History of Physics and Astronomy

This version sorts the important events by name. The lifetimes of people are highlighted in blue, important people are in bold blue.

R

Rabi – Nobel prize for Physics 1944
Radio astronomy - Jansky – merry go round aerial 1929
Radar – Watson-Watt 1936
Radar contact with the Sun 1959
Radar signals reflected off the Moon 1945
Radio broadcasting is regular in USA 1920
Radio galaxy identified - Smith and Baade 1951
Radio signal – first transatlantic 1901
Radioactivity – artificial radioactivity - Curie and Joliot 1934
Radioactivity discovered in uranium ore - Becquerel 1896
Radium discovered - Curies 1898
Raman – Nobel prize for Physics 1930
Rayleigh 1842-1919
Rayleigh refractometer 1896
Reactor – fast reactor – Los Alamos 1946
Real coefficient of expansion – du Long and Petit 1817
Reamur 1683-1757
Red shift of galaxies observed – Vesto Slipher 1912
Relativity (special) – Einstein 1905
Relativity (General Theory)1915
Resistance thermometer – Callendar 1877
Return of Halley's comet 1986
Reynolds 1842-1912
Riccardo Giaconni – Nobel prize for Physics – cosmic X ray sources 2002
Rings of Saturn - Huygens 1655
Rings of Uranus discovered by James Elliot 1977
Rocket – liquid propellant – Goddard 1926
Rocket - V2 rocket – first successful one flew 1942
Rocket motors – Soviets begin development 1929
Rocket tests at Peenemünde 1937
Roget 1779-1869
Römer 1644- 1710
Römer – speed of light – 192 000 miles per second (?1676)1679
Rontgen 1845-1923
Röntgen – Nobel prize for Physics 1901
Rosse – six foot reflector 1840
Rowland 1848-1901
Royal Academy founded 1768
Royal Astronomical Society founded 1820
Royal Society founded by Charles II 1662
Ruhmkorff coil 1851
Rumford 1753- 1814
Russian space station Mir burns up on retrun to Earth 2001
Rutherford 1871-1937
Rutherford – director of Cavendish Laboratory 1919
Rutherford – transmutation of atom 1919
Rydberg constant 1890