The sky is for everyone : women astronomers in their own words

The sky is for everyone Women astronomers in their own words

Book - 2022

"An inspiring anthology of writings by trailblazing women astronomers from around the globe The Sky Is for Everyone is an internationally diverse collection of autobiographical essays by women who broke down barriers and changed the face of modern astronomy. Virginia Trimble and David Weintraub vividly describe how, before 1900, a woman who wanted to study the stars had to have a father, brother, or husband to provide entry, and how the considerable intellectual skills of women astronomers were still not enough to enable them to pry open doors of opportunity for much of the twentieth century. After decades of difficult struggles, women are closer to equality in astronomy than ever before. Trimble and Weintraub bring together the storie...s of the tough and determined women who flung the doors wide open. Taking readers from 1960 to today, this triumphant anthology serves as an inspiration to current and future generations of women scientists while giving voice to the history of a transformative era in astronomy. With contributions by Neta Bahcall, Beatriz Barbuy, Ann Merchant Boesgaard, Jocelyn Bell Burnell, Catherine Cesarsky, Poonam Chandra, Xuefei Chen, Yilen Gómez Maqueo Chew, Cathie Clarke, Judith Gamora Cohen, France Anne Córdova, Anne Pyne Cowley, Bożena Czerny, Wendy L. Freedman, Gabriela González, Saeko S. Hayashi, Martha Patricia Haynes, Roberta Humphreys, Vicky Kalogera, Gillian Knapp, Shazrene S. Mohamed, Carole Mundell, Priyamvada Natarajan, Dara Norman, Hiranya Peiris, Judith Lynn Pipher, Dina Prialnik, Anneila I. Sargent, Sara Seager, Gražina Tautvaišienė, Silvia Torres-Peimbert, Virginia Trimble, Meg Urry, Ewine F. van Dishoeck, Patricia Ann Whitelock, Sidney Wolff, and Rosemary F. G. Wyse"--

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Subjects
Women astronomers > Biography.
Women in astronomy > History.
Autobiographies.
Essays.
Genres
Autobiographies
Essays
Published
Princeton, New Jersey : Princeton University Press [2022]
Language
English
Physical Description
xxvi, 472 pages : illustrations (black and white) ; 25 cm
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
ISBN
9780691207100
  • List of Illustrations
  • List of Abbreviations
  • Acknowledgments
  • Prelude
  • 1. Beginnings
  • 2. Navigating My Life with the Stars
  • 3. Making Things Work
  • 4. Changing the Landscape
  • 5. Kites Rise against the Wind
  • 6. Breaking through the Telescopic Glass Ceiling
  • 7. Be Your Own Advocate
  • 8. An Astronomer in Mexico
  • 9. My Life in Astronomy
  • 10. Equations, Satellites, and Telescopes
  • 11. A Long and Winding Road
  • 12. Taking Advantage of Opportunity
  • 13. Princeton 1984
  • 14. The Southern Half of the Sky
  • 15. A Long Way for a Wee Lassie
  • 16. Hands-on Adventures with Telescopes: From the Backyard to Cerro Chajnantor
  • 17. The Learn'd Astronomer Discovers the Policy World
  • 18. From Stars to Comets and Back
  • 19. From Stargazing the Southern Cross to Probing the Depths of the History of the Milky Way
  • 20. A Journey through Space and Time
  • 21. A Fortunate Sequence of Events
  • 22. Building a Worldwide Astrochemistry Community
  • 23. My Astronomical Journey
  • 24. The Gentlemen and Me
  • 25. An Astronomer (Not a Pirate!) of Penzance
  • 26. From Six Meters to Thirty Meters, Ever Expanding Horizons
  • 27. The Unfading Joy of Being an Astronomer
  • 28. Inspired by a Maths Dress
  • 29. Gravitational Love
  • 30. Not Taking "No" for an Answer: Learning How to Persist and Persevere with a Smile
  • 31. Adventures Mapping the Dark Universe
  • 32. On Becoming an Astronomer and Advancing Science
  • 33. Adventures in the Search for Other Earths
  • 34. From Serendip to Serendipity
  • 35. A Train to the Stars
  • 36. Staring at the Stars
  • 37. The Sky Is for Everyone
  • 38. Flipping Tables from the Sonoran Desert to the Stars
  • 39. Postlude
  • Further Reading and Additional Resources
  • Index of Subjects
  • Index of People
Review by Choice Review

The Sky Is for Everyone offers a compilation of essay memoirs written by 37 modern women astronomers. The essays are arranged chronologically by date of PhD, from Anne Pyne Cowley (PhD, 1963) to Yilen Gómez Maqueo Chew (PhD, 2010). Though many contributors are from the US, astronomers from around the world are included, and overall the group represents a variety of research interests, from cosmology to planetary science and radio astronomy. While the scope of inclusion aims to be broad, it isn't exhaustive; some luminaries, e.g., Jill Tarter, did not contribute. Although the essays vary widely, some common challenges experienced by these professionals emerge, including imposter syndrome, the struggle of women in academic partnerships, sexism in general, and lack of support for mothers. Contributing authors share their love for astronomy and the satisfaction they draw from their research and collaboration with colleagues. The astronomer editors, Trimble (Univ. of California Irvine, also a featured essayist) and Weintraub (Vanderbilt Univ.), provide additional context in their introductory chapter, mentioning women astronomers who predate the project's scope or who didn't contribute. They also include a further reading and resources section at the end. Given that the essays are universally well written, this book would be a fine addition to any college or university library. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers. --Hilary Dorsch Wong, SUNY Cortland

Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Astronomy professors Trimble (Visit to a Small Universe) and Weintraub (Life on Mars) bring together essays by women who reached for the stars in this uplifting anthology. In "Inspired by a Maths Dress," Carole Mundell, the first woman chief scientific adviser in the U.K.'s Foreign and Commonwealth Office, describes how careers for women were once considered "mere stop gaps until marriage" and argues that "we must... be inclusive across and beyond gender and race, and create much-needed diverse pathways into science and science-related careers." France Anne Córdova reflects in "The Learn'd Astronomer Discovers the Policy World" on how there was "nothing in early background that illuminated a path to the stars--no scientists, no teachers who believed that women could become scientists," and Shazrene S. Mohamed describes in the title essay becoming the first person in her family to go to university and leave Zimbabwe: "I climbed aboard a plane for the first time, drenched in tears, not knowing when I would see my family again." The collection's greatest strength is in the diversity of experiences it has to offer. Filled with moving testimonies and awe-inspiring discoveries, this is a wonderful tribute to the joys of science and the tough road many women had on the way to forging their careers. Photos. (June)

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