Women of the Moon, The: Tales of Science, Love, Sorrow, and Courage

- Blurb -

Philosophers and poets in times past tried to figure out why the stainless moon <"smoothly polished, like a diamond>" in Dante' s words, had stains. The agreed solution was that, like a mirror, it reflected the imperfect Earth. Today we smile, but it was a clever way to understand the Moon in a manner that was consistent with the beliefs of their age. The Moon is no longer the <"in>" thing. We see it as often as the Sun and give it little thought-we' ve become indifferent. However, the Moon does reflect more than just sunlight. The Moon, or more precisely the nomenclature of lunar craters, still holds up a mirror to an important aspect of human history. Of the 1586 craters that have been named honoring philosophers and scientists, only 28 honor a woman. These 28 women of the Moon present us with an opportunity to meditate about this gap, but perhaps more significantly, they offer us an opportunity to talk about their lives, mostly unknown today. Who were these women? Some were intellectual giants who triumphed in spite of everything. Women we admire because they stubbornly refused to submit to the norms and prejudices of their time. A few were sponsors of science and others, although not researchers themselves, were active in science communication. The most recent ones represent a different kind of heroine, women who broke into the male world of space travel. The women of the Moon tell us stories of love, sorrow, and courage, of some remarkable scientific achievements realized through perseverance, and of tragedies triggered by circumstance and prejudice. They offer us an opportunity to chronicle forgotten stories and review some well-known ones in a new light. They also give us an occasion to emphasize the injustice of 28 against 1,558. There are abundant lunar craters still unnamed, and plenty of remarkable women who would deserve such anhonor.