Women in Astronomy

A joint meeting with the London Mathematical Society and the Institute for Mathematics and its Applications.

The meeting is a celebration of Women in Astronomy, which includes the celebration of the bequest to the LMS of of a rare book of astronomical tables, Urania Propitia, by Maria Cunitz from BSHM and LMS Member AEL Davies. Urania Propitia was published in 1650 and fewer than 25 physical copies are known to exist.

Registration is free but essential for in person, or online attendance. For those at De Morgan House, this includes all refreshments and a drinks reception. An optional dinner after the reception, at a local restaurant, is available at extra cost.

The five speakers comprise two historians of mathematics, and three current astronomers/astrophysicists:

• Dr Meg Schwamb (Queen’s University Belfast), Exploring the Solar System with the Vera C. Rubin Observatory
• Dr Isabelle Lémonon Waxin (Cermes3), She only does calculations like a machine"... The French Enlightenment Women Astronomers: Simple Arithmeticians?
• Dr Isobel Falconer (University of St Andrews), Maria Cunitz and Urania Propitia - was marriage to an astronomer a "career" for women mathematicians in the 1600s and 1700s?
• Professor Suzanne Aigrain (Oxford University), Exoplanets: Portraits of other worlds on a red background
• Dr. Mathilde Jauzac (Durham University). Uncovering the nature of the dark sides of our Universe using Cosmic Beasts

Details of the schedule will follow.