Nobel medal sale highlights work of forgotten chemist who predicted the atom bomb

Francis Aston, Edwardian scientific genius, surfer and motorcycling pioneer, was awarded the Nobel in 1922 for his discovery of isotopes. Now his medal is up for auction

The Nobel prize awarded to one of the world's most colourful scientists - Francis Aston, an Edwardian surfing fanatic and early pioneer of motorcycle racing - is to be auctioned in London next month.

The medal, a 200g disc made of 23-carat gold, was given to Aston in 1922 in recognition of the British chemist's discovery of isotopes, elements with the same chemical properties but different atomic masses. His Nobel prize for chemistry is being sold by his family and is expected to fetch between 200,000 and 400,000, Bonhams said.

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