MIST

Magnetosphere, Ionosphere and Solar-Terrestrial

Latest news

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).

Nominations are open for MIST Council

We are very pleased to open nominations for MIST Council. There are three positions available (detailed below), and elected candidates would join Georgios Nicolaou, Andy Smith, Maria-Theresia Walach, and Emma Woodfield on Council. The nomination deadline is Friday 31 May.

Council positions open for nomination

2 x MIST Councillor - a three year term (2024 - 2027). Everyone is eligible.

MIST Student Representative - a one year term (2024 - 2025). Only PhD students are eligible. See below for further details.

About being on MIST Council

If you would like to find out more about being on Council and what it can involve, please feel free to email any of us (email contacts below) with any of your informal enquiries! You can also find out more about MIST activities at mist.ac.uk. Two of our outgoing councillors, Beatriz and Sophie, have summarised their experiences being on MIST Council below.

Beatriz Sanchez-Cano (MIST Councillor):

"Being part of the MIST council for the last 3 years has been a great experience personally and professionally, in which I had the opportunity to know better our community and gain a larger perspective of the matters that are important for the MIST science progress in the UK. During this time, I’ve participated in a number of activities and discussions, such as organising the monthly MIST seminars, Autumn MIST meetings, writing A&G articles, and more importantly, being there to support and advise our colleagues in cases of need together with the wonderful council members. MIST is a vibrant and growing community, and the council is a faithful reflection of it."

Sophie Maguire (MIST Student Representative):

"Being the student representative for MIST council has been an amazing experience. I have been part of organizing conferences, chairing sessions, and writing grant applications based on the feedback MIST has received. From a wider perspective, MIST has helped to grow and support my professional networks which in turn, directly benefits my PhD work as well. I would encourage any PhD student to apply for the role of MIST Student Representative and I would be happy to answer any questions or queries you have about the role."

How to nominate

If you would like to stand for election or you are nominating someone else (with their agreement!) please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by Friday 31 May. If there is a surplus of nominations for a role, then an online vote will be carried out with the community. Please include the following details in the nomination:

  1. Name
  2. Position (Councillor/Student Rep.)
  3. Nomination Statement (150 words max including a bit about the nominee and focusing on your reasons for nominating. This will be circulated to the community in the event of a vote.)

MIST Council details

  • Sophie Maguire, University of Birmingham, Earth's ionosphere - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 
  • Georgios Nicolaou, MSSL, solar wind plasma - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 
  • Beatriz Sanchez-Cano, University of Leicester, Mars plasma - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Jasmine Kaur Sandhu, University of Leicester, Earth’s inner magnetosphere - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Andy Smith, Northumbria University, Space Weather - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 
  • Maria-Theresia Walach, Lancaster University, Earth’s ionosphere - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 
  • Emma Woodfield, British Antarctic Survey, radiation belts - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 
  • MIST Council email - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Winners of Rishbeth Prizes 2023

We are pleased to announce that following Spring MIST 2023 the Rishbeth Prizes this year are awarded to Sophie Maguire (University of Birmingham) and Rachel Black (University of Exeter).

Sophie wins the prize for the best MIST student talk which was entitled “Large-scale plasma structures and scintillation in the high-latitude ionosphere”. Rachel wins the best MIST poster prize, for a poster entitled “Investigating different methods of chorus wave identification within the radiation belts”. Congratulations to both Sophie and Rachel!

As prize winners, Sophie and Rachel will be invited to write articles for Astronomy & Geophysics, which we look forward to reading.

MIST Council extends their thanks to the University of Birmingham for hosting the Spring MIST meeting 2023, and to the Royal Astronomical Society for their generous and continued support of the Rishbeth Prizes.

Nominations for MIST Council

We are pleased to open nominations for MIST Council. There are two positions available (detailed below), and elected candidates would join Beatriz Sanchez-Cano, Jasmine Kaur Sandhu, Andy Smith, Maria-Theresia Walach, and Emma Woodfield on Council. The nomination deadline is Friday 26 May.

Council positions open for nomination

  • MIST Councillor - a three year term (2023 - 2026). Everyone is eligible.
  • MIST Student Representative - a one year term (2023 - 2024). Only PhD students are eligible. See below for further details.

About being on MIST Council


If you would like to find out more about being on Council and what it can involve, please feel free to email any of us (email contacts below) with any of your informal enquiries! You can also find out more about MIST activities at mist.ac.uk.

Rosie Hodnett (current MIST Student Representative) has summarised their experience on MIST Council below:
"I have really enjoyed being the PhD representative on the MIST council and would like to encourage other PhD students to nominate themselves for the position. Some of the activities that I have been involved in include leading the organisation of Autumn MIST, leading the online seminar series and I have had the opportunity to chair sessions at conferences. These are examples of what you could expect to take part in whilst being on MIST council, but the council will welcome any other ideas you have. If anyone has any questions, please email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..”

How to nominate

If you would like to stand for election or you are nominating someone else (with their agreement!) please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by Friday 26 May. If there is a surplus of nominations for a role, then an online vote will be carried out with the community. Please include the following details in the nomination:
  • Name
  • Position (Councillor/Student Rep.)
  • Nomination Statement (150 words max including a bit about the nominee and your reasons for nominating. This will be circulated to the community in the event of a vote.)
 
MIST Council contact details

Rosie Hodnett - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Mathew Owens - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Beatriz Sanchez-Cano - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Jasmine Kaur Sandhu - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Andy Smith - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Maria-Theresia Walach - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Emma Woodfield - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
MIST Council email - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

RAS Awards

The Royal Astronomical Society announced their award recipients last week, and MIST Council would like to congratulate all that received an award. In particular, we would like to highlight the following members of the MIST Community, whose work has been recognised:
  • Professor Nick Achilleos (University College London) - Chapman Medal
  • Dr Oliver Allanson (University of Birmingham) - Fowler Award
  • Dr Ravindra Desai (University of Warwick) - Winton Award & RAS Higher Education Award
  • Professor Marina Galand (Imperial College London) - James Dungey Lecture

MIST Charter

At the 2007 Spring MIST meeting it was agreed that rather than a single MIST co-ordinator, MIST Council should be formed to organise and manage MIST activities. It was hoped that MIST Council would energise the MIST community whilst improving the visibility and impact of MIST science. The first MIST Council developed a charter, which now acts as a guiding document as to both the activities of the community and MIST Council.

Magnetosphere, Ionosphere and Solar Terrestrial science community (MIST)

Charter Statement

Last amended 11 October 2021

Article I – What is MIST?

1.1 This is the charter for the Magnetosphere, Ionosphere and Solar Terrestrial science community, also known as "MIST". It is a community of UK-based scientists with interests in physical processes within the Sun-Earth system, other solar system bodies and exo-planets; in particular the solar/stellar wind, moons and planetary atmospheres and magnetospheres.

1.2 MIST is recognised by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) as a specialist group and as such is affiliated to the RAS.

Article II – Purpose

2.1  Provide a forum for the exchange of ideas among MIST scientists, students and other parties interested in MIST related science to advance our understanding of the energy transfer from the Sun through the solar system and associated subjects.

2.2  Promote our science and interests to the public, wider scientific community and other stakeholders in MIST.

2.3  Conduct meetings to advance the state of knowledge of MIST related science and to promote and facilitate the sharing of ideas and techniques between members of the MIST community.

2.4  Distribute relevant information to its members via the MIST website, MIST mailing lists or other appropriate methods.

2.5  Promote discussions of programmatic issues relevant to the development of MIST related science.

2.6  To provide a means of influencing UK policy on MIST related science.

Article III – Membership

3.1  Any UK-based individual who is an active scientist in a MIST related science and who joins the MIST mailing list is considered a part of the MIST community. Active scientists based in other countries are also welcome to join the MIST mailing list and will be considered a part of the MIST community.

3.2  Any individual who is interested in supporting MIST related science who joins the MIST mailing list is considered a part of the MIST community.

3.3 Membership of the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) is not required for membership of MIST, but is encouraged.

Article IV – MIST Council

4.1  MIST council is the collective term for the officers of MIST and consists of six individuals and one student representative from the MIST community.

4.2  MIST council is responsible for ensuring that MIST fulfills its purpose as outlined in Article II.

4.3  MIST council will elect one member to act as Chair of MIST council. All other roles and responsibilities of the individual members of the council are decided by the council; these are reviewed after each election (including the Chair of MIST council). Possible roles are outlined in Appendix 1.

4.4  A minimum of one MIST council meeting will be held each year. Other meetings may be called by the Chair, or a majority of the council members. The MIST council may meet and transact business by telephone conference call or email. Formal MIST councils require at least three members to participate.

4.5  The MIST council may, from time to time, charter additional members or subcommittees to address specific issues and business with specified portfolios.

4.6  MIST council can be removed from office via a vote of no confidence from the MIST community. To facilitate a confidence vote an extraordinary MIST business meeting must be called (by any member of the MIST community) if more than 10% of the MIST community (defined as 10% of the people subscribed to the MIST mailing list) is in agreement. The meeting must be held within a month of the announcement at an agreed venue. The complete MIST council will be removed if 2/3 of the meeting attendees declare no confidence in the MIST council.

Article V – MIST Elections

5.1  Members of MIST council serve terms of three years, except for the student representative who serves a term of one year.

5.2 Elections will be announced at the Spring MIST meeting and voting must begin within two months of the Spring MIST meeting. Two slots on MIST council will be open in a given normal election year, alongside the student representative.

5.3  In a normal election the MIST council will appoint one (or more) member(s) of the MIST community to act as returning officer. The returning officer will not be eligible for election to MIST council and can be a current member of MIST council who is not seeking re-election.

5.4  Elections for the position of MIST council member will be held via an internet poll or electronic mail at the discretion of the returning officer. All members of the MIST community must be offered the opportunity to vote.

5.5  The returning officer will solicit nominations from the MIST community. Members of the MIST community can self nominate. To be eligible for election nominated candidates must be based in the UK. In the absence of a nomination MIST council reserves the right to co-opt members of the MIST community to serve on MIST council.

5.6  Upon closure of nominations, the returning officer will prepare the ballot and publicize the ballot to all members of the MIST community via the MIST mailing list and the MIST web page. The ballot will contain candidate names alphabetical by family name and home institute. The returning officer will allow for at least one month between electronic mailing and the election deadline.

5.7  Those candidates receiving the most valid votes will be elected to MIST council. In the case of a tie the position on MIST council will be decided by the drawing of lots by those candidates with a tied number of votes.

5.8  Members of MIST council can stand for election for only two consecutive terms.There is no restriction on the absolute number of times that a member of the MIST community can stand for election.

5.9  A MIST council member can resign his/her position at any time by writing to the MIST council chair stating their intention to resign. MIST council will then co-opt a member of the MIST community to sit on council for the remainder of the resigning member’s term.

5.10 Candidates for student representative must not have submitted their PhD thesis at the time that nominations close.

5.11 If a MIST Council member has a period of absence (e.g. for parental leave, family leave, ill-health, sabbatical etc) during their term, then they will be invited (but not obligated) to extend their term by the appropriate amount.

Article VI – MIST Meetings

6.1 Spring MIST and Autumn MIST meetings will be held each year. The Spring MIST meeting will be held in the spring or summer, and the Autumn MIST meeting will be held in the autumn.

6.2  A MIST business meeting will be held annually, usually during the Spring MIST meeting. This meeting is open to the entire MIST community.

6.3  Minutes from MIST council and business meetings will be taken and made public on the MIST website.

6.4  MIST will provide an on-line forum to allow ongoing discussions and the formulation of ideas prior to public dissemination. This forum will be private, visible only to registered members; membership is restricted to active MIST scientists and is offered at the discretion of MIST council chair.

6.5  From time to time MIST council has the authority to call for a meeting of active MIST scientists to discuss programmatic issues. Each meeting shall decide on the form of meeting outputs and how they shall be disseminated.

Article VII – Amendment of Charter Statement

7.1  This charter statement can only be modified following consideration of the amendment by the MIST community.

7.2  Any member of the MIST community can offer a suggestion to amend the MIST charter. Any suggestion to amend must include the proposed text of the amendment.

7.3  Suggested amendments must first be put to the MIST council who will vote on whether to put the motion to amend to the MIST community.

7.4  Once a motion to amend passes MIST council it must be put to the community via electronic mail or an internet poll.

7.5 If greater than 10% of the MIST community (defined as 10% of the people subscribed to the MIST mailing list) votes against the motion to amend, the motion is not carried.

 

Appendix 1

Potential roles and responsibilities within MIST council:

  • Council chair
  • Web-site design and upkeep
  • Spring MIST meeting co-ordinator
  • Autumn MIST meeting co-ordinator
  • MIST mailing list moderator
  • Public relations and press releases