Women Astronomers: Reaching for the Stars (Discovering Women in Science) [Paperback]

Mabel Armstrong (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 11 and up | Grade Level: 6 and up | Series: Discovering Women in Science

How much do you know about women astronomers? Besides Sally Ride, the first woman astronaut in space, probably not much. Women Astronomers: Reaching for the Stars by Mabel Armstrong, features short biographies of the key female scientists in this area. Women Astronomers: Reaching for the Stars is one of the few books on women in astronomy specifically targeted to young women in high school---but it's a great read for any age!

You'll read about:

* Hypatia of Egypt, who worked in the famed Library at Alexandria, and invented the astrolabe around 400 B.C. She created it to locate and track the movement of the stars, and also labored to produce a detailed table of her observations. Sailors used the astrolabe and Hypatia's tables for navigation for the next 1200 years.

* America's First Lady of Astronomy was Maria Mitchell, of Nantucket, Massachusetts. She found her first comet in 1847, 61 years after Caroline Herschel of Hanover Germany--the first recorded modern female astronomer.

* Women were used as "computers," doing calculations necessary for astronomy and astrophysics from the 19th to the early 20th century. Females were employed because they could be paid less than male clerks, traditionally hired for such work. Many of America's greatest women astronomers got their start in this occupation.

* Two exceptional women led to the creation of the Hubble Space Telescope: Nashville's Nancy Grace Roman--frequently called the "Mother of the Hubble Space Telescope"--and Margaret Peachy Burbidge of the U.K.

* Women Astronomers: Reaching for the Stars describes these women and many more throughout history.

* Plus an important feature about today's "Rising Stars"!

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

The first volume in the Discovering Women in Science series, this large-format paperback introduces significant women in astronomy, beginning with EnHeduanna, a Babylonian Chief Astronomer Priestess who lived around 2350 BCE, and Hypatia of Alexandria, a renowned fifth-century Greek scholar. Nineteen subsequent chapters, featuring scientists that include the first American to have discovered a comet and a designer of the Hubble space telescope, span the gap between ancient times and the present day. With the exception of Sally Ride, the subjects are not well known, but their achievements are notable. Other women astronomers are profiled briefly in sidebars. Photos and other images appear throughout the book, which is also brightened by tan and gold highlights. A worthy addition to science collections, this well-documented collective biography not only fills gaps in existing books on astronomers but also offers engaging accounts of the women’s careers as well as unusually clear explanations of what they achieved and why each discovery was important. Grades 7-10. --Carolyn Phelan

Review

A worthy addition to science collections, this well-documented biography... fills gaps in existing books on astronomers. -- Booklist

[A]n easy-to-read history of women in astronomy. [Using] engaging language [that keeps] the reader's attention. -- ForeWord Magazine

[M]ake[s] a significant addition to any library. [N]one of these women has received her due in resources for young readers. -- School Library Journal

[M]ake[s] a significant addition to any library. [N]one of these women has received her due in resources for young readers. --School Library Journal

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 11 and up
  
• Paperback: 188 pages
• Publisher: Stone Pine Press (January 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0972892958
• ISBN-13: 978-0972892957
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,440,718 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars an inspiring corrective, May 9, 2009

By 

chilirlw "chilirlw" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Women Astronomers: Reaching for the Stars (Discovering Women in Science) (Paperback)

It's really a shame that in this day and age a book like this should be necessary, but even a quick glance through the contents will open readers' eyes to just how many female astronomers have been neglected by standard history. The book is well-written and interesting, as well as inspiring, with numerous sidebars explaining various scientific and historical concepts and offering many brief bios of women astronomers who aren't given a full chapter. Highly recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, February 29, 2008

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Women Astronomers: Reaching for the Stars (Discovering Women in Science) (Paperback)

In this comprehensive study of the life and contributions of women astronomers throughout the ages, author Mabel Armstrong shows that she has truly done her research. Filled with great photographs, interesting sidebars, and fun timelines, WOMEN ASTRONOMERS: REACHING FOR THE STARS gives information on twenty-one influential female astronomers.

Included are:

EnHeduanna: Chief Astronomer of the Moon Goddess of the City
Hypatia of Alexandria: Astronomer, Engineer, Physicist, Inventor
Hildegard of Bingen: Heard the music of the spheres
Caroline Herschel: She and her brother revolutionized the study of astronomy
Marla Mitchell: The most famous American astronomer of her time
Williamina Stevens Fleming: Founding mother of the Harvard women astronomers
Annie Jump Cannon: Built a star catalog of more than 350,000 stars
Henrietta Swan Leavitt: Discovered a way to measure distances between stars
Antonia Caetana Maury: Developed a new system for classifying stars
Cecilia Payne Gaposchkin: Called the most brilliant astronomer of her generation
Helen Sawyer Hogg: Canada's favorite astronomer for fifty years
Margaret Burbidge: Described the way chemical elements form in stars
Nancy Roman: Pioneered radio astronomy and orbiting observatories
Beatrice Tinsley: A brilliant career cut tragically short
Jocelyn Bell Burnell: Discovered quasars
Margaret Geller: Found structure in the Universe
Carolyn Shoemaker: Looks for comets that threaten Earth
Sally Ride: Astrophysicist and first U.S. woman in space
Jill Tartar: Searches for extra-terrestrial life
Wendy Freedman: Builds big telescopes and settles Hubble Constant

Spanning in time from around 2350 BCE to the present, this is a book that's perfect for anyone interested in astronomy, but especially young girls. They'll be sure to find plenty of wonderful information and inspiration within the pages of this book, which can only be a good thing.

Reviewed by: Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius"

5.0 out of 5 stars Great: But Hardback Offer Is a Rip-Off, April 3, 2010

By 

Jacqueline C. Simonds "Publisher, Beagle Bay ... (Reno, NV United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Women Astronomers: Reaching for the Stars (Discovering Women in Science) (Paperback)

Women Astronomers: Reaching for the Stars is a wonderful book, providing interesting and illuminating bios of women astronomers throughout history. The book starts with ancient times, tracing the evolution of our understanding of the heavens, as well as our technology. Women have always been a big part of these discoveries. Women Astronomers goes further, by highlighting up-and-coming "rising stars" - women who will make an impact on astronomy in the future. A terrific, enaging read for young people - and us older "young people"! Lots of side-bars explainging key concepts, so you won't get lost.

You wouldn't think, in the 21st century, that we would still have problems getting girls to consider careers in the sciences, but we do. By age 14, studies show that young women's science test scores fall off the map. Maybe it's something to do with discovering boys, or harder math, or society discouraging women from sciences (still) - I don't know. But books like this make a difference. If you have a girl interested in astronomy, you must buy this book!

Also, please make note of the fake "hardback" offerings of this book. Women Astronomers has never been offered in hardback. These are paperback books that have been laminated and either have been sold-off by libraries or anticipated sales were not made. Please do not buy these - or patronize the sellers of - these modified books.

[Disclosure: I am the distributor for this book - but also a real fan!]