Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin broke barriers in the field of stellar astronomy and became an icon for women in science through her many discoveries, most notably about stellar composition and temperature classification.
Sergei Gaposchkin (left) and Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin (right) [Image Courtesy Britannica Image Quest]
Her curiosity and desire to question gender norms led her to become the first chairwoman of a department at Harvard University. When combined with her discovery of an extraordinary amount of important discoveries to the field of astronomy, she marked a large step towards gender equality in science.
"'These are actions that a man might play. But [she] hath within which passeth show'"
~ William Shakespeare
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