Peter Hore elected Fellow of the Royal Society

Professor Peter Hore has been elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society, joining over 60 scientists who have been selected this year for their exceptional contributions to scientific discovery.

Professor Hore is elected for his pioneering work on the biophysical chemistry of electron and nuclear spins and their effects on chemical reactivity. Using specifically developed spin dynamics simulation methods and sensitive spectroscopic techniques, he has made major contributions to our understanding of how migratory songbirds sense the Earth’s magnetic field as an aid to orientation and navigation.

This has involved the first demonstration that a chemical reaction can be influenced by a magnetic field as weak as that of the Earth. He has exploited the unique properties of spin-correlated radical pairs to develop new magnetic resonance methods for studying protein folding and new techniques for the interpretation of magnetic resonance data on the primary events of solar energy conversion.

Sir Adrian Smith, President of the Royal Society said:

It is an honour to welcome so many outstanding researchers from around the world into the Fellowship of the Royal Society. Through their careers so far, these researchers have helped further our understanding of human disease, biodiversity loss and the origins of the universe. I am also pleased to see so many new Fellows working in areas likely to have a transformative impact on our society over this century, from new materials and energy technologies to synthetic biology and artificial intelligence. I look forward to seeing what great things they will achieve in the years ahead.

Banner image: Corinna Langebrake, Ilia Solov’yov.