Dr Melanie Windridge ,
book review
Dr Melanie Windridge ,
Physicist , speaker , writer … with a taste for adventure
Melanie grew up in Amersham and loves science and the outdoors , and has built up her career around these passions . Her new book , Aurora : In Search of the Northern Lights , was published by HarperCollins in February .
When I was 25 , after three post-university years travelling , I started a doctorate in plasma physics . I was studying fusion energy , particularly how we make fusion power stations on Earth . But fusion wasn ’ t the only plasma phenomenon that would capture my attention .
Fusion is what is happening in the stars to make them shine . Small particles combine to make bigger ones – just like assembling building blocks or Lego bricks . Fusion releases huge amounts of energy . But making a star on Earth is really hard to do , so we can ’ t do it yet . But we are working on it , and it will happen one day .
Towards the end of my doctorate I began to want to see the northern lights . I wanted to be exploring the wonder of nature in the outdoors , not in the lab . So I decided to write a book about the northern lights , and I went on an extraordinary journey to find out about them .
My first experience of the aurora was in Kiruna , Sweden :
“ To the west , the mine looked almost ethereal , dripping white light and with three plumes of smoke billowing into the sky , illuminated from below . I turned my back on the industry and looked north , where a very quiet aurora was beginning to appear as a green , arcing haze . Over time it grew in colour and clarity , the arch becoming more defined , then breaking and twisting into an S-shape . Other parts of the sky were brightening too , but in different ways ..”
I travelled in Northern Norway learning about the folklore and culture of the aurora . I went trekking in Iceland to get a feel for the active geology of our planet . I visited small observatories in Canada and even saw faint northern lights in Scotland . Finally , I skied out across Arctic Spitsbergen to see the aurora in the wilderness as old polar explorers would have done . I have never been so cold in my entire life !
This book really is a journey of discovery , as much about the travel , personal stories and history as about the science .
I continue working in fusion energy and planning trips for future projects . I would like to go to Antarctica and write about the incredible research that goes on down there . Of course , there will be a few personal challenges thrown in too ! I hope to inspire an appreciation of science through the excitement of exploration .
AURORA is available on Amazon and in bookshops like Waterstones , Blackwells and Foyles .
Visit www . melaniewindridge . co . uk or find Melanie on Twitter and Facebook .
Chris Sinclair - photography
10 To advertise in Hiya Bucks text or call 07947 349134