An Undergraduate Perspective: Why Studying Astrophysics Is Worth It

By Jade Marchant, Weber State University

The author celebrates the first particle received from the self-constructed
CosmicWatch portable muon detector. Image credit: Jade Merchant.

Studying astrophysics throughout my undergraduate career has changed my life in so many wonderful ways. Currently, I am finishing up my last semester of undergrad at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah. Writing this has been a lovely way to reflect on what I’ve done and experienced in the last few years at this school. This education has encouraged enormous personal growth, allowed me to see the universe from a unique and beautiful perspective, and introduced me to so many incredible people.

The astrophysics group at Weber State, led by Dr. Stacey Palen,
stands by the Keith Terry Palen Observatory.
Image credit: Jade Merchant.

The Physics and Astronomy Department at Weber State has a unique gift for helping students find their scientific identity. One of the ways our faculty has helped students discover their passions in science is by offering numerous pathways for students to explore experimental physics. Over the course of one undergraduate degree, I was an observational astronomer taking data on eclipsing binary stars, a particle physicist who built their own portable muon detector, and an engineer who built a radio telescope out of a kitchen wok! In addition to these projects, our faculty replaced final exams with final papers or presentations so that we could explore our interests. These assignments allowed me to demonstrate my knowledge while simultaneously providing opportunities for me to become a better science communicator and they gave me excuses to explore those initial questions that drove me to study astrophysics.

The relationships I have cultivated with my peers have also greatly benefited my undergraduate experiences. The faculty and students at Weber State have created a space for collaboration that has resulted in a strong and friendly community of physicists. One of my favorite memories in lab was when we retied a friend’s hair bow after it had come loose while she kept fiddling away with wires on the rover she was building. This memory is simple, but I feel so lucky to exist in a space where physics, femininity, and friendship were able to coexist in such an effortless way. In the same vein, staying up all night to run a telescope and observe the universe is an incredible experience, but it is infinitely more fun when you get to do it with your friends who are also gigantic nerds! I am incredibly fortunate to have been a part of such a wonderful group with such diverse skill sets and passion for what they do. Through example, my peers have continually shown me how to be a better teammate and a better scientist.

Astrophysics is nothing without community and educators, but I also know that I, individually, have worked diligently to make this degree worth it for me. Deciding to go to college was a huge and terrifying step for me. My high school experience was pretty rough, and I ended up dropping out in my junior year and taking the GED. After this, I thought that my chances at pursuing further education had gone out the window. I am so glad that I gave myself a second chance, because from that second chance I learned that I had as many chances as I needed to change my mind and try again. That persistence and my love for astronomy have carried me through this degree and I know that it will carry me even further.

This degree was so challenging in so many different ways (it is, after all, astrophysics!), but I’ve always tried to maintain hope that this is what I am supposed to be doing and that there is a space for me in this field. In the future I’d love to be an educator, so that I can show more people like me that school doesn’t have to be awful, that hard things are worth doing, and that you can fail as many times as you want. I want to help others find their scientific identity in astrophysics as my peers and the faculty at Weber State have done for me time and time again. For me, astrophysics is SO worth it! 

Jade and friends do radio astronomy with
a kitchen wok reflector. Image credit: Jade Merchant.

Ed’s note: After graduation Jade will be applying physics skills and experience to a job in industry, doing work in electromagnetic compatibility testing. Congratulations!

AASWomen Newsletter for May 10, 2024

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of May 10, 2024
eds: Jeremy Bailin, Nicolle Zellner, Sethanne Howard, and Hannah Jang-Condell

[We hope you all are taking care of yourselves and each other. --eds.]

This week's issues:

Gruber Prize Recipient Marcia Rieke.
Image Credit: NASA

1. Advocating to Change Academia for Mothers 
2. Marcia Rieke Receives $500,000 Gruber Cosmology Prize
3. AIP Launches the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging, & Accessibility Strategic Plan
4. 2024 Advancing IDEA in Planetary Science Conference: Save the Date  
5. 4 Amazing Women From History You’ve Probably Never Heard Of
6. Graphic novels can help boost diversity in STEM 
7. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter
8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter
9. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

Advocating to Change Academia for Mothers

Chromatography Flowers (Image Credit: BuggyandBuddy.com)

In a commentary for Nature, Fernanda Staniscuaski writes that "[w]orldwide, mothers are too often pushed out of academia. But we are stepping up to push for a revolution in academia. Individuals and groups affected by the hostile academic environment should unite.

By organizing to seek change, mothers put ourselves at the forefront of work to reshape academic culture. Our efforts extend beyond personal struggles — we are architects of a transformative movement. The struggle for change spearheaded by mothers yields benefits for the entire academic community."

Eds note: Check out some of our other posts about mothers in STEM:

• The Story Behind the Book, “MOTHERS IN ASTRONOMY" (September, 2023)
• Crosspost: The Impacts of Parenthood Are Not Equal (November, 2021))
  
• Crosspost: Survey: Impact of Parenthood on Career Progression in STEMM (October, 2020)
  
• A metric for workplace environment culture: How long do mothers nurse? (October, 2011)
  
• On Families and Conferences (September, 2011)
  
• A Journey though the “Milky Way”: Nursing past a year and astrophysics (June, 2011)
  
• Taking my own advice: Calling scientists who nursed past a year, please share! (April, 2011)

Resources:

• Mothers in Science
• Mothers in Astronomy e-book
• Policies and Practices for Supporting Family Caregivers Working in Science, Engineering, and Medicine

AASWomen Newsletter for May 3, 2024

Item 4: Jane Rigby

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of May 3, 2024
eds: Jeremy Bailin, Nicolle Zellner, Sethanne Howard, and Hannah Jang-Condell

[We hope you all are taking care of yourselves and each other. --eds.]

This week's issues:

1. AAS Committee on Employment and You! Services and Recent Updates
2. Singularities Review – The Telescope is on the Ladies
3. The Poetic Lives of Lost Women of Math and Science
4. AAS Trustee Jane Rigby Awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom
5. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter
6. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter
7. Access to Past Issues

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

AAS Committee on Employment and You! Services and Recent Updates

By Luisa Fernanda Zambrano-Marin, Emily Mason, Chelsea Sharon, and Julia Kamenetzky

The AAS Committee on Employment is here for you! What will you do for work once you complete your degree? How far up in the degree ladder are you interested in going? What branch of work would you want to go into? Here is a summary of what we have been up to this year to help you answer these questions and more!

The AAS Committee on Employment has been quite active updating our online resources and providing training to AAS members. We are composed of fourteen passionate members, led by Julia Kamenetzky from Westminster University; our charge is to

facilitate the professional development and employment of astronomers

at all career stages and on all career paths, and

to promote balance and fairness in the job market

Our most visible activities for the AAS community are workshops and splinter sessions at the winter AAS meetings. This year kicked off with the popular How to Give Great Presentations workshop, led by Rob Coyne and Kavitha Arur at the AAS 243 Winter meeting in New Orleans. Next came Beyond Academe, an awesome event showcasing diverse career paths beyond the traditional academic track. We had a panel discussion featuring NASA scientists, science communicators, and more, who painted a vivid picture of the possibilities for careers beyond academia. The roundtables, where 75 participants were guided by 20 expert facilitators, dove into specific career paths in an engaging exchange of ideas. The committee also sponsored the Software & Data Carpentries Workshops and the Astronomers Turned Data Scientists Splinter Session.

AAS Committee on Employment members (from left to right): Kavitha Arur, Quyen Hart, Julia Kamenetzky, Rica Sirbaugh French, and Amit Vishwas at the Beyond Academe Roundtable Discussion event at AAS 243 in New Orleans. Photo credit to Diane Frendak.

Our committee also works behind the scenes to support AAS members. The committee joined forces with AAS staff to provide feedback and suggestions for the revamp of the Job Register webpage, ensuring clarity and ease of use for both employers and job seekers. Members Emily Mason and Dave Principe have been conducting detailed textual analysis of job postings, in addition to our annual quantitative analysis of postings. 

We kept on with the redesign and update of the list of resources available at the AAS Career Resources webpage including the Academic Career Advice page! Updates to more resource pages will be available shortly. For a summary of the resources available to job seekers and those in charge of hiring (including resources to help ensure an equitable and fair search process) see Chelsea Sharon’s post on the AAS Digest. 

Collaboration is key. We actively engage with other AAS groups, such as the Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy and the AAS Education and Mentoring Specialist Tom Rice, fostering knowledge sharing and identifying areas of common interest. Additionally, we joined forces with the Beyond Academic Careers Advisory Committee (BACAC), aiming to amplify their collective impact. AAS Committee on Employment members also serve on the Meetings Task Force, the Early Career Engagement Task Force, and the AAS Workshop Task Force. 

Looking ahead, our main projects are to continue with popular workshops at AAS meetings. We plan to

• introduce a new Project Management workshop,
• nurture collaborations with BACAC and other AAS committees and task forces,
• keep analyzing job data,
• improve website access to career resources, and
• support international students' and employees’ special concerns.

The AAS Committee on Employment continues to support astronomers’ career aspirations worldwide. We seek to empower individuals at every career stage, foster collaboration, advocate for transparency within the field, and pave the way for a brighter future for the astronomy community.

AASWomen Newsletter for April 26, 2024

UN Women Regional Office for the Arab States workshop,
item 7. Credit: UN Women

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of April 26, 2024
eds: Jeremy Bailin, Nicolle Zellner, Sethanne Howard, and Hannah Jang-Condell

[We hope you all are taking care of yourselves and each other. --eds.]

This week's issues:

1. Cross-post: New study highlights what women in STEM want
2. AAS Members Elected as 2023 AAAS Fellows
3. Nominations Are Now Open for 2025 AAS Prizes
4. IAU Women in Astronomy Report
5. How can physics become more diverse?
6. Emmy Noether, Greatest Female Mathematician
7. A Simple Act of Defiance Can Improve Science for Women
8. Women in science during Arab American month
9. National Science Day 2024: 13 Indian Female Scientists
10. Where Are China’s Women in STEM?
11. Women of color still lag behind in STEM jobs, despite efforts to change
12. Meet Katya Echazarreta, the first Mexican-born woman to travel to space
13. NASA Participates in NCAA Women’s Championship Game
14. Job Opportunities
15. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter
16. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter
17. Access to Past Issues

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

Cross-post: New study highlights what women in STEM want

By Cindy Barth

Ellie Heo | Daily Trojan

A new survey of women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields finds that despite the fact that nearly 2 in 3 millennial, Gen X and Baby Boomer women working in STEM said they have seen gender equality improve during their careers, a number of long-standing challenges persist for most.

Among them: unconscious bias, workplace culture, and leadership and pay gaps. 

Read more at

https://www.bizjournals.com/bizwomen/news/profiles-strategies/2024/01/new-study-highlights-what-women-in-stem-want.html

Read the journal article at

https://www.mybiosource.com/learn/women-in-stem

Eds. note: In 2020, Kerry Couldridge, Commercial Partnership Manager and supporter of Code First Girls and Closing the Tech Diversity Gap, also wrote about what women in STEM want. She notes that "[e]mpowerment speeches and events are great for inspiring, motivating and bringing women in STEM together..." 

Read more at

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-women-stem-want-kerry-couldridge/ 

AASWomen Newsletter for April 19, 2024

Ellen Stofan Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of April 19, 2024
eds: Jeremy Bailin, Nicolle Zellner, Sethanne Howard, and Hannah Jang-Condell

[We hope you all are taking care of yourselves and each other. --eds.]

This week's issues:

1. Crosspost: Women at NASA Support Human Spaceflight
2. Global Star Party
3. Making Space for Women in Astronomy
4. Advancing gender equity within STEM fields
5. The Victorian Woman Who Chased Eclipses
6. Hackathon 3
7. Women end up doing the academic housework
8. Survey on financial scarcity and poverty
9. ‘Shrugging off failure is hard’: the $400-million grant setback that shaped the Smithsonian lead scientist’s career
10. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter
11. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter
12. Access to Past Issues

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

Women at NASA Support Human Spaceflight

By Nicolle Zellner

On April 12, the United Nations celebrated the International Day of Human Spaceflight in honor of Yuri Gagarin, a Soviet citizen. who conducted the first human space flight. This historic event opened the way for space exploration for the benefit of all humanity.

NASA has been the leader of human spaceflight in the United States, and women at all of the NASA centers and facilities have worked - for decades - to support those efforts. Here are just a few of them.

Teresa Kinney, NASA's first female chief engineer at the agency's Kennedy Space Center (KSC), is one of the managers working to put the Gateway lunar space station together in orbit around the Moon later in the 2020s. She says, ""If everybody thinks alike, you're not thinking about the problem correctly."

Read more at

https://www.space.com/nasa-1st-female-chief-engineer-gateway-moon

Kari Alvarado, is the lead management analyst and Dryden Aeronautical Test Range (DATR) asset manager at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, CA. Her advice? Never compare yourself to others. Only compare yourself to you and your own potential."

Read more at

https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/armstrong/womens-history-month-meet-kari-alvarado/

Gwendolyn Wheatle currently serves as the Administrative Assistant for the Office of STEM Engagement at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, VA. What started as a temporary, three-week clerical position supporting the Office of the Chief Scientist has blossomed into a 38-year career at NASA. She reminds us that you don’t have to have a degree in engineering or science to hold a position at NASA - no matter your degree, background, or experience, there is a place for you.

Read more at

https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/langley/langley-celebrates-womens-history-month-gwendolyn-wheatle/

Learn more! Women are making history at NASA every day, as the agency continues to drive innovation and push the envelope. Learn more at https://www.nasa.gov/women-at-nasa/.

AASWomen Newsletter for April 12, 2024

Item 2: Annie Maunder

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of April 12, 2024
eds: Jeremy Bailin, Nicolle Zellner, Sethanne Howard, and Hannah Jang-Condell

[We hope you all are taking care of yourselves and each other. --eds.]

This week's issues:

1. Career Profile: Jörg Matthias Determann Records Modern Science History
2. The Victorian Woman Who Chased Eclipses
3. Women end up doing the academic housework
4. Job Opportunities
5. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter
6. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter
7. Access to Past Issues

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

Career Profile: Jörg Matthias Determann Records Modern Science History

The AAS Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy has compiled dozens of interviews highlighting the diversity of career trajectories available to astronomers, planetary scientists, etc. The interviews share advice and lessons learned from individuals on those paths.

Below is our interview with Jörg Matthias Determann, a professor and historian of science in the Department of Liberal Arts & Sciences at Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar. He holds a doctorate from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, and two master’s degrees from the University of Vienna. He is the author of five books including Islam, Science Fiction and Extraterrestrial Life and Space Science and the Arab World. He is also co-editor of a volume on Islamic Theology and Extraterrestrial Life. In February 2024, we profiled his book Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Astronomy; see a summary here.

What were the most important factors that led you to study the history of science / astronomy?

Matthias in the Qatar National Library.
Credit: Kateryna Reshetova

My family was a very important factor. My paternal grandfather Fritz Determann was a mathematician who spent most of his career working for Carl Zeiss AG, inventing optical systems and developing software. Although mostly based in Germany, he also contributed to observatories in Iraq and Japan and to a planetarium in Denmark. Even decades after his retirement, he used Fortran to calculate orbits of satellites on his personal computer. Through countless conversations, he cultivated in me an interest in astronomy and science more generally. At the same time, other family members, including my mother Sibylle Determann (a trained historian), inspired me to study history. As an undergraduate at the University of Vienna in Austria and later as a graduate student at the University of London in the UK, I found out I could combine my interests in the natural and the social world by taking courses in the history of science.

How have you been able to parlay that interest into your career?

In 2013, a year after completing a doctoral thesis in history, I was very fortunate to be offered a faculty position in the Department of Liberal Arts & Sciences on the Qatar campus of Virginia Commonwealth University. This department has physicists, mathematicians, and scholars of the humanities all under one roof. It has been a perfect place for me as someone who has been interested in both history and science.

If you have made a career change, what was your age at the time?

My first job after my undergraduate education was to teach German at King Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. While I greatly enjoyed working at a university, I wanted to pursue history. After a year in this position, I thus enrolled in a doctoral program in history at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London.

What, if any, additional training did you complete in order to meet the qualifications?

During my graduate studies at the University of London, I completed a Graduate Teaching Assistant Training Programme accredited by the Higher Education Academy in the United Kingdom. This has provided me with a very useful basis for subsequent professional development as an educator.

Describe job hunting and networking resources you used and any other advice/resources.

As I was finishing my doctorate, I started applying for jobs in Europe, Asia and the Americas. After first gaining a postdoctoral position in Germany, I had interviews for faculty roles at universities in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. I would advise graduate students interested in an academic career to apply for jobs internationally as well.

What has been your career path since you completed your degree?

After completing my doctorate at the University of London in 2012, I was a postdoctoral researcher at Zentrum Modern Orient and Freie Universität Berlin. In 2013, I was lucky enough to become an assistant professor at Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar. I have been there ever since and was very grateful to be promoted to associate professor in 2019 and full professor in 2023.

What have been particularly valuable skills for your current job that you gained through completing your degree?

My doctoral studies gave me the skills of managing a multi-year research project and producing a book-length object as a result. This is what I still do, just on different topics.

At the University of Vienna's Astronomy library
during the covid-19 pandemic in 2021.

Describe a typical day at work.

As a historian, I probably spend more time in libraries and archives than a typical astronomer. However, as is the case for astrophysicists, my data increasingly exists in digital form. So, when I am not teaching in the classroom or meeting students and colleagues in my office or conference rooms, you probably find me sitting at my desk in front of my laptop. For good reason, my four-year-old daughter Maria’s mental image of me “at work” is me at my computer.

I am very lucky that neither I nor my boss count
my hours. However, I am working full-time with
added voluntary service. Additonally, my salary
is based on that of a full-time faculty member at Virginia Commonwealth University’s campuses in the United States. It is supplemented by different allowances in accordance with the laws of Qatar. I am highly satisfied with my job. I have had wonderful supervisors and departmental colleagues who have always supported my teaching, research and service. 

What are the most enjoyable aspects of your job and the work environment?

I love teaching the most. My classes at Virginia Commonwealth University are small, consisting of around fifteen students on average. This allows me to get to know my course participants very well. Many of them also continue to live in Doha after graduation and stay in touch with me. This gives me the chance to mentor them over many years.

Qatar has a very diverse population, which is also reflected in the body of students and employees on Virginia Commonwealth University’s campus. I have had colleagues from all continents and many different religions. Moreover, VCU’s building is part of an Education City that also includes branches of other American universities, such as Cornell, Georgetown and Northwestern. I am thus in close proximity to other excellent institutions with interdisciplinary programming. Between 2019 and 2023, I was a guest lecturer at a seminar at Georgetown University entitled “Interstellar Relations: Science Fiction and Politics,” for example.

What opportunities does your job provide to be creative and/or to take initiative?

I am blessed with many opportunities for creative initiatives that bridge different disciplines. In 2022, for example, I hosted a conference on “Islamic Perspectives on Exotheology” which resulted in an edited volume entitled Islamic Theology and Extraterrestrial Life: New Frontiers in Science and Religion.

Tell us a little bit about work-life balance. What advice do you have for achieving work-life balance (including having a family)?

Matthias' daughter at the Al Thuraya
Planetarium in Doha (2021).

I am very satisfied with my work-life balance. Although parts of the academic year can get very busy with teaching and service opportunities, I have downtimes during breaks. My book on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Astronomy was a multi-year project, and in between the different deadlines, I had considerable flexibility in how to manage my time.

As for advice, don’t procrastinate and get your work done early so that you can fully enjoy other activities! As for having children, my wife Jeanne Vaz, who has always worked full-time as well, would say: “Focus on the reality you want and then work towards that.” I have always wanted a child whom I could take to my office or to a lecture. From an early age, we thus cultivated discipline in our daughter Maria, including the ability to sit quietly for long periods and draw. At the same time, we stimulated her interest in astronomical topics, so that she would not get bored when listening to a presentation of mine. Her bedroom is space-themed and her shelves full of children’s books about science and science fiction.

How family-friendly is your current position?

My position is very family-friendly. I am on a generous expatriate contract that includes medical insurance and an annual travel allowance for my wife and daughter. I enjoy long summer breaks from teaching and administrative meetings, which coincide with my daughter’s school holidays in July and August. Finally, my work does not require much travel, as I am able to gather most data for my research via the Virginia Commonwealth University libraries, the Qatar National Library and the internet. Virtually all of my interviews for my book on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Astronomy were conducted remotely.

What do you do for fun (e.g., hobbies, pastimes, etc.)?

I love swimming. In Qatar, it is warm enough for outdoor water sports for much of the year. The infrastructure in the country is excellent too, with professional facilities built for the 2006 Asian Games and the 2024 World Aquatics Championships. Science fiction in its different media, from literature to film and video games, has been a hobby as well as professional interest of mine. I greatly enjoy reading children’s science fiction books to my daughter Maria. In my volume on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Astronomy, you will find many references to Star Trek.

Can we include your email address for people who may want to contact you directly about your specific career route?

Yes, please. My email address is jmdetermann_at_vcu.edu. They can also get in touch with me via social media. I am on X (formerly Twitter) at @JMDetermann and on Instagram at @jmdetermann.

Check out more of Matthias' work:

• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Astronomy: A Modern History (2023)
• CSWA post cross-link to book summary
• A history of anti-racism in science (2023)
• Just astronomy (2021)
• Islam, Science Fiction and Extraterrestrial Life: The Culture of Astrobiology in the Muslim World (2021)
• Transcending Middle East conflict in the space race (2020)
• Space Science and the Arab World: Astronauts, Observatories and Nationalism in the Middle East (2018)
  

AASWomen Newsletter for April 5, 2024

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of April 5, 2024
eds: Jeremy Bailin, Nicolle Zellner, Sethanne Howard, and Hannah Jang-Condell

[We hope you all are taking care of yourselves and each other. --eds.]

This week's issues:
1. Sexism in academia wastes public funding and is bad for science 
2. Women Eclipse Chasers
3. Meet 5 women pushing the boundaries through NOAA’s work in space 4. Meet the Two Women Leading Space Station Science 
5. We asked over 50 women space leaders for words of inspiration. Here's what they told us 
6. The State of Girls in STEM: A Conversation to Plan Action
7. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter
8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter
9. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

Sexism in academia wastes public funding and is bad for science

By Nicolle Zellner

In their article for Nature Reviews Materials, Sexism in academia is bad for science and a waste of public funding, Nicole Boivin, Susanne Täuber, Ulrike Beisiegel, Ursula Keller, and Janet Hering write that higher education and research institutions "are critical to the well-being and success of societies, meaning their financial support is strongly in the public interest. At the same time, value-for-money principles demand that such investment delivers. Unfortunately, these principles are currently violated by one of the biggest sources of public funding inefficiency: sexism."

Using cross-European-Union data, the article describes stages where women leave the fields of science and the subsequest compounding economic losses.

Read more at

https://www.nature.com/natrevmats

Image Credit: Chemistry World

Further reading:

• Taking the Long View on Sexism in Science by Pat Lee Shipman (American Scientist, 2015)
• What science has gotten wrong by ignoring women by Catherine Zuckerman (National Geographic, 2018)
• Racism and Sexism in Science Haven’t Disappeared by Naomi Oreskes (Scientific American, 2020)
• Don’t get mad, get equal: putting an end to misogyny in science by Alison Bentley & Rachael Garrett (Nature, 2023)

AASWomen Newsletter for March 29, 2024

First Russian cosmonauts who were women

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of March 29, 2024
eds: Jeremy Bailin, Nicolle Zellner, Sethanne Howard, and Hannah Jang-Condell

[We hope you all are taking care of yourselves and each other. --eds.]

This week's issues:

1. Crosspost: How Charlotte Moore Sitterly Wrote The Encyclopedia of Starlight
2. 365 Days of Astronomy podcast for HAD
3. Highlighting the Trailblazing Women of Spaceflight in 2024
4. Gender Diversity in Physics Classes Benefits Men and Women
5. Meet 7 women who broke barriers in the field of astronomy and beyond
6. Emily Roebling
7. Are we doing enough for women of colour in science
8. FAMOUS Travel Grants to Promote Diversity at AAS Meetings
9. AAS CSMA Astro Poverty Survey
10. Notice of Upcoming Request for Proposals: TEAM-UP Together Departmental Program
11. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter
12. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter
13. Access to Past Issues

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

Crosspost: How Charlotte Moore Sitterly Wrote The Encyclopedia of Starlight

By Elizabeth Landau, for Smithsonian Magazine

Charlotte Moore Sitterly working at her desk at the
National Bureau of Standards in Washington, D.C.
Image Credit: Michael Duncan via the M.D. Moore Family

Charlotte Moore could smell the coal burning in the furnace below her back-room workspace at the Princeton University Observatory. With a meager starting salary of $100 per month, she worked as a “computer” for the famous astronomer Henry Norris Russell, helping with calculations to describe how stars evolve and what kinds of materials burn inside them. Her boss’s mind seemed to run too quickly for anyone to follow, and the short, quiet woman he hired fresh out of college in 1920 was initially overwhelmed.

“I felt that he must think that I was the most ignorant person that ever showed up at his house,” she told space historian David DeVorkin in 1978.

At a time when few women had opportunities in the physical sciences, and fewer still received recognition for their efforts, Charlotte Moore Sitterly, as she was known after her marriage, was a pioneer in a field that has touched nearly all scientific disciplines: spectroscopy. 

Read more about the woman who worked tirelessly for decades to measure the makeup of the sun and the stars at

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/how-charlotte-moore-sitterly-wrote-encyclopedia-starlight-180973152/?

AASWomen Newsletter for March 22, 2024

Katherine Johnson, item 2.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of March 22, 2024
eds: Jeremy Bailin, Nicolle Zellner, Sethanne Howard, and Hannah Jang-Condell

[We hope you all are taking care of yourselves and each other. --eds.]

This week's issues:

1. Alenush Terian: The the “Mother of Modern Iranian Astronomy”
2. Study finds media coverage focused on NASA mathematician's achievements, but treated discrimination as past problem
3. Margaret Hamilton: the woman who sent humans to the moon
4. What Are Stars Made Of? Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin Discovered It First
5. Women in STEM: Representation Matters
6. Connecting girls in Brazil to inspiring female scientists
7. How a woman in science is using her background to inspire girls to get into STEM
8. Job Opportunities
9. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter
10. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter
11. Access to Past Issues

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

Alenush Terian: The “Mother of Modern Iranian Astronomy”

Excerpted from IranWire

Alenush Terian at Sorbonne University (Credit: IranWire)

She is called the “Mother of Modern Iranian Astronomy” and for good reason: she was a cofounder of the first solar observatory in Iran and the first female professor of physics in the country. Her achievements become much more impressive once we learn that, besides being a woman in a patriarchal society, she also belonged to a religious and ethnic minority.

Alenush Terian was born in Tehran on November 9, 1920, to an Armenian family. Her father, Arto Terian, and mother, Varto Terian, were two famous faces in the city’s Armenian theater. Arto owned a drama workshop and had studied theater and acted in Moscow. Varto was a graduate of literature and rhetoric and became one of the first Iranian women to direct a play.

Her parents supported her choice of engaging in a different career path, Alenush said in an interview: "My parents had a very clear and modern mindset, and weren’t the type to prevent me from studying or impose a certain field of study on me. Since they were artists and I had some writing experience, they had hoped I would pursue a degree in literature. But when they found out that I wanted to study physics, they didn’t show any opposition, and always encouraged and supported me on this path."

Read more at

https://iranwire.com/en/women/123156-iranian-influential-women-alenush-terian-1920-2011/

AASWomen Newsletter for March 15, 2024

Francesca Primas, Full Astronomer at ESO.
Item 4, credit: ESO

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of March 15, 2024
eds: Jeremy Bailin, Nicolle Zellner, Sethanne Howard, and Hannah Jang-Condell

[We hope you all are taking care of yourselves and each other. --eds.]

This week's issues:

1. Cross-post: They were astronomers
2. Call for SGMA Committee Members
3. NA-ROAD Women and Girls in Astronomy Program
4. Francesca Primas recognised for promoting gender equity
5. ASTRON Director Jessica Dempsey: 'The time when we didn't want women in science is over'
6. Dr. Patricia (Trish) Henning: Leading the Way in Radio Astronomy
7. Discover the pioneering woman scientist who mapped the moon
8. Interviews with women at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center
9. Canadian Physics Counts: An exploration of the diverse identities of physics students and professionals in Canada
10. Indigenous women find their stride in physics
11. Why retaining women in science is a major challenge
12. There is no cookie cutter female scientist
13. Hundreds of Upcoming Women Scientists Call for More Inclusivity in STEM
14. Job Opportunities
15. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter
16. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter
17. Access to Past Issues

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

Cross-post: They were astronomers

By Kristine Palmieri for Physics Today

Some of the female employees, graduate students, and volunteer researchers at
Yerkes Observatory in the summer of 1916. Names and image credit in the link below.

In astronomy, there was a strong demand for educated women, who were hired as human computers at facilities such as the Royal Greenwich Observatory in London; the Harvard College Observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts; and Mount Wilson Observatory near Pasadena, California (5). But their work was routine and required only a basic knowledge of mathematics, not advanced astronomical or astrophysical training. Those observatories hired women because they provided cheap and reliable labor. At Greenwich, for example, calculations had previously been carried out by boys (6). And at Dudley Observatory in Albany, New York, women without college degrees were preferred precisely because they were cheaper (7).

At Yerkes Observatory, however, a different system emerged. Because it was attached to the University of Chicago, which was coed from its foundation in 1890, women astronomers at Yerkes always had the opportunity to obtain advanced degrees. Emily Dobbin became the first woman to earn an MS in astronomy from the university in 1903. Her thesis, “The orbit of the fifth satellite of Jupiter,” was published in the Astronomical Journal the following year (8).

Yerkes was also unique because its location in the southern Wisconsin village of Williams Bay made it accessible. Not only was the municipality the last stop on a train line that connected the town with Chicago, but the observatory’s proximity to the community also enabled women to find respectable accommodations nearby. That was unusual. 

Read more at

https://pubs.aip.org/physicstoday/article/76/11/42/2918346/They-were-astronomersUnlike-at-most-other

See also

Photo essay: The untold history of women at Yerkes Observatory

References (from original story)

5. P. E. Mack, J. Hist. Astron. 21, 65 (1990), https://doi.org/10.1177/002182869002100108; M. T. Brück, Q. J. R. Astron. Soc. 36, 83 (1995); E.-J. Ahn, Hist. Stud. Nat. Sci. 52, 555 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1525/hsns.2022.52.5.555. 

6. Ref. 5, M. T. Brück, p. 85.

7. J. Lankford, American Astronomy: Community, Careers, and Power, 1859–1940, U. Chicago Press (1997), p. 339.  

8. E. E. Dobbin, Astron. J. 24, 83 (1904). https://doi.org/10.1086/103567.

AASWomen Newsletter for March 8, 2024

AAS Committee on the Status of Women
Issue of March 8, 2024
eds: Jeremy Bailin, Nicolle Zellner, Sethanne Howard, and Hannah Jang-Condell

[In celebration of International Women's Day, we thank the women in our lives for all they do.  --eds.]

Ruby Payne-Scott
(Image Credit: Hall Family) 

This week's issues:

1. Cross-post: The Forgotten Star of Radio Astronomy
2. Unveiling Gender Imbalance, Efforts, and Consequences in Astronomy 
3. Women and Girls in Astronomy Program: 2024 Call for Proposals
4. Women of NASA Langley Research Center
5. Simone Daro Gossner
6. Nature publishes too few papers from women researchers — that must change
7. Save the Date for the October 15-16 2024 Public Summit on Preventing Sexual Harassment! 
8. Call for Presentations for Public Summit on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education
9. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter
10. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter
11. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter

An online version of this newsletter will be available at http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ at 3:00 PM ET every Friday.

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1. Cross-post: The Forgotten Star of Radio Astronomy
From: Nicolle Zellner via womeninastronomy.blogspot.com

Australian physicist Ruby Payne-Scott helped lay the groundwork for a whole new kind of astronomy: radio astronomy. By scanning the skies for radio waves instead of the light waves that we can see with our eyes, Payne-Scott and her colleagues opened a new window into the universe and transformed the way we explore it. But to keep her job as a woman working for the Australian government in the 1940s, Payne-Scott had to keep a pretty big secret.

Read more at 

https://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/2024/03/cross-post-forgotten-star-of-radio.html

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2. Unveiling Gender Imbalance, Efforts, and Consequences in Astronomy  
From: John Leibacher <jleibacher_at_nso.edu>

In celebration of International Women's Day, the IAU Women in Astronomy (WiA) Working Group (WG) is excited to organize the event: "Unveiling Gender Imbalance, Efforts, and Consequences in Astronomy." This initiative aims to acknowledge both permanent and contractual researchers who have made exceptional contributions to advancing gender equality in Astronomy, encompassing achievements in research, mentorship, and advocacy. Our objective is to honor individuals who consistently foster a supportive environment for every member of our community.

The event will take place online via Zoom on 8th March 2024, from 13:30 to 15:30 CET and it will be recorded.

Information about the session can be found at

https://forms.gle/KpsVLVJeFm5YFTUq6

Learn more about the special WiA WG session and view the recording at 

https://sites.google.com/view/iau-women-in-astronomy/home

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3. Women and Girls in Astronomy Program: 2024 Call for Proposals
From: Yasmin Catricheo <YCatricheo_at_aui.edu>

The Women and Girls in Astronomy Program (WGAP) inspires and supports women, girls, and underrepresented genders in the field of astronomy. The program, implemented by the NA-ROAD, targets aspiring astronomers and current professionals alike to establish a network to uplift, educate, connect with, and promote astronomy for development in women and girls.

The Program is looking to fund 10 projects that use astronomy for development activities to promote, support, and uplift women and girls in the field. Qualifying projects must align with at least one of the NA-ROAD’s five Strategic Goals 1 through 5, and take place in Canada, United States, the Caribbean, Mexico, or Greenland. Projects are encouraged to approach astronomy from a unique lens, including, but not limited to, scientific, social, technical, cultural, and artistic perspectives.

Learn more and apply at

https://naroad.astro4dev.org/na-road-projects/women-and-girls-astronomy-program/

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4. Women of NASA Langley Research Center
From: Nicolle Zellner [nzellner_at_albion.edu]

By Monika Luabeya

In honor of Women’s History Month and those who paved the way for them, hundreds of female staff – from artists to administrative support, educators to engineers, and scientists to safety officers – gathered in front of the Katherine G. Johnson Computational Research Facility at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, on Feb. 6, 2024.

See the picture and read more at

https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/women-of-nasa-langley-research-center/

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5. Simone Daro Gossner 
From: Sethanne Howard <sethanneh_at_msn.com>

Since I was Chief of the Nautical Almanac Office, Gossner is an important part of my history.

Simone Daro Gossner (1920–2002) was a Belgian-American astronomer who specialized in eclipses at the Nautical Almanac Office of the United States Naval Observatory. She received her education in Brussels. During World War II, when the universities in Brussels were closed due to the German occupation, she became an underground teacher. In 1946, she was brought to Radcliffe College in the United States through a program by the American Association of University Women, which aimed to provide educational opportunities for young women affected by the war.

Read more at

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simone_Daro_Gossner

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6. Nature publishes too few papers from women researchers — that must change
From: Nicolle Zellner [nzellner_at_albion.edu]

By The Editors

This journal will double down on efforts to diversify the pool of corresponding authors and referees.

During the period analysed, some 10% of corresponding authors preferred not to disclose their gender. Of the remainder, just 17% identified as women — barely an increase on the 16% we found in 2018, albeit using a less precise methodology. By comparison, women made up 31.7% of all researchers globally in 2021, according to figures from the United Nations science, education and cultural organization UNESCO (see go.nature.com/3wgdasb).

Read more at

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00640-5

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7. Save the Date for the October 15-16 2024 Public Summit on Preventing Sexual Harassment! 
From: John Leibacher <jleibacher_at_nso.edu>

The 2024 Public Summit will take place on October 15-16, 2024 at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan, with the option of attending virtually or in-person. The Public Summit of the National Academies’ Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education is an open forum for those in the higher education ecosystem to collaboratively identify, discuss, and elevate innovative and promising approaches and new research on addressing and preventing sexual harassment. This annual event brings together a diverse group, including members and partner network organizations of the Action Collaborative, the broader higher education community, sexual harassment researchers and response practitioners, grassroots and nonprofit organizations, public and private foundations, and federal and state policymakers.

Learn more at

https://www.nationalacademies.org/event/42244_10-2024_action-collaborative-on-preventing-sexual-harassment-in-higher-education-2024-public-summit

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8. Call for Presentations for Public Summit on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education
From: John Leibacher <jleibacher_at_nso.edu>

The Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education invites submissions for presentations, posters, and sessions on practices to address and prevent sexual harassment in higher education and research that can help inform such practices. Individuals across higher education and those that want to contribute to the discussion around preventing sexual harassment in higher education are encouraged to submit about their work, ideas, and research so it can be included at the Action Collaborative’s Annual Public Summit. The submission deadline is Friday, June 7, 2024.

For more information, please see

https://www.nationalacademies.org/event/42244_10-2024_action-collaborative-on-preventing-sexual-harassment-in-higher-education-2024-public-summit 

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9. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter

To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_lists.aas.org .

All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.

When submitting a job posting for inclusion in the newsletter, please include a one-line description and a link to the full job posting.

Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.

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11. Access to Past Issues

http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/search/label/AASWOMEN