Ocean expert Karen earns top honour

From Antarctic research expeditions to the use of autonomous ocean gliders, a University of East Anglia scientist has received one of the UK’s highest scientific honours.

Prof Karen Heywood OBE FRS, from UEA’s School of Environmental Sciences, has been awarded the Royal Society’s Bakerian Medal and Lecture, one of the premier awards presented by the UK’s national academy of sciences.

The Bakerian Medal and Lecture is awarded annually for sustained, outstanding achievements in the physical sciences and is accompanied by a medal and a £10,000 prize.

Prof Heywood is being recognised for her work on the interactions between the Southern Ocean and the Antarctic continent, helping to improve understanding of processes that influence the global climate.

Over a career spanning more than three decades at UEA, she has led major ocean research expeditions and conducted cutting-edge research using autonomous ocean gliders to collect data in some of the world’s most challenging environments.

Her work focuses on ocean currents, turbulent mixing, and the interaction between the ocean, Antarctica’s floating ice shelves and sea ice.

The findings are helping scientists to understand climate change better and improve the models used to inform future policy decisions.

Prof Heywood said: “I am thrilled and honoured by this recognition, not just for myself but also for the field of ocean physics.

“Anything I have achieved has been thanks to the fantastic students, researchers and colleagues with whom I have worked, collaborated, been to sea, and piloted gliders.

“It is a wonderful privilege to be part of the global ocean science community and to spend one’s career trying to understand how the ocean system works. To receive a prize for doing what I love is amazing.”

A professor of physical oceanography at UEA since 1989, Prof Heywood was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 2021 and has previously been awarded the Challenger Medal for marine science.

Sir Paul Nurse, President of the Royal Society and a UEA alumnus, said: “The recipients of this year’s medals and awards have made exceptional contributions to science and research culture.

“Their work has helped further our understanding of the world around us and will inspire generations of scientists to come. Celebrating excellence in science is core to the Society’s mission. I offer my congratulations to all the 2026 recipients.”

Established in 1775 through a bequest from Henry Baker FRS, the Bakerian Lecture is the Royal Society’s premier lecture in the physical sciences. Previous recipients have included Sir Humphry Davy, Michael Faraday, Dorothy Hodgkin and Michele Dougherty.

As part of the award, Prof Heywood will deliver the prestigious Bakerian Lecture at the Royal Society in 2027. The award will be formally presented at the Royal Society’s Premier Awards Dinner on October 13.

ON LOCATION: Prof Karen Heywood has led major ocean research expeditions in some of the world’s most extreme environments.