Researcher's Profile

●Studies of space weather phenomena on Earth, Mars, and beyond:
'Space weather’ refers to variable conditions on the Sun, throughout space, and in the planetary environment that can influence the performance and reliability of space-borne and ground-based technological systems and endanger human life and health. Phenomena related to the space weather include auroras and space radiation (high-energy particles) variations. The space environment around a planet, which is a plasma world, varies significantly depending on whether a planet has a global intrinsic magnetic field or not. By combining numerical simulations and observations from spacecraft and/or ground, we aim to enhance our understanding of the space weather phenomena on Earth, the Moon, Mars, and other planets.

●Studies of space climate to understand the impact of stellar activities on planetary environments:
A planet needs an atmosphere to have a habitable surface environment that can support life, with oceans like Earth. To understand the atmospheric retention conditions of Earth-like planets, we need to figure out how their atmospheres escape into space. An important issue to solve the problem is to clarify effects of the stellar activities and planetary intrinsic magnetic fields. We are working on this issue by developing original numerical models that integrate knowledge of the planets in our solar system and applying them to exoplanets.

●Toward exploration of the Martian environment:
As international space exploration progresses from the Moon to Mars, Japan is also beginning exploration of the Martian environment, and there is growing momentum for private companies to participate in space exploration. Leveraging our expertise in Martian environment science obtained through involvement in Mars exploration projects with NASA and other organizations, we are working on the mission planning of future scientific explorations.