Nial Tanvir has made important contributions to several areas of astrophysics, notably the extragalactic distance scale, and the structure and evolution of galaxies.
He is particularly recognised for his pioneering work on gamma-ray bursts, the most luminous and violent explosions known to science. In 2009 he headed the team that measured the distance to a gamma-ray burst that was the furthest object identified up to that time. In 2013 he revealed the first evidence for a so-called “kilonova” explosion, confirming that collisions of ultra-dense neutron stars likely produce many of the heavy elements in the universe, including gold and platinum. This breakthrough paved the way for his co-discovery in 2017 of a kilonova for which the neutron star collision was also detected with gravitational waves for the first time.
Nial has helped found and lead several major international consortia, including the STARGATE, VINROUGE and ENGRAVE collaborations. He was co-recipient of the 2002 EU Descartes Prize, obtained a PPARC Senior Fellowship in 2005, and in 2019 was awarded the Herschel Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society.
Professional position
- Professor of Astronomy, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester
