Download Sidereal Messenger A Monthly Review Of Astronomy PDF

Excerpt from The Sidereal Messenger, 1890, Vol. 9: A Monthly Review of Astronomy Maria Mitchell was born on the island of Nantucket Aug. 1, 1818. Her father and mother were both Quakers, and her mother was descended from the earliest settlers of the island. Her father had a natural taste for scientific study, and throughout his active life, first as teacher and after wards as bank cashier, he devoted his leisure time to astro nomical pursuits. He was for many years employed by the United States Coast Survey in observations pertaining to the survey of the island. In these observations his daughter began to assist him at the early age of eleven. Her educa tion was the best Nantucket could afford, of a thoroughly substantial but simple character. It gave her only the rudi ments of the science, and the mathematics which her later studies required. When eighteen years old she became libra rian of the Athenaeum library, an excellent library well sup plied with scientific books, and attesting the intellectual character of the Quaker town. In the reading room of this library Miss Mitchell, by her private reading, laid the foun dations of her mathematical knowledge. Throughout these years she continued her father's assistant, and gradually passed to independent observations. She swept for comets on the roof of the Pacific bank, still heading the main street of Nantucket. She found several before their discovery was known to her, and in the mean time was training herself by her studv for the investigation of the positions she obtained. She computed several orbits from her own observations. But not until 1847 did she sweep her glass over that partie ular comet which brought her to the notice of the public. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.