Sae Aizawa

Sae Aizawa is a CNRS Research Fellow at the Plasma Physics Laboratory (LPP) affiliated with École Polytechnique and Sorbonne University. She specializes in space plasma physics, focusing on planetary interactions with solar wind and atmospheric escape processes. Her work integrates numerical simulations, space mission instrumentation, and in-situ data analysis.

Education:

• PhD in Physics/Geophysics (2016–2019): Double degree from Tohoku University (Japan) and Sorbonne Université (France)
• Master in Geophysics (2014–2016): Tohoku University
• Bachelor in Physics (2010–2014): Tokyo University of Science

Research Interests: Investigates solar wind interactions with Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter; plasma instabilities and wave-particle dynamics; atmospheric escape mechanisms on unmagnetized planets. Develops hybrid simulation tools like LatHyS to model planetary environments.

Mission Roles:

• Deputy PI of M-MSA instrument for ESA’s M-MATISSE mission
• Co-Investigator for multiple instruments on BepiColombo (MSA, MEA, PWI)
• Associate Scientist for JUICE’s RPWI instrument

Awards & Outreach: 2022 Kamide Lecture Award; contributed to press releases on BepiColombo discoveries, including Venus’ extended stagnation region and Mercury flyby observations.