Kotaro Honda

Who was Kotaro Honda?

Kotaro Honda was a Japanese scientist and inventor. He invented KS steel, which is a type of magnetic resistant steel that is three times more resistant than tungsten steel. He later improved upon the steel, creating NKS steel. He was awarded the Culture Award and the Big Asahi Ribbon of the First Class. He was taught by the famous Japanese physicist Hantaro Nagaoka at the University of Tokyo. He was one of the first persons to be awarded the Order of Culture when it was established in 1937, being conferred with the honor in 1951. He was posthumously awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun. He participated in establishing the from 1940.

He was awarded the Franklin Institute's Elliott Cresson Medal in 1931.