James G. Laframboise Ph.D. (Toronto) Professor Emeritus of Physics This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Research Field: Planetary Physics Research specialization: Theory of electrode devices in plasmas; spacecraft-plasma interactions. Publications

Orbiting satellites fly through a dilute gas of ions and electrons, called a "plasma". The lighter electrons accumulate faster on the satellites' surfaces, producing a disturbed region of unbalanced electrical charge around every satellite. This unbalanced charge can produce discharges, damaging satellites and causing them to fail. For measurements taken on satellites to be accurate, this disturbance must be factored into the design of instruments and the interpretation of measurements. Laframboise creates mathematical models which do just that.