I’ve always been inspired by the natural world – especially space, and the atmosphere. This led me towards a first degree in Natural Sciences at Durham, where I specialised in Applied Physics and Philosophy. After this I wanted to apply the physics I’d learnt to a real world problem, so I did an instrumentation PhD at the Department of Meteorology, Reading University. Before I came back to the West Country in 2018, I worked as a researcher and educator at Oxford University and the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory’s Space Science and Technology Department. I enjoy working on many interesting aspects of space, planetary and atmospheric science and engineering, and was awarded the James Dungey Lectureship by the Royal Astronomical Society in 2021 for founding the new field of planetary atmospheric electricity. I also enjoy outreach and media work. Outside work I enjoy getting outdoors and playing the double bass, though not simultaneously.