Fun Links:

Upcoming Presentations, Conferences, and Workshops:

Basic Geomagnetic Activity Forecast:

Monthly, I will predict two upcoming periods that may have enhanced geomagnetic activity. I do this by tracking long-lived solar features (such as co-rotating interaction regions) in SDO data, solar wind data, and ground-based magnetometer data. I prioritize times when the sky will be dark (near new moon) .

I make no promises that this is reliable, and this will NOT predict short-lived features (e.g. flares and Coronal Mass Ejections). However, this can be useful for folks planning out experiments in advance. Here are my upcoming predictions:

Priority 1: May 17 - May 21 (potential co-rotating interaction regions, near a new moon)

Prority 2: May 11 - May 15 (potential weak co-rotating interaction regions)

I am a space physicist and I specialize in the study of the upper atmosphere, specifically the ionosphere and magnetosphere. My field of study is inextricably linked to space weather, which has the ability to disrupt spacecraft well-being and long distance radio communication. However, space physics is also the study of our home in the universe. My research turns on two major questions: “How does energy cascade from the Sun to the Earth?” and “How does space plasma respond to changing ionospheric conditions?”

In addition to performing my own research, I host the "Goodwin Group Gatherings". Attendees are either folks I supervise and mentor, or folks I work closely with.

GGG Regulars:

William Longley, PhD (Assistant Research Professor, He/Him) - Plasma and Thomson scatter expert!

Chirag Skolar, PhD (Postdoctoral Researcher, He/Him) - Expert in computational plasma physics. Currently computing backscatter spectra from arbitrary ion velocity distributions.

Bimal Dahal, MSc (Graduate Student, He/Him) - Characterizing plasma density variations and structures in the high-latitude ionosphere.

Aidan Thayer, MSc (Graduate Student, They/Them) - Current focus is using incoherent scatter radars to characterize ion temperature anisotropy in the ionosphere due to O+-O resonant charge exchange.

Pranay KC (Undergraduate Student, He/Him) - Current focus is using incoherent scatter radars to characterize plasma signatures associated with STEVE events, and resolve their magnetospheric structure.

Reach out to learn more!

My Philosophy: One of the things I love about table-top role-playing games is the chance to create an environment that players want to engage in and is designed for their abilities and needs. As silly as it sounds, I try to incorporate this as much as possible in my classroom.

My goal is to take participants on a journey that connects them to the learning objectives of the class, but is considerate of their aims, identities, strengths, and weaknesses. I want my classroom to be an environment that folks want to be a part of and one where we collaborate together.

Courses I have taught at NJIT:

Phys 122 - Electricity and Magnetism for ECE Applications (Undergraduate Level): Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Fall 2022
Phys 780 - Remote Sensing for Space Weather Monitoring Purposes (Graduate Level): Fall 2024

Courses I will Teach:

Phys 432 - Electromagnetism I (Undergraduate Level): Fall 2025

I LOVE incoherent scatter radars! Here are some helpful related links:

My ISR Efforts:

ISR World Days 2025

2024 ISR Workshop Summary

ISR ISSI Working Group led by L. Baddeley, L. Goodwin and G. Perry

Links from others I want to promote:

Link to ISR data (and so much more!)

Link to AMISR data

Dr. Lamarche's AMISR User Manual

Space physics is a place for everyone, and there are many paths into and out of STEM, as well as many definitions of who is a ‘physicist’. Hence, my approach to improving the space physics community is broad.

Notable Current Community Service:

Merit and Training for Research, Innovation, and eXcellence (MATRIX) working group lead, June 2022 - Present.

CEDAR

Society of Physics Students - NJIT Faculty Advisor, October 2023 - Present.

International Union of Radio Science (URSI) - Incoherent Scatter Radar Working Group Co-chair, March 2023 - Present.

Outstanding Student Paper Awards (OSPA) Coordinator for the AGU Space Physics and Aeronomy (SPA) Section and Student Travel Grant Application Reviewer, USA, July 2020 - Present.