Science · Sports · Philosophy · 1885–1962
Born: 7 October 1885 · Died: 18 November 1962 · Age at death: 77
Niels Bohr died aged 77. He was born on 7 October 1885 and died on 18 November 1962.
Danish physicist who developed the Bohr model of the atom, won the Nobel Prize and helped found quantum mechanics
Did you know?He was a talented footballer who played as a goalkeeper for a top-tier Danish club alongside his brother.
Niels Bohr helped unlock the strange inner world of the atom. In 1913 he proposed that electrons orbit the nucleus only at certain fixed energy levels, jumping between them by absorbing or releasing light. This model explained patterns of light from hydrogen and became a key step towards quantum mechanics. His institute in Copenhagen became the centre of a golden age of physics, attracting young scientists from around the world. During the Second World War he escaped Nazi-occupied Denmark and later worked on the Manhattan Project, before campaigning for international control of nuclear weapons.
Niels Henrik David Bohr (Danish:; 7 October 1885 – 18 November 1962) was a Danish theoretical physicist who made foundational contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum theory, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1922. He was also a philosopher and a promoter of scientific research.
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Profile
Danish physicist, born 1885
Niels Bohr was born in Copenhagen on 7 October 1885.
He proposed the Bohr model of the atom in 1913.
He won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1922.
He escaped occupied Denmark in 1943.
Career highlights
Did you know?Element 107, bohrium, is named after him.
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Last reviewed: October 2026