Williamina Fleming

Williamina Fleming
Black and white portrait photograph of Williamina Paton Stevens Fleming
Fleming, c. 1890s
Born
Williamina Paton Stevens

(1857-05-15)15 May 1857
Dundee, Scotland
Died21 May 1911(1911-05-21) (aged 54)
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
NationalityScottish
Alma materNone
Scientific career
FieldsAstronomy
InstitutionsHarvard College Observatory
Signature

Williamina Paton Stevens Fleming (15 May 1857 – 21 May 1911) was a Scottish astronomer. She was a single mother hired by the director of the Harvard College Observatory to help in the photographic classification of stellar spectra. She helped develop a common designation system for stars and cataloged more than ten thousand stars, 59 gaseous nebulae, over 310 variable stars, and 10 novae and other astronomical phenomena. Among several career achievements that advanced astronomy, Fleming is noted for her discovery of the Horsehead Nebula in 1888.[1]

  1. ^ Cannon, Annie J. (June 1911). "Williamina Paton Fleming". Science. 33 (861) (published 30 June 1911): 987–988. Bibcode:1911Sci....33..987C. doi:10.1126/science.33.861.987. PMID 17799863.