Walter Sydney Adams | |
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 Adams in 1931 | |
| Born | (1876-12-20)December 20, 1876 |
| Died | May 11, 1956(1956-05-11) (aged 79) |
| Alma mater | Dartmouth College University of Chicago |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Astronomy |
| Institutions | Mount Wilson Observatory Yerkes Observatory |
Walter Sydney Adams (December 20, 1876 – May 11, 1956) was an Americanastronomer.[1][2][3][4][5][6] He is renowned for his pioneering work in spectroscopy.[7]
Adams was born inAntioch,Ottoman Empire, to Lucien Harper Adams and Nancy Dorrance Francis Adams, missionary parents,[8] and was brought to theU.S. in 1885[1] He graduated fromDartmouth College in 1898, then continued his education inChicago and inGermany. After returning to the U.S., he began a career in Astronomy that culminated when he became director of theMount Wilson Observatory.
His primary interest was the study ofstellar spectra. He worked on solarspectroscopy and co-discovered a relationship between the relative intensities of certainspectral lines and theabsolute magnitude of a star. He was able to demonstrate that spectra could be used to determine whether a star was agiant or adwarf. In 1915 he began a study of the companion ofSirius and found that despite a size only slightly larger than theEarth, the surface of the star was brighter per unit area than theSun and it was about asmassive.[9] Such a star later came to be known as awhite dwarf. In 1925, he reported a gravitational redshift caused by Sirius B; this was regarded as significant confirmation ofAlbert Einstein's theory of General Relativity. It is now known that his reported measurements were incorrect. Along withTheodore Dunham, he discovered the strong presence ofcarbon dioxide in theinfrared spectrum ofVenus.
Adams died at the age of 79 inPasadena, California.
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