It is with great regret that we have to inform the readers of our joal Friction that professor Duncan Dowson has passed away. He had not been feeling well in the last few years and his condition was worsened after a fall. He died in hospital on 6 January 2020. This is a great loss to all of us in the tribology community and we will remember him as one of the greatest tribologists, an eminent scientist and a visionary engineer of our time.