Origins & Early Life

Charles Thomson Rees Wilson (14 February 1869 – 15 November 1959) was a British meteorologist and physicist who shared the 1927 Nobel Prize in Physics with Arthur Compton for his invention of the cloud chamber. Charles Thomson Rees Wilson was born on 14 February 1869 in Glencorse, Scotland, the son of John Wilson, a sheep farmer, and Annie Clark Harper. After his father died in 1873, Wilson moved with his family to Manchester, England. With financial support from his step-brother, Wilson studied biology at Owens College (now the University of Manchester) with the intent of becoming a doctor.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

He graduated with a B.Sc. in 1887. The following year, he won a scholarship to attend Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, where he became interested in physics and chemistry. In 1892, he received First Class Honours in both parts of the Natural Sciences Tripos. Wilson became particularly interested in meteorology, and in 1893 he began to study clouds and their properties.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

Beginning in 1894, he worked for some time at the observatory on Ben Nevis, where he made observations of cloud formation. He was particularly fascinated by the appearance...

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