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Likelihood of space super-storms estimated from 150 years of historical magnetic field observations

A ‘great’ space weather super-storm large enough to cause significant disruption to our electronic and networked systems occurred on average once in every 25 years.This result was made possible by a new way of analysing historical data from the last 14 solar cycles, long before high quality observations became available in the space age since 1957. The analysis shows that ‘severe’ magnetic storms occurred in 42 out of the last 150 years, and ‘great’ super-storms occurred in 6 years out of 150. Super-storms can cause power blackouts, take out satellites, disrupt aviation and cause temporary loss of GPS signals and radio communications.

Chapman, Horne, Watkins, Using the aa index over the last 14 solar cycles to characterize extreme geomagnetic activity is published in Geophysical Research Letters

Thu 30 Jan 2020, 00:46 | Tags: Press, Research

Dave Armstrong appears on "The Sky at Night"

On 8 September, David Armstrong of the Astronomy and Astrophysics group appeared on the iconic BBC astronomy show "The Sky at Night" to discuss the hunt for exoplanets with host Maggie Aderin-Pocock.

The episode is available on BBC iPlayer until 12 October.


First-ever visualisations of electrical gating effects on electronic structure could lead to longer-lasting devices

A team including Neil Wilson and Nick Hine has visualised the electronic structure in a microelectronic device for the first time, opening up opportunities for finely-tuned high-performance electronic devices.

Physicists from the University of Warwick and the University of Washington have developed a technique to measure the energy and momentum of electrons in operating microelectronic devices made of atomically thin, so-called two-dimensional, materials.

Using this information, they can create visual representations of the electrical and optical properties of the materials to guide engineers in maximising their potential in electronic components.

The experimentally-led study is published in Nature and could also help pave the way for the two-dimensional semiconductors that are likely to play a role in the next generation of electronics, in applications such as photovoltaics, mobile devices and quantum computers.

Thu 18 Jul 2019, 09:28 | Tags: Press, Research

Steve Hindmarsh wins Papin Prize

Steve Hindmarsh, of the Electron Microscopy RTP, was awarded a prestigious Papin Prize at the HETS (Higher Education Technicians Summit) conference in Birmingham on 25 June.

Steve was given the award for technical excellence in supporting a Core Research Facility – The Electron Microscopy Research Technology Platform.

The award was presented at HETS 2019, which aims to share best practice amongst higher education technical staff in UK, Ireland and beyond, and is the largest event of its kind in the country, with over 700 technicians attending.

Wed 26 Jun 2019, 14:28 | Tags: Feature News, Press

Phil Woodruff awarded IUVSTA Prize for Science

Professor Phil Woodruff has been awarded the IUVSTA Prize for Science 2019.

The prize was awarded for "outstanding contributions to deepening our understanding of the structure of surface through the development and application of broadly applicable tools now widely available to the surface science community".

The IUVSTA Prize for Science is given every three years to recognize and encourage outstanding internationally acclaimed experimental and/or theoretical research in the fields of interest to the International Union for Vacuum Science, Technique and Applications (IUVSTA). The prize will be presented at their flagship conference, the International Vacuum Congress (IVC-21) in Malmö, Sweden July 1-5, 2019, where Phil will give a plenary lecture.

Thu 11 Apr 2019, 13:42 | Tags: Feature News, Press

Heavy metal planet fragment survives destruction from dead star

A fragment of a planet that has survived the death of its star has been discovered by astronomers in a disc of debris formed from destroyed planets, which the star ultimately consumes.

The discovery, reported in the journal Science, is the first time that scientists have used spectroscopy to discover a solid body in orbit around a white dwarf, using subtle variations in the emitted light to identify additional gas that the planetesimal is generating.

Mon 08 Apr 2019, 13:38 | Tags: Feature News, Press

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