A Stephen Hawking timeline of the discoveries that made him famous
Professor Stephen Hawking overcame great adversity to become one of the greatest minds of the 20th century.
The scientist, who passed away on March 14, helped shape our understanding of the universe through his writings, and made science accessible to everyone.
But, what exactly is he famous for?
You probably recognise his iconic retro-robotic voice, and may have spotted him on shows ranging from The Simpsons to The Big Bang Theory.
But, do you know about his key scientific discoveries and works?
This brief history of Hawking's biggest breakthroughs will bring you up to speed.
1966 – Completes doctorate
Hawking was already suffering from motor neurone disease at the age of 24, which would leave him unable to move any part of his body. But, he was still able to write, and signed his PHD thesis (titled "Properties of an Expanding Universe") several times to indicate that it was his own.
He also became a fellow at Gonville and Cauis College, Cambridge, and remained a professor there throughout his life.
It was around this time that he started working on singularities in the theory of general relativity and applied his ideas to the study of black holes.
1970-1976 – Hawking Radiation theory
Hawking discovered that by using quantum theory and general relativity he is able to show that black holes can emit radiation.
He continued his work on black holes and suggested that under certain conditions a black hole can release sub-atomic particles and energy into space.
This theory is known as Hawking Radiation.
The radiation doesn't indicate the matter inside the black hole, and once the hole vanishes all the information goes with it, he claimed.
1979 – Appointed Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge
Hawking sat in the most prestigious chair in science when he assumed the post of Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge.
The same post was held held by Sir Isaac Newton 300 hundred years earlier.
Hawking became synonymous with the post, staying at the helm of the professorship for three decades, from 1979 to 2009.
1988 – Published A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes
Hawking's book A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes became a best-seller.
It also cemented his reputation as an accessible genius.
The book broke down his theories about the cosmos for a general audience.
1998 – Published Black Holes and Baby Universes, and Other Essays
A collection of scientific articles and lectures exploring the different ways the universe works, Black Holes and Baby Universes, and Other Essays was also a popular read.
Hawking took on everything from black hole thermodynamics to quantum mechanics.
He theorised that spaceships or objects that fall into a black hole may drift into a "baby universe" of their own, a small, self-contained world that branches off from our region of space-time.
These baby universes, he speculated, exist in imaginary time, in which the universe has no beginning or end.
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2001 – Publishes Universe in a Nutshell
Hawking shipped his theories to the masses once again, with the publication of Universe in a Nutshell.
The scientist breaks down, in laymen's terms, the principles that control our universe.
He describes how his work led him to combine Einstein's General Theory of Relativity and Richard Feynman's idea of multiple histories into one unified theory that describes "everything that happens in the universe".
2002 – Publishes the Theory of Everything: The Origin and Fate of the Universe
Hawking's book continued his search for a unified theory of everything.
It encompassed his favourite topics, including black holes, the Big Bang, and space-time.
One of the central points of the ambitious book suggests that the "beginning" of the universe does not imply a singularity.
To remain consistent with quantum mechanics, Hawking claimed that a no-boundary condition would best describe the start of life.
2004 – Announces he has finally solved the Black Hole paradox
After arguing for decades that a black hole destroys everything that falls into it, Hawking conceded that they may allow information within them to escape.
In doing so he admitted that he and Caltech theorist Kip Thorne lost a bet against physicist John Preskill about the nature of black holes.
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