George Stokes English physicist, member of the Royal Society of London (1851). Date of Birth: 13.08.1819 Country: Great Britain

Biography of George Stokes

George Stokes was an English physicist and a member of the Royal Society of London in 1851. He served as the society's secretary from 1854 to 1885 and later became its president from 1885 to 1890.

Early Life and Education
Stokes completed his education at the University of Cambridge in 1841. After graduating, he began teaching at the same university and in 1849, he became the head of the Lucasian Chair, previously held by Sir Isaac Newton.

Contributions to Science
Stokes conducted extensive research in the field of fluid dynamics. From 1842 to 1851, he studied the stationary motion of incompressible fluids, taking into account friction, as well as the motion of solid spheres in viscous fluids. His work in these areas laid the foundation for hydrodynamics, including the Navier-Stokes equation and Stokes' law.

In 1852, Stokes described the phenomenon of fluorescence and established the relationship between the fluorescence spectrum and the spectrum of the exciting light, known as Stokes' rule. He also proposed a method for studying the ultraviolet region of the spectrum using fluorescence.

Stokes made significant contributions to optics, including the study of spectral analysis, diffraction, polarization of light waves, double refraction, and reflection of light by various surfaces. He also suggested improvements for achromatic refracting telescopes.

Stokes conducted research in other areas of science as well, such as acoustics, heat conduction in crystals, and gravity. He also made contributions to mathematics, particularly in vector analysis, series theory, and definite integrals. The unit of kinematic viscosity is named after him.

Legacy
Stokes was a member of numerous foreign academies, including the Military Medical Academy in Saint Petersburg. His fundamental contributions to various scientific fields, as well as his prestigious positions within the scientific community, solidified his legacy as one of the most influential physicists in history.