Didier Queloz is 60 years old as of October 2026. He was born on 23 February 1966.
Swiss astronomer who co-discovered 51 Pegasi b, the first planet found orbiting a Sun-like star, and won the 2019 Nobel Prize
Did you know?The planet he discovered, 51 Pegasi b, is a gas giant that takes only four days to complete an orbit around its star.
Quick facts
Date of birth23 February 1966
Age60
NationalitySwiss
BirthplaceGeneva, Switzerland
Occupationastronomer, astrophysicist, university teacher
Editor's Take:
Didier Queloz helped prove that our Solar System is not unique. As a doctoral student at the University of Geneva, he worked with Michel Mayor on a new, highly precise spectrograph. In 1995 they announced 51 Pegasi b, the first planet found orbiting a Sun-like star. It was a giant planet circling its star in just four days, something no theory had predicted. The discovery launched the modern search for exoplanets, which now number in the thousands. Queloz went on to lead further planet-hunting projects. He is a professor at the University of Cambridge and at ETH Zurich. In 2019 he and Mayor shared the Nobel Prize in Physics.
Key Milestones
1995: Announces 51 Pegasi b with Michel Mayor
2013: Becomes a professor at the University of Cambridge
2019: Shares the Nobel Prize in Physics
Didier Patrick Queloz (French pronunciation:; born 23 February 1966) is a Swiss astronomer. He is the Jacksonian Professor of Natural Philosophy at the University of Cambridge, where he is also a fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge, as well as a professor of physics at ETH Zurich.
Didier Queloz's birthday is February 23. He was born on February 23, 1966 in Geneva, Switzerland.
How old is Didier Queloz?
Didier Queloz is 60 years old, and turns 61 on his next birthday, February 23.
Who shares a birthday with Didier Queloz?
Famous people who share Didier Queloz's February 23 birthday include Naruhito, George Frideric Handel, Viktor Yushchenko, Emily Blunt and Karl Jaspers.
