Colin Forsyth

Physicist studying what drives the northern (and southern) lights, the Van Allen belts and space weather. Views are my own.

[Colin Forsyth @colforsyth]

Every test brings us a step closer to launch #SMILEesacas https://t.co/zEapz1jNpT

[Colin Forsyth @colforsyth]

Work led by @BritGeoSurvey with @ASmith0005, me and others highlighted in Eos. Our models forecast particular geomagnetic storms and the likelihood of damaging magnetic field fluctuations in the UK

[AGU's Eos @AGU_Eos]

When space weather alters Earth’s electromagnetic field, power grids and other infrastructure can get caught up in the storm. In the U.K., a newly operational system aims to identify problem spots before they lead to safety issues. https://t.co/x1pIOlEb90

[ESA Science @esascience]

Meet @esa_smile.

The soon-to-be newest member of our space science mission fleet.

Employing X-ray and UV vision to see how Earth reacts to relentless streams and bursts of particles from the Sun.

Dive into the Smile mission here 👉 https://t.co/KdOsdWevlV

[MullardSpaceScience @MSSLSpaceLab]

Congratulations to Dr. Paola Pinilla, who has been awarded the @RoyaAstroSoc Price Award for her world-leading work on protoplanetary disks - the gas and dust around young stars where planets are born https://t.co/hiyxiarxio

[MullardSpaceScience @MSSLSpaceLab]

Congratulations to the UK Cluster team for their Sir Arthur Clarke award given for their major role in the multi-spacecraft mission (that produced 1000s of papers), leading 3 of the 11 instruments & hosting the Science Operations Centre. Photo: Natasha & Andrew from @MSSLSpaceLab

[Colin Forsyth @colforsyth]

Great to see @esa_smile starting to come together!

[ESA Science @esascience]

☀️💨🛰️🌍 Meet our Smile mission! 👇
https://t.co/MEVzK6eH1w

🎥ESA/Lightcurve Films

[Institute of Physics @PhysicsNews]

The Jocelyn Bell Burnell Medal and Prize has been won by Dr Catherine Elizabeth Regan of @MSSLSpaceLab for exceptional leadership of the Eyes on Mars project, engaging diverse audiences and inspiring our next generation of scientists, alongside high-impact and novel research on Martian dust storms. 👏 #IOPAwards24

[Colin Forsyth @colforsyth]

@esa_smile Great meeting seeing everything coming together as we get ever closer to launch. Seeing the aurora was the icing on the cake and gave a further boost to everyone involved!

[ESA_Smile @esa_smile]

Hello, Smile! 👋

🌞↔️🌍 Enjoy this view of the spacecraft that will observe the full Sun-Earth connection, filling an essential gap in our understanding of the Solar System.
https://t.co/UVwUODq3Ie

[MullardSpaceScience @MSSLSpaceLab]

We had a busy summer this year! Including running a new Space School in London for secondary students. Find out about the partnership: https://t.co/BHLHiOtHls

[MSSL Space Plasma Physics @MSSLSpacePlasma]

Over the past few weeks we have welcomed colleagues from the National Space Science Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences to cross-calibrate the Light Ion Analyser for @esa_smile ahead of the instrument being integrated onto the spacecraft. @uclmaps @spacegovuk

[Colin Forsyth @colforsyth]

Congratulations both and thanks to all who helped (@ASmith0005 @SolarSpaceNU, Michaela Mooney @PhysicsUoL , Mervyn Freeman @BAS_News , Andrey Samsonov, Graziella Branduardi Raymont @MSSLSpaceLab, Yulia Bogdanova @RAL_Space_STFC )

[Colin Forsyth @colforsyth]

It's been a good couple of weeks for the @MSSLSpacePlasma magnetosphere team with two students getting their first papers published:

[Colin Forsyth @colforsyth]

@thechristianlao's paper comparing the agreement (or disagreement) between different substorm onset lists was published at https://t.co/YR60rXC7Vh

[UCL News @uclnews]

"It will leave a very impressive legacy": the first satellite of the @esa Cluster mission investigating Earth's magnetosphere, which involved Prof Andrew Fazakerley and others @MSSLSpaceLab @uclmaps, has safely returned to Earth after 24 years in space https://t.co/NVY0XkQX7b

[ESA Science @esascience]

🤔 What happens where the solar wind meets Earth’s magnetic shield?

🩻 This is one of the questions @esa_smile aims to answer by observing soft X-rays and extreme ultraviolet wavelengths.

The mission will study Earth’s magnetic environment on a global scale, building a more complete understanding of the Sun–Earth connection.

Find out more 👉 https://t.co/yRWIkSZmTF

[Colin Forsyth @colforsyth]

@astro__will @Orbyts1 Congratulations Will! Great to see this programme continuing and expanding!

[ESA Science @esascience]

☀️🌬️🌍 Here are the top three mysteries @ESA_Smile aims to solve:

🌬️ 🛡️ What happens where the solar wind meets Earth’s magnetic shield?
🧲❌ What causes magnetic glitches on the dark side of Earth?
🚨 ⚡️ How can we predict the most dangerous space weather threats in advance?

Delve deeper 👉 https://t.co/8UZa2Yqeov