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avatar for Helen Mason

Helen Mason

University of Cambridge
Leader of SunSpaceArt project
Cambridge
Dr Helen Mason leads the STFC funded 'SunSpaceArt' project, a team of artists and scientists who have run hundreds of workshops in schools (mainly upper primary) throughout the UK. The aim is to ignite the children's imagination and to produce creative art work and writing, which reinforces their science learning. Helen is a solar scientist at the University of Cambridge. She has worked on many joint UK, NASA, ESA and Japanese solar space projects. She has always been keen to convey her passion for solar science to the public and school students. She has given many talks at schools, and has participated in radio and TV programmes, including BBC's 'Seven Ages of Starlight'. In 2014, Helen was awarded an OBE for her services to Education and to Women in Science, Engineering and Technology. In 2018, Helen was awarded the Royal Astronomical Society's Annie Maunder Medal for Outreach. The SunSpaceArt project has been highly successful, with excellent feedback from teachers and children. 'As teachers we saw our pupils shine and express themselves in a way that was very different' (teacher). 'Today I loved this lesson because the art and science inspired me' (child). The SunSpaceArt team are proud to have won the 2020 Sir Arthur Clarke Group Award for Space Achievement in Education and Outreach.