Chris Lintott

Astronomer

I’m an astronomer who works on understanding how galaxies form and evolve, while also spending time finding exoplanets, supernovae and other unusual things. I run the Zooniverse platform, which invites you all to take part in these projects from the comfort of your sofa, via the web.  My career started with a degree in Cambridge, followed by a PhD in astrochemisty at UCL. I’ve been in Oxford ever since, apart from a stint as Director of Citizen Science at the Adler Planetarium.

I’ve combined my research with public engagement, being the long-standing co-presenter of the BBC’s Sky at Night. A book describing the Zooniverse project, ‘The Crowd and the Cosmos’, was published in 2019.  An exciting recent project is a collaboration with jazz musician Steve Pretty on a stage show, ‘Universe of music’. I’m also on the Board of Visitors of the Ashmolean Museum.