Biography Edit

Discoveries Edit

Accusations concerning Lemaître's priority Edit

In 2011 the journal Nature reported claims that Hubble had played a role in the redaction of key parts of the translation of Lemaître's 1927 paper, which stated what is now called Hubble's Law and also gave observational evidence for it. Historians quoted in the article were sceptical that the redactions were part of a campaign to ensure Hubble retained priority. However, the observational astronomer Sidney van den Bergh published a paper[43] suggesting that while the omissions may have been made by a translator, they may still have been deliberate. In November 2011, the astronomer Mario Livio reported in Nature that documents in the Lemaître archive demonstrated that the redaction had indeed been carried out by Lemaître himself, who apparently saw little point in including scientific content which had already been reported by Hubble.[38]

No Nobel Prize Edit

At the time, the Nobel Prize in Physics did not recognize work done in astronomy. Hubble spent much of the later part of his career attempting to have astronomy considered an area of physics, instead of being its own science. He did this largely so that astronomers—including himself—could be recognized by the Nobel Prize Committee for their valuable contributions to astrophysics. This campaign was unsuccessful in Hubble's lifetime, but shortly after his death, the Nobel Prize Committee decided that astronomical work would be eligible for the physics prize.[16] However, the prize is not one that can be awarded posthumously.

Stamp Edit

On March 6, 2008, the United States Postal Service released a 41-cent stamp honoring Hubble on a sheet titled "American Scientists" designed by artist Victor Stabin.[28] His citation reads:[44] Often called a "pioneer of the distant stars," astronomer Edwin Hubble (1889–1953) played a pivotal role in deciphering the vast and complex nature of the universe. His meticulous studies of spiral nebulae proved the existence of galaxies other than our own Milky Way. Had he not died suddenly in 1953, Hubble would have won that year's Nobel Prize in Physics. (Note that the assertion that he would have won the Nobel Prize in 1953 is likely false, although he was nominated for the prize that year.[45]) The other scientists on the "American Scientists" sheet include Gerty Cori, biochemist; Linus Pauling, chemist, and John Bardeen, physicist.

Honors Edit

In popular culture Edit

The play Creation's Birthday, written by Cornell physicist Hasan Padamsee, tells Hubble's life story.[57] A famous quote by Edwin Hubble goes: "Equipped with his five senses man explores the universe around him and calls the adventure Science".[58] In the popular documentary Cosmos: A Personal Voyage by astronomer Carl Sagan, Hubble's life and work are portrayed on screen in episode 10: The Edge of Forever. His work on Red Shift was immortalized in a limerick by Alexander Rolfe: Thanks to Edwin P. Hubble Our static cosmology was in serious trouble-- When we saw a wavelength Of such tiny strength, It proved the universe was an expanding bubble.

See also Edit

References and notes Edit