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The Sun is completely covered in tangles of magnetic field which are constantly moving around. Sometimes they can get really “wound-up” and end up causing huge eruptions, spewing massive amounts of burning gas (actually, it’s called “plasma”) out into the solar system. I watch this plasma using special cameras on satellites and use some cool tricks to figure out how much stuff is exploding outwards! Sometimes I run computer simulations, as well, so I can see what plasma does in different situations and then compare this with what’s going on at the Sun.

One of the best things about being a scientist is that on a normal day, you don’t need an alarm clock. I usually get up at 9ish and head straight to the office with a huge mug of tea. In the mornings I check out what the Sun has been up to for the past 24 hours and see whether any big eruptions have been going on. I might run some programs to analyse the data if it seems interesting, or if not I’ll read some new results from colleagues at different universities. After lunch I like chatting with the other people in my office about what we’re all up to. You might think that sounds lazy, but it’s actually really useful; you’d be surprised how often problems can be solved by a fresh pair of eyes! In my free time at night I like making music, but if I’m tired I might just stick on an episode of Adventure Time. Then after one more cup of tea I go to bed, ready to do it all again.