Post by Dedong Wang

Our group has reached a significant milestone with the publication of two papers in the past two weeks in AGU Advances and Space Weather. Both studies explore wave–particle interactions and magnetosphere–ionosphere coupling, integrating observations with physics-based modeling. - In AGU Advances (released today: https://lnkd.in/dnskR_tq), we present the first observation of sawtooth-like undulations in an afternoon detached auroral arc, driven by surface waves that modulate EMIC wave activity. - In Space Weather (published last week: https://lnkd.in/dK7U-8JE), we assess the VERB-3D radiation belt model through year-long simulations compared to Van Allen Probes observations in response to the COSPAR ISWAT challenge. Interestingly, we found that reducing ULF-driven radial diffusion inside the plasmasphere has minimal impact on the simulations, while wave–particle interactions (such as hiss scattering) and magnetopause shadowing play a much more significant role. These findings highlight the varying physical processes that govern radiation belt dynamics across different regions and conditions. This work has been led by two excellent postdoctoral researchers in our group—Xingzhi will soon embark on a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship, while Huiting will start an Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship next month. For those interested in joining our section, there are only a few days left to apply for a postdoctoral researcher position: https://lnkd.in/dcrp-ize and a secretary position: https://lnkd.in/ddZBumet.