Paula Szkody facts for kids

Paula Szkody is an American professor who studies space. She was born on July 17, 1948. She teaches in the Department of Astronomy at the University of Washington in Seattle. From 2020 to 2022, she was the president of the American Astronomical Society.

Early Life and Education

Paula Szkody was born in Detroit, Michigan. She loved learning about space from a young age. She went to Michigan State University and earned her first degree in astrophysics in 1970. Astrophysics is the study of how stars and planets work.

Later, she continued her studies at the University of Washington. She earned her Ph.D. in astronomy in 1975. This means she became an expert in studying everything in space.

What Paula Szkody Studies

Paula Szkody is famous for studying special stars called cataclysmic variable stars. These are not just one star, but two stars orbiting each other very closely. One star is usually a small, dense star called a white dwarf. The other star is a normal star.

Sometimes, the normal star can "dump" gas onto the white dwarf. This causes a huge, bright explosion of light. These explosions are called "outbursts." Paula Szkody studies these amazing events.

Searching for New Stars

Professor Szkody helps with a big project called the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). This project uses a special telescope to map millions of objects in space. She looks for new "dwarf novae," which are a type of cataclysmic variable star.

She has also used many powerful space telescopes and missions. These include the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and XMM-Newton. These tools help her see things in space that are invisible from Earth.

Helping Other Astronomers

Paula Szkody is very active in the astronomy community. From 2005, she was the main editor for an important science magazine. This magazine is called Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific (PASP).

She also works closely with amateur astronomers. These are people who love astronomy but do not do it as a job. She was a leader for the American Association of Variable Star Observers. This group helps professional and amateur astronomers work together.

From 2020 to 2022, she was the president of the American Astronomical Society. This is a very important group for astronomers in America.

Awards and Honors

Paula Szkody has received many awards for her work.

• In 1978, she won the Annie Jump Cannon Award in Astronomy. This award is given to women who have made important contributions to astronomy.
• Since 1994, she has been a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. This means she is recognized as a top scientist.
• A small planet in space has even been named after her!

See also

In Spanish: Paula Szkody para niños