Nobel Prize in Chemistry facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Nobel Prize in Chemistry |
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| Presented by | Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences |
| Location | Stockholm, Sweden |
| Reward | 12 million SEK (2026) |
| First awarded | 1901 |
| Currently held by | Henri B. Kagan and Kenso Soai (2026) |
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is one of the world's most famous science awards. It is given every year to scientists who make amazing discoveries in chemistry. Chemistry is the study of matter, atoms, and how different substances combine and react. This special award is decided by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm, Sweden. It is one of the five original Nobel Prize awards created by Alfred Nobel in his will back in 1895. The other prizes celebrate great achievements in physics, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace.
Each year, the prize recognizes scientists whose work helps us understand how the world works. The very first person to win the prize was Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff in 1901. He showed how chemical reactions happen and explained osmotic pressure. Over the years, many brilliant people have earned this honor. Some scientists, like Frederick Sanger and K. Barry Sharpless, even won it twice. Famous women have also made history by winning, including Marie Curie, Irène Joliot-Curie, Dorothy Hodgkin, Ada Yonath, Frances Arnold, Emmanuelle Charpentier, Jennifer Doudna, and Carolyn R. Bertozzi. The prize inspires young thinkers everywhere to explore molecules, invent medicines, and protect the planet.
Contents
History of the Chemistry Award
Alfred Nobel was a famous Swedish inventor and scientist who lived in the nineteenth century. He made a huge fortune through his inventions and businesses around the world. Nobel wanted his money to help make human life better for everyone. In November 1895, he signed his last will in Paris. He chose to leave most of his wealth to set up five yearly prizes. He asked that the awards honor the people who gave the greatest benefit to mankind.
After he died, people formed the Nobel Foundation to protect his fortune and carry out his wishes. The organizers needed special rules before they could start giving out the awards. In 1897, the Storting approved his plan, and other groups joined soon after. King Oscar II helped finalize the official rules in 1900. Nobel specifically picked the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to choose the winners in chemistry. Today, people all around the globe still celebrate this tradition every single year.
How the Prizes Began
The leaders of the Nobel Foundation worked hard with two trusted executors named Ragnar Sohlman and Rudolf Lilljequist. They created rules to keep the selection fair and honest. Other major Swedish schools helped too, like the Karolinska Institutet and the Swedish Academy. Each group took charge of a different category mentioned by Nobel. The first Nobel ceremonies took place in 1901, starting a grand celebration of scientific curiosity.
How the Winners Are Chosen
Finding the best chemistry discovery is a very long and careful process. It starts when the Nobel Committee for Chemistry asks thousands of scientists around the world to send in ideas. The committee contains five experts chosen by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. About three thousand professors, researchers, and past winners receive invitation letters. They can suggest any scientist whose discoveries changed our understanding of the universe.
All nominations stay completely secret to keep the contest fair and protect the scientists. The official records stay locked away in secret vaults for fifty years. Candidates never get told that they are being considered for the award. By spring, the committee narrows the list down to around two hundred top candidates. Then, outside experts review the findings to choose the strongest achievements.
Rules for Choosing Laureates
A winner of a Nobel Prize is called a laureate. The committee follows several strict guidelines when picking the laureates each year.
- A maximum of three winners can share the prize in any single year.
- The prize can honor up to two different scientific discoveries at the same time.
- Scientists cannot be nominated after they pass away, though winners who pass away after the announcement still receive it.
- The discovery must stand the test of time, meaning scientists often wait twenty years or more to win.
Waiting decades ensures that a discovery is truly useful and proven correct by other researchers. Sadly, some researchers pass away before the committee can recognize their amazing achievements.
What the Laureates Receive
The winners are announced to the public every year during the month of October. On December 10, the laureates travel to Sweden for a grand award ceremony. This date marks the anniversary of the death of Alfred Nobel. The King of Sweden presents each winner with their prizes in front of a huge audience. Later that evening, everyone attends a magnificent dinner party inside the famous Stockholm City Hall.
Medals, Diplomas, and Money
Every laureate receives three special items to celebrate their victory.
- A beautiful gold medal crafted by artist Erik Lindberg showing the Goddess of Nature as Isis and science uncovering her secrets.
- A personalized diploma created by hand with unique art and calligraphy describing the laureate's work.
- A large cash award paid in SEK from the funds managed by the Nobel Foundation.
The medal features a Latin quote from the poet Virgil in the Aeneid. It says that it is wonderful to improve human life through discoveries. If two scientists win together, they split the money equally. If three scientists win, the committee can split the money into three equal parts or give half to one leader and divide the rest.
Famous Discoveries and Fields
Chemistry touches almost everything around us, from the air we breathe to the food we eat. In the early days, winners studied basic chemical reactions, gases, and simple compounds. Over time, chemists started looking closely inside living cells. Many prizes have honored work in biochemistry and molecular biology. These scientists figured out how molecules like DNA and proteins build living bodies.
Other winners made breakthroughs in materials science, creating brand new plastics, batteries, and electronic components. Some critics wondered if the prize was shifting too much into medicine or biology. However, chemistry is often called the central science because it connects so many different fields. In recent years, molecular chemistry has helped researchers make clean energy, fight diseases, and build microscopic molecular machines.
See also
In Spanish: Premio Nobel de Química para niños
- List of Nobel laureates in Chemistry
- List of chemistry awards
- List of Nobel laureates
- Nobel laureates by country
