Research

My research spans planetary environments both near and far — from Earth to Jupiter’s moon Europa — with a focus on AI-driven models to better understand plasma dynamics, behaviour, and structure.

Active Projects

Modelling Magnetosphere-Ionosphere Coupling

• Earth’s ionosphere is directly coupled to the Sun and solar wind via the magnetosphere as a result of space weather
• We capture these effects with magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) models, ground based measurements, and satellites
• This project uses AI to enhance the capabilities of these models and observations
• Conducted at the National Institute of Polar Research (国立極地研究所), Japan

Former Projects

Predicting Vertical Plasma Drift with a Neural Network

• Vertical plasma drift is responsible for transporting particles and energy from one region of Earth’s ionosphere to another, changing its state, characteristics, and behavior
• We developed VIPER (Vertical drIfts: Predicting Equatorial ionospheRic dynamics), the first model to predict this drift globally and at daily resolution
• VIPER is a machine learning model trained on freely available total electron content (TEC) data
• Published in: Earth and Space Science

Explainable Predictions of Equatorial Plasma Bubbles

• Equatorial plasma bubbles (EPBs) disrupt GPS signals, affecting critical systems worldwide
• We developed APE (AI Predictions of EPBs), a model that accurately predicts the probability of an EPB detected by the Swarm satellites
• APE uses machine learning and cooperative game theory techiniques to reveal new insights into EPBs
• Published in: JGR: Space Physics

Modelling Surface-Plasma Interactions at Europa

• Europa has been identified as a potential host for life and will be explored by the Europa Clipper and JUICE missions in the 2030s
• We simulated the electric potentials on Europa’s icy surface resulting from its interaction with Jupiter’s magnetospheric plasma and instrinsic ionosphere
• We discussed the implications for upcoming missions and the need for additional laboratory studies
• Published in: Astrophysical Journal: Letters

Measuring Low Energy Ions

• Low-energy plasma ions are key constituents of the ionosphere, but in-situ measurements are very limited below 400 km
• We developed a novel technique using a CubeSat-based spectrometer developed by UCL
• This was the first successful in-situ measurement of plasma moments using a CubeSat based spectrometer
• Published in: CEAS Space Journal

Detecting Earthquake Damage From Space

• Earthquake-induced building damage can result in significant human and economic loss
• We used airborne LiDAR and satellite-based radar to detect and analyse structural damage post-event
• Please contact me if you would like to learn more about this project