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In Memoriam: Beth Brown
1969 - 2008
The physics community is saddened to learn about the recent passing of Dr. Beth Brown, a young, vibrant astronomer who shared her love of the stars and space with students and others.
Photo courtesy of NASA
Dr. Beth Brown received her undergraduate degree in astrophysics graduating Suma Cum Laude from Howard University in 1991, and received an M.S. and Ph.D. (1988) in astronomy from the University of Michigan. In fact, she is the first African-American woman to obtain a doctorate from the University of Michigan's Department of Astronomy.
After receiving her doctorate, Dr. Brown returned to Goddard as a National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council post-doctoral research associate and joined the National Space Science Data Center (NSSDC) in 2001 as a civil servant. In 2005, she moved over to the X-ray Astrophysics Laboratory, providing science support for the GSFC XMM Guest Observer Facility and continued science support and data acquisition for the NSSDC.
Most recently, Dr. Brown was the Assistant Director for Science Communication and Higher Education for the Sciences and Exploration Directorate at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). She recently completed a 2-yr NASA Administrator Fellowship where she devoted a year of this fellowship to the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Howard University, undertaking research with Dr. James Lindesay and teaching classes with Dr. Demetrius Venable. She was devoted to making sure that HBCUs and students of color had opportunities at NASA, but also throughout the larger community. Beth served for two years as the Administrative Executive Officer for NSBP and was also involved with the National Conference of Black Physics Students (NCBPS) for many years.
Beth was truly a role model who will be dearly missed by her colleagues and friends at NASA, Howard University's Department of Physics and Astronomy, and throughout the physics and astronomy communities.
More about Dr. Beth Brown
