Paper Planes

Sophie Harker is an award-winning aerodynamics and performance engineer for BAE Systems, but she had no idea what job she wanted when she was growing up! However, after a visit to the Kennedy Space Center, Harker decided that she wanted to be an astronaut. Shortly after, Dr. Helen Sharman, the first British person in space, inspired her to become an engineer. Sophie received a master’s degree in mathematics from the University of Nottingham and is now an aerodynamics and performance engineer that researches and experiments with military aircraft. She uses math to determine whether designs for future aircraft will fly and, if they do, how she can improve their performance. Harker is one of the youngest and most successful engineers in all of the United Kingdom, and she was awarded the Young Woman Engineer of the Year Award in 2018! She loves that “engineering is open to everybody, no matter their background.” For Sophie, engineering is all about being part of a team that shares a goal to build something amazing for the future.

• Resource: https://stemettes.org/zine/profiles/meet-sophie-harker/
• Image Source: https://www.thisisengineering.org.uk/meet-the-engineers/sophie/