The Herschel Medal is awarded by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) for "investigations of outstanding merit in observational astrophysics".

[1] It is named after the RAS's first president, William Herschel.

From 2004 the frequency was shortened to two years and from 2012 it was awarded annually.

It has been awarded 28 times to a total of 30 people (28 men, two women), mostly from the UK.

[2][4] Source: Royal Astronomical Society