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Ian Whittaker

Lecturer, Nottingham Trent University

I completed my PhD in 2010 looking at the interaction of the Sun with the upper atmosphere of Venus. Since then I have held six postdoctoral contracts, covering medical imaging, solar physics, the Earth's radiation belts, lightning in tropical cyclones, X-ray astronomy, and X-ray observations of the Earth's magnetopause.

I currently teach at Nottingham Trent University, where I am responsible for astrophysics lectures, laboratory supervision, tutorials and student projects. I am very strongly interested in space science outreach, encouraging students and the public to take an interest in how our planet interacts with the solar system.

Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin: can they be more than 'space' joyrides for millionaires?

Jul 18, 2021 10:33 am UTC| Business

Billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson and his team successfully flew to the edge of space on the Unity 22 mission aboard a Virgin Galactic plane on 12 July. The event was hailed as the start of space tourism, narrowly...

SpaceX astronaut launch: here's the rocket science it must get right

May 29, 2020 14:17 pm UTC| Science

Two NASA astronauts, Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley, will make history by travelling to the International Space Station in a privately funded spacecraft, SpaceXs Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon capsule. It will also be...

Four graphs that suggest we can't blame climate change on solar activity

Jan 28, 2020 08:44 am UTC| Nature

The past decade (2010-2019) was the hottest on record and five of the top 10 warmest single years have all occurred since 2015, according to reports released by the UK Met Office and the World Meteorological...

Space milestones: here are the missions to look forward to in 2020

Jan 06, 2020 17:03 pm UTC| Insights & Views Science

Last year was an excellent year for space exploration, with the icing on the Christmas cake the first ever image acquired of a black hole by the Event Horizon Telescope. This year, 2020, is set to be interesting too....

Internet jokesters call for people to storm Area 51 to find aliens – here's some science to consider

Jul 26, 2019 09:10 am UTC| Entertainment

Millions of people have signed up to a tongue-in-cheek Facebook event to storm the US military base Area 51 on 20 September to discover whether aliens are inside. While the organisers said it was a joke, the US military...

SpaceX Dragon 2 set for nail-biting landing – here's the rocket science

Mar 09, 2019 06:08 am UTC| Insights & Views Science

If all goes to plan, a fiery Dragon will light up the sky over the Atlantic before hopefully cooling off with a watery splashdown on March 8. The SpaceX Dragon 2 capsule is of enormous significance for spaceflight as it...

NASA wants to send humans to Venus – here's why that's a brilliant idea

Oct 16, 2018 14:55 pm UTC| Insights & Views Science

Popular science fiction of the early 20th century depicted Venus as some kind of wonderland of pleasantly warm temperatures, forests, swamps and even dinosaurs. In 1950, the Hayden Planetarium at the American Natural...

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Economy

Germany’s Economic Recovery Slows as Trade Tensions and Rising Costs Weigh on Growth

Germanys economic outlook remains cautious, with a new forecast from the German Economic Institute (IW) indicating only modest improvement in 2025 as global trade falters and domestic financial pressures intensify....

Japan’s Nikkei Drops as Markets Await Key U.S. Inflation Data

Japans Nikkei 225 slid on Friday, erasing its gains for the week and diverging from mostly positive Asian markets as investors turned cautious ahead of a crucial U.S. inflation reading that could influence the Federal...

Europe Confronts Rising Competitive Pressure as China Accelerates Export-Led Growth

Europe is facing growing competitive pressure from China as Beijing intensifies its export-driven growth strategy, a shift Goldman Sachs says is reshaping the outlook for several major European industries. The bank...

Citi Sets Bullish 2026 Target for STOXX 600 as Fiscal Support and Monetary Easing Boost Outlook

Citigroup has raised its outlook for European equities, setting a 2026 year-end target of 640 for the STOXX 600 index. The forecast suggests a potential 10.5% upside from Thursdays close, reflecting growing confidence in...

Dollar Weakens Ahead of Expected Federal Reserve Rate Cut

The U.S. dollar hovered near a five-week low on Friday as global investors positioned themselves for a widely anticipated Federal Reserve rate cut next week. The greenback remained under pressure across major currencies,...

Politics

Australia and Japan Strengthen Defence Cooperation Amid Rising Regional Tensions

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles will travel to Japan on Saturday for high-level defence talks with his counterpart, Shinjiro Koizumi, as both nations deepen security cooperation in response to growing regional...

U.S. Justice Department Orders Intensified Probe Into Antifa and Domestic Extremist Groups

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has directed federal law enforcement agencies to significantly ramp up investigations into the antifa movement and other groups deemed potential domestic extremist threats, according to an...

Honduras Election Turmoil Deepens as Nasralla Alleges Fraud in Tight Presidential Race

Honduras fiercely contested presidential election entered a new phase of tension after centrist candidate Salvador Nasralla accused authorities of fraud when rival Nasry Asfura of the National Party overtook him in the...

U.S. Expected to Expand Travel Ban to More Than 30 Countries

The United States is preparing to significantly widen its travel ban, with U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirming that the list will soon include more than 30 countries. Speaking on Fox News The Ingraham...

Hong Kong Faces Low Turnout in “Patriots-Only” Election Amid Public Grief After Deadly Fire

Hong Kong is bracing for a significantly low voter turnout in Sundays patriots-only Legislative Council election, as the city continues to mourn the deadliest fire it has seen in decades. The blaze, which erupted in a...

Science

Senate Sets December 8 Vote on Trump’s NASA Nominee Jared Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee announced it will vote on December 8 on President Donald Trumps renewed nomination of private astronaut and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman, known for his...

NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead

NASA has significantly scaled back Boeings Starliner program after years of technical issues and delays, announcing that the next Starliner mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will fly without astronauts. The...

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Achieves Breakthrough Success With First NASA Mission

Blue Origins massive New Glenn rocket marked a major milestone as it completed its first mission for paying customers, sending two NASA satellites toward Mars and successfully landing its reusable booster at sea. The...

Cogent Biosciences Soars 120% on Breakthrough Phase 3 Results for Bezuclastinib in GIST Treatment

Cogent Biosciences (NASDAQ: COGT) shares skyrocketed over 120% after the biotech company announced groundbreaking results from its Phase 3 PEAK trial evaluating bezuclastinib in combination with sunitinib for patients with...

Trump and Merck KGaA Partner to Slash IVF Drug Costs and Expand Fertility Coverage

U.S. President Donald Trump and German pharmaceutical company Merck KGaA have announced a groundbreaking deal aimed at lowering the cost of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments while boosting access to fertility care in...

Technology

EU Prepares Antitrust Probe Into Meta’s AI Integration on WhatsApp

The European Commission is reportedly preparing to launch a new antitrust investigation into Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) over the companys recent rollout of artificial intelligence features within WhatsApp....

Sam Altman Reportedly Explored Funding for Rocket Venture in Potential Challenge to SpaceX

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly explored raising significant capital to acquire or partner with a rocket company, a move that could have created direct competition with Elon Musks SpaceX. According to a report from the...

Wikipedia Pushes for AI Licensing Deals as Jimmy Wales Calls for Fair Compensation

Wikipedia is seeking additional licensing deals with major technology companies to address the growing financial burden caused by artificial intelligence firms heavily scraping its platform, according to co-founder Jimmy...

Firelight Launches as First XRP Staking Platform on Flare, Introduces DeFi Cover Feature

Firelight reaches 25M XRP deposit cap within hours of launch; ushers in a new era for decentralized XRP staking. A new XRP staking platform, Firelight, has officially launched on the Flare blockchain, marking the first...

OpenAI Moves to Acquire Neptune as It Expands AI Training Capabilities

OpenAI has confirmed plans to acquire Neptune, a startup known for its advanced tools that help companies track, monitor, and optimize AI model training workflows. Although the company did not release the financial details...