Physics Department News
Physics staff nominated for Staff Awards 2018
Congratulations to the following, who have been longlisted for Staff Awards this year:
Ally Caldecote (Public Engagement Contribution)
Rosalind Johnstone (Service Excellence)
Mareike Herrmann (Unsung Hero)
Astrophysical Transients team (Research Contribution)
John Horsler (Brilliant Newcomer)
For a full list of longlisted nominees, see here for individual and here for team.
Andrew Levan honoured by inaugural Blavatnik Young Scientist Awards
Professor Andrew Levan – who played a significant role in the internationally acclaimed 2017 gravitational waves discovery that demonstrated the origin of gold – is announced as a Finalist in the Physical Sciences & Engineering category, winning $30,000.
International Women's Day 2018
On 8th March, we celebrated International Women's Day in the Physics department, with a photo of some of our female students and staff.
Tom Marsh awarded RAS Herschel Medal
Professor Tom Marsh of the Astronomy and Astrophysics group has been awarded the prestigious Herschel Medal by the Royal Astronomical Society.
Professor Tom Marsh has undertaken pioneering research into close binary star systems for the last 30 years. Foremost among his numerous contributions has been the development of the Doppler Tomography technique, which was first described in a landmark paper in 1988 co-authored with Professor Keith Horne. The method uses phase-resolved spectra to construct two-dimensional velocity-space images, allowing astronomers to break the diffraction limit of conventional imaging.
Its application reveals the micro-arcsecond structure of close binary star systems, delivering accurate masses for white dwarfs, neutron stars and black holes. The technique unveils the detailed structure of accretion flows, including the intricate structure of accretion streams and hot-spot dynamics. It also led to the discovery of the theoretically anticipated spiralwave patterns that appear in accretion discs during dwarf nova outbursts. Doppler Tomography has been applied to hundreds of binary systems by numerous researchers, leading to a much improved understanding of accretion disc physics.
For these reasons, Professor Marsh is awarded the Herschel Medal.