Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 10, 2026

Édmée Chandon

Edmée Marie Juliette Chandon was an astronomer known for being the first professional female astronomer in France. She worked at the Paris Observatory throughout her career.

Last revised
Jul 10, 2026
Read time
≈ 7 min
Length
1,593 w
Citations
46
Source
Wikipedia ↗
Edmée Chandon
Edmée Chandon at age 15
Born
Edmée Marie Juliette Chandon

(1885-11-21)21 November 1885
Paris, France
Died8 March 1944(1944-03-08) (aged 58)
Paris, France
Scientific career
FieldsAstronomy
InstitutionsParis Observatory
ThesisRecherches sur les marées de la mer Rouge et du golfe de Suez (1930)
Ernest Esclangon

Edmée Marie Juliette Chandon (21 November 1885 – 8 March 1944) was an astronomer known for being the first professional female astronomer in France. She worked at the Paris Observatory throughout her career.

In 1908, Chandon was placed first in the mathematics agrégation examination for graduates wishing to teach at university level.1 As a result, she was able to benefit from the provisions of the decree of 15 February 1907 in connection with the recruitment of astronomers. With her appointment as aide-astronome (assistant astronomer) at the Paris Observatory on 1 March 1812,2 she became France's first professional female astronomer. On 26 March 1930, with her thesis "Recherches sur les marées de la mer Rouge et du golfe de Suez" (Research on the Tides of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez)3, she became the first Frenchwoman to earn a Doctorat d'État in mathematical sciences.4

Early life and education

The eldest of five children, Chandon was born to Marie Duhan and merchant François Chandon on 21 November 1885 in the 11th arrondissement of Paris.56 In July 1906, she completed her degree in Mathematical Sciences at the Faculté des sciences de Paris.6 She began working at the Paris Observatory in November 1908 as a trainee.7 She held this unpaid role for four years, during which time her skills earned her considerable respect amongst her colleagues and the Observatory’s board, which recommended she be appointed to a paid position.8

Career

On 28 February 1912, Chandon was appointed aide astronome et attachée at the Paris Observatory, effective from 1 March, and the appointment made her the first professional female astronomer in France.9 L'Aurore declared the appointment a "new feminist victory".10 She was assigned to the time service in 1912, taking charge of setting the mean time clock and the telegraphic transmission. Chandon represented the Paris Observatory at the Fête du Soleil, organised by the Société astronomique de France, at the Eiffel Tower on 22 June 1914.11 Chandon was only permitted to work during the day at this point, with her male colleagues undertaking night work.12

In World War I, Chandon was called up to calculate the trajectories of artillery shells.8 During this period Chandon was also charged with monitoring the master clock whilst in charge of the meridian telescopes and remained in charge of ensuring its continuity until 1920. She also took on night work in the absence of male colleagues.1312

In March 1930, Chandon defended her PhD thesis "Research on the tides of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez" (French: Recherches sur les marées de la mer Rouge et du golfe de Suez)14 where she showed that the tides of the Red Sea and Gulf of Suez are examples of standing waves.15 She was the fourth woman to earn a doctorate at the Sorbonne and the first French woman to defend a State thesis in the field of mathematics.8

Chandon was forced to retire on 1 October 1941, due to the Vichy Regime's passing the Law of 11 October 1940, requiring women over the age of 50 to cease work.616 She was reinstated in 1943 following the Liberation of France.8

On 17 May 1943, the French Academy of Sciences proposed four candidates to the Minister of National Education for positions as titular astronomers of Paris Observatory, including Chandon.17 However she was denied this possibility.

Edmée Chandon was also a science communicator. She gave several conferences as a member of the Société astronomique de France, which she had joined in 1912.18

Personal life

Chandon met Jacques Jean Trousset (1885-1943)1920 after he joined her team at the Paris Observatory in January 1909.21 They married on 6 April 1910 in Saint-Cloud but the marriage was short-lived; the pair divorced on 26 April 1911.622

Chandon died at her home in Paris on 8 March 1944.23

Honours and awards

Chandon received two awards from the French Academy of Sciences:24

  • 1930: La Caille Prize - for her PhD thesis9
  • 1939: d’Aumale Prize for he work in celestial mechanics9

The Asteroid 1341 Edmée, discovered in 1935, was named in her honour.6

In 2026, Chandon was announced as one of 72 historical women in STEM whose names have been proposed to be added to the 72 men already celebrated on the Eiffel Tower. The plan was announced by the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo following the recommendations of a committee led by Isabelle Vauglin of Femmes et Sciences and Jean-François Martins, representing the operating company which runs the Eiffel Tower.8252627

Publications

  • Observations faites à l'astrolabe à prisme de MM. Claude et Driencourt28
  • Mesures d'Etoiles doubles faites à l'Equatorial de la Tour de l'Ouest (0m,305 d'ouvert.) de l'Observatoire de Paris par Mme E. CHANDON, en 1920 et 192129
  • Sur la variation de la latitude de l'Observatoire de Paris30
  • Recherches dur les marées de la mer rouge et du Golf de Suez31
  • Recherches sur la précision des observations en déclinaison faites au cercle du jardin de l'Observatoire de Paris32
  • Théorie des marées : profondeur moyenne d'un canal calculée au moyen des constantes harmoniques de deux stations33
  • Les instruments pour l'observation des hauteurs égales en astronomie: (méthode de Gauss généralisée)34
  • Notice sur les titres et travaux scientifiques de Mme Edmée Chandon35
References

References

  1. Chandon, E. "Edmée Chandon (1885-1944)". Observatoire de Paris. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  2. "Edmée Chandon (1885-1944)". Observatoire de Paris. 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  3. Chandon, E. (1930). "Recherches Sur Les Marées De La Mer Rouge Et Du Golfe De Suez". Internet Archive. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  4. Pellerin-Régis, Charly (2023). "Edmée Chandon : femme pionnière, scientifique invisible. Les ressorts de l'injustice épistémique dans le champ astronomique du premier XXe siècle" (in French). Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  5. "1885, Naissances, 11 (5577)" (in French). Paris Archives. 24 November 1885. p. 8. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  6. "CHANDON, Edmée, Marie Juliette, épouse TROUSSET (1885-1944)" (PDF) (in French). Haute-Provence Observatory. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  7. "Rapport annuel sur l'état de l'Observatoire de Paris" (in French). Paris Observatory. 1908. p. 26. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  8. 72 femmes de sciences pour la tour Eiffel Femmes & Sciences (in French). Retrieved 2026-03-07
  9. Charly, Pellarin-Régis. "Edmée Chandon : femme pionnière, scientifique invisible. Les ressor..." journals.openedition.org. doi:10.4000/genrehistoire.8466. Retrieved 2026-03-15.
  10. "Nouvelle Victoire féministe". L'Aurore (in French). 9 March 1912. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  11. "Astronomes et artistes fêtent le Soleil". Le Petit Parisien (in French). 23 June 1914. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  12. Le Lay, Colette. "Les carrières féminines à l'Observatoire de Paris (1908-1940) : de l'intégration au seuil infranchissable de la dernière marche". images.math.cnrs.fr. Retrieved 2026-03-15.
  13. Le Lay, Colette. "Benjamin Baillaud et les femmes astronomes (1922)". images.math.cnrs.fr. Retrieved 2026-03-15.
  14. Leloup, Juliette. L'entre-deux-guerres mathématique à travers les thèses soutenues en France (PDF) (Thesis) (in French). Pierre and Marie Curie University. p. 117. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 March 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  15. Observatoire de Paris. Auteur du texte (1930). "Bulletin astronomique. Mémoires et variétés". Gallica. Archived from the original on 2024-05-19. Retrieved 2026-03-15.
  16. Fauré, Christine (2004-06-02). Political and Historical Encyclopedia of Women. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-45691-7.
  17. "Académie des sciences: une astronome titulaire à l'observatoire de Paris". NuméroJournal des débats politiques et littéraires (in French). 19 May 1943. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  18. "L'Astronomie". Gallica/BnF (in French). May 1910. p. 219.
  19. "Jean Trousset · Personne · henripoincare.fr". henripoincare.fr (in French). Archived from the original on 2021-04-17. Retrieved 2026-06-24.
  20. "Trousset, Jean". Identifiants et Référentiels pour l'ESR. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  21. "Rapport annuel sur l'état de l'Observatoire de Paris" (in French). Paris Observatory. 1909. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  22. Étude généalogique J. d'Enfert
  23. "1944, Décès, 14 (1461)" (in French). Paris Archives. 10 March 1944. p. 7. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  24. Académie des sciences (France) (1941). Comptes rendus Academie des sciences, table 007 (in French). Académie des sciences (France). Gauthiers-Villars.
  25. "Eiffel Tower: a list of 72 women scientists will soon be inscribed on the Parisian monument". www.sortiraparis.com. Retrieved 2026-02-02.
  26. "Eiffel Tower to honor 72 women scientists for posterity". 2026-01-26. Retrieved 2026-02-03.
  27. "Les noms des 72 femmes pour la Tour Eiffel ont été révélés". Femmes & Sciences (in French). Retrieved 2026-03-07.
  28. Chandon, E. (1917). "Observations faites à l'astrolabe à prisme de MM. Claude et Driencourt". Hathi Trust. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  29. Chandon, E. (1925). "Mesures d'Etoiles doubles faites à l'Equatorial de la Tour de l'Ouest (0m,305 d'ouvert.) de l'Observatoire de Paris par Mme E. CHANDON, en 1920 et 1921". Hathi Trust. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  30. Chandon, E. (1928). "Sur la variation de la latitude de l'Observatoire de Paris". Sudoc. Retrieved 1 July 2026. Alt URL
  31. Chandon, Edmée (1930). "Recherches sur les marées de la mer Rouge et du golfe de Suez". Bulletin astronomique. Mémoires et variétés (in French). 6 (1): 1–99. doi:10.3406/bastr.1930.14011. ISSN 0245-9760 – via Research Gate.
  32. Chandon, E.; Chevallier, R. (1930). "Recherches sur la précision des observations en déclinaison faites au cercle du jardin de l'Observatoire de Paris". Sudoc. Retrieved 1 July 2026. Alt URL
  33. Chandon, E. (1931). "Théorie des marées : profondeur moyenne d'un canal calculée au moyen des constantes harmoniques de deux stations". Sudoc. Retrieved 1 July 2026. Alt URL
  34. Chandon, E.; Gougenheim, A. (1935). "Les instruments pour l'observation des hauteurs égales en astronomie : (méthode de Gauss généralisée)". BnF. [ark:/12148/cb32184190h Archived] from the original on July 1, 2026. Retrieved 30 June 2026. {{cite web}}: Check |archive-url= value (help)
  35. Chandon, E. (1941). "Notice sur les titres et travaux scientifiques de Mme Edmée Chandon". BnF. [ark:/12148/cb319274337 Archived] from the original on July 1, 2026. Retrieved 30 June 2026. {{cite web}}: Check |archive-url= value (help)