PHYSICIST
Kip Thorne
1940 - Today
Kip Thorne
Kip Stephen Thorne (born June 1, 1940) is an American theoretical physicist and writer known for his contributions in gravitational physics and astrophysics. Along with Rainer Weiss and Barry C. Barish, he was awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics for his contributions to the LIGO detector and the observation of gravitational waves. A longtime friend and colleague of Stephen Hawking and Carl Sagan, he was the Richard P. Feynman Professor of Theoretical Physics at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) until 2009 and speaks of the astrophysical implications of the general theory of relativity. Read more on Wikipedia
Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Kip Thorne has received more than 2,311,237 page views. His biography is available in 60 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 57 in 2019). Kip Thorne is the 143rd most popular physicist (down from 104th in 2019), the 524th most popular biography from United States (down from 430th in 2019) and the 17th most popular American Physicist.
Kip Thorne is most famous for his work in general relativity, black holes, and gravitational waves.
Memorability Metrics
2.3M
Page Views (PV)
66.60
Historical Popularity Index (HPI)
60
Languages Editions (L)
7.15
Effective Languages (L*)
3.98
Coefficient of Variation (CV)
Among PHYSICISTS
Among physicists, Kip Thorne ranks 143 out of 851. Before him are Peter Grünberg, Augustin-Jean Fresnel, Rudolf Mössbauer, George Paget Thomson, Donald A. Glaser, and Auguste Piccard. After him are Jacques Charles, Georges Charpak, Pavel Cherenkov, Hannes Alfvén, Simon van der Meer, and Karl Schwarzschild.
Most Popular Physicists in Wikipedia
Go to all RankingsPeter Grünberg
1939 - 2018
HPI: 66.86
Rank: 137
Augustin-Jean Fresnel
1788 - 1827
HPI: 66.85
Rank: 138
Rudolf Mössbauer
1929 - 2011
HPI: 66.84
Rank: 139
George Paget Thomson
1892 - 1975
HPI: 66.82
Rank: 140
Donald A. Glaser
1926 - 2013
HPI: 66.79
Rank: 141
Auguste Piccard
1884 - 1962
HPI: 66.77
Rank: 142
Kip Thorne
1940 - Present
HPI: 66.60
Rank: 143
Jacques Charles
1763 - 1823
HPI: 66.60
Rank: 144
Georges Charpak
1924 - 2010
HPI: 66.53
Rank: 145
Pavel Cherenkov
1904 - 1990
HPI: 66.52
Rank: 146
Hannes Alfvén
1908 - 1995
HPI: 66.50
Rank: 147
Simon van der Meer
1925 - 2011
HPI: 66.29
Rank: 148
Karl Schwarzschild
1873 - 1916
HPI: 66.29
Rank: 149
Contemporaries
Among people born in 1940, Kip Thorne ranks 34. Before him are John Hurt, Pina Bausch, Peter Fonda, Abbas Kiarostami, Tony Tan, and Giorgio Moroder. After him are Anna Karina, Raquel Welch, Burt Young, Terry Gilliam, Dario Argento, and Abdurrahman Wahid.
Others Born in 1940
Go to all RankingsJohn Hurt
ACTOR
1940 - 2017
HPI: 67.87
Rank: 28
Pina Bausch
DANCER
1940 - 2009
HPI: 67.77
Rank: 29
Peter Fonda
ACTOR
1940 - 2019
HPI: 67.76
Rank: 30
Abbas Kiarostami
FILM DIRECTOR
1940 - 2016
HPI: 67.71
Rank: 31
Tony Tan
POLITICIAN
1940 - Present
HPI: 67.44
Rank: 32
Giorgio Moroder
MUSICIAN
1940 - Present
HPI: 67.32
Rank: 33
Kip Thorne
PHYSICIST
1940 - Present
HPI: 66.60
Rank: 34
Anna Karina
ACTOR
1940 - 2019
HPI: 66.39
Rank: 35
Raquel Welch
ACTOR
1940 - 2023
HPI: 66.36
Rank: 36
Burt Young
ACTOR
1940 - 2023
HPI: 66.32
Rank: 37
Terry Gilliam
FILM DIRECTOR
1940 - Present
HPI: 66.29
Rank: 38
Dario Argento
FILM DIRECTOR
1940 - Present
HPI: 66.15
Rank: 39
Abdurrahman Wahid
POLITICIAN
1940 - 2009
HPI: 66.03
Rank: 40
In United States
Among people born in United States, Kip Thorne ranks 524 out of 20,380. Before him are William Holden (1918), Paul Simon (1941), Christopher Reeve (1952), Carroll Shelby (1923), Sydney Pollack (1934), and Charlie Parker (1920). After him are Michael Keaton (1951), Farrah Fawcett (1947), Alice Cooper (1948), Chester A. Arthur (1829), Anna Politkovskaya (1958), and Nelson Rockefeller (1908).
Others born in United States
Go to all RankingsWilliam Holden
ACTOR
1918 - 1981
HPI: 66.68
Rank: 518
Paul Simon
MUSICIAN
1941 - Present
HPI: 66.66
Rank: 519
Christopher Reeve
ACTOR
1952 - 2004
HPI: 66.65
Rank: 520
Carroll Shelby
RACING DRIVER
1923 - 2012
HPI: 66.64
Rank: 521
Sydney Pollack
FILM DIRECTOR
1934 - 2008
HPI: 66.63
Rank: 522
Charlie Parker
MUSICIAN
1920 - 1955
HPI: 66.61
Rank: 523
Kip Thorne
PHYSICIST
1940 - Present
HPI: 66.60
Rank: 524
Michael Keaton
ACTOR
1951 - Present
HPI: 66.60
Rank: 525
Farrah Fawcett
ACTOR
1947 - 2009
HPI: 66.58
Rank: 526
Alice Cooper
MUSICIAN
1948 - Present
HPI: 66.57
Rank: 527
Chester A. Arthur
POLITICIAN
1829 - 1886
HPI: 66.56
Rank: 528
Anna Politkovskaya
JOURNALIST
1958 - 2006
HPI: 66.53
Rank: 529
Nelson Rockefeller
POLITICIAN
1908 - 1979
HPI: 66.52
Rank: 530
Among PHYSICISTS In United States
Among physicists born in United States, Kip Thorne ranks 17. Before him are Owen Chamberlain (1920), Ben Roy Mottelson (1926), Joseph Henry (1797), Val Logsdon Fitch (1923), Robert Coleman Richardson (1937), and Donald A. Glaser (1926). After him are Arthur Compton (1892), Hugh Everett III (1930), Melvin Schwartz (1932), George E. Smith (1930), Rosalyn Sussman Yalow (1921), and Martin Lewis Perl (1927).
Owen Chamberlain
1920 - 2006
HPI: 68.52
Rank: 11
Ben Roy Mottelson
1926 - 2022
HPI: 68.19
Rank: 12
Joseph Henry
1797 - 1878
HPI: 68.11
Rank: 13
Val Logsdon Fitch
1923 - 2015
HPI: 67.45
Rank: 14
Robert Coleman Richardson
1937 - 2013
HPI: 67.38
Rank: 15
Donald A. Glaser
1926 - 2013
HPI: 66.79
Rank: 16
Kip Thorne
1940 - Present
HPI: 66.60
Rank: 17
Arthur Compton
1892 - 1962
HPI: 66.08
Rank: 18
Hugh Everett III
1930 - 1982
HPI: 65.94
Rank: 19
Melvin Schwartz
1932 - 2006
HPI: 65.54
Rank: 20
George E. Smith
1930 - Present
HPI: 65.48
Rank: 21
Rosalyn Sussman Yalow
1921 - 2011
HPI: 65.39
Rank: 22
Martin Lewis Perl
1927 - 2014
HPI: 65.04
Rank: 23