Margaret Walton Mayall (January 27, 1902 – December 6, 1995) was an American astronomer. She was the director of the
American Association of Variable Star Observers
The American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) is an international nonprofit organization. Founded in 1911, the organization focuses on coordinating, analyzing, publishing, and archiving variable star observations made largely by ama ...
(AAVSO) from 1949 to 1973.
Early life and education
Mayall (born Margaret Lyle Walton) was born in Iron Hill, Maryland, on 27 January 1902.
She attended the
University of Delaware
The University of Delaware (colloquially known as UD, UDel, or Delaware) is a Statutory college#Delaware, privately governed, state-assisted Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Newark, Delaware, United States. UD offers f ...
, where her interest in astronomy grew after taking math and chemistry courses. She then moved to
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College ( , ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the e ...
, where she received her Bachelor's Degree in Mathematics in 1924.
She earned an MA in Astronomy from
Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College was a Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that was founded in 1879. In 1999, it was fully incorporated into Harvard Colle ...
, Harvard University, in 1928 and worked as a research assistant and astronomer at
Harvard College Observatory
The Harvard College Observatory (HCO) is an institution managing a complex of buildings and multiple instruments used for astronomical research by the Harvard University Department of Astronomy. It is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United St ...
from 1924 to 1954, initially working with
Annie Jump Cannon
Annie Jump Cannon (; December 11, 1863 – April 13, 1941) was an American astronomer whose cataloging work was instrumental in the development of contemporary stellar classification. With Edward C. Pickering, she is credited with the creation of ...
on classifying star spectra and estimating star brightness.
During this time, she would spend summers working with
Margaret Hardwood of the
Maria Mitchell Observatory in
Nantucket
Nantucket () is an island in the state of Massachusetts in the United States, about south of the Cape Cod peninsula. Together with the small islands of Tuckernuck Island, Tuckernuck and Muskeget Island, Muskeget, it constitutes the Town and Co ...
,
MA, where she became interested in researching
variable stars
A variable star is a star whose brightness as seen from Earth (its apparent magnitude) changes systematically with time. This variation may be caused by a change in emitted light or by something partly blocking the light, so variable stars are ...
.
She was a research staff member at the Heat Research Laboratory, Special Weapons Group,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...
from 1943 to 1946.
Personal life
While working in Nantucket, she met Robert Newton Mayall, a member of the
American Association of Variable Star Observers
The American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) is an international nonprofit organization. Founded in 1911, the organization focuses on coordinating, analyzing, publishing, and archiving variable star observations made largely by ama ...
(AAVSO), and would marry in 1927.
They co-wrote several books on sundial and other subjects while working with the Ernst Sundial Collection of Harvard.
She died of congestive heart failure in
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...
, on 6 December 1995.
Awards
In 1957, she was the recipient of the G. Bruce Blair Gold Medal from the Western Amateur Society.
In 1958, she won the
Annie J. Cannon Award in Astronomy.
In 1982, a
minor planet
According to the International Astronomical Union (IAU), a minor planet is an astronomical object in direct orbit around the Sun that is exclusively classified as neither a planet nor a comet. Before 2006, the IAU officially used the term ''minor ...
was named,
3342 Fivesparks, in honor of her and her husband's home in
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
.
References
Further reading
*
External links
Letters at the AAVSOOral history interview with Margaret Mayall on 11 August 1986, American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library & Archives
- Session I
Oral history interview with Margaret Mayall on 12 September 1986, American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library & Archives
- Session II
The Harold C. Ernst Collection of Portable Sundials
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayall, Maraget
1902 births
1995 deaths
American women astronomers
Recipients of the Annie J. Cannon Award in Astronomy
20th-century American women scientists
People from Cecil County, Maryland
20th-century American scientists
Radcliffe College alumni
Swarthmore College alumni
Harvard College Observatory people