Professor M. K. Vainu Bappu Gold Medal

The Vainu Bappu Gold medal award for 2016 will be awarded to Dr. Varun Bhalerao during 37th annual meeting of ASI to be held at Christ (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru from 18 - 22 February 2019. Dr. Varun is presently working at IIT, Bombay.

The Vainu Bappu Memorial Gold Medal VB 2014 was awarded to Dr. Nikku Madhusudhan, University of Cambridge during ASI 2016 meeting at Srinagar, Kashmir which was held during 10-13 May, 2016

The Vainu Bappu Memorial Gold Medal VB 2012 was awarded to Dr. Luca Cortese, Swinburne University of Technology Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing during ASI 2017 meeting at B. M. Birla Auditorium, Jaipur during 6 - 10 March 2017

The Astronomical Society of India has instituted a fund in the memory of Professor M. K. Vainu Bappu with the objectives to promote knowledge of Astronomy and Astrophysics and honour the contributions made by young scientists, normally not beyond 35 years of age, from any part of the world, in the field of astronomy and astrophysics.

As a token of appreciation of the scientist's contribution to astronomy and astrophysics, the Astronomical Society of India awards the Professor M.K. Vainu Bappu Gold Medal and a citation. The award is given at intervals of two years. The recipient of the medal shall be required to deliver the Vainu Bappu memorial lecture at a meeting of the Society. Partial support for the recipient's travel to the venue of the meeting and full local hospitality during the period of the meeting will be provided by the Society. Young astronomers with exceptional achievements and promise are eligible for the award. The scientific achievements may be in any branch of astronomy, astrophysics and related fields. There are no restrictions on the nationality.

Nominations of the best suited young persons for this award are invited at intervals of every two years. Work done prior to 31 December of the prescribed year only will be considered. The nomination may be made on a plain paper in the following format:

1. Name
2. Affiliation
3. Address for correspondence
4. Date of birth
5. Academic qualifications
6. Major scientific achievements on which the nomination is based
7. List of publications
8. Reprints relevant to the recommendation
9. Citations of relevance
10. Any other information pertaining to the scientific excellence of the nominee
11. Name and designation of the proposer along with the address for correspondence
12. Signature of the proposer with date

The nominations may be made by heads of institutions, directors of observatories, heads of departments or senior scientists. Each nomination, including all the supporting documents, should be submitted in quadruplicate to the secretary of the society before the deadline, as announced from time to time.

This award was instituted in the year 1986, and the following is the list of awardees: