On November 16, 1954, President Eisenhower and the Atomic Energy Commission honored Enrico Fermi with a special award for his lifetime of accomplishments in physics and, in particular, for his vital role in the development of atomic energy. Highly accomplished in both theory and experiment, Enrico Fermi was a 1938 recipient of the Nobel Prize in physics, and is widely regarded as one of the leading scientists of the 20th century.

Established in 1956, the Enrico Fermi Award is a presidential award and is one of the oldest and most prestigious science and technology honors bestowed by the U.S. Government. It is given to encourage excellence in research in energy science and technology benefiting mankind, to recognize scientists and engineers, and to inspire people of all ages to explore new scientific and technological horizons.

For additional information, visit the DOE Enrico Fermi Award website.

The Enrico Fermi Award represents a lifetime of achievement in the field of nuclear energy. The recipients noted below spent a part or all of their career at Los Alamos.

Recipients

2009

Siegfried S. Hecker (co-recipient: John B. Goodenough of the University of Texas at Austin)

1990

George A. Cowan (co-recipient: Robley D. Evans, MIT)

1988

Victor F. Weisskopf (co-recipient: Richard B. Setlow, BNL)

1987

Luis Alvarez (co-recipient: Gerald F. Tape of Cornell, MIT, and BNL)

1985

Marshall Rosenbluth (co-recipient: Norman Rasmussen, MIT)

1984

Robert R. Wilson (co-recipient: George Vendryes, France)

1982

Herbert L. Anderson and Seth Neddermeyer (co-recipients)

1978

Harold M. Agnew (co-recipient: Wolfgang K. H. Panofsky, SLAC)

1970

Norris E. Bradbury

1963

J. Robert Oppenheimer

1962

Edward Teller

1961

Hans A. Bethe

1956

John von Neumann