Ursula Marvin Explained

Ursula B. Marvin
Birth Name:Ursula Bailey
Birth Date:20 August 1921
Birth Place:Bradford, Vermont, U.S.
Death Place:Concord, Massachusetts, U.S.
Fields:Planetary geology
Workplaces:Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
Education:Tufts University,
Harvard University-Radcliffe
Thesis1 Title:and
Thesis2 Title:)-->
Thesis1 Url:and
Thesis2 Url:)-->
Thesis1 Year:and
Thesis2 Year:)-->
Doctoral Advisors:)-->
Known For:Continental Drift: Evolution of a Concept
Awards:Lifetime Achievement Award from Women in Science and Engineering
Spouse:Thomas Crockett Marvin
Spouses:)-->
Partners:)-->

Ursula Bailey Marvin (August 20, 1921 – February 12, 2018)[1] [2] was an American planetary geologist and author who worked for the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory.[3]

She won the 1997 Women in Science and Engineering Lifetime Achievement Award.[4] In 1986, the Geological Society of America awarded her their History of Geology Award. She also won the 2005 Sue Tyler Friedman Medal,[5] and Antarctica's Marvin Nunatak is named in her honor. In 2012, the Meteoritical Society awarded her the Service Award[6] [7] in part for her work recording the oral history of meteoriticists.[8] [9] Asteroid (4309) Marvin is named in her honour, as is Marvin Crater on the Moon, located near the Lunar south pole.[10] [11]

Early life and education

Ursula Bailey was born in Bradford, Vermont, on August 20, 1921, to Harold Leslie Bailey and Alice M. Bailey.[12] [13] Her childhood near the White Mountains of New Hampshire, where, as she recalled in 1997, sunsets "shone with a pink-purple afterglow," inspired her with a love of the outdoors, but did not, at first, spark an interest in geology. While studying history at Tufts University, she took a geology class to fulfill her science requirements and was taken by the subject. She asked her geology professor to change majors to geology, but he refused (he told her she should learn how to cook) so she added geology, math and physics courses to her schedule.[12] She graduated with a bachelor's degree in history from Tufts University in 1943z She then attended Harvard University-Radcliffe, earning a master's degree in geology in 1946.

Career and research

Following World War II, she moved to Chicago, where she was a research associate at the University of Chicago,[12] working with Julian Goldsmith.[14] She was briefly married to Lloyd Chaisson, a dental student at the University of Chicago.[12]

She then returned to Harvard, to work on her Ph.D. in geology. While at Harvard she worked alongside her second husband, Thomas Crockett Marvin (June 28, 1916 – July 1, 2012), whom she married in 1952. They prospected for ore deposits in Brazil and Angola starting in 1953.[12] After returning to the United States in 1958, she taught mineralogy at Tufts for two years before she was offered a job researching meteorites at Harvard.[12] She was appointed to a permanent research staff position at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in 1961 and received a Ph.D. in geology from Harvard in 1969.

She authored the 1973 book Continental Drift: Evolution of a Concept[15] and authored over 160 research papers. Her key contributions in planetary science concentrated on studies of meteorites and lunar samples. Her publications include analysis of oxidation products of Sputnik 4 to determine mineralogical alteration over exposure time with applications to iron meteorites.[16] She was also involved with numerous studies of returned samples from both the American and Russian lunar programs, including from the Apollo 12,[17] Apollo 15,[18] Apollo 16[19] [20] missions, and from Luna 16[21] and Luna 20.[22]

She traveled to Antarctica for three of the early ANSMET surveys[23] and analyzed the first lunar meteorite, Allan Hills A81005.[24] She was the first woman on the American team that conducted research there.[12] Because of her contributions to research in Antarctica, a small mountain on the ice sheet was named for her, Marvin Nunatak.

She served as a trustee at Tufts University from 1975 to 1985, and was an emerita trustee of the university.[25]

Awards and honors

Notes and References

  1. R.R. Bowker Co (2009). American Men & Women of Science. Thomson/Gale
  2. News: Ursula Bailey Marvin, 96, groundbreaking geologist. Marquard. Bryan. February 19, 2018. Boston Globe. February 26, 2018.
  3. ABC-CLIO American Women of Science Since 1900
  4. Staff report (July 1997). Ursula Marving honoers by 'WISE' award for lifetime achievement in science. The CfA Almanac
  5. Web site: Geological Society of London . Award winners since 1931: Sue Tyler Friedman Medal . 2013-11-24. Geological Society of London .
  6. Web site: Awards of The Meteoritical Society. The Meteoritical Society. 27 March 2015.
  7. Web site: Awardees of the Meteoritical Society. The Meteoritical Society. 27 March 2015.
  8. Sears. Derek. 2012 Service Award of the Meteoritical Society for Ursula Marvin. Meteoritics & Planetary Science. 13 July 2012. 47. 7. 1238–1240. 10.1111/j.1945-5100.2012.01389.x. 2012M&PS...47.1238S. free.
  9. Marvin. Ursula. Response to Presentation of the Service Award of the Meteoritical Society. Meteoritics and Planetary Science. 13 July 2012. 47. 7. 1241–1242. 10.1111/j.1945-5100.2012.01388.x. 2012M&PS...47.1241M. free.
  10. Web site: (4309) Marvin = 1978 QC = 1978 SE8 = 1973 SK4 = 1973 UW. The International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center. 26 February 2018.
  11. Web site: IAU Approves the Name for Marvin Crater: Learn About Ursula Marvin and Marvin Crater | U.S. Geological Survey .
  12. News: Ursula Marvin, Geologist of the Extraterrestrial, Dies at 96. Sandomir. Richard. 2018-03-09. The New York Times. 2018-03-12. en-US. 0362-4331.
  13. Web site: Ursula B. Marvin - Monday, February 12th, 2018 . 2022-12-22 . www.keefefuneralhome.com . en.
  14. Goldsmith . Julian R. . Some Chicago Georecollections . Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences . May 1991 . 19 . 1 . 1–18 . 10.1146/annurev.ea.19.050191.000245 . 1991AREPS..19....1G . 131236836 . en . 0084-6597. free .
  15. Book: Marvin. Ursula B.. Continental drift : the evolution of a concept. 1974. Smithsonian Inst. Press. Washington, DC. 2. print., with corrections.
  16. Marvin. Ursula. Mineralogy of the oxidation products of the Sputnik 4 fragment and of iron meteorites. Journal of Geophysical Research. 1 Sep 1963. 68. 17. 5059–5068. 10.1029/JZ068i017p05059. 1963JGR....68.5059M.
  17. Marvin. Ursula. A transient heating event in the history of a highlands troctolite from Apollo 12 soil 12033. Journal of Geophysical Research. Feb 18, 1985. 90. S2. C420–C430. 10.1029/JB090iS02p0C421. free.
  18. Marvin. Ursula. Cordierite-Spinel Troctolite, a New Magnesium-Rich Lithology from the Lunar Highlands. Science. Feb 1989. 243. 4893. 925–928. 10.1126/science.243.4893.925. 17783768. 1989Sci...243..925M. 3031045.
  19. Marvin. Ursula B.. Lindstrom. Marilyn M.. Bernatowicz. T. J.. Podosek. Frank A.. Sugiura. Naoji. The composition and history of breccia 67015 from North Ray Crater. Journal of Geophysical Research. 1987. 92. B4. E471. 10.1029/JB092iB04p0E471. 1987JGR....92E.471M.
  20. Marvin. Ursula B.. Lindstrom. Marilyn M.. Rock 67015: A feldspathic fragmental breccia with KREEP-rich melt clasts. Journal of Geophysical Research. 1983. 88. S02. A659. 10.1029/JB088iS02p0A659. 1983LPSC...13..659M.
  21. Reid. John B.. Taylor. G. Jeffrey. Marvin. Ursula B.. Wood. John A.. Luna 16: Relative proportions and petrologic significance of particles in the soil from Mare Fecunditatis. Earth and Planetary Science Letters. January 1972. 13. 2. 286–298. 10.1016/0012-821X(72)90104-5. 1972E&PSL..13..286R.
  22. Taylor. G.Jeffrey. Drake. Michael J. Wood. John A. Marvin. Ursula B. The Luna 20 lithic fragments, and the composition and origin of the lunar highlands. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. April 1973. 37. 4. 1087–1106. 10.1016/0016-7037(73)90203-2. 1973GeCoA..37.1087T.
  23. Marvin. Ursula. Meteorites on Ice: Preliminary Report on the 1978-1979 Antarctic Field Season. Meteoritics. Dec 1979. 14. 486–487. 1979Metic..14..486M.
  24. Marvin. Ursula B.. The discovery and initial characterization of Allan Hills 81005: The first lunar meteorite. Geophysical Research Letters. September 1983. 10. 9. 775–778. 10.1029/GL010i009p00775. 1983GeoRL..10..775M.
  25. Web site: Trustees Emeriti at Tufts. Trustees Emeriti. Tufts University. 27 March 2015.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Ursula Marvin".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.