Barbara A. Williams
Barbara A. Williams | |
|---|---|
| Alma mater | University of North Carolina at Greensboro University of Maryland, College Park |
| Known for | Radio astronomy |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | University of Delaware University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University of North Carolina at Greensboro |
| Doctoral advisor | Frank John Kerr |
Barbara Ann Williams is an American radio astronomer who was the first African-American woman to earn a PhD in astronomy (University of Maryland, College Park, 1981). Her research largely focused on compact galaxy groups, in particular observations of their emissions in the H I region in order to build up a larger scale picture of the structure and evolution of galaxies. Williams was named as the Outstanding Young Woman of America in 1986. She is a retired associate professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Delaware.
Early life and education
[edit]Williams earned her bachelor's degree in physics at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.[1] She moved to the University of Maryland, College Park for her graduate studies, earning a Master's and PhD in the field of radio astronomy in 1981.[2][3] She was a member of Phi Beta Kappa academic honor society. Williams was the first African-American woman to earn a PhD in astronomy.[1] She studied elliptical galaxies using HI emissions.[4] She returned to the University of North Carolina at Greensboro as a research associate, where she worked until 1984. In 1984 Williams was appointed as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She spent a year as a NASA-American Society for Engineering Education summer faculty member at the Goddard Space Flight Center.[5] She was named as the 1986 Outstanding Young Woman of America.[5]
Career
[edit]Williams's research focused on radio astronomy and the study of galaxies.[6][7] She used radio waves to examine groups of galaxies with compact cores[8][9][10][11] and HI emissions to study several galaxies, including the IC 698 group.[12][13] Williams's work on the Hickson Compact Group of galaxies established that atomic gases must undergo a phase transformation to result in the observed HI deficiency.[14] She used VLA neutral hydrogen imaging of compact galaxy groups.[15][16]
Williams was made an associate professor at the University of Delaware in 1986.[1] There, Williams later studied educational research[17] and in particular strategies to retain women in physics.[18] Williams is a Fellow of the National Society of Black Physicists.[19]
Along with Sheella Mierson, Williams was the co-principal investigator of a study on problem-based learning in introductory sciences, in the Center for Teaching Effectiveness, University of Delaware.[20]
External links
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c "ASTRONOMERS of the African Diaspora (1997-05-27)". www.math.buffalo.edu. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
- ^ Ph.D, Omoviekovwa A. Nakireru (2010-04-19). The Physics Queen: Authorized Biography of Dr. Elvira Louvenia Williams. Xlibris Corporation. ISBN 9781450080965.
- ^ "The Physicists – AAWIP". Retrieved 2019-01-15.
- ^ Knapp, G. R.; Kerr, F. J.; Williams, B. A. (1978). "H I observations of elliptical galaxies". The Astrophysical Journal. 222: 800. Bibcode:1978ApJ...222..800K. doi:10.1086/156199.
- ^ a b "Women in Astronomy 2009 - Invited Speakers". attic.gsfc.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
- ^ simioju (2012-07-26). "Black women making their mark in space and science (SLIDESHOW) - Page 2 of 2". theGrio. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
- ^ "W-Z - Women in Astronomy: A Comprehensive Bibliography (Science Reference Services, Library of Congress)". www.loc.gov. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
- ^ Carey, Charles W. (2008). African Americans in Science: An Encyclopedia of People and Progress. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 9781851099986.
- ^ "DELAWARE ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY: DAS MONTHLY PROGRAMS - 1984 to Date" (PDF). www.eecis.udel.edu. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
- ^ Williams, B. A. (March 1985). "MKW 10 - A group of galaxies with a compact core". The Astrophysical Journal. 290: 462. Bibcode:1985ApJ...290..462W. doi:10.1086/163004. ISSN 0004-637X.
- ^ Rood, Herbert J.; Williams, B. A. (April 1989). "The neighborhood of a compact group of galaxies". The Astrophysical Journal. 339: 772. Bibcode:1989ApJ...339..772R. doi:10.1086/167335. ISSN 0004-637X.
- ^ Williams, B. A. (August 1983). "The IC 698 group of galaxies". The Astrophysical Journal. 271: 461. Bibcode:1983ApJ...271..461W. doi:10.1086/161213. ISSN 0004-637X.
- ^ Mardirossian, F.; Giuricin, G.; Mezetti, M. (2012-12-06). Clusters and Groups of Galaxies: International Meeting Held in Trieste Italy, September 13–16, 1983. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 9789400964129.
- ^ Verdes-Montenegro, L.; Yun, M.S.; Williams, B. A.; Huchtmeier, W. K.; Del Olmo, A.; Perea, J. (2001-10-01). "Where is the neutral atomic gas in Hickson groups?". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 377 (3): 812–826. arXiv:astro-ph/0108223. Bibcode:2001A&A...377..812V. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20011127. ISSN 0004-6361. S2CID 14562994.
- ^ Williams, B. A.; McMahon, P. M.; van Gorkom, J. H. (June 1991). "VLA neutral hydrogen imaging of compact groups of galaxies. II - HCG 31, 44, and 79". The Astronomical Journal. 101: 1957. Bibcode:1991AJ....101.1957W. doi:10.1086/115820. ISSN 0004-6256.
- ^ Williams, B. A.; Rood, Herbert J. (February 1987). "Neutral hydrogen in compact groups of galaxies". The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series. 63: 265. Bibcode:1987ApJS...63..265W. doi:10.1086/191165. ISSN 0067-0049.
- ^ "NSF Award Search: Award#0089408 - Problem-Based Learning and Physics: Developing problem solving skills in all students". www.nsf.gov. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
- ^ Williams, Barbara A.; Taylor, Beverley A. P.; Shaw, Kimberly A.; Butler, Heather Z.; Blaha, Cynthia A.; Allen, Patricia E.; Duncombe, Margaret L.; Dorato, Shannon R.; Whitten, Barbara L. (2007). "What Works for Women in Undergraduate Physics and What We Can Learn from Women's Colleges". Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering. 13 (1): 37–76. Bibcode:2007JWMSE..13...37W. doi:10.1615/JWomenMinorScienEng.v13.i1.30. ISSN 1072-8325.
- ^ "NSBP Fellows". www.nsbp.org. Retrieved 2020-06-10.
- ^ "Problem-Based Learning in Introductory Science Across Disciplines". www1.udel.edu. 2022-04-29. Retrieved 2022-04-29.