SMILE EUROPEAN CO-PI : Graziella Branduardi-Raymont 

Graziella BRANDUARDI-RAYMONT is professor of space astronomy of department of space & climate physics, University College London. She is now Co-PI of the ESA-CAS Joint Space Science Mission – SMILE.

She got the PhD in X-ray Astronomy from University College London (UCL) – Mullard Space Science Laboratory (MSSL). Her research achievements mainly include more than forty years of experience in multi-wavelength astrophysics (analysis, interpretation and modelling of astrophysical data from space and ground observatories). Scientific team member for major X-ray astronomy space missions (Copernicus, Ariel V, Einstein Observatory, EXOSAT, ROSAT, XMM-Newton). Co-Investigator (since 1990) for the Reflection Grating Spectrometer (RGS) flying onboard ESA's XMM-Newton Observatory. Lead Investigator for AXIOM (Advanced X-ray Imaging Of the Magnetosphere), proposed as a medium- and small-size ESA mission to map the global behaviour of the Earth’s magnetosphere under the impact of the solar wind; Co-Principal Investigator for SMILE (Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer), a joint ESA-Chinese Academy of Sciences mission under development (launch 2023) dedicated to X-ray imaging of the Earth’s dayside magnetosphere, to UV imaging of the Northern aurora and in situ probing of geospace. Member of the Science Advisory Team for the X-IFU instrument on ESA’s future large X-ray observatory mission Athena and co-Chair of the Athena Solar System and Exoplanets Working Group Topical Panel. Member of ESA’s Space Plasma Physics Topical Team for the Deep Space Gateway. Convener of high resolution X-ray spectroscopy workshops, reviewer of scientific proposals and publications referee, invited speaker at national and international conferences. 173 refereed publications, 118 un-refereed, 63 miscellanea including scientific reports, proposals, technical documents, plus lecture notes and outreach material. Professor BRANDUARDI-RAYMONT’s research interests are Galactic and extragalactic research: X-ray binaries, Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN), clusters of galaxies, the X-ray background; also stars and solar system bodies; current research is focused on planetary X-ray emission and high resolution X-ray spectroscopy of the gaseous environment of AGN.

Contact Information: g.branduardi-raymont@ucl.ac.uk  

SMILE CHINESE CO-PI : Chi Wang

Chi Wang is a Professor and the Director General of the National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, also the Director of the State Key Laboratory of Space Weather. He graduated from the University of Science and Technology of China, and got his Ph.D. degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA. His research interesting focuses on the large-scale solar wind structures in the heliosphere and the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetosphere. He worked on the plasma experiments on Voyager 2 and developed a multi-fluid solar wind model. Starting from 2002, he led the effort to establish the first state key laboratory of space weather in China, and to develop of a global MHD model of the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetosphere. So far, he has published more than 200 peer-reviewed papers including Nature, JGR etc. He was the PI of the Chinese Meridian Project, which is the ground-based space environment monitoring chain in China. He currently is the Co-PI of the solar wind – magnetosphere – ionosphere link explorer (SMILE) and the deputy chief engineer of the Chinese Lunar Exploration CE-4 mission. Dr. Wang received National Outstanding Young Scientist Award from Chinese National Science Foundation in 2003, 9th National Science and Technology Award for Youth of China in 2006. He was elected as an IAA Corresponding Member in basic science in 2017.

Contact Information : cw@spaceweather.ac.cn

SMILE PROJECT SCIENTIST: C. Philippe Escoubet   

Philippe Escoubet is Project Scientist for the Cluster and SMILE missions. He got the M.S. and Ph.D from Toulouse University. Philippe Escoubet main scientific interest is Sun-Earth connection and in particular solar wind plasma entry in the magnetosphere. He is specialized in data analysis of plasma, electric and magnetic field instruments. He is Co-Investigator on various space missions: Cluster (CIS and ASPOC instruments), SMART-1 (SPEDE), Double Star (ASPOC and HIA), THEMIS, Bepi-Colombo (PICAM) and MMS (ASPOC). He has published more than 145 peer-reviewed publications in Nature, Physical review Letters, The Astrophysical Journal, Geophysical Review Letters and other journals, with a Google scholar h-index of 35. Philippe Escoubet got successful achievement in the research field got many honors and awards, e.g. ESA Cluster II mission launch award, Popular science award, NASA Cluster Science Team award, ESA-CNSA Double Star mission launch award, ESA Cluster 5th year in space award, IAA Cluster and Double Star Team Achievement award, ESA Team award, ESA Cluster 15th anniversary award, Royal Astronomical Society Group Achievement Award.

Contact Information: philippe.escoubet@esa.int 

SMILE CHIEF ENGINEER：Peijian YE

Mr. Peijian YE, chief engineer (CE) of SMILE mission, was born in Taixing city of Jiangshu province. He received Ph.D from Switzerland. He was a science and technology standing committee member of China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) and is an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

He was chief engineer and chief commander of Chinese first remote sensing satellite and made systematic and inonative contribution for this project. He was appointed as the satellite system engineer of Chang’E One mission and have made the great contributions to the successful exploration of the Moon in China for the first time. He is also appointed as the chief engineer and consultant of Chang’E series missions, Mars mission, and also chief scientist of space science and deep space explore project of CAST. January 2017, the International Asteroid Center (IAU) named No. 456677 asteriod as ”Ye Peijian Asteriod” .

Contact Information : evan3210@sina.com