Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association Welcomes MMA Post-Baccalaureate Research Fellows Pop-Up Science Talk

November 16, 2023

NANTUCKET, MA — The Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association (MMA) announces that it will host the MMA’s National Science Foundation Post-Baccalaureate Research Fellows, Emmy Wisz and August Muller, for a pop-up science talk concerning their research. People may know them from Open Nights at Loines Observatory and their weekly Star Reports. Their pop-up science talk, “In a Galaxy Far, Far Away: Spectral Analyses of Distant Galaxies,” will take place on Monday, December 4 at 4:30pm EST. It will be presented in person at the MMA’s Research Center, 4 Vestal Street, or online via Zoom. This presentation is free to all.


How do we learn about galaxies a billion light years away? How do we learn about the history of our own home galaxy, the Milky Way? By using spectral analysis, as well as other techniques, we can gain insight into the chemical composition of faraway galaxies and their environments, creating a roadmap to understand how galaxies form and evolve over time. Emission from galaxies reveals properties of the local galactic environment, such as the star formation rate and age. Absorption features provide a peek into regions of the galactic environment that are rich in gas and home to the elements necessary for star formation. Focused on a type of galaxy called a damped Lyman-alpha system, or DLA for short, Emmy Wisz will explain how we use bright background sources as lighthouses to learn about galaxies that are too distant to be seen directly. By investigating the home galaxies of the still-mysterious fast radio bursts, August Muller will discuss how these strange bursts may come to be and how we are using them to probe the distant Universe.


Emmy Wisz obtained her B.A. in Astronomy and Physics from Bryn Mawr College. Her undergraduate research focused on galaxy formation and evolution, studying the impacts of morphology on radial metallicity gradients. She is excited to continue to be involved in the field of galaxy evolution, researching damped Lyman-ɑ (DLA) systems to expand on her understanding of the formation of galaxies over time.


August Muller holds a B.S. in Physics from Haverford College. Her undergraduate thesis investigated techniques for detecting extreme mass-ratio inspiral gravitational wave signals for the upcoming LISA gravitational wave detector. During her year on Nantucket, August is excited to learn more about observational astronomy as she investigates the host galaxies of fast radio bursts.


Join Emmy Wisz and August Muller for this Pop-Up Talk in person or on Zoom. Pre-registration is required for Zoom.


To register for this event, please follow the link below:

https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_I9eFc4PrTCW-H_E-WiEcug


This series is generously sponsored by our lead sponsor, Bank of America.


The Maria Mitchell Association is a private non-profit organization. Founded in 1902, the MMA works to preserve the legacy of Nantucket native astronomer, naturalist, librarian, and educator, Maria Mitchell. The Maria Mitchell Association operates two observatories, a natural science museum, an aquarium, a research center, and preserves the historic birthplace of Maria Mitchell. A wide variety of science and history-related programming is offered throughout the year for people of all ages.


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For Immediate Release

November 16, 2023

Contact: Molly Mosscrop, Marketing Director

mmosscrop@mariamitchell.org

Recent Posts

Miss Herschel

By Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • November 10, 2025
A re-blog from years past. The item you see here is a small piece of what once was. Upon her visit to Europe as a young woman’s chaperone in 1857 –1858, Maria Mitchell visited many of the major observatories of Europe and met many of the movers and shakers in the scientific, art, and literary worlds of the continent. While Caroline Herschel (1750 – 1848) and her brother, Sir William (1738 – 1822), were long dead, Maria was able to meet Caroline’s nephew (William’s son), Sir John Herschel (1792 – 1871). All three were astronomers, though Caroline found herself having to give credit – or have her brother accept credit – for much of her work because she was a woman. She has often been credited with the being the first woman to discover a comet. She was likely not – and the other woman who was the first lost credit through history as she had to “give” her comet discovery to her husband. See a pattern? Caroline was just one of many women in a long line of, “She couldn’t possibly do that – she is a woman!” As Maria once said, “But a woman, what more could you ask to be?” But back to this small item. It was a page from one of Caroline Herschel’s notebook’s, torn from its home by John Herschel to serve a s a memento for Maria of her visit to the family’s home. Maria was a bit shocked but . . . she took it! Over the years, the paper tore and ripped and just crumbled away until Maria finally decided that to save it, she needed to past it into one of her own journals. And thus, we have what we have. I assume Caroline’s notations refer to her brother William – “Wol” and Woll.” It could be an “I” but it really looks like an “O.” She is considered the world’s first professional woman astronomer – she would be compensated for her work after some time – and she warrants a greater look at – too much for a blog. So I encourage you to go take a look at her. Maria would want you to! JNLF

From The Rear

By Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • November 3, 2025
I am not so sure our founders would love that title but the image is of the Maria Mitchell Vestal Street Observatory (MMO) “from the rear.” I love this image as it is really the only one we have – unless you count the one that is taken from farther away and from further into the backyard of the Mitchell House. That one allows you to see the natural slope of the Mitchell House back lawn which would be altered when they added the Curator’s Cottage. Both of the images were taken before the Curator’s Cottage was added at the back of the Mitchell House in the early 1930s – and this one you see here was taken before 1922 when they added the Astronomical Study onto the MMO. It also shows the original dome – which was copper – before it was replaced in 1951 – which is the current dome. The copper did not hold up to our climate here – salt spray, damp, fog. But the new one, shipped over from England, has held up well. The current dome was donated by Margaret Underwood Davis (MMA board president at the time), in memory of her son, Cushing Davis who was an amateur astronomer. Margaret Davis served as president from 1930-1946 and again from 1949-1953. The image tells you some other things too. For instance, the grape arbor behind the Mitchell House is supposed to be Peleg Mitchell’s (Maria’s uncle) grape vine – I have blogged about it several times before – and you can see it in this image. You can also see how the Milk Room connects to the 1850s kitchen. The 1850s kitchen was added by Peleg Mitchell Jr and it’s the first little wart you see with the white pipe attached. The next wart is the Milk Room – also added by Peleg – it’s the one with the shutters on the window. Both still exist it’s just the Curator’s Cottage was attached in the 1930s. You will see another chimney too. It appears alongside the white pipe. That is likely the original chimney to what is now the Astronomer’s Cottage at the MMA. We acquired the Cottage in the 1920s but I believe all of the additions, and the removal of the chimney, were done before we were given it.  Fun! JNLF

Keep Calm and Bird On: November 2025

November 1, 2025
“If you don’t look, you don’t see. You have to go and look.” -Edith Andrews
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