Ten new Fellows have joined the Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Science Postdoctoral Fellowship programme at the University of Oxford
the programme is helping to accelerate the next scientific revolution by applying artificial intelligence (AI) techniques to research across the natural sciences
the Schmidt AI in Science Fellows are developing cutting-edge AI tools and applying them to pressing scientific challenges
The 2025 cohort brings together outstanding early-career researchers from departments across the Mathematical
who will use AI to advance fields ranging from cosmology to conservation
and from solar cell design to storm surge prediction
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Protruding from the central Atlantic Ocean
is an archipelago of nine volcanic islands
Eurasian and African plates meet at the Azores
the Azores are home to intense seismic and volcanic activity
the island of São Jorge saw extraordinary levels of seismicity
whilst only five events were recorded between 1st January-18th March 2022
more than 29,000 M2-3.3 events were recorded from March 19th to May 2022
This “seismic swarm” is reason for concern for the local Azorians
The last time a “seismic swarm” occurred was in 1964
ultimately leading to large earthquakes (M 7-8) and a submarine eruption of the coast of São Jorge
This led to 400 homes being destroyed and a further 500 damaged
causing 5,000 people to abandon the region
Will there be a large magnitude 8 earthquake
This situation needs to be closely monitored
In response to the “seismic swarm” a NERC emergency grant was won by Prof
and her team of enthusiastic seismologists headed to the Azores for a 12-day deployment expedition in late June/early July 2022
The team consisted of the experienced Dr João Fontiela (Univ
a local geophysicist who knows just about everything about the islands
off-set by the inexperience of Auggie Marignier (a PhD student at UCL) and Will Sturgeon (a post-doc at UCL)
The nature of studying seismology often means a lot of time processing and modelling data
This provided an exciting opportunity to get into the field and brush up on our field-seismology skillset
10 brand-new trillium compact seismometers were loaned from SEIS-UK to be installed on the islands of Faial
inevitably there are challenges along the way
delicate kit on rough terrain sometimes challenging
digging holes in rocky ground is generally hard work and screwing nuts and bolts with a huge bull staring you down can also be a daunting task
A wet João Fontiela preparing the solar panel with a protective bull behind him (separated by an electric fence)
João and Auggie preparing to dig in the foothills of Pico volcano
Carefully securing all seismic equipment in the truck
A real bonus of such a deployment is travelling across the different islands and experiencing their unique characteristics
is home to the infamous Peter’s Café Sport bar
where the walls and ceilings are decked with flags of the sailors who have stopped for a gin
A short drive away is the site of the Capelinhos volcano which erupted in 1957
where we highly recommend a trip around the interactive museum
At the summit of a very wet and cloudy Pico volcano
home to the largest volcano in the Azores (2,351 m elevation)
with constant thick cloud that blocked any chance of a view
some redemption was found during lunch on the summit whilst being heated by fumaroles from below
home of the seismic swarm but not home to much else
Looking up through the main vent of the Algar do Carvao volcano
The “cathedral” in the Algar do Carvao volcano
a bright yellow digger appeared from the horizon to dig the deepest hole yet
Expect some preposterously high signal-to-noise ratios from this station
we made a pit-stop at Algar do Carvao volcano
one of the only volcanos in the world where the public can enter inside the magma chamber
It’s also home to a fresh-water lake at the bottom and music concerts are held in the “Cathedral” section
The ten seismometers will remain buried until December 2022 constantly recording the Earth’s vibrations
A further 50 seismometers have also been installed on the ocean floor around the Azores
Canaries and Madeira as part of the UPFLOW project
It is hopeful that the results of these deployments
and subsequent analysis of the data will have a positive impact on our understanding of the seismic and volcanic risks in the Azores
who works for the civil protection unit in Angra do Heroísmo (the capital of Terceira) stated “the tomography models from UPFLOW will allow for more detailed images of the magma chamber [in Terceira]
which may allow for the identification of mantle plumes
and all of this helps to understand the volcanic hazard and risk”
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