Very Interesting – July-August 2019

What do you do?

Melanie Windridge I’m a

physicist working with

Tokamak Energy, a company

that’s developing fusion

energy. I’ve just climbed

Everest and am writing a

book about the science

behind it.

What’s the link between science

and exploration?

Science is an exploration. In

my work, we’re trying to

create a clean energy source

for humankind. Fusion

energy is cutting-edge. It’s

exploration. It’s going places

people have never been

before and trying to do

something that seems almost

impossible. If you think

about polar exploration or

climbing Everest, it’s the

same kind of thing.

How did you get into

exploration?

I had a pivotal moment when

I was at university. My

housemate told me that if I

transferred to a slightly

different degree, I’d get to go

to France and go skiing every

weekend. So I did. I spent my

third year in Grenoble. It

made me realise there was a

whole world outside of my

bubble and made me less

scared of doing things that

challenge me. Most

importantly, it made me want

to be in the mountains.

What’s been your toughest

adventure?

In 2015, I spent a week skiing

across Svalbard in the Arctic

to see the aurora – a plasma

phenomenon. The

temperature got down to

-40°C. Everything was

frozen all the time, even in

the tent. You spend your

whole day oscillating in and

out of pain, because every

time you need the dexterity

of your fingers and you take

your mittens off, they start to

hurt within seconds.

What about Everest?

Everest is different. It’s not

so cold, but it’s long and

drawn out. The altitude

wears you down. Little things

like coughs and colds don’t

get better, and you end up

climbing this incredible

mountain when you should

be in bed recovering. You

need experience to know

how to look after yourself;

not so you can climb, but so

you can stay alive.

Which should I visit?

I’d encourage people to go to

the Arctic. It’s a different

kind of place. The light’s

different. It’s magical and it’s

harsh. You imagine the

Arctic as being this soft,

snowy landscape that’s

cutesy and Christmassy, but

it’s ice and rock and wind.

Then there’s the aurora. I’ve

seen them four or five times

now, and it’s still not enough.

What life skills have you

learned?

One of the scariest things

you have to do on Everest is

to cross large crevasses by

balancing on ladders. It

taught me how to manage my

fear. The mountains have

also taught me patience and

acceptance. When you’re

climbing, you can’t control

the weather. Sometimes you

have no choice but to wait it

out.

One message for our readers?

Whether it is scientific or

geographical, go out and

explore! 7

[email protected]

Melanie’s book, Aurora: In

Search Of The Northern Lights,

is available in paperback

now.

Plasma physicist Melanie Windridge

talks about her twin passions of

science and exploration

„ TEXT: HELEN PILCHER

Dr Melanie Windridge

is an academic visitor

in plasma physics at

Imperial College

London. Find out more

about the science of

Everest at bit.ly/

EverestIOP.

A fusion of

fascinations

“Fusion energy is cutting-edge.

It’s exploration. It’s going places

people have never been before.”