Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin

Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin
FRAS
Born
Cecilia Helena Payne

(1900-05-10)May 10, 1900
Wendover, Buckinghamshire, England
DiedDecember 7, 1979(1979-12-07) (aged 79)
Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.
CitizenshipBritish
United States (from 1931)
EducationSt Paul's Girls' School
Alma materNewnham College, Cambridge;
Harvard University
Known forExplanation of stellar spectra and composition of the Sun, more than 3,000,000 observations of variable stars
Spouse
Sergei I. Gaposchkin
​
​
(m. 1934)​
Children3
AwardsAnnie Jump Cannon Award in Astronomy (1934), Rittenhouse Medal (1961), Award of Merit from Radcliffe College (1952), Henry Norris Russell Prize (1976)
Scientific career
FieldsAstronomy, astrophysics
InstitutionsHarvard College Observatory, Harvard University
ThesisStellar Atmospheres: A contribution to the observational study of high temperature in the reversing layers of stars (1925)
Doctoral advisorHarlow Shapley
Doctoral studentsHelen Sawyer Hogg, Joseph Ashbrook, Frank Kameny, Frank Drake, Paul W. Hodge
Signature

Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin (born Cecilia Helena Payne; (1900-05-10)May 10, 1900 – (1979-12-07)December 7, 1979) was a British-American astronomer and astrophysicist. In her 1925 doctoral thesis she proposed that stars were composed primarily of hydrogen and helium.[1] Her groundbreaking conclusion was initially rejected by leading astrophysicists, including Henry Norris Russell,[2] because it contradicted the science of the time, which held that no significant elemental differences distinguished the Sun and Earth. Independent observations eventually proved that she was correct.[1][2][3][4]

Even with significant barriers for female scientists - Payne was not able to receive a degree from Cambridge despite fully completing her studies[5] - her work on the cosmic makeup of the universe and the nature of variable stars was foundational to modern astrophysics. She was elected to the Royal Astronomical Society while still a student at Cambridge[6] and later became the first recipient of the American Astronomical Society’s prestigious Annie J. Cannon award.[7] Her success also opened the door for countless female astronomers, including her Harvard colleague, Helen Sawyer Hogg,[8] and in 1956, she was appointed Harvard’s first female Professor and female Department Chair.[9]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference cwp-1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b "Cecilia Payne and the Composition of the Stars". American Museum of Natural History. 2000. Retrieved November 23, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ Joyce, Maureen (December 9, 1979). "Dr. Cecilia H. Payne-Gaposchkin Dies". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
  4. ^ "Cecilia Helena Payne-Gaposchkin". HowStuffWorks. April 23, 2009. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
  5. ^ "The Highest of All Ceilings: Astronomer Cecilia Payne". www.lostwomenofscience.org. Retrieved November 23, 2024.
  6. ^ Simion @Yonescat, Florin (May 10, 1900). "Cecilia Helena". The Royal Astronomical Society. Retrieved November 23, 2024.
  7. ^ "Annie Jump Cannon Award in Astronomy". American Astronomical Society. Retrieved November 23, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ^ Jarrell, Richard A. (2007), Hockey, Thomas; Trimble, Virginia; Williams, Thomas R.; Bracher, Katherine (eds.), "Sawyer Hogg, Helen Battles", The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers, New York, NY: Springer, pp. 1015–1015, doi:10.1007/978-0-387-30400-7_1223, ISBN 978-0-387-30400-7, retrieved November 23, 2024
  9. ^ Williams, Richard. "January 1, 1925: Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin and the Day the Universe Changed". American Physical Society. Retrieved November 23, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)