The Government of Catalonia awards ICFO the Narcís Monturiol Plaque

Narcís Monturiol (1819-1885) was a submarine pioneer and the inventor of several key innovations that solved fundamental problems of underwater navigation. While formally trained in law and professionally active in the publishing industry, his curiosity for the exploration of submarine navigation led him to present a scientific thesis, titled The Ictineo or fish-ship, in 1858. The first dive of the submarine he designed, Ictineo I, took place in September 1859 in the Barcelona Harbor.

In addition to his scientific contributions, Monturiol was an influential figure in Barcelona in the mid to late 1800’s, during which time the city experienced enormous transformations that he and his friends and colleagues helped shape, including the demolition of old city walls and the creation of the Eixample.

In 1982, the Government of Catalonia created the Narcís Monturiol awards to recognize people and institutions who make outstanding contributions to science and technology in Catalonia.

In a meeting last Tuesday, 21 July the Generalitat approved the 2020 award of the Narcís Monturiol Medal to ten researchers, and the Narcís Monturiol Plaque to ICFO, for scientific and technological merit.

"We are extremely proud of this award. We take it as a recognition of the global impact of our research efforts, as well as of the service to our local community that defines our mission”, comments ICFO Director Dr Lluis Torner.