The woman who stared at the sun - Alex Gendler
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What an interesting story. I thoroughly enjoyed watching this. Thank you very much for sharing this video.
to maintain original thought and make discoveries?
What a strong, magnificent spirit.
I had to look for her image, Uncle Joe:
It came with this article which looks at her life as it unfolded:
By —
Rashmi Shivni
This Japanese ‘hidden figure’ enlightened the world with her sunspot sketches
Science Oct 18, 2017 2:51 PM EDT
During World War II, Tokyo often held drills to prepare citizens for airstrikes. But when the sirens blared and blackouts hit the city, a young Hisako Koyama would sneak back outside with her futon in one hand and a star chart in the other. Those pitch-black nights were perfect for stargazing.
These moments started her lifelong passion for the glimmering sky, and our very own star. Koyama would later spend her entire career inspecting blemishes on the glowing sun. In her observatory, she quietly sketched those sunspots and ultimately produced one of the most influential solar observation collections in the last 400 years.
Without this body of work, astronomers wouldn’t have a contemporary picture of solar activity, nor be well equipped to predict space weather events that could knock out GPS systems and affect other technology.
Koyama’s sun observations and meticulous sunspot drawings shaped solar science and the modern field of space weather, according to a new commentary about Koyama’s work published in the journal Space Weather. With her archive of more than 10,000 hand-drawn sunspot observations, Koyama has joined the ranks of eminent astronomers, such as Galileo Galilei, Johann Caspar Staudacher and Heinrich Schwabe.
More:
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/japanese-hidden-figure-enlightened-world-sunspot-sketches
Thank you for introducing this amazing name to many people who will be happy to share it with others, Uncle Joe.
