In the name of Science

Name: Roy Kenneth Marshall Birthdate: 21 Aug 1907 Birthplace: Madison County, Illinois   Today is the anniversary of the birth of the American astronomer Roy Kenneth Marshall. He spent some time as astronomer with the Fels Planetarium, Philadelphia before becoming the first Director of Morehead Planetarium, Chapel Hill, North Carolina  (pictured here shortly after construction) which first opened its doors to the public on 10 May 1949.  As well as contributing to the classic book on sky lore and constellations Star Maps for Beginners (pictured) by Israel Monroe Levitt (1942) he was also one of the principal authors (the other being Leland Stanford Copeland) of a series of articles entitled ‘Astronomical Anecdotes’ published in Sky and Telescope (the feature in the June 1946 issue is seen here) from late-1941 until the end of 1946. Roy Kenneth Marshall was also a pioneering TV science broadcaster, hosting the weekly 15 minute National Broadcasting Company (NBC) televisio

 Name: Albert Francis Arthur Lofley Jones Birthdate: 9 Aug 1920 Birthplace: Christchurch, New Zealand   Today is the anniversary of the birth of amateur astronomer Albert Francis Arthur Lofley Jones. His achievements include the discovery (on 6 Aug 1946 while observing the variable star U Puppis) of comet C/1946 P1 (Jones) and the co-discovery on 18 Nov 2000 (with astronomer Syogo Utsunomiya of Kumamoto, Japan) of the long-period comet C/2000 W1 (Utsunomiya-Jones) (pictured here on 18 Jan 2001).  He was also the co-discoverer of supernova SN 1987A (seen here as the bright star to right of centre of image) in the Large Magellanic Cloud. However, Albert Francis Arthur Lofley Jones is perhaps best remembered for his remarkable skills as a variable star observer.  He was also the co-discoverer of supernova SN 1987A (seen here as the bright star to right of centre of image) in the Large Magellanic Cloud. However, Albert Francis Arthur Lofley Jones is perhaps best remembered

Name: Maria Mitchell Birthplace: Nantucket, Massachusetts Birthdate: 1 Aug 1818   Today is the anniversary of the American astronomer Maria Mitchell. The first woman to work as a professional astronomer in the USA, she became interested in the night sky at an early age after having been taught astronomy by her father.  Maria gained fame when her prolonged search for a comet came to fruition when she observed a 6th magnitude comet on the evening of 1 Oct 1847 and was the first to report it. Although several other observers spotted the comet over the next few days, Maria Mitchell was credited with the original discovery. Comet 1847 VI (modern designation C/1847 T1) became known as ‘ Miss Mitchell’s Comet ’ and the discovery resulted in her being awarded a medal by King Frederick VI of Denmark who some years previously had established gold medal prizes to be awarded to the first discoverers of ‘telescopic comets’ (comets which were too faint to be seen with the naked eye). T