Friday, January 23, 2009

Leavitt Law

The AAS Council recognized the 100th anniversary of Henrietta Leavitt’s first presentation of the Cepheid Period-Luminosity relation, a seminal discovery in astronomy that continues to have great significance.  The Council was pleased to learn of a resolution adopted by the organizers of the Leavitt symposium, "Thanks to Henrietta Leavitt," held Nov. 6, 2008 at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA. There, it was suggested that this important relation now be referred to as the “Leavitt Law.” The Council recognized that the AAS has no authority to define astronomical nomenclature, but it would be happy to see this designation used widely.

For details of the symposium, please see:

http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/events/2008/leavitt/

No comments :