- Email: [email protected]
Brief summary on the status of my 2007 activities
International Geophysical Year on its fiftieth anniversary;
by the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) and the efforts of Member States and the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) to promote and support the activities being organized within the framework of the International Heliophysical Year 2007 (IHY 2007).
(f) To communicate unique International Heliophysical Year results to the scientific community and the general public. I H Y Plans
The IHY programme has four main components:
In 2007, a number of major anniversaries will occur, among them the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical Year and the launch of Sputnik 1. UNCOPUOS will also hold its 50th meeting in 2007. The IHY 2007 is an opportunity to (i) advance understanding of the fundamental heliophysical processes that govern the Sun, the Earth, and the heliosphere, (ii) continue the tradition of international research and advance the legacy of the IGY (1957-58), and (iii) demonstrate the beauty, relevance and significance of space and Earth science research to the world and its people (http://ihy2007.org). In preparation for the IHY, the UNOOSA, in cooperation with NASA, ESA, and the IHY Secretariat, held international workshops in the United Arab Emirates in 2005 (www.ihy.uaeu.ac.ae/) and in India in 2006 (www.iiap.res.in/ihy/), and is currently preparing another such a workshop to be held at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan in Tokyo, 11-15 June 2007 (www.unoosa.org/oosa/SAP/bss/IHY2007. html).
(a) Science activities, consisting primarily of coordinated programmes of investigations dedicated to the study of the extended heliophysical system and the universal processes common to all ofheliophysics; (b) The UNBSI distributed instrument observatory development programme, dedicated to the establishment of observatories and instrument arrays to expand knowledge of global heliophysical processes, while increasing the viability of space science research and education in developing countries and regions that have not yet been active in space research; (c) Education and public outreach - promoting public awareness of heliophysics and educational activities for students of all ages; (d) The IGY Gold History Initiative that is designed to preserve the history and legacy of the IGY by identifying and recognizing planners of and participants in that international world-wide scientific cooperative enterprise by preserving and making available items of historical significance from 1957-58 and organizing commemorative activities and events.
The results of these workshops, known as the United Nations Basic Space Science Initiative (UNBSSI) to provide 'low-cost, ground-based, instrument arrays around the world' are listed at http://ihy2007.org/ observatory/observatory.shtml. The starting date o f l H Y 2007 has been set for 19 February 2007. On that date, during the session of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of UNCOPUOS, the start of the IHY was marked by an IHY exhibit, a press briefing, and an opening ceremony in the UN Office in Vienna (see wwwle s i a ° b s p m fr/IHY/kickOFF/index html). For more detail of the IHY organizational structure, see http://ihy2007.org/ organization/organization.shtml.
Brief S u m m a r y on the Status of IHY 2007 Activities [By Hans J. Haubold]
T
he UN General Assembly, in its Resolution 60/99 of 2005, noted with satisfaction the contribution being made
41
for the Japanese International Heliophysical Year contribution. An education and public outreach officer, who maintains the Japanese homepage for the IHY at www2.nict.go.jp/ y/y223/sept/IHY/IHY-e.html (Shin-ichi Watari of NICT), has already been designated The Science Council of Japan with its continuing responsibility for solar-terrestrial physics will guide contributions from Japan to the IHY.
An undated document circulated for a meeting of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee (of COPUOS) in Vienna, 12-23 February 2007, contains reports on planned activities for the IHY in Finland, Japan, Latvia, Mexico and Poland, outline details of which are given below. Finland's activities for the IHY are linked to those for the International Polar Year 20072008 in and have been planned together. The ongoing activities, for which Jarmo Torsti of the University of Turku is acting as coordinator ([email protected]), relate to the Finnish Energetic and Relativistic Nuclei and Electron Experiment (ERNE) instrument on board SOHO (see www.srl.utu.fi/index english.html). Kirsti Kauristie of the Finnish Meteorological Institute is involved in the international Interhemispheric Conjugacy Effects in Solar-Terrestrial and Aeronomy Research (ICESTAR) project for which an application for official International Polar Year 2007-2008 status has been filed (in collaboration with Richard Harrison of the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, UK).
The Space Environment Research Centre at Kyushu University has been deploying magnetometers world-wide, forming a network called the Magnetic Data Acquisition System (MAGDAS). Data acquisition is automated and the data are sent in real time to the Research Center. During the IHY, the Research Center plans to deploy additional magnetometers in developing countries. The Kwasan and Hida Observatories at Kyoto University have several kinds of telescope that can perform high-resolution and high-precision observations of the Sun in various optical wavelengths. They also have a plan to deploy small telescopes world-wide, which will be used in monitoring solar flare explosions.
The framework for Finnish activities related to the International Heliophysical Year 2007 is as follows:
The Solar-Terrestrial Environment Laboratory at Nagoya University maintains four radio antennae in Japan to observe the scintillation of radio waves from celestial radio sources propagating through the interplanetary medium. Ass the Sun continuously emits the high speed 'solar wind' and occasionally blast waves in the solar wind, these disturbances, which cause aurorae and geomagnetic storms on the Earth, can be detected using the interplanetary scintillation observations. The Laboratory organizes collaborative studies with similar observatories elsewhere in the world, as well as with a NASA's dedicated satellitebased Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI), and continuously monitors the disturbances affecting the environment of the Earth. The disturbances in the solar wind that can affect the Earth can be monitored with a network of detectors for muons that has been developed by Shinshu University. Together with the interplanetary scintillation measurements, these
(a) The national Arctic/northern research programme; (b) An expedition to Kinnvika on the island of Svalbard, Norway; (c) Development of networking among circumArctic research stations; (d) Participation in international research projects and consortia; (e) Outreach for scientific research and education on Arctic and other northern regions; More information about Finnish activities related to the International Polar Year 2007-2008 can be found at www.ipy-finland.fi.
Japan. Following the setting up of task force of scientists in Japan with a particular interest in the IHY, a National Steering Committee was established to serve as the coordinating body
42
carrying out and expect to continue research on mapping the active areas of the Sun. A programme of scientific activities aimed at the general public has been designed and implemented in order to provide broader public familiarity with achievements in studies of Sun-Earth physics, emphasizing the research done in Latvia as well as the significance of the IHY 2007.
instruments will have promising contributions to make to space weather forecasts. NICT is the central institution for space weather forecasts in Japan. The Space Weather Information Center at NICT distributes information on space weather conditions in real time and issues warnings when necessary. In collaboration with eleven space weather information centres around the world (located in Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, India, Japan, Poland, the Russian Federation, Sweden and the USA) they plan to distribute publications on space weather during the IHY. These publications will be oriented towards the general public in various languages.
Mexico. The national scientific coordinators (Juan Amdrico Gonzfilez Esparza and Rogelio Caballero Lopez, researchers at the Institute of Geophysics), for the IHY in Mexico who were appointed a year ago attended the Latin American regional meetings at which the tasks to be performed during the Year were discussed. In particular, a web page, showing the activities to take place in Latin America, the research teams in the special sciences area and the joint scientific projects in the region, was designed. As part of the activities related to the International Heliophysical Year, the Institute of Geophysics is in the process of creating a virtual laboratory on solar observations and their relationship to the Earth. Lectures aimed at publicizing the IHY and its scientific importance have taken place at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and a researcher at the Institute has taken charge of like activities for the Year in Mexico.
The National Astronomical Observatory of Japan operates optical and radio telescopes to observe the Sun, particularly solar flare explosions. The Observatory has signed mutual agreements with several institutions from developing countries and has been assisting instrument set-ups and solar observations in Indonesia, Nigeria and Peru. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is responsible for scientific space experiments in Japan. The Agency, in cooperation with the National Astronomical Observatory, developed the Solar-B satellite, which was successfully launched in September 2006 and has been given the name Hinode (meaning 'sunrise'). The measurements being made by this satellite will constitute a significant contribution to the IHY by Japan.
An international congress on The Physics of Solar-Wind/Magnetosphere Coupling was held in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, from 4 to 8 November 2006 and included a session on the International Heliophysical Year. In 2007, the topic of heliophysics research will be taken up as part of the commemorative activities for the Year at the meeting of the American Geophysical Union and at the International Cosmic Ray Conference to be held in Merida, Mexico.
The Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (of JAXA) has been collaborating with other space institutions and promoting the International Living with a Star programme. This programme also aims to study the Sun-Earth system and focuses on any phenomena that might affect life and society on Earth.
Poland. Activities in Poland related to the IHY are being coordinated by Wieslaw Macek from the Space Research Centre in Warsaw. To date three events related to the International Year have been planned:
Latvia. The Ventspils International Radio Astronomy Centre (VIRAC) and the Institute of Astronomy of the University of Latvia are
(a) A conference on space weather and other
43
phenomena in the Earth's atmosphere under the patronage of the IHY will be held in Dwerniczek, Poland;
[In Memoriam Alan Shapley (1909-2006) - Senior Physicist of the IGY Era
(b) A conference on the 'Heliosphere and its Environment', is to be held in June 2008 in Warsaw (http ://ihy.cbk.waw.pl);
lan Horace Shapley of Boulder, Colorado, died on 20 October 2006 .following a brief illness at the Hospice Care Center in Louisville (near Boulder). He was 87.
A
(c) Ionospheric observations performed in the context of the Mitigation of Ionospheric Effects on Radio Systems initiative, which is being conducted in the framework of the Committee of Senior Officials for Scientific and Technical Research (COST) network and coordinated by the Space Research Centre in Poland (see www.ihy.cbk.waw.pl/poland.html)
International Geophysical Calendar 2007 he 2007 International Geophysical Calendar, issued under the auspices of the International Space Environment Service, is now available on-line at www.isesspaceweather.org.
T
National Research
Reports
on
Space Alan Shapley at an IGY meeting in the late 50s.
C
OSPAR encourages its members to exchange information on space research activities carried out in their own countries. One way of doing this is by producing reports summarizing space activities. Generally, such reports are produced in time for limited distribution at COSPAR assemblies. The following countries provided reports at the Beijing Assembly: Australia, Canada, China, Finland, France, India, Pakistan, Russia, Slovak Republic, the UK and the USA; a report was also received from ESA. Since the Assembly, reports from Switzerland and the Ukraine have been received.
The son of astronomer Harlow Shapley and Martha Betz Shapley, Alan attended Harvard College, graduating in 1940. He worked in the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism (Carnegie Institution of Washington) early in his career, making ionospheric predictions in collaboration with J. Virginia Lincoln in the National Bureau of Standards of the US Department of Commerce (NBS, now the National Institute for Science and Technology). He then worked for the NBS Central Radio Propagation Laboratory (CRPL) serving as Chief, Stm-Earth Relationships Section and subsequently at NOAA from 1947 to 1981. Shapley served as Director of the NOAA's National Geophysical and SolarTerrestrial Data Center (NGSDC, now NGDC) 1970-1981. He served on the committee that chose Boulder, Colorado as a new distributed
44
by the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) and the efforts of Member States and the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) to promote and support the activities being organized within the framework of the International Heliophysical Year 2007 (IHY 2007).
(f) To communicate unique International Heliophysical Year results to the scientific community and the general public. I H Y Plans
The IHY programme has four main components:
In 2007, a number of major anniversaries will occur, among them the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical Year and the launch of Sputnik 1. UNCOPUOS will also hold its 50th meeting in 2007. The IHY 2007 is an opportunity to (i) advance understanding of the fundamental heliophysical processes that govern the Sun, the Earth, and the heliosphere, (ii) continue the tradition of international research and advance the legacy of the IGY (1957-58), and (iii) demonstrate the beauty, relevance and significance of space and Earth science research to the world and its people (http://ihy2007.org). In preparation for the IHY, the UNOOSA, in cooperation with NASA, ESA, and the IHY Secretariat, held international workshops in the United Arab Emirates in 2005 (www.ihy.uaeu.ac.ae/) and in India in 2006 (www.iiap.res.in/ihy/), and is currently preparing another such a workshop to be held at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan in Tokyo, 11-15 June 2007 (www.unoosa.org/oosa/SAP/bss/IHY2007. html).
(a) Science activities, consisting primarily of coordinated programmes of investigations dedicated to the study of the extended heliophysical system and the universal processes common to all ofheliophysics; (b) The UNBSI distributed instrument observatory development programme, dedicated to the establishment of observatories and instrument arrays to expand knowledge of global heliophysical processes, while increasing the viability of space science research and education in developing countries and regions that have not yet been active in space research; (c) Education and public outreach - promoting public awareness of heliophysics and educational activities for students of all ages; (d) The IGY Gold History Initiative that is designed to preserve the history and legacy of the IGY by identifying and recognizing planners of and participants in that international world-wide scientific cooperative enterprise by preserving and making available items of historical significance from 1957-58 and organizing commemorative activities and events.
The results of these workshops, known as the United Nations Basic Space Science Initiative (UNBSSI) to provide 'low-cost, ground-based, instrument arrays around the world' are listed at http://ihy2007.org/ observatory/observatory.shtml. The starting date o f l H Y 2007 has been set for 19 February 2007. On that date, during the session of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of UNCOPUOS, the start of the IHY was marked by an IHY exhibit, a press briefing, and an opening ceremony in the UN Office in Vienna (see wwwle s i a ° b s p m fr/IHY/kickOFF/index html). For more detail of the IHY organizational structure, see http://ihy2007.org/ organization/organization.shtml.
Brief S u m m a r y on the Status of IHY 2007 Activities [By Hans J. Haubold]
T
he UN General Assembly, in its Resolution 60/99 of 2005, noted with satisfaction the contribution being made
41
for the Japanese International Heliophysical Year contribution. An education and public outreach officer, who maintains the Japanese homepage for the IHY at www2.nict.go.jp/ y/y223/sept/IHY/IHY-e.html (Shin-ichi Watari of NICT), has already been designated The Science Council of Japan with its continuing responsibility for solar-terrestrial physics will guide contributions from Japan to the IHY.
An undated document circulated for a meeting of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee (of COPUOS) in Vienna, 12-23 February 2007, contains reports on planned activities for the IHY in Finland, Japan, Latvia, Mexico and Poland, outline details of which are given below. Finland's activities for the IHY are linked to those for the International Polar Year 20072008 in and have been planned together. The ongoing activities, for which Jarmo Torsti of the University of Turku is acting as coordinator ([email protected]), relate to the Finnish Energetic and Relativistic Nuclei and Electron Experiment (ERNE) instrument on board SOHO (see www.srl.utu.fi/index english.html). Kirsti Kauristie of the Finnish Meteorological Institute is involved in the international Interhemispheric Conjugacy Effects in Solar-Terrestrial and Aeronomy Research (ICESTAR) project for which an application for official International Polar Year 2007-2008 status has been filed (in collaboration with Richard Harrison of the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, UK).
The Space Environment Research Centre at Kyushu University has been deploying magnetometers world-wide, forming a network called the Magnetic Data Acquisition System (MAGDAS). Data acquisition is automated and the data are sent in real time to the Research Center. During the IHY, the Research Center plans to deploy additional magnetometers in developing countries. The Kwasan and Hida Observatories at Kyoto University have several kinds of telescope that can perform high-resolution and high-precision observations of the Sun in various optical wavelengths. They also have a plan to deploy small telescopes world-wide, which will be used in monitoring solar flare explosions.
The framework for Finnish activities related to the International Heliophysical Year 2007 is as follows:
The Solar-Terrestrial Environment Laboratory at Nagoya University maintains four radio antennae in Japan to observe the scintillation of radio waves from celestial radio sources propagating through the interplanetary medium. Ass the Sun continuously emits the high speed 'solar wind' and occasionally blast waves in the solar wind, these disturbances, which cause aurorae and geomagnetic storms on the Earth, can be detected using the interplanetary scintillation observations. The Laboratory organizes collaborative studies with similar observatories elsewhere in the world, as well as with a NASA's dedicated satellitebased Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI), and continuously monitors the disturbances affecting the environment of the Earth. The disturbances in the solar wind that can affect the Earth can be monitored with a network of detectors for muons that has been developed by Shinshu University. Together with the interplanetary scintillation measurements, these
(a) The national Arctic/northern research programme; (b) An expedition to Kinnvika on the island of Svalbard, Norway; (c) Development of networking among circumArctic research stations; (d) Participation in international research projects and consortia; (e) Outreach for scientific research and education on Arctic and other northern regions; More information about Finnish activities related to the International Polar Year 2007-2008 can be found at www.ipy-finland.fi.
Japan. Following the setting up of task force of scientists in Japan with a particular interest in the IHY, a National Steering Committee was established to serve as the coordinating body
42
carrying out and expect to continue research on mapping the active areas of the Sun. A programme of scientific activities aimed at the general public has been designed and implemented in order to provide broader public familiarity with achievements in studies of Sun-Earth physics, emphasizing the research done in Latvia as well as the significance of the IHY 2007.
instruments will have promising contributions to make to space weather forecasts. NICT is the central institution for space weather forecasts in Japan. The Space Weather Information Center at NICT distributes information on space weather conditions in real time and issues warnings when necessary. In collaboration with eleven space weather information centres around the world (located in Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, India, Japan, Poland, the Russian Federation, Sweden and the USA) they plan to distribute publications on space weather during the IHY. These publications will be oriented towards the general public in various languages.
Mexico. The national scientific coordinators (Juan Amdrico Gonzfilez Esparza and Rogelio Caballero Lopez, researchers at the Institute of Geophysics), for the IHY in Mexico who were appointed a year ago attended the Latin American regional meetings at which the tasks to be performed during the Year were discussed. In particular, a web page, showing the activities to take place in Latin America, the research teams in the special sciences area and the joint scientific projects in the region, was designed. As part of the activities related to the International Heliophysical Year, the Institute of Geophysics is in the process of creating a virtual laboratory on solar observations and their relationship to the Earth. Lectures aimed at publicizing the IHY and its scientific importance have taken place at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and a researcher at the Institute has taken charge of like activities for the Year in Mexico.
The National Astronomical Observatory of Japan operates optical and radio telescopes to observe the Sun, particularly solar flare explosions. The Observatory has signed mutual agreements with several institutions from developing countries and has been assisting instrument set-ups and solar observations in Indonesia, Nigeria and Peru. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is responsible for scientific space experiments in Japan. The Agency, in cooperation with the National Astronomical Observatory, developed the Solar-B satellite, which was successfully launched in September 2006 and has been given the name Hinode (meaning 'sunrise'). The measurements being made by this satellite will constitute a significant contribution to the IHY by Japan.
An international congress on The Physics of Solar-Wind/Magnetosphere Coupling was held in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, from 4 to 8 November 2006 and included a session on the International Heliophysical Year. In 2007, the topic of heliophysics research will be taken up as part of the commemorative activities for the Year at the meeting of the American Geophysical Union and at the International Cosmic Ray Conference to be held in Merida, Mexico.
The Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (of JAXA) has been collaborating with other space institutions and promoting the International Living with a Star programme. This programme also aims to study the Sun-Earth system and focuses on any phenomena that might affect life and society on Earth.
Poland. Activities in Poland related to the IHY are being coordinated by Wieslaw Macek from the Space Research Centre in Warsaw. To date three events related to the International Year have been planned:
Latvia. The Ventspils International Radio Astronomy Centre (VIRAC) and the Institute of Astronomy of the University of Latvia are
(a) A conference on space weather and other
43
phenomena in the Earth's atmosphere under the patronage of the IHY will be held in Dwerniczek, Poland;
[In Memoriam Alan Shapley (1909-2006) - Senior Physicist of the IGY Era
(b) A conference on the 'Heliosphere and its Environment', is to be held in June 2008 in Warsaw (http ://ihy.cbk.waw.pl);
lan Horace Shapley of Boulder, Colorado, died on 20 October 2006 .following a brief illness at the Hospice Care Center in Louisville (near Boulder). He was 87.
A
(c) Ionospheric observations performed in the context of the Mitigation of Ionospheric Effects on Radio Systems initiative, which is being conducted in the framework of the Committee of Senior Officials for Scientific and Technical Research (COST) network and coordinated by the Space Research Centre in Poland (see www.ihy.cbk.waw.pl/poland.html)
International Geophysical Calendar 2007 he 2007 International Geophysical Calendar, issued under the auspices of the International Space Environment Service, is now available on-line at www.isesspaceweather.org.
T
National Research
Reports
on
Space Alan Shapley at an IGY meeting in the late 50s.
C
OSPAR encourages its members to exchange information on space research activities carried out in their own countries. One way of doing this is by producing reports summarizing space activities. Generally, such reports are produced in time for limited distribution at COSPAR assemblies. The following countries provided reports at the Beijing Assembly: Australia, Canada, China, Finland, France, India, Pakistan, Russia, Slovak Republic, the UK and the USA; a report was also received from ESA. Since the Assembly, reports from Switzerland and the Ukraine have been received.
The son of astronomer Harlow Shapley and Martha Betz Shapley, Alan attended Harvard College, graduating in 1940. He worked in the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism (Carnegie Institution of Washington) early in his career, making ionospheric predictions in collaboration with J. Virginia Lincoln in the National Bureau of Standards of the US Department of Commerce (NBS, now the National Institute for Science and Technology). He then worked for the NBS Central Radio Propagation Laboratory (CRPL) serving as Chief, Stm-Earth Relationships Section and subsequently at NOAA from 1947 to 1981. Shapley served as Director of the NOAA's National Geophysical and SolarTerrestrial Data Center (NGSDC, now NGDC) 1970-1981. He served on the committee that chose Boulder, Colorado as a new distributed
44