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The Nobel Prize in Physics 2021

"for groundbreaking contributions to our understanding of complex systems"

This year’s Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded with one half jointly to Syukuro Manabe, Klaus Hasselmann and the other half to Giorgio Parisi. They have laid the foundation of our knowledge of the Earth’s climate and how humanity influences it, as well as revolutionized the theory of disordered materials and random processes.

©Johan Jarnestad/The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

The 2021 Nobel Prize laureates in physics

Interview with Syukuro Manabe

“Weather forecasting was more of an art, rather than science”

In this interview, recorded amidst the happy chaos resulting from the early morning announcement of his prize, Syukuro Manabe reflects on the importance of fundamental research.

Interview with Klaus Hasselmann

“I’m very happy that they put the attention on the climate problem”

It’s only when you see it over a few years that you’re sure it is the climate change, and not just a weather impact, says Klaus Hasselman in this interview.

Interview with Giorgio Parisi

“There are very, very simple problems that are very hard to understand”

In this short conversation, recorded shortly after his prize was announced, Giorgio Parisi reflects on the value of asking basic questions.

Prizes and laureates

115 physics prizes to 219 laureates

See all Nobel Prize laureates in physics 1901-2021 and why they were awarded the Nobel Prize.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2021

An ingenious tool for building molecules

Building molecules is a difficult art. Benjamin List and David MacMillan are awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2021 for their development of a precise new tool for molecular construction: organocatalysis. This has had a great impact on pharmaceutical research, and has made chemistry greener.

The 2021 Nobel Prize laureates in chemistry

Interview with Benjamin List

“Making molecules is like creating something beautiful”

Benjamin List was sitting in a café with his wife, Dr Sabine List, when the call from Stockholm came.

Interview with David MacMillan

“We thought it had a very low probability of success”

The best ideas in science are often the ones with the least chance of succeeding, says David MacMillan in this interview.

Prizes and laureates

113 chemistry prizes to 188 laureates

See all Nobel Prize laureates in chemistry 1901-2021 and why they were awarded the Nobel Prize.

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2021

They discovered receptors for temperature and touch

This year’s medicine prize is awarded to David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian. Their discoveries have unlocked one of the secrets of nature by explaining the molecular basis for sensing heat, cold and mechanical force, which is fundamental for our ability to feel, interpret and interact with our internal and external environment.

© The Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine. Ill. Mattias Karlén

The 2021 Nobel Prize laureates in physiology or medicine

Interview with David Julius

"My phone was blowing up as they say"

David Julius was woken up by a text from his sister-in-law. “Someone has been trying to reach you… I didn’t want to give him your phone number”.

Interview with Ardem Patapoutian

“I had ‘do not disturb’ on my phone actually"

Ardem Patapoutian found out about his Nobel Prize from his 92-year-old father after the Secretary-General for the Nobel Assembly and Nobel Committee failed to reach him.

Prizes and laureates

112 medicine prizes to 224 laureates

See all Nobel Prize laureates in physiology or medicine 1901-2021 and read about why they were awarded the Nobel Prize.

The Nobel Prize in Literature 2021

Abdulrazak Gurnah

The Nobel Prize in Literature for 2021 is awarded to the novelist Abdulrazak Gurnah “for his uncompromising and compassionate penetration of the effects of colonialism and the fate of the refugee in the gulf between cultures and continents.”

Gurnah was born in 1948 and grew up on the island of Zanzibar in the Indian Ocean but arrived in England as a refugee in the end of the 1960s. He has published ten novels and a number of short stories. The theme of the refugee’s disruption runs throughout his work.

Interview with Abdulrazak Gurnah

“As if there isn’t enough to go around”

In this brief conversation, recorded just after he heard the news, Abdulrazak Gurnah’s surprise at receiving the Nobel Prize in Literature is evident. “I was just thinking ‘I wonder who’ll get it’”, says Gurnah: “I thought it was a prank, I really did.”

Prize announcement

"for his uncompromising and compassionate penetration of the effects of colonialism"

Watch the announcement of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Literature presented by Mats Malm, Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy.

Prizes and laureates

114 literature prizes to 118 laureates

See all Nobel Prize laureates in literature 1901-2021 and why they were awarded the Nobel Prize.

The Nobel Peace Prize 2021

For their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression

The Norwegian Nobel Committee is convinced that freedom of expression and freedom of information are crucial prerequisites for democracy and protect against war and conflict. The 2021 peace prize laureates are representative of all journalists who stand up for this ideal in a world in which democracy and freedom of the press face increasingly adverse conditions.

Ill. Niklas Elmehed © Nobel Prize Outreach.

2021 peace laureates

The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize to Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov “for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace.”

"I'm speechless!"

Hear Maria Ressa’s reaction when she hears the news from Olav Njølstad, Secretary of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, on being awarded the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize just before the public announcement. “I’m speechless!”

"Without media, you cannot have a strong democracy"

Immediately following the announcement of the peace prize, Berit Reiss-Andersen, Chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, was interviewed by freelance journalist Stig Arild Pettersen.

102 peace prizes to 137 laureates

The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded 102 times to 137 Nobel Prize laureates between 1901 and 2021, 109 individuals and 28 organizations.

Nobel offentliggjøring 2017 01 — © Photo: Ken Opprann/Nobel Prize Outreach

Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2021

Natural experiments help answer important questions for society

This year’s Laureates – David Card, Joshua Angrist and Guido Imbens – have provided us with new insights about the labour market and shown what conclusions about cause and effect can be drawn from natural experiments. Their approach has spread to other fields and revolutionised empirical research.

The 2021 economic sciences laureates

Interview with David Card

”I was kinda hoping I might go to sleep!”

David Card had just got his pyjamas on and was heading for bed, after a very late night arrival from a trip, when the call from Stockholm came.

Interview with Joshua D. Angrist

“I like to talk about my work, that always calms me down”

“I saw that my phone was flooded with text messages,” says Joshua Angrist, having slept through the calls from Stockholm.

Interview with Guido W. Imbens

“The only sad thing is there aren’t more hours in the day!”

After a busy, tiring Sunday, mountain biking with the family, Guido Imbens’ Monday morning wake-up call came a little after 2 am with the news from Stockholm.

Prizes and laureates

53 economic sciences prizes to 89 laureates

See all economic sciences laureates 1969-2021 and why they were awarded the prize.

News

Nobel Week 2021

Nobel Week 2021 takes place on 6–12 December in Stockholm and Oslo. This year’s festivities will be a mixture of digital and physical events. Many of the events will be streamed and possible to follow online.

Nobel Prize award ceremony 2020 — Nobel Prize award ceremony at the Stockholm City Hall, 10 December 2020.

© Nobel Prize Outreach. Photo: Dan Lepp

News

Two charismatic musical artists to share Nobel Prize Concert stage

It is now clear that the soloist at this year’s Nobel Prize concert, acclaimed Argentina-born cellist Sol Gabetta, will share the stage with American conductor Ryan Bancroft. Tickets to the 8 December concert in Stockholm are on sale at Konserthuset Stockholm.

Konserthuset Stockholm

Photo: Mats Lundqvist.

Nobel Prize Conversations season 3

How can our future develop?

Listen to new episodes of our podcast ‘Nobel Prize Conversations’! We will be releasing a new episode every second Thursday featuring a new Nobel Prize laureate. During these six episodes we meet one laureate from each prize category. The episodes focus on how our future can develop in different areas.

Discover Nobel Prize lessons

Reliable and easy to use

Discover more about the Nobel Prizes with the easy-to-use Nobel Prize lessons. Watch the videos, look through the manual and slides, print the texts for students and start the class.

2018_NPS_India (315) — © Nobel Media. Photo: Alexander Mahmoud

Coming up

Nobel Prize Dialogue Latin America and the Caribbean

United by Science

United by Science will bring science students from throughout Latin America and the Caribbean into conversation with Nobel Prize laureates to explore how science and scientists can most effectively make a positive impact on society.

Read about the event in English, Portuguese and Spanish.

Nobel Prize facts

All Nobel Prizes and laureates

See the full list of all Nobel Prize laureates, awarded for “the greatest benefit to humankind”.

Last year's laureates

Twelve laureates were awarded Nobel Prizes in 2020. See a short presentation of them here.

Overview from Nobel Prize Award Ceremony

Nobel Prizes to women

See the list of all women awarded a Nobel Prize or a prize in economic sciences so far.

Youngest laureate

Youngest Nobel Prize laureate ever is Malala Yousafzai. She was 17 years old when she was awarded the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize.

The Nobel Prize call

I think it's a shock

Surprised, overwhelmed, terrified, happy. How would you react if you suddenly heard that you had been awarded the Nobel Prize? Here, six laureates share their stories.

More about the ‘Nobel Prize call’

Calling the Nobel Prize laureates

“All we’re trying to do is get a glimpse into this person’s life at this amazing moment”

Meet Adam Smith who has the important job of calling new laureates after they have found out that they have been awarded the Nobel Prize. Listen to a special podcast episode where he speaks about his very exciting but sometimes difficult task.

NPII Cambridge 025 — Adam Smith, Chief Scientific Officer at Nobel Prize Outreach.

Nobel Media. Photo: Adam Smyth

Alfred Nobel – Established the Nobel Prizes

Scientist and inventor

Chemist, engineer and industrialist Alfred Nobel left 31 million SEK (today about 342 million dollars) to fund the Nobel Prizes.

Alfred Nobel's early years

When Alfred was five years old his father Immanuel, an inventor and builder, moved to St. Petersburg. Alfred joined him a few years later.

Inventing dynamite

Based on Alfred’s work and patents a whole new industry developed. Within ten years, 16 explosives producing factories had been founded in 14 countries.

A controversial will

In his will of 27 November 1895, signed in Paris, Alfred Nobel specified that the bulk of his fortune should be used for prizes.

Questions and answers

Why is there a Nobel Prize? 

Do you have questions about the Nobel Prize and the Nobel Prize laureates? Find answers to the most commonly asked questions in the FAQ.

Nobel Prize nominations

Who can nominate for a Nobel Prize?

No person can nominate herself/himself for a Nobel Prize. But who can? And how are these persons chosen?

Jane Addams nomination for Carl von Ossietzky

Who selects the laureates?

In his last will and testament, Alfred Nobel specifically designated the institutions responsible for the prizes he wished to be established.

Explore the nomination archive

Search among the names of the nominees and nominators, as well as additional information about the nominations 1901-1966.

Mahatma Gandhi – The missing laureate

Mohandas Gandhi has become the strongest symbol of non-violence in the 20th century. He was nominated several times, but was never awarded the prize. Why?