Maria Mitchell
American astronomer · United States · On the map · Scientists · Lived 1818 to 1889 · aged 70
Maria Mitchell was an American astronomer, librarian, naturalist, and educator. In 1847, she discovered a comet named 1847 VI that was later known as "Miss Mitchell's Comet" in her honor. She won a gold medal prize for her discovery, which was presented to her by King Christian VIII of Denmark in 1848.
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![Photograph of Maria Mitchell by Julia Ward Howe, 1899[14]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/60/Mitchell_Maria_desk.jpg/330px-Mitchell_Maria_desk.jpg)
Photograph of Maria Mitchell by Julia Ward Howe, 1899[14]
Portrait of Maria Mitchell by Herminia Borchard Dassel, ca. 1851![Maria Mitchell (seated) inside the dome of the Vassar College Observatory, with her student Mary Watson Whitney (standing), circa 1877[33]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/Mitchell_Maria_telescope.jpg)
Maria Mitchell (seated) inside the dome of the Vassar College Observatory, with her student Mary Watson Whitney (standing), circa 1877[33]
Maria Mitchell inside the Vassar College Observatory, 1878
Maria Mitchell's telescope, on display in the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of American HistoryAwards
About this person
Mitchell was the first internationally known woman to work as both a professional astronomer and a professor of astronomy after accepting a position at Vassar College in 1865. She was also the first woman elected Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
