Donna Elbert is receiving recognition for her work with Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar

September 18, 2022

Donna worked for many years as a calculator for Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar and as a department administrator. Courtesy of Dianne Hofner Saphiere, Susan Elbert Steele, Joanne Elbert Kantner

From 1948 to 1979, Elbert worked as a “computer” for Chandrasekhar, tirelessly devising and solving mathematical equations by hand. Though she shared authorship with the Nobel laureate on 18 papers and Chandrasekhar enthusiastically acknowledged her seminal contributions, her greatest achievement went unrecognized until a postdoctoral scholar at UCLA connected threads in Chandrasekhar’s work that all led back to Elbert. 

Read more

Related News

Awards