Ernest Rutherford

Facts

Ernest Rutherford

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.

To cite this section
MLA style: Ernest Rutherford – Facts. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Prize Outreach AB 2024. Fri. 13 Dec 2024. <https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/1908/rutherford/facts/>

Back to top Back To Top Takes users back to the top of the page

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.

Illustration

Explore prizes and laureates

Look for popular awards and laureates in different fields, and discover the history of the Nobel Prize.