MIST

Magnetosphere, Ionosphere and Solar-Terrestrial

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2026 MIST Council Election Results

It is our pleasure to announce the results of the latest MIST Council Election.

  • Samuel Wharton (University of Leicester) is elected for a 3 year term as a MIST Councillor
  • Jewel Abbey Relampagos (Lancaster University) is elected for a 1 year term as the MIST Student Representative

In addition, due to concerns from the community regarding the ongoing UKRI/STFC funding situation, MIST Council have also decided to charter Mark Lester (University of Leicester) as an additional councillor to inform and steer the council in matters related to this specific brief, as set out in Article 4.5 of the MIST Charter.

We would like to congratulate everyone on their new roles. The full composition of Council can be found on the MIST website (https://www.mist.ac.uk/community/mist-council). We would like to thank all the candidates for putting themselves forward and everyone who took part in the voting. We received votes from 132 people which represents a turnout of 21.5% of people registered to receive the MIST emailing list.

Finally, MIST Council would like to extend their thanks and gratitude to our outgoing members: Fiona Ball and Georgios Nicolaou. We would also like to say a special thank you to Andy Smith who was co-opted to be on MIST council while Rosie Johnson was on maternity leave, thank you for all of your hard work.

Open Letter Ready For Signatories

Protect MIST Science! Sign the MIST Community Open Letter on the STFC funding cuts!

https://sites.google.com/view/uk-mist-community-open-letter

 

Statement from MIST Council regarding the STFC Funding Situation

Statement from MIST Council regarding the STFC Funding Situation

MIST Council is deeply concerned by the ongoing STFC funding uncertainty and its impact on our community and beyond.

The current combination of prospective delayed and reduced funding, together with already volatile financial situations at universities across the UK, is placing significant strain on research groups. In some cases, institutions may be unable to support researchers through gaps between projects, increasing precarity across the community and adding significant pressure on early-career researchers.

We are concerned that continued uncertainty risks accelerating a brain drain from the UK, as skilled researchers reconsider their future in a system offering limited stability. The loss of expertise at any career stage would have lasting consequences for UK space science.

 

What is going on?

For those that are unaware of the situation, it is complex and evolving. We suggest the following sources to get up to speed on the current developments.

https://www.sciencecampaign.org.uk/analysis-and-publications/detail/what-is-happening-with-ukri-funding-and-the-stfc-cuts/

https://ras.ac.uk/news-and-press/news/proposed-budget-cuts-catastrophe-uk-astronomy

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2514481-physicists-warn-of-catastrophic-impact-from-uk-science-cuts/

 

What are we doing about it?

Behind the scenes, MIST Council is actively engaging with relevant parties to understand the scale of the challenge and to identify constructive ways forward.

  • We are seeking seasoned members of the community to join MIST Council on a task force to help develop options and represent the needs of our community. If you would like to be involved, please reach out to us via the MIST Council email (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) by the end of this week (13th February 2026).
  • In addition to the task force, we want to provide an open forum for discussion and collective input among all members of the wider MIST community. We are exploring options and will be in touch as soon as possible with further details.
  • We believe in working together in the face of the current challenges and we are collaborating with UKSP and others to strive for a fair and positive outcome for all. We are reaching out to members of the SSAP (Solar System Advisory Panel) to explore the hosting of a community town hall meeting, like the one already being organised by the AAP (Astronomy Advisory Panel), to provide an open forum for discussion and collective input.

 

What can you do to help?

There are several open letters representing people in various career stages that have been made available to sign. We encourage you to read the relevant letter(s) and to sign them if you support them:

The Royal Astronomical Society are also urging Fellows to lobby their MPs against the cuts, and have included a template letter that can be used to do so:
https://ras.ac.uk/news-and-press/news/ras-fellows-urged-lobby-against-unprecedented-cuts

 

MIST Council will continue to advocate for transparency, stability, and funding structures that recognise both the long-term nature of our science and the people who deliver it.
We thank you for your continued support in this period of uncertainty.

 

Please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you have further suggestions.
MIST Council

Announcement of New MIST Council 2025

We are very pleased to announce the following members of the community have been elected to MIST Council:

  • Gemma Bower (University of Leicester), MIST Councillor
  • Tom Elsden (University of St Andrews), MIST Councillor
  • Cameron Patterson (Lancaster University), MIST Councillor
  • Fiona Ball (University of Southampton), Student Representative

They will begin their terms in July 2025.

We thank outgoing MIST Council members: Maria Walach, Chiara Lazzeri and Emma Woodfield. Andy Smith will remain on council a little longer as a co-opted member to cover Rosie Johnson's maternity leave.

The current composition of Council can be found on our website (https://www.mist.ac.uk/community/mist-council).

Announcement of New MIST Councillors.

We are very pleased to announce the following members of the community have been elected unopposed to MIST Council:

  • Rosie Johnson (Aberystwyth University), MIST Councillor
  • Matthew Brown (University of Birmingham), MIST Councillor
  • Chiara Lazzeri (MSSL, UCL), Student Representative

Rosie, Matthew, and Chiara will begin their terms in July. This will coincide with Jasmine Kaur Sandhu, Beatriz Sanchez-Cano, and Sophie Maguire outgoing as Councillors.

The current composition of Council can be found on our website, and this will be amended in July to reflect this announcement (https://www.mist.ac.uk/community/mist-council).

Russell-McPherron mechanism effect on space junk de-orbiting

By Mike Lockwood (University of Reading)

We have studied the evolution of the debris cloud generated by the high-altitude Anti-Satellite (ASAT) test on the Fengyun-1C satellite over the subsequent 18 years. More of the objects at sizes above 10cm have survived than was predicted four years after the ASAT test, despite the average space weather activity being higher than was assumed in making those predictions. We show how debris accelerated by the test into high-apogee orbits has acted as a reservoir, giving a long-lived supply of objects ready to start the reentry spiral. The average rate of descent varies with the solar cycle and with the solar rotation period because of the variation in EUV heating of the thermosphere. Geomagnetic storms
have a short-lived but significant effect on the altitude decay of the debris, the upper decile of geomagnetic activity accounting for 12% of the lost altitude at 400 km, rising to 19% at 700km. A second, more subtle, geomagnetic effect is seen to be present, identified as being driven by the Russell-McPherron effect on solar wind-magnetosphere couplingand thermospheric heating. The contribution of this mechanism to the semi-annual variation in average debris descent speed is greatest at high altitudes but other thermospheric effects, such as wave and tide dissipation and circulation changes, are more important at lower altitudes. At times of low solar activity the EUV heating is the dominant effect but the total geomagnetic contribution is more significant during disturbed times. We discuss how these results are of importance to controlled de-orbiting of space junk.

References
M. Lockwood, C. J. Scott, J. O'Donoghue, M. J. Owens, and L. A. Barnard (2026)
The contribution of the Russell-McPherron effect to the semiannual variation in thermospheric density, J. geophys. Res. Space Phys., 131, e2025JA034732, doi: 10.1029/2025JA034732
M. Lockwood (2025) The Celestial Rubbish Dump, Astronomy and Geophysics, 66 (3), 3.36–3.42, doi: 10.1093/astrogeo/ataf023

See publication for more details:
M. Lockwood, M.J. Owens, C. Saha, L.A. Barnard, C.J. Scott, and J. O’Donoghue (2026) Space Weather, Submitted


Comparison of days with predominant positive (left) and negative (right) IMF Y-component in the GSEQ frame. Parts A and D show the FY-1C debris descent speed, v, as a function of altitude, h, and fraction of a calendar year, F, where its annual variation due to Sun-Earth distance a (as a function of h) has been subtracted to reveal the semi-annual variation. Parts C and F show the height profiles of (v-a) at the dates of peak Russell-McPherron effect in March (green) and September (mauve). Parts B and E show the variation with F of the average (v-a) over the full height range. The Russell-McPherron effect enhances the March/September peak when the Y-component in GSEQ is negative/positive and so can be clearly seen to be driving a semi-annual variation in debris descent speed at higher altitudes.