Wyo4news Staff, [email protected] [PRESS RELEASE]
ROCK SPRINGS, WYOMING — Actors’ Mission’s “Silent Sky” by Lauren Gunderson celebrates the work of pioneer Astronomer Henrietta Leavitt” by Daniel Bendtsen.
Until Henrietta Leavitt, many astronomers guessed the universe was no bigger than the Milky Way. Until Henrietta, astronomers could only measure distances up to a few hundred light-years. Until Henrietta, astronomers looked through their telescopes and assumed the images of other galaxies were mere gas clouds.
Then, while cataloging star locations for Harvard at the turn of the 20th century, Henrietta discovered that certain stars, called Cepheids, pulsate for a duration that correlates to their luminosity. By comparing that data to the Cepheids’ apparent magnitude, astronomers could determine how far away each star was.
Another astronomer, Edwin Hubble, later used Henrietta’s data to determine that the universe is expanding. Henrietta’s pioneering work also enabled the scientific community to determine the size of the Milky Way and measure distances more than 20 million times farther than were previously possible.
Actors’ Mission is proud to present Henrietta’s story in its next production, “Silent Sky,” which premieres in less than three weeks. The play tells the story of how Henrietta overcame obstacles, like family obligations and sexism (women weren’t allowed to use telescopes during Henrietta’s time at Harvard), to help upend her contemporaries’ understanding of the universe.
“Silent Sky” will be performed at the Broadway Theater on Jan. 19th, 20th, 21st, 26th, 27th, and 29th.
