Astrophysics. Kerr presented to the Symposium his solution to the Einstein field equations. S. Chandrasekhar (Nobel laureate, 1983) is quoted as having said : "In my entire scientific life, extending over forty-five years, the most shattering experience has been the realization that an exact solution of Einstein's equations of general relativity, discovered by the New Zealand mathematician, Roy Kerr, provides the absolutely exact representation of untold numbers of massive black holes that populate the universe" In 1965, with Alfred Schild, he introduced the concept of Kerr–Schild perturbations and developed the Kerr–Newman metric. During his time in Texas, Kerr supervised four PhD students. In 1971, Kerr returned to the University of Canterbury in New Zealand. Kerr retired from his position as Professor of Mathematics at the University of Canterbury in 1993 after having been there for twenty-two years, including ten years as the head of the Mathematics department. Awards and honours Hector Medal (1982) "for his work in theoretical physics. ... an exact solution of Einstein's equations of general relativity, ..." Hughes Medal (1984) "for his distinguished work on relativity, especially for his discovery of the so-called Kerr Black Hole, which has been very influential." Rutherford Medal (1993) "For his outstanding discoveries in the extra-terrestrial world of black holes." Marcel Grossmann Award (2006) "for his fundamental contribution to Einstein's theory of general relativity: ..." Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to astrophysics (2011) Albert Einstein Medal (2013) "for his 1963 discovery of a solution to Einstein's gravitational field equations." Crafoord Prize (2016) "for fundamental work on rotating black holes and their astrophysical consequences." Canterbury Distinguished Professor (2016) Oskar Klein Medal (2020) In 2008 Kerr was appointed to the Yevgeny Lifshitz ICRANet Chair in Pescara, Italy. Fulvio Melia interviewed Kerr about his work on the solution for the book Cracking the Einstein Code: Relativity and the Birth of Black Hole Physics published in 2009. Kerr contributed an "Afterword" of two and a half pages. In 2012, it was announced that Kerr would be honoured by the Albert Einstein Society in Switzerland with the 2013 Albert Einstein Medal. He is the first New Zealander to receive the prestigious award. In December 2015, the University of Canterbury awarded Kerr an honorary Doctor of Science. In May 2016, Kerr was awarded the Crafoord Prize in Astronomy by The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Personal life Kerr is married to Margaret. In