred at Westminster Abbey alongside other prominent scientists.
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