Group picture of the winners of the IAU prizes 2022

IAU General Secretary Jose Miguel Rodriguez Espinosa presented the IAU PhD prize during the opening ceremony of the IAU General Assembly in Busan South Korea. Credit: IAU/GA2022 NOC

The Best Ph.D. Prize Award: Dedicated to all scientific collaborators

I would like to tell you about my Ph.D. journey, from its start to its successful end.

Av Women in Astrophysics
Publisert 24. okt. 2022

This article is written by Reetika Joshi

My name is Reetika Joshi and I am an astrophysicist. As a young child I was always very curious and enthusiastic kid. Astrophysics was initially an area I came in touch with luckily. In my graduation and masters I developed a love for it and for my doctorate I became really passionate about it. I have been very lucky to have the best mentors, during my Ph.D. journey in India and France, who showed me the best way.

My Ph.D. journey was very smooth. I travelled different countries for the research projects and realized that the true happiness exists in learning together through interactions. It was a complex time when I defended my Ph.D. thesis. Due to the second wave of COVID, it took exceptionally long time for me to get the Ph.D. degree. However, I got the postdoctoral position at Rosseland Centre for Solar Physics (RoCS) and they could wait for me to join. I really feel happy to join at RoCS in the friendly environment.

Here I am, standing in front of the Swedish 1 m Solar Telescope (SST), in La Palma (Spain), for my first observational campaign in June-July 2022. Photo: Private.

Solar jets, channels for energy to flow

My Ph.D. thesis was focused on the solar jets. Solar jets are ubiquitous transient collimated mass outflows in the solar atmosphere over a wide range of sizes from small scale nanojets to a few solar radii. Jets are frequently accompanied by solar flares and these flares provide the force to propagate the plasma material upward and could be accompanied by coronal mass ejections. These jets could act as a source for transporting a significant mass and energy from the lower solar atmosphere to the upper coronal heights and consequently heating the solar corona and accelerating the solar wind.

An award shared among co-workers

The PhD-at-large prize 2021 has been an overwhelming experience for me. After defending my thesis, I applied for the IAU Ph.D. thesis award in the Solar Physics division. IAU gives the best thesis prize in 9 different divisions and one prize as Ph.D. at large. I remember very well. I was in a lunch party to celebrate the Norwegian national day on 17th May. I suddenly got a few congratulations on my phone and I was surprised. And then I realize that the announcement of the prize was due. I was so happy and excited. To get the IAU award in Busan was a dreamy event. This award is not only mine, but I share this with all my scientific collaborators during my Ph.D. journey.