Peter Fowler FRS  was a British physicist. His father was the physicist Sir Ralph Howard Fowler, who determined the state of matter in white-dwarf stars, and his grandfather, a giant of 20th century physics, Lord Ernest Rutherford, who discovered the atomic nucleus.

Peter researched primary cosmic radiation, measuring the presence of beryllium, boron, and lithium in cosmic rays. At the University of Bristol

University of Bristol

The University of Bristol is a public research university located in Bristol, United Kingdom. One of the so-called "red brick" universities, it received its Royal Charter in 1909, although its predecessor institution, University College, Bristol, had been in existence since 1876.The University is...

, Fowler studied under Cecil Powell. Fowler developed improved methods for measuring cosmic rays, using high-altitude balloons and later jets, and investigated the radiation hazards of high-altitude supersonic flight.

He studied radioactive fallout from the 1986 Chernobyl

Chernobyl

Chernobyl or Chornobyl is an abandoned city in northern Ukraine, in Kiev Oblast, near the border with Belarus. The city had been the administrative centre of the Chernobyl Raion since 1932....

 nuclear power station explosion in Ukraine, and after the 1988 Lockerbie aircraft bombing he developed a thermal neutron-based methodology for screening passengers' luggage.

Peter Fowler served as a radar

Radar

Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...

 officer in the wartime RAF (1942-46). Following the D-Day landings, RAF bombers soon experienced intensive German jamming of their Gee navigation system. Fowler used his already well-honed skills to detect the interference signals and through expert analysis was able to locate the station responsible, which was subsequently destroyed. It is reported that Goering demanded a court martial over what the Axis powers viewed as a breach of security; they did not believe that it was possible to locate a jamming station so rapidly.

Peter won the 1974 Hughes Medal

Hughes Medal

The Hughes Medal is awarded by the Royal Society of London "in recognition of an original discovery in the physical sciences, particularly electricity and magnetism or their applications". Named after David E. Hughes, the medal is awarded with a gift of £1000. The medal was first awarded in 1902 to...

 of the Royal Society

Royal Society

The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...

"for his outstanding contributions to cosmic ray and elementary particle physics".