Dr. Alexander Grayver

I am a geophysicist with a strong background in computational sciences and geophysical imaging. By combining state-of-the-art numerical and data analysis methods with ground, airborne and space geophysical observations, I aim to advance our understanding of key physical properties and processes in and outside the Earth.

I am interested in applications ranging from near-surface imaging for groundwater, CO2 storage, geothermal, and mineral exploration to the modeling of geomagnetic storms and remote sensing of extraterrestrial bodies.

Presently, I hold a Heisenberg Grant from the German Science Foundation, and I teach and conduct research at the Institute of Geophysics and Meteorology, University of Cologne. Previously, I was a research scientist and lecturer at the ETH Zurich and GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences.

Check the sections below to learn more about my work and path. Also, see

• Science meets art

• Popular articles about our work

• Teaching Statement

• Supervision Statement

Crust-mantle system

• Near-surface imaging (groundwater, CO2 storage)

• Geothermal and mineral systems (exploration and prospectivity mapping)

• Imaging of volcanic systems

• Subglacial environments

• Mantle hydration and melting processes

Space and Oceans

• Space weather, GICs, Geomagnetic field modeling

• Electromagnetic induction in Oceans

Planetary studies

• Electromagnetic sounding of planetary interiors

• Electromagnetic star-planet interactions

• Electromagnetic (MT, CSEM, TEM, GDS) and potential field (magnetic and gravity) methods

• Inverse Problems and Data Assimilation: developing methodologies and software tools for geophysical imaging and assimilation of electromagnetic fields.

• Large-scale geophysical simulations using the finite-element method to solve Partial Differential Equations (PDEs).

• Geomagnetic Field Modeling: Integration of ground and satellite-based observations to refine models of the Earth's magnetic field.

• Remote Sensing methods for planetary interior studies.

Software

• GoFEM: 3-D Electromagnetic Forward and Inverse Solver (C++/Python)

• deal.II: I'm a long-term contributor to this Finite-Element Method (FEM) library.

• StreakCNN: ensemble CNNs for the analysis of turbulent flows (Python/PyTorch)

• EDI Tools: A GUI tool to handle large collections of Magnetotelluric data files (C++/Qt)

(to be updated...)

• EMHeatPlanet: calculating electromagnetic (Joule's) heating in planetary interiors (Python)

• CMAINV: versatile stochastic optimization for non-linear inverse problems (C++)

Models

• Earth's conductivity

• Geomagnetic field

• Extraterrestrial bodies

Reviewer

• Reviewed more than 100 papers since 2013 for journals: Nature Geoscience, Geology, Science Advances, Geophysical Journal International, Geophysics, Journal of Geophysical Research, Geophysical Prospecting, Surveys in Geophysics, Journal of Applied Geophysics, Pure and Applied Geophysics, Annales Geophysicae, Earth Planets and Space, Geoscience and Remote Sensing Letters, Computers and Structures, Computational Geosciences, Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, EGU Solid Earth, Phil. Trans. R. Soc.

• External reviewer/examiner on PhD committees in Germany, Switzerland and Sweden.

• External reviewer for research proposals.

International Committees

• Invited Member, “Science Advisory Group for the ESA Scout NanoMagSat mission”

• Consortium Member, “ESA Swarm Data, Innovation, and Science Cluster”

• Validation Committee “International Geomagnetic Reference Field 14th generation”.

• Board Member, IAGA Working Group “Geomagnetic Observations”

Convener/chair responsibilities

• Living Planet Symposium 2025, European Space Agency, Science Review Board

• The 4th “Outer planet moon-magnetosphere interaction workshop”, Co-Host

• Swarm 10 Year Anniversary & Science Conference 2024 (Program Committee)

• IUGG General Assembly 2023 (Joint Symposium “Joint Inversion of Different Geophysical Data Sets”)

• IAGA-IASPEI General Assembly 2021 (Session “Electromagnetic Induction in Earth”)

• EGU 2020 (Session “Electromagnetic induction in geophysics”)

• IUGG 2019 (Session “Advances in EMI theory: Data processing, modelling and inversions”)

• EGU 2019 (Session “Dynamics and interaction of processes in Earth and space environment”)

• IAGA EM Induction Workshop 2018 (Session “Theory, Modelling and Inversion”)

• EGU 2016 (Session “Earth's interior insights from electromagnetic induction studies”)

• DGG 2016 (Session “Data, Models, and Reality”)

• Workshop on EM induction in Earth’s oceans and icy moons, Charles University, January 2025

• Swedish Institute of Space Physics, Uppsala, March 2024

• IUGG General Assembly, July 2023, Berlin

• International Space Science Institute, May 2023, Bern Switzerland

• Utrecht University, Seismo Seminar, January 2023, Netherlands

• IAGA EM Induction Workshop 2022, Turkey

• Swiss PlanetS Workshop on “Exoplanet atmosphere-interior interactions”, 2021

• University of Lausanne, Faculty of Geosciences and Environment, 2020

• EGU Assembly, 2020, Vienna

• GFZ Potsdam, 2020

• Symposium on Space Missions to Terrestrial Planets, The Summer School Alpbach, Switzerland, 2019

• University of Münster, Physics Department Colloquium, 2019

• AGU Fall Meeting, 2017, USA

• IAGA Assembly 2017, South Africa

• EGU Assembly, 2017, Austria

• AGU Fall Meeting, 2016, USA

• BCAM Workshop on Inverse Problems, 2016, Bilbao, Spain

• AGU Fall Meeting, 2014, USA

• ETH Zürich, Institute of Geophysics, 2014, Switzerland

• Texas A&M University, Department of Mathematics, 2013, USA

• Chinese-German Symposium on “Geo-Electromagnetic Soundings”, 2013, China