Michele Dougherty elected next President of the Institute of Physics

Imperial's Head of the Department of Physics will begin her two-year term as President of the Council of Trustees in 2025. Professor Dougherty is Professor of Space Physics and Head of the Department of Physics at Imperial. She will serve as President-Elect for two years from October 2023, shadowing the current President, after which she will serve as President for two years. The Institute of Physics (IOP)'s aim is 'to promote the advancement and dissemination of a knowledge of and education in the science of physics, pure and applied, for the benefit of the public and the members of IOP'. On the announcement of her election, she said: "I am honoured to be taking up this role, and very much look forward to working together with the IOP in its critical work in this area. I also very much look forward to working with the new President, Keith Burnett, and wish him all the best in the role." - Planetary missions. Born in South Africa in 1962, her love of space science began when her father built his own 10-inch telescope in the family's back garden.