Paul Callaghan

Callaghan was born on 19 August 1947, the son of Mavis and Ernest Callaghan. He had an older brother Jim, older sister Jeanine, and younger sister Mary. His maternal grandparents were Agnes and Francis Hogg.

A native of Whanganui, Callaghan attended Wanganui Technical College (now Wanganui City College). He took his first degree in physics at Victoria University of Wellington and subsequently earned a DPhil degree at the University of Oxford, working in low temperature physics. On his return to New Zealand in 1974, he took up a lecturing position at Massey University, where he began researching the applications of magnetic resonance to the study of soft matter. He was made Professor of Physics in 1984, and was appointed Alan MacDiarmid Professor of Physical Sciences in 2001. The following year, as its founding director, he helped establish the multi-university MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology.

Callaghan was President of the Academy Council of the Royal Society of New Zealand (RSNZ), and published over 240 articles in scientific journals, as well as the books Principles of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Microscopy in 1994 and Translational Dynamics and Magnetic Resonance in 2011. He was a founding director and shareholder of Magritek,{{cite web |url= http://www.magritek.com |title=MRI & NMR for everyone, everywhere |publisher=Magritek |access-date=24 March 2012}} a technology company based in Wellington that sells nuclear magnetic resonance and MRI instruments. He was a regular public speaker on science matters and, in 2007, one of his radio series, of discussions with Kim Hill on Radio New Zealand appeared in book form as As Far as We Know: Conversations about Science, Life and the Universe. A 2009 book, Wool to Weta: Transforming New Zealand's Culture and Economy, dealt with the potential for science and technology entrepreneurialism to diversify New Zealand's economy. He was the presenter of a concurrent documentary, Beyond the Farm and the Themepark,{{cite web |url=http://www.ecasttv.co.nz/program_detail.php?program_id=21&channel_id=84&group_id=73 |title=Beyond the Farm and Theme Park | HotScience |publisher=ecast TV |access-date=24 March 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120315195854/http://www.ecasttv.co.nz/program_detail.php?program_id=21&channel_id=84&group_id=73 |archive-date=15 March 2012 |df=dmy-all }} which deals with the same issues.

In 2001 Callaghan became the 36th New Zealander to be made a Fellow of the Royal Society of London. He was awarded the Ampere Prize in 2004{{cite web |url=http://www.ampere.ethz.ch/awards.htm |title=Awards |publisher=Ampere.ethz.ch |access-date=24 March 2012 |archive-date=6 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120306041452/http://www.ampere.ethz.ch/awards.htm |url-status=dead }} and the RSNZ's Rutherford Medal in 2005. He was appointed a Principal Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2006 New Year Honours,{{cite web | url=https://www.dpmc.govt.nz/publications/new-year-honours-list-2006 | title=New Year honours list 2006 |date=31 December 2005 | publisher=Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet | access-date=9 June 2019}} and in 2007 was recognised with a World Class New Zealander Award[http://www.keanewzealand.com/global/2007-winners World Class New Zealand Award] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130227095949/http://www.keanewzealand.com/global/2007-winners |date=27 February 2013 }} and the Sir Peter Blake Medal.[http://www.sirpeterblaketrust.org/leadership/ Sir Peter Blake Trust] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081225182736/http://www.sirpeterblaketrust.org/leadership/ |date=25 December 2008 }} He was awarded a two-year James Cook Research Fellowship by the Royal Society of New Zealand in 2008. In 2009, he accepted re-designation as a Knight Grand Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit following the reinstatement of titular honours by the New Zealand government.[http://www.gg.govt.nz/node/1878 Sir Paul Callaghan]

In 2010 he was awarded the Günther Laukien Prize for Magnetic Resonance{{cite web |url=http://www.enc-conference.org/LaukienNominations/tabid/57/Default.aspx |title=Laukien Nominations |publisher=Enc-conference.org |access-date=24 March 2012 |archive-date=30 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330132219/http://www.enc-conference.org/LaukienNominations/tabid/57/Default.aspx |url-status=dead }} and shared the New Zealand Prime Minister's Science Prize. In 2011 he was named Kiwibank's New Zealander of the Year and later that year elected an Honorary Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.

Callaghan died on 24 March 2012, aged 64, after a long battle with colon cancer. He was survived by his first wife, Sue Roberts, two children, Catherine and Chris,{{Cite web|title=Sir Paul Callaghan passes away|url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/sir-paul-callaghan-passes-away/23M4TEAAVA2W3WVRU3RMAS66HA/|access-date=2021-12-10|website=The New Zealand Herald |language=en-NZ}} and his second wife Miang Lim. After his death, Callaghan was again recognised with a World Class New Zealand award, becoming the Supreme winner in May 2012.[http://www.keanewzealand.com/global/2012-winners World Class New Zealand 2012 Winners] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130227095845/http://www.keanewzealand.com/global/2012-winners |date=27 February 2013 }}

The New Zealand Crown entity, Callaghan Innovation, formed in February 2013, was named after him.{{cite web |url= http://www.msi.govt.nz/update-me/major-projects/callaghan-innovation/|title=Callaghan Innovation |publisher=Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment |date=1 February 2013}}

He was an atheist.{{Cite news | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/science-obituaries/9169952/Professor-Sir-Paul-Callaghan.html |title = Professor Sir Paul Callaghan|date = 27 March 2012}}

Callaghan was an author of over 230 journal articles. His research group specialised in developing NMR methodologies for the study of molecular dynamics and molecular organisation in complex fluids, soft matter and porous materials. Major areas of contribution include:

• Rheo-NMR (rheology of fluids studied by nuclear magnetic resonance)
• Diffusion of molecules in porous media (for example, studying the microscopic structure of sea ice).
• Development of NMR techniques that use the Earth's magnetic field.

• 1974 Lecturer, Massey University, Palmerston North
• 1984 Professor of Physics, Massey University, Palmerston North
• 2001 Alan MacDiarmid Professor of Physical Sciences at Victoria University, Wellington

File:Sir Paul Callaghan knighting.jpg by the governor-general, Sir Anand Satyanand, at Old St Paul's, Wellington, on 14 August 2009]]

• 2001 elected a Fellow of the Royal Society
• 2004 Ampere Prize
• 2005 Rutherford Medal
• 2006 Principal Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit
• 2007 Sir Peter Blake Medal{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}
• 2008 Dan Walls Medal (inaugural recipient){{Cite web |title=NZIP Award Recipients – New Zealand Institute of Physics |url=https://nzip.org.nz/about-nzip/nzip-award-recipients/ |access-date=2023-03-16 |language=en-US}}
• 2008 James Cook Research Fellowship by the Royal Society of New Zealand.
• 2009 Knighted
• 2010 Günther Laukien Prize for Magnetic Resonance
• 2010 New Zealand Prime Minister's Science Prize.
• 2011 New Zealander of the Year{{cite news |last1=Donoghue |first1=Tim |last2=Cooke |first2=Michelle |title=Sir Paul Callaghan dies |url= http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/6631826/Sir-Paul-Callaghan-dies |access-date=28 February 2014 |publisher=Stuff |date=24 March 2012}}

The Royal Society of New Zealand established the Callaghan Medal in 2011 for "an outstanding contribution to science communication and raising public awareness of the value of science to human progress".{{Cite web | url=https://www.royalsociety.org.nz/what-we-do/medals-and-awards/callaghan-medal |title = Callaghan Medal}} Winners include:{{Cite web |title=Recipients |url=https://www.royalsociety.org.nz/what-we-do/medals-and-awards/callaghan-medal/recipients/ |access-date=2022-11-22 |website=Royal Society Te Apārangi}}

• 2011 Peter Gluckman
• 2012 Shaun Hendy
• 2013 Siouxsie Wiles
• 2014 Peter Dearden
• 2015 Michelle Dickinson
• 2016 Hamish Spencer
• 2017 Peter Shepherd
• 2018 Helen Taylor
• 2019 Ocean Mercier{{Cite web | url=https://www.royalsociety.org.nz/what-we-do/medals-and-awards/research-honours/2019-research-honours/2019-callaghan-medal-a-bridge-between-worlds-physical-science-and-matauranga-maori/ | title=2019 Callaghan Medal: "A bridge between worlds" – physical science and mātauranga Māori}}
• 2020 Rangi Mātamua
• 2022 Michael Baker
• 2023 Mike Joy{{Cite web |title=Linda Tuhiwai Smith receives Rutherford Medal alongside other Research Honours Aotearoa winners |url=https://www.royalsociety.org.nz/news/linda-tuhiwai-smith-receives-rutherford-medal-alongside-other-research-honours-aotearoa-winners/ |access-date=2023-11-23 |website=Royal Society Te Apārangi}}
• 2024 Dianne Sika-Paotonu{{Cite news |last=Lewis |first=John |date=2024-11-15 |title=Leading Covid voice rewarded |url=https://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/campus/leading-covid-voice-rewarded |access-date=2024-11-14 |work=Otago Daily Times |language=en}}

• Callaghan, P. (1994). Principles of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Microscopy. Oxford University Press.
• Callaghan, P. and Hill, K. (2007). As Far as We Know: Conversations about Science, Life and the Universe. Penguin.
• Callaghan, P. (2009). Wool to Weta: Transforming New Zealand's Culture and Economy. Auckland University Press.
• Callaghan, P. (2011). Translational Dynamics and Magnetic Resonance: Principles of Pulsed Gradient Spin Echo NMR. Oxford University Press
• Callaghan, P. and Hendy, S. (2013). Get off the Grass: Kickstarting New Zealand’s Innovation Economy. Auckland University Press

{{reflist}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20120328043055/http://macdiarmid.ac.nz/our-people/principal-investigators/prof-sir-paul-callaghan Paul Callaghan] at the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology
• [http://www.victoria.ac.nz/scps/research/research-groups/magnetic-resonance/default.aspx Soft Matter and Porous Media Group] at the Victoria University of Wellington (VUW)
• [https://www.nzonscreen.com/title/paul-callaghan-dancing-with-atoms-2018 Dancing With Atoms], 2018 documentary film on Callaghan's life and work by Shirley Horrocks

{{Recipients of the Rutherford Medal}}

{{Recipients of the Hector Memorial Medal}}

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Category:1947 births

Category:2012 deaths

Category:New Zealand fellows of the Royal Society

Category:Fellows of the Royal Society of New Zealand

Category:Knights Grand Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit

Category:Academic staff of Massey University

Category:People from Whanganui

Category:Academic staff of Victoria University of Wellington

Category:Fellows of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge

Category:Recipients of the Rutherford Medal

Category:Deaths from colorectal cancer in New Zealand

Category:People educated at Whanganui City College

Category:20th-century New Zealand scientists

Category:20th-century New Zealand physicists

Category:21st-century New Zealand physicists

Category:Alumni of the University of Oxford

Category:James Cook Research Fellows