Podcasts about harvard observatory

Few writers have captured the wonder of science through storytelling as powerfully as Dava Sobel. In this episode, we celebrate her remarkable career and her recent honor as the recipient of The Planetary Society’s 2025 Cosmos Award for Outstanding Public Presentation of Science. Mat Kaplan, senior communications advisor at The Planetary Society, sits down with Sobel for a conversation about the human lives behind great scientific discoveries, from Galileo and Copernicus to the women of the Harvard Observatory and Marie Curie’s lab. Later in the show, Jack Kiraly, our director of government relations, joins us with an encouraging update on our public advocacy campaign to save NASA science. And don’t miss What’s Up with Bruce Betts, where we reflect on the role of science communicators and share a fresh Random Space Fact. Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/2025-cosmos-awardSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Deborah Shapley had a distinguished 30-year career as a journalist, serving as a reporter for the weekly journal, Science, and as the Washington Bureau Chief for Nature. She is the author of four books, the best known of which is Promise and Power: the Life and Times of Robert McNamara, published on Little Brown in 1993. She is the granddaughter of Harlow and Martha Shapley and is the writer, editor and publisher of the online blog Harlow Shapley Project. I found Deborah's recent post about her grandmother entitled, Martha Shapley, astronomer, fascinating. Martha was a very able mathematician who was instrumental in her husband's early work on galactic structure and also published papers on her own.  But her career was sidelined by the pressures of having five children and supporting her husband's role as Director of the Harvard Observatory. Martha Shapley's work and the legacy of women astronomers is the topic of this episode of The Interviews. Support the show

Cecilia Payne was in her early 20s when she figured out what the stars are made of. Both she and her groundbreaking findings were ahead of their time. Continuing the legacy of women working at the Harvard Observatory, Cecilia charted the way for a generation of female astronomers to come. This episode of Lost Women of Science: shorts follows Cecilia's journey of discovery, journals her drive and determination against all odds, and takes you to the Harvard Observatory itself to walk in Cecilia's footsteps.

Starting in the late 19th century, a group of women at the Harvard Observatory pored over hundreds of thousands of glass photographic plates bearing images of billions of stars. It was the beginning of a revolution in understanding what stars are made of and how far away they are.

In this Bonus Episode, Jim and Janet take closer look on the themes that run through the story of the Bonds and the Mitchells and dive a little deeper into topics that were just touched upon in the regular season, such as the history of solar noon and why longitude was such a tough nut to crack.Credits:This has been a production of the Nantucket Atheneum. Written, edited and narrated by Janet Forest Special thanks to the Atheneum's Reference Library Associate Jim BorzilleriMore about EraosthenesTwo centuries after Aristotle, an Egyptian mathematician and astronomer, named Eraosthenes, (Aira-Tass-Ta-Knees), became head of the Library of Alexandra. This was a winning combination of skills: besides having access to the scientific works in the library, his training enabled him to identify key information as new material arrived. One day he received a letter from a colleague in Syene, a city directly to the south, and whose distance from Alexandria had been measured. The letter said that on a certain day of the year, at solar noon the sun not only on the east-west meridian, but also north-south meridian. It was directly overhead, and the shadows had no angle. (Mathematically the angle of the shadows was 0 degrees) On the same date the following year, at solar noon, Eraosthenes measured the angle of the shadows cast at Alexandra and, using trigonometry and the information from the letter, calculated the earth's circumstance. Even though some of his information was inaccurate, the calculation was only off by 15 per cent.With the size of the earth established, if you measured the angle of the sun at your location at solar noon, and you also knew the latitude where the sun was on the north-south meridian that day, you could determine your latitude even at sea. Experienced sailors had long done this to estimate their position on familiar routes, but now it could be precisely calculated in unfamiliar waters. Eraosthenes is also credited with inventing a coordinate system – forerunner of the today's latitude and longitude – to create a map of the known world, again using the Library's resources, that was said to show the location of over 400 cities. Over the centuries his techniques and coordinate systems were refined by many others, slowly increasing their precision. Latitude coordinates were eventually fixed, with the equator set to zero degrees, reaching to ninety degrees at the North and South poles. Mathematicians and astronomers computed table of the sun's latitude for every day of the year. Similar tables were computed for other celestial bodies. After completing the necessary angular observations, mariners used these tables to determine their latitude (knowledge of geometry and trig was also very helpful).

This episode features keynote speaker Eliana Raggio Director of Industry Relations at Digital Air Strike and Board Member in Women in Automotive. Eliana distinguishes allyship from mentorship and discusses the benefits of both for professional development. She also talks about the importance of finding a mentor and the benefits of being a mentor, including the satisfaction of helping others succeed and the opportunity to be a part of someone's legacy.

The Mitchells and the Bonds are following a parallel track of discovery and success, but in the late 1850s, their fortunes diverge. As the Mitchells experience success and longevity, the Bonds face one upset after another. The term “Black Swan” refers to an event which was unexpected, previously unimaginable, and had lasting consequences. The Bonds would face three black swans inside a decade on top of a series of tragedies that were just a matter of life in the 1800s. The greatness of the challenge is matched and surpassed by their resilience and focus. This is a dark episode but stick around until the end to find out how it all turns out.  Credits:This has been a production of the Nantucket Atheneum. Written, edited and narrated by Janet Forest Special thanks to the Atheneum's Reference Library Associate Jim Borzilleri for his research and insights.Resources and additional information:•Two letters from George Bond to Richard and Sarah indicating Sarah's mechanical and mathematical abilities.George to Richard – October 14, 1864George to Sarah (Sally) – October 30, 1864 • The unabridged letter Sarah Bond sent to the Third Women's Conference in 1875, which was presided over by Maria Mitchell."Potential Employments Open to Women" by S. A. C. Bond• Listen to Episode 7 of Season 2 "How Dewey Catalogue These Books" to learn more about what it took for Sarah Bond to re-catalogue the collection according to the new Dewey Decimal System. The Nantucket Atheneum is located at 1 India Street in Nantucket, MA.You can visit us online at www.nantucketatheneum.org  

In the second episode of season two of History's Forgotten, seniors Christi Norris, Amanda Hare and Caleb Audia discuss women in astronomy in the late 1800s and early 1900s. In the Harvard Observatory, women were hired to work as "computers" who organized data. Two women, Annie Cannon and Henrietta Leavitt, were able to make substantial achievements. Cannon came up with a system to classify stars that's still used today and Leavitt discovered Cepheid variable stars which can be used to find the distances of other stars and galaxies. Topics Covered: Annie Cannon Henrietta Leavitt Charles Pickering Harvard Observatory

On 17th July, some of the interesting events that took place were: 1850: First photo of a star clicked by Harvard Observatory. 1955: Disneyland park was opened. 1996: Madras was renamed as Chennai https://chimesradio.com    http://onelink.to/8uzr4g   https://www.facebook.com/chimesradio/   https://www.instagram.com/vrchimesradio/   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It may come as a surprise to discover that in the 2019-2020 season, (Shakespeare aside) Lauren Gunderson is the most produced playwright in America. She's achieved this in no small part by putting women's stories at the center of her work. And she doesn't just create the lone female protagonist—she has women interacting with other women-- sharing dreams, hopes, disappointments and successes. Her protagonists who are smart, funny, and determined and if they're involved with science—so much the better. Science is a topic Gunderson returns to again and again in her work. As Lauren said in our interview, “I think theater is made for the biggest questions we can manage, and science like religion, like the arts-- is the thing that says, “What are we doing here?” That literally was the question at the center of her play Silent Sky that was recently produced at Fords' Theater in Washington DC (and partially funded by the NEA). Silent Sky is based on a turn of the century astronomer named Henrietta Leavitt, who worked at the Harvard Observatory. Although she is little-known, Leavitt's work and discoveries are crucial to our current understanding of the stars and the universe. In this podcast, Lauren talks about Silent Sky, her adaption of Peter Pan (in which Wendy is an aspiring scientist), her love of theater and science, and most crucially, what changes when women take the center stage.  

It may come as a surprise to discover that in the 2019-2020 season, (Shakespeare aside) Lauren Gunderson is the most produced playwright in America. She’s achieved this in no small part by putting women’s stories at the center of her work. And she doesn’t just create the lone female protagonist—she has women interacting with other women-- sharing dreams, hopes, disappointments and successes. Her protagonists who are smart, funny, and determined and if they’re involved with science—so much the better. Science is a topic Gunderson returns to again and again in her work. As Lauren said in our interview, “I think theater is made for the biggest questions we can manage, and science like religion, like the arts-- is the thing that says, “What are we doing here?” That literally was the question at the center of her play Silent Sky that was recently produced at Fords’ Theater in Washington DC (and partially funded by the NEA). Silent Sky is based on a turn of the century astronomer named Henrietta Leavitt, who worked at the Harvard Observatory. Although she is little-known, Leavitt’s work and discoveries are crucial to our current understanding of the stars and the universe. In this podcast, Lauren talks about Silent Sky, her adaption of Peter Pan (in which Wendy is an aspiring scientist), her love of theater and science, and most crucially, what changes when women take the center stage.

It may come as a surprise to discover that in the 2019-2020 season, (Shakespeare aside) Lauren Gunderson is the most produced playwright in America. She’s achieved this in no small part by putting women’s stories at the center of her work. And she doesn’t just create the lone female protagonist—she has women interacting with other women-- sharing dreams, hopes, disappointments and successes. Her protagonists who are smart, funny, and determined and if they’re involved with science—so much the better. Science is a topic Gunderson returns to again and again in her work. As Lauren said in our interview, “I think theater is made for the biggest questions we can manage, and science like religion, like the arts-- is the thing that says, “What are we doing here?” That literally was the question at the center of her play Silent Sky that was recently produced at Fords’ Theater in Washington DC (and partially funded by the NEA). Silent Sky is based on a turn of the century astronomer named Henrietta Leavitt, who worked at the Harvard Observatory. Although she is little-known, Leavitt’s work and discoveries are crucial to our current understanding of the stars and the universe. In this podcast, Lauren talks about Silent Sky, her adaption of Peter Pan (in which Wendy is an aspiring scientist), her love of theater and science, and most crucially, what changes when women take the center stage.  

It may come as a surprise to discover that in the 2019-2020 season, (Shakespeare aside) Lauren Gunderson is the most produced playwright in America. She’s achieved this in no small part by putting women’s stories at the center of her work. And she doesn’t just create the lone female protagonist—she has women interacting with other women-- sharing dreams, hopes, disappointments and successes. Her protagonists who are smart, funny, and determined and if they’re involved with science—so much the better. Science is a topic Gunderson returns to again and again in her work. As Lauren said in our interview, “I think theater is made for the biggest questions we can manage, and science like religion, like the arts-- is the thing that says, “What are we doing here?” That literally was the question at the center of her play Silent Sky that was recently produced at Fords’ Theater in Washington DC (and partially funded by the NEA). Silent Sky is based on a turn of the century astronomer named Henrietta Leavitt, who worked at the Harvard Observatory. Although she is little-known, Leavitt’s work and discoveries are crucial to our current understanding of the stars and the universe. In this podcast, Lauren talks about Silent Sky, her adaption of Peter Pan (in which Wendy is an aspiring scientist), her love of theater and science, and most crucially, what changes when women take the center stage.  

Since we “fell back” to Standard Time this past weekend, Boston has been forced to adjust to 4:30 sunsets. To help us understand why the sun sets so early in Boston in the winter and what we could do about it, we’re going to replay a classic episode about how the idea of time zones and standard time was born in Boston, with the help of the Harvard Observatory. And because we’re talking about the observatory, we have to share the story of the women who worked as human computers at the Harvard Observatory. Full show notes: http://HUBhistory.com/158 Support us: http://patreon.com/HUBhistory

Born in 1868, Henrietta Leavitt was an astronomer ahead of her time, whose work helped to revolutionise our understanding of the Universe. While working at Harvard Observatory, she began to study stars of fluctuating brightness. She made a crucial observation about these objects, which gave astronomers a new way to measure distances, ultimately leading to such impactful discoveries as the expansion of the Universe.

Born in 1868, Henrietta Leavitt was an astronomer ahead of her time, whose work helped to revolutionise our understanding of the Universe. While working at Harvard Observatory, she began to study stars of fluctuating brightness. She made a crucial observation about these objects, which gave astronomers a new way to measure distances, ultimately leading to such impactful discoveries as the expansion of the Universe.

Born in 1868, Henrietta Leavitt was an astronomer ahead of her time, whose work helped to revolutionise our understanding of the Universe. While working at Harvard Observatory, she began to study stars of fluctuating brightness. She made a crucial observation about these objects, which gave astronomers a new way to measure distances, ultimately leading to such impactful discoveries as the expansion of the Universe.

Born in 1868, Henrietta Leavitt was an astronomer ahead of her time, whose work helped to revolutionise our understanding of the Universe. While working at Harvard Observatory, she began to study stars of fluctuating brightness. She made a crucial observation about these objects, which gave astronomers a new way to measure distances, ultimately leading to such impactful discoveries as the expansion of the Universe.

Born in 1868, Henrietta Leavitt was an astronomer ahead of her time, whose work helped to revolutionise our understanding of the Universe. While working at Harvard Observatory, she began to study stars of fluctuating brightness. She made a crucial observation about these objects, which gave astronomers a new way to measure distances, ultimately leading to such impactful discoveries as the expansion of the Universe.

With New Year’s Eve comes the ball drop in Times Square at the stroke of midnight. But in the late 1800s, Boston dropped a ball every day to mark the stroke of noon, because telling the time was serious business. The time ball, along with telegraphic signals and fire alarm bells, announced the exact time to the public, at a time when the exact time was critical to navigation on the high seas and safety on the newfangled railroads. With ultra-precise clocks made by local jewelers and true astronomical time announced daily by the Harvard Observatory, Boston Standard Time became the de facto standard for a wide swath of the country long before time zones were officially proposed and adopted. Show notes: http://HUBhistory.com/113

Clark Strand discusses the cultural shift to banish the dark and argues why we should instead embrace it. Jessica Dwyer talks about the benefits of dark skies. Dava Sobel shares the story of a group of women dedicated to uncovering the secrets of space at the Harvard College Observatory. Tim Slover shares the inspiration behind the Christmas Chronicles.

In this week's episode we cover the Harvard Computers, a group of women who processed astronomical data at Harvard Observatory, under the direction of Edward Pickering. Join us as we discuss their work and contributions to the field of astrophotography. Tshirt Corner: Check out Etsy Shop TeeKittyKitty for Amanda's shirt. If any of you BABs make feminist shirts, hats, mugs, art, please message us! We'd love to buy your things! This week's challenge: Visit an observatory, watch the stars, watch Hidden Figures. And don't forget to share with us on Instagram! #oysdpodchallenge  Instagram: @oysdpodcast  Intro/Outro Music: Tripped and Fell in Love (instrumental) by Yacht.

Our understanding of the universe would be far poorer were it not for the women of the Harvard Observatory. On this episode, Dava Sobel discussed their work in the Glass Universe.

8 out of 10 - Good Show! www.latheatrebites.com The true story of 19th-century astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt explores a woman's place in society during a time of immense scientific discoveries. When she begins to work at the Harvard Observatory, she isn't allowed to touch a telescope. Instead, she joins a group of women “computers,” charting the stars for a renowned male astronomer. Henrietta Leavitt and her female peers believe in both scientific and social progress, and their dedication changed the way we understand both the Heavens and Earth.

On this date in 1930, the dwarf planet Pluto was discovered. Here are some things you may not have known about what was once considered the ninth planet in the solar system. Although it wasn’t discovered until 1930, astronomers had predicted in the late 19th century that something besides the newly discovered Neptune was disturbing the orbit of the seventh planet, Uranus. Between 1909 and 1930, there were 16 prediscovery observations of Pluto in which the observer didn’t realize what was there. Clyde Tombaugh, a 23-year-old astronomer was hired by the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, to lead the effort to find what was called “Planet X.” He did this by comparing photographs of the night sky and looking for any undiscovered moving objects. On Feb. 18, 1930, Tombaugh discovered a moving object in pictures taken on January 23rd and 29th. Other photos confirmed the movement and the discovery was telegraphed to the Harvard Observatory on March 13. The name Pluto was chosen from more than 1,000 suggestions. Pluto, after the mythological god of the underworld, was joined on the final short list of candidates by the names Minerva, after the goddess of wisdom, and Cronus, the son of Uranus and father of Zeus. The name Pluto was suggested by 11-year-old Venitia Burney, who had taken an interest in classical mythology. After its discovery, Pluto was almost immediately seen as a disappointment. It was much smaller than it should have been. If it were the predicted Planet X, it should have been about seven times larger than Earth. In fact, at the time it was estimated to have a diameter of about 60 percent of that of the Earth. It also had an very elliptical orbit and was less reflective than anticipated. It was also determined that Pluto’s orbit takes it inside that of Neptune periodically. A stable orbital ratio means that the two bodies will never collide. Almost immediately, Pluto’s status as a planet was called into question. The dimness and eccentric orbit were seen to be more like those of a comet or asteroid. A year later, other astronomers proposed that the new planet was not the cause of the orbital irregularities of Uranus, and that the discovery of Pluto was an accident. Though the years, estimations of Pluto’s size were revised downward. In 1948, it was believed to be 1/10 the size of the Earth. In 1976, the estimate was down to 1/100th. The 1978 discovery of its moon, Charon, further lowered the estimate to about 1/500th. The most recent estimate puts Pluto at 1/459th the size of Earth. In 1992, new information from Voyager 2’s flyby of Neptune allowed for more precise calculations of Neptune’s effect on the orbit of Uranus, eliminating the need for a Planet X to explain any irregularity. In 2006, the International Astronomical Union created an official definition of the term “planet.” Pluto meets the first two conditions, which are orbiting the Sun and being massive enough to have its own gravity. It doesn’t meet the third condition of clearing its orbital neighborhood of other objects. Instead of being classified as the ninth planet, Pluto is considered the largest and second most massive dwarf planet in the solar system. Our question: Which came first, the discovery of the dwarf planet Pluto, or the naming of Disney character Pluto? Today is the anniversary of the election of Pope Francis, and it’s National Elephant Day in Thailand. It’s unofficially National Workplace Napping Day, National Jewel Day, and National Open an Umbrella Indoors Day. It’s the birthday of actor William H. Macy, who is 67; U2 bassist Adam Clayton, who is 57; and skier Mikaela Shiffrin, who is 22. Because our topic happened before 1960, we’ll spin the wheel to pick a year at random. This week in 1999, the top song in the U.S. was “Believe” by Cher. The No. 1 movie was “Analyze This,” while the novel “The Testament” by John Grisham topped the New York Times Bestsellers list.  Weekly question: Pluto was originally the pet dog of which Disney character? Submit your answer at triviapeople.com/test and we’ll add the name of the person with the first correct answer to our winner’s wall … at triviapeople.com. We'll have the correct answer on Friday’s episode. Links Follow us on Twitter, Facebook or our website. Also, if you’re enjoying the show, please consider supporting it through Patreon.com Please rate the show on iTunes by clicking here. Subscribe on iOS: http://apple.co/1H2paH9  Subscribe on Android: http://bit.ly/2bQnk3m  Sources https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pluto https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planets_beyond_Neptune https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IAU_definition_of_planet http://www.space.com/18566-pluto-distance.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_13 https://www.checkiday.com/3/13/2017 http://www.biography.com/people/groups/born-on-march-13 http://www.bobborst.com/popculture/numberonesongs/?chart=us&m=3&d=13&y=1960&o= https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_1999_box_office_number-one_films_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_York_Times_Fiction_Best_Sellers_of_1999

ABOUT DAVA SOBEL Dava Sobel is one of the most prominent, critically acclaimed, bestselling narrative nonfiction writers working today. A former science reporter for the New York Times, she is the recipient of the National Science Board's prestigious Individual Public Service Award, the Boston Museum of Science's Bradford Washburn Award, and many others. She has served as the editor for The Best American Science Writing, and even had an asteroid (#30935) named for her. A long-time contributor to The New Yorker, Audubon, Discover, Life, Omni, and Harvard Magazine. Sobel is the author of five books, including the New York Times bestsellers Longitude, Galileo's Daughter, and The Planets. THE GLASS UNIVERSE: How the Ladies of the Harvard Observatory Took the Measure of the Stars Viking is thrilled to publish Dava Sobel’s THE GLASS UNIVERSE: How the Ladies of the Harvard Observatory Took the Measure of the Stars this December. An important, chapter in the history of science, THE GLASS UNIVERSE is a great American story of discovery and progress that is only now being brought to light. In the mid-nineteenth century, the Harvard College Observatory began employing a few women as calculators, or “human computers,” to interpret the observations their male counterparts made via telescope each night. As photography transformed the practice of astronomy, the women turned to studying the stars captured nightly on glass photographic plates. The “glass universe” of half a million plates that Harvard amassed in this period enabled the ladies to make extraordinary discoveries that attracted worldwide acclaim. They developed a classification system for the stars that gained international acceptance and is still in regular use. They also divined the surprising truth about the chemical composition of the heavens and helped establish a scale for measuring distances across space. Written in Dava Sobel's lucid prose and enriched by excerpts from letters, diaries, and memoirs, THE GLASS UNIVERSE (Viking; on sale: December 6, 2016; $30.00; 9780670016952) tells the riveting story of a group of remarkable women who expanded our knowledge of the universe, and whose discoveries are still being used today. The book opens in 1882, at a New York dinner party for forty members of the National Academy of Sciences hosted by Mrs. Anna Draper, who made great contributions to the practice of astrophotography, and ends with Dr. Cecelia Helena Payne, who became the first female Professor of Astronomy at Harvard, and the first woman promoted to the rank of tenured professor in 1956. THE GLASS UNIVERSE is not only the story of the Harvard Observatory's female astronomers, who were among the first women to become members of international scientific bodies, and won numerous awards and fellowships for their work, it is also the fascinating story of the half a million glass plates they studied, now being digitized for ongoing research. Readers of narrative nonfiction about women and science like Hidden Figures and The Girls of Atomic City; popular histories of ideas like The Age of Wonder and The Metaphysical Club; bestselling science and tech narratives by writers like Neil deGrasse Tyson; and fans of Dava’s own bestselling books are sure to enjoy THE GLASS UNIVERSE. @DavaSobel http://www.davasobel.com/

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to another edition of the Avid Reader. Today we are happy to have as our guest Dava Sobel, author of The Glass Universe: How The Ladies Of The Harvard Observatory Took The Measure Of The Stars, published just last week by Viking. Ms. Sobel is a prolific author whose books I have enjoyed immensely over the years including Galileo’s Daughter, Longitude, The Planets, A More Perfect Heaven and others and I am automatically in love with anyone who writes about leap seconds and the transit of Venus. Many of her works have been translated into film as documentaries for Nova and Granada. The Glass Universe tells a story, lovingly, of a romance that began with a husband and wife and their devoted life of science and moves forward with a romance that deals with the search for meaning and essence in the night sky. The women of the Harvard Observatory, a veritable Harem if you will (and that is what they were called) culled through countless photographic plates coated with emulsion that accurately transcribed the night sky through painstaking and hour long exposures taken by their male counterparts night after night through various observatories. From the first photograph of a star (Vega), to the discovery of novae and variable stars, to coupled or double stars, these women immortalized by Ms. Sobel achieved a place in astronomical science that gave us the shoulders of giants upon which we now stand. The spectroscopic views that the plates give us provide a veritable window into the makeup of our universe. Chemist’s arms became a million or a billion miles long and hydrogen, helium, calcium, oxygen were winnowed out from these glass plates of which they were 100s of thousands. Now Ms. Sobel shows us the lives of those women through their work and through their personal and sometimes very emotional lives. And the result is a book that reminds us that it is sometimes the man behind the mirror, after all and the woman behind the glass that make all the difference in our understanding of the universe and how we are here. And isn’t that really the actual reason WHY we are here in the first place? Welcome Dava. Thank you so much for joining us today.

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to another edition of the Avid Reader. Today we are happy to have as our guest Dava Sobel, author of The Glass Universe: How The Ladies Of The Harvard Observatory Took The Measure Of The Stars, published just last week by Viking. Ms. Sobel is a prolific author whose books I have enjoyed immensely over the years including Galileo’s Daughter, Longitude, The Planets, A More Perfect Heaven and others and I am automatically in love with anyone who writes about leap seconds and the transit of Venus. Many of her works have been translated into film as documentaries for Nova and Granada. The Glass Universe tells a story, lovingly, of a romance that began with a husband and wife and their devoted life of science and moves forward with a romance that deals with the search for meaning and essence in the night sky. The women of the Harvard Observatory, a veritable Harem if you will (and that is what they were called) culled through countless photographic plates coated with emulsion that accurately transcribed the night sky through painstaking and hour long exposures taken by their male counterparts night after night through various observatories. From the first photograph of a star (Vega), to the discovery of novae and variable stars, to coupled or double stars, these women immortalized by Ms. Sobel achieved a place in astronomical science that gave us the shoulders of giants upon which we now stand. The spectroscopic views that the plates give us provide a veritable window into the makeup of our universe. Chemist’s arms became a million or a billion miles long and hydrogen, helium, calcium, oxygen were winnowed out from these glass plates of which they were 100s of thousands. Now Ms. Sobel shows us the lives of those women through their work and through their personal and sometimes very emotional lives. And the result is a book that reminds us that it is sometimes the man behind the mirror, after all and the woman behind the glass that make all the difference in our understanding of the universe and how we are here. And isn’t that really the actual reason WHY we are here in the first place? Welcome Dava. Thank you so much for joining us today.