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Carnegie Science, also known as theCarnegie Institution of Washington and formerlyCarnegie Institution for Science, is an organization established to fund and performscientific research in the United States. This institution is headquartered inWashington, D.C. As of June 30, 2020[update], the Institution's endowment was valued at $926.9 million.[1] In 2018, the expenses forscientific programs and administration were $96.6 million.[2] American astronomer and astrophysicistJohn Mulchaey is the current president of the institution.[3]
More than 20 independent organizations were established through the philanthropy ofAndrew Carnegie and feature his surname.
In 2024, the "Carnegie Institution for Science" officially adopted the name "Carnegie Science", a name which has been used informally since 2007 when they first changed the name from "Carnegie Institution of Washington" to "Carnegie Institution for Science".
It is proposed to found in the city of Washington, an institution which ... shall in the broadest and most liberal manner encourage investigation, research, and discovery [and] show the application of knowledge to the improvement of mankind.
—Andrew Carnegie, January 28, 1902[4]
When the United States joined World War II,Vannevar Bush was president of the Carnegie Institution of Washington. Several months prior to June 12, 1940, Bush persuadedPresidentFranklin Roosevelt to create theNational Defense Research Committee (later superseded by theOffice of Scientific Research and Development) to coordinate the nation's scientific war effort. Bush housed the new agency in the Carnegie Institution's administrative headquarters at 16th and P Streets, Northwest, inWashington, D.C., converting its rotunda and auditorium into office cubicles. From this location, Bush supervised multiple projects, including theManhattan Project. Carnegie scientists assisted with the development of theproximity fuze and mass production ofpenicillin.[5]: 77–79
John Mulchaey, an American astronomer andastrophysicist, is the institution's 12th president.[6] Carnegie Science is composed of three scientific divisions on theEast andWest Coasts that center on life and environmental science, Earth and planetary science, and astronomy and astrophysics: Biosphere Sciences & Engineering, Earth & Planets Laboratory, and Observatories.[7] In addition to facilities in the United States, Carnegie Science manages theLas Campanas Observatory in Chile.
Carnegie Science’s life and environmental science research activities are currently housed under the institution's Biosphere Sciences & Engineering Division and were historically housed under departments, including the Department ofEmbryology inBaltimore, MD and the Department of Global Ecology inPalo Alto, CA.[8] The former Department of Plant Biology began as a desert laboratory in 1903 to study plants in their natural habitats. Over time, the research evolved to the study ofphotosynthesis. The department developsbioinformatics. Among its notable staff members areNobel laureatesAndrew Fire,Alfred Hershey, andBarbara McClintock.
The Carnegie Science Observatories were founded in 1904 as theMount Wilson Observatory. Andrew Carnegie funded the historic Hooker 100-inch telescope envisioned byGeorge Ellery Hale on whichEdwin Hubble captured the famous “VAR!” plate that led to the discovery ofAndromeda.[9] As Los Angeles encroached more onMount Wilson, day-to-day operations there were transferred to the Mount Wilson Institute in 1986.[10] Today, Carnegie astronomers operate from offices in Pasadena and from theLas Campanas Observatory in Chile’sAtacama region established in 1969.[11] The Las Campanas Observatory is home to the twin 6.5-meter Magellan Telescopes, 2.5-meter Irénée du Pont telescope, and 1.0-meter Swope telescope.[12]
In 2020, the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism and Geophysical Lab merged to become the Earth and Planets Laboratory, located on the organization's Broad Branch Road campus in Washington. The Laboratory is a member of theNASA Astrobiology Institute.[13] The Department of Terrestrial Magnetism was founded in 1904 and used two ships formagnetic observations around the world: theGalilee was chartered in 1905, but it was unsuitable; later,Carnegie was built in 1909 and completed seven cruises to measure theEarth's magnetic field before it suffered an explosion and burned.[5]: 133–136
In 1920, theEugenics Record Office, founded byCharles Davenport in 1910 inCold Spring Harbor, New York, was merged with the Station for Experimental Evolution to become the Carnegie Institution's Department of Genetics. The Institution funded that laboratory until 1939; it employedMorris Steggerda, an Americananthropologist who has collaborated with Davenport. The Carnegie Institution closed the department in 1944. The department's records were retained in a university library.
In 1989, Carnegie PresidentMaxine Singer founded Carnegie Academy for Science Education and First Light (CASE), a free Saturday science program for middle school students. The program teacheshands-on learning in science.
The Carnegie Institution's administrative offices were located at 1530 P St., Northwest, Washington, D.C., at the corner of 16th and P Streets until 2020. The building housed the offices of the president, administration and finance, publications, and advancement. In 2020, the administrative building was sold to the government ofQatar to be used as its embassy.[14]
Carnegie Science andCaltech formalized a partnership inPasadena.[15] The Carnegie Institution has partnered with several other organizations in constructing theGiant Magellan Telescope.
The following persons had served as president of the Carnegie Institution for Science:[16]
| No. | Image | President | Start | End | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Daniel Coit Gilman | 1902 | 1904 | |
| 2 |  | Robert S. Woodward | 1904 | 1920 | |
| 3 | .jpg) | John C. Merriam | 1921 | 1938 | |
| 4 | .jpg) | Vannevar Bush | 1939 | 1955 | |
| 5 | Caryl P. Haskins | 1956 | 1971 | ||
| 6 |  | Philip Abelson | 1971 | 1978 | |
| 7 | James D. Ebert | 1978 | 1987 | ||
| Acting | Edward E. David, Jr. | 1987 | 1988 | ||
| 8 |  | Maxine F. Singer | 1988 | 2002 | |
| Acting | Michael E. Gellert | January 2003 | April 2003 | ||
| 9 | _(49828853056).jpg) | Richard Meserve | April 2003 | August 31, 2014 | |
| 10 |  | Matthew P. Scott | September 1, 2014 | December 31, 2017 | [17][18] |
| Interim | John Mulchaey and Yixian Zheng | January 1, 2018 | July 1, 2018 | Co-Presidents[19] | |
| 11 |  | Eric D. Isaacs | July 2, 2018 | October 3, 2024 | [20][21] |
| Interim | John Mulchaey | October 3, 2024 | November 22, 2024 | [21] | |
| 12 | November 22, 2024 | present | [22] |
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