Sameera Moussa
The famous Egyptian woman
Sameera Moussa (Egyptian Arabic: ‫( )سميرة موسى‬March 3, 1917 –
August 5, 1952) was the first female Egyptian nuclear physicist.[1]
Sameera held a doctorate in atomic radiation. She hoped her
work would one day lead to affordable medical treatments and the
peaceful use of atomic energy. She organized the Atomic Energy
for Peace Conference and sponsored a call that set an
international conference under the banner “Atoms for Peace.”
She was the first woman to work at Cairo University.
Born
March 3, 1917
El Gharbia, Egypt
Died
August 5, 1952 (aged 35)
California, United States
Nationality
Egyptian
Other names
Mother of Atomic Energy
Known for
“Atoms for Peace”
Awards
Order of Science and Arts
Scientific career
Fields
Nuclear Physics
It is bewildering to know that during the early 20th century, when
there were the likes of Albert Einstein and Enrico Fermi, there
was also the phenomenal Egyptian nuclear physicist Sameera
Moussa. Women in the field of science, technology, engineering
and math remain largely under-represented and unacknowledged
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until today, which is why it is important to document those from
the past and also inspire those in the present.
Born in Gharbia governorate in 1917, Moussa was met with the
tragic news of her mother’s death very early on, which prompted
her to dedicate her life to making nuclear treatment accessible by
all, hoping that it would be “as cheap as aspirin,” as she once
said. Moussa spent her life volunteering at many hospitals to help
treat cancer patients – a great embodiment of commitment and
devotion.
Moussa went on to receive her Bachelor of Science degree in
radiology with First Class Honors from Cairo University in 1939,
after researching the effects of X-ray radiation on different
materials. Following her achievement of receiving a doctorate in
atomic radiation, she later became the first woman to hold the
position of a lecturer and assistant professor in Cairo University.
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In England, she made two significant contributions in physics.
First, she came up with the historic equation that would break the
atoms of cheap metals such as copper – a discovery that would
help in making the medical applications of nuclear technology,
such as X-rays, cheaper.
At a time when the Second World War was ongoing, and the
events of bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki were occurring,
Moussa was still determined to show the world that nuclear
technology should not always be dangerous. She helped organize
the conference “Atomic Energy for Peace” in England, which
called on governments to establish advisory councils that would
regulate the industry and provide protection against safety
hazards.
This was all impressively done during a period of time when
knowledge of atomic development was little and only in the hands
of top officials in government. A year after her conference,
President Eisenhower in 1953 delivered a famous speech,
“Atoms for Peace”, to the UN General Assembly. It was the first
time that the topic of atomic energy was publicly mentioned, and it
aimed to spread the idea that “atomic dilemma” could be solved
by finding ways to make it a contributor in saving people’s lives.
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“The United States pledges before you – and therefore before the
world its determination to help solve the fearful atomic dilemma –
to devote its entire heart and mind to find the way by which the
miraculous inventiveness of man shall not be dedicated to his
death, but consecrated to his life,” he said.
This speech created the ideological background for important
organizations like the International Atomic Energy Agency and the
Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, which both
aim to promote peaceful uses of nuclear energy and achieve
nuclear disarmament around the world.
Moussa’s work was recognized as she was awarded the
prestigious and competitive Fulbright scholarship that gave her
the opportunity to travel to the United States and study in
California. Remarkably, she was given permission to visit top
secret US atomic facilities and was the first non-US person to
ever do so.
There were several offers given to her to acquire the American
citizenship and live in the United States, yet she turned them
down after saying “Egypt, my dear homeland, is waiting for me”.
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On her way to return home, however, the car suddenly rushed
down from a height of 40 feet and she was killed. The absence of
the driver by the time the police arrived to witness the crash
sparked many suspicions that this was a planned assassination
by the Mossad, Israel’s intelligence agency, to prevent Egypt from
acquiring any knowledge on nuclear technology.
A year later in 1953, the Egyptian Army honored her and she was
awarded the Order of Merit for Science and Art, First Class. A
school and a laboratory in her home village were also named
after her.
Nonetheless, the doors remain open for new Egyptian female
scientists to take over and make momentous changes for their
country and the world.
Moussa received a scholarship from the Fulbright Atomic
Program in order to be acquainted with the modern research
facilities at California University. In recognition of her pioneering
nuclear research, she was given permission to visit the secret US
atomic facilities. She turned down several offers that required her
to live in the United States and to be granted the American
citizenship saying “Egypt, my dear homeland, is waiting for me”.
On August 5, 1952 after her first visit to America she intended to
return home, but she was invited on a trip. On the way, the car fell
from a height of 40 feet, which killed her immediately.
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Samira wished was to make the world a better place and she
believed in the nuclear power for peace advocacy. For a woman
who had accomplished so much by the time she was 35, we
hereby pay humble tribute to Samira Moussa; an outstanding
woman and scientist who could have become the first Egyptian
Nobel Laureate, had she lived long enough to receive that
superior recognition.
On August 5, 1952, a car came to pick up Sameera Moussa in
Berkely, California. Moussa sat in the backseat as they left the
city and headed along the California coast. She had completed
her research and was preparing to return to Egypt, but she had
received an invitation for a dinner. Driving along the curved cliffs
of the Pacific Coast, the car suddenly swerved and plummeted 40
feet over the edge, killing her immediately. The driver jumped
from the car just before the fall and later disappeared, and the
invitation she received to dinner turned out to be fake. Her death
was shrouded in mystery and suspicion, and some believe that
the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad along with JewishEgyptian actress Raqya Ibrahim was behind it, wanting to prevent
Egypt from owning a nuclear bomb.
Posthumously, Sameera Moussa was honoured by the Egyptian
Army and with the First Class Order of Science and Arts by
President Anwar Sadat
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Posthumously, Sameera Moussa was honoured by the
Egyptian Army and with the First Class Order of Science
and Arts by President Anwar Sadat.
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