[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 1 - 13:31:37 ]
Hello to our early arriving chat participants! Today's Virtual Take Our Daughters to Work Day chat with Nancy Roman from NASA Goddard Space Flight Center will begin at 2:00 p.m., Pacific Daylight Time. Be sure you have read Nancy's profile at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/bios/nr.html before joining this chat.

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[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 5 - 14:00:08 ]
Hello and welcome to today's Virtual Take Our Daughters to Work Day chat with Nancy Roman from NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. Nancy's career has had three phases: research and teaching; management; and support. Early in her career, Nancy's research and teaching included observing stars and other phenomena at the University of Chicago's Yerkes Observatory, and teaching graduate courses. She has also been involved in planning for the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), satellite pointing, and planning for the Earth Observation System (EOS). She has managed and continues to work at the Astronomical Data Center (ADC) at Goddard Space Flight Center.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 6 - 14:00:25 ]
And now, here is Nancy Roman to answer your questions.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 9 - 14:02:10 ]
RE: [em] with all the work that you do, do you want to ever really go into space to know more about your work?
Yes, I think I would have liked to go into space - not for my work - that is done better remotely but just to see the earth from a distance and to see a very dark sky.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 11 - 14:03:40 ]
RE: [Meghan] Hi! I am working on Sign of Satellite badge for scouting. A requirement is to learn more about jobs that affect my future. What subjects would you recommend a girl study if she is interested in pursuing a career in astronomy?
If you want to pursue a career in astronomy you should take all of the math and physics you can get in high school. Chemistry and biology are also useful in some parts of astronomy. Above that, learn to write and speak clearly and well

[ NRoman/GSFC - 13 - 14:05:20 ]
RE: [Meghan] Which constellation is your favorite and why?
I have never thought about a favorite constellation. Several have particular meaning for me. My thesis was on the Big Dipper. I worked for a while on the center of Cygnus (the swan). That is a beautiful area through a telescope. Another region I enjoy through a small telescope is the scorpion

[ NRoman/GSFC - 17 - 14:07:38 ]
RE: [em] what is the coolest thing you ever did with your work?
The coolest thing I used to do was to work with a large telescope in an excellent climate. When I did most of my observing, astronomers actually worked at the telescope, in all temperatures, not in a warm room as they do today with the new large telescopes. The most exciting thing I did was to discover that the ordinary stars near the sun were actually different in the amount of moderate heavy elements they contained.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 19 - 14:08:45 ]
RE: [Meghan] I never realized there was a swan. Where would I find it?
The swan i often called the Northern Cross. It is almost overhead in the summer sky. The brightest star in the summer sky is Vega. The swan is just to its east.

[ em - 20 - 14:10:24 ]
thanks for your time in chatting with me and my dad.we have to go home now. thanks again, it was very fun!!!!!

[ NRoman/GSFC - 21 - 14:10:37 ]
RE: [Jessica] How long will the Hubble Telescope be used? Will they ever retire it and what will happen to it then?
The Hubble is supposed to continue to work until 2010 although after 2003 it will receive less support. I do not know if it has been decided what will be done with it then. It probably depends on its condition and whether it is thought that the cost of retrieving it would be worth while. Of course, if it is still working well, they may decide to continue to use it.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 22 - 14:12:42 ]
RE: [Jessica] Are you doing any work with Chandra that will be deployed on Eileen Collins mission?
No. I am not doing any work on Chandra. My research interest is primarily in optical (visual region) astronomy and Chandra is designed to study X-ray radiation from space. However, I shall be intested in its discoveries.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 25 - 14:17:08 ]
RE: [Meghan] I will be sure to look for it this summer. I will be living in the country then and won't have the city lights to deal with. How many different types of telescopes have you used in your career? How have telescopes changed over the years?
I have used various telescopes including refractors (including the 40-inch at Yerkes, the world's largest), various reflectors ranging up to 84-inches in size, and a Schmidt (wide field) telescope. The new telescopes are much larger than the ones built fifty years ago. They have much thinner mirrors that are continuosly adjusted to give good images. Also the mounting is simpler. Instead of aligning the motion of the telescope directly with the axis of the earth, the pointing is controlled continuously by computer. All of the the new telescopes depend completely on computers for their operation and data collecting. In stead of photographic plates which were used in my day, astronomers now use electronic detectors like those used in television cameras.

[ Tia - 26 - 14:17:41 ]
What do you think about zodiac signs? Do you think there is any truth to your personality because of a sign you are born under?

[ NRoman/GSFC - 29 - 14:20:22 ]
The signs of the Zodiac simply define the twelve constellations that the sun moves through in the course of a year. There are many other interesting phenomena in them also. (I mentioned the scorpion above.)However, they cannot plan any role in human life, other than provide enjoyment. They are much too far away to have any influence.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 28 - 14:18:17 ]
RE: [Nicky] I was wondering if you know anything about the new "solar system behinf the sun," (you can't see it)?
I have not hear of the "solar system behind the sun". The one that has received a lot of publicity recently is in the northern sky. The sun for that solar system is visible to the naked eye in a good sky.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 32 - 14:23:45 ]
RE: [Sue] What is the difference between an astrologer and an astronomer? What is the study of astrobiology?
Astrology was a ancient religion. When men did not understand nature, they attributed gods to things they saw, particularly in nature and in the sky. As they studied the sky, they began to see that things repeated after variously time periods. (The moon reappeared in the sam place every 28 days; the constellations came around every year, etc.) They then began to be able to predict eclipses, which scared people greatly. These observations were the foundation for the develpment of astronomy, but astronomy is a science, not a religion. Astrobiology is the study of the possibility of life other than on the earth. For example, we think there may have been life on Mars or even Europa at some time.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 34 - 14:26:55 ]
RE: [Nicky] Are there as many women as men in your science field? How many women do you work with? How many men do you work with. Are women treated with the same amount of respect as men?
There are still only about one woman in astronomy for every five men but women are obtaining much more influential posisitions than they had fifty years ago. Women have always been attracted to astronomy and have made major contributions from the time of the Egyptians to the present. I think that for the most part, women are respected in astronomy today. I seldom had any problems working with men although I was opften the only woman in a meeting. This had advantages as well as disadvantages. I had many interesting experiences as a result of nbeing "different".

[ NRoman/GSFC - 36 - 14:29:43 ]
RE: [Jessica] What kind of telescope would you recommend for elementary age children? What do you really need for just locating stars and constellations?
For elementary age children, I'd start with a good pair of binoculars. The most important either for binoculars or a small telescope is to have a good support stand so the instrument can be kept still. It is frustrating to have the image moving around so that you cannot see it simply because the telescope or bioculars are jiggling. Beyond binoculars, the choice partly depends on the amount to be spent. For a cheap telescope (don't get one too cheap!) a refractor (that is, a lens) is probably best.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 38 - 14:31:01 ]
RE: [em] how old were you when you first got interested with space?
I really do not remember when I waas not interested in astronomy. I started a club among my friends who met to learn the constellations when I waas in sixth grade. I read everything I could find on astronomy when I was in junior high. However, I never had a telescope.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 41 - 14:32:50 ]
RE: [Meghan] If you could go to any plant which one would it be?
I think that the most interesting planet to visit would be Mars. The climate is more like we are used to (although much colder) and it has enough weather and enough different "geology" to be interesting. I would sink in the giant plants and their satellites are too cold.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 42 - 14:34:44 ]
RE: [Kristina] What happened to Hubble's gyroscopes that make a new shuttle visit necessary? Are they still working right now?
Yes three of the gyroscopes on Hubble are still working of the six origianlly on the satellite. However, it they lost one of these, they could not continue to point the telescope at the stars and would have to stop work. I am not sure exactly what has gone wrong. Gyroscopes are quite delicate electronic instruments and various things can happen.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 45 - 14:38:02 ]
RE: [Mrs.Rusk] How many satelites are there orbiting earth for astronomy research? Is there a limit set on how many satelites that can be in orbit?
I have not kept up with the number of satellites orbiting the earth for research. It must be in the dozens, in addtion to the commercial and military satellites. Japan and Europe both have very active programs and Russia still has a few. We must have 10 or 20 now; possibly more,

[ NRoman/GSFC - 46 - 14:40:02 ]
RE: [Jenny] Do you think telescopes will ever be built on the Moon? If so, what kind?
Yes. I think there will be a telescope on the moon some day. It will probably be a thin mirror mounted much like our newest earth-based telescopes. A computer will be used to have the telescope compensate for the moon's slow but complicated motion. Since gravity is less, the support structure can be lighter and the telescope would not be subject to the distortion form an atmosphere.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 47 - 14:41:56 ]
RE: [Meghan] Have you ever wondered about how many stars there are?
I do not think that I ever though about how many stars there are. In our Milky Way (our home galaxy) we know that the mass is such that there should be about 200 billion stars but our galaxy is only one of billions so I cannot even visualize how many stars there could be!

[ NRoman/GSFC - 50 - 14:43:38 ]
RE: [NRoman/GSFC] I have not kept up with the number of satellites orbiting the earth for research. It must be in the dozens, in addtion to the commercial and military satellites. Japan and Europe both have very active programs and Russia still has a few. We must have 10 or 20 now; possibly more,
The only limit to the number of satellites in orbit is that they should not get close enough to collide. There is still a lot of space out there. However, we are worried not about the satellites but great clouds of debri and such junk as spent rockets, etc. Collisions with these could destroy a satellite.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 51 - 14:45:54 ]
RE: [Bettina] Do you think regular air pollution and light pollution will ever get so bad that most astronomy will have to be done from space?
I hope that pollution nevery get so bad that we have to move our telescopes off the earth not for the sake of astronomers but for the sake of everyone who enjoys seeing a clear dark sky. Unfortunately, unless we very sson take major steps to avoid pollution, this can happen. We waste a great deal of light for decoration or by poor design.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 53 - 14:47:04 ]
RE: [Nicky] Do you have any children? If so do you teach them the constalations? Are your children interested in the stars?
No. I do not have children, as I have never been married. My mother taught me the constellations, even though she was a musician, not a scientist so I think I would have taught my children also.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 56 - 14:48:49 ]
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[ NRoman/GSFC - 57 - 14:48:56 ]
RE: [Meghan] What do you think the most important astronomical discovery of this century has been?
I think that the most important astronomical discovery of the century is that our Milky Way galaxy is just one of billions or similar galaxies and that we are not even in the center of space.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 58 - 14:51:15 ]
RE: [Meghan] What do you predict for the future of astronomy?
I am not a good prophet. I think that we will make major discoveries in the next decades about the structure of the universe. One question that is quite "hot" at present is how did the first galaxies form after the big bang. I suspect that we will soon find enough planets that we will have to revise our theories about how planets form.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 61 - 14:54:06 ]
RE: [Meghan] Do you think we will ever explore the other galaxies (like Star Trek)?
I think that it is highly unlikely that we will even explore other galaxies. They are so far away that, even travelling of the speed of light, it would take more than a generation to reach one. If we can develop a very efficient rocket motor, we might think of visiting the nearer stars.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 62 - 14:55:43 ]
RE: [Beth/BV] Do you have any regrets about your career? Is there anything you would have done differently?
No. I have no regrets about my career. It has certainly been different from my expectations but it has been great. I have learned, and continue to learn, many things. I have had many interesting experiences. I have traveled a great deal and I have been involved in astronomy at an exciting time.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 65 - 14:58:12 ]
RE: [Sue] Can you see a large scale change in the way men and women have worked together in the past and how they interact now? Have things changed that much at NASA ?
I think that women are having a much easier time now in professional positions. They are accepted and, for the most part, treated fairly. There are certainly many more professional women in NASA now than when I started with the agency.

[ NRoman/GSFC - 67 - 15:00:58 ]
RE: [Meghan] What is the "big bang"? Not sure I completely understand that theory.
The big bang says that the whole universe we can observed today was once a very tiny bit (mathemeticians call it a singularity) that was exceeding hot. It expanded suddenly and began to cool. It was still originally only energy but as it cooled, particles were created and these eventually formed into stars and galaxies. IT is easy to describe mathematically but difficult to understand intellectually because it is completely beyond human experience.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 68 - 15:01:25 ]
We will now be ending today's chat with Nancy Roman. We would like to thank everyone for joining us today. Our very special thanks to Nancy for her very thoughtful responses to our questions, and for sharing her personal and career experiences, and expertise with us.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 69 - 15:01:41 ]
We hope you have enjoyed this year's series of Virtual Take Our Daughters to Work Day QuestChats. Archives of today's chats will be available on the Virtual Take Our Daughters to Work Day events schedule page at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/TODTWD99/schedule.html to learn more about today's upcoming chats. Also check our schedule of events page at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/common/events/ to learn about other upcoming chats with NASA experts.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 70 - 15:01:53 ]
On behalf of Tish Krieg, Women of NASA project manager, Sandy Dueck, NASA QuestChat moderator, and all of our featured NASA women, thank you for joining us for this special event.

[ Meghan - 66 - 14:58:58 ]
Thank you Ms. Roman for taking time out to answer our questions. You have helped a great deal with my badge requirements. This has been a most interesting "Take Your Daughter to Work" day experience.

[ Nicky - 71 - 15:04:04 ]
Thank you for answering my questions. Have a happy take your daughter to work day.