Charles Thomson Rees Wilson

About Charles Thomson Rees Wilson

Who is it?: Physicist
Birth Day: February 14, 1869
Birth Place: Midlothian, Scotland, British
Died On: 15 November 1959(1959-11-15) (aged 90)\nCarlops, Scotland
Birth Sign: Pisces
Alma mater: Owens College Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Known for: Cloud chamber
Awards: Royal Medal (1922) Howard N. Potts Medal (1925) FRS (1900) Nobel Prize in Physics (1927) Franklin Medal (1929) Duddell Medal and Prize (1931)
Fields: Physics
Institutions: Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Academic advisors: J. J. Thomson
Doctoral students: Cecil Frank Powell

Charles Thomson Rees Wilson Net Worth

Charles Thomson Rees Wilson was born on February 14, 1869 in Midlothian, Scotland, British, is Physicist. Charles Thomson Rees Wilson was a Scottish meteorologist and physicist. Early in his life, he was interested in natural science and studied to become a doctor. However, he later grew interested in physics and chemistry and went on to complete his graduation. Throughout his career, he got the opportunity to conduct research, teach and work as a reader and demonstrator at the Cambridge university. His most significant works include his observation on the formation of clouds and subsequent development of the cloud chamber, research on the behaviour of ions and so on. He received the prestigious Nobel Prize for Physics in 1927 for ‘for his method of making the paths of electrically charged particles visible by condensation of vapour’. He was honored with several other awards and recognitions for his research and contribution to physics. Throughout his life, he remained active in the field of science and during his final years, he worked on documenting on the ‘theory of thundercloud electricity’.
Charles Thomson Rees Wilson is a member of Scientists

💰 Net worth: Under Review

Some Charles Thomson Rees Wilson images

Awards and nominations:

Wilson was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1900.

For the invention of the cloud chamber he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1927, becoming the only Scottish-born person to do so. He shared this prize with Arthur Compton. Despite this great contribution to particle physics, he remained interested in atmospheric physics, specifically atmospheric electricity, for his entire career. For example, his last research paper, published in 1956 when he was in his late eighties (at that time he was the oldest FRS to publish a paper in the Royal Society's journals), was on atmospheric electricity.

The Wilson crater on the Moon is named for him, Alexander Wilson and Ralph Elmer Wilson. The Wilson Condensation Cloud formations that occur after large explosions, such as nuclear detonations, are named after him. The Wilson Society, the scientific society of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge is named for him, as is the CTR Wilson Institute for Atmospheric Electricity, the Atmospheric Electricity Special Interest Group of the Royal Meteorological Society.

The archives of Charles Thomson Rees Wilson are maintained by the Archives of the University of Glasgow.

In 2012, the Royal Society of Edinburgh held a meeting in honor of Wilson, the "Great Scottish Physicist".

Biography/Timeline

1873

Wilson was born in the parish of Glencorse, Midlothian to Annie Clark Harper and John Wilson, a sheep farmer. After his father died in 1873, he moved with his family to Manchester. With financial support from his step-brother he studied biology at Owens College, now the University of Manchester, with the intent of becoming a Doctor. In 1887, he graduated from the College with a BSc. He won a scholarship to attend Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge where he became interested in physics and chemistry. In 1892 he received 1st class honours in both parts of the Natural Science Tripos.

1893

He became particularly interested in meteorology, and in 1893 he began to study clouds and their properties. Beginning in 1894, he worked for some time at the observatory on Ben Nevis, where he made observations of cloud formation. He was particularly fascinated by the appearance of glories. He then tried to reproduce this effect on a smaller scale at the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge, expanding humid air within a sealed container. He later experimented with the creation of cloud trails in his chamber by condensation onto ions generated by radioactivity. Several of his cloud chambers survive.

1900

Wilson was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1900.

1924

Wilson published numerous papers on meteorology and physics, on topics including X-rays, ionization, thundercloud formation, and other meteorological events. Wilson may also have observed a sprite in 1924, 65 years before their official discovery. Weather was a focus of Wilson's work throughout his career, from his early observations at Ben Nevis to his final paper, on thunderclouds.

1927

For the invention of the cloud chamber he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1927, becoming the only Scottish-born person to do so. He shared this prize with Arthur Compton. Despite this great contribution to particle physics, he remained interested in atmospheric physics, specifically atmospheric electricity, for his entire career. For Example, his last research paper, published in 1956 when he was in his late eighties (at that time he was the oldest FRS to publish a paper in the Royal Society's journals), was on atmospheric electricity.

1959

In 1908, Wilson married Jessie Fraser, the daughter of a minister from Glasgow. The couple had four children. His family knew him as patient and curious, and fond of taking walks in the hills near his home. He died at his home in Carlops on 15 November 1959, surrounded by his family.

2012

In 2012, the Royal Society of Edinburgh held a meeting in honor of Wilson, the "Great Scottish Physicist".