Sami Solanki
Encyclopedia
Sami Khan Solanki is the former Managing Director of the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research
(MPS), Director of the Sun-Heliosphere Department of MPS
, a scientific member of the Max Planck Society
, and a Chair (and spokesperson) of the International Max Planck Research School on Physical Processes in the Solar System and Beyond at the Universities of Braunschweig
and Göttingen
.
Solanki is also an Honorary Professor at the Institute of Astronomy at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich
, and (2) Institute for Geophysics and Extraterrestrial Physics at the Braunschweig University of Technology in Germany. In Addition, he is a Distinguished Professor at the Kyung Hee University in Korea.
He is the editor-in-chief of the Living Reviews in Solar Physics
, an online review journal for solar physics and related fields.
Solanki's main topics of research are:
He has also held these positions: (1) Vice Chairman and member of the Senate Committee of the German Aerospace Centre (DLR); (2) Member Appointment Committee and Committee of Three of the DLR; (3) Member Extraterrestrial Program Committee of the DLR; (4) Science Advisory Committee of the High Altitude Observatory
, Boulder/USA; (5) Science Advisory Board at the Istituto Ricerche Solari (IRSOL), Locarno/Switzerland; and has contributed to the following space/balloon projects:
, for instance in an article in the Telegraph.co.uk in 2004 as taking a skeptical position: But the same research has been quoted as being evidence for global warming
in a news release from the Max Planck Society
where he is quoted as saying:
Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research
The Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research is a research institute in Astronomy/Astrophysics, located in Lindau , Germany; 20 km north east of Göttingen. The exploration of our solar system is the central theme for the scientific research done at this Institute...
(MPS), Director of the Sun-Heliosphere Department of MPS
Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research
The Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research is a research institute in Astronomy/Astrophysics, located in Lindau , Germany; 20 km north east of Göttingen. The exploration of our solar system is the central theme for the scientific research done at this Institute...
, a scientific member of the Max Planck Society
Max Planck Society
The Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science is a formally independent non-governmental and non-profit association of German research institutes publicly funded by the federal and the 16 state governments of Germany....
, and a Chair (and spokesperson) of the International Max Planck Research School on Physical Processes in the Solar System and Beyond at the Universities of Braunschweig
Braunschweig
Braunschweig , is a city of 247,400 people, located in the federal-state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located north of the Harz mountains at the farthest navigable point of the Oker river, which connects to the North Sea via the rivers Aller and Weser....
and Göttingen
Göttingen
Göttingen is a university town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Göttingen. The Leine river runs through the town. In 2006 the population was 129,686.-General information:...
.
Solanki is also an Honorary Professor at the Institute of Astronomy at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich
ETH Zurich
The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich or ETH Zürich is an engineering, science, technology, mathematics and management university in the City of Zurich, Switzerland....
, and (2) Institute for Geophysics and Extraterrestrial Physics at the Braunschweig University of Technology in Germany. In Addition, he is a Distinguished Professor at the Kyung Hee University in Korea.
He is the editor-in-chief of the Living Reviews in Solar Physics
Living Reviews in Solar Physics
Living Reviews in Solar Physics is an open access scientific review journal covering topics on all areas of solar and heliospheric physics. It is published by the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research...
, an online review journal for solar physics and related fields.
Solanki's main topics of research are:
- Solar and heliospheric physics, in particular solar magnetism and Sun-Earth relations
- Stellar astrophysics, mainly stellar activity and magnetism
- Astronomical tests of theories of gravitation
- Atomic and molecular physics of astronomical interest
- Protoplanetary discs and extrasolar planets
- Radiative transfer of polarized light
He has also held these positions: (1) Vice Chairman and member of the Senate Committee of the German Aerospace Centre (DLR); (2) Member Appointment Committee and Committee of Three of the DLR; (3) Member Extraterrestrial Program Committee of the DLR; (4) Science Advisory Committee of the High Altitude Observatory
High Altitude Observatory
The High Altitude Observatory conducts research and provides support and facilities for the solar-terrestrial research community in the areas of solar and heliospheric physics, and the effects of solar variability on the Earth's magnetosphere, ionosphere, and upper atmosphere.HAO is a laboratory...
, Boulder/USA; (5) Science Advisory Board at the Istituto Ricerche Solari (IRSOL), Locarno/Switzerland; and has contributed to the following space/balloon projects:
- SunriseSunrise (telescope)Sunrise is a solar telescope in the ultraviolet, that hangs from a high altitude balloon. The strong absorption of UV radiation by the Earth's atmosphere makes it challenging to carry out ground-based observations at these wavelengths...
(PI) - SOHOSolar and Heliospheric ObservatoryThe Solar and Heliospheric Observatory is a spacecraft built by a European industrial consortium led by Matra Marconi Space that was launched on a Lockheed Martin Atlas IIAS launch vehicle on December 2, 1995 to study the Sun, and has discovered over 2100 comets. It began normal operations in May...
Virgo (Co-I) - STEREOSTEREOSTEREO is a solar observation mission. Two nearly identical spacecraft were launched into orbits that cause them to respectively pull farther ahead of and fall gradually behind the Earth...
Secchi (Co-I) - SDOSolar Dynamics ObservatoryThe Solar Dynamics Observatory is a NASA mission which will observe the Sun for over five years. Launched on February 11, 2010, the observatory is part of the Living With a Star program...
HMI (Co-I)
Academic career
- 1987 Doctorate from the Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich
- 1987–1989 Post doc in St. Andrews, Scotland.
- 1992 HabilitationHabilitationHabilitation is the highest academic qualification a scholar can achieve by his or her own pursuit in several European and Asian countries. Earned after obtaining a research doctorate, such as a PhD, habilitation requires the candidate to write a professorial thesis based on independent...
- 1998 Professor of Astronomy at the University of OuluUniversity of OuluThe University of Oulu is one of the largest universities in Finland, located in the city of Oulu. It was founded on July 8, 1958. The university has around 16,000 students and 3,000 staff...
in Finland - 1999 Minnaert guest professor at the University of Utrecht
- 1999 Director of the Max Planck Institute for Solar System ResearchMax Planck Institute for Solar System ResearchThe Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research is a research institute in Astronomy/Astrophysics, located in Lindau , Germany; 20 km north east of Göttingen. The exploration of our solar system is the central theme for the scientific research done at this Institute...
Awards and honours
- 2001 Honorary professor at the Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule
- 2003 Honorary professor at the Technische Universität BraunschweigTechnische Universität BraunschweigThe TU Braunschweig is the oldest University of Technology in Germany. It was founded in 1745 as Collegium Carolinum and is a member of TU9, an incorporated society of the most renowned and largest German Institutes of Technology. Today it has about 13,000 students, making it the third largest...
- 2006 Associateship of the Royal Astronomical SocietyRoyal Astronomical SocietyThe Royal Astronomical Society is a learned society that began as the Astronomical Society of London in 1820 to support astronomical research . It became the Royal Astronomical Society in 1831 on receiving its Royal Charter from William IV...
Controversy
Solanki's research has been quoted as being part of the Global warming controversyGlobal warming controversy
Global warming controversy refers to a variety of disputes, significantly more pronounced in the popular media than in the scientific literature, regarding the nature, causes, and consequences of global warming...
, for instance in an article in the Telegraph.co.uk in 2004 as taking a skeptical position: But the same research has been quoted as being evidence for global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
in a news release from the Max Planck Society
Max Planck Society
The Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science is a formally independent non-governmental and non-profit association of German research institutes publicly funded by the federal and the 16 state governments of Germany....
where he is quoted as saying:
External links
- Personal webpage at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System ResearchMax Planck Institute for Solar System ResearchThe Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research is a research institute in Astronomy/Astrophysics, located in Lindau , Germany; 20 km north east of Göttingen. The exploration of our solar system is the central theme for the scientific research done at this Institute...
- How Strongly Does the Sun Influence the Global Climate? Press Release August 4, 2004 by the Max Planck Institute
- Sonne und Treibhausgase heizen ein (en:The Sun and Greenhousegases warm up) Press release February 19, 1998 by the ETHZ
- Sun Heliosphere Department http://www.mps.mpg.de/en/forschung/sonne/mitarbeiter.html
- The sun is more active now than over the last 8000 years NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
press release from 2004