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

Maria Mitchell In Her Own Words

By Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • April 13, 2026
April 1878. The conference of Woman’s Congress officers met in Washington. Because we had one member in Washington we were invited to meet in that place. I went on at a great expense of time, money and strength . . . . We were in session at least nine hours. I think that more than half of that was used by Mrs. Spencer and Mrs. Sayles. The only motion which I carried through was to pay the Secretary $200 . . . In 1878, that was a long train(s) ride to Washington, DC from Poughkeepsie, NY and Vassar College. If Maria seems perturbed, I am sure she was. As president of the Association for the Advancement of Women, and thus the Congress, she had to be at the meeting. But it appears she did not get much say in the nine hour meeting. This was also a long trip to take when she had another, even longer trip coming up in July of 1878. In that month, she would travel with students and her sister, Phebe, out west to Colorado to view the eclipse and that train and wagon ride I am sure was weighing on her mind – not just the physical trip but making her way for an important eclipse viewing event. JNLF

Raise The Roof!

By Jascin N. Leonardo Finger • April 6, 2026
Well, actually replace the roof! With funding from the Community Preservation Act and the work of Lydon and Sons, Inc. the Mitchell House is getting a new roof. The current one had come to the end of its useful life. A cedar roof can last a long time – longer than asphalt – and is more historically accurate. The roof we are removing was installed in about 1992 – replacing a roof from the 1930s that was not cedar but a combination of materials that actually yes, did last sixty years. The unfortunate issue has arisen that the roofwalk (walk) has to be replaced. This is NOT the original walk – nor that old of a walk. It’s likely from the 1970s or so and has been cobbled at over time. It’s not a functioning walk – no one is allowed on it – but the Mitchell House needs it none the less. Maria Mitchell and her father, William, likely used the walk for astronomical observations – in addition to the yard – but the walk is also protected as part of the preservation easement on the House. Walks – NOT and NEVER called widow’s walks – were used for preventing and putting out chimney fire and roof fires. In a place where wood was expensive and had to be brought from “the main” these were purely utilitarian. What good Quaker (or non-Quaker) would build a platform for his wife to stare out to the harbor to see if her husband was on his way home? The other issue is that the walk was completely resting on the ridge board – and actually was notched to accept the pitch and tip of the ridge board so they couldn’t work around it. I suspect this may have been the ways walks were once built – and also a crafty and smart thinking carpenter who came up with the idea. It makes the walk lower. But between that issue and the age of the walk and then the blizzard of February 2026 that packed gusts over 83 MPH (that’s Category 1 hurricane winds) the walk gave in. Balusters had been knocked out and the railings were loose and pulling away from the posts. So, we will also be working with Barber and Sons to create a new roofwalk – and they agreed to do this for us quickly which is also no small feat given how busy everyone is these days. So from the bottom of the Mitchell House’s heart (and mine) a big thank you to Chris Lydon and Lydon and Sons and crew, Barber and Sons / Beau and Nate Barber, the Community Preservation Committee, and Nantucket Preservation Trust (our easement holder)! JNLF

Keep Calm and Bird On: April 2026

April 1, 2026
“If you don’t look, you don’t see. You have to go and look.” -Edith Andrews
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