The first of the famous women astronomers at the Harvard College Observatory, Williamina Fleming (1857-1911) helped to revolutionize astronomy in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. She discovered ten novae, or exploding stars, and more than 200 variable stars. She also developed a new star classification system. Fleming was considered to be the leading female astronomer of her day and her achievements opened up the field of astronomy for women.

Born in Dundee Scotland on May 15,1857, Williamina (known as Mina) Fleming was the daughter of Robert and Mary (Walker) Stevens. Her father had a profitable carving and gilding business and was well known for his picture frames. He was also one of the first in Dundee to experiment with photography. He died when his daughter was seven. Fleming attended public schools in Dundee until she was 14. She then worked as a student teacher until she married James Orr...