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Ada Margaret Brayton

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Ada Margaret Brayton was a life member of the American Astronomical Society, and co-author of the monumental book, Spectroscopic Absolute Magnitudes and Distances of 4719 Stars that increased the number of stars of known distance one hundred-fold.

Early life

Ada Margaret Brayton was born in Nebraska, the daughter of Franklin B. Brayton and Grace Treloar.[1]

Career

The top of the 150-Foot Solar Tower Observatory on Mt. Wilson

She was a member of the staff of Mount Wilson Observatory, the Astronomical Computer Department of stellar spectroscopy. She was a life member of the American Astronomical Society and member of the Archaeological Society of New Mexico.[1] In 1920 she found that the radial velocity of the star Boss 3644 was variable thanks to her measures of three spectrograms made with the 60-inch reflector and single prism spectrograph.[2] In 1935, Brayton, together with Walter Sydney Adams, Alfred H. Joy (1882-1973), and Milton La Salle Humason (1891-1972), published a monumental book, Spectroscopic Absolute Magnitudes and Distances of 4719 Stars that increased the number of stars of known distance by one hundred-fold.[3]

She was an accredited teacher, translator and interpreter of Spanish.[1]

She was the first vice-president of California Federation of Business & Professional Women's Clubs and president of Pasadena Business and Professional Women's Club from 1928 to 1929.[4][1][5]

She was the president of the Pasadena Chapter of the Grenfell Association of America.[1]

She was a member of the Lucretia Garfield Circle and the Ladies of G. A. R.[1]

Personal life

She lived at 469 Ladera Street, Pasadena, California,[1] with her brother, Wilbur Newman Brayton (died 1940), a veteran of World War I.[6]

Legacy

In 1924 The Ada Margaret Brayton Endowment Fund of $20,000.00 ($279,112.14 in 2017)[7] was established to be used for the best interest of the California Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs, Inc. [8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Binheim, Max; Elvin, Charles A (1928). Women of the West; a series of biographical sketches of living eminent women in the eleven western states of the United States of America. p. 26. Retrieved 8 August 2017.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. ^ Duncan, J. C. "No. 212. The spectroscopic binary Boss 3644 Virginis". SAO/NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS). Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  3. ^ Trimble, Virginia; Williams, Thomas R.; Bracher, Katherine; Jarrell, Richard; Marché, Jordan D.; Ragep, F. Jamil (2007). Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 14. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  4. ^ "Past State Presidents". CFBPW. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  5. ^ "Women's Clubs Name Officers - 11 Sep 1928, Tue • Page 12". Oakland Tribune: 12. 1928. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  6. ^ "Legion to Officate at Veteran's Funeral - 29 Jun 1940, Sat • Page 15". The Los Angeles Times: 15. 1940. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  7. ^ "DollarTimes". Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  8. ^ The business woman. San Francisco Business and Professional Women's Club. 1924. Retrieved 3 October 2017.