In 1987, the the American Chemical Society awarded the Priestley Medal to John D. Roberts ‘for his numerous contributions to chemistry,” the Society’s most prestigious award.

Roberts is probably best known for his work with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. In the mid-1950s, he was one of the first to recognize NMR’s potential and was a central figure in developing proton NMR into one of organic chemistry’s most powerful tools.