Ewine van Dishoeck helped develop the most powerful telescopes in the world. She conducts research into thin, ice-cold clouds of gas that are found between the stars close to our own solar system, including in the Orion Nebula, of which the Hubble telescope has made such breath-taking images. These gas clouds contain all sorts of molecules that are already interesting in themselves: due to the unusual conditions in space, molecules are present that are not present on earth, or only very rarely. But another fascinating thing also occurs in many of these gas clouds: new stars and planets are born. Van Dishoeck looks at the formation process of these celestial bodies, and studies which molecules in these clouds will end up on one of these new planets.

Van Dishoeck has been awarded many prizes and honours, including the Kavli Prize for astrophysics in 2018, the highest scientific award in this field worldwide. She also received the Spinoza Prize in 2000, which the highest academic award in the Netherlands. She has alsosecured numerous research grants. Van Dishoeck is also known for her work on the development of different telescopes. These are nearly always international collaboration projects in which Van Dishoeck assumes the role of bringing together people, resources and organisations.