The Patricia Tomkins Prize, for the best doctoral thesis in instrumentation science for astronomy and geophysics is awarded annually. The winner will receive a cash prize of £1,000 and an invitation to present the results of their thesis at an Ordinary (A&G) Meeting of the RAS. The prize is sponsored by the Patricia Tomkins Foundation.
A generous donation from the Patricia Tomkins Foundation funds a RAS scheme of prizes and grants to encourage student interest in instrumentation science for astronomy and geophysics. While the support is aimed at developing skills in scientific hardware such as electronics, detectors and optics, the development of novel software specific to a hardware project will also be considered.
The winner will receive the prize from the RAS President at an A&G Meeting of the Society.
To Nominate
Nominations should be submitted, normally by the student's supervisor, by 31 January for theses examined the previous year and should include:
- The nomination form below
- A short case for the Award (maximum length of two A4 pages)
- A complete list of publications
- Additionally, the proposer should give the names and emails of two referees familiar with the thesis (e.g. the examiners) who will be automatically contacted and asked to send supporting statements.
Nominees are not required to be Fellows of the RAS.
Fill out the application form online.