Award for TIFR scientist for work on celestial bodies

The Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bengaluru, has awarded the Professor Peraiah Foundation Award for 2021 to Dr Shravan Hanasoge of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) in Mumbai for his work on deciphering the internal structure of the sun, stars and the earth.

Dr Hanasoge's work has focused on the development and refinement of methods of seismology and the application of computational, theoretical and data-analysis techniques to enable the discovery of solar and stellar physics.

Seismology is the science of making quantitative inferences of the hidden interior structure of an object using measurements of its surface motions. High-quality observations of the Sun, which have been taken nearly continuously for many decades, and sensitive space-based measurements of the scintillations of distant stars make detailed and careful studies of solar and stellar interiors possible.

In a statement, IIA said that using novel techniques of seismology, Dr Hanasoge inferred that motions associated with convection in the Sun are more than ten times smaller than expected, an influential result that has come to be termed the “convective conundrum.”

The scientist was also part of an important study to measure the details of rotational shear in distant stars that are similar to our Sun, a result that aids our understanding of the relationship between convection and rotation in the Sun and stars.

The award, instituted by the Professor Peraiah Foundation and administered by IIA, is meant to recognise outstanding work in the field of Theoretical Astrophysics and is awarded every two years. The nominees have to be scientists working in India who are below 60 years of age.

The award consists of a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh, a citation, and an invitation to deliver a special lecture at IIA.