Hello Delphine! Thank you for agreeing to have this GeoTalk interview. Could you briefly introduce yourself and your background? Hello, and thank you for having me! My name is Delphine Urbah, and I am a French professional working at the intersection of space, policy, ethics, and the human dimensions of space exploration. I currently work as a project manager for the Académie Spatiale Île-de-Franc ...[Read More]
In a couple of days, on 22 February, we will mark a major milestone in space history: 40 years since the launch of the first Swedish Viking satellite, when an Ariane rocket from Kourou in French-occupied Guiana launched on 22 February 1986! While the general public might hear the word Viking and picture longboats, heavy axes, and a level of beard maintenance that borders on the professional, space ...[Read More]
Humankind’s development is often associated with facing challenges. The original ideas required to solve new problems keep pushing the power of human creation towards more sophisticated and practical solutions. However, part of the excitement of any challenge comes from the dangers of trying something that nobody has accomplished before. An example of technological advances driven by human a ...[Read More]
January 19th marked the 175th birthday of Dutch astronomer Jacobus Kapteyn. His work and legacy had a profound yet subtle impact on the astronomical community and our understanding of the cosmos. His lasting contributions and methodologies continue to be refined and provide the foundation for ongoing astronomical research and discoveries. After he completed his studies, Kapteyn worked at Leiden Ob ...[Read More]
And what if we could prevent a catastrophe as old as the dinosaurs?… As Hera’s mission launched last month, this blog post aims to give you insights into this mission and why it matters. Continue reading and find out! One of humans’ biggest rebellious acts against insignificance is staring at the sky and wondering what else is out there, then thinking “We can definitely fin ...[Read More]
Hi Martin. Thank you for joining me for this interview! To start, could you please tell our readers a bit about yourself and your research interests? I’m a space plasma physicist at Imperial College London, studying how the interaction between the solar wind and our magnetosphere leads to a huge amount of dynamics and waves that play a role in space weather. I’m also the Chair of EGU’s Outreach Co ...[Read More]
Hello Josh, thankyou for talking with us! Before we take off, could you tell us a little about yourself and your research? Hi Simon, thanks for inviting me! I’m a PhD student at the Swedish Institute of Space Physics (IRF) and Uppsala University, just started my third year. My research is focused on Saturn’s ionosphere (the region of the upper atmosphere with a significant amount of ch ...[Read More]
Establishing a human presence on Mars is increasingly seen by space agencies and private organizations as the horizon frontier in human space exploration. These long-duration missions however, impose a high degree of technological, operational, physical and psychological challenges. Mars analog habitats, such as the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) in Utah (U.S.) are established to conduct fiel ...[Read More]
Science and innovation are a central priority for the European Union with the current research framework, Horizon 2020, allocating almost €80 billion to research and innovation over seven years, until 2021. It appears that policymakers are currently happy with this investment as they are looking to increase research and innovation spending to at least €100 billion in the next research funding fram ...[Read More]
Drawing inspiration from popular stories on our social media channels, major geoscience headlines, as well as unique and quirky research, this monthly column aims to bring you the latest Earth and planetary science news from around the web. Major stories This month has been a whirlwind of Earth and space science news; the majority focusing on natural hazards. Powerful cyclones, earthquakes, and ts ...[Read More]