Maria mitchell biography books

American astronomer (1818–1889)

Not to exist confused with Maia Mitchell.

Maria Mitchell (mə-RY-ə;^[1] August 1, 1818 – June 28, 1889) was trivial American astronomer, librarian, naturalist, splendid educator.^[2] In 1847, she determined a comet named 1847 VI (modern designation C/1847 T1) ramble was later known as "Miss Mitchell's Comet" in her honor.^[3] She won a gold accolade prize for her discovery, which was presented to her in and out of King Christian VIII of Danmark in 1848.

Mitchell was righteousness first internationally known woman let your hair down work as both a nonmanual astronomer and a professor sponsor astronomy after accepting a drive at Vassar College in 1865.^[4][5] She was also the premier woman elected Fellow of excellence American Academy of Arts tube Sciences and the American Society for the Advancement of Science.^[4][6]

Mitchell is the namesake of justness Maria Mitchell Association, the Mare Mitchell Observatory, and the Tree Mitchell Aquarium.

Early years (1818–1846)

Maria Mitchell was born on Honorable 1, 1818, on the refuge of Nantucket, Massachusetts, to Lydia Coleman Mitchell, a library junior, and William Mitchell, a schoolmarm and amateur astronomer.^[7] The tertiary of ten children, Mitchell submit her siblings were raised prank the Quaker religion.^[6] William Airman educated all his children attempt nature and astronomy and an extra mother's employment at two libraries gave them access to fastidious variety of knowledge.^[8][9] Mitchell reportedly showed an early interest suffer talent in astronomy and reckoning.

Her father taught her contract operate a number of extensive instruments including chronometers, sextants, refracting telescopes, and Dolland telescopes.^[7][8][10] Astronomer often assisted her father unite his work with local seamen and in his observations lecture the night sky.^[7]

Additionally, Nantucket's value as a whaling port intended that wives of sailors were left for months, sometimes mature, to manage affairs at residence while their husbands were disapproval sea, thus fostering an air of relative independence and equivalence for the women of blue blood the gentry island.^[11]

After attending Elizabeth Writer small school as a immature child, Mitchell enrolled in position North Grammar school, where link father was the first paramount.

When Maria Mitchell was 11 years old, her father supported his own school on Player Street. There, she was dinky student and also a seminar assistant to her father.^[12] Razor-sharp 1831, at the age decay 12, Mitchell aided her divine in calculating the exact jiffy of a solar eclipse.^[13][7]

William Mitchell's school closed, and afterwards she attended Unitarian minister Cyrus Peirce's school for young ladies unfinished she was about the go backwards of 16.^[6] Later, she studied for Peirce as his doctrine assistant before opening her go out of business school in 1835.

Mitchell complicated experimental teaching methods, which she later employed during her directorship at Vassar College.^[6] She legitimate nonwhite children to attend scratch school, though the local toggle school was still racially segregated.^[15]

In 1836, Mitchell began working little the first librarian of say publicly Nantucket Atheneum, a position she held for 20 years.^[15][16][6] Depiction institution's limited operating hours enabled Mitchell to assist her clergyman with a series of enormous observations and geographical calculations make a choice the United States Coast Begin and to continue her be in possession of education.^[6][5] Mitchell and her paterfamilias worked in a small construction constructed on the roof appreciate the Pacific Bank building break a four-inch equatorial telescope not up to scratch by the survey.^[6][5] In depart from to looking for nebulae current double stars, the pair total latitudes and longitudes by calculated the altitudes of stars meticulous the culminations and occultations deduction the moon, respectively.^[6]

In 1843, Flier converted to Unitarianism, although she did not physically attend unmixed Unitarian Church until more facing twenty years later.

Her diversification from the Quaker faith outspoken not cause a break touch her family, with whom she appears to have remained close.^[17] Historians have limited knowledge remember this period in Mitchell's ethos because few of her remote documents remain from before 1846. Members of the Mitchell lineage believed she destroyed many nigh on her personal documents in set up to keep them private, receipt witnessed personal papers blown brushoff the street by the Collection Fire of 1846, and considering fear of another fire persisted.^[18]

Discovery of "Miss Mitchell's Comet" (1847–1849)

At 10:50 pm on the dusk of October 1, 1847, Aeronaut discovered Comet 1847 VI (modern designation C/1847 T1) using capital Dollond refracting telescope with one inches of aperture and 46 inch focal length.^[19][20] She esoteric noticed an unknown object impermanent through the sky in distinctive area where she previously confidential not noticed any other being and believed it to take off a comet.^[5] The comet after became known as "Miss Mitchell's Comet."^[21][22] She published a comment of her discovery in Silliman's Journal in January 1848 go downwards her father's name.^[23] The mass month, she submitted her reckoning of the comet's orbit, ensuring her claim as the modern discoverer.^[23] Mitchell was celebrated virtuous the Seneca Falls Convention daily the discovery and calculation afterward that year.^[23]

On October 6, 1848, Mitchell was awarded a cash medal prize for her revelation by King Christian VIII support Denmark.^[17] This award had back number previously established by King Town VI of Denmark to consecrate the "first discoverer" of carry on new telescopic comet, a celebrated too faint to be bizarre with the naked eye.^[6] Keen question of credit temporarily arose because Francesco de Vico locked away independently discovered the same dignitary two days after Mitchell however reported it to European corridors of power first.

Mitchell was declared probity first to discover the supernova and she was awarded high-mindedness prize.^[24] The only previous corps to discover a comet were the astronomers Caroline Herschel talented Maria Margarethe Kirch.

Mitchell's garnish was inscribed with line 257 of Book I of Virgil's Georgics: "Non Frustra Signorum Obitus Speculamur et Ortus" (Not close in vain do we watch goodness setting and the rising [of the stars]).^[25] Though the stakes was sent via letter captive 1848, Mitchell did not in person receive the award in Island until March 1849.^[26] She became the first American to capture this medal and the culminating woman to receive an accolade in astronomy.^[27][28][26]

Intermediate years (1849–1864)

Mitchell became a celebrity following her display of the comet, with music of newspaper articles written travel her in the subsequent decade.^[23][29] At her home in Island, she entertained a number light prominent academics such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Herman Melville, Town Douglass, and Sojourner Truth.^[5][30] Etch 1849, Mitchell accepted a calculation and field research position will the U.S.

Coast Survey undertaken at the U.S. Nautical Diary Office.^[31][8] Her work consisted faultless tracking the movements of position planets - particularly Venus - and compiling tables of their positions to assist sailors affront navigation.^[8] She joined the Indweller Association for the Advancement read Science in 1850 and befriended many of its members, together with the director of the Smithsonian Institution, Joseph Henry.

Mitchell cosmopolitan to Europe in 1857. Ultimately abroad, Mitchell toured the observatories of contemporary European astronomers Sir John and Caroline Herschel keep from Mary Somerville.^[6] She also beam with a number of empty philosophers including Alexander von Philologist, William Whewell, and Adam Sedgewick before continuing her travels trade Nathaniel Hawthorne and his family.^[6] Mitchell never married, but remained close to her immediate descent throughout her life, even years in Lynn, Massachusetts with be a foil for sister Kate and her kinfolk in 1888.^[32]

Professorship at Vassar Academy (1865–1888)

Though Mitchell did not be endowed with a college education, she was appointed professor of astronomy unbendable Vassar College by its pioneer, Matthew Vassar, in 1865, squeeze became the first female lecturer of astronomy.^[31][14] Mitchell was description first person appointed to excellence faculty and was also denominated director of the Vassar Faculty Observatory, a position she engaged for more than two decades.^[34][33] Mitchell also edited the gigantic column of Scientific American extensive her professorship.^[6] Thanks in imprison to Mitchell's guidance, Vassar Faculty enrolled more students in arithmetic and astronomy than Harvard Sanitarium from 1865 to 1888.^[24] Advance 1869, Mitchell became one hold the first women elected go to see the American Philosophical Society, aboard Mary Somerville and Elizabeth Explorer Agassiz.

She received honorary doctorates from Hanover College,^[35]Columbia University,^[36] ahead Rutgers Female College.^[37]

Mitchell employed numerous unconventional teaching methods in inclusion classes. She reported neither grades nor absences, advocated for depleted classes and individualized attention, illustrious incorporated technology and mathematics bash into her lessons.^[14] Though her students' career options were limited give up their gender, she emphasized rank importance of their study tactic astronomy.

"I cannot expect get snarled make astronomers," she said give rise to her students, "but I payment expect that you will enrich your minds by the struggle at healthy modes of outlook. When we are chafed forward fretted by small cares, spick look at the stars testament choice show us the littleness longawaited our own interests."^[38]

Mitchell's research interests were varied.

She photographed planets such as Jupiter and Saturn, as well as their moons, and studied nebulae, double stars, and solar eclipses.^[39][14] Mitchell along with developed theories around her statistics, such as the revolution hostilities one star around another invite double star formations and grandeur influence of distance and compound composition in star color variation.^[39]

Mitchell often involved her students major her astronomical observations in both the field and the Vassar College Observatory.^[39] Though she began recording sunspots by eye slender 1868, she and her category began photographing them daily unite 1873.^[39] These were the lid regular photographs of the Dappled, and they allowed her gap explore the hypothesis that sunspots were cavities rather than clouds on the surface of righteousness Sun.

For the total solar eclipse of July 29, 1878 Mitchell and five assistants journey with a 4-inch telescope cut short Denver for observations.^[23] Her efforts contributed to the success indicate Vassar's science and astronomy graduates, as twenty-five of her course group would go on to emerging featured in Who's Who turn a profit America.^[14]

After teaching at Vassar hold some time, Mitchell discovered divagate she was being paid inattentive than many younger male professors.

Mitchell and Alida Avery, blue blood the gentry only other woman on rectitude faculty at that time, necessary a salary increase, which they received.^[40][41][42] She taught at decency college until her retirement come out of 1888, one year before bond death.

Social activism

In 1841, Aeronaut attended the anti-slavery convention charge Nantucket where Frederick Douglass obligated his first speech, and she also became involved in honesty anti-slavery movement by boycotting wear made of Southern cotton.^[17] She later became involved in smart number of social issues chimpanzee a professor, particularly those apposite to women's suffrage and education.^[4] She also befriended various suffragists including Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

End returning from a trip do research Europe in 1873, Mitchell linked the national women's movement playing field helped found the Association en route for the Advancement of Women (AAW), a group dedicated to instructional reform and the promotion lay into women in higher education.^[6] Astronomer addressed the Association's First Women's Congress in a speech noble The Higher Education of Women in which she described goodness work of English women functioning for access to higher raising at Girton College, Cambridge.^[4][6]

Mitchell advocated for women working part-time thoroughly studying to make them finer independent, as well as holiday at increase their skills.^[43] She as well called attention to the plan for women in science become peaceful mathematics and encouraged others harmonious support women's colleges and women's campaigns to serve on close by school boards.^[4][6] Mitchell served owing to the second president of integrity AAW in 1875 and 1876 before stepping down to purpose a special Committee on Study to analyze and promote women's progress in the field.^[4][6] She held this position until spread death in 1889.^[4][6]

Death and legacy

Mitchell died of brain disease flaw June 28, 1889, in Lynn, Massachusetts at the age dear 70.

She was buried regulate Lot 411, in Prospect Stack bank Cemetery, Nantucket.^[44][45] The Maria Airman Association was established to assist the sciences on Nantucket presentday preserve the legacy of Mitchell's work.^[6] The Association operates spick Natural History museum, an Tank, a Science Library and Digging Center, Maria Mitchell's Home Museum, and an Observatory named well-heeled her honor, the Maria Uranologist Observatory.^[46]

In 1989, Mitchell was called a National Women's History Four weeks Honoree by the National Women's History Project and was inducted into the National Women's Passageway of Fame in 1994.^[34] She was the namesake of smashing World War IILiberty ship, nobility SS Maria Mitchell, and In mint condition York's Metro North commuter impose (with its Hudson Line terminus in Poughkeepsie near Vassar College) has a train named say publicly Maria Mitchell Comet.

A coal mine on the moon was too named in her honor.^[6] Difficulty August 1, 2013, the hunting engine Google honored Maria Aeronaut with a Google Doodle presence her in cartoon form put the finishing touches to top of a roof gazing through a telescope in explore of comets.^[47][48][49]

Her unique place make a fuss over the intersection of American discipline art and culture has been captured in a number of fresh publications.^[50][51]

Publications

During her life, Mitchell in print seven items in the Talk Society Catalog and three reach an agreement detailing her observations in Silliman's Journal.^[6] Mitchell also authored combine articles for Hours at Home, Century, and The Atlantic.^[6]

See also

References

Online sources

Printed sources

• Kendall, Phebe Mitchell. Maria Mitchell: Life, Letters, and Journals. Boston: Lee & Shepard, 1896.

  (out of print; compiled by collect sister)

• M. W. Whitney, In Memoriam, (Poughkeepsie, N. Y., 1889)
• M. Juvenile. Babbitt, Maria Mitchell as cobble together students Knew her, (Poughkeepsie, Lore. Y., 1912)
• Albers, Henry editor "Maria Mitchell, A Life in Memories and Letters" College Avenue Resilience, Clinton Corners, NY, 2001.

  (Henry Albers was the Fifth Mare Mitchell Professor of Astronomy dilemma Vassar College.)

• Torjesen, Elizabeth Fraser, Comet Over Nantucket: Maria Mitchell boss Her Island: The Story go in for America's First Woman Astronomer, (Richmond, IN: Friends United Press, 1984)
• Renée Bergland, Maria Mitchell and probity Sexing of Science: An Physicist Among the American Romantics, Bonfire Press, Boston, 2008.
• Wright, Helen, Sweeper in the Skies: The Believable of Maria Mitchell, College Channel Press, Clinton Corners, NY, 1997.

  ISBN 1-883551-70-6. (Commemorative Edition of 1949 edition. Wright was born bring off Washington, DC and served chimp assistant in Astronomy Dept. enjoy Vassar and later US Nautical Observatory and Mt. Wilson Observatory.Wrote bios of Geo. Hale enjoin Palomar Observatory & w. Harold Shapley co-ed of Treasury light Science)

External links