Henrietta Swan Leavitt (/ ˈ l ɛ v ɪ t /; July 4, 1868 – December 12, 1921) was an American astronomer.A graduate of Radcliffe College, she worked at the Harvard College Observatory as a "computer", tasked with examining photographic plates in order to measure and catalog the brightness of stars.

Henrietta Swan Leavitt, American astronomer known for her discovery of the relationship between period and luminosity in Cepheid variables, pulsating stars that vary regularly in brightness in periods ranging from a few days to several months. Henrietta Swan Leavitt was born on July 4, 1868, and she changed the course of astronomy when she was just twenty-five years old. Loosely based on the academic career of the groundbreaking astronomer Henrietta Leavitt, this production of Lauren Gunderson’s Silent Sky shows how we can, with enough dedication and persistence, realize the most obscure of our obsessions. Henrietta Swan Leavitt is one of the greatest women to work in astronomy. A celestial romance and true story of discovery, Silent Sky explores the life and career of Henrietta Swan Leavitt (1868-1921) as she fearlessly asserts herself in the male-dominated world of early astronomy.

Strong, steadfast women take center stage in Pacific University Theatre's fall production, Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson, which runs at Pacific's Forest Grove Campus Oct. 18-21.. Silent Sky explores the life and career of Henrietta Leavitt, a human computer at …

The variation is generally subtle and hard for the eye to discern, but it was now possible to spot variable stars by comparing photographs taken several nights apart. She had become obsessed with stars that vary in brightness over periods of days or weeks. "Henrietta Leavitt reached a profound conclusion that addressed the distance problem. As a college student, she studied a number of subjects, falling in love with astronomy during her years at what later became Radcliffe College. Henrietta Leavitt’s Contributions to Science The play opens at a Wisconsin church, around 1900, where Henrietta Leavitt tells her sister, Margaret, that she is leaving home to work at the Harvard Observatory. Henrietta spent years measuring star positions and sizes from photographs taken by the telescope at the Harvard College Observatory, where she worked. At that time, most women did not study astronomy or work in the field--but she was fascinated with the mysteries of the stars and followed her …

Her father was a local congregational church minister. Henrietta Swan Leavitt was born on July 4, 1868, in Lancaster, Massachusetts, to George Roswell Leavitt and Henrietta Swan Kendrick. Henrietta Swan Leavitt was born on July 4, 1869, in Massachusetts to George Roswell Leavitt and Henrietta Swan.

Act One. However, when Peter asks her to accompany him to Europe, she expresses an unwillingness to compromise her career. August 4th, 2017 . 3 great reasons the world needs to know about Henrietta Leavitt.