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British astronomer (1865–1959)
Catherine Octavia Stevens (1865-1959) was an
amateur astronomer who was Director of the
British Astronomical Association Meteor Section from 1905 to 1911.
[1] Her primary interest was the
Sun and she made drawings of
sunspots using a 3 inch
refractor .
[1]
She joined the six month old British Astronomical Association on 27 May 1891.
[2] On the 1911 census she gave her occupation as Astronomer, working for the British Astronomical Association and her address was The Plain, Foxcombe Hill,
Oxford .,
[3] a house with an
observatory at the top of
Boars Hill , Oxford.
[1] She lived there from 1910 to 1956.
[1] In 1939 she gave her occupation as Meteorologist Astronomer.
[4]
Travels
Catherine Stevens travelled to see
total solar eclipses from
Algiers on
May 28, 1900 ,
Majorca on
August 30, 1905 and
Quebec on
August 31, 1932 .
[1] She spent a year in
Shetland to study the
Aurora Borealis .
[1] She travelled to
New Zealand and visited the hot springs at
Rotorua .
[1]
Family
She was born at the Rectory,
[3]
Bradfield, Berkshire on 23 January 1865,
[4] the daughter of Thomas Stevens (1809-1888), Rector of Bradfield and founder of
Bradfield College and Susanna Stevens née Marriott (c1824-1866),
[5] daughter of Rev Robert Marriott, Rector of
Cotesbach , Leicestershire.
[6] Catherine Stevens died on 16 June 1959.
[1]
Her older sister, Mary Ann Stevens, married
John Oldrid Scott , son of the architect
George Gilbert Scott .
[7]
Publications
Stevens, Catherine (July 1891).
"Growth and Decay of Sunspots in 1891" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 6 (9): 442–444.
Bibcode :
1896JBAA....6..442S .
Stevens, Catherine (July 1896).
"A Curious Rainbow" (PDF) . Nature . 54 (1395): 271.
Bibcode :
1896Natur..54Q.271S .
doi :
10.1038/054271c0 .
S2CID
4050412 .
Stevens, Catherine (June 1904).
"Mock Suns" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 14 (8): 318–319.
Bibcode :
1904JBAA...14..318S .
Stevens, Catherine (June 1905).
"Note on Halos and Rainbows" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 15 (3): 137–138.
Bibcode :
1905JBAA...15..137S .
Stevens, Catherine (October 1905).
"The Problem of "Shadow Bands" " (PDF) . Nature . 72 (1878): 631.
Bibcode :
1905Natur..72..631S .
doi :
10.1038/072631b0 .
S2CID
4054036 .
Stevens, Catherine (November 1907).
"The Sun as a twinkling star" . The Observatory . 30 (389): 407–408.
Bibcode :
1907Obs....30..407S .
Stevens, Catherine (June 1908).
"Reports of the Observing Sections: Section for the Observation of Meteors" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 18 (9): 358–360.
Bibcode :
1908JBAA...18..358S .
Stevens, Catherine (January 1910).
"The Physical Relation of Comets and Meteors" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 20 (4): 197–199.
Bibcode :
1910JBAA...20..194.
Stevens, Catherine (December 1922).
"Stellar Scintillation" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 33 (3): 108–109.
Stevens, Catherine (March 1924).
"Wind Waves and Shadow Bands" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 34 (5): 193–194.
Bibcode :
1924JBAA...34..193.
Stevens, Catherine (May 1927).
"Shadow Bands" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 37 (7): 277–278.
Bibcode :
1927JBAA...37..273.
Stevens, Catherine (November 1932).
"The Total Eclipse of the Sun of 1932 August 31" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 43 (1): 24–25.
Bibcode :
1932JBAA...43...24.
Obituary
"Obituary" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 70 (2): 103–104. January 1960. Written by James Henry Drake.
References
^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
"Obituary, JBAA" . Journal of the British Astronomical Association . 70 : 103. 1960.
Bibcode :
1960JBAA...70..103. Retrieved 12 October 2021 .
^ Larsen, Kristine,
"Shooting Stars: The Women Directors of the Meteor Section of the British Astronomical Association" , Antiquarian Astronomer , 2006, Issue 3, pp 76-77
^
a
b 1911 Census of England and Wales
^
a
b 1939 England and Wales Register
^ Deaths, Reading Mercury , 14 July 1866.
^ Marriages, Leicestershire Mercury , 25 March 1843
^ Reading Mercury , 2 May 1868
External links