Caroline Herschel
16 March 1750 – 9 January 1848
Caroline Herschel was a German-born British astronomer who discovered eight comets and catalogued hundreds of nebulae while working alongside her brother William Herschel. She was the first woman to be paid a salary for scientific work in England and the first woman awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society.
Lived at the same time
Well-documented people whose lives overlapped with Caroline Herschel.
- Katsushika Hokusai (1760–1849) Overlapped 88 years →
- Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun (1755–1842) Overlapped 87 years →
- Jeremy Bentham (1748–1832) Overlapped 82 years →
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) Overlapped 82 years →
- Alexander von Humboldt (1769–1859) Overlapped 79 years →
- Muhammad Ali Pasha (1769–1849) Overlapped 79 years →
Life events
Caroline Lucretia Herschel was born in Hanover, the eighth child of a military bandsman; a childhood bout of typhus stunted her growth.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgCaroline left Hanover to keep house for her brother William in Bath, where he trained her as a singer for his concerts.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgCaroline became a successful concert soprano, performing as principal singer in her brother's oratorio performances.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgAfter William was appointed court astronomer, Caroline gave up music to record his observations and polish telescope mirrors, soon beginning her own sweeps of the sky.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgCaroline discovered comet C/1786 P1, sometimes called the 'first lady's comet', the first of eight comets she found between 1786 and 1797.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgKing George III granted Caroline an annual salary of 50 pounds as her brother's assistant, making her the first woman in England paid for scientific work.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgThe Royal Society published Caroline's index and corrections to Flamsteed's star catalogue, a major reference work for astronomers.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgFollowing her brother's death in 1822, Caroline returned to Hanover, where she completed a catalogue of nebulae to assist her nephew John Herschel's work.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgCaroline received the Royal Astronomical Society's Gold Medal for her catalogue of nebulae, the first woman so honoured; no woman received it again until 1996.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgCaroline Herschel died in Hanover and was buried with a lock of her brother William's hair.
Source: en.wikipedia.org