Matthew J West
@solarphysicist.bsky.social
A solar scientist and the ESA Vigil Mission Scientist, interested in the extended solar atmosphere. I also dabble in a bit of art and outreach
📣 New outreach poster: ESA’s Vigil Mission ☀️💨🛰️💨🌍
The Space-weather “reporter” will monitor the Sun from the Lagrange point 5, reporting 24/7 solar activity days before it reaches Earth.
www.esa.int/var/esa/stor...
The Space-weather “reporter” will monitor the Sun from the Lagrange point 5, reporting 24/7 solar activity days before it reaches Earth.
www.esa.int/var/esa/stor...
December 12, 2025 at 10:46 AM
📣 New outreach poster: ESA’s Vigil Mission ☀️💨🛰️💨🌍
The Space-weather “reporter” will monitor the Sun from the Lagrange point 5, reporting 24/7 solar activity days before it reaches Earth.
www.esa.int/var/esa/stor...
The Space-weather “reporter” will monitor the Sun from the Lagrange point 5, reporting 24/7 solar activity days before it reaches Earth.
www.esa.int/var/esa/stor...
Proud to have contributed to the new SCOSTEP roadmap for 2026–30!
SCOSTEP = the global body coordinating research on Sun–Earth connections. The new programme, COURSE, lays out the scientific priorities for the next 5 years.
Exciting times ahead for heliophysics!
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
SCOSTEP = the global body coordinating research on Sun–Earth connections. The new programme, COURSE, lays out the scientific priorities for the next 5 years.
Exciting times ahead for heliophysics!
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
November 19, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Proud to have contributed to the new SCOSTEP roadmap for 2026–30!
SCOSTEP = the global body coordinating research on Sun–Earth connections. The new programme, COURSE, lays out the scientific priorities for the next 5 years.
Exciting times ahead for heliophysics!
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
SCOSTEP = the global body coordinating research on Sun–Earth connections. The new programme, COURSE, lays out the scientific priorities for the next 5 years.
Exciting times ahead for heliophysics!
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Proud to see ESA’s Vigil mission featured in the CRO Forum’s new report on space-related risks.
From L5, Vigil will boost early warning for solar storms — a key step for protecting critical infrastructure on Earth ☀️💨🛰️🌍
📄 thecroforum.org/wp-content/u...
From L5, Vigil will boost early warning for solar storms — a key step for protecting critical infrastructure on Earth ☀️💨🛰️🌍
📄 thecroforum.org/wp-content/u...
November 14, 2025 at 10:35 AM
Proud to see ESA’s Vigil mission featured in the CRO Forum’s new report on space-related risks.
From L5, Vigil will boost early warning for solar storms — a key step for protecting critical infrastructure on Earth ☀️💨🛰️🌍
📄 thecroforum.org/wp-content/u...
From L5, Vigil will boost early warning for solar storms — a key step for protecting critical infrastructure on Earth ☀️💨🛰️🌍
📄 thecroforum.org/wp-content/u...
Here's a picture of me *not* driving an imaginary car 🚗 — but explaining how the consistent, calibrated nature of Vigil’s ☀️💨🛰️🌍data products will make them ideal for training and deployment with machine learning and AI forecasting tools. In ESWW2025 TDM13: events.spacepole.be/event/222/se...
November 4, 2025 at 10:27 AM
Here's a picture of me *not* driving an imaginary car 🚗 — but explaining how the consistent, calibrated nature of Vigil’s ☀️💨🛰️🌍data products will make them ideal for training and deployment with machine learning and AI forecasting tools. In ESWW2025 TDM13: events.spacepole.be/event/222/se...
I like making confuse-o-grams that include *all* the details. Help me make this more confusing - what can I add that I'm missing?
October 22, 2025 at 10:55 AM
I like making confuse-o-grams that include *all* the details. Help me make this more confusing - what can I add that I'm missing?
🎉Happy Hamilton Day! Sir William Hamilton gave us Hamiltonian mechanics⚙️
His formulation H=T+V underpins orbital dynamics, spacecraft trajectories, and plasma physics
No Hamiltonian Mechanics→No knowledge of L5 Lagrange point→No perfect spot for a space-weather mission-ESA’s Vigil🌞💨🌍
His formulation H=T+V underpins orbital dynamics, spacecraft trajectories, and plasma physics
No Hamiltonian Mechanics→No knowledge of L5 Lagrange point→No perfect spot for a space-weather mission-ESA’s Vigil🌞💨🌍
October 21, 2025 at 8:35 AM
🎉Happy Hamilton Day! Sir William Hamilton gave us Hamiltonian mechanics⚙️
His formulation H=T+V underpins orbital dynamics, spacecraft trajectories, and plasma physics
No Hamiltonian Mechanics→No knowledge of L5 Lagrange point→No perfect spot for a space-weather mission-ESA’s Vigil🌞💨🌍
His formulation H=T+V underpins orbital dynamics, spacecraft trajectories, and plasma physics
No Hamiltonian Mechanics→No knowledge of L5 Lagrange point→No perfect spot for a space-weather mission-ESA’s Vigil🌞💨🌍
Another day, another solar and heliophysics first — @ORB_KSB and @esa.int have created a unique eclipse in space! 🌍☀️🌘
The first formation-flying coronagraph: two spacecraft flying 150 m apart, perfectly aligned to block the Sun and reveal its hot corona.
Find out more:
www.esa.int/Enabling_Sup...
The first formation-flying coronagraph: two spacecraft flying 150 m apart, perfectly aligned to block the Sun and reveal its hot corona.
Find out more:
www.esa.int/Enabling_Sup...
June 17, 2025 at 8:18 AM
Another day, another solar and heliophysics first — @ORB_KSB and @esa.int have created a unique eclipse in space! 🌍☀️🌘
The first formation-flying coronagraph: two spacecraft flying 150 m apart, perfectly aligned to block the Sun and reveal its hot corona.
Find out more:
www.esa.int/Enabling_Sup...
The first formation-flying coronagraph: two spacecraft flying 150 m apart, perfectly aligned to block the Sun and reveal its hot corona.
Find out more:
www.esa.int/Enabling_Sup...
Looking at X-ray Flux Monitors today—instruments that detect solar X-ray bursts. They're used in #SpaceWeather☀️☔ studies, helping understand solar☀️flares that can disrupt comms📡, satellites & aviation✈️. Attached an X-ray light curve from 2014 showing confined flares- with no associated eruptions
June 5, 2025 at 11:49 AM
Looking at X-ray Flux Monitors today—instruments that detect solar X-ray bursts. They're used in #SpaceWeather☀️☔ studies, helping understand solar☀️flares that can disrupt comms📡, satellites & aviation✈️. Attached an X-ray light curve from 2014 showing confined flares- with no associated eruptions
The Sun 🌞 — our source of space weather ☔ — needs constant watching. Who knows what it’ll throw at us next? @ESA #Vigil ☀️👁️🗨️🌍.
imgs.xkcd.com/comics/check...
imgs.xkcd.com/comics/check...
June 4, 2025 at 9:58 AM
The Sun 🌞 — our source of space weather ☔ — needs constant watching. Who knows what it’ll throw at us next? @ESA #Vigil ☀️👁️🗨️🌍.
imgs.xkcd.com/comics/check...
imgs.xkcd.com/comics/check...
Wrapping up another fascinating @ESA #Vigil👁️🗨 instrument day — at Leonardo S.p.A. Florence Italy — focused on the Vigil Heliospheric Imager. HI will be instrumental (pun intended) in tracking Coronal Mass Ejections💨 & space weather☔ from Sun🌞 to Earth🌍. Heres a representative STEREO HI image Jun 2011
June 3, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Wrapping up another fascinating @ESA #Vigil👁️🗨 instrument day — at Leonardo S.p.A. Florence Italy — focused on the Vigil Heliospheric Imager. HI will be instrumental (pun intended) in tracking Coronal Mass Ejections💨 & space weather☔ from Sun🌞 to Earth🌍. Heres a representative STEREO HI image Jun 2011
Just wrapped up a fascinating day at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Göttingen, discussing the Photospheric Magnetic Imager for the @esa #Vigil mission — including a tour of the facilities where both it will be and the Solar Orbiter PHI instrument were developed.
May 27, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Just wrapped up a fascinating day at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Göttingen, discussing the Photospheric Magnetic Imager for the @esa #Vigil mission — including a tour of the facilities where both it will be and the Solar Orbiter PHI instrument were developed.
Attending Max Alexander’s exhibition ‘Life in the Sun’s Atmosphere’ at #Lloyds of London: www.lloyds.com/about-lloyds.... Lloyd’s highlights extreme space weather risks—latest scenario shows potential $2.4trn global loss. The #ESA Vigil mission will help mitigate this
March 8, 2025 at 6:19 PM
Attending Max Alexander’s exhibition ‘Life in the Sun’s Atmosphere’ at #Lloyds of London: www.lloyds.com/about-lloyds.... Lloyd’s highlights extreme space weather risks—latest scenario shows potential $2.4trn global loss. The #ESA Vigil mission will help mitigate this
Lovely Leiden in the fog
January 19, 2025 at 11:02 AM
Lovely Leiden in the fog
