Paula Szkody (born July 17, 1948) is a professor in the Department of

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 ...

at the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

. She served as president of the

American Astronomical Society The American Astronomical Society (AAS, sometimes spoken as "double-A-S") is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC. The primary objective of the AAS is to promote the adv ...

from 2020 to 2022.

Early life and education

Szkody was born on July 17, 1948, in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. She earned her B.A. degree in

astrophysics Astrophysics is a science that employs the methods and principles of physics and chemistry in the study of astronomical objects and phenomena. As one of the founders of the discipline, James Keeler, said, astrophysics "seeks to ascertain the ...

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

in 1970, and her Ph.D. in

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 ...

from the

in 1975.

Work

Paula Szkody specializes in

cataclysmic variable In astronomy, cataclysmic variable stars (CVs) are stars which irregularly increase in brightness by a large factor, then drop back down to a quiescent state. They were initially called novae (), since those with an outburst brightness visible to ...

stars, which are binary star systems that periodically undergo energetic outbursts. She is an active participant in the

Sloan Digital Sky Survey The Sloan Digital Sky Survey or SDSS is a major multi-spectral imaging and spectroscopic redshift survey using a dedicated 2.5-m wide-angle optical telescope at Apache Point Observatory in New Mexico, United States. The project began in 2000 a ...

(SDSS) searching for new

dwarf nova A dwarf nova (pl. wiktionary:nova, novae), or U Geminorum variable, is one of several types of cataclysmic variable star, consisting of a close binary star system in which one of the components is a white dwarf that accretion disk, accretes matter ...

e and has worked with the XTE,

ASCA ''Asca'' is a genus of mites. Asca or ASCA may also refer to: Organisations * ASCA (news agency), Italy (founded 1969) * Accumulating savings & credit association, a form of microfinance * American Swimming Coaches Association (founded 1958) * A ...

ROSAT ROSAT (short for Röntgensatellit; in German X-rays are called Röntgenstrahlen, in honour of Wilhelm Röntgen) was a German Aerospace Center-led satellite X-ray telescope, with instruments built by West Germany, the United Kingdom and the Un ...

, IUE, HST, EUVE and

XMM-Newton ''XMM-Newton'', also known as the High Throughput X-ray Spectroscopy Mission and the X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission, is an X-ray space observatory launched by the European Space Agency in December 1999 on an Ariane 5 rocket. It is the second corners ...

space missions.

Activities

In 2005 she became the editor-in-chief of the astronomical

journal A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization *Diary, a record of personal secretive thoughts and as open book to personal therapy or used to feel connected to onesel ...

Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific ''Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific'' (often abbreviated as ''PASP'' in references and literature) is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal managed by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. It publishes research and r ...

(PASP)''. She is also very active in professional-amateur collaboration, especially in conjunction with the

American Association of Variable Star Observers The American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) is an international nonprofit organization. Founded in 1911, the organization focuses on coordinating, analyzing, publishing, and archiving variable star observations made largely by ama ...

, for whom she has served both as an officer on the board (2003-2009) and, for the term 2007-09, as President of the organization. Szkody was president of the

from 2020 to 2022.

Honors and awards

In 1978, she was awarded the Annie Jump Cannon Award in Astronomy by the

.Oakes, Elizabeth H
"Szkody, Paula."
''Encyclopedia of World Scientists'', Revised Edition. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2007. American History Online. Facts On File, Inc. (accessed October 20, 2015). As of 1994, she is a fellow of the

American Association for the Advancement of Science The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is a United States–based international nonprofit with the stated mission of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsib ...

. A minor planet has been named after her.

References

External links