She has discovered over 300 asteroids, including the 33 approaching Earth.
She has discovered 32 comets, more than anyone else now living.
She is the famous astronomer...

Mount Palomar Observatory

                For seven nights each month, except during the summers, Carolyn Shoemaker would observe the skies of South California using the 18-inch telescope inside the Mount Palomar observatory. She would take pictures, searching for the presence of asteroids or comets. Over the course of her career, Mrs. Shoemaker  has developed numerous techniques, making scanning photographic films for heavenly bodies more efficient.

               Carolyn Shoemaker was born in 1929 in Gallup, New Mexico. In 1950, during her brother's wedding, she took notice of the best man - her would be husband, Eugene Shoemaker. Gradually, Carolyn became interested in what her husband was doing. In 1982, while scanning the films she had taken of the sky, Shoemaker noticed a "weird thing." That "weird thing" turned out to be the first asteroid, as well as the first near-Earth asteroid, seen by man. Nevertheless, it was her first comet, 1983-P,  that truly "captured her imagination."

                 A major highlight in her study of the stars took place for Carolyn on July 16-22, 1994 when  the astronomical "event of the century" occurred. Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 (SL-9), discovered by the Shoemakers and David Levy, was going to hit Jupiter in a series of collisions. Over 20 fragments hit the southern hemisphere of the biggest planet in our solar system. Scientists all over the world watched, and Carolyn and Eugene Shoemaker became celebrities.

                However, astronomy was not Carolyn Shoemaker's first profession. Only after her children were grown did she actually start working with her husband, a planetary geologist. At Chicago State College (now University of California), Shoemaker majored in history and business. Later, she studied to be a middle school teacher. However after just one year, she realized teaching was not going to be her profession.
                Unfortunately for Mrs. Shoemaker, an unexpected car accident on a terrible day in 1997 happened. The accident left Carolyn with numerous injuries. Even though she survived, sadly, her husband did not. Now, she is coping with his death. The world lost a great scientist, and Carolyn lost her lifetime partner.
                Carolyn Shoemaker is without a doubt a great woman scientist. She did not follow the traditional paths women of her time usually took. Her story is one of success. It is a truly a wonder how she turned an interest into a serious pursuit.