– Sarah Dalessi, a fifth-year student in the College of Science at ÂÜŔňµşapp (UAH), a part of The University of Alabama System, is the lead author of a paper on arXiv detailing the discovery of the fastest gamma-ray burst (GRB) ever recorded.

A novel, innovative approach to teaching his first doctoral-level introductory fluid and space plasma turbulence class by new assistant professor of space science Dr. Laxman Adhikari at ÂÜŔňµşapp (UAH) has resulted in publication this month of  for the field of space physics to understand the turbulence properties of the solar wind in the respected  (ApJ).

Hired as faculty in 2024 as part of a continuing $20 million  grant managed at ÂÜŔňµşapp called  and its predecessor grant, Dr. Adhikari obtained his doctorate at UAH in 2015. From the planning stage, he set up his inaugural teaching class to do class research and to write a class paper for potential publication.

“I wanted to make this class unique and worth it for the students and for me,” says Dr. Adhikari. “One way was to publish a paper in a peer-reviewed journal. This was a motivation for conducting a research project, a project that was completely separate from the students’ individual final research projects, with the students as a class writing up the manuscript and submitting it to the Astrophysical Journal.”

The class was taught in spring 2025. The resulting paper by Dr. Adhikari, his seven-member class and additional coauthors, entitled “Reynolds Number and Viscosity in the Solar Wind,” was accepted for November’s ApJ.

“The aim was to educate students by involving them directly in the research using ideas that came up from class discussion and through hands-on experience,” says Dr. Adhikari. “Beyond the research experience, this also familiarized them with the processes involved from manuscript submission to publication. They gained insight into how to address reviewers’ comments.”

The paper investigates the Reynolds number, a key parameter used to distinguish turbulent flow from laminar flow, as it relates to viscosity in the solar wind plasma between the sun and the Earth.

“These parameters are the important indicators of turbulent behavior, such as a high Reynolds number and low viscosity being characteristic of turbulent systems,” he says.

“Our results show that with decreasing distance from the sun, the turbulent viscosity of the plasma decreases, while the turbulent Reynolds number increases, indicating that the solar wind plasma becomes increasingly turbulent closer to the sun. Additionally, we show throughout the region between the sun and the Earth, that the turbulence scaling laws in the inertial range control the Reynolds number and viscosity in the solar wind.”

Class Idea

The idea and title of the research project came up during class discussion of the Reynolds number and viscosity in fluid.

“We decided to apply this idea to the solar wind plasma,” Dr. Adhikari says. “However, we first had to reformulate the theory for the Reynolds number and the viscosity that incorporates several turbulence scaling laws in the inertial range.”

The class reviewed the new approach together and applied it to the measurements of the  and  spacecrafts.

“I first derived the theoretical framework to estimate the Reynolds number and viscosity in the solar wind, and asked the class students to review and provide their comments,” he says. “After we all agreed on the theoretical framework, we decided to use this for the measurements of the Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter spacecrafts.”

FTPP  intern Lucien Treville, who worked with Dr. Adhikari as a summer intern in a program that also used Parker Solar Probe data, provided Dr. Adhikari with Parker Solar Probe magnetic field and plasma data for this project. The research “was not an easy job,” Dr Adhikari says.“Similarly, the class students helped me to improve the results and the manuscript by providing comments.”

Publication in ApJ was the crowning achievement for their work and also conferred skills the students should find beneficial in future careers.

“They are the co-authors of the paper, which is an important step for them,” he says, noting that besides the students, other co-authors’ help was crucial. Class co-authors are Ashutosh Giri, Monika Karki, Prashant Baruwal, Prashrit Baruwal, Rubaiya Khondoker Shikha, Bigyan Mainali and Dessalegn Kenno.

“In addition, this helped the students to familiarize themselves with the Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter data, a theory for the estimation of Reynolds number and viscosity, an experience of writing a scientific paper and a process of publishing a paper in a scientific journal. This is important knowledge that everyone will need in their scientific career.”

Student Insights

The class helped her understand how the theory they studied applies to real observations and physical processes in the solar wind, says Monika Karki, a student supported through an FTPP program that funds graduate students doing research in plasma and space physics.

“I learned how turbulence works in ordinary fluids and in magnetized plasmas like the solar wind,” she says. “One of the most valuable parts was the hands-on project, where we analyzed the real solar wind data and applied the turbulence theories we learned in class.”That gave her practical experience in handling spacecraft data, doing statistical analysis and interpreting results.

“Overall,” Karki says, “I must say this class taught me how to link mathematical concepts with actual observations, skills that I know will be very useful in my future science career.”

That the class culminated with publication was a proud moment for Dr. Adhikari.

“Overall, the students worked very hard and also enjoyed getting this research project published in the Astrophysical Journal,” he says. “I was pleased because this was the first time we submitted a research class project in the form of a manuscript to a peer-reviewed journal. This experience will inspire me to use a similar, but improved approach in my future classes.”

– Dr. Gary Zank, director of the Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research (CSPAR) and at ÂÜŔňµşapp (UAH) and principal investigator for Future Technologies & enabling Plasma Processes (FTPP), has been selected by the American Geophysical Union (AGU) to receive the 2025 John Adam Fleming Medal.

ÂÜŔňµşapp (UAH), a part of The University of Alabama System, recently welcomed students from across the Southeastern U.S. and Germany to the International Space Weather Camp (ISWC), a two-week immersive program exploring space weather science and its global impacts.

Dr. Lingling Zhao, an assistant professor in the Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research (CSPAR) at ÂÜŔňµşapp (UAH), has been awarded a $681,356 National Science Foundation (NSF) Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award. The project will run through June 2030 and aims to advance the theoretical and observational understanding of how low-frequency magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence interacts with shocks in the heliosphere – a vast, bubble-like region of space carved out by the solar wind from the sun.

The 22nd Annual International Astrophysics Conference (AIAC), held this year in the historic city of Santiago de Compostela, Spain, brought together leading scientists from across the globe to discuss the latest breakthroughs and challenges in solar wind and local interstellar medium physics. The conference, known for its focus on the universality of physical processes in space plasma physics, drew researchers, students, and mission scientists for a week of presentations, collaboration, and enlightened dialogue.

At this year’s conference, there were exciting updates from several space missions, including (PSP), which completed its closest-ever approach to the Sun on December 24, 2024. This landmark event, along with the upcoming (IMAP) and missions, served as focal points for many of the presentations and discussions.

“There were very exciting results from the NASA Parker Solar Probe mission that is exploring the deepest parts of the Sun's atmosphere,” says Dr. Gary Zank, the director of the Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research (CSPAR), the Aerospace Rocketdyne endowed chair of the Department of Space Science (SPA) at the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), and the director of AIAC. “These exciting results are shedding light on how the atmosphere of the Sun is heated to well over 1 million degrees, which has been an enduring mystery for over 100 years. Several of our ÂÜŔňµşapp scientists and students were deeply involved in some of these results.”

Attendees listen to scientific discussions and research presentations at the 22nd Annual International Astrophysics Conference.

The AIAC emphasized how distinct yet complementary missions are reshaping our understanding of the Sun and its environment. Zank noted that while Parker Solar Probe investigates the solar wind’s origins near the Sun, IMAP will observe related phenomena near Earth, offering insights into space weather that impacts satellite operations and global communications.

“These are all entirely different missions,” Zank explained. “Parker Solar Probe is exploring the origins of the solar wind, including the generation of shock waves, structures, the driving of magnetized turbulence, accelerating highly energetic particles,and more. All of these will be measured and observed by IMAP at the location of the Earth, and this will feed into our deeper understanding of Space Weather.”

Zank says this has important implications for Earth-bound satellites that are important for communications, navigation, military situational awareness and more. “IMAP is also exploring the boundaries of the solar wind where the solar wind meets the local interstellar medium, which has nothing to do with PSP.”

“HelioSwarm, on the other hand, will be exploring the nature of magnetic turbulence in the solar wind at very small scales. This is typically created in situ by larger scale processes within the solar wind, and these can originate low in the Sun's atmosphere where PSP is exploring,” Zank explained. “Furthermore, HelioSwarm is a configuration of 9 spacecraft unlike the single IMAP and PSP spacecraft, meaning that the kinds of measurements, multi-point, will be completely different. So all of these considerations informed and influenced conversations and scientific directions at the AIAC.”

One of the defining themes of AIAC -  the universality of physical processes such as turbulence, magnetic reconnection, and shock acceleration - was clearly reflected throughout the presentations.

“Certain processes such as turbulence and magnetic reconnection or particle acceleration by shock waves or magnetic islands exist throughout the universe and not just in the solar wind or the Sun's atmosphere,” Zank says. “These processes occur around other stars, in the interstellar medium, and even in different galaxies.”

The conference served as a launchpad for new collaborations and interdisciplinary exploration, fostering a dynamic exchange of ideas between early-career researchers and seasoned experts.

“Collaborations and interdisciplinary work are a feature of a conference of this kind -- the meeting is designed to facilitate students and researchers engaging and discussing their work and identifying areas of common interest and where progress and new breakthroughs can be made," says Zank.

Held in Santiago de Compostela, the location itself added to the unique atmosphere of the meeting.

“By being located in a single hotel and having the opportunity to meet in a beautiful, vibrant and culturally rich city means people from all scientific backgrounds and fields want to attend the meeting. This allows one to create a scientifically highly diverse meeting which makes transdisciplinary interactions possible,” Zank says.

Looking ahead, the AIAC is already setting its sights on new frontiers in heliophysics and interstellar studies.

“Every spacecraft that goes to a new region or environment or makes new kinds of measurements, whether multipoint or at unexplored scales, will make exciting discoveries that create new frontiers,” Zank says. “NASA's IMAP will launch in September of this year and we can expect groundbreaking discoveries almost immediately. This will undoubtedly be a major theme of next year's AIAC meeting.”

Zank also shared words of encouragement for prospective students eyeing careers in space science.

“As evidenced by the number of students applying to the program, the opportunities to attend meetings like the AIAC, to be constantly at the frontiers of space science research working with world-class faculty make the Space Science graduate program one of the most exciting programs in the world,” he says.

With fresh insights and collaborative spirit, the global scientific community at the 22nd AIAC once again affirmed its reputation as a cornerstone event in the field of space physics.

The Solar Wind Electrons Alphas and Protons (SWEAP) instrument suite developed by researchers at The Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, ÂÜŔňµşapp (UAH) and the Marshall Space Flight Center for NASA’s Parker Solar Probe (PSP) has helped the PSP earn the coveted 2024 Robert J. Collier Trophy.

Speakers at the inaugural Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Breakfast, presented by ÂÜŔňµşapp (UAH), offered messages of economic innovation, growth and cooperation to the capacity audience.

Syed Ayaz, a researcher at ÂÜŔňµşapp (UAH), has published a paper in Scientific Reports that builds on an earlier first-of-its-kind study that examined kinetic AlfvĂ©n waves.

The National Space Club (NSC), Huntsville Chapter, has selected Dr. Gary Zank at ÂÜŔňµşapp (UAH) to receive the 2024 Distinguished Science Award.