Four Nuns from the Sisters of the Child Mary cataloged nearly half a million stars from photographic plates from 1909 to 1929. The accomplishments of these “Harvard Computers” have only recently been recognized by modern astronomers. As a token of appreciation for their work, Vatican Observatory astronomers suggested their names as candidates for having asteroids named after them. All four were approved, and now Sister Emilia (Anna) Ponzoni, Sister Regina (Maria) Colombo, Sister Concetta (Lucia) Finardi and Sister Luigia (Carmelita Jacinta) Panceri all have named asteroids!
Carte du Ciel
In April 1887, 56 scientists from 19 countries met in Paris to apply the new discipline of astrophotography to map the entire sky. Their plan was to have institutions from across Europe and the United States, including the Vatican Observatory, to take photographic images of particular swaths of the sky. These photographs were developed on glass photographic plates (22,054 in all). The Vatican Observatory was assigned areas in the constellations of Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Draco and a vast area of the Milky Way,
The project started in 1887, and ran for several decades, however it was never completed, possibly due to the project’s vast scale. Modern astronomers are finding use for the data on those old plates, however; Wikipedia states: “…the appearance of the Hipparcos Catalogue in 1997 has led to an important development in the use of this historical plate material.” In fact, the Vatican Observatory has recently completed a project to digitize its old glass plates from the Carte du Ciel survey.
Sisters of the Holy Child Mary
“The history of astronomy is riddled with underappreciated women who looked to the stars long before their scientific contributions were recognized. But the constellation of early women astronomers is glowing brighter, writes Carol Glatz for Catholic News Service, with the recognition of four once nameless nuns who helped map and catalog half a million stars in the early 20th century.
Glatz reports that the nuns, Sisters Emilia Ponzoni, Regina Colombo, Concetta Finardi and Luigia Panceri, were recruited by the Vatican to measure and map stars from plate-glass photographs. They cataloged the brightness and locations of a whopping 481,215 stars during their years of diligent work. Photos of the nuns had appeared in books about the history of astronomy, but the identity of the women was not known—and their accomplishments not recognized—until now.
Their years of labor were finally acknowledged when Father Sabino Maffeo, a Jesuit priest who works at the Vatican Observatory, found their names while organizing papers for the archives. Today, the project to which the nuns contributed is as obscure as the nuns themselves, but at the time it was one of the largest scientific undertakings in history.” – Smithsonian Magazine, Erin Blakemore, May 6, 2016
Asteroid Citations
(627981) Ponzoni = 2013 AW79
Discovery: 2012-12-08 / K. Černis, R. P. Boyle* / Mount Graham / 290
Sister Emilia (Anna) Ponzoni (1883–1950), born in Milan, entered the Sisters of the Child Mary in 1905 and made her religious vows in Milan in 1907. From 1910 to 1921, she was one of the four sisters who carried out the cataloging of 500 000 stars in the Vatican zone of the Carte du Ciel star atlas.
Orbit of Asteroid (627981) Ponzoni
JPL Entry: https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/tools/sbdb_lookup.html#/?sstr=Ponzoni
The citation for this asteroid appeared in the IAU WGSBN Bulletin V004_008, released 2024-06-10
(634659) Colombo = 2012 DQ85
Discovery: 2012-02-23 / K. Černis, R. P. Boyle* / Mount Graham / 290
Sister Regina (Maria) Colombo (1885–1953), entered the Sisters of the Child Mary in 1907 and made her religious vows in Milan in 1909. From 1910 to 1921, she was one of the four sisters who carried out the cataloging of 500 000 stars in the Vatican zone of the Carte du Ciel star atlas.
Orbit of Asteroid (634659) Colombo
JPL entry: https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/tools/sbdb_lookup.html#/?sstr=Colombo
The citation for this asteroid appeared in the IAU WGSBN Bulletin V004_008, released 2024-06-10
(709193) Concettafinardi = 2012 VF94
Discovery: 2012-11-13 / K. Černis, R. P. Boyle * / Mount Graham / 290
Sister Concetta (Lucia) Finardi (1896–1975), entered the Sisters of the Child Mary in 1916 and made her religious vows in Milan in 1917. From 1917 to 1921, she was one of the four nuns who carried out the cataloguing of 500 000 stars in the Vatican zone of the Carte du Ciel star atlas.
Orbit of Asteroid (709193) Concettafinardi
JPL Entry: https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/tools/sbdb_lookup.html#/?sstr=Concettafinardi
The citation for this asteroid appeared in the IAU WGSBN Bulletin V004_013, released 2024-09-23
(714305) Panceri = 2015 MP23
Discovery: 2011-09-27 / K. Černis, R. P. Boyle * / Mount Graham / 290
Sister Luigia (Carmelita Jacinta) Panceri (1893–1982), entered the Sisters of the Child Mary in 1915 and made her religious vows in Milan in 1917. From 1917 to 1921, she was one of the four nuns who carried out the cataloguing of 500 000 stars in the Vatican zone of the Carte du Ciel star atlas.
Orbit of Asteroid (714305) Panceri
JPL Entry: https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/tools/sbdb_lookup.html#/?sstr=Panceri
The citation for this asteroid appeared in the IAU WGSBN Bulletin V004_013, released 2024-09-23
About the Asteroid Discoverers
Dr. Kazimieras Černis
(born November 11, 1958, Vilnius) is a Lithuanian astronomer and astrophysicist, active member of the IAU, and a prolific discoverer of minor planets and comets. He is a chief researcher at the Institute of Theoretical Physics and Astronomy (ITPA).
In 2012, he discovered 420356 Praamzius, a trans-Neptunian object and dwarf planet candidate. – Wikipedia
In IAU WGSBN Bulletin V004_006, there were six named asteroids with Černis listed as the discoverer, including (191775) Poczobut.
Rev. Richard P. Boyle, S.J.
Rev. Boyle specializes in observational astronomy, in studies of stellar populations in Milky Way Galaxy star clusters and in research of the atmospheres of giant red stars. By making observations at VATT he collaborates with astronomers pursuing research on various objects like brown dwarfs, sdB stars for astroseismology, and discovery of solar system asteroids.
Related:
- Catholic Women of Science: Embracing Pope Francis’ call to elevate the dignity and role of women. – Vatican Observatory
- Mapping with the stars: Nuns instrumental in Vatican celestial survey – Vatican Observatory
- Star Nuns: Four Sisters’ Big Role in Vatican Celestial Mapping Project – The Tablet, October 7, 2021
- Women in Astronomy – Blogspot