Chicago astronomist, professor named one of Time Magazine's Most Influential People of 2025
Wendy Freedman is a professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Chicago. Time recognizes her research in observational cosmology, or the study of direct observations, using instruments like telescopes, to examine evidence of the universe's development and structure.
Freedman and her team created a new Hubble Constant, a unit of measurement used to describe how fast the universe is expanding. It is considered one of the most critical numbers in cosmology because it can determine the universe's age and could even reveal potential new physics.
Her work has been recognized within the science community, but this is her first "public" recognition.
"It was a complete surprise when I learned about it. I am honored to be on this list," she said.
"I feel very grateful to the University of Chicago for giving me the opportunity to study what I do and all the people and my teams over the years that have made this possible. It's not a solitary endeavor," Freedman said.
The concept of the Hubble Constant originated from a Belgian physicist in 1927, and then Edwin Hubble provided the first observational evidence of it. Since then, NASA has recognized four women, including Freedman, behind the Hubble Space Telescope's achievements.
"This measurement was one of the primary justifications for building a space telescope," according to NASA. The Hubble Space Telescope Key Project is the name of the international team she co-led to refine the Hubble Constant.
April 24th marked 35 years of the Hubble Telescope in space. NASA celebrated the milestone by releasing photos of galaxies and planets. Freedman's observations are among the 1.6 billion observations made by the Hubble.
Freedman was also the first woman to join the Carnegie Observatories as a permanent scientific staff member. She began her work there initially as a postdoctoral fellow. She also helped launch the Giant Magellan Telescope Project and served as the chair of the board of directors for over a decade.
Planetary Nebula NGC 2899, Hubble Telescope
NASA
Being a woman scientist in the middle of a significant debate in cosmology does not come without controversy.
"What people had been arguing about was whether the Hubble constant was 50 or 100, and we were able to make that measurement with 10% accuracy, which, for the time…was a huge step forward," she said.
She said controversy can be good because it keeps scientists accountable. "Science is a field that self-corrects. You get better measurements that supersede the older ones. That's one of the reasons why I love science," she said.
So, what's next?
"As you make more and more accurate measurements, you unearth other kinds of things that could be causing a difference. So that's where we're actively involved now, and that is another controversy. We're trying to understand how exciting this is, because it would be very exciting if it were something new and fundamental about the universe that we didn't understand before," she said.
The list is divided into six categories: innovators, titans, artists, icons, leaders, and pioneers.
"We have artists, musicians, scientists, and writers. Human capacity for doing things is really very vast. I think it's nice that all of those kinds of things get recognized because it's who we are," Freedman said.
Some other people on the list are Gisèle Pelicot, a French woman who survived years of sexual assault by her husband and over 50 men, whose case took the world by storm, as well as Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the World Health Organization, and Robert Montgomery, who "revolutionized organ transplantation, expanding access and improving outcomes for patients worldwide."
There are also controversial people on this list, including six members of the Trump Administration, including President Trump.
"TIME's founders knew that focusing on the individuals who are transforming the world is the best way to help readers understand it," Sam Jacobs, Editor-In-Chief of Time, wrote in the explainer of how Time chooses the 100 people. "
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