Maria Telkes is a Hungarian-American scientist whose groundbreaking work on solar energy has spawned many inventions, including the first house for solar power, which earned her the nickname "Queen of the Sun". Because of her contribution to science, Google made an animated doodle for Telkers on Monday on her 122nd birthday. The graffiti shows several ways we can use solar energy, including her invented solar ovens, solar heating systems, and solar desalination devices for making seawater drinkable.
Terquez was born on December 12, 1900 in Budapest . Before moving to the United States in 1924, she worked as a biophysicist at Westinghouse, working in metal alloy research, helping to convert heat into electricity. In 1939, she went to MIT and joined the school's solar energy conversion project.
During World War II , the U.S. government recruited Telquez to develop a solar-powered desalination machine - a life-saving invention that allows soldiers to obtain safe drinking water in difficult or non-existence. After the war, she returned to MIT and became an associate professor of research at MIT in 1945.
While at MIT, she designed a solar heating system for Dover Sun House, the first livable building ever to be completely heated by the sun. She continued working at NYU , where she developed a solar oven that is still in use to make it possible for people who lack electricity to prepare hot food.
In 1952, she was the first winner of the Association of Women Engineers Achievement Award, and in 2012, she was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.
Terquez died in 1995 at the age of 94. She only visited her hometown of Budapest for the first time after moving to the United States 70 years ago.
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