Ida Barney

Ida Barney (November 6, 1886 – March 7, 1982) was an American astronomer, best known for her 22 volumes of astrometric measurements on 150,000 stars. She was educated at Smith College and Yale University and spent most of her career at the Yale University Observatory. She was the 1952 recipient of the Annie J. Cannon Award in Astronomy.

Early life

Barney was born on 6 November 1886 in New Haven, Connecticut. Her mother was Ida Bushnell Barney and her father was Samuel Eben Barney.^[1] She was an avid birder and the New Haven Bird Club President.^[2] After her retirement from Yale, she continued to live in New Haven,^[3] where she died on 7 March 1982,^[1] 95 years old.^[4]

Education

In 1908, Barney graduated from Smith College with a Bachelor of Arts degree. There, she was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Xi, national honor societies for students. Three years later, she received her Ph.D. in mathematics from Yale University.^[1]

Scientific career

Rollins College, ca.1909

From 1911–1912, just after receiving her Ph.D., Barney was a mathematics professor at Rollins College. At the conclusion of that year, she moved to her alma mater to Smith College, where she was an instructor of mathematics. In 1917, she was hired as a professor at Lake Erie College, where she stayed until 1919. In 1920, she returned to Smith College as an assistant professor. In 1922, the Yale University Observatory appointed Barney a Research Assistant, a title she held until 1949, when she was promoted to Research Associate.^[1] The Observatory, like many other university observatories, was allocating significant resources to astrometry, thanks to the development of telescope-mounted cameras. At the beginning of her career in astronomy, Barney worked under Frank Schlesinger; she plotted the position of stars from photographic plates and worked on the calculations of their celestial coordinates from their positions on the plates.^[5] The work was tedious, which Schlesinger thought to be suitable for women incapable of theoretical research.^[6] Despite this, she developed several methods that increased both the accuracy and speed of her measurements, including the use of a machine that automatically centered the photographic plates.^[3] Her life's work, completed over 23 years, contributed to the Yale Observatory Zone Catalog, a series of star catalogs published by the Yale Observatory for 1939 to 1983, containing around 400,000 stars, and influenced the Bright Star Catalogue.^[2] In 1941, when Schlesinger retired, Barney took over full supervision of the cataloguing. Under her direction, the measurements of the photographic plates were completed at the IBM Watson Scientific Laboratory using a new electronic device that further reduced eye strain and increased accuracy.^[4] Her individual contribution to these star catalogues recorded the position, magnitude, and proper motion of approximately 150,000 stars. Due to its high accuracy, the catalogue is still used today in proper motion studies.^[1][2] She retired from academic life in 1955.^[4] She was succeeded by Ellen Dorrit Hoffleit.^[2]

Honors

While a Research Associate at the Yale University Observatory, in 1952, Barney was awarded the triennial Annie J. Cannon Award in Astronomy, a prestigious award for women astronomers given by the American Astronomical Society.^{[1][2][4][7][8]}

Her remains are interred at Grove Street Cemetery in New Haven, Connecticut.^[9]

Planetoid Barney1159 T-2 (#5655 Barney) is a main-belt asteroid. It was discovered on 29 September 1973, by Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld. Cornelis Johannes van Houten and Tom Gehrels at Palomar Observatory, who named it in her honor.^[10]

Published works

• Barney, Ida; Schilt, Jan (1927). "Discussion of the proper motions in the equatorial Zone". Astronomical Journal. 37: 181. Bibcode:1927AJ.....37..181B. doi:10.1086/104785. 
• Barney, Ida; Schilt, Jan (1930). "Analysis of the Yale proper motions in the zones between +50 degrees and +55 degrees and between +55 degrees and +60". Astronomical Journal. 40: 168. Bibcode:1930AJ.....40..168B. doi:10.1086/105000. 
• Barney, Ida; Schlesinger, Frank (1938). "An effect of a star's color upon its apparent photographic position". Astronomical Journal. 47: 86. Bibcode:1938AJ.....47...86B. doi:10.1086/105478. 
• Barney, Ida; Schlesinger, Frank (1939). "On the accuracy of the proper motions in the General Catalogue Albany". Astronomical Journal. 48: 51. Bibcode:1939AJ.....48...51B. doi:10.1086/105546. 
• Barney, Ida; Schlesinger, Frank (1940). "New reductions of astrographic plates with the help of the Yale photographic Catalogues". Astronomical Journal. 49: 39. Bibcode:1940AJ.....49...39B. doi:10.1086/105625. ^{[upper-alpha 1]}

See also

• List of Minor Planets 5001–6000, #5655
• List of minor planets named after people
• Meanings of minor planet names: 5501–6000

References

Notes

Footnotes

Citations

References

• Annie J. Cannon Award in Astronomy, American Astronomical Society, 2012, retrieved 20 November 2012 
• "General Notes", Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 65: 98–100, April 1953, Bibcode:1953PASP...65...98., doi:10.1086/126550 
• Hockey, Thomas (2009), "(5655) Barney1159 T-2", The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers, Springer Publishing, ISBN 978-0-387-31022-0, retrieved November 19, 2012, (Subscription required (help)) 
• Hoffleit, E. Dorrit (June 1990), "Ida M. Barney, Ace Astrometrist" (PDF), STATUS: The Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy, American Astronomical Society, retrieved 17 November 2012 
• Ida Barney, Find A Grave, retrieved 19 November 2012 
• Milite, George A. (1999), Pamela Proffitt, ed., "Ida Barney", Notable Women Scientists, Farmington Hills, Michigan: Gale Group, Inc., p. 27, ISBN 0-7876-3900-1 
• Ogilvie, Marilyn; Harvey, Joy (2000), Biographical Dictionary of Women in Science, New York: Routledge, ISBN 0-415-92038-8 
• Slight-Gibney, Nancy (1997), Barbara S. and Benjamin F. Shearer, eds., "Ida Barney", Notable Women in the Physical Sciences: A Biographical Dictionary, Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, pp. 1–4, ISBN 0-313-29303-1 CS1 maint: Uses editors parameter (link)

Further reading

• "Bibliography: Ida Smith Barney". Women in Astronomy. Library of Congress. Retrieved 18 November 2012. 
• Hockey, Thomas (2009). "Doritt E. Hoffleit". The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers. Springer Publishing. ISBN 978-0-387-31022-0. Retrieved August 22, 2012.  (subscription required)
• Hockey, Thomas (2009). "Frank Schleisinger". The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers. Springer Publishing. ISBN 978-0-387-31022-0. Retrieved August 22, 2012.  (subscription required)