Bobbie Vaile facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Roberta Anne Vaile
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| Born | 25 June 1959 |
| Died | 13 November 1996 |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Other names | 'Bobbie' Vaile |
| Alma mater | University of New South Wales |
| Occupation | astrophysicist |
| Known for | "Unsung Hero of Australian Science" award |
Dr. Roberta Anne 'Bobbie' Vaile (born June 25, 1959 – died November 13, 1996) was an amazing Australian scientist. She was an astrophysicist, which means she studied space, stars, and galaxies. Bobbie was also a senior teacher of physics at the University of Western Sydney, Macarthur.
She was a big part of Project Phoenix, which was a special experiment by SETI. SETI is all about trying to find signs of life beyond Earth! Bobbie also helped start the SETI Australia Centre at her university in 1995. Sadly, she passed away after a long illness.
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Early Life and Education
Bobbie was born in Junee, New South Wales, Australia. She went to the University of Newcastle and earned her science degree there. Later, she got her Ph.D. (a very high university degree) from the University of New South Wales in 1989. Her Ph.D. research was about a star-forming region in space called the "Corona Australis Complex."
A Hero of Australian Science
Bobbie Vaile was known for making science easy and fun to learn. In 1995, she received a special award called the "Unsung Hero of Australian Science" from the Australian Science Communicators. This award recognized her great work in teaching science in new and friendly ways.
Her Work and Discoveries
Bobbie also wrote important papers about her research. One paper she co-wrote was about searching for signals from space, specifically from a nearby galaxy called the Small Magellanic Cloud. This was part of the exciting search for extra-terrestrial intelligence.
- Seth Shostak, Ron Ekers, Roberta Vaile, 1996. A Search for Artificial Signals from the Small Magellanic Cloud The Astronomical Journal 112, 164-166.
Remembering Bobbie Vaile
People wanted to remember Bobbie and her important contributions.
- In 1999, a special garden was created at the University of Western Sydney in her memory.
- There is also a park in Camden, New South Wales named after her, called Bobbie Vaile Reserve (34°03′33″S 150°42′42″E / 34.05917°S 150.71167°E).
- Even an asteroid in space was named after her! It's called 6708 Bobbievaile. An Australian astronomer named Robert McNaught discovered this asteroid in 1989. The name was officially published on April 22, 1997.
