Raytheon partners with Science Museum to to inspire the next generation of young cyber experts and help the UK to bridge its long-term #STEM skills gaps

Raytheon is partnering with the Science Museum Group as principal sponsor of a new exhibition on a century’s worth of communications intelligence and cyber security.

Top Secret: From ciphers to cyber security, runs from 10 July 2019 to 23 February 2020 at the Science Museum in London, and from October 2020 to March 2021 at the Science and Industry Museum in Manchester.

The exhibition traces the 100-year history of GCHQ, including the evolution of the tactics, gadgets and devices used from WWI to the digital age. Visitors can explore the story of Alan Turing and the team of Bletchley Park codebreakers who cracked the Enigma code, uncover spy-craft from the Cold War and test their skills in the museum’s interactive puzzle zone.

“The secret history of the UK’s Intelligence, Security and Cyber agency is full of fascinating inventions and historical figures,” said Richard Daniel, chief executive of Raytheon UK.

“This is the latest contribution Raytheon UK has made to inspire the next generation of young cyber experts and help the UK to bridge its long-term STEM skills gaps.”

Visitors will also hear from current GCHQ staff who perform top secret work to maintain digital security, critical in the defence against terror attacks and crime.

“We are grateful to Raytheon for their support, which has enabled us to make Top Secret free for all visitors at the Science Museum in London and Science and Industry Museum in Manchester,” said Sir Ian Blatchford, director of the Science Museum Group.

“In doing so, we hope to engage even more people with this important exhibition and the intelligence sector.”

Raytheon’s support for Top Secret is part of an ongoing commitment to inspire a new generation of STEM students.

The company also sponsors a Cyber Academy, which provides university students with a three-day workshop on security skills, as well as bursaries in support of cyber specialist education, workshops and mini-camps. This year, Raytheon will re-launch its nationwide competition for schoolchildren to design and fly their own quadcopters.