Fiammetta Wilson

ACHIEVEMENTS: A fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, remarkable contributions to astronomy  

Fiammetta Wilson FRAS (born Helen Frances Worthington in Lowestoft; 19 July 1864 – 21 July 1920) was a British astronomer elected a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1916

After attending lectures by the renowned astrophysicist Alfred Fowler at the Imperial College of Science and Technology in London, she developed a profound passion for astronomy. This fascination led her to abandon most of her music and withdraw from social life. In 1910, she and her second husband, Sydney Arthur Wilson, were both elected members of the esteemed British Astronomical Association (BAA). Between 1916 and 1919, she collaborated with A. Grace Cook as an acting director of the BAA’s Meteor Section. During this period, she diligently observed and published data on various celestial phenomena, including auroras, zodiacal light, comets, and meteors.

Throughout her illustrious career, Wilson demonstrated an extraordinary level of dedication and perseverance. She would spend up to six hours at a time, peering through a telescope at even the cloudiest of skies, in an unwavering pursuit of catching a glimpse of a meteor. To enhance her research and ensure the accuracy of her findings, she constructed a wooden platform in her garden, providing her with an unobstructed view of the cosmos.

However, her observations were not without challenges. During World War I, she faced a threat of arrest from a constable who mistook her flashlight for a German spy’s device. Despite this setback, she continued her research even as zeppelins descended upon her neighborhood, dropping bombs.

Between 1910 and 1920, Wilson made remarkable contributions to astronomy, observing approximately 10,000 meteors and accurately calculating the paths of 650 of them. In 1913, she achieved an independent recovery of Westphal’s Comet as it traversed the Earth. Her remarkable work was recognized with her election as a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society on January 14, 1916. She also became a member of both the Société astronomique de France and the Société d’astronomie d’Anvers.

In July 1920, Wilson’s dedication was further honored when she was appointed to the prestigious E.C. Pickering Fellowship, a one-year research position at Harvard College. Tragically, she passed away the same month, unaware of this remarkable recognition. CREDIT:Wikipedia