Reva Williams facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Reva Kay Williams
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| Nationality | American |
| Education | Malcolm X College A.A. in liberal arts, 1977 Northwestern University BA in astronomy & physics, 1980 Indiana University Bloomington MA in astrophysics, 1990 Indiana University Bloomington Ph.D. in astrophysics, 1991 |
| Known for | First person to successfully work out the Penrose process First Black American woman to receive a PhD in theoretical astrophysics Frame-dragging Gravitomagnetism |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Astrophysics |
| Institutions | University of Toledo University of Florida Bennett College |
| Thesis | Extracting X-rays, gamma rays, and electron-positron pairs from supermassive Kerr black holes using the Penrose mechanism (1991) |
| Doctoral advisor | Richard H. Durisen |
Reva Kay Williams is a brilliant theoretical astrophysicist. She made history by being the first person to figure out the Penrose process. This process uses Einstein's Theory of Relativity to show how we might get energy from black holes. She is also the first Black American woman to earn a PhD in theoretical astrophysics. Her work mainly focuses on how gravity works in space.
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Early Life and Education
Reva Kay Williams was born in Memphis, Tennessee. When she was six, her family moved to Chicago. She started her college journey at Malcolm X College. There, she earned a degree in liberal arts in 1977.
She then went to Northwestern University. In 1980, she earned a degree in astronomy and physics. Later, she studied at Indiana University Bloomington. She earned her master's degree in astrophysics in 1990. In 1991, she completed her PhD in astrophysics. This made her the first Black American woman to get a doctorate in this field.
What is the Penrose Process?
In 1991, Dr. Williams published her PhD work. This work showed how the Penrose process works for black holes. Imagine a black hole spinning super fast. Dr. Williams's calculations explained how energy could be pulled out of it.
Her research also showed how powerful "jets" shoot out from black holes. These jets are like giant, twisting tornadoes. They are made of high-energy light particles and fast-moving electrons. She found that as black holes spin, they can drag space and time around them. This can even make the jets uneven.
Her Career After School
After getting her PhD, Dr. Williams received a special fellowship. She worked at the University of Florida from 1993 to 1996. In 1997, she taught physics at North Carolina A&T State University.
In 1998, she became a professor at Bennett College. She also directed the Center for Women and Science there until 2001. In 2000, she received a grant to study microquasars. These are like mini-black holes that suck in matter. At that time, she was thought to be the only Black American female astrophysicist in the United States. By 2004, she was one of the few women in the world studying black holes.
Since 2009, Dr. Williams has been a research professor at the University of Toledo. She continues to study how gravity works in space. She also researches cosmology (the study of the universe) and extragalactic astronomy (the study of things outside our galaxy).
In 2022, Dr. Williams gave an important speech. It was at a big conference about astrobiology. This conference was organized by the American Geophysical Union and NASA.
Images for kids
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Dr. Williams was the first to explain the Penrose process. This process shows how energy can be taken from a black hole. The image above shows powerful outflows from a black hole in the radio galaxy Centaurus A.
