Notable Alumni of California Institute of Technology

Moshe Arens 1925–2019

Israeli former defense and foreign minister

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Steingrímur Hermannsson 1928–2010

Former Prime Minister of Iceland

Pierre Clostermann 1921–2006

French World War II ace fighter pilot

Mustafa A.G. Abushagur 1951–

Former Deputy Prime Minister of Libya and engineering professor

John Poindexter 1936–

Reagan-era National Security Advisor

Also attended: United States Naval Academy

Child: Alan G. Poindexter (Naval Postgraduate School, Pensacola State College)

Erdal İnönü 1926–2007

Turkish physicist and interim prime minister

Jay Obernolte 1970–

U.S. representative from California and game developer

Bachelor of Science · Class of 1992

Also attended: California Baptist University, University of California-Los Angeles

Pete McCloskey 1927–2024

Former US Representative from California

Also attended: Occidental College, Stanford University

Edwin Reinecke 1924–2016

Former U.S. Representative from California

Yosef Rom 1932–1997

Israeli engineer and Likud member of the Knesset

Also attended: Illinois Institute of Technology

LeRoy H. Anderson 1906–1991

U.S. representative from Montana

Also attended: Montana State University

Victor Veysey 1915–2001

California congressman and Assistant Secretary of the Army

Also attended: Harvard University, Stanford University

Leon W. Johnson 1904–1997

Air Force general and Medal of Honor recipient

Master of Science · Meteorology

Also attended: The United States Military Academy at West Point

Arthur B. Robinson 1942–

Biochemist and Oregon state senator

Also attended: University of California-San Diego

Khurram Dastagir Khan 1970–

Pakistani politician and former National Assembly member

Also attended: Bowdoin College

Nicholas Yang 1955–

Hong Kong's inaugural Secretary for Innovation and Technology

Also attended: Stanford University

Jessica Mathews 1946–

President of Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 1997–2015

Also attended: Harvard University

Spouse: Charles G. Boyd (University of Kansas)

Mother: Barbara W. Tuchman (Harvard University, Ohio State University-Main Campus)

Howard Hughes 1905–1976

Aviator, business magnate and film producer

Also attended: Rice University

Spouse: Jean Peters (University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Ohio State University-Main Campus)

Father: Howard R. Hughes Sr. (Iowa State University, University of Iowa)

Gordon Moore 1929–2023

Intel co-founder who proposed Moore's law

Doctor of Philosophy

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley, San Jose State University

Charlie Munger 1924–2023

Vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway

Also attended: Harvard University, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

Sabeer Bhatia 1968–

Co-founder of Hotmail

Also attended: Stanford University

Arnold Beckman 1900–2004

Chemist, inventor of the pH meter, Beckman Instruments founder

Also attended: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Illinois State University

Adam D'Angelo 1984–

Co-founder and CEO of Quora

Aza Raskin 1984–

Co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology

Also attended: University of Chicago

Father: Jef Raskin (University of California-San Diego, Stony Brook University)

Regina E. Dugan 1963–

Businesswoman and first female DARPA director

Mechanical engineering

Also attended: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

John S. Chen 1955–

Former executive chairman and CEO of BlackBerry

Also attended: Brown University

Thornton Wilson 1921–1999

Former Chairman and CEO of Boeing

Also attended: Iowa State University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Linus Pauling 1901–1994

Chemist and peace activist

Doctor of Philosophy · Physical chemistry, Mathematical physics · Class of 1925

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Oregon State University

Spouse: Ava Helen Pauling (Oregon State University)

Donald Knuth 1938–

Computer scientist, Stanford professor emeritus

Doctor of Philosophy · Mathematics · Class of 1963

Also attended: Case Western Reserve University

William Shockley 1910–1989

Physicist and inventor, Bell Labs research group manager

Bachelor of Science · Class of 1932

Also attended: University of California-Los Angeles, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Carl David Anderson 1905–1991

Physicist, discovered the positron, 1936 Nobel laureate

Charles Hard Townes 1915–2015

Physicist who worked on the maser and laser

Also attended: Duke University, Furman University

Robert Wilson 1936–

Astronomer and 1978 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1962

Also attended: Rice University

Benoit Mandelbrot 1924–2010

Mathematician who coined the word fractal

Master of Science · Aeronautics · Class of 1949

Donald Arthur Glaser 1926–2013

Physicist, 1960 Nobel laureate for inventing the bubble chamber

Also attended: Case Western Reserve University

William Alfred Fowler 1911–1995

Astrophysicist, 1983 Nobel Prize in Physics

Also attended: Arizona State University-Tempe, University of Chicago, Ohio State University-Main Campus

Andrea M. Ghez 1965–

Astrophysicist, 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1992

Also attended: University of Chicago, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Kip S. Thorne 1940–

Astrophysicist, 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate

Bachelor of Science · Class of 1962

Also attended: Princeton University

Kenneth G. Wilson 1936–2013

Theoretical physicist, 1982 Nobel Prize in Physics

Also attended: Harvard University

Father: Edgar Bright Wilson (California Institute of Technology)

John McCarthy 1927–2011

Founder of the field of artificial intelligence

Bachelor of Science · Mathematics · Class of 1948

Also attended: Princeton University

Charles Francis Richter 1900–1985

Seismologist, co-creator of the Richter scale

Also attended: University of Southern California, Stanford University

Arthur B. McDonald 1943–

Canadian astrophysicist, Sudbury Neutrino Observatory director

Attended until 1969

James Rainwater 1917–1986

Physicist, 1975 Nobel Prize in Physics

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Douglas Osheroff 1945–

Physicist, 1996 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate

Also attended: Cornell University

Edwin McMillan 1907–1991

Physicist, 1951 Nobel Prize in Chemistry co-winner

Also attended: Princeton University

Frank Borman 1928–2023

Apollo 8 commander and NASA astronaut

Master of Science

Also attended: Harvard University, The United States Military Academy at West Point

William Lipscomb 1919–2011

Nobel Prize-winning inorganic and organic chemist

Also attended: University of Kentucky

Daniel Carleton Gajdusek 1923–2008

Medical researcher, 1976 Nobel laureate in Medicine

Also attended: Harvard University, University of Rochester

John Clauser 1942–

Physicist, 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate

Bachelor of Science · Physics · Class of 1964

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

Eric Betzig 1960–

Physicist and professor at UC Berkeley

Also attended: Cornell University

Martin Karplus 1930–2024

Theoretical chemist and Harvard professor

Doctor of Philosophy · Chemistry · Class of 1953

Also attended: Harvard University

Sibling: Robert Karplus (Harvard University)

Edward B. Lewis 1918–2004

Geneticist, 1995 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

Also attended: University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

Howard Temin 1934–1994

Discoverer of reverse transcriptase, Nobel laureate

Also attended: Swarthmore College, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Sibling: Peter Temin (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Swarthmore College)

Ardem Patapoutian 1967–

Molecular biologist and 2021 Nobel laureate

Also attended: University of California-Los Angeles

Robert C. Merton 1944–

Nobel-winning economist and MIT Sloan professor

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Columbia University in the City of New York

Father: Robert K. Merton (Harvard University, Temple University)

Eugene Merle Shoemaker 1928–1997

Geologist, co-discoverer of Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9

Bachelor's degree · Class of 1947

Also attended: Princeton University

Spouse: Carolyn S. Shoemaker (California State University-Chico)

Vernon L. Smith 1927–

Economist and Chapman University professor

Also attended: Friends University, University of Kansas, Kansas State University

Lee Hartwell 1939–

Biologist, 2001 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

David Bohm 1917–1992

Theoretical physicist known for quantum theory work

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley

Michael Rosbash 1944–

Geneticist and chronobiologist at Brandeis University

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Harrison Schmitt 1935–

Apollo 17 astronaut, geologist and former US senator

Also attended: Harvard University

Stephen Wolfram 1959–

Computer scientist, physicist and businessman

Ivan Sutherland 1938–

Computer scientist, pioneer of computer graphics

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Carnegie Mellon University

Carolyn Porco 1953–

Planetary scientist who led Cassini imaging team

Doctor of Philosophy · Planetary science · Class of 1983

Also attended: Stony Brook University

Qian Xuesen 1911–2009

Aerospace engineer, deported from US to China in 1955

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1939

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Juris Hartmanis 1928–2022

Computational complexity pioneer; 1993 Turing Award winner

Doctor of Philosophy · Mathematics · Class of 1955

Also attended: University of Missouri--Kansas City

Fei-Fei Li 1976–

Stanford computer scientist who created ImageNet

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 2005

Also attended: Princeton University

Spouse: Silvio Savarese (California Institute of Technology)

George O. Abell 1927–1983

Astronomer and UCLA professor

Robert L. Behnken 1970–

Former NASA astronaut and engineer

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1997

Also attended: Washington University in St Louis

Spouse: Megan McArthur (University of California-Los Angeles, University of California-San Diego)

Fernando J. Corbató 1926–2019

Computer scientist, time-sharing pioneer

Bachelor of Science · Class of 1950

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Stanislav Smirnov 1970–

Mathematician, 2010 Fields Medal winner

Halton Arp 1927–2013

Astronomer, author of Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies

Also attended: Harvard University

Garrett Reisman 1968–

Former NASA astronaut and engineer

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1997

Also attended: University of Pennsylvania

Schelte J. Bus 1956–

Astronomer and discoverer of minor planets

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

George Zweig 1937–

Physicist trained under Richard Feynman

Also attended: University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

Herman Kahn 1922–1983

Futurist and Hudson Institute founding member

Also attended: University of California-Los Angeles

Chester Carlson 1906–1968

Inventor of xerography

Also attended: Riverside City College, New York Law School

Boris Podolsky 1896–1966

Physicist, co-author of the EPR paradox

Also attended: University of Southern California

Edward G. Gibson 1936–

NASA astronaut, pilot, engineer and physicist

Also attended: University of Rochester

Robert Tarjan 1948–

Computer scientist, co-inventor of splay trees

Also attended: Stanford University

C. Gordon Fullerton 1936–2013

NASA astronaut, Air Force colonel and test pilot

Eugene Parker 1927–2022

Solar physicist who proposed the solar wind

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1951

Also attended: Michigan State University

Eric W. Weisstein 1969–

Mathematician, creator of MathWorld

Also attended: Cornell University

Michael S. Gazzaniga 1939–

Cognitive neuroscientist and UC Santa Barbara professor

Also attended: Dartmouth College

Peter Shor 1959–

MIT professor, devised Shor's algorithm

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

John R. Pierce 1910–2002

Electrical engineer and author

Electrical engineering · Attended until 1936

Carver Mead 1934–

Caltech emeritus professor, engineer and inventor

Satish Dhawan 1920–2002

Former chairman of ISRO

Also attended: University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

Child: Jyotsna Dhawan (Boston University)

Hugo Benioff 1899–1968

Caltech seismologist

Also attended: Pomona College

Child: Paul Benioff (University of California-Berkeley)

Richard A. Searfoss 1956–2018

NASA astronaut, Air Force colonel and test pilot

Also attended: United States Air Force Academy

Carl J. Meade 1950–

Former NASA astronaut

Roddam Narasimha 1933–2020

Indian aerospace scientist and fluid dynamicist

Paul MacCready 1925–2007

Aeronautical engineer and inventor

Also attended: Yale University

Simon Ramo 1913–2016

Engineer known as father of the ICBM

Also attended: University of Utah

Walter Bright 1959–

Creator of the D programming language

Attended until 1979

Charles Elachi 1947–

8th director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Also attended: University of California-Los Angeles, University of Southern California

Frank Malina 1912–1981

Aeronautical engineer and painter, early rocketry pioneer

Also attended: Texas A & M University-College Station

Robert Calderbank 1954–

Duke University professor and mathematician

Lu Jiaxi 1915–2001

Physical chemist, president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences

Jean Robieux 1925–2012

French physicist specializing in laser and optronics

Robert J. McEliece 1942–2019

Caltech professor known for error-correcting coding

John O. Dabiri 1980–

Caltech professor of aeronautics and bioengineering

Also attended: Princeton University

Louis Dunn 1908–1979

South African-born engineer in early American missile development

Anatol Roshko 1923–2017

Fluid dynamics physicist and Caltech professor

Adam Steltzner 1963–

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory engineer

Master of Science · Applied mechanics · Class of 1991

Also attended: University of California-Davis, College of Marin, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Bill Dally 1960–

Nvidia chief scientist and computer scientist

Doctor of Philosophy · Computer science · Class of 1986

Also attended: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Stanford University

Dean Wooldridge 1913–2006

Aerospace engineer and inventor

Also attended: University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus

Wallace D. Hayes 1918–2001

Princeton aerospace engineer and aerodynamicist

Clark Blanchard Millikan 1903–1966

Caltech aeronautics professor

Also attended: Yale University, University of Chicago

Father: Robert Andrews Millikan (University of Chicago, Columbia University in the City of New York)

Peter J. Bickel 1940–

Statistics professor at UC Berkeley

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley

Margarita Marinova 1980–

Bulgarian aerospace engineer

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 2010

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Milton Van Dyke 1922–2010

Stanford professor known for fluid dynamics

Also attended: Harvard University

Jack Froehlich 1921–1967

Aerospace engineer, Explorer 1 project director

Edward N. Hall 1914–2006

Aerospace engineer, father of the Minuteman ICBM

Also attended: New York University

Sibling: Theodore Hall (University of Chicago, Harvard University)

William R. Sears 1913–2002

Aeronautical engineer and Cornell professor

Also attended: University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

Martin Summerfield 1916–1996

Physicist and Aerojet co-founder

Doctor of Philosophy

Also attended: CUNY Brooklyn College

Steven E. Koonin 1951–

Theoretical physicist and environmental scientist

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Kwabena Boahen 1964–

Stanford professor of bioengineering and electrical engineering

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1997

Also attended: Johns Hopkins University

Arthur E. Bryson 1925–

Stanford professor, father of modern optimal control theory

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1951

John W. Miles 1920–2008

Scripps professor known for fluid mechanics research

Jelena Vučković 1976–

Stanford professor of electrical engineering

Attended until 2002

Serge Lang 1927–2005

Yale mathematician and author of Algebra

Attended until 1946

Also attended: Princeton University

Allan Sandage 1926–2010

Astronomer at the Carnegie Observatories

Also attended: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Robert Barro 1944–

Macroeconomist and Harvard University professor

Also attended: Harvard University

Amy Mainzer 1974–

Astronomer, principal investigator of NEOWISE

Also attended: University of California-Los Angeles, Stanford University

Gregory Chamitoff 1962–

Former NASA astronaut and engineer

Also attended: California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Houston--Clear Lake

Rob Pike 1956–

Programmer known for Go language and Plan 9

Marc Aaronson 1950–1987

Astronomer

Also attended: Harvard University

David Ho 1952–

Virologist who pioneered combination HIV therapy

Also attended: Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Ira S. Bowen 1898–1973

Physicist and astronomer who explained nebulium

Also attended: Houghton University, Oberlin College

Joseph Polchinski 1954–2018

Theoretical physicist working on string theory

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley

Frank Oppenheimer 1912–1985

Particle physicist, founder of the Exploratorium

Doctor of Philosophy

Also attended: Johns Hopkins University

Sibling: J. Robert Oppenheimer (Harvard University)

Bruce N. Ames 1928–2024

Biochemist and UC Berkeley professor

Doctor of Philosophy · Biochemistry · Class of 1953

Also attended: Cornell University

Horace W. Babcock 1912–2003

American astronomer

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley, University of Southern California

Father: Harold Delos Babcock (University of California-Berkeley)

Chia-Chiao Lin 1916–2013

Chinese-American applied mathematician, MIT Institute Professor

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1944

Lily Jan 1947–

Neuroscientist and UCSF professor

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1974

Doris Tsao 1975–

Neuroscientist and professor at UC Berkeley

Also attended: Harvard University

Louise Chow 1943–

Biochemist, professor at University of Alabama at Birmingham

Henry Tye 1948–

Cosmologist and theoretical physicist

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Spouse: Bik-Kwoon Tye (University of California-San Francisco, Wellesley College)

Child: Kay Tye (University of California-San Francisco, Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

Zhou Peiyuan 1902–1993

Theoretical physicist, former president of Peking University

Also attended: University of Chicago

Zheng Zhemin 1924–2021

Chinese explosion mechanics physicist

Guo Yonghuai 1909–1968

Aerodynamics scientist and aerospace engineer

Spouse: Li Pei (Cornell University)

Sarah T. Stewart-Mukhopadhyay 1973–

Planetary scientist, professor at UC Davis

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 2002

Also attended: Harvard University

Tan Jiazhen 1909–2008

Chinese geneticist and Academy member

Yuan-Cheng Fung 1919–2019

Founder of modern biomechanics and bioengineer

Chiang C. Mei 1935–2026

MIT professor emeritus in fluid mechanics

Doctor of Philosophy · Class of 1963

Also attended: Stanford University

Deborah Chung 1952–

Materials scientist and university professor

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Chung-Yao Chao 1902–1998

Chinese nuclear physicist

Theodore Y. Wu 1924–2023

Fluid dynamicist and Caltech professor

Also attended: Iowa State University

George M. Whitesides 1939–

Harvard chemistry professor

Also attended: Harvard University

Child: George T. Whitesides (Princeton University)

Cleve Moler 1939–2026

Mathematician, co-author of LINPACK and EISPACK

Bachelor of Science · Class of 1961

Also attended: Stanford University

France A. Córdova 1947–

Astrophysicist, former National Science Foundation director

Also attended: Stanford University

Alexei Filippenko 1958–

Astrophysicist and UC Berkeley astronomy professor

Also attended: University of California-Santa Barbara

N. Katherine Hayles 1943–

Literary scholar of science, literature and technology

Also attended: Michigan State University, Rochester Institute of Technology, University of Rochester

Viviana Gradinaru 1981–

Caltech professor of neuroscience and biological engineering

Also attended: Stanford University

William Andrew Goddard III 1937–

Caltech professor of chemistry and applied physics

Doctor of Philosophy · Engineering physics · Class of 1964

Also attended: University of California-Los Angeles

Stephen Hsu 1966–

Physicist, startup founder and former university administrator

Also attended: University of California-Berkeley

Holden Thorp 1964–

Chemist, former chancellor of UNC Chapel Hill

Also attended: Yale University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Nathan S. Lewis

Professor of chemistry at Caltech

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Frank Capra 1897–1991

Italian-born film director of major award-winning films

David Brin 1950–

Science fiction author, Hugo and Nebula winner

Also attended: University of California-San Diego

L. Sprague de Camp 1907–2000

Author of science fiction, fantasy and non-fiction

Also attended: Stevens Institute of Technology

Harry Turtledove 1949–

Author known for alternate history fiction

Also attended: University of California-Los Angeles

Todd Strasser 1950–

Author of young-adult and middle grade novels

William Pereira 1909–1985

Architect of San Francisco's Transamerica Pyramid

Also attended: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Harold McGee 1951–

Food writer, author of On Food and Cooking

Also attended: Yale University

Spouse: Sharon R. Long (California Institute of Technology, Harvey Mudd College)

Lyndon Hardy 1941–

Fantasy author and physicist

Jim Hall 1935–

Racing driver and race car constructor

Glenn Graham 1904–1986

1924 Olympic pole vault silver medalist

Duncan McNaughton 1910–1998

Canadian high jumper and petroleum geologist

Also attended: University of Southern California

Bob Lazar 1959–

Conspiracy theorist claiming alien technology work

Also attended: Los Angeles Pierce College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

William Luther Pierce 1933–2002

Neo-Nazi and white nationalist activist

Master of Science · Physics · Class of 1956

Also attended: University of Colorado Boulder, Rice University

Huck Seed 1969–

Poker player, 1996 World Series of Poker Main Event winner

Bertrand Blanchard Acosta 1895–1954

Aviator and test pilot who set an endurance record

George Hill Hodel 1907–1999

Physician, prime suspect in the Black Dahlia murder