Martin Ryle facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sir Martin Ryle FRS
Born	(1918-09-27)27 September 1918 Brighton, England
Died	14 October 1984(1984-10-14) (aged 66) Cambridge, England
Education	Bradfield College
Alma mater	University of Oxford (BA, DPhil)
Known for	Aperture synthesis Radio astronomy
Spouse(s)	Rowena Palmer ​ (m. 1947)​
Awards	Hughes Medal (1954) RAS Gold Medal (1964) Henry Draper Medal (1965) Knight Bachelor (1966) Faraday Medal (1971) Royal Medal (1973) Bruce Medal (1974) Nobel Prize in Physics (1974)
Scientific career
Fields	Astronomy
Institutions	University of Cambridge Gresham College
Doctoral advisor	J. A. Ratcliffe
Doctoral students	Malcolm Longair Peter Rentzepis Jan Högbom John E. Baldwin

Sir Martin Ryle (born September 27, 1918 – died October 14, 1984) was a brilliant English radio astronomer. He invented amazing new radio telescope systems. These telescopes helped him find and photograph faint radio signals from space.

In 1946, Ryle and Derek Vonberg were the first to use a special method called "interferometry" to measure radio waves from space. With better equipment, Ryle could see the most distant galaxies known back then. He became the first Professor of Radio Astronomy at Cambridge University. He also started the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory. From 1972 to 1982, he was the Astronomer Royal, a special title for a top astronomer in Britain.

Ryle and Antony Hewish shared the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1974. This was the first Nobel Prize ever given for astronomy research. Later in his life, in the 1970s, Ryle focused more on important social and political issues. He believed these were more urgent than astronomy at the time.

Early Life and Education

Martin Ryle was born in Brighton, England. His father was Professor John Alfred Ryle. Martin went to Bradfield College and then studied physics at Christ Church, Oxford.

In 1939, during World War II, Ryle worked on radar equipment. Radar uses radio waves to detect objects. He helped design antennas for radar used on airplanes. After the war, he received a special scholarship at the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge.

Career and Discoveries

When Ryle first started working in Cambridge, he studied radio waves coming from the Sun. But he soon became interested in other things. He decided that his group in Cambridge should create new ways to observe space.

Ryle was key in developing and improving two important techniques: astronomical interferometry and aperture synthesis. These methods greatly improved the quality of data from radio telescopes. In 1946, Ryle built the first radio telescope that used multiple parts working together.

Ryle led the Cambridge radio astronomy group to create several important lists of radio sources. One of these lists, called the Third Cambridge Catalogue of Radio Sources (3C) from 1959, helped lead to the discovery of the first quasar. Quasars are extremely bright and distant objects in space.

From 1948 to 1959, Ryle was a university lecturer in physics at Cambridge. In 1957, he became the director of the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory. In 1959, he became a professor of radio astronomy. He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1952. He was also knighted in 1966, earning the title "Sir."

Personality and Challenges

Many people described Ryle as a quick thinker. He was sometimes impatient with those who were slower than him. He was also very charismatic. He was an idealist, meaning he believed in high goals and principles. In 1982, he said that sometimes he felt people should "Stop Science Now." He worried that humans were getting smarter but not wiser.

Ryle could also be very intense and sometimes had a hot temper. He often worked in his office at the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory. This helped him avoid arguments with others at the Cavendish Laboratory. He was worried that Cambridge might lose its leading position in radio astronomy. Other groups had more money. So, he kept some of his methods secret to help the Cambridge group stay ahead.

Ryle also had strong arguments with Fred Hoyle, another famous astronomer. Hoyle believed in the "steady state universe" theory. These disagreements made it hard for their groups to work together in the 1960s.

Focus on Peace and Energy

When World War II began in 1939, Ryle was a new physics graduate and an experienced radio amateur. He played a big part in the war effort, working on radar. After the war, he wanted to focus on pure science, away from anything to do with war.

In the 1970s, Ryle started to focus more on social and political issues. He felt these were more important. From 1976 until he died in 1984, he worked hard on how science and technology should be used responsibly. His main ideas were:

• Warning the world about the terrible dangers of nuclear weapons. He wrote a pamphlet called Towards the Nuclear Holocaust.
• Criticizing nuclear power. He questioned if it was truly needed.
• Researching and promoting alternative energy sources and using energy wisely. He wrote about using wind power.
• Calling for science and technology to be used for good. He believed that resources used for war should instead solve problems for people around the world.

In 1983, Ryle wrote a letter about "Science and Peace." It was published after he died. In this letter, he wrote: "Our cleverness has grown amazingly – but not our wisdom."

Honours and Awards

Sir Martin Ryle received many awards and honours for his work:

Personal Life

From a young age, Martin Ryle enjoyed working with his hands. He learned carpentry and other practical skills. These skills were important to him throughout his life. He built boats for fun and used his practical skills in his work. This included his radar work during the war, building radio telescopes, and researching wind energy.

Ryle also loved sailing his whole life. This hobby connected to his later interest in wind energy.

Another skill he learned as a boy was being a radio "ham," or amateur radio operator. While still at school, he built his own radio transmitter. He got a license to use it with the call sign G3CY.

In 1936, his family moved to a house in Cambridge. This became Martin's home after the war. In 1947, he married Rowena Palmer. They lived in that house for the rest of Martin's life and had three children. Sir Martin Ryle passed away on October 14, 1984, in Cambridge. In 2009, he was honored on a British postage stamp. Lady Ryle died in 2013.

See also

In Spanish: Martin Ryle para niños