The Department is deeply saddened to announce the death of Dr Tony Cox who was a distinguished physical chemist and a valued member of the Department of Chemistry at the University of Cambridge, where he was part of the Centre for Atmospheric Science and led the Cox Research Group.
Following his retirement, he remained connected to the Department, keeping in touch with colleagues and continuing to attend some departmental events. The following tribute by Emeritus Professor John Pyle reflects on his life and contributions.
A longer piece will appear in a forthcoming issue of Chem@Cam. Colleagues and former students who would like to share their thoughts or memories of Tony are warmly invited to write to the department.
Emeritus Professor John Pyle writes:
Tony Cox was an outstanding physical chemist whose research contributions led to understanding of a number of major global environmental problems. After graduate and postgraduate studies in Manchester at the then Manchester College of Science & Technology (later UMIST) and a postdoc in Canada, Tony worked at AERE Harwell. There his chemical kinetics work contributed to the understanding of the mechanism of acid rain production, working with Stuart Penkett. Major breakthroughs in the study of ground level ozone also followed, including his work with James Lovelock. Later he became involved in stratospheric ozone studies. His measurement of the rate of formation of the chlorine monoxide dimer is a key to understanding polar ozone depletion. After moving to Cambridge, he continued to measure the rates of reaction of atmospheric halogens.
Tony was collegial and very generous with his time. He worked for NERC, helping to establish the UK’s atmospheric chemistry community. He was also heavily involved in European research programmes where he was a much-sought-after collaborator. He contributed to the scientific assessments for the Montreal Protocol and was part of the IUPAC data evaluation team for many years.
Tony had a huge range of interests and an enquiring mind. He was wonderful company, equally happy to talk about his science or life in general. He is hugely missed by those who were fortunate enough to know him.
Chemistry Garden Party 06/07/2022. Tony Cox (centre) with Diane Harris (left) and Richard Shaw (right). Image by Nathan Pitt ©University of Cambridge.
