COSPAR 2026 - 46th scientific assembly, Florence, 1.-9. August

COSPAR is one of the largest international meetings in space science, bringing together researchers from a broad range of disciplines: from atmospheric and planetary sciences to astrophysics, Earth observation, and space missions. From gravity waves to gravitational waves! :)

For me, one of the highlights was giving a solicited presentation in the session “Gravity Waves and Turbulence in the Middle Atmosphere and Lower Ionosphere.” I presented my recent work on WAVEGUISE, a new approach for identifying and separating individual coherent wave packets in complex atmospheric observations. It was a great opportunity to discuss the method with the gravity-wave community and receive valuable feedback and new ideas.

Florence itself provided a spectacular setting for the conference with its historic city centre, impressive architecture, and, of course, excellent Italian food. Particularly italian gelato was my everyday companion since Florence experienced a heat wave these days with 38°C every single day. Walking through Florence between conference sessions quickly became a sweat sesh...

Overall, COSPAR 2026 was an inspiring week filled with interesting science, discussions with old and new colleagues, and plenty of new ideas to take home.