This story dates back to 1930s when India was under the colonial rule of the British Empire. Just a few years ago, Sir CV Raman had brought the first Nobel Prize in Physics to the country. In this uncertain time when India was suffering, there was one student who was dreaming of bringing the second Nobel to his country and he was none other than Raman's nephew: S Chanrasekhar.
Chandra completed his Bachelor's in Physics from University of Madras and to pusrue his Master's he went to the scientific powerhouse of the day, Trinity College, Cambridge. While on the ship
to England, Chandra worked on the formation of white dwarf stars. He already had scientific papers published under his name and was a prodigy. Chandrasekhar derived a mass limit, at the age of 19 while on that ship.
Since he was born in an open minded Brahmin family, He assumed the community there would welcome him and his discovery with open arms.
But reality was far from
what he had thought. The scientific community in England ignored him and his work as a result of which he went into a deep depression. He had lost all hopes. Then came Author Eddington. For those
who don't know about Eddington, he was the one who gave the experimental verification of Einstein's General Theory of Relativity back in 1919.
Eddington had virtually single handedly established
Astrophysics and he was at the pinnacle of his career. Eddington started meeting Chandrasekhar frequently.
Chandrasekar felt motivated that a man of Eddinton's reputation is helping him out. Eddington was also working on the similar subject and he encouraged chandrasekhar to produce his results in a conference
to be held on Jan 11, 1935, In England to which Chandrasekhar agreed. But, on Jan 10, he came to know that Eddington too had a lecture after him that too on the same topic. He was puzzled, but thought no more
about it.
On the day of conference, all the leading figures in astrophysics were at the Society. Chandra delivered his paper, showing a graph that made it transparently clear that a star of above a certain mass would inevitably
dwindle to nothing and beyond. Triumphantly he sat down, assuming that Eddington would support his conclusions. But to his horror Eddington, a supercilious man, instead used the full force of his famed
oratorical skills to demolish the young man. Had Eddington befriended Chandra in order to destroy him?
Chandra's theory was mere mathematical game-playing, Eddington argued, with no basis in reality. How could something as huge as a star possibly disappear? Eddington's arguments were unfounded and highly
dubious; but the weight of his reputation was such that no one dared disagree with him. Chandra was not even given the opportunity to reply.
This controversy rumbled for years. Chandra and Eddington came across each other in many conferences and it was Eddington who was always favoured. But, years later, in one meeting
it was proved that it was Chandra's theory that was correct. On that day, they both had a brief meeting. "I am sorry if I hurt you," Eddington said to Chandra. Chandra asked whether he had
changed his mind. "No," Eddington retorted. "What are you sorry about then?" Chandra replied and brusquely walked away.
Chandrasekhar won the Nobel Prize in 1983 for his work on white dwarfs. On several occasions he admitted that Eddington's behavior was indeed racially motivated.
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