Spring MIST 2023

The highly anticipated Spring MIST 2023 meeting took place at the University of Birmingham from 3-5 April 2023.

The Magnetosphere, Ionosphere, and Solar-Terrestrial (MIST) community’s biennial “Spring MIST” had been eagerly anticipated this year since, due to the pandemic, the last fully in-person conference was in 2018. This year's event, as ever, brought together students, early career scientists and experts across the MIST fields of science, a truly enriching experience for all attendees.

Over the course of the three-day conference, a total of 46 oral presentations were given, shedding light on all aspects of MIST science. The event saw a diverse mix of presentations from both established leaders in the field and those giving the first talks of their careers, creating an environment of knowledge exchange and growth. Additionally, 40 posters were presented, allowing for in-depth discussions and networking opportunities among the participants. The conference banquet was held at the stunning Birmingham Botanical Gardens, providing a perfect setting for attendees to unwind and connect with their peers. Surrounded by lush greenery and beautiful glasshouses, the banquet was a memorable highlight of the event.

The conference was an incredible success, with participants lauding the extremely high quality of presentations. The event not only facilitated the sharing of cutting-edge research but also fostered a sense of community and collaboration. After the long hiatus due to the pandemic, this year's Spring MIST gathering left everyone feeling reinvigorated and inspired.

With the success of Spring MIST 2023, the MIST community is already looking forward to the next meeting with great anticipation, at the University of Leicester in 2025.

by Sean Elvidge (associate professor in the University of Birmingham).

IAGA Workshop

The 19th IAGA Workshop on Geomagnetic Observatory Instruments, Data Acquisition and Processing will take place between 22nd and 26th May in Hungary. It will take place in two parts-

May 22nd - May 23rd 2023: Instrumentation and Observation

This will include measurement and calibration sessions and will be held at the Tihany Geophysical Observatory.

May 24th - May 26th 2023: New measurement techniques and results

This includes new techniques for measurements, improved instrumentation and results as well as data processing. The conference will take place at the Institute of Earth Physics and Space Science, Sopron.

All transportation between the two events will be covered. Before the workshop at Tihany, a short summer school for young technicians and scientists will take place between May 21st and 23rd. For more information on any of the events, please visit the official website here.

Magnetics Information Consortium (MagIC) Workshop

The Magnetic Information Consortium (MagIC) is a data repository designed to promote information technology infrastructures for the international paleomagnetic, geomagnetic and rock magnetic community. This database is a powerful tool which facilitates magnetic data analysis and sharing. The MagIC Workshop happened from February 28th to March 2nd in La Jolla, CA, and brought together around 60 participants from all over the world to discuss the magnetic field evolution, environmental changes, and paleogeography. The workshop included two days of talks, poster presentations and discussions, and a third day of group working sessions to introduce the uploading and downloading data from the MagIC database and learning how to make contributions from paleomagnetic measurements.

The workshop started with invited speakers who covered a wide range of topics from planetary processes to surface environments, such as the discoveries on the lunar paleomagnetic records, the influence of mantle dynamics on the generation of Earth’s magnetic field, and magnetic records that archive climate and environmental changes. On the second day, there was an introduction on the use of MagIC as a resource for the community, followed by talks focused on paleogeography, in which topics such as constructing Apparent Polar Wonder Paths from Virtual Geographic Poles were presented. The first two days were wrapped up with posters presentations, of which I particularly enjoyed the most. As the workshop was small, it was possible to interact with many different researchers and to gain feedback on my work from renowned people in the field. I was also very impressed on the high-level of the discussions that followed each talk.

The last day of workshop offered a great opportunity to get immersed in the MagIC repository, learn how to upload your own data and how to perform data analysis using PmagGui and PmagPy. Besides all the learning and science exchange, there was a lot of space for networking and interacting with other young and senior scientists during the early-career lunches, coffee break hours and group working sessions. The workshop exceeded my expectations and I’m looking forward to participating on the next edition!

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Natália Gauer Pasqualon is a PhD candidate at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and at Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, working with many different aspects of hotspot volcanoes. One of her projects involves the acquisition of paleomagnetic data and 40Ar/39Ar ages for Trindade Island, in the South Atlantic Ocean. The findings of her work may contribute to the understanding of the geomagnetic field during the past 3 million years and reveal important aspects of the South Atlantic Magnetic Anomaly.