Professor Amina Helmi, an Argentine astronomer at the University of Groningen, will be awarded the Suffrage Science Award in London on Friday for her academic contributions.
Translation by Traci White
The Suffrage Science Awards ceremony, which will be held on International Women’s Day, recognizes the achievements of women in science and engineering and is meant to encourage more women to enter scientific subjects.
RTV Noord reports that Helmi is one of 12 recipients of the award this year. Helmi, who is from Argentina, is a professor of dynamics, structure and formation of the Milky Way at the Kapteyn Institute at the University of Groningen. Helmi wrote a groundbreaking PhD within her academic field, which concluded that the Milky Way likely merged with several smaller galaxies.
Professor Helmi’s research now focuses on searching for the “fossils” of these galaxies through “astro-archaeology”: “using the information from star fossils to reconstruct the formation of the Milky Way.”
Fast Facts: Galactic cannibalism from Fast Facts on Vimeo.
Helmi was nominated for the Suffrage Science Award by TU Delft professor Marileen Dogterom, who won the award herself two years ago. “She is a perfect role model for young female researchers”, Dogterom says. Helmi, who is a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences, has won multiple high-profile grants over the course of her academic career.
Suffrage Science Award winners receive a custom pieces of jewellery with designs inspired by science. The awards have been presented annually since 2011.
Photo source: Screenshot, “Fast Facts: Galactic Cannibalism”
