Last night, physicist and celebrity scientist Stephen Hawking passed away at 76. This morning, the scientific community woke up to the news and both mourned his passing and celebrated Hawking’s life and work.
Hawking was, in addition to his huge pop culture presence, an esteemed scientist whose work touched physics and astronomy, such as his work on black holes and a theory of cosmology that link general relativity and quantum mechanics for the first time. As a result, the astronomy and physics community felt his loss particularly keenly.
His passing has left an intellectual vacuum in his wake. But it's not empty. Think of it as a kind of vacuum energy permeating the fabric of spacetime that defies measure. Stephen Hawking, RIP 1942-2018. pic.twitter.com/nAanMySqkt
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) March 14, 2018
Sad to hear about Stephen Hawking. What a remarkable life. His contributions to science will be used as long as there are scientists, and there are many more scientists because of him. He spoke about the value and fragility of human life and civilisation and greatly enhanced both
— Brian Cox (@ProfBrianCox) March 14, 2018
A star just went out in the cosmos. We have lost an amazing human being. Stephen Hawking fought and tamed the cosmos bravely for 76 years and taught us all something importantabout what it truly means to celebrate about being human. I will miss him.
— Lawrence M. Krauss (@LKrauss1) March 14, 2018
We mourn the passing of Stephen Hawking. With grace, wit and courage, his genius took us all to very edge of space and time. pic.twitter.com/nM33NIvbH5
— Brian Greene (@bgreene) March 14, 2018
But possibly the most touching tributes came from space agencies. As Hawking dealt with his ALS, many thought he’d never get to see the practical applications of his work. But space agencies put it to use, and played a role in ensuring Hawking got to do more than think about space.
Remembering Stephen Hawking, a renowned physicist and ambassador of science. His theories unlocked a universe of possibilities that we & the world are exploring. May you keep flying like superman in microgravity, as you said to astronauts on @Space_Station in 2014 pic.twitter.com/FeR4fd2zZ5
— NASA (@NASA) March 14, 2018
"Space, here I come" – remembering world renowned physicist Stephen Hawking, who showed us there are no limits to achieving our dreams. Our thoughts are with his family. pic.twitter.com/52hpw0Tfwf
— European Space Agency (@esa) March 14, 2018
Genius is so fine and rare. Goodbye Professor Hawking. You inspired and taught us all. pic.twitter.com/9Drdnv2eEe
— Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield) March 14, 2018
He was one of the smartest among us and helped us to unlock the secrets of our universe. He influenced not just our science, but our culture. We'll be missing him as we celebrate #YurisNight this year. RIP Stephen Hawking pic.twitter.com/Xx7w43NYA3
— Yuri's Night (@YurisNight) March 14, 2018
One of the most frustrating things a scientist can hear is a dismissal of their work because people think it has no impact on their lives. Hawking likely heard this more than once, even as he became a celebrity. But the outpouring we’ve seen shows that Hawking and his work was more than a set of equations. Perhaps there is a measure of solace in the idea of many universes, which Hawking was a fierce advocate of; somewhere, out there, Hawking is still exploring the universe.