Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin was a brilliant scientist who made a huge discovery about stars in the early 1900s. Even though she faced unfair treatment because she was a woman, she didn’t let anything stop her. Here’s her story:
More info:Â www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk
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Born in England in 1900, Cecilia always wanted to be a scientist. She went to Cambridge University to study natural sciences, but back then, the university didn’t give degrees to women. So, she couldn’t get a degree there.
Because there weren’t many opportunities for women scientists in the UK, Cecilia moved to the United States to study astronomy. She joined Harvard University and became the first person to get a doctorate in astronomy from Radcliffe College.
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Her incredible discovery was about what stars are made of. She found out that stars are mostly made of helium and hydrogen. This was a big deal because nobody had thought that before. But sadly, her boss didn’t want her to share her discovery. Another scientist took credit for her work and published it as his own.
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But Cecilia didn’t give up. She kept working hard, and eventually, people realized how important her discovery was. She became the first woman professor at Harvard and the first woman to lead the Department of Astronomy.
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Cecilia’s story shows us that no matter what obstacles we face, we can still achieve great things if we work hard and believe in ourselves. Her discoveries changed what we know about stars and inspired other women to follow their dreams in science.
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