Professional Experience

1-page CV

Research Activities

Major Accomplishments

Dr. Justyna M. Sokół is a physicist specializing in the study of the heliosphere and its interaction with the local interstellar medium. Her research focuses on modulation of interstellar neutrals, energetic neutral atoms, and pickup ions inside the heliosphere due to the solar environment. She is particularly interested in a large-scale distribution of PUIs of various masses throughout the heliosphere and a latitudinal variation of the solar wind parameters.

Over the past 12 years, she has contributed to theoretical and modeling studies of data from the leading heliospheric missions (e.g., IBEX, Ulysses, New Horizons, Voyager) being a first author or co-author of over 80 research articles in total. She actively contributes to the development of the IMAP-Lo instrument for the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) mission. From 2021, Justyna co-hosts online science meetings focused on the outer heliosphere and very local interstellar medium studies. She also frequently serves as a convener and chairman of the heliospheric sessions at conferences like AGU, EGU, AIAC, and SHINE. As a leader of research projects she cares for healthy work environment, constructive relations, and successful project realization.

Research Projects & Publications

Study of periodic, solar cycle variations of solar wind dynamic pressure and their correlation with the H ENA flux observed by IBEX (Sokół et al. 2021, ApJ 922:250)
Revision of the heliospheric ionization rates due to the solar wind and solar EUV flux as a function of time and heliographic latitude, the Sun-Heliosphere Observation-based Ionization Rates (SHOIR; Sokół et al. 2020, ApJ 897:179)
Study of scientific opportunities for an interstellar neutral (ISN) gas detector with adjustable boresight direction like IMAP-Lo onboard the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) planned for launch in 2024 (Sokół et al. 2019, ApJS 245:28)
Demonstration of solar influence on the study of the interstellar neutral flow direction via pickup ions (PUIs) and a resulting apparent shift in a location of the PUI cone and crescent peaks observed from the Earth’s orbit (Sokół et al. 2016, MNRAS 458)
Study of global distributions of the ISN gas and PUIs of H, He, Ne, and O from inside 1 au up to heliospheric termination shock during extreme phases of solar activity cycle and determination of the most preferable detection locations (Sokół et al. 2019, ApJ 879:24)

Research Experience

Education

Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX, USA;
Senior Research Scientist (2023 - present), Research Scientist (2021-2023)

Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA;
2019 - 2020
NAWA Bekker Visiting Fellow

Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland;
2010 - 2019
associate researcher (2016 - 2019), research assistant (2013 - 2016),
specialist in Physics (2012 - 2013), physicist (2010 - 2011)

Ph.D. Physical Science, in the branch of Geophysics, 2016

Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
Supervisor: Dr. hab. Maciej Bzowski, associate professor SRC PAS
Thesis Title: “Modulation of selected species of neutral interstellar gas and their derivative populations in the heliosphere due to solar activity cycle effects"
Degree awarded on 30th November 2016
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Internships

Heliophysics Mission Design School, NASA JPL (2022)

Research Appointments

SHIELD DRIVE Science Center: Director of Research Thrust 1 - Global Structure of the Heliosphere (2022 - present)

M.Sc. Physics, with major in Experimental Physics, 2010

Opole University, Faculty of Mathematics, Physics, and Informatics, Opole, Poland
Supervisor: Prof. Dr. hab. Piotr Garbaczewski, full professor
Thesis Title: “Entropia i czas” (EN: Entropy and time)
Degree awarded on 16th June 2010
The final grade: excellent
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Research Visits

2019/2020	NAWA Bekker Visiting Fellow in the Department of Astrophysical Sciences at Princeton University, NJ, USA June 2019 - May 2020 (Space Physics at Princeton)
2019	Visiting scientist at Nagoya University, Japan (P-STEP programme fellow) February-March 2019
2018	Visiting researcher at University of New Hamsphire in Durham, USA (Dotacja dla Młodych Naukowców, KIWZ.407.02.01.2018) October 2018

Membership in Science Teams		Other
Interstellar Probe Heliophysics Community Coordinator (2021 – present), Topical Group on Neutrals (2020 – present) Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) IMAP-Lo Conversion Surface Subsystem (2021 - present), IMAP Co-I (2016 – present), Proposal Team (2016 – 2018) Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) Science Team 2010 – present (as supporting scientist)		International Astronomical Union Individual Member: 2022 American Geophysical Union Regular Member: 2017 - 2022 PhD student: 2013 - 2016 European Geosciences Union Regular Member: 2012, 2017, 2020, 2023 PhD student: 2014

Popular Science and Education Activity & Community Service

Convener & Chairman:

Online Online Seminar “Outer Heliosphere and VLISM" (host together with Elena Provornikova and Marc Kornbleuth; April 2021 - present)
Co-convener of the session "The Past, Present, and Future of Heliophysics Through In-situ Observations of the Outer Heliosphere and the Interstellar Medium" AGU Fall Meeting 2023, December 11 - 15, San Francisco, CA
Co-convener of the session "Interstellar Probe Meets the Future: Inspiring Generations of Space Scientists by Exploring the Unknown" AGU Fall Meeting 2022, December 12 - 16,Chicago, IL
Co-convener of the session "Pickup Ions From Various Sources Within the Heliosphere" AGU Fall Meeting 2022, December 12 - 16,Chicago, IL
Co-convener and chairman of the session "Connecting the Heliosphere with the Interstellar Medium" SHINE 2022, June 26 - July 1, 2022, Honolulu, HI
Co-convener and chairman of the session "SH11B - Interstellar Probe: A Mission Through the Heliosphere Edge Into the Local Interstellar Space" AGU Fall Meeting 2021, December 13-17, 2021, New Orleans, LA
Pre-Heliophysics 2050 Discussion Group “Outer Heliosphere and Local Interstellar Medium” (online; convener and chairman)

Chairman of the sessions SH019 - Interstellar Probe: Pushing the Boundaries of Space Exploration I and SH017 - Interstellar Probe: Pushing the Boundaries of Space Exploration II Posters at AGU 2020, Online Everywhere, December 1-17, 2020
Co-convener of the session "Interstellar Probe: Pushing the Boundaries of Space Exploration" AGU Fall Meeting 2020, Virtual, December 7-11, 2020
Convener of the session ST1.6: "Exploration of the Heliosphere and the Interstellar Medium with IMAP and Interstellar Probe" at EGU 2020, Vienna, Austria, May 3-8, 2020
Chairman at the #23 IBEX SWT Meeting, Santa Fe, NM, USA, June 17-21, 2019
Chairman at the 18th Annual International Astrophysics Conference, Pasadena, CA, USA, February 18-22, 2019
Chairman of the sessions SH11A: Physics of the Global Heliosphere and Local Interstellar Medium I and SH11A: Physics of the Global Heliosphere and Local Interstellar Medium Posters at AGU 2018, Washington, DC, USA, December 10-14, 2018
Convener of the session SH11A: Physics of the Global Heliosphere and Local Interstellar Medium at AGU 2018, Washington, DC, USA, December 10-14, 2018
Chairman at the 17th Annual International Astrophysics Conference, Santa Fe, NM, USA, March 5-9, 2018
Chairman of the session SH23A: Global Observations of the Heliosphere and the Local Interstellar Medium: IBEX, Connections with Voyager, and Preparations for IMAP I at AGU 2016, San Francisco, CA, USA, December 12-16, 2016
Convener of the session SH23A: Global Observations of the Heliosphere and the Local Interstellar Medium: IBEX, Connections with Voyager, and Preparations for IMAP at AGU 2016, San Francisco, CA, USA, December 12-16, 2016
Chairman of the session SH41E: Observations of the Local Interstellar Medium and Motivations for IMAP Posters at AGU 2015, San Francisco, CA, USA, December 14-18, 2015
Convener of the session SH41E: Observations of the Local Interstellar Medium and Motivations for IMAP at AGU 2015, San Francisco, CA, USA, December 14-18, 2015

Reviewer:

Reviewer of The Astrophysical Journal, Nature Astronomy
Reviewer of the NASA ROSES program
OSPA Judge AGU Fall Meeting 2017, 2019, 2020
Evaluator of Stage A of the Odysseus II European Youth Space Contest 2016, 2017 (link)

Interviews & Press Releases:

Press release contribution (Oct 19, 2021): Studying the Edge of the Sun’s Magnetic Bubble by NASA
Interview in Polish (24.07.2020): Bliżej granic heliosfery ze stypendium NAWA (eng: Closer to the boundaries of the heliosphere with the NAWA fellowship)
Press release contribution (Jun 11, 2020): IBEX Charts 11 Years of Change at Boundary to Interstellar Space by NASA and Princeton University
Guest appearance in radio broadcast "Warszawski salon naukowy" by Monika Florek-Mostowska in Radio Warszawa 106.2 FM (17 September 2013)

Others:

Voluntary help in Mercury Transit Observations at Princeton University (2019)
Voluntary Service in Astronomical Observatory at Opole University (2008-2010): popular science talks and discussions during night and day (solar) observations for various age audience
Physics demonstrations for school-age groups as a member of Society of Physics Students, Institute of Physics, Opole University (2005-2008).

Trainings

Design of Experiments (SwRI, 2021)
Managing Effective Interactions (Princeton University, 2019)
"Write or Wrong: Improving Written Communication" (Princeton University, 2019)
"Focus on Peer Review" (Nature Masterclasses, 2019)
Communicating Science with Any Audience (AGU Sharing Science, Washington DC, 2018)
Integrated Parallel Computing in Wolfram Mathematica (Cracow, March 20, 2015)
Wolfram Technologies Workshop (Warsaw, October 14, 2014)

Mentoring (directly supervised)

2017	Summer Student, University of Warsaw, Faculty of Physics (September 2019) Project Title: “Wizualizacja rozkładu neutralnego gazu międzygwiazdowego obserwowanego z orbity Ziemi” (EN: “Visualization of distribution of the interstellar neutral gas observed from the Earth’s orbit”)

Awards

2019	Distinction for scientific and publication activity in research of present and future space experiments (group) Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
2018	Heliophysics Future Leader for IMAP-Lo (in years 2018-2019)
2017	Award for promoting the significance of teamwork and for the results obtained in the study of the heliosphere during the first eight years of the IBEX mission (group) Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
2016	Award for obtaining the PhD degree in physical sciences in the branch of geophysics Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
2015	Award for a series of thirteen publications on the study of the helium interstellar neutral gas based on the IBEX experiment (group) Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
2014	Award for publication activity Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
2013	Award for outstanding scientific achievements confirmed by numerous publications Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
2012	Distinction for scientific achievements in research study of the interstellar neutral gas and the solar wind (group) Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
2006, 2007, 2008, 2009	Annual scientific scholarship for the academic grades from the Faculty of Mathematics Physics and Computer Science Opole University, Opole, Poland

Selected International Conferences & Workshops

New Horizons Science Team Meeting (2023)
SHIELD DRIVE Science Center Team Meeting (2023)
MMS Community Workshop (2022 - 2023)
IMAP Science Working Team Meetings (2018 – 2022)
IBEX Science Working Team Meetings (2011 – 2022)
Interstellar Probe Exploration Workshop (2020, 2021)
SHINE Workshop (2022)
Heliosphere in LISM 2.020 Workshop ISSI, Bern (2021)
Heliophysics 2050 Workshop (2021)
Observatory for the Outer Heliosphere and Boundaries Workshop (2021)
NASEM Space and Aeronautics, Solar and Space Physics Decadal Survey Early-Career Webinar Series (2021)
American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting (AGU; 2013, 2015 – 2022)
European Geosciences Union General Assembly (EGU; 2012, 2014, 2017, 2020, 2023)
Annual International Astrophysics Conference (AIAC; 2017, 2018, 2019)
Remote Sensing of the Heliosphere Workshop (IPS workshop; 2011, 2016, 2017)
39th COSPAR Scientific Assembly (2012)