The Sky at Night presenter on science, school and Star Trek
Born in London in 1968 to Nigerian parents, Maggie Aderin-Pocock is a scientist and presenter of The Sky at Night. She trained as a physicist – graduating from Imperial College London with a PhD in 1994, and working for the Ministry of Defence on landmine detection and missile warning systems. She has since designed a host of space instruments, become the first Black woman to win a gold medal in the Physics News Award and in 2013 took over from Patrick Moore as a co-host of the BBC’s long-running astronomy show. Aderin-Pocock is one of the panellists for the National Trust’s Time + Space Award, a new initiative to give 16- to 25-year-olds the resources to explore ideas.
This was my Nigerian passport photo. I was quite excited to have my picture taken and my sister was, too. We were wearing Ladybird dresses from Woolworths. Mine was green with a collar and hers was red. I remember I was quite envious of hers.
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