Google on Tuesday dedicated a doodle to mark the 140th birth anniversary of "Weather woman of India" Anna Mani who played an important role in the field of meteorological instrumentation.
Here's what we know about the noted physicist and meteorologist:
1.) Anna Mani was born in a Syrian Christian family in Kerala in 1918. She initially wanted to take up dancing, but later opted for a career in physics. An avid reader, as a child she had read almost every book at her local library.
2.) As a physicist and meteorologist, Anna Mani has a number of valuable contributions to the field. It was her research which made it possible for the country to make accurate weather forecasts.
3.) She also published several papers on solar radiation, ozone and wind energy instruments which laid the groundwork for India to harness renewable energy. Thanks to her leadership in the field, India was in the forefront of countries where meteorological data -- especially of solar radiation and wind -- were used for studies of alternative sources of energy.
4.) Anna Mani began her career with a scholarship for research at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, and worked with Nobel Laureate CV Raman, studying the optical rubies diamonds and rubies.
5.) In 1945, she joined the Imperial College in London where she completed her graduation in Physics and specialised in meteorological instrumentation.
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6.) In 1948, Anna Mani returned to the country and joined India Meteorological Department in Pune, where her responsibilities included arranging meteorological instruments.
7.) She then took up a special interest in developing indigenous infrastructure to forecast weather in India. By 1953, Anna Mani was the head of the division. Under her, more than 100 weather instruments were simplified and standardised for production.
8.) She held important positions in the United Nations World Meteorological Organisation. She also assisted WMO headquarters in revising the WMO Guide to Instruments and Observing Practices, and worked briefly in Egypt as an expert on radiation.
9.) Anna Mani won the INSA K R Ramanathan Medal for her remarkable contributions to science in 1987.
10.) She died on August 16, 2001 in Thiruvananthapuram. On her 100th birth anniversary in 2018, in recognition of her legacy, the World Meteorological Organisation published her profile and interview.
In the interview, Mani said that she was fortunate to not experience professional discrimination in what was considered a man's world. She did not feel either penalised or privileged for being female.
When asked if she had any advice to offer young professionals thinking of a career in meteorology, she had said: "We have only one life. First equip yourself for the job, make full use of your talents and then love and enjoy the work, making the most of being out of doors and in contact with nature."
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