Alfred Fowler
Encyclopedia
Alfred Fowler, FRS (22 March 1868 Yorkshire
– 24 June 1940) was an English astronomer
. Not to be confused with American astrophysicist William Alfred Fowler
.
He was born in Wilsden, Yorkshire and educated at London's Normal School of Science, which was later absorbed into Imperial College, London.
He was appointed Instructor (later Assistant Professor) of Astrophysics at Imperial College and worked there until his death. He was an expert in spectroscopy
, being one of the first to determine that the temperature of sunspot
s was cooler than that of surrounding regions.
He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1910, when his citation read "Associate of the Royal College of Science. Assistant Professor of Physics (Astrophysics Department) Imperial College and Technology, South Kensington. Distinguished for his contributions to Astronomical Physics by spectroscopic observations of eclipses, solar pre-eminences, and sunspots, and by experimental researches bearing on their interpretation. Associated in observations of total eclipses of the sun with Sir Norman Lockyer in 1893, 1896, 1898, 1900, and (with Prof Callendar) in 1905. Author of the following papers: - 'The Spectra of Metallic Arcs in an Exhausted Globe' (with H Page, (Proc Roy Soc, vol lxxii); 'Formulae for Spectrum Series' (with H Shaw, Astrophys Journ, vols xviii, xxi); 'The Spectra of Antarian Stars in relation to the Fluted Spectrum of Titanium' (Proc Roy Soc, vol lxxiii, 1904); 'Observations of the Spectra of Sunspots, Region C to D' (Monthly Notices Roy Astron Soc, vol lxv, 1905); 'Spectroscopic Observations of the Great Sunspot (February, 1905) and Associated Prominences' (ibid, vol lxv, 1905); 'Total Solar Eclipse, 1905, August 30' (with H L Callendar) (Proc Roy Soc, vol lxxvii, 1905); 'High Level Chromosperic Lines and their Behaviour in Sunspot Spectra' (Monthly Notices Roy Astron Soc, vol lxvi, 1906); 'Observations and Discussion of the Spectra of Sunspots, Region B to E' (Trans Internat Union Solar Research, vol i, 1906); 'Enhanced Lines of Iron in the Region F to C, and Note on Silicon in the Chromosphere' (Monthly Notices, Roy Astron Soc vol lxvii, 1906); 'The Fluted Spectrum of Titanium Oxide' (Proc Roy Soc, vol lxxx, 1907); 'The Origin of certain Bands in the Spectra of Sunspots' (Monthly Notices, Roy Astron Soc, vol lxvii, 1907); 'Report of Committee on Sunspot Spectra' (Trans Internat Union Solar Research, vol ii, 1908); 'The Spectrum of Scandium and its relation to Solar Spectra' (Phil Trans, A, 1908); 'The Reproduction of Prismatic Spectrum Photographs on a Uniform Scale of Wave-lengths' (Astrophys Journ, vol xxviii, 1908). ". He was awarded their Royal Medal
in 1918 and delivered their Bakerian Lecture
s in 1914 and 1924.
He was president of the Royal Astronomical Society
from 1919 to 1921.
he died in Ealing, London in 1940.
Named after him
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
– 24 June 1940) was an English astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
. Not to be confused with American astrophysicist William Alfred Fowler
William Alfred Fowler
William Alfred "Willy" Fowler was an American astrophysicist and winner of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1983. He should not be confused with the British astronomer Alfred Fowler....
.
He was born in Wilsden, Yorkshire and educated at London's Normal School of Science, which was later absorbed into Imperial College, London.
He was appointed Instructor (later Assistant Professor) of Astrophysics at Imperial College and worked there until his death. He was an expert in spectroscopy
Spectroscopy
Spectroscopy is the study of the interaction between matter and radiated energy. Historically, spectroscopy originated through the study of visible light dispersed according to its wavelength, e.g., by a prism. Later the concept was expanded greatly to comprise any interaction with radiative...
, being one of the first to determine that the temperature of sunspot
Sunspot
Sunspots are temporary phenomena on the photosphere of the Sun that appear visibly as dark spots compared to surrounding regions. They are caused by intense magnetic activity, which inhibits convection by an effect comparable to the eddy current brake, forming areas of reduced surface temperature....
s was cooler than that of surrounding regions.
He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1910, when his citation read "Associate of the Royal College of Science. Assistant Professor of Physics (Astrophysics Department) Imperial College and Technology, South Kensington. Distinguished for his contributions to Astronomical Physics by spectroscopic observations of eclipses, solar pre-eminences, and sunspots, and by experimental researches bearing on their interpretation. Associated in observations of total eclipses of the sun with Sir Norman Lockyer in 1893, 1896, 1898, 1900, and (with Prof Callendar) in 1905. Author of the following papers: - 'The Spectra of Metallic Arcs in an Exhausted Globe' (with H Page, (Proc Roy Soc, vol lxxii); 'Formulae for Spectrum Series' (with H Shaw, Astrophys Journ, vols xviii, xxi); 'The Spectra of Antarian Stars in relation to the Fluted Spectrum of Titanium' (Proc Roy Soc, vol lxxiii, 1904); 'Observations of the Spectra of Sunspots, Region C to D' (Monthly Notices Roy Astron Soc, vol lxv, 1905); 'Spectroscopic Observations of the Great Sunspot (February, 1905) and Associated Prominences' (ibid, vol lxv, 1905); 'Total Solar Eclipse, 1905, August 30' (with H L Callendar) (Proc Roy Soc, vol lxxvii, 1905); 'High Level Chromosperic Lines and their Behaviour in Sunspot Spectra' (Monthly Notices Roy Astron Soc, vol lxvi, 1906); 'Observations and Discussion of the Spectra of Sunspots, Region B to E' (Trans Internat Union Solar Research, vol i, 1906); 'Enhanced Lines of Iron in the Region F to C, and Note on Silicon in the Chromosphere' (Monthly Notices, Roy Astron Soc vol lxvii, 1906); 'The Fluted Spectrum of Titanium Oxide' (Proc Roy Soc, vol lxxx, 1907); 'The Origin of certain Bands in the Spectra of Sunspots' (Monthly Notices, Roy Astron Soc, vol lxvii, 1907); 'Report of Committee on Sunspot Spectra' (Trans Internat Union Solar Research, vol ii, 1908); 'The Spectrum of Scandium and its relation to Solar Spectra' (Phil Trans, A, 1908); 'The Reproduction of Prismatic Spectrum Photographs on a Uniform Scale of Wave-lengths' (Astrophys Journ, vol xxviii, 1908). ". He was awarded their Royal Medal
Royal Medal
The Royal Medal, also known as The Queen's Medal, is a silver-gilt medal awarded each year by the Royal Society, two for "the most important contributions to the advancement of natural knowledge" and one for "distinguished contributions in the applied sciences" made within the Commonwealth of...
in 1918 and delivered their Bakerian Lecture
Bakerian Lecture
The Bakerian Lecture is a prize lecture of the Royal Society, a lecture on physical sciences.In 1775 Henry Baker left £100 for a spoken lecture by a Fellow on such part of natural history or experimental philosophy as the Society shall determine....
s in 1914 and 1924.
He was president of the Royal Astronomical Society
Royal Astronomical Society
The Royal Astronomical Society is a learned society that began as the Astronomical Society of London in 1820 to support astronomical research . It became the Royal Astronomical Society in 1831 on receiving its Royal Charter from William IV...
from 1919 to 1921.
he died in Ealing, London in 1940.
Honours
Awards- Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical SocietyGold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society-History:In the early years, more than one medal was often awarded in a year, but by 1833 only one medal was being awarded per year. This caused a problem when Neptune was discovered in 1846, because many felt an award should jointly be made to John Couch Adams and Urbain Le Verrier...
(1915) - Royal MedalRoyal MedalThe Royal Medal, also known as The Queen's Medal, is a silver-gilt medal awarded each year by the Royal Society, two for "the most important contributions to the advancement of natural knowledge" and one for "distinguished contributions in the applied sciences" made within the Commonwealth of...
(1918) - Fellow of the Royal Society
- Henry Draper MedalHenry Draper MedalThe Henry Draper Medal is awarded by the United States National Academy of Sciences "for investigations in astronomical physics". Named after Henry Draper, the medal is awarded with a gift of USD $15,000...
from the National Academy of SciencesUnited States National Academy of SciencesThe National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
(1920) - Bruce MedalBruce MedalThe Catherine Wolfe Bruce Gold Medal is awarded every year by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific for outstanding lifetime contributions to astronomy. It is named after Catherine Wolfe Bruce, an American patroness of astronomy, and was first awarded in 1898...
(1934) - Commander of the British Empire (1935)
Named after him
- The crater FowlerFowler (crater)Fowler is a large lunar crater that lies in the northern hemisphere on the Moon's far side. It lies to the south-southwest of the crater Esnault-Pelterie, and north of Gadomski...
on the MoonMoonThe Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
(jointly with Ralph H. FowlerRalph H. FowlerSir Ralph Howard Fowler OBE FRS was a British physicist and astronomer.-Education:Fowler was initially educated at home but then attended Evans' preparatory school at Horris Hill and Winchester College...
)
External links
- Bruce Medal page
- Awarding of Bruce medal: PASP 46 (1934) 87
- Awarding of RAS gold medal: MNRAS 75 (1915) 355
Obituaries
- ApJ 94 (1941) 1
- MNRAS 101 (1941) 132
- Obs 63 (1940) 262
- PASP 52 (1940) 301 (one paragraph)