Under the Radar

This is the biography of Ruby Payne-Scott (1912 to 1981). As the first female radio astronomer (and one of the first people in the world to consider radio astronomy), she made classic contributions to solar radio physics. She also played a major role in the design of the Australian government's Council for Scientific and Industrial Research radars, which were in turn of vital importance in the Southwest Pacific Theatre in World War II and were used by Australian, US and New Zealand personnel. From a sociological perspective, her career also offers many examples of the perils of being a female academic in the first half of the 20th century. Written in an engaging style and complemented by many historical photographs this book gives a fascinating insight into the beginning of radio astronomy and the role of a pioneering woman in astronomy.

Résumé
It is rare for a complete biography of an Australian scientist, particularly of an Australian woman scientist, to be published. It is rarer for such a book to be co-authored by an American. Although scientists have written discourses on the history of their discipline, it is most unusual for a scientist to write a full length biography of a colleague in his ?eld. It is also uncommon for a man to write about an Australian woman scientist; most of the work on Australian women scientists has been done by other women. However, these authors, both distinguished researchers in the ?eld of radio astr- omy, became so interested in the history of their discipline and in the career of the pioneer radio astronomer Ruby Payne-Scott that they spent some years bringing this book to fruition. Until relatively recently, Ruby Payne-Scott had been the only woman scientist mentioned brie?y in histories of Australian science or of Australian radio astronomy. This book will be an invaluable resource for anyone interested in these disciplines. Being scientists themselves, the authors explain Payne-Scott's scienti?c work in detail; therefore, the value and importance of her contributions can, for the ?rst time, be recognised, not only by historians but also by scientists.

Contenu

Introduction: The Life of Ruby Violet Payne-Scott - 28 May 1912 (Grafton NSW, Australia) to 25 May 1981 (Sydney, Australia).- Ruby Payne-Scott: the Early Years: 1912-1938, Ancestors, Childhood, Secondary School and Sydney University.- Woodlands School, AWA, New Career Opportunities for Women in World War II.- Personnel File from CSIR/CSIRO.- War Time Research by Payne-Scott at RPL.- Payne-Scott - The First Woman Radio Astronomer and the Transition to Peacetime - 1944-1945.- Payne-Scott at Dover Heights 1945-1947: Discovery of Type I, II and III Solar Bursts and the Introduction of Fourier Synthesis in Astronomy.- Hornsby 1948: Type III Bursts Revealed; Conflicts with Bolton.- Payne-Scott at Potts Hill, 1949-1951: Movies of the Outward Motions of Solar Outbursts with the Swept-Lobe Interferometer.- Payne-Scott and URSI, 1952: Her Last Experience as a Radio Astronomer.- Reminiscences and Anecdotes of Ruby Payne-Scott as Told by Friends and Colleagues.- A Remarkable Family: Bill and Ruby Hall.- Payne-Scott, Communist Party of Australia, Commonwealth Investigation Service and Australian Security Intelligence Organisation.- Danebank School 1963-1974; the Ruby Payne-Scott Lectures.- The End of Payne-Scott's Life: A Retrospective.- Epilogue: Why Did We Write This Book?.