Martha Locke Hazen (15 July 1931- 23 December 2006) was an American astronomer, best known for her contributions as curator of the Harvard astronomical photographs collection and her work on variable stars. [1]
Martha Locke Hazen | |
---|---|
Born | 15 July 1931 |
Died | 23 December 2006 (age 75) |
Alma mater | Mount Holyoke College, University of Michigan |
Spouse(s) | William Liller, Bruce McHenry |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Astronomy |
Institutions | Harvard University |
Thesis | The Distribution of Intensity of Elliptical Galaxies of the Virgo Cluster |
Doctoral advisor | Cornelis van Schooneveld |
Martha Locke Hazen was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts and grew up in Belmont. [1] [2] In 1953, she graduated from Mount Holyoke College with a degree in astronomy. [1] [2] She went on to complete her Ph.D. at the University of Michigan in 1958. [1] Her thesis foscused on how the intensities of elliptical galaxies within the Virgo cluster were distributed. [3]
Martha was a research fellow at Harvard College Observatory, observing in Chile for 3 weeks every year. [1] [2] In 1969, she became the curator of astronomical photographs at Harvard where she was responsible for the Harvard Plate Archives and she assumed this role until her retirement in 2002. [1] [4] [2] She was also had a leadership role in improving the status of women in university life at Harvard, serving as the Harvard College Observatory representative on Harvard's committee dedicated to this. [1] As part of her role she helped organise the first Space for Women conference in 1975. [1] Additionally, she helped remove gender bias from the bylaws of American Astronomical Society. [2]
Martha joined the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) in 1975 and was elected as a member of the AAVSO council in 1984. [1] [2] She acted as a vice president before becoming president of the association in 1992. [1] [2] She went on to take the role of secretary in 1993 and remained in the role for 10 years. [1] [4]
The Minor Planet Center at Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory named an asteroid (asteroid number: 10,024), Marthahazen, in recognition of Martha's contributions to astronomy. [1] [2]
Martha married William Liller in 1959 and they had two children together, John Liller and Hillary Ward. [1] [2] Martha and William divorced in 1982 and she married her second husband Bruce McHenry in 1991. [1] [2]
Messier 13 or M13, also designated NGC 6205 and sometimes called the Great Globular Cluster in Hercules or the Hercules Globular Cluster, is a globular cluster of several hundred thousand stars in the constellation of Hercules.
Williamina Paton Stevens Fleming was a Scottish-American 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.
Messier 4 or M4 is a globular cluster in the constellation of Scorpius. It was discovered by Philippe Loys de Chéseaux in 1745 and catalogued by Charles Messier in 1764. It was the first globular cluster in which individual stars were resolved.
Helen Battles Sawyer Hogg was an American-Canadian astronomer who pioneered research into globular clusters and variable stars. She was the first female president of several astronomical organizations and a scientist when many universities would not award scientific degrees to women. Her scientific advocacy and journalism included astronomy columns in the Toronto Star and the Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. She was considered a "great scientist and a gracious person" over a career of sixty years.
Messier 5 or M5 is a globular cluster in the constellation Serpens. It was discovered by Gottfried Kirch in 1702.
Messier 107 or M107, also known as NGC 6171, is a very loose globular cluster in a very mildly southern part of the sky close to the equator in Ophiuchus, and is the last such object in the Messier Catalogue.
The American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) is an international nonprofit organization. Founded in 1911, the organization focuses on coordinating, analyzing, publishing, and archiving variable star observations made largely by amateur astronomers. The AAVSO creates records that establish light curves depicting the variation in brightness of a star over time. The AAVSO makes these records available to professional astronomers, researchers, and educators.
Messier 3 is a globular cluster of stars in the northern constellation of Canes Venatici.
Messier 9 or M9 is a globular cluster in the constellation of Ophiuchus. It is positioned in the southern part of the constellation to the southwest of Eta Ophiuchi, and lies atop a dark cloud of dust designated Barnard 64. The cluster was discovered by French astronomer Charles Messier on June 3, 1764, who described it as a "nebula without stars". In 1783, English astronomer William Herschel was able to use his reflector to resolve individual stars within the cluster. He estimated the cluster to be 7–8′ in diameter with stars densely packed near the center.
Messier 15 or M15 is a globular cluster in the constellation Pegasus. It was discovered by Jean-Dominique Maraldi in 1746 and included in Charles Messier's catalogue of comet-like objects in 1764. At an estimated 12.5±1.3 billion years old, it is one of the oldest known globular clusters.
Messier 22 or M22, also known as NGC 6656, is an elliptical globular cluster of stars in the constellation Sagittarius, near the Galactic bulge region. It is one of the brightest globulars visible in the night sky. The brightest stars are 11th magnitude, with hundreds of stars bright enough to resolve with an 8" telescope. It is just south of the sun's position in mid-December, and northwest of Lambda Sagittarii, the northernmost star of the "Teapot" asterism.
Messier 28 or M28, also known as NGC 6626, is a globular cluster of stars in the center-west of Sagittarius. It was discovered by French astronomer Charles Messier in 1764. He briefly described it as a "nebula containing no star... round, seen with difficulty in 31⁄2-foot telescope; Diam 2′."
Messier 70 or M70, also known as NGC 6681, is a globular cluster of stars to be found in the south of Sagittarius. It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1780. The famous comet Hale–Bopp was discovered near this cluster in 1995.
Messier 71 is a globular cluster in the small northern constellation Sagitta. It was discovered by Philippe Loys de Chéseaux in 1745 and included by Charles Messier in his catalog of non-comet-like objects in 1780. It was also noted by Koehler at Dresden around 1775.
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Alice Hall Farnsworth was an American astronomer. She was director of John Payson Williston Observatory at Mount Holyoke College from 1936 until her retirement in 1957.
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