Elizabeth Lada is an American astronomer whose self-described research interests include "understanding the origin, properties, evolution and fate of young embedded clusters within molecular clouds".
Lada received her Bachelor of Science in Physics degree from Yale University in 1983 and her Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of Texas in 1990. Lada is currently Professor of Astronomy at the University of Florida.
The American Astronomical Society (AAS) honored her work by awarding her the Annie J. Cannon Prize in 1992.[1] She also was named as a Hubble Fellow during her work at the University of Maryland.[2] [3] She was awarded a NSF CAREER award in 1999.[3] [4] In 1998 she received a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE).[3] [5]
She was named a Fellow of the AAS in 2023, "for pioneering the use of infrared array detectors to push ground-based infrared imaging limits and survey giant molecular clouds for obscured populations of young stars; for transformative work on a broad range of problems in star formation including constraining the initial mass function within giant molecular clouds and performing the first robust measurements of the frequency and lifetimes of circumstellar disks in young clusters; and for extensive service to the astronomical community as a member of many boards and committees".[6]