Gregory Benford’s prodigious literary output includes 32 novels – among them the best-seller Timescape. Steve Zylius / UCI

Gregory Benford, science fiction author and professor emeritus of physics & astronomy at UCI, is the 2019 winner of the Heinlein Award, bestowed for outstanding published works in science fiction and technical writings that inspire the human exploration of space. The award is in recognition of Benford’s body of work, including 32 novels – among them the best-seller Timescape – more than 218 short stories and many nonfiction articles. A two-time recipient of the Nebula Award, Benford has also won the John W. Campbell Memorial Award, the British Science Fiction Association Award, the Australian Ditmar Award and the 1990 United Nations Medal in Literature. He will be presented the Heinlein Award on Friday, May 24, during opening ceremonies for Balticon 53, the 53rd Maryland Regional Science Fiction & Fantasy Convention. Balticon and the Heinlein Award are both managed and sponsored by the Baltimore Science Fiction Society. Often called “the dean of science fiction writers,” Robert A. Heinlein was an American who penned sometimes controversial works that continue to influence the genre.