Energy Transfer Processes in the Solar Wind: Kinetic scale instabilities and wave-particle interactions in small scale turbulence

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The solar wind is a continuous outflow of plasma from the Sun, which expands into the space between the planets in our solar system and forms the heliosphere. The solar wind is inherently turbulent and characterised by instabilities on a range of scales. The Sun also intermittently ejects mass (CME) or energetic particles (SEP) which change their trajectory or energy due to their interactions with the solar wind. When these violent particle events hit the Earth's magnetosphere, they can cause "space-weather" with both long- and short-term impacts on our natural and technological environment. The understanding of the solar wind, as the medium through which space-weather events propagate, and its coupling with the magnetosphere is crucial for the development of successful space-weather prediction and mitigation strategies. This project will investigate the behaviour and the effects of kinetic instabilities in a turbulent plasma with particular emphasis on energy transfer processes. For the investigation of these nonlinear processes, a cross-disciplinary approach combining theoretical analysis, numerical simulations and a variety of observational datasets will be used. This project will utilise the unprecedented observations from ESA's Solar Orbiter spacecraft, launched in February 2020, to advance our understanding of the Sun, the solar wind, and space-weather.