PHYSICS AND ENGINEERING PHYSICS

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PHYSICS AND ENGINEERING PHYSICS
Research in space physics from the ISAS
perspective J-P St-Maurice For the PEP retreat
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The Grand Themes

• Polar and sub-polar geospace
• Regions are magnetosphere, ionosphere,
  thermosphere
• Physical mechanisms that couple to it and affect
  it
• What we strive to understand
• Losses, sources, propagation and transport of
  energy and mass
• Physical causes of structure, energization and
  dynamics
• The consequences to humanity

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The Earths Magnetosphere
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The tools we utilize

• Radars
• Our own SuperDARN radars plus other coherent
  radars
• AMISR and other IS radars
• Digital ionosondes
• Other ground based
• CGSM magnetometers, dynamic optical images,
  riometers
• Satellites
• Upcoming e-POP, THEMIS, ORBITALS, KUAFU
• Workhorses geostationary, WIND, ACE
• Theory, including access to large modeling
  facility in Edmonton.

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Examples of problems we currently work on

• Turbulence
• Generation/evolution of electrostatic
  irregularities
• Effect on radio wave propagation
• Other electrodynamical structures
• Generation and propagation of atmospheric gravity
  waves
• Ion velocity distributions under a variety of
  initial conditions and electric field
  configurations
• Large scale convection and currents
• In response to changes in solar wind IMF
• In association with flux transfer events
• Storms (ring currents) and substorms
  (reconnection)
• Under quasi-static driven conditions
• After prolonged periods of quiet conditions
• In and around the auroral regions, all the way to
  the equator
• Instrument development
• FMCW radar
• Ionospheric ionosondes and radars from space

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Ideas for department renewal (based on recent UWO
experience)

• Form an outreach committee that would
• Establish workshop with science teachers in high
  schools
• Organize 1 or 2 physics days on Saturdays for
  HS students (both French and English)
• Establish a visiting program to schools
• Work hand in hand with organisations like lets
  talk science
• Have a web page of interest for potential
  students, to cover career opportunities, physics
  puzzles, interesting slides on stuff we do
• Think of opportunities like a medical school to
  get going into a medical physics program. Would
  include getting faculty members, possibly through
  chairs