Carole Jordan facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Carole Jordan
|
|
|---|---|
Jordan in 1994
|
|
| Born | 19 July 1941 |
| Died | February 2026 (aged 84) |
| Alma mater | University College London |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Astrophysics |
| Institutions | University of Colorado Boulder Culham Laboratory Somerville College, Oxford University of Oxford |
| Doctoral advisor | C. W. Allen |
| Doctoral students | John Adam (1974), Rashpal Gil (1982), Blanca Mendoza (1984), Philip Judge (1985), Graham Harper (1988), Mark Munday (1990), Stefan Weber (1993), Andy Rowe (1996), Debby Phillipides (1996), Neil Griffiths (1996), Andrew McMurry (1997), Tetsuo Amaya (1999), Graemy Smith (2000), Stuard Sim (2002) |
Dame Carole Jordan (born July 19, 1941 – passed away in February 2026) was a brilliant British scientist. She was a physicist, an astrophysicist (someone who studies space and stars), and an astronomer.
She was a professor at the University of Oxford and a special fellow at Somerville College, Oxford. She made history as the first woman to lead the Royal Astronomical Society, serving as its President from 1994 to 1996.
In 2005, she received the prestigious Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society. She was only the third woman ever to win this award, after Caroline Herschel and Vera Rubin. She also led the Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics at Oxford for several years. She was one of the very first women to become a professor of Astronomy in Britain. For her amazing contributions to science, she was honored as a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2006.
Contents
Learning and Early Discoveries
Carole Jordan attended Harrow County Grammar School for Girls. She then studied at University College London, earning her first degree in 1962 and her PhD in 1965.
Even before finishing her first degree, she wrote her first scientific paper. It was about how craters on the Moon might get distorted.
For her PhD, she worked with C. W. Allen. Her research helped start a new area in atomic physics. She studied the Sun's extreme ultraviolet spectrum (different colors of light), identifying elements like iron. She also worked on early calculations about how atoms become charged (ionization). She developed ways to measure the density of gases in space.
Her first paper about the Sun's corona (its outer atmosphere) was published in 1965. It was about how much silicon, iron, and nickel were found there.
Exploring the Cosmos: Her Scientific Work
Carole Jordan figured out how elements become charged (ionization) in space. She looked at how different factors, like density, affected this process. She combined her calculations with observations from the Sun and other stars.
Her studies of ultraviolet light from the Skylab space station helped us better understand certain types of charged atoms (called He-like ions). This knowledge was important for developing new technologies, like X-ray lasers.
She developed ways to measure the density and temperature of electrons in space. When she used these methods with her analysis of how much light is emitted, it gave new insights. This helped scientists understand the outer layers (chromospheres) of cool stars, young stars called T Tauri stars, and even our own Sun.
During a solar eclipse in 1970, she identified special light patterns (called forbidden lines) in the Sun that no one had seen before.
After the International Ultraviolet Explorer satellite launched in 1978, she started studying the outer atmospheres (stellar corona and chromospheric activity) of other stars. Her deep understanding of the Sun helped her create this new area of astrophysics. She also identified many elements in the light from other stars.
From around 1980, she was a very important part of almost every team. These teams, in the UK, Europe, and the US, worked on building and using instruments. These tools helped study the ultraviolet and X-ray light from the Sun and other stars.
Her Journey in Science
Here are some of the places Carole Jordan worked and the roles she held:
- Research associate at the Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics, University of Colorado, Boulder (1966).
- Assistant Lecturer in Astronomy at UCL, working at the Culham Laboratory (1966–1969).
- During this time, she finished her work on how atoms become charged. She also identified special light patterns. In 1969, she began to find ways to understand the structure of the solar transition region (a layer in the Sun's atmosphere).
- Astrophysics Research Unit, Culham Laboratory:
- Research assistant (1969–1971)
- Senior Scientific Officer (1971–1973)
- Principal Scientific Officer (1973–1976)
- Wolfson Tutorial Fellow in Natural Science at Somerville College, Oxford (starting 1976).
- University of Oxford:
- Reader in Physics (1994–1996)
- Professor of Physics (from 1996)
- Head of the Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics (2003–2008)
- Emeritus Professor (from 2008 until her passing in 2026).
She wrote many scientific papers about how hot gases (plasma) in space give off light. She also studied the structure and energy of the outer atmospheres of cool stars.
Her portrait is displayed in the National Portrait Gallery in London. This shows how important her scientific achievements were.
Working with Science Organizations
Carole Jordan was involved with many important scientific groups:
- Royal Astronomical Society: She became a Fellow in 1966. She served as secretary (1981–1990), vice-president (1990–1991 and 1996–1997), and president (1994–1996).
- Member of the International Astronomical Union (from 1967).
- Editor of The Observatory scientific journal (1968–1973).
- Fellow of the Institute of Physics (from 1973).
- Fellow of the Royal Society (from 1990).
- Received an honorary doctorate from the University of Surrey (1991).
- Member of the Science and Engineering Research Council (1985–1990). She also chaired its Solar System Committee (1983–1986).
- Member of the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (1994–1997).
A Special Honor
Carole Jordan was given the title of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) on June 17, 2006. This is a high honor in Britain for people who have done great things.
Her Legacy
Carole Jordan passed away in February 2026, at 84 years old. Her work greatly advanced our understanding of stars and the Sun.
See also
In Spanish: Carole Jordan para niños
