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Vera Rubin Timeline

(1928 – Present)

Vera Rubin (1928–2016) was an American astronomer whose groundbreaking observations of galaxy rotation curves provided some of the first compelling evidence for the existence of dark matter. Despite facing significant gender barriers in science throughout her career, Rubin became a pioneering figure in astrophysics, earning the National Medal of Science and having the Vera C. Rubin Observatory named in her honor. Less

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Early Life and Education

Birth of Vera Cooper Rubin

Jul 23, 1928

Vera Florence Cooper was born on July 23, 1928, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She would go on to become an American astronomer who pioneered work on galaxy rotation rates.

Family moves to Washington, D.C

1938

In 1938 the family moved to Washington, D.C., where ten-year-old Vera developed an interest in astronomy while watching the stars from her window.

Graduation from Coolidge Senior High School

1944

Rubin attended public school at Coolidge Senior High School in Washington, D.C., graduating in 1944.

Barred from Princeton's astronomy program

1948

Rubin attempted to enroll in the astronomy program at Princeton but was barred due to her gender; Princeton would retain its policy of gender discrimination against women in its astronomy department until 1975.

Bachelor's degree from Vassar College

1948

Rubin earned her bachelor's degree in astronomy in 1948 at Vassar, then an all-women's school famous for its association with pioneering 19th century astronomer Maria Mitchell, discoverer of Comet 1847 VI.

Image source: Vassar College

Bachelor's degree from Vassar College

Marriage to Robert Joshua Rubin

1948

Rubin married in 1948, when her husband, Robert Joshua Rubin, was a graduate student at Cornell University, and she herself had recently graduated from Vassar.

Master's degree from Cornell

1951

Rubin completed her work at Cornell University with the award of her 1951 master's degree in astronomy.

Image source: Cornell University

Master's degree from Cornell

All four children earn PhDs

1963

By 1963, Rubin, working and with four children, was described as the sole member of Vassar's class of 1948 as having come near to filling the Utopian aim of being a full-time professional without mostly putting her children into someone else's hands. All four children—David (born 1950), Judith Young (1952–2014), Karl (born 1956), and Allan (born 1960)—earned PhDs in natural sciences or mathematics.

Image source: Vera Rubin

All four children earn PhDs

Death of husband Robert Joshua Rubin

2008

In 2008, Robert Joshua Rubin, Vera Rubin's husband, with whom she had been married for about 60 years, died.

Scientific Career

AAS presentation makes front page headlines

Dec 1950

Her presentation to the American Astronomical Society in December 1950 received front page headlines, including 'Young Mother Has Own Theory of Universe', disseminated from an article in the Washington Post.

Dissertation concludes galaxies are clumped

1954

Her dissertation, completed in 1954, concluded that galaxies clumped together rather than being randomly distributed through the universe, a controversial idea not pursued by others for two decades.

Image source: Galaxy cluster

Dissertation concludes galaxies are clumped

Doctoral dissertation under George Gamow

1954

In 1954 Rubin completed her PhD under George Gamow, who was at nearby George Washington University, though much of her classwork was completed with Georgetownian Francis Heyden.

Image source: George Gamow

Doctoral dissertation under George Gamow

Work at Georgetown University

1955 - 1965

From 1955 to 1965 Rubin worked at Georgetown University as a research associate astronomer, lecturer (1959–1962), and finally assistant professor of astronomy (1962–1965).

Image source: Georgetown University

Work at Georgetown University

Collaboration with the Burbidges begins

1963 - 1964

From 1963, Rubin began a year-long collaboration with Geoffrey and Margaret Burbidge, during which she made her first observations of the rotation of galaxies while using the McDonald Observatory's 82-inch telescope.

Image source: Margaret Burbidge

Collaboration with the Burbidges begins

Joins Carnegie Institution of Washington

1965

In 1965 Rubin joined the Carnegie Institution of Washington (later called Carnegie Institution of Science) as a staff member in the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism.

Image source: Carnegie Institution for Science

Joins Carnegie Institution of Washington

Discovery of the Rubin-Ford effect published

1976

A decade of observations coalesced in the shared discovery of the Rubin-Ford effect, with publication first appearing in 1976.

Founding faculty member of Vatican Observatory Summer School

1986

An initiating faculty member of the Vatican Observatory Summer School in 1986, Rubin continued this relationship through subsequent decades, providing dedication remarks for the opening of the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope on Mount Graham.

Image source: Vatican Observatory

Founding faculty member of Vatican Observatory Summer School

"One Hundred Years of Rotating Galaxies" review published

2000

Rubin's perspective on the history of work on galaxy movements was presented in a review, "One Hundred Years of Rotating Galaxies," for the Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific in 2000. It adapted her 1996 Gold Medal lecture.

Still actively publishing into the 2010s

2000 - 2013

In the early 2000s, Vera Rubin remained actively engaged in scientific work, and articles with her participation were still being published as late as 2013.

Retirement from the Carnegie Institution

2014

Rubin retired from the Carnegie Institution in 2014 as Senior Fellow of Astronomy in the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism.

Honors and Recognition

First woman permitted to observe at Palomar Observatory

1965

During her work at the Carnegie Institution, Rubin became the first female astronomer permitted to observe at the Palomar Observatory in 1965, despite the building having no facilities for women.

Image source: Palomar Observatory

First woman permitted to observe at Palomar Observatory

Elected to the National Academy of Sciences

1981

When Rubin was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1981, she became only the second woman astronomer in its ranks, after her colleague Margaret Burbidge.

Image source: National Academy of Sciences

Elected to the National Academy of Sciences

Featured in PBS series The Astronomers

1991

Rubin and her research were discussed in the 1991 PBS series, The Astronomers.

Image source: Astronomer

Featured in PBS series The Astronomers

Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society

1996

Rubin received the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1996, becoming only the second woman so honored, 168 years after Caroline Herschel received the medal in 1828.

Image source: Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society

Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society

Named one of Discover's 50 most important women in science

2002

In 2002, Discover magazine recognized Vera Rubin as one of the 50 most important women in science.

Honorary doctorate from Princeton University

2005

Rubin was granted honorary doctorates from Harvard University, Yale University, Smith College, Grinnell College, and Princeton University, the latter awarded in 2005.

Image source: Princeton University

Honorary doctorate from Princeton University

Legacy

Death of Vera Rubin

Dec 25, 2016

Vera Rubin died of natural causes at age 88 on the night of December 25, 2016. Her name is regularly mentioned in articles listing 20th century women who missed out on Nobel Prizes.

Large Synoptic Survey Telescope renamed for Rubin

Dec 20, 2019

On December 20, 2019, the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope was renamed the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in her honor.

Image source: Vera C. Rubin Observatory

Large Synoptic Survey Telescope renamed for Rubin

Satellite ÑuSat 18 "Vera" launched

Nov 6, 2020

On November 6, 2020, a satellite named after her (ÑuSat 18 or "Vera", COSPAR 2020-079K) was launched into space.

Image source: ÑuSat

Satellite ÑuSat 18 "Vera" launched

Nvidia names accelerators after Rubin

2024

In 2024, Nvidia announced that their next generation of data center accelerators would be named after her, with the CPU named Vera and GPU named Rubin.

Image source: Nvidia

Nvidia names accelerators after Rubin

Rubin honored on a U.S. commemorative stamp

2025

Rubin is honored on a 2025 U.S. postage stamp, continuing posthumous honors and recognition that have proliferated since her death.

Image source: United States Postal Service

Rubin honored on a U.S. commemorative stamp

Rubin Observatory begins operation

Apr 2025

As of April 2025, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory had begun operation and was producing images and volumes of new astronomical data.

Key Facts

  1. Vera Rubin was born on July 23, 1928, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and developed an early passion for astronomy after watching stars from her bedroom window as a child.
  2. In the 1960s and 1970s, working with Kent Ford, Rubin observed that stars at the edges of galaxies rotated at speeds similar to those near the center, contradicting predictions based on visible mass alone.
  3. Her observations of galaxy rotation curves provided crucial evidence for dark matter, the invisible substance now believed to make up roughly 85% of the matter in the universe.
  4. Rubin faced persistent gender discrimination in astronomy—she was initially denied access to Palomar Observatory because women were not permitted there—but persevered and became a leading advocate for women in science.
  5. She received numerous honors, including the National Medal of Science in 1993, and in 2020 the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope was renamed the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in her honor.

Source

This Vera Rubin timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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