BEIJING, July 17 (Xinhua) -- World leading scientists were awarded in Beijing on Monday for their outstanding contributions to space science.

Six awards in the field of space science were presented to winners at the opening ceremony of the 36th Assembly of the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) in Beijing on Monday night.

The COSPAR Space Science Award went to Prof. Atsuhiro Nishida from the National Committee for Space Research of the Science Council of Japan and Prof. Eberhard T. Grun from the University of Heidelberg.

"Nishida has been one of the most innovative physicists in the world space physics community," said Roger-Maurice Bonnet, president of COSPAR.

"Grun has been playing a leading role in the exploration of interplanetary and interstellar dust and has decisively shaped the concept of dust astronomy," he said.

Other awards including COSPAR International Cooperation Medal, COSPAR Nordberg Medal, Royal Society/COSPAR Massey Award, ISRO/COSPAR Vikram Sarabhai Medal and Zeldovich Medals went respectively to Dr. Raymond A. Greenwald, Prof. John P. Burrows, Dr. Charles Elachi, Prof. Rajagopal Sridharan and nine other scientists.

The medals are awarded every two years to scientists who have contributed significantly to the promotion of international scientific cooperation. Enditem