I received my PhD from Paris-Saclay University (École Polytechnique, Palaiseau, France) and the University of Pisa (Pisa, Italy) in 2019. I then worked for two years at the Swedish Institute of Space Physics in Uppsala, Sweden, as a postdoctoral researcher before joining the University of Helsinki in 2021. I am currently a postdoctoral researcher in the Space Physics research group.
Space is not empty but filled with plasma, a state of matter composed of free electrons and ions that are influenced by electromagnetic fields. The majority of the plasma in the solar system originates from the Sun, which constantly ejects charged particles composing the solar wind.
When the solar wind reaches near-Earth space, it interacts with the planet’s magnetic field, the magnetosphere. This interaction can lead to explosive events such as magnetic reconnection, a fundamental process in plasma physics where energy stored in magnetic fields is rapidly transferred to the plasma, leading to heating and particle acceleration.
During magnetic reconnection, solar plasma can penetrate deep into the magnetosphere and reach the Earth’s atmosphere, producing the auroral lights observed near the poles. However, this influx of charged particles can also disrupt satellites and GPS systems. Magnetic reconnection plays a key role in geomagnetic substorms and storms, when changes in Earth’s magnetic field due to magnetic reconnection can induce electrical currents on the ground, potentially damaging pipelines and power grids.
Investigating magnetic reconnection is crucial for understanding the Sun’s influence on Earth’s space environment and it contributes to understanding the physics regulating the so-called “space weather.” My research focuses on advancing our knowledge of magnetic reconnection in the context of the Earth’s magnetosphere, while also studying related plasma instabilities and waves. To achieve this, I use a combination of in situ spacecraft observations and numerical simulations.