It’s mind-boggling to think that throughout the early twentieth century, alongside Albert Einstein and Enrico Fermi, there was also the brilliant Egyptian nuclear physicist Sameera Moussa. Women in science, technology, engineering, and math continue to be under-represented and ignored, which is why it is crucial to document those from the past while also inspiring those in the present.
Sameera Moussa, who was born in Gharbia governorate in 1917, was confronted with the devastating news of her mother’s death at a young age, prompting her to dedicate her life to making nuclear treatment available to all, expecting that it would be “as cheap as aspirin,” as she once quipped. Moussa devoted her entire volunteering at several hospitals to assist cancer patients – a true embodiment of dedication and passion.
After exploring the effects of X-ray radiation on various materials, Sameera Moussa earned a Bachelor of Science degree in radiography with First Class Honours from Cairo University in 1939. She was the first woman to occupy the position of lecturer and assistant professor at Cairo University after getting a doctorate in atomic radiation.
She made two key contributions to physics in England. First, she devised the historic equation that would shatter the atoms of cheap metals such as copper – a discovery that would aid in the reduction of the cost of medical uses of nuclear technology such as X-rays.
Even though the Second World War was still going on and the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were taking place, Moussa was determined to demonstrate to the world that nuclear technology did not have to be deadly. She assisted in the organization of the “Atomic Energy for Peace” conference in England, which called on governments to establish advisory committees to oversee the industry and defend against safety hazards.
This was accomplished impressively during a time when understanding atomic development was limited to top government personnel. A year after her conference, President Eisenhower delivered the famous “Atoms for Peace” speech to the United Nations General Assembly. It was the first time atomic energy was discussed publicly, and it attempted to propagate the idea that the “atomic dilemma” might be addressed by figuring out how to make it a contributor to saving people’s lives.
“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 established the ideological foundation for significant organizations like as the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, both of which strive to promote peaceful uses of nuclear energy and achieve global nuclear disarmament.
Moussa’s efforts were recognized when she received the coveted and competitive Fulbright scholarship, which allowed her to travel to the United States to study in California. Surprisingly, she was granted permission to visit top-secret US nuclear facilities, making her the first non-US individual to do so.
Several offers to obtain American citizenship and live in the United States were made to her, but she declined, saying, “Egypt, my dear homeland, is waiting for me.”
However, on her way back home, the car abruptly crashed from a height of 40 feet, killing her. The driver’s departure by the time police came to investigate the crash raised many suspicions that it was a planned assassination by Mossad, Israel’s intelligence organization, to prevent Egypt from getting any knowledge of nuclear technology.
The Egyptian Army honored her a year later, in 1953, with the Order of Merit for Science and Art, First Class. In her hometown, a school and a laboratory 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.
