The first U.S. woman professor of astronomy, Maria Mitchell (1818–1889), was born on this day in Nantucket, Massachusetts, the third of nine children. Self-taught and raised a Quaker, she celebrated the universe with eyes full of wonder and a spirit devoted to truth.

“We especially need imagination in science. Question everything,” she explained. Through a life of exploration and fierce curiosity, she became a guiding light for education and discovery.

On a clear October night in 1847, while peering through her father’s modest telescope, she discovered a comet—later named Comet Mitchell 1847VI—and earned international fame. Her discovery made her the first American to record a comet sighting. The King of Denmark honored her with a gold medal, a gleaming acknowledgment of celestial talent.

“Every formula which expresses a law of nature is a hymn of praise to God,” she believed. Her faith and science walked hand-in-hand beneath the stars.

As a mentor, she inspired generations of young women to pursue careers in science and technology. “Besides learning to see,” she once said, “there is another art to be learned — not to see what is not.” Her gentle wisdom taught clarity, skepticism, and soulful observation.

She was the first woman admitted to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1848 and later became a beloved professor of astronomy at Vassar College for over two decades. A moon crater now bears her name. Her legacy endures through the Maria Mitchell Observatory, still operating on Nantucket Island.

“Do not look at stars as bright spots only,” she urged. “Try to take in the vastness of the universe.” Her words remain an invitation to dream more deeply, and to listen to the sky with our hearts.