Edwin Hubble
Astronomer
Edwin Hubble [1889-1953] was an American
astronomer whose work revolutionized our understanding of the size and structure
of the universe. In the early 1900's, many astronomers believed that all starts
and other celestial objects were part of the Milky Way, the galaxy that contains
our solar system.
Edwin Powell Hubble was born on November 20, 1889 -and died on
September 28, 1953. Hubble was born near Springfield, Missouri to God-fearing
Baptists. Hubble was a fine student and even better athlete, he was favored to
play for the University of Chicago football team but his parents forbid him from
playing that violent sport, so he stuck with track and field.
He studied mathematics and astronomy. He went to Oxford University on a
Rhodes scholarship; there he did not continue his studies in astronomy, but
instead studied law.
In 1913, Hubble returned from England decided to become a lawyer,
setting up a small practice in Louisville Kentucky, but it didn't take long for
Hubble to realize he wasn't happy as a lawyer. His real passion was astronomy,
so he studied at the Yerkes Observatory, and in 1917, received a doctorate in
astronomy from the University of Chicago. On February 26, l924, Edwin Hubble and
Grace Burke were married in Pasadena, California.