The Solar Physics group at Northumbria University is advertising a fully-funded PhD studentship on “The evolution of solar active regions and its relation to flaring activity”.

Deadline for applications: 20 January 2017
Studentship start date: 2 October 2017

Project Description

Active regions are portions of the solar atmosphere that are threaded by strong magnetic fields, with sunspots being their visible imprint on the solar surface. These regions are the primary sources of solar activity in the form of flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs), both of which contribute to adverse space weather – conditions in the near-Earth space environment that pose a risk to technology and human life.

The energy that powers these forms of solar activity comes from magnetic energy that is stored in the complex and twisted magnetic fields within active regions. Although it is understood that the injection of free magnetic energy into active regions is facilitated through magnetic flux emergence and shearing surface motions, the precise conditions that are required to facilitate energy release and the processes that are involved during energy release remain under debate.

This PhD project will investigate the magnetic structure of active regions, in particular the evolution of magnetic field prior to and over the course of solar flares. The student will be expected to analyze solar magnetic field observations obtained from space-based satellite instrumentation, and potentially from state-of-the-art international ground-based solar telescopes. The aim of this research is to explore the structure and evolution of solar active regions to gain greater understanding of how flares are produced.

The student should have a degree in either Astrophysics, Physics or Mathematics. Experience with coding in a scientific programming language (e.g., IDL, Python, C, etc…) will be looked upon favourably.

Enquiries regarding this studentship should be made to: Dr Shaun Bloomfield
shaun.bloomfield@northumbria.ac.uk.

Eligibility and How to Apply

Please note eligibility requirements:
•  Academic excellence of the proposed student i.e. 2:1 (or equivalent GPA from non-UK universities [preference for 1st class honours]); or a Masters (preference for Merit or above); or APEL evidence of substantial practitioner achievement.
•  Appropriate IELTS score, if required.

This position is open to both home/EU and non-EU/international applicants.

For further details of how to apply, entry requirements and the application form, see
https://www.findaphd.com/search/ProjectDetails.aspx?PJID=81663&LID=2712
and
https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/research/postgraduate-research-degrees/how-to-apply/

https://www.findaphd.com/search/ProjectDetails.aspx?PJID=81663&LID=2712