The Diary of Frances Jacobs: Astronomical Observations by a 19th-century Oregon Woman

Details The Diary of Frances Jacobs: Astronomical Observations by a 19th-century Oregon Woman The Diary of Frances Jacobs: Astronomical Observations by a 19th-century Oregon Woman

Dec 2002

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2002aas...201.0109m&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society Meeting 201, #01.09; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 35, p.566; Bulletin of th

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Scientific paper

This abstract summarizes my research, transcription and editing of Francis Jacob's 170-page handwritten astronomical diary. This diary is a unique example of a time in early Portland history, illustrating the mind of a young woman who was interested in science and astronomy. Reflected in her diary are the discoveries and mention of leading astronomers of the day like Emerson Bernard and Edward Pickering. Francis Jacobs lived in an era of the great refractors For example, ``The Leviathan," built by Lord Rosse in Ireland was completed in 1847. In this 72-inch telescope, stars of 18th magnitude could be seen. The first spiral nebulae to be revealed was M51 - known today as the Whirlpool Galaxy. The Earl was the first to suggest that these spirals could actually be rotating masses of stars. At the turn of the century, study of observational astronomy was rooted in naked eye observing, study of binary stars and nebula.
This was a time when women were becoming interested in the sciences and had begun to play an important role in science and astronomy. It was an incredible inspiration for other women across the country to hear what was happening on the astronomical frontiers at Harvard. Some constellation asterisms used in Francis Jacob's diary were different than they are today. One asterism in particular, the Egyptian Cross, is relatively unknown now. The summer triangle and winter circle asterisms were used in her notes and obviously popular in her era, as today. Her written comments included some Messier catalogue numbers and in some case written on her sketches and diagrams nicknames, such as the 'Dumbbell' nebula. She also referred to M99 as `St. Katherine's Wheel', a nickname that is not in common use today.

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