John O. Dabiri, Centennial Professor of Aeronautics and Mechanical Engineering at Caltech, and Joseph Lazio, a visiting associate in astronomy, have been named 2025 fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
The AAAS is a major scientific society and publisher of the Science family of journals. This recognition honors nearly 500 scientists, engineers, and innovators for their distinguished career achievements.
John O. Dabiri's Contributions
Dabiri was honored for his "outstanding contributions in aeronautical and biological engineering."
His research concentrates on unsteady fluid mechanics and flow physics. He is recognized for his innovative approach, drawing inspiration from biological systems like jellyfish and fish schools, and integrating biological experiments with fluid mechanics concepts. His work impacts various technologies, including wind energy and biomedicine.
His current research areas include biological fluid dynamics in the ocean, next-generation wind-energy projects, and the development of new experimental methods.
Dabiri joined Caltech's faculty in 2005 after earning his MS and PhD there in 2003 and 2005, respectively. He became an associate professor in 2009 and a full professor in 2010. He served as chair of the faculty (2013-14) and dean of undergraduate students (2014-15). After a faculty position at Stanford University in 2015, he returned to Caltech in 2019 as Centennial Professor.
In 2025, Dabiri received a National Medal of Science, along with other honors such as a MacArthur Fellowship, the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, the Alan T. Waterman Award from the NSF, and the G. Evelyn Hutchinson Award.
Joseph Lazio's Contributions
Lazio was honored by the AAAS for "distinguished contributions to the field of radio astronomy, particularly exploratory projects at low frequencies, scientific guidance for NASA's Deep Space Network, and efforts to realize next-generation radio telescopes."
He served as a principal scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which Caltech manages for NASA, from 2010 to 2025.
As an Interplanetary Network Directorate scientist at JPL, Lazio managed the science services infrastructure for the Deep Space Network, an international network of radio antennas supporting interplanetary spacecraft and Earth-orbiting missions. This network also provides radar and radio astronomy observations. He also served as deputy principal investigator for JPL's Sun Radio Interferometer Space Experiment (SunRISE), a CubeSat array scheduled for a 2026 launch to study solar activity.
Lazio is a member of the North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav), a Physics Frontier Center, where he has contributed to exploring the low-frequency gravitational-wave universe through radio pulsar timing. His past roles include project scientist for the Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO), deputy director of the Lunar University Network for Astrophysics Research (LUNAR), and project scientist for the US Virtual Astronomical Observatory. He conducts observations using prominent ground-based radio telescopes, including the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array and the Very Long Baseline Array.
Other Caltech Alumni Honored
Additional Caltech alumni named 2025 AAAS fellows include Pamela Abshire (BS '92), Alejandro Alceves (MS '83), Alice Cronin-Golomb (PhD '84), Susy Carolina Kohout (BS '95), Sonia Kreidenweis (PhD '89), Ravi Ramamoorthi (BS/MS '98), Paul D. Ronney (MS '79), Ian B. Spielman (PhD '04), and Brian H. Toby (PhD '87).