Professor Michele Dougherty is the first woman Astronomer Royal

It has been announced that the distinguished astronomer, Prof Michele Dougherty, has been appointed by his Majesty King Charles III as the new Astronomer Royal.  This is the first time in 350 years that this post has been held by a woman since it was first established by King Charles II in 1675.

The original appointees of this title were eminent astronomers

The original appointees of this title were eminent astronomers who directed the scientific programme and day to day operation of the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. John Flamsteed was the first Astronomer Royal and his purpose at the time was to advise on how to use the stars to navigate at sea. The role evolved over the years, and it became a position in which the holder became a government scientific adviser on a range of subjects unrelated to astronomy. In 1972 the post became an honorary position awarded to an astronomer for their contributions to astronomical science. Today its holder is tasked with developing relationships and cooperation with astronomers around the world and to encourage collaboration in different scientific projects.

Apparently, many women worked at the Royal Observatory Greenwich in the past, mainly on computational work, but their contributions were never recognised, nor their presence recorded in any publications.

There are in fact two female Astronomer Royals in the UK today

There are in fact two female Astronomer Royals in the UK today. Prof Michele Dougherty who has just been announced as the new Astronomer Royal and Prof Catherine Heyman who has held the Scottish equivalent since 2021 as the Astronomer Royal for Scotland, the title of which dates back to 1834. Previously only men have held these posts.

 © Wikimedia Commons Jupiter with its icy moon Ganymede transiting bottom right

Prof Dougherty was brought up in South Africa and  became interested in astronomy at the age of ten when she first saw the moons of Jupiter and Saturn through a telescope which her father had built. She attended an arts high school and so had no scientific training until she took up science later at university. Eventually she specialised in astrophysics and developed an expertise in designing instruments to measure magnetic fields. This she applied to the astronomy of Jupiter and Saturn and their moons which had held her fascination since childhood.

In 1997 NASA’s Cassini satellite probe embarked on its mission to study Saturn and its moons. When Cassini passed Enceladus, Dougherty noted an anomaly in its magnetic field and insisted that the probe returned to this moon to study this further. Her observations were proved correct – Enceladus was shown to be spinning and possess water which dramatically spouted from its southern pole. The implication was that this body could possibly support extraterrestrial life.

Prof Michele Dougherty has demonstrated that in the traditionally male dominated subject of physics, a woman can prosper and have a successful career

After the Cassini mission, Prof Dougherty continued her interest as the principle investigator of Saturn and Jupiter. At present she is working with the European Space Agency’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer project. The ESA  has sent a probe to Ganymede, one of Jupiter’s moons of interest, with a possibility that with frozen water at its surface, it too has the potential to support life.

In her life as an academic, Prof Dougherty has held other prestigious scientific posts such as head of the physics department at Imperial College London from 2018 to 2024 where she is still a Professor of Space Physics. Recently, she became the president elect of the Institute of Physics.

Prof Michele Dougherty has demonstrated that in the traditionally male dominated subject of physics a woman can prosper and have a successful career. On BBC’s Radio 4, Prof Dougherty expressed her delight in taking up this position as Astronomer Royal, but with modesty she said she does not want this accolade to be all about her. She would like her appointment to encourage other women and girls to take up science with her as an example of what women can achieve in this field of study.

by Ian Smith