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The field of astronomy has often been dominated by men. However, Nancy Grace Roman has changed that. Roman is the first astronomy chief of the Space Science Bureau of NASA, the US Space Agency.
Roman has overseen the development of several space astronomy, space probe and telescope programs. She participated in the launch of three solar observatories in orbit using gamma and X rays to study the sun from a low Earth orbit.
"I have traveled all over the United States to talk with astronomers and what they 'd like for generations was to install a telescope over the atmosphere. ", she says.
One of them is the Hubble Space Telescope. Roman is widely regarded as the "mother of Hubble". It was put into orbit in April 1990. The telescope has provided astronomers with hundreds of thousands of images. This also helped to determine the existence of black energy and the age of the universe, as well as other scientific issues. It remains one of NASA's most successful and enduring missions.
"I have never owned a telescope," she says. However, his success is a combination of luck, determination and support from his parents.
"My parents inspired and stimulated my curiosity. My father was a scientist and answered my scientific questions, "she says. My mother took me on walks and pointed out the birds, the plants and shared with me the constellation of stars ".
Roman's interest in astronomy grows. During her school years, Roman read as many books of astronomy as she could find in the Baltimore Library.
"I have never been interested in looking at the sky. I wanted to know how the stars were, how they behaved and what was in general astronomy, "Roman says.
Roman was not discouraged by the teachers who had suggested that she had no place in astronomy or physics. Roman graduated from Swarthmore College in 1946. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Astronomy and a Ph.D. in the same field in 1949 from the University of Chicago.
After earning his doctorate, Roman taught at the University of Chicago as an badistant professor. She was the first woman of this type at the faculty.
"I did not stay long because I was very unlikely to be a tenured astronomical research institution," says Roman.
Roman then entered the radio astronomy program of the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington. When NASA was founded in 1958, Roman submitted a job application.
Nancy Grace Roman retired in 1979. Despite the challenges she has faced in her own career, she is proud to have contributed to the advancement of modern astronomy.
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