What Stars Are Made Of

In early 20th-century England, Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin defied societal norms and overcame significant challenges to become a pioneering scientist in astronomy. As the first woman to earn a PhD in astronomy from Radcliffe College, she broke barriers at Harvard University, becoming the first female full professor and department head. Notably, her groundbreaking PhD thesis detailed the composition of stars, a discovery initially met with skepticism by her male counterparts, yet ultimately recognized as a monumental achievement in the field.