Maria winkelmann kirch biography of george

Fields: Astronomy , Mathematics. Maria was educated from an early age by her father, a Lutheran minister, who believed that she deserved an education equivalent to that given to young boys of the time. After her father's death, her education was continued by her uncle. As Maria, had an interest in astronomy from an early age, she took the opportunity of studying with Christoph Arnold, a self-taught astronomer who worked as a farmer in Sommerfeld, near Leipzig.

She became Arnold's unofficial apprentice and later his assistant, living with him and his family. Through Arnold, Maria met astronomer and mathematician Gottfried Kirch, one of the most famous German astronomers of the time. Despite Kirch being 30 years her senior, they married in , later having four children, all of whom followed in their parents' footsteps by studying astronomy.

Gottfried Kirch gave Maria further instruction in astronomy, as he had his sister and many other students. While at the time women were not allowed to attend universities, much work was conducted outside universities and Gottfried himself had never attended a university. Maria and Gottfried worked together as a team, though Maria was mainly seen as Gottfried's assistant rather than equal.

Together they made observations and performed calculations to produce calendars and ephemerides. From , the couple also began recording weather information.

Kirch, Maria Winkelmann (–)German astronomer

The data collected by the Kirches was used to produce calendars and almanacs and was also very useful in navigation. The Royal Academy of Sciences in Berlin handled sales of their calendars, which included information on the phases of the moon, the setting of the sun, eclipses, and the position of the sun and other planets. Some nights before I had observed a variable star, and my wife wanted to find and see it for herself.