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Weijie Sun

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Assistant Research Scientist

Contact

Location

Climate & Space Research Building 1414

2455 Hayward Street Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2143

Education

  • 2012.9 – 2016.7, Ph.D. in Space Physics, School of Earth and Space Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China.
  • 2014.9 – 2015.8, Visiting Ph.D. Student, Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic & Space Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, United States.
  • 2005.9 – 2012.6, B. S. in Applied Physics, M. S. in Theoretical Physics, Shandong University, Weihai, China.

Professional Service

  • Manuscript Reviewer
    • Astronomy & Astrophysics (A&A)
    • Astrophysics and Space Science
    • Chinese Journal of Geophysics
    • Chinese Journal of Space Science
    • Earth and Planetary Physics
    • Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences
    • Geophysical Research Letters (GRL)
    • Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics (JGR-Space Physics)
    • Physical Review Letter (PRL)
    • Planetary and Space Science
    • Space: Science & Technology
    • The Astrophysical Journal (ApJ)
    • The Astrophysical Journal Letter (ApJL)
  • Proposal Reviewer
    • NASA-Heliophysics Supporting Research (HSR)
    • NASA-Heliophysics Guest Investigator Open (HGIO)
    • NASA-Participating Scientist Programs
    • The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation, DFG/ANR)
  • Scientist-In-The-Loop (SITL) of the NASA Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission (2018 – Present)
  • Co-Investigator, Mercury Plasma/Particle Experiment (MPPE) of Mercury Magnetosphere Orbiter (Mio), ESA-JAXA BepiColombo Mission
  • Invited Speakers
    • American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting
    • BepiColombo-Hermean Environment Working Group (HEWG)
    • International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA)
    • International Conference on Substorms (ICS)
    • Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) Mission Community Workshop
    • University of New Hampshire (UNH) Space Science Seminar, etc.

Research Interests

  • Planetary Magnetospheres
  • Magnetic Reconnection and Magnetic Structures
  • Analysis Methods for Single-Spacecraft and Multi-Spacecraft Data

Biography

2021.6 – Now, Assistant Research Scientist, Department of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering (CLaSP), University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA

2018.4 – 2021.5, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering (CLaSP), University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA

2016.7 – 2018.3, Postdoctoral Research Assistant, Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China

Awards

  • 2016.5: Top-Ten Students with Academic Research Honor, Peking University
  • 2012.9-2016.7: Presidential Scholarship, Peking University

Publications

Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=8E047TYAAAAJ&hl=en

Selected Publications:

(* corresponding author)

  1. Sun, W. J.*, J. A. Slavin, A. Milillo, R. M. Dewey, S. Orsini, X. Jia, J. M. Raines, S. Livi, J. M. Jasinski, S. Fu, J. Zhao, Q. G. Zong, Y. Saito, and C. Li (2022). MESSENGER observations of planetary ion enhancements at Mercury’s northern magnetospheric cusp during Flux Transfer Event Showers. J. Geophys. Res. Space Physics, 127. e2022JA030280. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JA030280
    • This study was highlighted by AGU publications in EOS as Rehnberg, M. (2022), Solar wind a major driver of atmospheric sodium at Mercury, Eos, 103, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022EO220258.
  2. Sun, W. *, J. A. Slavin, R. Nakamura, D. Heyner, K. J. Trattner, J. Z. D. Mieth, J. Zhao, Q. G. Zong, S. Aizawa, N. Andre, and Y. Saito (2022). Dayside magnetopause reconnection and flux transfer events under radial interplanetary magnetic field (IMF): BepiColombo Earth-flyby observations, Ann. Geophys., 40, 217–229. https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-40-217-2022
  3. Sun, W. *, R. M. Dewey, S. Aizawa, J. Huang, J. A. Slavin, S. Fu, Y. Wei, and C. Bowers (2022). Review of Mercury’s Dynamic Magnetosphere: Post-MESSENGER Era and Comparative Magnetospheres, Science China Earth Sciences, 65, 25–74. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430-021-9828-0
  4. Sun, W. J.*, J. A. Slavin, A. W. Smith, R. M. Dewey, G. K. Poh, X. Jia, J. M. Raines, S. Livi, Y. Saito, D. J. Gershman, G. A. DiBraccio, S. M. Imber, J. P. Guo, S. Y. Fu, Q. G. Zong, and J. T. Zhao (2020). Flux Transfer Event Showers at Mercury: Dependence on Plasma β and Magnetic Shear and their Contribution to the Dungey Cycle. Geophys. Res. Lett., 47, e2020GL089784. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL089784
  5. Sun, W. J.*, J. A. Slavin, R. Dewey, Y. Chen, G. DiBraccio, J. Raines, J. Jasinski, X. Jia, and M. Akhavan-Tafti (2020). MESSENGER observations of Mercury’s nightside magnetosphere under extreme solar wind conditions: reconnection-generated structures and steady convection, J. Geophys. Res. Space Physics, 125,e2019JA027490. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JA027490
  6. Sun, W. J.*, J. A. Slavin, A. M. Tian, S. C. Bai, G. K. Poh, M. Akhavan-Tafti, S. Lu, S. T. Yao, G. Le, R. Nakamura, B. L. Giles, and J. L. Burch (2019). MMS study of the structure of ion-scale flux ropes in the Earth’s cross-tail current sheet. Geophys. Res. Lett., 46, 6168– 6177. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019GL083301
  7. Sun, W. J.*, J. A. Slavin, R. M. Dewey, J. M. Raines, S. Y. Fu, Y. Wei, T. Karlsson, G. K. Poh, X. Jia, D. J. Gershman, Q. G. Zong, W. X. Wan, Q. Q. Shi, Z. Y. Pu, and D. Zhao (2018). A comparative study of the proton properties of magnetospheric substorms at Earth and Mercury in the near magnetotail. Geophys. Res. Lett., 45, 7933–7941. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018GL079181
  8. Sun, W. J.*, S. Y. Fu, Y. Wei, Z. H. Yao, Z. J. Rong, X. Z. Zhou, J. A. Slavin, W. X. Wan, Q. G. Zong, Z. Y. Pu, Q. Q. Shi, and X. C. Shen (2017). Plasma sheet pressure variations in the near-Earth magnetotail during substorm growth phase: THEMIS observations. J. Geophys. Res. Space Physics, 122, 12,212–12,228. https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JA024603
  9. Sun, W. J.*, J. M. Raines, S. Y. Fu, J. A. Slavin, Y. Wei, G. K. Poh, Z. Y. Pu, Z. H. Yao, Q. G. Zong, and W. X. Wan (2017), MESSENGER observations of the energization and heating of protons in the near Mercury magnetotail, Geophys. Res. Lett., 44, 8149–8158, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017GL074276
  10. Sun, W. J.*, S. Y. Fu, J. A. Slavin, J. M. Raines, Q. G. Zong, G. K. Poh, and T. H. Zurbuchen (2016), Spatial distribution of Mercury’s flux ropes and reconnection fronts: MESSENGER observations, J. Geophys. Res. Space Physics, 121, 7590–7607. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016JA022787
  11. Sun, W.-J.*, J. A. Slavin, S. Fu, J. M. Raines, T. Sundberg, Q.-G. Zong, X. Jia, Q. Shi, X. Shen, G. Poh, and Z. Pu (2015), MESSENGER observations of Alfvénic and compressional waves during Mercury’s substorms, Geophys. Res. Lett., 42, 6189–6198. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015GL065452
  12. Sun, W.-J.*, J. A. Slavin, S. Fu, J. M. Raines, Q.-G. Zong, S. M. Imber, Q. Shi, Z. Yao, G. Poh, D. J. Gershman, Z. Pu, T. Sundberg, B. J. Anderson, H. Korth, and D. N. Baker (2015), MESSENGER observations of magnetospheric substorm activity in Mercury’s near magnetotail. Geophys. Res. Lett., 42, 3692–3699. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015GL064052
  13. Sun, W.-J., S. Fu*, Z. Pu, G. K. Parks, J. A. Slavin, Z. Yao, Q.-G. Zong, Q. Shi, D. Zhao, and Y. Cui (2014), The current system associated with the boundary of plasma bubbles, Geophys. Res. Lett., 41, 8169–8175. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014GL062171
  14. Sun, W.-J., S. Fu*, G. K. Parks, Z. Pu, Q.-G. Zong, J. Liu, Z. Yao, H. Fu, and Q. Shi (2014), Electric fields associated with dipolarization fronts, J. Geophys. Res. Space Physics, 119, 5272–5278. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014JA020045 
    • This study was highlighted by AGU publications in EOS as “Balcerak, E. (2014), Studying electric fields in dipolarization fronts, Eos Trans. AGU, 95(45), 416. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014EO450010 ”
  15. Sun, W., S. Fu*, Q. Shi, Q. Zong, Z. Yao, T. Xiao, and G. K. Parks (2014), THEMIS observation of a magnetotail current sheet flapping wave, Chin. Sci. Bull., 59(2), 154-161. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-013-0056-x
  16. Sun, W. J., S. Y. Fu*, G. K. Parks, J. Liu, Z. H. Yao, Q. Q. Shi, Q.-G. Zong, S. Y. Huang, Z. Y. Pu, and T. Xiao (2013), Field-aligned currents associated with dipolarization fronts, Geophys. Res. Lett., 40, 4503–4508. https://doi.org/10.1002/grl.50902
  17. Sun, W. J., Q. Q. Shi*, S. Y. Fu, Z. Y. Pu, M. W. Dunlop, A. P. Walsh, Q. G. Zong, T. Xiao, C. L. Tang, H. Reme, C. Carr, E. Lucek, and A. Fazakerley (2012), Cluster and TC-1 observation of magnetic holes in the plasma sheet, Ann. Geophys., 30, 583-595. https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-30-583-2012
  18. Sun, W. J., Q. Q. Shi*, S.Y. Fu, Q. G. Zong, Z. Y. Pu, L. Xie, T. Xiao, L. Li, Z. X. Liu, H. Reme, E. Lucek (2010), Statistical research on the motion properties of the magnetotail current sheet: Cluster observations. Sci China Tech Sci, 53: 1732-1738. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11431-010-3153-y