Congratulations to Benjamin Cox who successfully defended his PhD thesis: “Parameter Estimation in Sparse State-Space Models.”

A special thank you note goes out to Ben’s supervisors Dr Victor Elvira Arregui (Edinburgh lead) and Dr Nicole Augustin (Edinburgh) and both examiners, Prof Finn Lindgren (Edinburgh) and Dr Axel Finke (Newcastle).

SENSE would like to take this opportunity to thank our funder the Natural Environment Research Council, Sam’s CASE partner institutions Space Intelligence, SENSE wider community, and Ben’s family and friends, for their invaluable support and input into his PhD journey.

From all of us at SENSE – congratulations! Wishing you all the very best in your future career.

Congratulations to Morag Fotheringham who successfully defended her PhD thesis: “Glacier and Ice Cap Mass Balance from CryoSat-2 Swath Altimetry: Global Estimates and Arctic Process Insights.”

The panel of examiners commended the novel data presented and the student’s significant knowledge of satellite analysis of glacier and ice cap mass balance.

A special thank you note goes out to Morag’s supervisory team Dr Noel Gourmelen (Edinburgh), Dr Michael Tamados (UCL), Prof Eleanor Frajka-Williams (NOC), Dr Gary Watmough (Edinburgh) and both examiners, Dr Daniel Goldberg (Edinburgh) and Prof Anna Hogg (Leeds).

SENSE would like to take this opportunity to thank our funder the Natural Environment Research Council, Morag’s CASE partner Earthwave, SENSE wider community, and Morag’s family and friends, for their invaluable support and input into her PhD journey.

From all of us at SENSE – congratulations! Wishing you all the very best in your future career.

Congratulations to Nick Homer who successfully defended his PhD thesis: “Applying Machine Learning to Earth Observation of Antarctic Ice Shelves and Icebergs.”

The panel of examiners unanimously confirmed that thesis was a significant contribution in the field, presented new findings related to observations of the Getz Ice Shelf and a novel application of the Segment Anything Models to the problem of iceberg tracking.

A special thank you note goes out to Nick’s supervisory team Prof Robert Bingham (Edinburgh), Dr Sohan Seth (Edinburgh), Dr Noel Gourmelen (Edinburgh), Dr Hamish Pritchard (BAS), Dr Lorna Street (Edinburgh) and to examiners, Prof Peter Nienow (Edinburgh), Prof James Lea (Liverpool) and Dr Albert Miles (Edinburgh).

SENSE would like to take this opportunity to thank our funder the Natural Environment Research Council, Nick’s CASE partner institutions Alan Turning Institute & John Muir Trust, SENSE wider community, and Nick’s family and friends, for their invaluable support and input into his PhD journey.

From all of us at SENSE – congratulations! Wishing you all the very best in your future career.

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Congratulations to Calum Hoad who successfully defended his PhD thesis: “If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail: Spectral trends as a measure of ecological change in the Arctic.”

The panel of examiners unanimously confirmed that thesis was of exceptionally high quality in both presentation and content, and a significant contribution in the field.

A special thank you note goes out to Calum’s supervisors Dr Claudia Colesie (Edinburgh), Dr Isla Myers-Smith (British Columbia), Dr Jakob Assman (Aarhus University, Institut for Biologi), Dr Jeffrey Taylor Kerby (Aarhus University, Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies), Dr Massimo Bollasina (Edinburgh) and both examiners, Dr Andrew Gray (Norsk Institutt for Naturforskning) and Prof Caroline Nichol (Edinburgh).

SENSE training programme enabled Calum significantly to obtain the degree and helped him towards the next step in his career in the space sector. Amongst many highlights, Calum mentions:

SENSE CDT is outstanding among doctoral programmes for the care and attention given to producing an innovative and supportive PhD environment. I’ve benefitted from the wisdom of an excellent management team and a cohort of brilliant, friendly peers. I hope to move forward in as positive a direction, and to stay in touch with those I’ve met and worked with in this phase of my life.

SENSE would like to take this opportunity to thank our funder the Natural Environment Research Council, SENSE wider community, and Calum’s family and friends, for their invaluable support and input into his PhD journey.

From all of us at SENSE – congratulations! Wishing you all the very best in your future career.

Congratulations to Solomon White who successfully defended his PhD thesis: “High Resolution Multispectral Estimation of Sea Surface Salinity and Temperature in Coastal Areas.”

The panel of examiners unanimously confirmed that thesis was of exceptionally high quality in both presentation and content, and a significant contribution in the field.

A special thank you note goes out to Sol’s supervisors Dr Encarni Medina-Lopez (Edinburgh), Mr Tiago Silva (CEFAS), Dr Laurent Amoudry (NOC), Dr Adrien Martin (Noveltis, France) and both examiners, Dr Athanasios Angeloudis (Edinburgh) and Dr Brian Barnes (University of South Florida).

SENSE would like to take this opportunity to thank our funder the Natural Environment Research Council, Sol’s CASE partner CEFAS, SENSE wider community, and Sol’s family and friends, for their invaluable support and input into his PhD journey.

From all of us at SENSE – congratulations! Wishing you all the very best in your future career.

Congratulations to Penny Clarke who successfully defended her PhD thesis: “Cetacean strandings from space: Using very high-resolution satellite imagery to monitor whale and dolphin strandings.”

The panel of examiners unanimously confirmed that thesis was of exceptionally high quality in both presentation and content, and a significant contribution in the field.

A special thank you note goes out to Penny’s supervisors Dr Jennifer Jackson (BAS), Dr Gwawr Jones (JNCC), Dr Hannah Cubayne (BAS), Dr Carlos Olavarria (CEAZA, Chile), Dr Peter Fretwell (BAS), Dr Encarni Media-Lopez (Edinburgh, Prof Karen Stockin (Massey, New Zealand), and both examiners, Dr Athanasios Angeloudis (Edinburgh) and Prof Emer Rogan (Cork).

SENSE would like to take this opportunity to thank our funder the Natural Environment Research Council, Penny’s CASE partner Advisor to Government on Nature Conservation | JNCC, SENSE wider community, and Penny’s family and friends, for their invaluable support and input into her PhD journey.

From all of us at SENSE – congratulations! Wishing you all the very best in your future career.

Congratulations to Charlotte Walshaw who successfully defended her PhD thesis: “Remote Sensing of Antarctic Vegetation: Continental Mapping, Protection Assessment, and Spectroscopic Evaluation.”

The panel of examiners unanimously confirmed that thesis was of exceptionally high quality in both presentation and content, and a significant contribution in the field of antarctic vegetation.

A special thank you note goes out to Charlotte’s supervisors Dr Claudia Colesie (Edinburgh), Dr Andrew Gray (Edinburgh), Dr Kevin Newsham (BAS), Dr Peter Convey (BAS), Prof Robert Bingham (Edinburgh) and both examiners, Prof Sharon Robinson (Wollongong, Australia) and Dr Sian Henley (Edinburgh).

SENSE training programme enabled Charlotte significantly to obtain the degree, to access resources and software that might have otherwise been difficult, and helped her towards the next step in her career in Earth observation. Amongst many highlights, Charlotte mentions:

My time with SENSE has been a critical stepping stone for a future academic career in the space sector. It has equipped me with the skills, connections and confidence to progress into a PostDoc and continue working on the remote sensing research that I love.

SENSE would like to take this opportunity to thank our funder the Natural Environment Research Council, SENSE wider community, and Charlotte’s family and friends, for their invaluable support and input into her PhD journey.

From all of us at SENSE – congratulations! Wishing you all the very best in your future career.

Congratulations to Samuel Fielding who successfully defended his PhD thesis: “Improving the forecasting of ground effects of space weather using machine learning and satellite data.”

The panel of examiners unanimously confirmed that thesis was a significant contribution in the field of space-weather on Earth.

A special thank you note goes out to Sam’s supervisors, Prof Kathy Whaler (Edinburgh), Dr Gemma Richards (BGS), Dr Ciaran Beggan (BGS), Dr Phil Livermore (Leeds), Dr Sohan Seth (Edinburgh) and Prof Anton Ziolkowski (Edinburgh), and both examiners, Prof Jim Wild (Lancaster) and Prof Andrew Curtis (Edinburgh).

SENSE would like to take this opportunity to thank our funder the Natural Environment Research Council, Sam’s CASE partner institutions Met Office and the British Geological Survey, SENSE wider community, and Sam’s family and friends, for their invaluable support and input into his PhD journey.

From all of us at SENSE – congratulations! Wishing you all the very best in your future career.

Our students had the opportunity to dedicate some time to focus on writing and come together as a cohort. The retreats included mindfulness and stretching sessions, walking/running/tennis activity sessions and optional evening yoga. Our students had an excellent time and even met some friendly llamas on a chilly Yorkshire morning.

We recently had the pleasure of celebrating a significant milestone for our Cohort 3 PhD students – a fitting culmination of years of hard work and dedication. The event was held in person concurrently at the University of Edinburgh and the University of Leeds, and was a joyous occasion, featuring an engaging programme that highlighted the incredible achievements of our cohorts.

The event began with a summary of the programme outcomes and notable successes. SENSE CDT Co-Director Professor Kathy Whaler shared insights into the impactful research conducted and the contributions made by our students across various fields.

In a relaxed setting, several students took to the stage to present their research journeys. These presentations were delivered with enthusiasm and provided an opportunity for students to share their findings and experiences in an informal environment.

A key highlight was the award ceremony, where we acknowledged the exceptional accomplishments of some of our standout PhD candidates. Awards were given for Best Outreach, Best External Engagement and Best Paper, and presented by Beth Greenaway on behalf of our funder, the UK Space Agency (https://eo-cdt.org/sense-uk-space-agency-prizes-2026/).

The event was not just about recognition; it also served as a chance for students to unwind and connect with one another. Attendees enjoyed delicious refreshments, fostering a warm and festive atmosphere.

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to all our PhD students for their hard work and achievements. We look forward to seeing the remarkable contributions they will undoubtedly continue to make in the future.