Research interests
My research focuses on the understanding of Earth's core dynamics.
Core rapid dynamics -- at the centenial-millenial timescales -- is dominated by the effect of Earth's rotation.
I do numerical modeling of that physics, which is also characterized as almost diffusionless for large space scales.
Attesting that short timescales physics, the Earth magnetic field is evolving in space and time, this is called the geomagnetic secular variation.
Direct observations of secular variation are available since 4 centuries as logbook of sailors, ground observatory data or satellite data.
I am interested in solving the dynamical inverse problem that consist of finding the state of the Earth core that explain an observation database,
given physical laws of the Earth core evolution.
This consist of solving a data assimilation problem, that framework is used for many years in the fields of atmospheric and oceanic dynamics.
Publications
Thebault, E. , Finlay, C., Alken, P., Beggan, C., Canet, E., Chulliat, A., Langlais, B., Lesur, V., Lowes, F., Manoj, C., Rother, M., Schachtschneider, R. ; Evaluation of candidate geomagnetic field models for IGRF-12 , Earth, Planets and Space , doi:10.1186/s40623-015-0273-4, 2015,
Thebault, E. , et al. International Geomagnetic Reference Field: the 12th generation , Earth, Planets and Space , doi:10.1186/s40623-015-0228-9, 2015,
Canet, E., Finlay, C. C., Fournier, A. ; Hydromagnetic quasi-geostrophic modes in rapidly rotating planetary cores ,
Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors , http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pepi.2013.12.006, 2014,
Fournier, A., Hulot, G., Jault, D., Kuang, W., Tangborn, A., Gillet, N., Canet, E., Aubert, J., Lhuillier, F. ;
An Introduction to Data Assimilation and Predictability in Geomagnetism , Space Science Review , DOI: 10.1007/s11214-010-9669-4, 2010,
Gillet, N., Jault, D., Canet, E., Fournier, A. ;
Fast torsional oscillations and strong magnetic field within the Earth's core , Nature, 465, 74-77, doi:10.1038/nature09010, 2010
Canet, E., Fournier, A., Jault, D. ;
Forward and adjoint quasi-geostrophic models of the geomagnetic secular variation , J. Geophys. Res., 114, B11101, doi:10.1029/2008JB006189, 2009
Hollerbach, R., Canet, E., Fournier, A. ;
Spherical Couette flow in a dipolar magnetic field , European Journal of Mechanics/B Fluids, 26, 729--737, 2007
Teaching
Since 2012, I am responsible for ETHZ Geophysics MSc course Earth's core and the geodynamo.
I teach this course together with S. Miralles.
Keywords
Earth's core dynamics
Numerical modeling
Variational data assimilation
