Support discovery science at the frontier of astrophysics.
Support KIPAC
The Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology (KIPAC) brings together over 200 researchers across Stanford and SLAC to push the frontiers of our understanding of the universe through innovative work across experimentation and instrumentation, simulation and modeling, observational astrophysics, and innovative data science leveraging immense multimodal data sets. Your gift helps us ask, and answer, the questions that define how we understand the universe.
Why KIPAC
KIPAC was founded in 2003 through a gift from Fred Kavli and The Kavli Foundation and a partnership between Stanford and SLAC to bridge astrophysics, cosmology, and particle physics — fields that had traditionally worked in isolation. Today, more than 130 researchers work across the Stanford campus and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory to tackle questions at every scale: from the highest-energy particles in the universe, to the stuff between the stars, to the structure and evolution of the cosmos.
KIPAC scientists play leading roles in some of the most ambitious projects in modern astronomy, including the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, which will produce the most detailed movie of the universe ever made, and the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, designed to probe dark energy and the evolution of galaxies. KIPAC researchers are unraveling the physics of black holes, neutron stars, supernovae, and the cosmic microwave background — the faint afterglow of the Big Bang. They are building and operating some of the most exquisite detectors ever made to detect the faint signals of dark matter.
Philanthropic support is what allows this work to move at the pace of curiosity. It funds fellowships that bring the next generation of scientists to Stanford, instrumentation that makes testing theory possible, and public programs that bring the wonder of the cosmos to thousands of students and community members each year.
Where Your Gift Goes
Fellowships & Rising Scientists
KIPAC funds postdoctoral fellowships (including the Kavli, Porat, and Bunyan Fellowships) and supports graduate and undergraduate researchers, giving early-career scientists the freedom to pursue ambitious, sometimes unproven ideas — the kind that often lead to the biggest breakthroughs.
Research & Instrumentation
From dark matter detectors to the computing infrastructure needed to simulate the evolution of the universe and analyze large survey data, gifts help KIPAC build and operate the tools that make new discoveries possible.
Public Engagement & Education
Through free programs like Discover Our Universe public lectures, stargazing nights at the Stanford Student Observatory, community open houses, and Noches Astronómicas for Spanish-speaking families, KIPAC brings cutting-edge astrophysics to thousands of students and community members each year, including through SPINWIP, a summer program that introduces high-school students, especially young women, to careers in STEM.
Director's Discretionary Fund
Unrestricted gifts let KIPAC's director respond quickly to emerging opportunities: a new collaboration, a promising hire, a piece of equipment that comes available.
In Their Words
"Flexible fellowship funding allowed me to use the last year of my PhD to explore scientific possibilities further into the future, especially through forecasting analysis for a potential new telescope. This time allowed me to develop a clearer vision for the future of my research program." — Sydney Erickson, Ph.D. 2026, KIPAC
"My goal is always to find unexpected connections between fields of inquiry. My fellowship has allowed me to do that and expand my research beyond my main areas of focus — radio astronomy and cosmology. Currently, I am working on understanding habitability in cosmic contexts: How do the conditions for life evolve over the full 13.8 billion years since the Big Bang? How do cosmic environments on the largest scale constrain the emergence of habitable worlds?" — Dylan Jow, Postdoc 2026, KIPAC
Tax Status & Giving Info
KIPAC is an independent laboratory of Stanford University. Gifts to KIPAC are tax-deductible under applicable IRS rules, as KIPAC operates under Stanford University's 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. All gifts, whatever the size, directly support KIPAC's research, fellowships, and public programs.
For questions about giving, matching gifts, planned giving, or naming opportunities, please contact David Tozer, Sr. Associate Director of Development – dtozer@stanford.edu.
Every discovery — about dark matter, dark energy, black holes, or the origins of the universe — starts with the freedom to ask a hard question. Your gift helps make that possible.