# Avi Loeb Frank B. Baird Jr. Professor of Science ![Avi Loeb headshot](/sites/g/files/omnuum6286/files/styles/hwp_4_5__320x400/public/astronomy/files/avil.jpg?itok=3kvJd9On) email laptop\_windows [Professional Website](https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/%7Eloeb/) laptop\_windows [Institute For Theory and Computation](http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/itc/) laptop\_windows [ADS Publications](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/public-libraries/sotx9BSQSniz3cjg-VQGAQ) Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian 60 Garden Street, MS-51 Cambridge, MA 02138 Office P-237 **Abraham (Avi) Loeb** is the *Frank B. Baird, Jr., Professor of Science* at [Harvard University](http://www.harvard.edu/) and a [bestselling author (in lists of the New York Times,](https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~loeb/bsl_021421.pdf)Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, Die Zeit, Der Spiegel, L'Express and more). He received a PhD in Physics from the [Hebrew University of Jerusalem](https://en.huji.ac.il/en) in Israel at age 24 (1980-1986), led the first international project supported by the [Strategic Defense Initiative](http://www.harvard.edu/) (1983-1988), and was subsequently a long-term member of the [Institute for Advanced Study](http://www.ias.edu/) at Princeton (1988-1993). Loeb has written 9 books, including most recently, [*Extraterrestrial*](https://www.harpercollins.com/products/extraterrestrial-avi-loeb?variant=39935330418722) and [*Interstellar*](https://www.harpercollins.com/products/interstellar-avi-loeb-1?variant=40982888415266), as well as [over a thousand scientific papers](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/search/fq=%7B!type=aqp%20v=%24fq_database%7D&fq_database=database:%20(astronomy%20OR%20physics%20OR%20general)&p_=0&q=author:(%22Loeb,%20A.%22)&sort=date%20desc,%20bibcode%20desc) (with [h-index of 131 and i10-index of 6](https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=CvQxOmwAAAAJ&hl=en)14) on a wide range of topics, including black holes, the first stars, the search for extraterrestrial life and the future of the Universe. Loeb is the Director of the [Institute for Theory and Computation](http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/itc/) (2007-present) within the [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics](http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/), and also serves as the Head of the [Galileo Project](https://projects.iq.harvard.edu/galileo) (2021-present). He had been the [longest serving Chair](/astronomy-chairs) of Harvard's [Department of Astronomy](/) (2011-2020) and the Founding Director of Harvard's [Black Hole Initiative](https://bhi.fas.harvard.edu/) (2016-2021). He is an elected fellow of the [American Academy of Arts & Sciences](http://www.amacad.org/news/alphalist2012.pdf), the [American Physical Society](http://www.aps.org/programs/honors/fellowships/), and the [International Academy of Astronautics](http://www.iaaweb.org/). Loeb is [a former member](https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/president-donald-j-trump-announces-intent-nominate-appoint-individuals-key-administration-posts-35/) of the [President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President's_Council_of_Advisors_on_Science_and_Technology) at the White House, a former chair of the [Board on Physics and Astronomy of the National Academies](https://www.nationalacademies.org/bpa/about) (2018-2021) and a current member of the Advisory Board for ["Einstein: Visualize the Impossible"](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nobel-laureate-top-physicists-join-hebrew-universitys-einstein-visualize-the-impossible-project-301073770.html) of the Hebrew University. He chaired the Advisory Committee for the [Breakthrough Starshot Initiative](http://breakthroughinitiatives.org/leaders/3) (2015-2024) and served as the Science Theory Director for all [Initiatives](http://www.breakthroughinitiatives.org/) of the [Breakthrough Prize Foundation](http://www.breakthroughprize.org/). Loeb's latest TED talk was among the ten most popular TED talks of 2024. Click [here](https://avi-loeb.medium.com/) for Loeb's essays on innovation. **Professional website:** **Commentaries:** **Research interests:** first stars and galaxies, black holes, extraterrestrial life **Latest Textbooks:** "[How Did the First Stars and Galaxies Form?](https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691145167/how-did-the-first-stars-and-galaxies-form?srsltid=AfmBOorz0YrWOxIbAKYraXQrsgmVW7wiJ635DZL8cyYSor77zH21A7Xw)"; "[The First Galaxies in the Universe](https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691144917/the-first-galaxies-in-the-universe?srsltid=AfmBOooba_0TG7-ig9btqz2oITFO8zmm5l88QjzP-5cdkF4ReF3UYrt4)"; "[Life In The Cosmos: From Biosignatures To Technosignatures](https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674987579)".