Heather Couper dies at 70
Astronomy promoter and presenter, Heather Couper, has died on 19 February
2020 at the age of 70. During her long career she made several television
appearances, including on The Sky at Night, enthusing people about the
night sky and was the first female president of the British Astronomical Association (BAA).
“Some of my favourite Sky at Night
programmes involved Heather, including one in which primitive CGI (computergenerated imagery) turned her into various
sorts of star before plunging her and
Patrick into a black hole,” recalls The Sky at Night presenter Chris Lintott. “Her
determination to have fun in every
circumstance will be much missed.”
Born on 2 June 1949, Couper’s love of the
stars developed as a young child when she spotted a green shooting star in the sky.
She almost gave up the hobby in her teens, before realising astronomy wasn’t just for “shambolic old men in tweed jackets
anymore”. Seeking encouragement, she wrote to The Sky at Night presenter Patrick
Moore, who reassured her that “being a girl is no problem at all” in her path to
becoming an astronomer.
“She wrote to me… and said, ‘Is there
any future for me in astronomy?’ and I
said ‘of course there is,’ and I tried to give her a hand,” he later recalled.
After a year gaining her Maths A-level
and analysing data at Cambridge Observatory, Couper undertook a degree
in astrophysics at Leicester University.
Here, she met Nigel Henbest, who would
become her long-term professional
partner and friend. In the 1980s, the pair
founded Pioneer Productions to create and present programmes that promoted
science and astronomy to the wider world,
with a particular aim of encouraging women to join the field. Together with Henbest, Couper co-wrote over 40 popular-level books on astronomy,
as well as writing a regular column for the Independent.
She was an active member of the BAA
and was elected to succeed Patrick Moore
as its president in 1984, the first woman to
hold the position.
“She was a very popular president and
an excellent speaker,” recalls Alan Dowdell who served with her on the BAA council
and was a personal friend. “I do remember that when she was president she was invited for tea with the Queen. As a great
dog lover, she took pleasure in asking the
Queen about her corgis.
“She was great company and always encouraged members to join her after the meeting in the local wine bar where astronomical discussions continued until
quite late. We will all miss her.”