Mildred Shapley Matthews (February 15, 1915 – February 11, 2016) was a book editor and writer known for

astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

books. She was the daughter of

astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. Astronomers observe astronomical objects, such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, galax ...

Harlow Shapley Harlow Shapley (November 2, 1885 – October 20, 1972) was an American astronomer, who served as head of the Harvard College Observatory from 1921–1952, and political activist during the latter New Deal and Fair Deal. Shapley used Cepheid var ...

and

Martha Betz Shapley Martha Betz Shapley (August 3, 1890 – January 24, 1981) was an American astronomer known for her research on eclipsing binary stars. Early life Shapley was born on August 3, 1890, in Kansas City, Missouri, one of seven children of school music ...

; her father named the asteroid 878 Mildred for her.

Personal life

Mildred Shapley, one of five siblings (the others were all boys) born to

and

, attended the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

where she met her future husband, Ralph Matthews. The couple married in 1937, and moved to

Altadena, California Altadena () is an unincorporated area, and census-designated place in the San Gabriel Valley and the Verdugos regions of Los Angeles County, California. Directly north of Pasadena, California, Pasadena, it is located approximately from Downtow ...

in 1945, where they lived for over 30 years and raised three of their four children. A widow, she died four days before her 101st birthday in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...

, survived by her four children, including June Lorraine Matthews, a brother, and a large extended family.

References

Women science writers American book editors University of Arizona people 1915 births 2016 deaths University of Michigan alumni American women centenarians {{US-nonfiction-writer-stub