Susan Jocelyn Bell Burnell Biography

    Susan Jocelyn Bell Burnell, born on July 15^th, 1943 in Belfast, Ireland is a well known astronomer who has contributed greatly to the field.  Her interest in astronomy was peaked by her father who worked as an architect for the Armagh Observatory.  She studied physics in college at the University of Glasgow and later attained her Ph.D. From Cambridge.  With professor Antony Hewish she successfully made a 81.5 megaherz radio telescope at Cambridge.  Using this resource, she studied interplanetary scintillation of compact radio sources.  This basically means she was studying what would later become known as pulsars.  She discovered the first pulsar during these years while searching for quasars.  The first four pulsars ever discovered were all found by Bell Burnell  A pulsar is a radio star which is emitting flashes of electromagnetic radiation in a pattern associated with its rotation.  A lighthouse is a commonly used example of pulsar like behavior.  Burnell's discovery of the first pulsar came after analyzing a 400 foot long paper chart created from observations using her telescope.  This discovery took place in 1967 and she published her findings in an appendix on her thesis.

    After her discovery, controversy arose when Bell Burnell was not awarded the Nobel Prize for her work.  Instead, the prize was given to Sir Martin Ryle and Tony Hewish.  The discovery of the pulsar was attributed to Hewish although Bell Burnell was known to have actually made this breakthrough. 

    After her discovery, Bell Burnell studied and taught as a teacher's assistant at the University of Southampton.  She was mostly focused on studying electron density.  During her time at Southampton she developed a 1-10 million electron volts gamma-ray telescope.

    After her time at Southampton, Bell Burnell continued to research and work as a programmer at various laboratories in England.  Some of her most notable work includes studying the x-ray emission coming from galactic features.  She used the information she gained to observe various types of galactic objects including star systems and galaxies.  She also held many teaching positions throughout her career and was the editor for The Observatory.  The Observatory is a renowned journal focusing on astronomy. 

    Bell Burnell's discovery of pulsars has been instrumental in the field of astronomy.  Pulsars have been used to confirm that gravitational radiation exists and also later led to the discovery of the first extrasolar planets.  Pulsars are usually extremely precise in terms of the periods between their pulses.  Therefore, pulsars are used to build pulsar clocks which have been found to be more accurate than atomic clocks.  Some pulsars are also used to find gravitational waves which are basically ripples in spacetime predicted by Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity.

    In addition to making a huge contribution to the field of astronomy, Bell Burnell provided many women scientists with hope that they too could become successful and be recognized for their work.  When she discovered pulsars, there were not many notable women scientists for young women hoping to pursue a career in the sciences to look up to.  Bell Burnell became this role model for many although she was not recognized with a Nobel Prize for her discovery which was instead given to a man working on the project with her.  Nonetheless, Bell Burnell has received numerous awards including the Michelson Medal from the Franklin Institute, the J Robert Oppenheimer Memorial Prize, the Beatrice M Tinsley Prize, and the Herschel Medal from the Royal Astronomical Society in London.  She has also been the president of the Royal Astronomical Society and the Institute of Physics.  Besides her work in the field of science, Bell Burnell has also worked to give more young girls the change to continue their education by being the house patron of Burnell House at Cambridge House Grammar School.

    Bell Burnell is now 69.  There was a documentary created about her entitled “Beautiful Minds” in which she spoke about the sexism present in scientific fields and her beliefs.  She is a Quaker and says that”Quakerism and research science fit together very, very well.” 

"Pulsars and Black Holes." Universe, Rev. ed. Robin Kerrod. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 2009. 52-53. DK Eyewitness Books. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 8 May 2013.

Schafer, Elizabeth D. "Jocelyn Bell Burnell." Science and Its Times. Ed. Neil Schlager and Josh Lauer. Vol. 7: 1950 to Present. Detroit: Gale, 2001. 442-443. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 8 May 2013.

Ruskin, Steve. "The Discovery of Pulsars." Science and Its Times. Ed. Neil Schlager and Josh Lauer. Vol. 7: 1950 to Present. Detroit: Gale, 2001. 393-396. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 8 May 2013.

"Burnell, Jocelyn Bell (1943–)." Dictionary of Women Worldwide: 25,000 Women Through the Ages. Ed. Anne Commire and Deborah Klezmer. Vol. 1. Detroit: Yorkin Publications, 2007. 299. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 8 May 2013.

"Susan Jocelyn Bell Burnell." Encyclopedia of World Biography. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2004. 133-134.Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 8 May 2013.

Observations for the Week

These observations were made at various times between May 10th and 18th.  They total three hours.

During this time, the moon appeared to be in its waxing crescent phase.  Because of this, it did not create too much light as to interfere with my observations.  Early in the evening on the 10th, the moon was very low in the sky and was close to the planet Venus.

I used my knowledge of constellations to identify stars and the areas constellations would occupy if they were more clearly visible.  I saw Arctures, in the constellation Bootes, easily.  I found this by "following the arc to Arctures" from Ursa Major.  Orion was visible and using my phone I was able to discern which star was Beetlegeuse and Rigel.  Leo was also visible at times.  I found Capella, in the constellation Auriga as well.

I made these observations from my yard in Venice so there was some light pollution from the park near my house earlier in the evenings.

Zooniverse

This week, I spent 4 hours completing Zooniverse tasks.  I continued with the same activity of identifying "Clouds."

APOD 4.8

Kepler's Supernova Remnant in X-Rays

    This nebula was created by a star explosion.  It is known as Kepler's Supernova and is located in the Milky Way in the constellation Ophiuchus.  This nebula, when it was formed, was visible to the naked eye and had a magnitude of 2.5.  Kepler first observed it in Italy in 1604.  Kepler did not use a telescope when he was discovering it.  Now, scientists use various telescopes like the X-Ray Observatory used to create this picture.  This was a white dwarf star which exploded after accumulating material from a Red Giant companion.  This supernova is about 13,000 light years away and is the most recent supernova to be observed in the Milky Way galaxy.  

APOD 4.7

Messier 77 10 May 2013



    Messier 77 is a Spiral Galaxy in the constellation Cetus.  Cetus is known as the sea monster.  This is an active galaxy and can be classified as a "Seyfert Galaxy."  This object was discovered in 1780 and was at first thought to be a nebula.  Charles Messier believed it to be a cluster.  This is one of the largest galaxies listed as a M object.  It is about 47 million light-years away and is 100 light-years across.  It has a very distinct and bright core which has been the object of observation and study of many scientists.  These scientists are interested in the core in particular because it is possible that it contains a black hole.  This image uses the visible light and is based on data from Hubble.  The red regions contain active star formation.

APOD 4.6

Humanity Explores the Solar System 30 April 2013



    Many technological advances have come about in terms of astronomy in the past few decades.  Currently, there is an explorer around every inner planet in our solar system.  Also, we are monitering the Sun with robotic explorers.  Detailed maps of the Moon have been created with these types of satellites and asteroids and comets can even by explored with modern technology.  We also have spacecrafts going out into deep space, a feat few imagined would be possible in the past.  This image shows some of the areas which are currently being explored and also lists at the bottom projected advances which will be occuring up until 2018.