Five members of the Space Plasma Physics Group journeyed to Paris to take part in the Join Cluster-Plasma Observatory Workshop. The workshop included a review of the scientific achievements of the Cluster mission and a commemoration of some of the key scientists for Cluster who have passed away since the mission began. The workshop then pivoted to examine the potential science that could be achieved with a new space plasma mission - Plasma Observatory - one of three under Phase A study for the ESA M7 mission opportunity.
Talks were given by Prof. Andrew Fazakerley, reviewing major results from the Cluster PEACE instrument, and Dr Colin Forsyth, reviewing field-aligned currents as a connectivity mechanism in the magnetosphere. Poster presentations were also given by Prof. Fazakerley, on the Magnetotail Dynamics Explorer mission concept, and by PhD student Chiara Lazerri, on her work examining the impact on the magnetosphere of a rapid southward turning of the IMF.
During the meeting, there was a live-stream from ESOC in Darmstadt as they lost contact with Cluster 1 (Rumba/Phoenix) for the last time before the spacecraft re-entered Earth’s atmosphere. Attendees were also treated to the premiere of the Space Rocks film “Seas of the Sun” which examined the history and people behind the Cluster mission.
