E-SWAN Newsletter
PubCom, E-SWAN Newsletter Editor (
Volume 2026 Number 32 - January 7, 2026
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Dear E-SWAN readers,
Welcome to the first Newsletter of 2026!
As we begin a new year, we extend our warmest wishes to all of you. May 2026 bring inspiration, new opportunities, and continued success—both personally and professionally—and may it be a rewarding year for our entire E‑SWAN community.
The start of the year naturally brings renewed energy and focus. With our committees, working groups, and conference teams already actively engaged, we are confident that E‑SWAN will continue to thrive as a platform for collaboration, learning, and innovation. We remain committed to supporting all initiatives with the same openness and cooperative spirit that has guided our work so far.
We are pleased to share some good news: Dr Anna Belehaki has been appointed as the new Editor‑in‑Chief of the Journal of Space Weather and Space Climate (JSWSC).
Unfortunately, we must also share sad news: Bodo W. Reinisch, Professor Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, passed away on December 16, 2025. You will find his obituary below.
Despite this loss, we look forward to another year of exchanging knowledge, sharing experiences, and strengthening connections across our network. Let us work together to make 2026 a productive and meaningful year for everyone.
With our best wishes for a successful year ahead,
Enjoy reading this Newsletter.
Stefaan Poedts,
President of E-SWAN
New Editor-in-Chief for JSWSC
We are pleased to announce that Dr. Anna Belehaki has been appointed as a new Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Space Weather and Space Climate (JSWSC), starting on 1 January 2026. She succeeds Dr. Jürgen Watermann, who stepped down on 31 December 2025 after many years of dedicated service. Dr. Natalie Krivova will continue as Editor-in-Chief.
We warmly and sincerely thank Jürgen for his invaluable contributions to the development of the journal. His long-standing commitment, leadership, and vision have played a key role in shaping JSWSC into a respected and widely recognized journal in the field.
Dr. Belehaki is one of the founders of the journal and already served as co-Editor-in-Chief between 2011 and 2022. She brings extensive experience in the field of space weather and ionospheric physics, along with a strong commitment to international collaboration and scientific excellence.
Together, Anna and Natalie will work to further strengthen the journal’s mission of promoting high-quality, open-access research and fostering dialogue across the space weather and space climate community.
Topical Issues open for submission
"Space Climate: Solar Extremes, Long-Term Variability, and Impacts on Earth’s System", deadline: 31 January 2026
Topical Editors-in-Chief (T-EiC):
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Please submit your abstract via https://www.stp2026.org/ at your earliest convenience.
Travel support requests should be submitted through the same site by the same deadline.
Call for abstracts: Session ST4.6 at EGU26 - "Modelling and observations of the near-Earth space weather environment"
Link: https://www.egu26.eu/session/57151
Deadline: January 15, 2026, 13:00 CET
We would like to invite all entities and research groups working of the development of instruments and computer models used for the monitoring, analysis, and forecasting of the near Earth environment, to submit an abstract to this comprehensive EGU session, presenting their latest advancements and concepts. We will highlight the unique capabilities and features of the latest instruments dedicated to monitoring the ionosphere, the thermosphere, the aurora, and the radiation belts, and their interactions. This session will also feature presentations on computer models that transform complex data into valuable understanding, enabling us to anticipate and address the challenges posed by space weather. Join us to be inspired by opportunities for scientific collaboration and see how these innovations support operational monitoring for end users, ultimately helping to safeguard our technology and society.
The session ST4.6 convener team: Jorge Amaya (ESA), Melanie Heil (ESA), Antoine Resseguier (IRAP/CNRS)
Call for abstracts: Session ST3.6 at EGU26 - "Polar and midlatitude ionosphere–atmosphere studies through ground-based observations"
We would like to bring your attention to session ST3.6 at the upcoming European Geosciences Union (EGU) General Assembly, which will take place in Vienna and online on 3–8 May 2026.
The session title is "Polar and midlatitude ionosphere–atmosphere studies through ground-based observations". Its description together with the link for abstract submission can be found via this link: https://meetingorganizer.
Please note the deadline for abstract submission for EGU26: January 15, 2026, 13:00 CET
The session ST3.6 convener team: Maxime Grandin, Veronika Haberle, Gaël Cessateur, Jia Jia, and Mathieu Barthelemy
Call for Abstracts: EGU 2026 - Machine Learning in Planetary Sciences and Heliophysics
Join us for the session “Machine Learning in Planetary Sciences and Heliophysics” (https://www.egu26.eu/session/56333) at the EGU General Assembly in Vienna (and online), 3-8 May 2026!
Conveners: Hannah Theresa Rüdisser, Gautier Nguyen, George Miloshevich, Valentin Tertius Bickel
The rapid growth of missions, observatories, and monitoring systems in the heliosphere, across the Solar System and from terrestrial or airborne facilities has created an unprecedented volume and diversity of data. Making sense of these observations requires methods that can both process large datasets efficiently and extract meaningful physical insight. Machine learning has become an important tool in this effort, complementing established physics-based approaches by enabling new ways of discovering patterns, building predictive models, and working with complex or incomplete measurements.
In recent years, increasing attention has been given to hybrid methods that combine machine learning with physical models. These approaches are now being applied across planetary and heliophysical domains, from forecasting solar eruptions and solar wind conditions, to automating the analysis of planetary surfaces or improving on-board data handling. They demonstrate how data-driven methods can benefit from physical knowledge, while physics-based models can be improved through modern data analysis techniques.
This session aims to provide an inclusive and interdisciplinary forum for researchers applying machine learning in planetary sciences and heliophysics, as well as those developing methods at the intersection between data-driven and physics-based approaches. We particularly encourage contributions that illustrate the wide range of applications, encourage exchange between disciplines and showcase the transition from research to operations.
Please submit your abstract by 16 Jan 2026 or consider sharing the call with your network!
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Abstract submission deadline for oral contributions: February 22, 2026
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Abstract submission deadline for poster contributions: April 15, 2026
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Early bird registration deadline: March 15, 2026
Passing of Professor Bodo W. Reinisch
It is our sad duty to report that Bodo W. Reinisch, Professor Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, passed away on December 16, 2025, at the age of 89.
Dr. Reinisch was an influential figure in both ionospheric physics and radio science and made a number of seminal contributions. Perhaps best known is the development of a network of radio sounder systems which constantly monitor global ionospheric conditions. Over 200 units have been built in Lowell, Massachusetts for installation in 32 countries, and these have become an integral part of ionospheric scientific research. Dr Reinisch was also the principal force behind the development of the International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) climatology model and, its real-time extension, the IRI-based Real-Time Assimilative Model (IRTAM). The latter provides real-time global nowcasts of ionospheric weather for science, national security, and business operations. Subsequently, Dr. Reinisch drew on his knowledge of ground-based radio sounding technologies to lead the team which successfully designed and launched the Radio Plasma Imager on NASA’s IMAGE satellite. He also led the development of the high-power, high-voltage VLF transmitter for the U.S. Air Force DSX mission which was eventually successfully launched 2019.
In recognition of his outstanding scientific contributions, Dr. Reinisch received numerous honors, including the International Union of Radio Science (URSI) Appleton Prize (2011), with the citation “For revolutionizing radio sounding from ground and space”; the Officer’s Cross of Merit First Class of the Federal Republic of Germany (2012); and the Kristian Birkeland Medal for Space Weather and Space Climate (2014).
Dr. Reinisch’s life was strongly influenced by his childhood experiences in Germany during WW2 and he worked tirelessly to develop international communities which could both address important scientific questions and also learn that all peoples benefit by working together – not against each other. In so doing he touched the lives of many of us, inspiring as he did generations of researchers whose careers would not have been so successful without him.
Dr. Reinisch profoundly shaped the field of radio remote sensing of space plasmas and model development, and his passing is a major loss to the entire ionospheric science and radio science community. We have lost a giant in our field – but more particularly we have lost an inspirational friend.
Arrangements for a memorial service are planned for next spring.
Anna Belehaki, Dieter Bilitza, Paul Cannon, Phil Erickson, Ivan Galkin, James Green, and Paul Song
Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences – Special Edition - Equatorial Plasma Bubbles
Equatorial Plasma Bubbles: Mechanisms, Variability, and Impacts on Communication Systems
We welcome contributions addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:
- Modelling and observations of physical mechanisms behind EPB formation.
- Analysis of EPB dynamics in different longitudinal zones.
- Investigation of EPB spill-over events and their triggers.
- Effects of EPBs on GNSS, satellite-based, and terrestrial radio systems.
- Development and validation of techniques for EPB detection, nowcasting, and forecasting.
- Mitigation strategies to reduce EPB impacts on technology and infrastructure.
Topic editors
Anna Morozova, University of Coimbra, Portugal
Guozhu Li, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, China
Teresa Barata, University of Coimbra, Portugal
We welcome a range of submissions, including original research articles, reviews, methods papers, brief research reports, and perspectives.
Manuscript Submission Deadline 29 May 2026
https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/74730/equatorial-plasma-bubbles-mechanisms-variability-and-impacts-on-communication-systems
SCOSTEP's COURSE
SCOSTEP's COURSE (Cross-scale cOUpling pRocesses in the Solar-tErrestrial system) program will start from January 1, 2026, as shown at https://scostep.org/scostep-course/.
We are pleased to announce that SCOSTEP provides opportunities to support campaigns, meetings, and database constructions relevant to the COURSE program in 2026, as attached. Please contact the relevant COURSE Focus Area co-leaders about your proposal and explain the relevance of your proposal to the COURSE activity. Proposals for markedly interdisciplinary activities can be explained directly to the COURSE co-chairs. The deadline for proposal submission is January 12, 2026, and the evaluation and selection will be done
by the COURSE officers.
Call for IEEE International Conference on Wireless for Space and Extreme Environments
We are pleased to announce the Call for Workshops for the IEEE International Conference on Wireless for Space and Extreme Environments (WiSEE 2026), taking place in Leuven, Belgium on September 14–16, 2026.
Workshops are an essential part of WiSEE, offering a focused forum to explore emerging topics in wireless communication, sensing, and signal processing for space missions and other extreme environments. If you are interested in a workshop, we warmly invite you to submit your proposal.
- Submission deadline: 15 January 2026
- Workshop submission link: here.
Workshops at WiSEE attract contributors from ESA, NASA, CSA, aerospace and defense industries, and leading academic institutions. This is a unique opportunity to bring together experts, highlight new research directions, and help shape the 2026 program.
For more details on scope, topics of interest, and submission requirements, please visit the WiSEE 2026 website: https://attend.ieee.org/wisee-2026/
Also Open: Call for Papers: WiSEE 2026 also welcomes full paper and short paper submissions.
Submission guidelines and timelines for the Call for Papers are available here.
You are welcome to share both calls within your networks.
We look forward to receiving your workshop proposals and to welcoming you in Leuven for WiSEE 2026.
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