Dr Helen Sharman OBE FRSC, is a British chemist who became the first Briton in space and the first woman to visit the Mir space station in 1991.
Sharman was born in 1963 in Grenoside, Sheffield. Her father, a physicist, inspired an early interest in science and made her realise how relevant science is to life. She attended Grenoside Junior and Infant School then Jordanthorpe Comprehensive before continuing her education at the University of Sheffield. In 1984, she received a BSc in Chemistry before pursuing a PhD at Birbeck College at the University of London. While studying part time for her PhD, Sharman worked as a research and development technologist for GEC in London. After graduation, she moved became a Research Technologist for Mars Confectionery where she was responsible for studying the chemical and physical properties of chocolate, particularly those concerned with flavour.
In 1989, Sharman heard an advert on the radio while driving home for work calling for astronauts, stating that no experience was necessary. The only requirements for the job was that the applicant should be British, between 21-40 with a background in science, the ability to learn a foreign language and a good level of fitness. 13,000 people applied, including Sharman who was selected as one of the final four candidates for the position of UK cosmonaut for the Soviet space mission Project Juno. Sharman was subjected to a rigorous selection process including physical and psychologist tests before being selected as one of the final two candidates. Sharman then underwent 18 months of training at the Yury Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre at Star City, Russia. Sharman stayed in the same block of flats as
Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space had, and Tereshkova provided her with support throughout her mission. Her training included: learning Russian; theoretical lessons about astronavigation and ballistics; practical spacecraft systems training and simulator work; weightless training, rescue training in the Black Sea and preparing for the experiments she would perform.
On the 18th of May, 1991 The Soyuz TM-12 mission launched into space, lasting eight days. Sharman became the first Briton in space and the first woman to visit the Mir space station, where she was responsible for conducting scientific experiments. Sharman’s experiments included investigating the growth of plants, the crystallisation of luciferase, the effect of weightlessness on the human body, the effect of radiation and vacuum on ceramic films, the air quality on board and the collection of some Earth observation data including photographing the British Isles. She was also able to speak to British schoolchildren through an unlicensed amateur radio hookup with British schoolchildren. Many of her experiments were for the Soviet Space Agency, and in addition to this conducted some research for Britain including taking pansy seeds to space with her to study any effects that may have been caused by them being stored in space. The seeds were distributed to British schoolchildren who found that the seeds few with fewer leaves than those that had not been into space. On the 26th of May, Sharman returned to Earth aboard Soyuz TM-11.
Sharman was one of three British candidates in the 1992 European Space Agency astronaut selection process and was on the shortlist of 25 applicants in 1998 but did not return to Space. After her mission to Mir, Sharman focused her attention on communicating science to the public, she became one of the country’s leading ambassadors for science, giving lectures around the world. In 1993 she published her autobiography, Seize the Moment and in 1997, she published a children’s book, The Space Place. She has presented radio and television programs on science for many organisations including BBC Schools. In 2011, Sharman became the Group Leader of the Surface and Nanoanalysis Group at the National Physical Laboratory and cut down on her public speaking. In 2015, she became Operations Manager for the Department of Chemistry at Imperial College London.
Sharman was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1992. She has a star on the Sheffield Walk of Fame and has received a number of honorary degrees from UK Universities including the University of Kent, University of Plymouth, Southampton Solent University, Staffordshire University, University of Exeter and Brunel University London. She is a fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, Royal Aeronautical Society, British Interplanetary Society, Sheffield Hallam University and senior fellow of the University of Sheffield. Sharman still does outreach activities related to chemistry and her spaceflight, and is a patron of Spacelink Learning Foundation, a not for profit charity whose aim is to inspire and motivate young people to enjoy and study science, technology, engineering and maths subjects through innovative space-themed exercises.