Martin Ryle
/ˌmɑːtɪn ˈraɪl/
/ˌmɑːrtn ˈraɪl/
- (1918-84) an English astronomer (= scientist who studies the stars, planets, etc.). His work helped to establish the 'big bang' theory, which argues that all the matter in the universe exploded from a tiny point many millions of years ago. (This was opposed to the 'steady state' theory of Fred Hoyle and others.) Ryle was made a knight in 1966 and given the Nobel Prize in 1974.