Kolkata’s Dibyendu Nandi wins US science prize

Dibyendu Nandi of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Kolkata has become the first space scientist from the Asia Pacific region to be awarded the Karen Harvey Prize for 2012 by the American Astronomical Society (AAS).

Nandi was awarded the prize for "advances in the use of kinematic dynamo models to elucidate the typical and atypical solar cycle'', and ''for his outstanding leadership within the solar physics and space climate communities''. An official statement said the prize was also given in "recognition for a significant contribution to the study of the sun, early in a person's professional career".

The prize includes a cash award of $1,000 (Rs57,000), which Nandi intends to contribute towards a student fund. He said he felt privileged to be recognised by such a prestigious organisation, and expressed gratitude to them for selecting a scientist in the Asia-Pacific region who is not residing in the US.

"The main thrust of my discovery is that the sun's memory regarding its past activity is very short. This implies that very long-term forecasting of solar activity and space weather is ruled out," he told Asian Scientist Magazine.

Nandi said that he did his research at the IISER and a student from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Bidya Binay Karak, collaborated with him.

Nandi has published a series of papers on solar activity, including one that explained for the first time the disappearance of sunspots. He was the lead author for this paper, which was published in the journal Nature.