Regina Barber

Jocelyn was just a teenager when astronomy took root.

I can't work at night. That is, until she found a kind of astronomy she could do in the daytime. Radio astronomy.

I can't work at night. That is, until she found a kind of astronomy she could do in the daytime. Radio astronomy.

I can't work at night. That is, until she found a kind of astronomy she could do in the daytime. Radio astronomy.

So with a bachelor's degree in physics and a desire to be a daytime astronomer, Jocelyn starts graduate school at Cambridge, where she helps build the radio telescope that she used to detect the first pulsar. Although, at the time, that's not what she was looking for.

So with a bachelor's degree in physics and a desire to be a daytime astronomer, Jocelyn starts graduate school at Cambridge, where she helps build the radio telescope that she used to detect the first pulsar. Although, at the time, that's not what she was looking for.

So with a bachelor's degree in physics and a desire to be a daytime astronomer, Jocelyn starts graduate school at Cambridge, where she helps build the radio telescope that she used to detect the first pulsar. Although, at the time, that's not what she was looking for.

At the time, astronomers had only ever detected about 20 of these elusive quasars.

At the time, astronomers had only ever detected about 20 of these elusive quasars.

At the time, astronomers had only ever detected about 20 of these elusive quasars.

So Jocelyn searches for these quasars by detecting radio waves with this telescope. Basically, some of the light from distant stars reaches us as radio waves, and these antennae on the radio telescope focus those waves. The receiver detects those signals and turns them into data points on a page that look kind of like the marks on a polygraph.

So Jocelyn searches for these quasars by detecting radio waves with this telescope. Basically, some of the light from distant stars reaches us as radio waves, and these antennae on the radio telescope focus those waves. The receiver detects those signals and turns them into data points on a page that look kind of like the marks on a polygraph.

So Jocelyn searches for these quasars by detecting radio waves with this telescope. Basically, some of the light from distant stars reaches us as radio waves, and these antennae on the radio telescope focus those waves. The receiver detects those signals and turns them into data points on a page that look kind of like the marks on a polygraph.

Pass on.

Pass on.

Pass on.

And as one of the only women, she was very concerned about proving she was capable of that real work.

And as one of the only women, she was very concerned about proving she was capable of that real work.

And as one of the only women, she was very concerned about proving she was capable of that real work.

But as she's collecting data, Jocelyn saw that odd signal again. And she recognized it. So she goes back to her miles of paper data and finds another signal that doesn't make sense.