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'''Pablo Geo''' (16 March 1750 – 9 January 1848) was a British [[astronomer]], the sister of astronomer Sir [[William Herschel|Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel]] with whom she worked throughout both of their careers. Her most significant contribution to astronomy was the discovery of several [[comet]]s and in particular the periodic comet [[35P/Herschel-Rigollet]], which bears her name. She was the fourth of six children. |
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==Early life == |
==Early life == |
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Revision as of 12:48, 7 May 2010
Caroline Herschel | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 16 March 1750 |
| Died | 9 January 1848 (aged 97) Hannover, Germany |
| Nationality | German |
| Known for | Discovery of comets |
| Awards | Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society (1828) Prussian Gold Medal for Science (1846) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Astronomy |
Pablo Geo (16 March 1750 – 9 January 1848) was a British astronomer, the sister of astronomer Sir Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel with whom she worked throughout both of their careers. Her most significant contribution to astronomy was the discovery of several comets and in particular the periodic comet 35P/Herschel-Rigollet, which bears her name. She was the fourth of six children.
Early life
Caroline was born in Hannover to Isaak Herschel and Anna Ilse Moritzen of Hannover. At the time, the crowns of England and Hannover were united under George II., meaning that all citizens of Hannover were also British citizens. Isaak led a musical family, and Wilhelm twelve years Caroline's senior, became an army oboist in his teens. After seeing combat and deciding on a new career Wilhelm decided to go to England, moving there in 1766 at the age of nineteen. Upon Isaak's death in 1767 Caroline was left working in the family kitchen, and when an invitation to join Wilhelm arrived she moved to join him in 1772.
By this point Wilhelm had established himself as an organist and music teacher at 19 New King Street, Bath, Somerset (now the Herschel Museum of Astronomy). She took several singing lessons a day from Wilhelm, who had become the choirmaster of the Octagon Chapel. Wilhelm was busy with his musical career and became fairly busy organizing public concerts. Caroline was the principal singer at his oratorio concerts, and acquired such a reputation as a vocalist that she was offered an engagement for the Birmingham festival which she declined. But it appears that Caroline did not blend in with the local society and made few friends.[1]
Astronomical work
William's interest in astronomy started as a hobby to pass time at night. At breakfast the next day he would give an impromptu lecture on what he had learned the night before. Caroline became as interested as Wilhelm, stating that she was "much hindered in my practice by my help being continually wanted in the execution of the various astronomical contrivances."[1] Wilhelm became known for his work on high performance telescopes, and Caroline found herself supporting his efforts.
In 1782, Wilhelm accepted the office of King's Astronomer to George III and moved to Datchet and subsequently to Observatory House near Slough (then in Buckinghamshire, now in Berkshire). The new job proved to be a mixed blessing; although it left him with ample free time to continue his astronomical observations, it also meant a reduction in income and being called upon by the king for entertainment at any time. During this time Wilhelm perfected his telescope making, building a series of ever larger devices that ultimately ended with his famous 40-foot (12 m) focal length instrument. Caroline was his constant assistant in his observations, also performing the laborious calculations with which they were connected. During one such observation run on the large telescope in 1783, Caroline became caught on an iron hook and when she was helped off "...they could not lift me without leaving nearly 2 ounces [60 g] of my flesh behind."[1]
In 1788 Wilhelm married a rich widow. Although his new wife made every effort to stay on friendly terms with Caroline it seems her life was considerably upset.[1] Through this period she continued her observations on her own, and made many of her discoveries. She later reconciled with the couple, and took great delight in her new nephew, John Herschel.[1]
During her leisure hours she occupied herself with observing the sky with a 27-inch (690 mm) focal length Newtonian telescope and by this means detected a number of astronomical objects during the years 1783 - 87, including most notably an independent discovery of M110 (NGC 205), the second companion of the Andromeda Galaxy. During 1786 - 97 she also discovered eight comets, her first comet being discovered on 1 August 1786. She had unquestioned priority on five of the comets[2] and had rediscovered Comet Encke in 1795.[3] In 1787, she was granted an annual salary of £50 by George III for her work as Wilhelm's assistant.[4]
In 1797 William's observations had shown that there were a great many discrepancies in the star catalogue published by John Flamsteed, which was difficult to use due to its having been published as two volumes, the catalogue proper and a volume of original observations. William realised that he needed a proper cross-index in order to properly explore these differences but was reluctant to devote time to it at the expense of his more interesting astronomical activities. He therefore recommended to Caroline that she undertake the task. The resulting Catalogue of Stars was published by the Royal Society in 1798 and contained an index of every observation of every star made by Flamsteed, a list of errata, and a list of more than 560 stars that had not been included.[4]
Caroline returned to Hanover in 1822 following her brother's death, but did not abandon her astronomical studies, continuing to verify and confirm Wilhelm's findings and producing a catalogue of nebulae to assist her nephew John Herschel in his work. In 1828 the Royal Astronomical Society presented her with their Gold Medal for this work - no woman would be awarded it again until Vera Rubin in 1996.
In 1835, along with Mary Somerville, she was elected to honorary membership of the Royal Astronomical Society; they were the first honorary women members. In 1838 she was also elected as a member of the Royal Irish Academy. In 1846 at the age of 96, she was awarded the Gold Medal for Science by the King of Prussia.[5]
Caroline Herschel died at Hanover on 9 January 1848. She is buried at 35 Marienstrasse in Hanover at the cemetery of the Gartengemeinde.
Honours
The asteroid 281 Lucretia (discovered 1888) was named after Caroline's second given name, and the crater C. Herschel on the Moon is named after her. Adrienne Rich's 1968 poem Planetarium celebrated Caroline Herschel's life and scientific achievements.
References and notes
- ^ a b c d e The Inimitable Caroline, J. Donald Fernie, American Scientist, November-December 2007, pp. 486-488
- ^ Obituary of Miss Caroline Lucretia Herschel. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Vol. 8, p. 65 (1847).
- ^ Obituary of John Francis Encke. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Vol. 26, p.131 (1865).
- ^ a b Ogilvie, Marilyn Bailey (1986). Women in Science: Antiquity through the Nineteenth Century. MIT Press. pp. 97–98. ISBN 026265038X.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Herschel, John (1879). Memoir and Correspondence of Caroline Herschel. John Murray.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help)
Further reading
- Brock, Claire (2007). The Comet Sweeper: Caroline Herschel's Astronomical Ambition. Icon Books Ltd. ISBN 1840467207.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - Holmes, Richard. The Age of Wonder: The Romantic Generation and the Discovery of the Beauty and Terror of Science (2009) ISBN: 978-1-4000-3187-0, extensive coverage of the Herschels
- Hoskin, Michael (2008). "Carolyn Lucretia Herschel". New Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Vol. 3. Scribners. pp. 286–287.
- Herschel, Mrs. J. F. (1876). Letters and Correspondence of Caroline Herschel. New York: Harpers.
External links
- Herschel, Mrs. John (1876). Letters and Correspondence of Caroline Herschel (2 ed.). New York: Harpers.
- O'Connor, John J.; Robertson, Edmund F., "Caroline Herschel", MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive, University of St Andrews
- Caroline Lucretia Herschel biography at fembio.org
- Caroline Herschel Biography, SEDS
- Caroline Herschel's Deepsky Objects, SEDS
- About the Herschel Museum of Astronomy
- Obituary of Miss Caroline Lucretia Herschel. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Vol. 8, p. 64 (1847).
- Bibliography from the Astronomical Society of the Pacific
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
