Space Pioneer Nancy Roman
Date: 1 Jan 1962

Dr. Nancy Roman, one of the nation's top scientists in the space program, is shown with a model of the Orbiting Solar Observatory (OSO).

Roman received her Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of Chicago in 1949. In 1959, Dr. Roman joined NASA and in 1960 she served as chief of the Astronomy and Relativity Programs in the Office of Space Science. Dr. Roman was very influential in creating satellites such as the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST).

Dr. Roman retired from NASA in 1979, but continued working as a contractor at the Goddard Space Flight Center. Throughout her career, Dr. Roman was a spokesperson and advocate for women in the sciences.

Credit: NASA