12/10/2025
By Lynne Schaufenbil

Please join the Lowell Center for Space Science and Technology on Thursday, Dec. 11 at 11 a.m. for a talk by Enrique Rojas Villalba, Research Scientist at Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Haystack Observatory.

Title: From Prediction to Interpretation: Reduced Physics for Resolving Ionospheric and Neutral Variability

Abstract: Many geospace observations contain rich structure but are challenging to invert directly into physical parameters. In this talk, I will explore how reduced ionospheric and neutral-atmosphere models can be repurposed from forward predictors into diagnostic tools. By sacrificing some physical completeness, these models become sufficiently tractable to be embedded in inversion and optimization loops, connecting radar echoes, ray paths, and TEC signatures to underlying plasma and neutral parameters. The emphasis will be on theoretical explorations and proof-of-concept inversions rather than finalized results, sketching what appears promising, where approximations break down, and how such reduced models might eventually complement more complete first-principles simulations.

To join us in person or for the Zoom link, please email Lynne_Schaufenbil@uml.edu.