MIST

Magnetosphere, Ionosphere and Solar-Terrestrial

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Call for applications for STFC Public Engagement Early-Career Researcher Forum

 

The STFC Public Engagement Early-Career Researcher Forum (the ‘PEER Forum’) will support talented scientists and engineers in the early stages of their career to develop their public engagement and outreach goals, to ensure the next generation of STFC scientists and engineers continue to deliver the highest quality of purposeful, audience-driven public engagement.

Applications are being taken until 4pm on 3 June 2021. If you would like to apply, visit the PEER Forum website, and if you have queries This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The PEER Forum aims:

  • To foster peer learning and support between early career scientists and engineers with similar passion for public engagement and outreach, thus developing a peer support network that goes beyond an individual’s term in the forum 
  • To foster a better knowledge and understanding of the support mechanisms available from STFC and other organisations, including funding mechanisms, evaluation, and reporting. As well as how to successfully access and utilise this support 
  • To explore the realities of delivering and leading public engagement as an early career professional and build an evidence base to inform and influence STFC and by extension UKRI’s approaches to public engagement, giving an effective voice to early career researchers

What will participation in the Forum involve?

Participants in the PEER Forum will meet face-to-face at least twice per year to share learning and to participate in session that will strengthen the depth and breadth of their understanding of public engagement and outreach.

Who can apply to join the Forum?

The PEER Forum is for practising early-career scientists and engineers who have passion and ambition for carrying out excellent public engagement alongside, and complementary to, their career in science or engineering. We are seeking Forum members from across the breadth of STFC’s pure and applied science and technology remit.

The specific personal requirements of PEER Forum membership are that members:

  • Have completed (or currently studying for – including apprentices and PhD students) their highest level of academic qualification within the last ten years (not including any career breaks)
  • Are employed at a Higher Education Institute, or a research-intensive Public Sector Research Organisation or Research Laboratory (including STFC’s own national laboratories)
  • Work within a science and technology field in STFC’s remit, or with a strong inter-disciplinary connection to STFC’s remit, or use an STFC facility to enable their own research
  • Clearly describe their track record of experience in their field, corresponding to the length of their career to date
  • Clearly describe their track record of delivering and leading, or seeking the opportunity to lead, public engagement and/or outreach
  • Can provide insight into their experiences in public engagement and/or outreach and also evidence one or more of
  • Inspiring others
  • Delivering impact
  • Demonstrating creativity
  • Introducing transformative ideas and/or inventions
  • Building and sustaining collaborations/networks
  • Are keen communicators with a willingness to contribute to the success of a UK-wide network

    • https://stfc.ukri.org/public-engagement/training-and-support/peer-forum/  

    Astronet Science Vision & Infrastructure Roadmap

     

    Astronet is a consortium of European funding agencies, established for the purpose of providing advice on long-term planning and development of European Astronomy. Setup in 2005, its members include most of the major European astronomy nations, with associated links to the European Space Agency, the European Southern Observatory, SKA, and the European Astronomical Society, among others. The purpose of the Science Vision and Infrastructure Roadmap is to deliver a coordinated vision covering the entire breadth of astronomical research, from the origin and early development of the Universe to our own solar system.

    The first European Science Vision and Infrastructure Roadmap for Astronomy was created by Astronet, using EU funds, in 2008/09, and updated in 2014/15. Astronet is now developing a new Science Vision & Infrastructure Roadmap, in a single document with an outlook for the next 20 years. A delivery date to European funding agencies of mid-2021 is anticipated. 

    The Science Vision and Infrastructure Roadmap revolves around the research themes listed below:

    • Origin and evolution of the Universe
    • Formation and evolution of galaxies
    • Formation & evolution of stars
    • Formation & evolution of planetary systems
    • Understanding the solar system and conditions for life

    but will include cross-cutting aspects such as computing and training and sustainability.

     

    After some delays due to the global pandemic, the first drafts of the chapters for the document are now available from the Panels asked to draft them, for you to view and comment on. For the Science Vision & Roadmap to be truly representative it is essential we take account of the views of as much of the European astronomy and space science community as possible – so your input is really valued by the Panels and Astronet. Please leave any comments, feedback or questions on the site by 1 May 2021.

    It is intended that a virtual “town hall” style event will be held in late Spring 2021, where an update on the project and responses to the feedback will be provided.

    Equitable Letters in Space Physics (ELSP)

    Equitable Letters for Space Physics (ELSP) is a project to encourage merit-based recommendations and nominations in the space physics community by providing resources for letter writing and reviews of recommendation and nomination letters. You can learn more about ELSP's mission and find both letter writing and implicit bias resources at the ELSP website.

    ELSP seeks to achieve this goal by:

    1. Providing resources for people writing letters of recommendation and award nomination at the undergraduate level and above.
    2. Providing resources for people wishing to learn about different implicit biases and lessen their manifestation.
    3. Providing reviews of recommendation and nomination letters, with the goal of lessening implicit bias in these letters.

    At the moment, ELSP is seeking volunteers to participate as reviewers in the letter submission system. This system will function similarly to double-blind journal article reviews, with the ELSP executive director acting as editor.The ELSP board of directors is Angeline G. Burrell; John Coxon; Alexa Halford; McArthur Jones Jr.; and Kate Zawdie. If you have more questions or would like to participate, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

    Call for proposals for ESA's Living Planet Fellowship

    ESA is currently inviting proposals for their Living Planet Fellowship with a deadline of 15 March 2021. These fellowships, worth a maximum of €110k, are intended:

    To support young scientists, at post-doctoral level, to undertake cutting-edge research in Earth Observation, Earth System Science or Climate Research, maximising the scientific return of ESA and European EO missions and datasets through the development of novel EO methods, techniques and products, and by delivering excellent scientific results addressing the grand Earth Science challenges of the next decade, enabling improved predictions of the physical interaction of society with the Earth system.

    Interested candidates need to propose a two-year-long research plan which contributes to either of the two themes of the fellowship: "Advancing novel methods and techniques" or "Advancing Earth system science". The call also includes opportunities in the use of cloud computing capabilities; to support small ground-based experiments and in situ data collection; and a visiting scientist scheme to join the new ESA Earth System Science Hub.

    Questions related to the call can be submitted via email, and must be "not later than two weeks before the Closing Date" (i.e. by the end of February 2021). The timeline for the fellowships is as follows:

    Milestone Date
    Submission of proposals 15 March 2021 
    Communication of results* Q2 2021
    Beginning of activities* Q3 2021

    *tentative

    "Mental Health and Wellbeing in the MIST Community": A series of panel discussions

    We are hosting a series of pre-recorded panel discussions on the topic of "Mental Health and Wellbeing in the MIST Community", exploring the sources and impacts within our community as well as discussing ways to move forwards. The discussions will focus on both individual and community-wide perspectives, and will consider perspectives from a range of career stages. The panel discussions will separately focus on views from a) PhD students, b) PDRAs, and c) Tenure positions. 
     
    To ensure that the discussion focuses on the needs and issues most important to the MIST Community, we request your input on questions that you would like to pose to the panel, as well as specific topics that you would like to see covered. To suggest questions & topics, please use the following form: https://forms.gle/J4QS5JdaVCo1hF6z7 and submit your suggestions by Friday 26 February. Please note that any responses on the form are completely anonymous.
     
    For support with mental health and wellbeing concerns, we recommend the following resources: https://ras.ac.uk/education-and-careers/places-you-can-find-support.
     
    If you have any other questions, concerns, or would like to discuss anything in further detail, please get in touch at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

    Public Engagement

    If you work on a public engagement project which is not listed here, please contact us with a short abstract, any web links, and who is working on it, and we'll include it in the list! We would also recommend putting your project on the Royal Astronomical Society's Outreach Map.

    AuroraWatch UK

    AuroraWatch UK offers free alerts of when the northern lights, or aurora borealis, can be seen from the UK. Alerts are issued based on real-time data from AuroraWatch UK and citizen science instruments, called magnetometers, that measure geomagnetic activity associated with the aurora. With well over 100,000 subscribers this incredibly popular service also engages its subscribers about the science behind the aurora and space weather. AuroraWatch UK is run by Lancaster University, who are very active in the media, frequently appearing on TV and radio and being quoted in national newspaper articles. They also run wide-ranging outreach events about the aurora and other planets in our solar system. For more details, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

    The Elastic Band Magnetosphere

    Created for the Aurora Explorer exhibit at the 2011 Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition, this interactive demonstrates some of the dynamics of Earth’s magnetosphere such as magnetopause motion, tail reconnection and ULF waves by using brightly coloured elastic bands / bungee cords. The exhibit was created by Imperial College London, and This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more details.

    MUSICS

    MUSICS (Magnetospheric Undulations Sonified Incorporating Citizen Scientists) enables school students to collaboratively experience and contribute to space weather research in 6-month long projects. They explore ultra-low frequency satellite wave data of Earth’s magnetic shield by listening to it and using audio software. Unexpected science results have been found such as long-lasting decreasing-frequency poloidal waves following geomagnetic storms. The audio and tools for using it are now publicly available via NOAA and thus can be adopted by any MIST researchers in their work with schools or the public. For more details, contact Martin Archer.

    Planeterrella

    The planeterrella is an update of a century-old experiment by a Norwegian scientist named Kristian Birkeland and is very visually beautiful. There are planeterrellas at the University of Leicester and the University of Southampton, based on designs developed in France by Jean Lilensten. The planeterrella has appeared on QI, and also appears at schools and festivals around the UK. For more details, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

    Raspberry Pi School Magnetometer project

    This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. helps run the Raspberry Pi School Magnetometer project at the British Geological Survey. The magnetometer is a very sensitive instrument which allows schools to make measurements of the Earth’s magnetic field, in particular to sense the aurora during geomagnetic storms. The project is jointly run with Lancaster University. Around ten schools in the UK have been involved in the project since 2015.

    SMILE

    SMILE is a joint mission by the European Space Agency and Chinese Academy of Sciences, and is due for launch in late 2023. The SMILE satellite will have a highly-inclined orbit with apogee at about 19 RE.  SMILE will have an X-ray imager to  to monitor the magnetopause, and a UV imager, to observe the northern hemisphere ionosphere.  An in situ light ion analyser and a magnetometer complete the instrument suite. We are running a long-term project with a set of schools, so that they can follow the SMILE mission through the design, build, testing, launch, and science operations of the mission. We are extending this programme to community and adult education groups. For more details, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

    Sounds of Space

    Our planet naturally produces a variety of radio emissions, generated by lightning activity and geomagnetic storms driven by the Sun. These natural radio waves are at the lower end of the radio spectrum in the audio-frequency range. These electromagnetic waves cannot be heard directly, but they can be converted into audio files and played back as sound. This process reveals a series of weird and wonderful noises, known as the ‘sounds of space’, and it's a bit like entering the film set of a 1960s sci-fi movie. We are working with artists and audio engineers to exploit these amazing natural ‘sounds’ and make them more accessible to wider audiences. The ‘sounds’ have been used in performances that fuse art and science, short films, music and even a world-renowned space simulation game. You can find out more about these exciting projects here, or by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

    SSFX

    SSFX (Space Sound Effects), in partnership with several film industry organisations, challenged independent filmmakers to incorporate the usually inaudible sounds from space into short films in creative ways. Seven films were selected and were screened at bespoke events as well as infiltrating 16 existing film festivals and over 500 events across 8 countries. The diverse audiences reached typically wouldn’t attend science events. An anthology film containing the shorts and a framing story narratively depicting the effects of space weather is now online. Contact Martin Archer for access to any of the films in a variety of formats for use at your events.