Ernest Rutherford
Facts
Photo from the Nobel Foundation archive.
Ernest Rutherford
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1908
Born: 30 August 1871, Nelson, New Zealand
Died: 19 October 1937, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Affiliation at the time of the award: Victoria University, Manchester, United Kingdom
Prize motivation: “for his investigations into the disintegration of the elements, and the chemistry of radioactive substances”
Prize share: 1/1
Work
The discovery of radioactivity in 1896 led to a series of more in-depth investigations. In 1899 Ernest Rutherford demonstrated that there were at least two distinct types of radiation: alpha radiation and beta radiation. He discovered that radioactive preparations gave rise to the formation of gases. Working with Frederick Soddy, Rutherford advanced the hypothesis that helium gas could be formed from radioactive substances. In 1902 they formulated a revolutionary theory: that elements could disintegrate and be transformed into other elements.
Nobel Prizes and laureates
Six prizes were awarded for achievements that have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind. The 12 laureates' work and discoveries range from proteins' structures and machine learning to fighting for a world free of nuclear weapons.
See them all presented here.
