A University of Glasgow professor has been awarded the highest honour from the Royal Astronomical Society.

Professor James Hough, the Kelvin Chair of Natural Philosophy at the University of Glasgow, has won a Gold Medal in astronomy for his work on gravitational waves, an honour previously bestowed upon great minds including Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking.

The Gold Medal is the Society’s highest honour, and usually recognises lifetime achievement.

First awarded in 1824, since 1964 two gold medals have been awarded each year, one for geophysics and the second for astronomy.

Professor Hough has worked on the study of gravitational waves for more than 45 years.

He said: “I am deeply honoured and delighted to have been awarded the Gold Medal.

"I have been lucky in my working life to be part of what I believe is the biggest scientific breakthrough of the century.

"I would like to dedicate this award to all my colleagues and friends who have played a vital role in the birth of gravitational wave astronomy."

The medal is for Professor Hough’s "seminal contribution to the science of gravitational waves."

These disturbances in the curvature of space-time were predicted by Albert Einstein in 1916.

Gravitational waves were first detected a century later by the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO), emanating from the merger of two massive black holes.

This discovery gave astronomers a new way to study the universe.

Professor Hough, working as part of the UK/German GEO600 team, developed sophisticated mirror suspensions that enabled LIGO to acquire the sensitivity required for the discovery.

Professor Sheila Rowan, director of the University of Glasgow’s Institute for Gravitational Research, said: "I am absolutely delighted to see Jim recognised by the RAS with their highest award.

"His contributions to the field of gravitational waves have been many and varied and have shaped at a deep level the laser interferometers around the globe that form our network of gravitational wave observatories."

The RAS citation states: “Professor James Hough developed many of the key technologies and experimental techniques, over four decades that made the first direct detection of gravitational waves possible.

"Gravitational waves are a fundamental prediction of the theory of General Relativity.

"The discovery of gravitational waves arising from the coalescence of two massive black holes, by the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO), is one of the most important scientific breakthroughs of the past decades."