Paris Pismis
Encyclopedia
Marie Paris Pişmiş de Recilas (January 30, 1911 – August 1, 1999) was a Turkish
-Mexican
astronomer
of Armenia
n descent.
Pişmiş was born Mari Sukiasyan in 1911, in Ortaköy
, Istanbul
. In 1937, she became the first woman to get a Ph.D.
from the Science Faculty of Istanbul University
. Her advisor was Erwin Finlay Freundlich. Later, she went to Harvard University
where she met her future husband Félix Recillas, a Mexican
mathematician. They settled in Mexico, and she became the first professional astronomer in Mexico. According to Dorrit Hoffleit
, "she is the one person most influential in establishing Mexico’s importance in astronomical education and research". Currently Mexico is the country with the highest proportion of female astronomers.
For more than 50 years she worked at UNAM
which awarded her a number of prizes including the "Science Teaching Prize".
Pişmiş studied among others the kinematics of galaxies
, H II nebulae
, the structure of open star clusters and planetary nebula
e. She compiled the catalogue Pismis of 22 open clusters and 2 globular cluster
s in the southern hemisphere..
In 1998, she published an autobiography entitled "Reminiscences in the Life of Paris Pişmiş: a Woman Astronomer".
She died in 1999. According to her wish, she was cremated
. Her daughter Elsa is an astrophysicist.
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
-Mexican
Mexican people
Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
of Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n descent.
Pişmiş was born Mari Sukiasyan in 1911, in Ortaköy
Ortaköy
Ortaköy is a neighbourhood, formerly a small village, within the Beşiktaş district of Istanbul, Turkey, located in the middle of the European bank of the Bosphorus....
, Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
. In 1937, she became the first woman to get a Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
from the Science Faculty of Istanbul University
Istanbul University
Istanbul University is a Turkish university located in Istanbul. The main campus is adjacent to Beyazıt Square.- Synopsis :A madrasa, a religious school, was established sometime in the 15th century after the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople. An institution of higher education named the...
. Her advisor was Erwin Finlay Freundlich. Later, she went to Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
where she met her future husband Félix Recillas, a Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
mathematician. They settled in Mexico, and she became the first professional astronomer in Mexico. According to Dorrit Hoffleit
Dorrit Hoffleit
Ellen Dorrit Hoffleit was an American senior research astronomer at Yale University.Hoffleit was born in Florence, Alabama and earned her Ph.D. in astronomy from Radcliffe College in 1938. Starting as a research assistant at the Harvard College Observatory in 1929, she was hired as an astronomer...
, "she is the one person most influential in establishing Mexico’s importance in astronomical education and research". Currently Mexico is the country with the highest proportion of female astronomers.
For more than 50 years she worked at UNAM
National Autonomous University of Mexico
The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México is a university in Mexico. UNAM was founded on 22 September 1910 by Justo Sierra as a liberal alternative to the Roman Catholic-sponsored Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) (National Autonomous...
which awarded her a number of prizes including the "Science Teaching Prize".
Pişmiş studied among others the kinematics of galaxies
Galaxy
A galaxy is a massive, gravitationally bound system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and dust, and an important but poorly understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter. The word galaxy is derived from the Greek galaxias , literally "milky", a...
, H II nebulae
H II region
An H II region is a large, low-density cloud of partially ionized gas in which star formation has recently taken place. The short-lived, blue stars forged in these regions emit copious amounts of ultraviolet light, ionizing the surrounding gas...
, the structure of open star clusters and planetary nebula
Planetary nebula
A planetary nebula is an emission nebula consisting of an expanding glowing shell of ionized gas ejected during the asymptotic giant branch phase of certain types of stars late in their life...
e. She compiled the catalogue Pismis of 22 open clusters and 2 globular cluster
Globular cluster
A globular cluster is a spherical collection of stars that orbits a galactic core as a satellite. Globular clusters are very tightly bound by gravity, which gives them their spherical shapes and relatively high stellar densities toward their centers. The name of this category of star cluster is...
s in the southern hemisphere..
In 1998, she published an autobiography entitled "Reminiscences in the Life of Paris Pişmiş: a Woman Astronomer".
She died in 1999. According to her wish, she was cremated
Cremation
Cremation is the process of reducing bodies to basic chemical compounds such as gasses and bone fragments. This is accomplished through high-temperature burning, vaporization and oxidation....
. Her daughter Elsa is an astrophysicist.