2022 Alumni Medalist Gaudi
B. Scott Gaudi, PhD
Standing on the stage of TEDxOhioStateUniversity, Scott Gaudi marveled at how he’s come to have a role in building NASA’s space telescopes and that he’s part of a team of scientists seeking to answer some of humanity’s key questions:
How does the universe work? How did we get here? Are we alone?
“I never thought I could be part of this,” says Gaudi ’98, ’00 PhD. “Me, a gay, autistic, introverted kid from a small town in rural Illinois, I never thought someone like me could be part of it.”
“It” is the world of space exploration, and Gaudi has more than earned his place in the universe. He’s an internationally recognized astronomer who has helped discover approximately 100 exoplanets, which are planets outside our solar system. He’s one of the world’s top three experts on gravitational lensing, a method that led to the first-ever discovery of an exoplanet system analogous to our own solar system.
His work has earned him awards from the American Astronomical Society, NASA, the U.S. government, and Ohio State, where he is the Thomas Jefferson Professor for Discovery and Space Exploration.
“Few individuals have done more to broadly advance the field of exoplanet studies and the careers of young astronomers in the US.”
Gaudi has known since the second grade that he wanted to be an astronomer, his passion ignited when a teacher asked him to memorize the names of the planets. He dreamed of discovering life on other planets and exploring the stars. But he faced certain obstacles.
“I’m on the autism spectrum and that makes communication challenging,” he says. “I’ve had to struggle with human interactions and communication. But on the positive side, it’s helped me to understand how to talk to people with very different opinions on things, and I’ve been able to bring the community together for a common purpose.”
Gaudi credits much of his success to his alma mater. “Ohio State made me an astronomer,” he says. When he arrived on campus in 1995, he found mentors who fueled his passion, showed him how to collaborate with others and supported his research. He went on to earn a PhD, then did postdoctoral fellowships at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton and Harvard University.
While he could have gone anywhere, he always wanted to return to Ohio State, which he did in 2006. He finds joy in teaching. “I love training the future astronomers of the world,” Gaudi says. He and his students are busy designing NASA’s next-generation telescope, the Nancy Grace Roman Telescope, which will launch in 2027.
This is the single highest honor bestowed by The Ohio State University Alumni Association, Inc. It is presented to alumni who have gained national or international distinction as outstanding representatives of their chosen fields or professions, bringing extraordinary credit to the university and significant benefit to humankind.