Search on for science genius of the future with Ulster-Scots prize in name of Lord Kelvin, Belfast's famous Victorian physicist, mathematician, engineer and inventor

Victorian engineer, inventor, mathematician and physicist, William Thomson spent more than 50 years as a professor at Glasgow University, correctly calculated the temperature of absolute zero for the first time, and became rich and famous helping to invent a way of laying telegraph cables under the Atlantic Ocean.

Now, exactly 200 years after he was born, his name is being honoured with the Young Kelvin Prize, a competition designed to inspire and empower students to become the next generation of innovators.

A collaboration between the Ulster-Scots Agency and the the Institute of Physics, the organisers describe it as “more than a contest, it is a celebration of curiosity and a challenge to think beyond boundaries”.

The prize is open to young people from all nine counties in Ulster aged 16 to 18 and who are studying physics.

Entries will take the form of a short video explaining an aspect of Kelvin's work, either something he got right, or something he got wrong. Entries will be judged by a panel of experts from the Institute of Physics and two prizes will be awarded, one for demonstrating the strongest understanding of physics and one for the highest standard of communicating science in explaining the topic.

Winning entrants and runners up in each category will receive £500 and £250 respectively.

Launching the prize at Royal Belfast Academical Institution, where Kelvin’s father taught Maths, Institute of Physics chief executive Tom Grinyer said: “Kelvin showed us that true innovation happens at the intersection of deep scientific understanding and bold practical application,” said .

"We are not just looking for physics knowledge, but the ability to engage with the real world in sharing that knowledge, what Kelvin himself embodied.

Ulster-Scots Agency chief executive Ian Crozier described Kelvin as “a standout achiever in the Ulster-Scots community, which is saying something from a community that has given high achievers to the world in almost every field of human endeavour”.

He added: "It is truly fitting that we should honour his memory with a prize inspiring future generations to follow in his footsteps.”