Roberta Anne Vaile | |
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| Born | 25 June 1959 (1959-06-25) |
| Died | 13 November 1996 (1996-11-14) (aged 37) |
| Other names | 'Bobbie' Vaile |
| Alma mater | University of New South Wales |
| Occupation | astrophysicist |
| Known for | "Unsung Hero of Australian Science" award |
Dr Roberta Anne 'Bobbie' Vaile (25 June 1959 – 13 November 1996) was an Australianastrophysicist and seniorlecturer inphysics at the Faculty of Business and Technology at theUniversity of Western Sydney, Macarthur. She was involved withProject Phoenix (aSETI experiment) and influential in the establishment of theSETI Australia Centre, created at the university in 1995.[1][2]
Vaile was born inJunee, New South Wales. She attended theUniversity of Newcastle, where she received herB.Sc. She earned herPh.D. at theUniversity of New South Wales with athesis entitled "TheCorona Australis Complex" in 1989.[2]
Vale was awarded the Australian Science Communicators' "Unsung Hero of Australian Science" award in 1995 for her work in developing easy and friendly methods of teaching science.[2][3]
Other published papers include:Seth Shostak,Ron Ekers, Roberta Vaile, 1996. A Search for Artificial Signals from the Small Magellanic CloudTheAstronomical Journal 112, 164-166.
Valie died in 1996 following a seven-year battle with an inoperable braintumour.[1][3]
A memorial garden at the University of Western Sydney was dedicated to Vaile in 1999, and there is a park/reserve inCamden, New South Wales (at34°03′33″S150°42′42″E / 34.05917°S 150.71167°E /-34.05917; 150.71167 (Bobbie Vaile Reserve)), named after her.[4]
The binarymain-belt asteroid6708 Bobbievaile, discovered by Australian astronomerRobert McNaught in 1989, was also named in her memory;[1] the naming citation was published on 22 April 1997 (M.P.C. 29671).[5]
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