Crosspost: Harriet Tubman, Astronomer Extraordinaire

While the last day of Black History Month was technically yesterday, today marks the beginning of Women's History Month. I can't think of a better way to celebrate than by sharing this wonderful piece by Dr. Chandra Prescod-Weinstein on the Black woman astronomer, freedom fighter, and abolitionist, Harriet Tubman. Be sure to check out the Harriet Tubman Bicentennial Project before March 10th for an interactive exploration of Tubman's incredible life story.

Written by Dr. Chanda Prescod-Weinstein

The Milky Way splashes across the early evening sky in "Over the Marshes 2" by photographer, Robert Fawcett. 

Polaris, the North Star, is so named because it always points toward true north. Underground Railroad conductor Harriet Tubman used the North Star to liberate herself—then went South over and over again, using it to liberate both family and strangers. 

Toward the end of his astonishing debut novel of Black queer life during slavery, The Prophets, Robert Jones, Jr.’s “Prophets” declare: “The cosmos is on your side.” At this moment in the text, the reader is called to imagine that our enslaved ancestors were in fact watched over; we are called to remember the stories many of us were raised on, about enslaved folk who followed the Drinking Gourd—the stellar constellation more popularly known as the Big Dipper—to freedom. The Drinking Gourd is notable because of its easy-to-identify shape, which simplifies finding Polaris, the North Star, so named because it always points toward true north.

Polaris was thus a natural compass, especially for enslaved people who were self-liberating, including Underground Railroad conductor Harriet Tubman. The story appears repeatedly throughout popular representations of Tubman: She used the North Star to liberate herself. Then, like a superhero, she went South over and over again, using the North Star to liberate both family and strangers. 

Read the rest of the article at: https://msmagazine.com/2022/02/03/harriet-tubman-astronomer-underground-railroad-north-star-nasa/