Nobel Prize for Physics, 2020

The Nobel Prize, 2020 for Physics has been awarded to Andrea M Ghez, Roger Penrose and Reinhard Genzel for their research on black holes.

Highlights

Roger Penrose was honored for the discovery that black hole formation is robust prediction of theory of relativity. In simple words, theory of relativity led to the discovery of black holes. Andrea Ghez and Reinhard Genzel have been honored for the discovery of supermassive object at the centre of Milky Way Galaxy. They discovered that Milky Way has a supermassive black hole a the centre.

Andrea becomes the fourth woman to receive the Nobel Prize in the category of physics. The prize money of 10 million USD is to be shared between the three scientists.

Background

So far, only three women have won Nobel Prize for Physics. They were Marie Curie (1903), Maria Goeppert-Mayer (1963) and Donna Strickland (2018). Marie Curie had also won Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 2011 and is the only woman to win the prize in two categories.

About Nobel Prize for Physics

The only Indian who has received Nobel Prize for Physics was Sir C V Raman in 1930. He discovered the Raman Effect. The Nobel Prize for Physics was not awarded in six years. This was in 1916, 1931, 1934 and in 1940, 1941 and 1942 because of world wars.

Raman Effect

It is the scattering of light particles by molecules in a medium. This occurs as the wavelength of light changes as it enters a medium.

Background

So far, only three women have won Nobel Prize for Physics. They were Marie Curie (1903), Maria Goeppert-Mayer (1963) and Donna Strickland (2018). Marie Curie had also won Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 2011 and is the only woman to win the prize in two categories.

About Nobel Prize for Physics

The only Indian who has received Nobel Prize for Physics was Sir C V Raman in 1930. He discovered the Raman Effect. The Nobel Prize for Physics was not awarded in six years. This was in 1916, 1931, 1934 and in 1940, 1941 and 1942 because of world wars.

Raman Effect

It is the scattering of light particles by molecules in a medium. This occurs as the wavelength of light changes as it enters a medium.

Month: Current Affairs - October, 2020