Record

Authorised form of nameAppleton; Sir; Edward Victor (1892 - 1965)
Dates1892 - 1965
NationalityBritish
Place of birthBradford, Yorkshire, England
Date of birth06 September 1892
Place of deathEdinburgh
Date of death21/04/1965
Research fieldRadio physics
ActivityEducation:
Hanson Grammar School Bradford; BA in Natural Science at St Hon's College, Cambridge (1913-14); Won Wiltshire Prize (1913); Hutchinson Research Studentship (1914); MA; DSc
Career:
In the West Riding Regiment, transferring to the Royal Engineers (1914-1918); Returned to Cambridge, research on radio waves, and after 1919 to scientific problems in atmospheric physics. Assistant Demonstrator in Experimental Physics at the Cavendish Laboratory (1920: Sub Rector at Trinity College Cambridged (19220; Professor of Physics at London University (1924-1936; Secretary, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (1939). Discoverer of the 'Appleton Layer' which plays an essential part in making radio communication possible between distant stations. Wheatstone Professor of Physics in the University of London; ex-Fellow of St John's College, Cambridge
Vice Chancellor, University of Edinburgh (1949); President, British Association for the Advancement of Science (1953)
Medals:
Medal of Merit, highest civilian decoration from USA (1947); Officer of the French Legions of Honour (1947); awarded the Norwegian Cross of Freedom for his war work; Nobel Prize (Physics) 1947; appointed by Pope to the Pontifical Academy fo Science (1948)
Honours:
KCB 1941; GBE 1946
Membership categoryFellow
Date of election12/05/1927
RSActivityMedals and prizes:
Hughes Medal 1933; Royal Medal 1950
Lectures:
Bakerian 1937
RelationshipsMarried (1) 23 |May 1915 Jessie Longson-Range (1890/91-1964) (2) 24 March 1965 Helen Shannon Allison (b.1919/20)
SourceSources:
Bulloch's Roll; DSB
AssocMaterial:
CSAC 82/6/81. Papers deposited in Edinburgh University Library
Obituaries:
Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society 1966 vol 12 pp 1-21, plate, by J A Ratcliffe
References:
Maurice V Wilkes, 'Sir Edward Appleton and Early Ionosphere Research' in NR 1997 vol 51 pp 281-290, plate
'Freemasons and the Royal Society: Alphabetical List of Fellows of the Royal Society who were Freemasons' 2010. Library and Museum of Freemasonry page 4
Virtual International Authority Filehttp://viaf.org/viaf/54941774
CodeNA5602
Archives associated with this Fellow
RefNoTitleDate
EC/1927/01Appleton, Sir Edward Victor: certificate of election to the Royal Society
PB/2/2/7/1/2Letter from Sir Edward Appleton (20 February 1940) on 'alternative explanation of the correlation of cosmic ray diminution and magnetic storm'1940-1947
PB/4/1/2/3Letter from EV Appleton on 'pulse' and 'wave' methods of radio location, and their exploration by the Tizard CommitteeMarch 1939
MM/22/59Copy letter from Edward Victor Appleton to A C Egerton, The Royal Society, Burlington House22 January 1942
MM/22/62Letter from [Arthur Charles Glyn Egerton], Secretary RS, to Sir Edward Victor Appleton, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Teddington, Middlesex6 February 1942
MM/22/60Letter from Edward Victor Appleton, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Teddington, Middlesex, to A C Egerton, the Royal Society, Burlington House3 February 1942
IM/GA/WS/953Appleton, Sir Edward Victornd
PB/2/7/5/2Letter to Blackett from Rutherford 27 May 1937
RR/42/85Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Vertical electric currents below thunderstorms and showers' by T W WormellMarch 1930
RR/43/128Second referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'A method of measuring the effective resistance of a condenser at radio frequencies, and of measuring the resistance of long straight wires' by E B MoullinMay 1932
RR/38/40Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The influence of the earth's magnetic field on electric transmission in the upper atmosphere' by Sydney GoldsteinJuly 1928
RR/41/6Referee's report by William Henry Eccles, on a paper 'On some short-wave equivalent height measurements of the ionized regions of the upper atmosphere' by Edward Victor Appleton and A L GreenApril 1930
RR/42/63Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper ['A camera for electron diffraction'] by George Paget Thomson and C G FraserMay 1930
RR/39/3Referee's report by Hector Munro Macdonald, on a paper 'On some measurements of the equivalent height of the atmospheric ionised layer' by Edward Victor Appleton[December 1929]
RR/42/62Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The analysis of surface layers by electron diffraction' by George Paget ThomsonMay 1930
RR/42/64Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The electric wind' by A M Thornton and M WatersApril 1930
RR/41/68Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Observations of the amount of ozone in the earth's atmosphere, and its relation to other geophysical conditions.—Part IV' by Gordon Miller Bourne Dobson, H H Kimball, and E KidsonAugust 1930
RR/50/111Second referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Supersonic dispersion in gases' by E G RichardsonMay 1934
RR/69/12Letter from Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'On the propagation of electromagnetic waves through the atmosphere' by B K Banerjea to Alfred Charles Glyn Egerton12 October 1946
RR/44/18Referee's report by Charles Thomson Rees Wilson, on a paper 'Some measurements of upper-atmospheric ionisation' by Edward Victor Appleton and R NaismithApril 1932
RR/50/110Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Supersonic dispersion in gases' by E G RichardsonJanuary 1934
RR/63/127Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'On the nature of atmospherics—V' by Robert Alexander Watson-Watt, J F Herd and F E LutkinJuly 1937
RR/49/146Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'On the rotation of the plane of polarization of long radio waves' by A L Green and Geoffrey Builder[February 1934]
RR/58/78Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The polarization of radio echoes' by David Forbes Martyn, J H Piddington and G H MunroOctober 1936
RR/70/170Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Solar radiation in the radio spectrum - I. Radiation from the quiet sun' by David Forbes Martyn1947
RR/57/44Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The dielectric coefficients of gases III—Allene, allylene, butanes, butylenes, cyanogen, and hydrogen cyanide—IV— Fluorides of boron, nitrogen, and carbon' by H E Watson, G P Kane and K L Ramaswamy[May 1936]
RR/57/116Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Coincidence counter measurements of cosmic rays in an aeroplane' by H J Braddick and C W Gilbert[May 1936]
RR/58/37Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'On the radiation field of a perfectly conducting base insulated cylindrical antenna over a perfectly conducting plane earth, and the calculation of radiation resistance and reactance' by Louis Vessot KingApril 1937
RR/44/33Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The linking polarisation of downcoming radio waves travelling obliquely to the earth's magnetic field' by W G Baker and A L GreenOctober 1932
RR/57/74Referee's report by Charles Thomson Rees Wilson, on a paper 'On the nature of atmospherics—IV' by Edward Victor Appleton and F W Chapman[July 1936]
RR/59/57Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The connexion between cosmic ray showers and bursts' by W Ehrenberg[March 1936]
RR/61/8Referee's report by Patrick Maynard Stuart Blackett, on a paper 'The reflexion coefficients of ionospheric regions' by Edward Victor Appleton and J H PiddingtonJuly 1937
RR/61/117Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The scattering of wireless waves in the ionosphere' by Thomas Lydwell EckersleySeptember 1937
RR/61/81Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Instability of fluids heated from below' by Krishna ChandraJuly 1937
RR/62/89Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The return of radio waves from the middle atmosphere—I' by Robert Alexander Watson-Watt, A F Wilkins and Edward George Bowen[December 1936]
RR/61/115Second referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Application of the phase integral method to the analysis of the diffraction and refraction of wireless waves round the earth' by Thomas Lydwell Eckersley and G MillingtonDecember 1937
RR/63/66Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The behaviour of an osglim lamp. I. Introduction, drift, equilibrium and A.C. bridge measurements' by Lewis Fry RichardsonApril 1937
RR/66/142Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Wave form, energy and reflexion by the ionosphere, of atmospherics' by Thomas Howell Laby, J J McNeill, F G Nicholls and A F B Nickson[1939]
RR/64/121Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Resonance in crystal beams of sodium-ammonium seignette salt' by W Mandell[December 1937]
RR/69/325Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The oblique reflexion of very long wireless waves from the ionosphere' by M V Wilkes1946
RR/70/134Letter from Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'A possible mode of propagation of the ‘slow’ or tail component in atmospherics' by A L Hales to David Christie Martin, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society6 November 1947
RR/66/2Memoranda, on a paper 'On lunar tides in the upper atmosphere' by Edward Victor Appleton and K Weekes24 March 1939
RR/67/144Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The wave form of atmospherics at night' by J S Elder, Basil Ferdinand Jamieson Schonland, D B Hodges, W E Phillips and J W Van WykMay 1940
RR/69/224Letter from Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Solar radiation at radio frequencies and its relation to sunspots' by L L McCready, Joseph Lade Pawsey and Ruby Payne-Scott23 December 1946
RR/68/278Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The refractive index of an ionized medium. II' by Charles Galton Darwin[1943]
RR/69/11Letter from Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'On the propagation of electromagnetic waves through the atmosphere' by B K Banerjea to Alfred Charles Glyn Egerton31 July 1946
RR/72/36Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Diffraction from an irregular screen with applications to ionospheric problems' by H G Booker, John Ashworth Ratcliffe and D H Shinn1949
RR/70/135Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'A possible mode of propagation of the ‘slow’ or tail component in atmospherics' by A L Hales1947
RR/70/211Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'An investigation of radio-frequency radiation from the sun' by Martin Ryle and D D Vonberg1947
RR/69/223Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Solar radiation at radio frequencies and its relation to sunspots' by L L McCready, Joseph Lade Pawsey and Ruby Payne-Scott1946
RR/71/256Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The generation of radio-frequency radiation in the sun' by Martin Ryle1948
RR/44/123Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The dielectric coefficients of gases.— Part I. The rare gases and hydrogen' by Herbert Edmeston Watson, G Gundu Rao and K L RamaswamyMay 1931
NLB/68/947Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Professor [Edward Victor] Appleton; King's College, Strand, W.C.2.7 December 1925
NLB/71/847Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Prof. [Edward Victor] Appleton, FRS14 November 1928
NLB/68/951Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Admiral Sir Henry Jackson, GCB, FRS7 December 1925
NLB/72/843Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Professor [Edward Victor] Appleton, FRS24 May 1930
NLB/72/847Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Professor [Edward Victor] Appleton, FRS27 May 1930
NLB/71/264Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Prof. [Edward Victor] Appleton, FRS2 March 1928
NLB/71/767Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Prof. [Edward Victor] Appleton, FRS29 October 1928
NLB/72/607Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Professor [Edward Victor] Appleton, FRS20 January 1930
NLB/73/79Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Prof. [Edward Victor] Appleton, FRS22 November 1930
NLB/73/39Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Prof. [Edward Victor] Appleton, FRS1 November 1930
NLB/72/692Copy letter from Francis Alexander Towle, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society; to Professor [Edward Victor] Appleton, FRS4 March 1930
RR/55/12Referee's report by Gordon Miller Bourne Dobson, on a paper 'Some further measurements of upper atmospheric ionization' by Edward Victor Appleton and R NaismithApril 1935
RR/47/30Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Musical atmospherics' by Thomas Lydwell EckersleyApril 1932
RR/43/53Referee's report by Charles Galton Darwin, on a paper 'Optical and equivalent paths in a stratified medium, treated from a wave standpoint' by Douglas Raynar HartreeFebruary 1931
RR/47/45Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Velocity of propagation of light in vacuo in a transverse magnetic field' by Clinton Coleridge Farr and C J BanwellApril 1932
RR/57/75Referee's report by William Henry Eccles, on a paper 'British radio observations during the Second International Polar Year 1932-33' by Edward Victor Appleton, R Naismith and L J Ingram3 August 1936
RR/66/165Letter from John David Griffith Davies, to Edward Victor Appleton, regarding a paper 'Supersonic dispersion in gases II. Air containing water vapour' by M Mokhtar and E G Richardson4 January 1940
RR/66/170Second letter from John David Griffith Davies, to Edward Victor Appleton, regarding a paper 'Supersonic dispersion in gases II. Air containing water vapour' by M Mokhtar and E G Richardson29 February 1940
RR/67/119Letter from J D Griffith Davies, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society, on a paper 'Short period fluctuations in the characteristics of wireless echoes from the ionosphere' by Thomas Lydwell Eckersley and F T Farmer to Edward Victor Appleton17 January 1941
RR/51/28Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The characteristics of downcoming radio waves' by David Forbes Martyn and A L Green[October 1934]
RR/61/116Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Application of the phase integral method to the analysis of the diffraction and refraction of wireless waves round the earth' by Thomas Lydwell Eckersley and G MillingtonSeptember 1937
RR/63/67Second referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The behaviour of an osglim lamp. I. Introduction, drift, equilibrium and A.C. bridge measurements' by Lewis Fry RichardsonJuly 1937
RR/66/172Second letter from Edward Victor Appleton, to John David Griffith Davies, regarding a paper 'Supersonic dispersion in gases II. Air containing water vapour' by M Mokhtar and E G Richardson4 March 1940
RR/41/7Referee's report by William Henry Eccles, on a paper 'Some simultaneous observations on downcoming wireless waves' by Edward Victor Appleton and John Ashworth RatcliffeApril 1930
RR/51/123Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The dielectric coefficients of gases.—Part II. The lower hydrides of carbon and silicon, oxygen, nitrogen, oxides of nitrogen and carbon, and fluorides of silicon and sulphur' by Herbert Edmeston Watson, G Gundu Rao and K L Ramaswamy[October 1933]
RR/66/166Letter from Edward Victor Appleton, to John David Griffith Davies, regarding a paper 'Supersonic dispersion in gases II. Air containing water vapour' by M Mokhtar and E G Richardson6 January 1940
RR/43/28Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The effect of frequency on the condensed discharge ignition of carbonic oxide-air detonating gas' by George Ingle Finch and H H ThompsonJuly 1931
RR/43/127Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'A method of measuring the effective resistance of a condenser at radio frequencies, and of measuring the resistance of long straight wires' by E B MoullinFebruary 1932
RR/49/114Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'On the magnetic ionic theory of radio transmission' by Thomas Lydwell Eckersley[April 1933]
RR/56/70Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The standardization of photo-electric cells for the measurement of visible light' by H H Poole and William Ringrose Gelston Atkins[February 1935]
RR/59/81Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Radiation from rhombic antennae' by D D Foster[September 1936]
RR/62/5Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'On the action of ultra-violet sunlight upon the upper atmosphere' by Meghnad N Saha[September 1936]
RR/65/284Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The effects of thunderstorms and lightning discharges on the Earth's electric field' by T W WormellOctober 1938
RR/66/11Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'The association of meteorological changes with variations of ionization in the F2 region of the ionosphere' by J Bannon, A J Higgs, David Forbes Martyn and G H Munro[June 1939]
RR/66/162Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Supersonic dispersion in gases II. Air containing water vapour' by M Mokhtar and E G Richardson[January 1940]
RR/67/110Referee's report by Edward Victor Appleton, on a paper 'Short period fluctuations in the characteristics of wireless echoes from the ionosphere' by Thomas Lydwell Eckersley and F T FarmerSeptember 1940
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