By Lynda Radosevich
Yvonne C. Brill -- Aerospace consultant, in Skillman, N.J.
n the 1940s, with memories of Amelia
Earhart fresh in her mind,
Yvonne C. Brill dreamt of becoming an aeronautical engineer. A
daughter of immigrants and the first in her family to go to college,
she also faced a couple of obstacles: The University of Manitoba
where she studied didn't teach aeronautical engineering, and the
engineering dean didn't admit women into the program. Rather than
arguing with the dean, Brill studied physics, chemistry, and math -- and
later became a pioneer in space exploration and utilization.
Her first job out of college was with Douglas Aircraft, in Santa Monica, Calif. She
earned her
master's degree in chemistry at the University of Southern California taking night
courses, then
became a rocket propellant chemist on a highly secretive project at Douglas to design
and launch
an unmanned, earth-orbiting satellite. Known as Project Rand, it later became the
Rand Corp.
"Way back in 1946 when we
started this project, I wasn't sure
I'd live long enough to see us
actually put people in space,"
Brill says. She not only lived to
see people in space, she ended
up making a critical discovery
that would affect every
telephone user or television
watcher today. But first, she met
her husband, a research chemist
whose job options were on the opposite coast.
"I had to decide whether to stay with my career or get married," Brill
says. "I decided that good
jobs were easier to find than good husbands, so I married him."
Brill managed to keep both. After moving east and having three children, she landed
a job in
spacecraft propulsion at RCA Astro-Electronics, in Princeton, N.J. During her first
year, she
developed the concept for a new rocket engine -- an electrothermal hydrazine thruster.
The result
of her invention was the capability to launch telecommunications and television broad
satellites
with more transponders or increased mission life.
Now at age 74, Brill has "retired," but she still consults on many projects,
including NASA's
Aerospace Advisory Panel. Her experience has taught her that women in technology
have to
develop determination: "You need a confidence in your ability, because often
you'd question
whether you're really on the right path," she says.
Brill also advises other women in technology to go where their skills are appreciated:
"If you face
blatant discrimination, get another job. Because there are so many good jobs and
corporations that
do positive things for women."
The Explorer
By Lynda Radosevich
Eleanor Francis Helin --
Planetary scientist and astronomer at the Jet
Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
leanor Francis Helin is not the first female astronomer. That honor
traditionally goes to En Hedu'Anna, a Babylonian priestess who
tracked the stars and the cycles of the moon circa 2354 B.C. But
in 1976, Helin became the first astronomer, male or female, to
discover an asteroid that was in the earth's orbit and had a period less
than one year -- which makes it likely to collide with Earth.
Prior to Helin's discovery, astronomers thought searching for near-Earth asteroids
was
preposterous. So no one was looking. But Helin persisted and found the asteroid,
which she
named Aten for the Egyptian sun god. This created major shock waves throughout the
scientific
community.
"The two major dynamists who
ran the orbit [project] held me at
bay for 10 days, saying there
must be a mistake," Helin says.
"[The asteroid] broke all the
accepted rules."
It also ignited the field of
near-Earth asteroid research.
Now scientists have identified
48 Aten asteroids, and Helin's programs have found roughly 25 percent of them. And
with movies
such as last year's Deep Impact and Armageddon thrilling audiences around the world,
Earth-threatening space objects have become popular.
Helin's studies led her to launch the first survey of planet-crossing asteroids from
Palomar
Observatory, which ran from 1973 to 1995. Helin then concentrated on building a new
near-Earth
asteroid search program. She has won numerous awards, including NASA's Exceptional
Service
Medal. She attributes her success to tenacity: "I was very dogged about wanting
to do this and felt
very strongly motivated that it had been overlooked and was worth my effort,"
Helin says.
Helin adds that if women are strong, persistent, dedicated, and not too sensitive,
their counterparts
will treat them as equals. But she does not stop with words of advice: To help inspire
other
women in technology to aim high, she has honored WITI by naming an asteroid for it.
"Having an asteroid that represents this wonderful group of women elevates this
outstanding
organization to celestial rank," Helin says.
Copyright
© 1999 InfoWorld Media Group Inc.
