Professor Tennyson (UCL Physics & Astronomy) was awarded the Royal Astronomical Society’s (RAS) 200-year-old Gold Medal for his pioneering work advancing our understanding of exoplanets (planets outside our solar system). Previous winners of the award include Arthur Eddington, Albert Einstein, Edwin Hubble, Stephen Hawking and Jocelyn Bell Burnell.
Professor Tennyson’s work in molecular physics has been fundamental in helping astronomers understand the chemistry and dynamics of planets’ atmospheres. His ExoMol project catalogues how molecules interact with light, allowing astronomers to interpret hot planets’ atmospheres based on how these atmospheres change the starlight that passes through them.
His theoretical work on molecules also led to the detection of water in sunspots (the Sun’s darker, cooler regions), proving that water could survive in stars as hot as the Sun, and the detection of an array of molecules in the atmospheres of exoplanets.
He said he was "deeply honoured" to receive the Gold Medal, adding: "This award is a recognition of the continuing importance of extensive and high-quality laboratory data in supporting cutting edge astronomical research, and the important role astronomy plays in the development of new methods in atomic and molecular physics."
Dr Paola Pinilla (Mullard Space Science Laboratory at UCL) received the RAS’s Price Medal, an award that recognizes outstanding research into the composition and formation of planets and the Earth.
The citation noted that Dr Pinilla was an internationally recognised leader in research on protoplanetary disks - the gas and dust around young stars where planets are born.
Her work, encompassing theoretical and numerical models as well as major observational campaigns from the world’s foremost telescopes, has made significant advances towards understanding the first steps of planet formation, the citation said, and in understanding the growth and dynamics of dust particles in different disk environments.
Responding to the news, Dr Pinilla said: "It is a great honour to receive the Price Medal in recognition of my research on planet formation. I am deeply grateful to the collaborative community I work with for their support and the opportunities I have been given throughout my career. I also sincerely thank my nominators and referees for their trust and confidence in me."
Dr Niall Jeffrey (UCL Physics & Astronomy) received the Early Career Award for early achievement in astronomy. The citation noted his novel use of machine learning methods in analysing data from state-of-the-art galaxy surveys such as the Dark Energy Survey.
This work has led to maps of dark matter and to more precise inferences of the influence and properties of dark energy than previously possible using weak gravitational lensing (a technique looking at how intervening matter such as galaxy clusters bends light coming towards us from more distant parts of the Universe).
Dr Jeffrey said: "I feel very honoured to receive this award from the Royal Astronomical Society. My colleagues and collaborators are an extraordinary group of scientists - I’m proud to work with so many of them. Now, I’m looking forward to our next steps, learning more about the Universe we live in."
Each year the RAS recognises significant achievement in the fields of astronomy and geophysics through a number of awards, medals and prizes, encompassing different types of talent from research to education and outreach.
English mathematician Charles Babbage and German astronomer Johann Franz Encke were jointly handed the first RAS Gold Medal just over 200 years ago, in 1824.
Since 1964 two have been awarded each year: one for astronomy, and one for geophysics. The medal features an image of the 40-foot telescope constructed by Sir William Herschel, who was the first president of the RAS.
Professor Mike Lockwood, president of the Royal Astronomical Society and former Gold Medal winner, said: "Awards are a very important part of the Society ’ s function: the senior awards recognise a lifetime in science and great discoveries and the junior awards help build careers.
"It gives me great pleasure to see so many talented individuals being rewarded for their hard work, dedication and immense contributions to the fields of astronomy and geophysics.
" All our award winners are an inspiration and it is clear to me that the depth of talent means that the future of our sciences is incredibly bright.
"I very much look forward to awarding the winners their medals and prizes at this year ’ s National Astronomy Meeting, when we will celebrate their great achievements."
Mark Greaves
m.greaves [at] ucl.ac.uk+44 (0)20 3108 9485
- University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT (0) 20 7679 2000
