Simon D. M. White

Simon D. M. White is a leading astrophysicist and cosmologist, currently serving as Director of the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics (since 1994) and Research Professor at Steward Observatory, University of Arizona (since 1992). He is a Scientific Member of the Max Planck Society.

• Education: Ph.D. in Astronomy (1991, University of Cambridge), M.Sc. in Astronomy (1984, University of Toronto), B.A. in Mathematics (1972, University of Cambridge).

His research focuses on the structure, formation, and evolution of galaxies and galaxy clusters, the nature and distribution of dark matter, and numerical simulations of cosmic structure formation. His work has significantly advanced our understanding of extragalactic astrophysics and cosmology.

White has received numerous accolades, including the Gruber Cosmology Prize (2011), Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society (2005), and Fellowships of the Royal Society (1997) and Leopoldina (2005). He is a Foreign Associate of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences (2007) and Foreign Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (2015).

Throughout his career, White has held visiting or adjunct positions at institutions such as UC Berkeley, Princeton University, and the European Association for Research in Astronomy (1992-1994). He has also been recognized through honorary citizenship (Padua, 2010) and prestigious lectureships at institutions like the University of Durham and the University of Victoria.