ASTRONOMER
Frank Drake
1930 - 2022

Frank Drake
Frank Donald Drake (May 28, 1930 – September 2, 2022) was an American astrophysicist and astrobiologist. He began his career as a radio astronomer, studying the planets of the Solar System and later pulsars. Drake expanded his interests to the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI), beginning with Project Ozma in 1960, an attempt at extraterrestrial communication. He developed the Drake equation, which attempts to quantify the number of intelligent lifeforms that could potentially be discovered. Read more on Wikipedia
His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Frank Drake is the 121st most popular astronomer (down from 118th in 2019), the 1,615th most popular biography from United States (down from 1,613th in 2019) and the 23rd most popular American Astronomer.
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Among ASTRONOMERS
Among astronomers, Frank Drake ranks 121 out of 644. Before him are Petrus Plancius, Maria Margaretha Kirch, Heinrich Schwabe, Yrjö Väisälä, Abu-Mahmud Khojandi, and George Biddell Airy. After him are N. R. Pogson, Ernst Öpik, Maria Mitchell, Girolamo Fracastoro, Hermann Goldschmidt, and Svetlana Gerasimenko.
Most Popular Astronomers in Wikipedia
Go to all RankingsPetrus Plancius
1552 - 1622
HPI: 67.62
Rank: 115
Maria Margaretha Kirch
1670 - 1720
HPI: 67.47
Rank: 116
Heinrich Schwabe
1789 - 1875
HPI: 67.44
Rank: 117
Yrjö Väisälä
1891 - 1971
HPI: 67.37
Rank: 118
Abu-Mahmud Khojandi
940 - 1000
HPI: 67.36
Rank: 119
George Biddell Airy
1801 - 1892
HPI: 67.36
Rank: 120
Frank Drake
1930 - 2022
HPI: 67.29
Rank: 121
N. R. Pogson
1829 - 1891
HPI: 67.28
Rank: 122
Ernst Öpik
1893 - 1985
HPI: 67.25
Rank: 123
Maria Mitchell
1818 - 1889
HPI: 67.22
Rank: 124
Girolamo Fracastoro
1476 - 1553
HPI: 67.22
Rank: 125
Hermann Goldschmidt
1802 - 1866
HPI: 67.21
Rank: 126
Svetlana Gerasimenko
1945 - 2025
HPI: 67.19
Rank: 127
Contemporaries
Among people born in 1930, Frank Drake ranks 88. Before him are Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma, Itamar Franco, Chinua Achebe, Buck Henry, Ernst Albrecht, and Magdalena Abakanowicz. After him are Gérard Genette, Robert Aumann, Pierre Bergé, Owen Garriott, José Sarney, and Edgar Mitchell. Among people deceased in 2022, Frank Drake ranks 72. Before him are Claes Oldenburg, Ayaz Mutallibov, Arata Isozaki, Mehran Karimi Nasseri, Ichirou Mizuki, and Tony Brooks. After him are Edward C. Prescott, Ivan Reitman, Jean-Jacques Sempé, James Lovelock, Hans Magnus Enzensberger, and Siniša Mihajlović.
Others Born in 1930
Go to all RankingsCarlos Hugo, Duke of Parma
POLITICIAN
1930 - 2010
HPI: 67.53
Rank: 82
Itamar Franco
POLITICIAN
1930 - 2011
HPI: 67.43
Rank: 83
Chinua Achebe
WRITER
1930 - 2013
HPI: 67.37
Rank: 84
Buck Henry
ACTOR
1930 - 2020
HPI: 67.32
Rank: 85
Ernst Albrecht
POLITICIAN
1930 - 2014
HPI: 67.31
Rank: 86
Magdalena Abakanowicz
SCULPTOR
1930 - 2017
HPI: 67.30
Rank: 87
Frank Drake
ASTRONOMER
1930 - 2022
HPI: 67.29
Rank: 88
Gérard Genette
POLITICIAN
1930 - 2018
HPI: 67.13
Rank: 89
Robert Aumann
MATHEMATICIAN
1930 - Present
HPI: 66.94
Rank: 90
Pierre Bergé
BUSINESSPERSON
1930 - 2017
HPI: 66.82
Rank: 91
Owen Garriott
ASTRONAUT
1930 - 2019
HPI: 66.76
Rank: 92
José Sarney
POLITICIAN
1930 - Present
HPI: 66.74
Rank: 93
Edgar Mitchell
ASTRONAUT
1930 - 2016
HPI: 66.57
Rank: 94
Others Deceased in 2022
Go to all RankingsClaes Oldenburg
SCULPTOR
1929 - 2022
HPI: 67.60
Rank: 66
Ayaz Mutallibov
POLITICIAN
1938 - 2022
HPI: 67.56
Rank: 67
Arata Isozaki
ARCHITECT
1931 - 2022
HPI: 67.52
Rank: 68
Mehran Karimi Nasseri
CELEBRITY
1942 - 2022
HPI: 67.49
Rank: 69
Ichirou Mizuki
COMPOSER
1948 - 2022
HPI: 67.48
Rank: 70
Tony Brooks
RACING DRIVER
1932 - 2022
HPI: 67.35
Rank: 71
Frank Drake
ASTRONOMER
1930 - 2022
HPI: 67.29
Rank: 72
Edward C. Prescott
ECONOMIST
1940 - 2022
HPI: 67.27
Rank: 73
Ivan Reitman
FILM DIRECTOR
1946 - 2022
HPI: 67.25
Rank: 74
Jean-Jacques Sempé
COMIC ARTIST
1932 - 2022
HPI: 67.22
Rank: 75
James Lovelock
GEOGRAPHER
1919 - 2022
HPI: 67.17
Rank: 76
Hans Magnus Enzensberger
WRITER
1929 - 2022
HPI: 66.97
Rank: 77
Siniša Mihajlović
COACH
1969 - 2022
HPI: 66.90
Rank: 78
In United States
Among people born in United States, Frank Drake ranks 1,615 out of 20,380. Before him are Buck Henry (1930), Guy Williams (1924), Martha Nussbaum (1947), Stephen Schwartz (1948), Kelly Lynch (1959), and George Clinton (1739). After him are Lil Wayne (1982), William Miller (1782), Paul Greengard (1925), Angela Bassett (1958), Edward C. Prescott (1940), and Chris Cornell (1964).
Others born in United States
Go to all RankingsBuck Henry
ACTOR
1930 - 2020
HPI: 67.32
Rank: 1,609
Guy Williams
ACTOR
1924 - 1989
HPI: 67.31
Rank: 1,610
Martha Nussbaum
PHILOSOPHER
1947 - Present
HPI: 67.31
Rank: 1,611
Stephen Schwartz
COMPOSER
1948 - Present
HPI: 67.30
Rank: 1,612
Kelly Lynch
ACTOR
1959 - Present
HPI: 67.30
Rank: 1,613
George Clinton
POLITICIAN
1739 - 1812
HPI: 67.29
Rank: 1,614
Frank Drake
ASTRONOMER
1930 - 2022
HPI: 67.29
Rank: 1,615
Lil Wayne
SINGER
1982 - Present
HPI: 67.29
Rank: 1,616
William Miller
RELIGIOUS FIGURE
1782 - 1849
HPI: 67.28
Rank: 1,617
Paul Greengard
BIOLOGIST
1925 - 2019
HPI: 67.28
Rank: 1,618
Angela Bassett
ACTOR
1958 - Present
HPI: 67.27
Rank: 1,619
Edward C. Prescott
ECONOMIST
1940 - 2022
HPI: 67.27
Rank: 1,620
Chris Cornell
SINGER
1964 - 2017
HPI: 67.26
Rank: 1,621
Among ASTRONOMERS In United States
Among astronomers born in United States, Frank Drake ranks 23. Before him are George O. Abell (1927), Henry Norris Russell (1877), Edward Charles Pickering (1846), Lewis A. Swift (1820), Annie Jump Cannon (1863), and James Van Allen (1914). After him are Maria Mitchell (1818), Carolyn S. Shoemaker (1929), William Henry Pickering (1858), Eleanor F. Helin (1932), Harlow Shapley (1885), and Carl Keenan Seyfert (1911).
George O. Abell
1927 - 1983
HPI: 69.32
Rank: 17
Henry Norris Russell
1877 - 1957
HPI: 68.58
Rank: 18
Edward Charles Pickering
1846 - 1919
HPI: 68.48
Rank: 19
Lewis A. Swift
1820 - 1913
HPI: 68.26
Rank: 20
Annie Jump Cannon
1863 - 1941
HPI: 67.78
Rank: 21
James Van Allen
1914 - 2006
HPI: 67.72
Rank: 22
Frank Drake
1930 - 2022
HPI: 67.29
Rank: 23
Maria Mitchell
1818 - 1889
HPI: 67.22
Rank: 24
Carolyn S. Shoemaker
1929 - 2021
HPI: 66.22
Rank: 25
William Henry Pickering
1858 - 1938
HPI: 66.19
Rank: 26
Eleanor F. Helin
1932 - 2009
HPI: 65.55
Rank: 27
Harlow Shapley
1885 - 1972
HPI: 65.52
Rank: 28
Carl Keenan Seyfert
1911 - 1960
HPI: 65.24
Rank: 29