Web series: Grand Spectrum

Katia Pinheiro, from IAGA, won the IAGA Grant for her project "A magnetic journey: from core to space" awarded in the year 2023.

The project features experienced scientists addressing the Geomagnetic Grand Spectrum and discussing about the time variations of the geomagnetic field. This will be presented as a web series and may interest the general public and students in Earth Sciences. 

In a second part of this project, we have interviews with Early-Career Scientists (ECS) during the 6th IAGA Summer School in Niemegk about themselves and their science. We hope these short movies will encourage young students to start careers in geosciences. 

You can now watch the first part of this project: the Grand Spectrum web series on the IAGA YouTube channel with videos being uploaded every week. This will be followed by the second part in the new year. Keep a look out at our social media channel to know when we upload new videos and subscribe to our YouTube for more. And don't forget to share!

IAGA 2025 Abstract Submission Open

The International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) will have a joint conference with the International Association of Seismology and Physics of the Earth's Interior (IASPEI) next year from 31st August to 5th September in Lisbon, Portugal. It will be preceded by a week long summer school organised by the two associations for early career researchers in their respective fields. 

The call for abstracts is now open until 12th March 2025 while the registration opens in January 2025. More details about abstract submission, registration and the conference can be found on the website. The abstract notification will be sent out by 17th April 2025. Abstract title and text are limited to 20 and 250 words respectively.

All information, new and old will be regularly posted on our blog page including many outreach sessions planned. Stay tuned for more info to start preparing for the upcoming conference! You can see the list of blogs related to the assembly by visiting this webpage.

IAGA YouTube

We are here to remind you that IAGA YouTube has a lot of exciting and interesting videos created for the general public, elementary school kids and early career researchers in various aspects of earth sciences as well as planetary and space sciences. Have a look!

Some series that would be of interest are-

1) Magnetic Mosaic: This documentary is not on IAGA official channel but on one of our creator's channel. It talks about the magnetic field of the earth and was one of the finalists in the UNESCO Earth's Future Festival.

2) Geoscience Connections: This documentary is an animated movie along with interviews of various early career researchers talking about everything about the earth- from its formation to its future. The project of the same name also consists of a small animated movie called 'Earth-Human Connections' that uses analogy between the earth and humans to explain about their connection. Finally, it has over 15 scientists talking about themselves and their science in short video formats. Don't forget to check out your favourite videos from the playlist here.

3) Bimbim's Team: Next, we have short animated videos about the Solar System, Earth and Mars in three languages- English, French and Portuguese- for kids. The protagonist is Bimbim, a jolly dog who wants to throw a space themed birthday party!

4) Summer School: There are handy lecture videos from the last IAGA summer school in Berlin 2023 where different science aspects of IAGA was covered by experts. The participants were phd and postdocs who received an understanding of the concepts of geomagnetism and hands on experience in dealing with the data.

5) Finally, we have many more exciting outreach science videos coming up in the following weeks in the form of documentaries, web series and short videos. Don't forget to check them out as well!

Exploration of the Jovian system #2

There are two icy moon missions of this decade that will reach their respective bodies of interest beginning of next decade- JUpiter ICy moons Explorer (JUICE) and Europa Clipper. The main focus of JUICE is Ganymede and for Clipper is Europa. Both these planetary bodies are moons of our Solar System's largest planet Jupiter. Scientists are particularly interested in the Jovian moons because these bodies contain large oceans under their surface making them a suitable place to study for potential habitability. They are called 'icy moons' because their surface is made up of ice! If you are interested to learn more about these moons, head to our previous blogs about them!

While JUICE launched on April 14th 2023, Clipper is all set to launch this month! If you are a space enthusiast and are interested in watching the launch: in person- head to Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA, or online: head to NASA's website. The launch window starts within a week on October 10th and goes up till the end of the month. It will take Clipper five and a half years to reach Jupiter in 2030.

Image Credit: NASA

STFC Introductory Course

The STFC (Science and Technology Facilities Council) Introductory Course in Solar and Solar-Terrestrial Physics was held at the University of Sheffield, UK from September 2nd to 6th, 2023. This annual course, organised by the UK Solar Physics and MIST (Magnetospheric, Ionospheric, and Solar-Terrestrial) Councils, and approved by the Heads of UK Solar Groups and MIST since 2015, continues to play a crucial role in training early career UK solar system physicists. While most of this year’s participants were from the UK, we were pleased to welcome students from Hungary, Germany, France, India, China, and South Korea, adding a truly international dimension to the event.

This summer school is specifically designed for PhD students who are new to the field, with the aim of helping them upgrade, consolidate, and broaden their knowledge. The program covered a wide range of essential topics in Sun-Earth connections. After each lecture, there was a longer break with coffee and biscuits, providing students an opportunity to engage with the lecturers in a more informal and relaxed environment. Alongside these subject-specific lectures, students also benefited from sessions focusing on career development and public engagement.

A highlight of the course was the careers panel, featuring professionals from diverse backgrounds and at various stages of their careers. The panel included individuals who followed a straight academic path from their Master’s degrees to becoming professors, as well as those who took time away from academia before returning to pursue a PhD and continuing in research. Each panel member shared their unique career journey, offering students different perspectives on navigating both academic and non-academic careers. After sharing their stories, the panel opened the floor for questions, leading to a lively and insightful discussion. Students asked the panelists what they might have done differently, and what advice they would offer to those just starting out. The candid responses provided practical guidance and encouragement, helping students think more clearly about their own career paths and future challenges.

The public engagement talk was equally inspiring, as the speaker shared her extensive experience in conducting outreach activities across the globe. Her insights showed the importance of public engagement and demonstrated how impactful outreach can be for both scientists and the broader community.

- Marianna B. Korsos, Leverhulme Early Career Fellow, University of Sheffield

Project #askIAGA

With this project, we would like to enhance public understanding of the science covered by IAGA and to engage with the community. Social media channels provide an ideal platform for interacting with teenagers and adults worldwide. The project #askIAGA will not only distribute content tailored for the general public but also create a two-way communication channel that will allow better connections between scientists and community. The use of simple language and graphics will help convey key scientific concepts more clearly to the public.

IAGA consists of six divisions, covering topics from the Earth’s core, mantle and crust to the atmosphere, ionosphere, magnetosphere, and solar wind. We plan to produce six posts tackling selected questions representative of each division. The posts can be in the form of graphical material, panels, comic strips and mini animations. They will be released through IAGA’s outreach channels. Additionally, the posts will call for the public to submit further questions using the #askIAGA. The most interesting and intriguing questions suggested by the public will be transformed into subsequent posts. This will foster interaction between the public and IAGA, engaging citizens and allowing them to contribute to scientific questions that deserve answers or might inspire new research topics.

IAGA Outreach awardee for 2024 comprising of the team:

Sanja Panovska, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences Potsdam.

Sabrina Sanchez, freelance illustrator residing in France with previous experience in research.

IUGG Support: Call for Proposals

The International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG), of which the International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) is a member, is offering sponsorship for symposia to be organised in 2025. One of the main aims of IUGG is to promote geophysics through international collaborations and an important role is played by scientific meetings in achieving this.

IUGG funds can be used to provide support to students and early career researchers as well as increase representation in meetings from underdeveloped countries. About 10-15 meetings (up to USD 10,000 each) can be supported through this call for symposia proposals.

The meeting organisers should contact their respective Secretary Generals (for IAGA, visit this page to know the Executive body members) before mid October. The Secretary Generals of each association would then submit their recommendations to the IUGG Secretary General by 31 October 2024. The IUGG bureau will make the final selections by December. 

Don't hesitate to get in contact with the IAGA Executive Committee to know more about the call and visit this webpage for more information.