The work will exploit the Group’s involvement in current space missions, including Cassini, Cluster, Rosetta, Stereo, Themis, and Venus Express together with future missions (e.g., NASA’s MMS or the CINEMA/TRIO CubeSat mission).

Our preferred method of application is online via our website http://www.imperial.ac.uk/employment (please select “Job Search” then enter the vacancy reference number NS2012008RD into “Keywords”). Please complete and upload an application form as directed, also providing a CV and list of publications and the names of three referees.

Should you have any queries about the application process please contact the Space and Atmospheric Physics Group Administration office via space.sec@imperial.ac.uk

Closing date: 22nd February 2012 (midnight GMT)

Dr. Jonathan Eastwood
Research Fellow (STFC Advanced Fellow)
The Blackett Laboratory
Imperial College London
SW7 2AZ, UK
tel +44(0)20 7594 8101
fax +44(0)20 7594 7772
email jonathan.eastwood@imperial.ac.uk
www.imperial.ac.uk/people/jonathan.eastwood

A NERC PhD studentship is available at the British Antarctic Survey and the University of Bath working with Dr. Hua Lu (Climate Programme, British Antarctic Survey, Cambridge) and
Prof. Nicholas Mitchell (Centre for Space, Atmospheric & Oceanic Science, University of Bath)

http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/employment/vacancies/job.php?JobID=681

The objective of this project is to quantify and highlight the dynamic processes by which Antarctic weather and climate are modified by changes in solar activity via downward wave propagation.

Please circulate the attached advert (pdf document) to any students who might be interested in this PhD position.

The successful candidate will be based at the British Antarctic Survey and provided with training in atmospheric physics and climate diagnosis. The student will be registered as an external PhD candidate at the University of Bath.

Applicants should hold (or expect to gain) a first- or upper-second class honours degree in the physical, mathematics, environmental sciences or electrical engineering.

As the project involves analysing large data sets, candidates should be highly numerate and must be able to demonstrate evidence of good computing/IT skills. Experience with MATLAB programming (or similar) and knowledge of atmospheric or fluid dynamics will be an advantage. Familiarity with signal processing or handling large data sets is also desirable (but not essential).

Please note that only UK citizens are eligible to apply for a NERC PhD award.

Deadline for applications is 29th February 2012

For more information see http://www.nerc.ac.uk/funding/available/postgrad/awards/
and for eligibility go to http://www.nerc.ac.uk/funding/available/postgrad/eligibility.asp

Application details at:
http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/employment/vacancies/job.php?JobID=681

———————————————-
Dr. Andrew J. Kavanagh
Climate – Middle Atmosphere Dynamics
British Antarctic Survey
High Cross, Madingley Road
Cambridge CB3 0ET

Tel: +44 (0)1223 221314
Email: andkav@bas.ac.uk

The post (Swarm Mission Support Scientist) is funded through a mission support programme run by the UK National Centre for Earth Observation (NERC) and the position is to work within the Space Science Division of the RAL Space Department at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory. The appointment will be to the STFC band D salary scale as a 2 year initial contract.

The work will be to provide advice to the mission during operations, and to the science team and user community in order to assess the science data quality and develop multi-spacecraft methodology. The programme of work will include:

1. Calibration and validation of the high-precision multi-spacecraft magnetic field data.
2. Verification of the electric field data via coordination with ground based radar networks.

3. The development and application of algorithms for data combination and (multi-point) analysis.

Regular progress reports during the study, which will be provided to the ESA mission management team, will be required. The work will also require the acquisition of level 1b data from the SWARM data system and the development of analysis techniques designed to validate the data.

The successful applicant should hold a PhD, have working experience in a relevant field and be familiar with standard, computer based data processing techniques. Specifically, experience in using, and assessing the data quality, of multi-spacecraft, space plasma measurements would be an advantage. Knowledge of spacecraft operations and data formats (dissemination) is also desirable, as well as some knowledge in the use of ground, incoherent scatter radar observations.

Please contact Malcolm Dunlop (malcolm.dunlop@stfc.ac.uk) tel: 01235-445427 for further information.

Applications are handled by the RCUK Shared Services Centre; to apply please visit our job board at https://ext.ssc.rcuk.ac.uk and complete an online application form. If you are unable to apply online please contact us on 01793 867003 quoting reference IRC42448.
Closing date for applications: 26 February 2012

Please visit the nugget here:
http://msslxr.mssl.ucl.ac.uk:8080/SolarB/nuggets/nugget_2012feb.jsp

We welcome nugget contributions from the community. Please contact Lucie Green if you are interested.

Decide which competition and zone you fit into best, whether an STFC sponsored one or another, and then fill in the relevant application form. The closing date for applications is Friday 3 February.
To be eligible you will need to:
• be available for a few hours each day between 12 – 23 March
• work on or with an STFC site, facility or on STFC funded research, in an STFC spin-out or similar. If in doubt, ask us!
• have decided which zone is most appropriate for yourself
• have permission from your line manager
By agreeing to take part you will:
• receive training prior to event
• develop communication skills
• get the chance to share your research with students
• have the chance to win £500 prize money to go towards a communication project of your choice
For more information about what it’s like to take part watch this 3 minute video of STFC scientist Ceri Brenner (winner of the Quantum Zone, June 2011) describing why you should take part http://imascientist.org.uk/scientists/stfc.

In the upcoming March event STFC are sponsoring one zone in each competition. If you feel another zone in either of the competitions is more suitable for yourself you can also apply. The two STFC zones are broadly themed so anyone who can find even a loose connection to their research. The two zones are:

• Electromagnetic Zone in IAS (Application page available at http://imascientist.org.uk/stfc-scientist-registration) – This zone will contain researchers using and exploring the entire electromagnetic spectrum with work ranging from long radio waves through to the shortest gamma rays. The broad theme gives many STFC researchers the opportunity to share their amazing scientific discoveries; from the stunning pictures of the Universe using the whole of the spectrum, to important medical advances from using short frequencies in synchrotrons. Recently, a more unusual part of the spectrum, Terahertz radiation, has been used to design equipment that makes it possible to scan for explosives through people’s clothes.

• Measurement Zone in IEng (Application page available at http://imanengineer.org.uk/stfc-engineer-application) – The scope for this zone is HUGE! Measurement is vital to STFCs research so engineers working on virtually any topic can take part. Collecting measurements is not always easy when you’re dealing with sub atomic particles or measuring rain drops. To add to this, in science it’s not always possible to directly measure what you want. For some things, like how big space is, indirect measurements have to be taken and for even more elusive things like dark matter and gravitational waves, measurements first have to be taken to pin point where the next experiment should concentrate their search. As well as looking at the measurements taken, engineers face the difficult tasks of designing, operating and running the sensitive instruments and facilities that make all these measurements possible.

Contact Chrissie Jones at Chrissie.jones@stfc.ac.uk or on 01793 442092 for further information

To apply on line please go to http://www.ucl.ac.uk/hr/jobs/ and search on Reference Number 1230992. A job description and person specification is available in PDF format.
For queries regarding the application process contact Mrs. E. Daghorn (ead@mssl.ucl.ac.uk).
The closing date for applications is 24 February 2012.
UCL Taking Action for Equality

Please see details application details: http://apply.supa.ac.uk/

The SUPA Prize Studentships are prestigious and competitive awards intended to attract outstanding physics students from around the world, irrespective of nationality, to study for a PhD in Scotland.

http://apply.supa.ac.uk/

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/~tohban/wiki/index.php/Supra-Arcade_Downflows

BiSON data hints at mysterious goings on in the solar interior during the recent, unusual solar minimum.

http://www.uksolphys.org/?p=3666

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UKSP Nuggets are published on a monthly basis highlighting solar physics research in the UK.

http://www.uksolphys.org/uksp-nuggets

Iain Hannah and Lyndsay Fletcher

http://www.uksolphys.org/?p=3666

A civil service position is available in the Heliophysics Science
Division, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, for a supervisory
astrophysicist to serve as Chief of the Space Weather Laboratory. The
mission of the Space Weather Laboratory is to perform fundamental
research and modeling of the coupled Sun-Earth system, with particular
emphasis on the space weather effects important to NASA and the nation.
The Chief develops and maintains the Laboratory’s strategic vision,
provides supervisory and administrative oversight of civil service
personnel, resources, and tasks, and provides scientific and technical
guidance. The Chief also carries out peer-reviewed scientific research
in Heliophysics, and leads in the development of new missions,
instruments, and theoretical investigations to achieve NASA goals.
Evidence of management experience and leadership in the scientific
community is highly desirable.

This appointment will be at the GS-15 level. U.S. citizenship is
required. Please direct technical inquiries to michael.hesse-1@nasa.gov
(301-286-6418) and procedural inquiries to GSFC-TAO@mail.nasa.gov
(301-286-3691).

TO BE CONSIDERED FOR THIS POSITION, YOU MUST APPLY THROUGH USAJOBS.
Please visit http://usajobs.gov, search for vacancy GS12B0016, and
submit your resume. Note that the closing date is 2/2/2012.

The diary has been updated on the STFC home page with new dates for January, February and March 2012. To view the diary, please go to http://www.stfc.ac.uk/

Melanie

Gold Medal (G): Professor John Brown

Chapman Medal: Professor Andrew Fazarkerley

Fowler Award (G): Dr Matthew Owens

Harold Jeffreys Lecturer: Professor Bill Chaplin

Honorary Fellowships: Professor Robert Lin (University of California at Berkeley)

For more information see http://tinyurl.com/6odqd4e.

Vacancies have arisen, or will be arising, due to the normal rotation of membership on:
• Science Board – 4 vacancies;
• The STFC Advisory Panels – see below for various vacancies;
• The Projects Peer Review Panel (PPRP)– 8 vacancies;
• The Nuclear Physics Grants Panel (NPGP)– 4 to 5 vacancies;
• The Particle Physics Grants Panel (PPGP) – 1 vacancy for Theory and 4 vacancies for Experiment;
• The Industry Partnership Scheme Panel (IPS) – 1 academic vacancy and 1 industrial vacancy;
• Advisory Panel for Science in Society (APSiS) – 1 vacancy for a particle physicist;
• The Education, Training and Careers Committee (ETCC) – 4 vacancies.
• The CERN Fellowship Panel – 1 vacancy;

The closing date for these posts is Monday 27th February 2012.

Brief descriptions of the panels and committees can be found below on the STFC website.

For further information about the Committees and how to apply please read the full call for nominations on the website.

Job description:
http://webapps.qmul.ac.uk/hr/vacancies/spec.php?id=2799
Please ensure you read this document before applying.

Overview: The Astronomy Unit (AU) at Queen Mary University of London has a vacancy for a Postdoctoral Research Assistant to work on the Leverhulme Trust Research Grant entitled “Advanced model of solar radio bursts via plasma kinetic simulation”. The AU’s Space and Solar Plasma Physics group carries out research into the naturally occurring plasmas which pervade the solar system, and beyond. We use state of the art numerical simulation and analysis of data from scientific spacecraft. The group has a broad range of interests, including the Sun, solar corona, solar wind, collisionless shocks, plasma waves and instabilities, reconnection, turbulence and particle acceleration.
The successful applicant will be expected to make significant personal contributions to the development of the advanced, multi-dimensional model of solar radio bursts via plasma kinetic simulation, using the existing code EPOCH — a multi-dimensional, fully electromagnetic, relativistic particle-in-cell code, and analysis of the observational data from The Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR).
Applicants should have, or be about to gain, a PhD in solar/space physics with experience in the use/development of particle-in-cell numerical codes. The post will be located at Queen Mary in London but may require some limited travel to Oxford for LOFAR observational data analysis. Queen Mary is a member of the SEPnet, a consortium of six partner universities, www.sepnet.ac.uk. QMUL’s Astronomy Unit is also LOFAR-UK’s member institution, as well as member of SEPnet-Astro, astro.kent.ac.uk/SEPNET/.
The post is full time and fixed term, available from 1 March 2012 or as soon as possible thereafter until 28 February 2015 (36 months). It is funded by the Leverhulme Trust Research Grant. Starting salary will be in the range £30,500 (year 1), £32,173 (year 2), £33,944 (year 3) per annum inclusive of London Allowance. Benefits include 30 days paid annual leave, defined benefit pension scheme and interest-free season ticket loan.

Candidates must be able to demonstrate their eligibility to work in the UK in accordance with the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006. Where required this may include entry clearance or continued leave to remain under the Points Based Immigration Scheme.

Informal enquiries should be addressed to the Leverhulme Grant Principal Investigator, Dr David Tsiklauri by email to d.tsiklauri@qmul.ac.uk or on +44 (0)20 7882 5898. Further details about the AU can be found at astro.qmul.ac.uk

Further details/application form can be found at: www.hr.qmul.ac.uk/vacancies or directly
http://webapps.qmul.ac.uk/hr/vacancies/jobs.php?id=2799

Completed application forms, covering letter, CV (which should include the list of publications) and 3 academic references, quoting 12004/NL, should be returned to the Recruitment Administrator, School of Physics and Astronomy, Queen Mary University of London, Mile End Road, London, E1 4NS, or by e-mail to ph-recruit@qmul.ac.uk

The closing date for applications is 9 March 2012 by which ALL materials, including references, should be received. It is anticipated that interviews will be held during the week of 19 – 23 March 2012.

Valuing Diversity & Committed to Equality

http://webapps.qmul.ac.uk/hr/vacancies/jobs.php?id=2799

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/~tohban/wiki/index.php/Flare_Observations_of_the_EUV_Continua

To view the nugget please visit the webpage:

http://msslxr.mssl.ucl.ac.uk:8080/SolarB/nuggets/nugget_2012jan.jsp

A.-M. Broomhall, W.J. Chaplin, Y. Elsworth,
University of Birmingham

<< previous nugget — next nugget >>

Introduction

The Sun is a variable star whose observed magnetic activity varies on a timescale of about 11 years and impacts life on Earth. The Sun’s magnetic field originates in the solar interior and global helioseismology, which studies the Sun’s natural resonant oscillations (p modes), offers a unique opportunity to probe conditions beneath the solar surface. The Sun’s p modes are trapped in the solar interior and are sensitive to the physical conditions of the gas through which they travel. Each mode samples slightly different, but overlapping, regions and so, by examining the properties of many different modes we can build up a profile of the solar interior. Here we report a signal in the frequencies of p modes with a period of approximately 2 years, that is related to the quasi-biennial signal observed in other proxies of solar activity (e.g. 10.7cm flux and sunspot number). However, unlike the other proxies, the signal observed in the p-mode frequencies persists throughout the most recent, unusual solar minimum. What can this tell us about the properties, including the magnetic properties, of the solar interior during this time?

BiSON and long timescale p-mode variations

It has been known since the mid 1980s that p-mode frequencies vary throughout the solar cycle with the frequencies being at their largest when the solar activity is at its maximum (e.g. [1]; [2]). For a low-angular-degree (low-l) mode at about 3000μHz the change in frequency between solar maximum and minimum is about 0.4μHz. By examining the changes in the observed p-mode frequencies throughout the solar cycle we can learn about solar-cycle-related processes that occur beneath the Sun’s surface.

The Birmingham Solar-Oscillations Network (BiSON) is in a unique position to study the changes in oscillation frequencies that accompany the solar cycle as it has now been collecting data for over 30 years. BiSON makes Sun-as-a-star (unresolved) Doppler velocity observations, which are sensitive to the p modes with the largest horizontal scales (or the lowest l). Consequently, the BiSON measurements are the truly global modes of the Sun. These modes travel to the Sun’s core, but their dwell time at the surface is longer than at the solar core because the sound speed inside the Sun increases with depth. Therefore, the low-l modes are most sensitive to variations in interior regions close to the surface and so are able to give a global picture of the influence of near-surface activity. Figure 1 shows a frequency-power spectrum (which is the squared modulus of the Fourier transform of the time series) of 365 days of BiSON data. The rich comb-like structure of p modes is clearly visible in the spectrum.

Figure 1: A frequency-power spectrum of BiSON data. The time series used to create this spectrum was 365d in length. The vertical lines mark the frequency band used when calculating the solar cycle frequency shifts shown in Figures 2 and 3.

Figure 2 shows mean frequency shifts of the p modes observed by BiSON (also see [3])  and a scaled version of the 10.7cm flux. The 11-year cycle is seen clearly but what causes the observed frequency shifts? A likely candidate is the magnetic field. Broadly speaking, the magnetic fields can affect the modes in two ways. They can do so directly, by the action of the Lorentz force on the gas. This provides an additional (to gas pressure) restoring force, resulting in an increase of frequency, and the appearance of new modes. Magnetic fields can also change the physical properties in the mode cavities and, as a result, the propagation of the acoustic waves within them. This indirect effect can act both ways, to either increase or decrease the frequencies.

Figure 2: Average frequency shifts of "Sun-as-a-star p modes. "

Notice that the most recent seismic minimum was deep, not only compared to the previous minimum but also compared to the 10.7cm flux. Furthermore large departures of the seismic signal from the 10.7cm flux are observed during the declining phase of the last cycle and the recent, unusual solar minimum. This could indicate that the relationship between the internal magnetic flux and that which manifests at the surface (and is responsible for the 10.7cm signal) has changed.

A 2-year signal

Figure 2 shows that shorter term variations are also visible in the frequency shifts, on top of the dominant 11-yr cycle (e.g. [3]). Figure 3 shows the residuals of the frequency shifts once the 11-yr solar cycle has been removed. A periodicity on a timescale of about 2 years is clearly visible, and we find that this is statistically significant [3]. The amplitude envelope of the quasi-biennial signal observed in the BiSON data appears to be modulated by the 11-year cycle.

Figure 3: Residuals of the frequency shifts, plotted in Figure 2, left after the dominant 11-yr signal has been removed. The residuals were found only for the frequency shifts observed after April 14th 1986 as before this date the data are too sparse to be able to see the quasi-biennial signal.

What lies beneath

One possible explanation for the 11-year modulation of the quasi-biennial signal is that the flux responsible for the shorter-period variation is positioned somewhat below the solar surface (~5 percent) and buoyant magnetic flux sent upward by the main dynamo from deeper layers, at the base of the convective envelope, could help to nudge this overlying flux into layers that are shallow enough to imprint a detectable acoustic signature on the modes. The amplitude of the quasi-biennial signal would be large when the 11-year cycle is at or close to solar maximum. When the main cycle is near solar minimum, the flux responsible for the quasi-biennial signal would not receive an extra nudge, and the amplitude of the signal in the p-mode frequencies would be weaker.

While p-mode frequencies respond to conditions beneath the surface, activity proxies respond to changes at or above the surface. The quasi-biennial signals observed in other solar activity proxies are only detectable during phases of moderate to high activity (see, e.g. [4]; [5] and references therein). This fits with the above conjecture: The quasi-biennial signal would only be visible in surface proxies of the Sun’s magnetic field when brought to the surface by the flux generated by the main dynamo.

Conclusion

Seismic changes continue throughout the last two solar minima, particularly evident during the most recent, unusually long solar minimum. A clear suggestion of our work is that conditions on the surface does not necessarily reflect what is happening in the solar interior!

References

• [1] M. F. Woodard and R. W. Noyes, 1985, Nat., 318, 449.
• [2] Y. Elsworth, R. Howe, G. R. Isaak, C. P. McLeod, and R. New, 1990, Nat., 345, 322.
• [3] S. T. Fletcher, A.-M. Broomhall, D. Salabert, S. Basu, W. J. Chaplin, Y. Elsworth, R. A. García, and R. New, 2010, ApJL, 718, L19.
• [4] A. Vecchio and V. Carbone, 2008, ApJ, 683, 536.
• [5] D. H. Hathaway, 2010, Living Reviews in Solar Physics, 7, 1.

For information, detailed guidance for meeting organisers may be found at:
http://www.ras.org.uk/events-and-meetings/1747-general-information-about-meetings
Proposals for Astronomy SD meetings should be sent to Professor Martin
Barstow mab@le.ac.uk), and proposals for
Geophysics (including Planetary Science and Solar-Terrestrial Physics)
should be sent to Dr Lyndsay Fletcher (Lyndsay.Fletcher@glasgow.ac.uk).

The deadline for the receipt of proposals is 1 April 2012.

The variable ionosphere is a calibration issue for both radio astronomy and the RF communications industry, causing both retardation and absorption of radio signals as they pass through the atmosphere. These effects are dependent on the temporal and spatial distribution of total electron content (TEC) in the ionosphere. Their impact varies as a linear function of wavelength, and so signals at low frequencies are most affected. This consideration is consequently an important factor in the calibration of very low frequency radio telescopes such as the LOw Frequency ARray (LOFAR) where such effects are further complicated by the wide reception patterns of the LOFAR antennas, which are substantially larger than the scale of ionospheric fluctuations. A consequence of this fact is that traditional self-calibration techniques for radio astronomy, which rely on reception patterns smaller than or approaching the size of ionospheric fluctuations, are no longer sufficient and a more detailed modeling of the ionosphere is required to completely correct for contaminating effects. Moreover, the recovery of polarization information from astronomical Faraday rotation is dependent on corrections for the absolute ionospheric density along the line of sight, in addition to the relative values required for imaging. Models based on long-term, statistical records can provide useful indications of time-averaged ionospheric conditions, but are generally not suitable for accurate representations of the ionosphere at any in- stant. This is because the short-term variability of the ionosphere regularly causes its morphology to differ from time-averaged conditions. At present, the most numerous and easily accessible ionospheric data come from the international network of ground-based GPS receivers. However, the spatial and temporal sampling of available GPS data is sufficient for neither complete calibration of radio astronomical measurements nor reliable ionospheric modeling. However, linking real-time GPS data to the data reduction of telescopes such as LOFAR, as well as linking ionospheric monitoring using known radio sources to tomographic inversion of the ionosphere from GPS measurements will provide advantages to both disciplines.

The project will make use of the LOFAR Chilbolton station SEPCAM instrument as a riometer for measuring absolute differences in ionospheric fluctuations from the diffuse all-sky radio background, as well as data from the combined International LOFAR Telescope in order to measure small-scale fluctuations through their effect on the astrometry of known radio sources as a function of time. These data will be combined with GPS-based ionospheric modeling tools to look at comparisons between satellite-based and astronomy-based ionospheric measurements. These techniques will be combined into a real time ionospheric correction and prediction network linking the LOFAR Chilbolton data reduction pipeline and the GPS based MIDAS ionospheric inversion tool. This network will have the dual purpose of improving astronomical calibration through linked GPS measurements; and improving ionospheric modeling through the use of astronomical measurements. The student will use the SEPCAM riometry data to tie down the absolute ionospheric levels over LOFAR Chilbolton and their long and short term behavior. These data will be combined with constraints from polarized astronomical sources with known rotation measures to provide a details of the temporal and spatial variation in absolute ionospheric TEC. This absolute measure can then be used as a prior on the local absolute ionospheric TEC, and combined with the relative astrometric disturbance of a grid of known bright radio sources, the student will develop an inversion to be implemented through the MIDAS framework to recover a 4-dimensional ionospheric tomographic mapping of the local ionosphere, which can be compared and combined with GPS based inversions

www.suntrek.org/blog

Northumbria University (School of Computing, Engineering and Information Sciences)

Dear colleagues,

Northumbria University (at Newcastle) is advertising a permanent academic position in its Mathematics and Statistics division (located in the School of Computing, Engineering and Information Sciences). The candidate must be an excellent applied mathematician, and must have a research profile that strengthens the current profile of the School. As you may know, I have recently been appointed to a similar position at Northumbria, and so “Solar Physics”, “Magnetohydrodynamics” and “Mathematical Modelling of Solar Phenomena” are now all active and valid research areas within the School.

Thus, candidates who can demonstrate that they have the necessary skills in applied mathematics, and are active researchers in Solar Physics/Magnetohydrodynamics are strongly encouraged to apply. This is also a real opportunity to kick start a new Solar Physics research group (i.e. the successful candidate would join Dr James McLaughlin, Dr Gary Verth and our solar PhD students). If you are interested, feel free to phone me (0191-227-3667) or email me ( james.a.mclaughlin@northumbria.ac.uk ) and I can let you know more details.

This is a time of strategic recruitment and expansion at Northumbria University and stems from the new Vice-Chancellor. My permanent position (I started in January 2010) came from this new strategic investment, and likewise this lectureship is from the same investment strategy. The School has also been very good to me: I have been given a 3-year research assistant (Dr Gary Verth) and a PhD studentship (Mr Jonathan Thurgood), so they are really serious about investing in their new academics. Above all, the School is looking for high-quality, motivated researchers who are conducting REF-driven research. If this sounds like you, then I encourage you to apply. However, note the deadline of 31st January 2012 !

Please visit :

http://work4.northumbria.ac.uk/hrvacs/cei1108

for full details, job description, application form, etc.

Closing date: 31 January 2012

http://work4.northumbria.ac.uk/hrvacs/cei1108

The first fellowship, on the Chemistry of Planetary Atmospheres, will have two research aims: to study the layers of metallic ions observed in planetary atmospheres, by measuring the rates of dissociative recombination of metallic molecular ions with electrons; and to develop a novel reactor for simulating meteoric ablation in the laboratory.

The second fellowship, on the Chemistry of the Upper Atmosphere, will investigate the chemistry of the metallic layers in the mesosphere, the formation of meteoric smoke, and the nucleation of noctilucent clouds, using a reactor employing laser photo-ionization and time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Suitable applicants for these positions should have a PhD in experimental physical/atmospheric chemistry, chemical physics, or a closely related discipline. You should be prepared to work as part of a dynamic team and, when appropriate, to use your initiative as an independent researcher.

Both positions are 54-month appointments, available from 1 April 2012. Salary in the range £29,972 – £35,788 depending on experience.

Further information on CODITA and Atmospheric Chemistry at the University of Leeds is available at http://www.leeds.ac.uk/hr/jobs/index.htm.

Informal enquiries to Professor John Plane, email j.m.c.plane@leeds.ac.uk, http://www1.chem.leeds.ac.uk/JMCP/, tel +44 (0)113 343 8044.

Closing Date: 23 January 2012

Alan Burgess during his retirement celebrations, held in Cambridge, July 2001, with his grandson and the book he received as a present.

Dear colleagues,

Sadly, Alan Burgess has passed away (please see message from Helen Mason below). If anyone wants more information about the funeral (13 Jan) or would like to contact the family, please contact Helen Mason (H.E.Mason@damtp.cam.ac.uk).

Ineke

It is with great sadness that I inform you of the sudden death of Alan Burgess. He died unexpectedly, in his sleep, at home, having spent Boxing Day with his family.

Alan Burgess was a superb physicist and an excellent teacher. He carried out some fundamental calculations on di-electronic recombination while a post-doc at UCL, in Prof Mike Seaton’s group. These calculations related directly to our knowledge and understanding of the high temperature of the solar corona. He was well known by many in the solar physics community, particularly during the 1980′s when we had the ‘QUACS’ meetings.

Until his retirement, Alan was head of the Atomic and Astro-physics group at DAMTP, University of Cambridge. He was an inspiration and mentor to many research students, who are now leaders in their research fields. He was also held in great affection and respect by those colleagues who knew him and worked with him.

Our thoughts are with his family at this time of deep sadness.

Helen Mason
DAMTP

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/~tohban/wiki/index.php/No_Hard_X-rays_from_Comet_Lovejoy

• Jane McKenzie, Oversight Committee Secretary, will be leaving STFC at the end of the year. We will be advertising for a replacement as soon as possible; in the meantime, any correspondence that would usually go to Jane regarding the Oversight Committees should be sent to Dave Godfrey (dave.godfrey@stfc.ac.uk).

• Katharine Schofield, Programme Manager for Nuclear Physics and Particle Astrophysics, will be moving to a new role within STFC from the start of February. Again, we will be seeking a replacement for Katharine. From 1 February, please direct any correspondence regarding grants maintenance to Jane Bennett (jane.bennett@stfc.ac.uk), and any correspondence regarding programme issues to Tony Medland (tony.medland@stfc.ac.uk).

We will let you know as soon as the new arrangements for both of these posts are confirmed.

The full‐time post is for a three‐year period with the possibility of renewal for a further three years. The Director is based at the EISCAT Headquarters in Kiruna, Sweden. However a
considerable amount of international travel should be expected.

Applications should include a resume and a one page statement of the applicant’s vision for EISCAT and should be sent by email to: Director2013@eiscat.se, latest 17:00 (CET) on Wednesday 15 February 2012. Applications will be treated confidentially. Employment terms and conditions will be subject to negotiation with the board of EISCAT, the Council. For more information about the position, please contact the current Director, Dr. Esa Turunen (Esa.Turunen.@eiscat.se) or the Chairperson of Council, Dr. Tomas Andersson (tomas.andersson@vr.se).

STFC Public Engagement Fellowships 2012
For researchers with good communication skills who have demonstrated a track record in public engagement with research or communication work. Applications are invited from STFC funded researchers and users of STFC facilities. Fellowship holders would have a proportion of their time bought out to enable them to concentrate on new or additional activities which would have significant national or regional impact.

The Closing date for applications is 1st March 2012 at 16:00

Further details can be found on the STFC website or by contacting Neville.Hollingworth@stfc.ac.uk

Acoustic wave transmission from photosphere to corona in spicules.

http://www.uksolphys.org/?p=3600

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UKSP Nuggets are published on a monthly basis highlighting solar physics research in the UK.

http://www.uksolphys.org/uksp-nuggets

Iain Hannah and Lyndsay Fletcher

http://www.uksolphys.org/?p=3600

There is no need to download an app, just point your mobile/cell phone browser to www.SolarMonitor.org and it doesn’t matter if you are on an Android or an iPhone. Users can try it out for themselves by going to www.solarmonitor.org or m.solarmonitor.org.

There’s a demo of the app available for viewing at

http://youtu.be/jhkLEJHUXdc

www.SolarMonitor.org

http://msslxr.mssl.ucl.ac.uk:8080/SolarB/nuggets/nugget_2011dec.jsp

To aid in our planning, we solicit statements of interest from potential Guest Editors of Topical Issues by 15 January 2012.

John Leibacher, Takashi Sakurai, Lidia van Driel-Gesztelyi

This note is to advise that the 2012 Astronomy guidelines for Applicants have now been published and can be found at http://www.stfc.ac.uk/Our+Research/12214.aspx

There have been a few revisions, for example the duration of grant request and some minor changes to page limits etc . I would therefore strongly advise all potential applicants to read through the guidelines in detail.

May I take this opportunity to remind everyone that it would be extremely helpful to inform me if you are considering submitting to the 2012 closing date.

Should you have any questions then please email me directly at kim.burchell@stfc.ac.uk

Vacancies have arisen due to normal rotation of membership. The appointments will be from the 1 April 2012 and will normally be for a period of up to three years, although appointments will be reviewed after the first year to ensure the composition of the panel is appropriate and to allow for unforeseen circumstances..

Nominations are sought from members of the UK research community. In particular we would welcome nominations from those with a strong background in the following areas astronomy observation, theory, solar, planetary studies and relevant instrumentation, technology and data management.

STFC will seek the best members possible for its advisory bodies but also seeks to ensure that membership reflects the diversity within the relevant research communities.

If you wish to nominate yourself or a colleague…

Nominations should be a maximum of 1 page in length and should set out the nominee’s area(s) of science expertise and current activity, career track record and committee/policy experience. Please ensure that the nominee is aware of and agrees to nomination.

Please send your nomination(s) to kim.burchell@stfc.ac.uk by 3rd January 2012 at the latest

For information the current panel membership (valid until 31.3.12) can be found at
http://www.stfc.ac.uk/About%20STFC/153.aspx

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/~tohban/wiki/index.php/RHESSI_Science_Nuggets

Two Ph.D. positions have become available within the Department of Arctic Geophysics at UNIS.

The two positions are:

Ph.D. in middle atmospheric physics

Ph.D.in auroral physics

Both positions are for 4 years duration.

The deadline for applications is 15th January 2012.

Details regarding both positions, including contact details for those requiring furthur information can be found at:

http://www.unis.no/30_ABOUT_UNIS/4020_Vacant_Positions/vacant_positions.htm

Details regarding UNIS can be found at:

http://www.unis.no/

Many thanks

Lisa Baddeley
————————————————————————————
Dr Lisa Baddeley
SPEAR Post-Doc
Dept. of Geophysics
The University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS)
P.O. Box 156
N-9171 Longyearbyen
Svalbard
Norway

e-mail: Lisa.Baddeley@unis.no

Two three-year appointments within the Geomagnetism group of the British Geological Survey,
based in Edinburgh, are now available.

These posts are concerned mainly with research into the internal magnetic field of the Earth, but
one has an external field (space science) aspect to it too. We’re keen to attract enthusiastic, self-
motivated research scientists, with an interest in both pure research and in real-world applications
of geomagnetism science.

Further details may be found at http://www.bgs.ac.uk/news/vacancies.html

Closing date for applications is 27th January 2012.

Post 1: Global Geomagnetic Field Modeller
The post holder will carry out research leading to improved scientific modelling and understanding
of global geomagnetic fields. They will apply the results of that research to improve the products
and services provided by BGS geomagnetism to the oil industry consortium that supports the BGS
Global Geomagnetic Model, the defence industry that supports the World Magnetic Model and
the academic community that uses global magnetic field models. In addition the successful
candidate will maintain and enhance the scientific reputation of BGS geomagnetism by publishing
scientific advances in geomagnetic field modelling and by developing and maintaining links with
other leading research groups in geomagnetism.

Post 2: Geomagnetic Field Researcher
The successful candidate will support BGS research and will investigate the application of potential
field methods to estimate local crustal magnetic field vector anomalies at depth from magnetic
total intensity surveys, in order to improve the magnetic directional referencing services BGS
provides to the oil industry. In addition the post holder will investigate methods to estimate the
time varying ionospheric and magnetospheric magnetic fields and to apply the results of that
research to improve the magnetic directional referencing services BGS provides to the oil industry.
The post holder will also improve the confidence in quoted uncertainties associated with model
estimates of the local crustal and time-varying external magnetic fields and contribute to
geomagnetism team response to oil industry customers.

Enquiries to Dr Alan Thomson (awpt@bgs.ac.uk)

Author: Eamon Scullion^*,†, Robert Erdélyi^*, Victor Fedun^* and Gerry Doyle^†,
^*University of Sheffield and ^†Armagh Observatory

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Introduction

Wave-driven phenomena are fundamental for the energetics and dynamics of the atmosphere of the Sun. Here we present our discovery of a hot, magnetised plasma ocean of mega-tsunamis in the lower solar atmosphere, which we name Transition Region Quakes (TRQs). The TR is a sharp transition in temperature and density between the relatively cool and dense lower solar chromosphere (2 x 10⁴ K) and the very hot upper corona (1-15 x 10⁶ K). The long-standing enigma of coronal heating may be addressed by firstly understanding the processes which power its lower base, i.e., the TR itself. To understand the wave processes of the solar atmosphere we used a combined approach of advanced numerical modeling and joint satellite observations involving more than one spacecraft simultaneously.

Observations

Jet-like spicules are the most abundant features in the lower solar atmosphere [1,3,7,8]. Wave-driven (so-called “type-I”) spicules are considered to be important in the processes which heat the TR [4,5,9]. Type-I spicules result from photospheric p-mode (acoustic wave) leakage along magnetic field rooted in the inter-network of convective cells at the solar surface [2]. It has been shown that spicular p- modes (with 5-min oscillations) contain sufficient wave power to travel, as transient plasma jets, through the temperature minimum in the chromosphere [5, 6] and puncture the TR. However, the impact of the spicular wave-train on the TR and subsequent wave energy dissipation has not been understood until now.

Figure 1: Co-aligned observations of the EIS region of interest, examining multiple layers of the solar atmosphere from the photosphere to the TR and the corona. A ring-like structure appears in He II 304 which propagates away from the location of the jet.

We observed a jet at the solar disk centre on 5th March 2007, appearing initially at 18:12 UT. The jet event is detected with EIS (40×512” slot) at lower TR temperatures (He II 256.32) and by STEREO/SECCHI (He II 304 ). Figure 1  reveals the plasma jet formation and projection (red arrow) at the TR in EIS and the response of the atmosphere at different heights above the surface. The EIS shows a ring of emission (solid white circles) at the TR which appears after the rise of the jet. The ring then propagates along the TR (dashed white contour) and away from the jet as a quake-like disturbance. Can we understand the origin of this ring wave via numerical simulations?

Numerical Simulations

The SAC (Sheffield Advanced Code) MHD simulation (Figure 2) shows the advancing solution of plasma velocity components (yellow iso-surface) in a model (Val IIIc) solar atmosphere. We highlight the p-mode propagation from the lower atmosphere through the solar chromosphere, TR (Z = 2,000 km) and into the corona. Spicular plasma jets which oscillate with 5 min periods are formed, and reach a height of ~8,000 km. Most importantly, we see circular wave structures at the TR which propagate away from the jet location i.e. TRQs.

TRQs form as a consequence of upward propelling spicular wave trains that repeatedly puncture and energise the TR. The TRQ is a circular magneto-acoustic surface gravity wave, fanning out radially from where the spicular plasma columns impinge on the TR. The wave is naturally guided by the density and temperature gradient of the TR. We compare the simulations of the TRQ directly with our observations (Figure 3). The TRQ has an amplitude of 500 km.

Figure 3: Comparing the observed TRQ wave formation (top row) with the simulated TRQ (bottom row). In the bottom left the evolution of the simulated data cross-cuts (markers 1 to 3) match directly with the observed wave propagation (top right) in time between markers 1 and 3 of wave damping and velocity.

The consequences of wave energy damping in the form of mega-tsunamis is significant when one considers the energy balance of the TR. Radiative energy losses at the TR (~ 190 W/m² ) in the solar atmosphere could be replenished by the wave energy transfer from below, along with emission via explosive events. The maximum TRQ velocity amplitude in V_x (bottom left Fig. 9) is 1.12 km/s. The simulated TRQ amplification and propagation is described through the data cross-cuts (Figure 3) in V_x. With a propagation velocity of 12 km/s the wave energy dumping in a mega tsunami event is 1.2 W/m². This contribution is relatively small compared with the total radiative losses, however, radiative damping is not included here or the interaction of these waves at the TR which may result a larger energy transfer.

Figure 4: Cartoon of TRQ depicting the physical mechanism leading to formation of a mega tsunami at the TR.

Conclusions

Our discovery of spicule-generated transition region quakes enables us to quantify for the first time [10] the extent of wave energy transfer into the outer atmosphere of the Sun. The properties of the observed wave propagation and the simulated structures are in very good agreement.

The TRQ model presented here (Figure 4) helps us understand how the energy budget of the global TR can be maintained and partially replenished by acoustic wave transmission from the chromosphere, and we believe it is the first model of its type. The TR could be envisaged as a hot, billowing and magnetised plasma ocean of mega-tsunami interactions.

References

• [1] Axford W.I. & McKenzie J.F., 1992, “Solar Wind Seven”
• [2] De Pontieu, Erdélyi & James, 2004, Nature, v. 430
• [3] Doyle J.G. et al., 1998, Sol. Phys., v. 181, pp. 51-71
• [4] Erdélyi R. et al. 2007, A&A, v. 467, pp.1299-1311
• [5] James & Erdélyi, 2002, A&A, v. 393, pp.L11-L14
• [6] Malins & Erdélyi, 2007, Sol. Phys, v. 246, pp.41
• [7] McIntosh S.W. et al., 2006, ApJ, v. 644, pp. L87
• [8] Sterling A., 2000. Sol. Phys. v. 196, pp. 79-111
• [9] Fedun V., Shelyag S., Erdélyi R., A&A, 2008
• [10] Scullion E. et al., 2011, ApJ, v. 743

Well done David !

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/~tohban/wiki/index.php/Slowly_but_surely_towards_the_huge_amount_of_energy_II

The Fellowship is for a period of two years with a possibility of extension for one more year. Candidates
should be ordinarily below the age of 32 years. The monthly stipend is Rs. 50,000/- to Rs. 55,000/- for
candidates with up to 2 years post-doctoral experience and Rs.55,000/- to 60,000/- for those with more
than 2 years experience. Chandrashekhar Fellows would be entitled to an annual contingency grant of
Rs.200,000/-, as well as to housing, medical and other benefits in accordance with the rules of the
institute. Travel support by economy air fare will be available at the time of taking up the assignment.
Chandrasekhar Fellows may choose their own research topics or collaborate with groups or individuals in the Institute.

Application may be submitted any time of the year by e-mail to: pdf_chandra@iiap.res.in along with a curriculum vitae, list of publications, research proposal and names and addresses of five referees. Processing of the applications takes about three months.

For further details about the Chandrasekhar Fellowships please visit:
http://www.iiap.res.in/postdoc.htm
Details on IIA’s research programs and facilities can be found at http://www.iiap.res.in.

http://www.iiap.res.in/postdoc.htm

£13,260 maintenance per annum (tax free)
Funded by EPSRC, Culham Centre for Fusion Energy

Coventry University invites applications for a 3.5-year PhD Industrial CASE studentship in Fluid Dynamics. The studentship is co-funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (http://www.ccfe.ac.uk/) . The work, to be performed in collaboration with Culham and with Ilmenau University of Technology (Germany, http://www.tu-ilmenau.de/tfd/ ), involves Direct Numerical Simulation of turbulent flow in rectangular ducts with reference to liquid metal blankets for fusion reactors.
Candidates must be EU nationals holding a BSc degree in Mathematics, Physics or a related discipline. Exceptional candidates from outside of the EU are also encouraged to apply.
Provisional starting date is 23rd January 2012.
For an informal discussion please contact Prof Sergei Molokov at s.molokov@coventry.ac.uk (http://nestor2.coventry.ac.uk/research/appmath/staff/molokov.php)
To view details of the Studentship, please visit the link: http://www.coventry.ac.uk/researchnet/d/795
For an application form please visit the link: http://www.coventry.ac.uk/researchnet/studentships/a/5763

Complete the application form and return with a covering letter to:
Admission team
Graduate Centre
Jaguar Building
Coventry University
Priory Street
COVENTRY
CV1 5FB
United Kingdom
Fax: +44 (0)24 7688 8609
Email: research-apps.pg@coventry.ac.uk

The deadline for receipt of applications is 9th December, 2011

http://www.stfc.ac.uk/roadmap/

The STFC Science Roadmap sets out the current STFC science programme, together with future opportunities for investment, and shows how they address a range of science challenges.

It sets out the current projects which we support in the particle physics, nuclear physics and astronomy programme, together with future opportunities for investment, and shows how they address each of four big questions and 19 specific challenges. The inter-linked nature of these questions requires a broad array of experiments and shows that particle physics, nuclear physics and astronomy are now so closely connected that, while they represent different techniques and approaches, they are addressing the same fundamental questions.

Work is currently continuing on the development of the physical and life sciences aspects of the STFC Science Roadmap and these will be published in due course.

The Science Roadmap is intended to be a dynamic document. We welcome any corrections or feedback you may have.

Victoria Wright
Head of Science Strategy

We would like to announce the release of version 7.0 of the CHIANTI
database for astrophysical spectroscopy. With Version 7.0, CHIANTI
now includes data for several new ions as well as significant updates to
many ions, including several key Fe species routinely observed by
Hinode/EIS and SDO. Also, a completely new implementation of the
CHIANTI software in the Python programming language has been
developed and is freely available on the web (ChiantiPy). IDL
software updates have been performed to ensure compatibility
with IDL 8.

If you use CHIANTI through SolarSoft that is automatically mirrored,
the update will occur automatically within the next few days. Otherwise,
you will need to manually update your the SolarSoft directories.

If you use CHIANTI through the stand-alone tar file, we recommend that
you download and install the new tar file in your CHIANTI directories.
The new tar file can be found at our new web site location:

http://www.chiantidatabase.org/ – note the new url!

The ChiantiPy software suite can be found at

http://sourceforge.net/projects/chiantipy/

If you have any questions, problems, suggestions regarding CHIANTI,
we are always glad to hear from you by sending email to

chianti_help@halcyon.nrl.navy.mil

Best regards,

The CHIANTI Team

http://www.chiantidatabase.org/

The Media course introduces scientists to the world of the mass media, press releases, how to be interviewed etc. The next course date is 21 March 2012 in London

The Communications course includes how to write clearly without using jargon, structure a talk, use visual aids effectively, how to chair conferences, and how to run question and answer sessions. The next course date is 16 March 2012 in London.

Two-day residential Media and Communications training courses are also available and are held at the Kavli Royal Society International Centre in Buckinghamshire. The next dates are 14/15 February 2012.

STFC offers bursaries to pay the course fees and T&S costs for eligible researchers. The courses are run for us by the Royal Society. To book a place visit the Royal Society website

Once you have a place, go to the STFC website to apply for an STFC bursary.

The STFC contact for more information is Jane.Butt@stfc.ac.uk Tel 01793 442030

A PhD project opportunity, starting October 2012 (for 3.5 years), is available for research on ‘Multi-spacecraft investigations of solar and heliospheric plasmas’. The project is supervised by Dr. Claire Foullon, in the Centre for Fusion, Space and Astrophysics (CFSA), Physics Department, at the University of Warwick, UK ().
Expressions of interest should be received no later than January 16 2012. Interested candidates should then apply concertedly with the supervisor for a prestigious Warwick Chancellor’s Scholarship, which is open for competition to UK, EU and Overseas students. For further details and how to apply please follow the link .

http://warwick.ac.uk/go/foullon/postgraduate

=================================================================
Closing Date: Sunday 04 December 2011
Interview Date: Wednesday 21 December 2011
Reference: A321

Applications are invited for a short-term position which has arisen in
the Space Plasma Environment and Radio Science (SPEARS) group at
Lancaster University. The post is fully funded by the UK STFC (Science
and Technology Funding Council) for a period of 10 months.

ACCELERATION AND LOSS PROCESSES AT RELATIVISTIC ENERGIES – Measured
fluxes in the Earth’s radiation belts fluctuate rapidly over many orders
of magnitude. Although the radiation belt response is known to be
correlated with solar wind parameters, the complex interplay between the
various source and loss processes within the belts is not understood in
detail.

You will work on study of the Earth’s radiation belts, source and loss
processes within the belts, and the underlying physical mechanisms
responsible. In particular, it is envisaged that the project will
address if and how relativistic radiation belt particles may be
precipitated into the upper atmosphere, and possible subsequent effects.

You should hold (or shortly expect to be awarded) a Ph.D. in a relevant
field. Previous experience in the above areas will be an advantage.
Salary will be pro-rata within the range £25101-£29099 per year
depending on previous experience.

Lancaster University is an equal opportunity employer. You may find some
helpful information on local amenities here:
http://www.lancs.ac.uk/depts/physics/jobs/amenities/.

Please contact Mick Denton (m.denton@lancaster.ac.uk: +44 (0)1524
510544) for further details.

=================================================================

Further details can be found at the link below:

http://hr-jobs.lancs.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx?ref=A321

Regards,

Mick