Received on Feb 04, 2015
Kazuo Shiokawa, VarSITI co-chair

Solar Terrestrial Physics is an important topic that has serious implications to life on Earth: Sun affects Earth over weather and climate timescales. During the past decade, there has been heightened focus on how the Sun affects Earth from funding agencies in many countries. Solar terrestrial scientists use space and ground based observations, theory and modeling to make progress. This added a wealth of new knowledge and it is time to assess the progress made and identify the gaps that persist. Discussion between COSPAR and SCOSTEP officials transpired into a joint session to be organized during the 41st COSPAR scientific assembly in Istanbul. The session will involve reviews of recent progress in the SCOSTEP scientific disciplines and the relevant COSPAR commissions. There will be panel discussion on capacity building and public outreach. The speakers in the session will be drawn from SCOSTEP disciplines and COSPAR commissions. Each talk will have three elements: (1) state of the field, (2) knowledge gap, and (3) future directions including observing tools and modeling.

Received on Feb 08, 2016
Kazuo Shiokawa,
VarSITI co-chair

This symposium focuses on troposphere to thermosphere-ionosphere multi-scale wave coupling. New measurements, computational modeling and theoretical results, and analysis techniques are encouraged, including electrodynamical and chemical studies. In particular, studies in the following areas are most welcome:

1. Global structure, variability, and sources of gravity waves, planetary waves, Kelvin waves, and tides.

2. Secondary wave generation, propagation, and their effects on the neutral and ionized atmosphere.

3. Ion-neutral coupling processes in the atmosphere-ionosphere.

4. Ionosphere-thermosphere-mesosphere response to lower and middle atmosphere variability.

This symposium is also an open forum for ROSMIC (Role of the Sun and the Middle atmosphere/thermosphere/ionosphere In Climate) related activities and contributions.

Received on Feb 10, 2016
Aaron Janofsky,
Associate Director, COSPAR
Co-Sponsored by VarSITI

The event has a focus on new results on the response of the middle atmosphere and lower ionosphere to a variety of external forcing such as (but not restricted to) energetic particles and solar UV variability during the solar cycle.

This event is particularly is relevant for the international SPARC initiative SOLARIS-HEPPA investigating solar influence on the middle atmosphere and climate, for the project ROSMIC (Role of the Sun and the Middle atmosphere/thermosphere/ionosphere in climate) inside the VarSITI (Variability of the Sun and its Terrestrial Impact) program supported by SCOSTEP, as well as for the WCRP SolarMIP project devoted to the inter-comparison of the response of coupled climate models to solar irradiance variations.

Of special interests are the long and deep minima of 23rd Solar cycle, the treatment of energetic particle precipitation in chemistry-climate models, and the climate system response to forcings by solar UV and energetic particle precipitation.

Data analysis of ground based or satellite observations, as well as results of model simulations, related to such forcings of the middle atmosphere and the lower ionosphere are welcome.

This event is sponsored by the WMO Space Program, the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) on Stratosphere-troposphere Processes And their Role in Climate (SPARC), the VarSITI program of SCOSTEP, and by the International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) and the International Association of Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences (IAMAS).

Received on Dec 27, 2015
Jie Zhang ISEST Co-leader

This five-half-day-long session will cover a variety of topics, including
(1) solar origin of transients: flares, CMEs, filament eruptions, coronal holes, particle acceleration and active regions that are potentially geo-effective,
(2) CMEs, CIRs and shocks evolution in the Interplanetary Space: observations, theory and simulation of CMEs, Sheaths, CIRs from the Sun to the Earth and beyond, and transport and impact of solar and galactic energetic particles.
(3) Campaign study of Earth-affecting events: focused study on carefully selected events, such as St. Patrick Day's event, standard or "textbook"-type events, stealth events etc.
(4) Magnetic flux ropes and Bz Challenge: address the magnetic topology of solar transients, in particular, on the important Z-component of magnetic field.
(5) Space weather forecast: emphasizing prediction techniques, their accuracy, validation and limitations for the operational purpose.

Received on Feb 10, 2016
Nicole Vilmer DSO

This session will be devoted to the energetic particles at the Sun and in the Heliosphere. It will deal both with observations and modeling and is aimed at describing the general knowledge on this topic based on the recent observations from the numerous instruments on the different heliospheric missions. The session will discuss both escapiing particles and particles interacting at the Sun (diagnosed from X-ray, gamma-ray and radio observations), the relative role of flares and CMEs in the acceleration process, the propagation of particles in the interplanetary medium...

Implications for future inner heliopheric missions (such as Solar Orbiter, Solar Probe Plus, Interhelios,...) will be discussed.

Received on Feb 10, 2016
Ilya Usoskin MSO

Space Climate is a multidisciplinary scientific field covering long-term (longer than annual, vizexpanding and generalizing the Space Weather concept) space related aspects relevant for the terrestrial environment. This topic includes solar activity, heliosphere, magnetosphere, ionosphere, atmosphere and climate in their interrelation. This Sessions continues very successful scientific events of COSPAR-2012 and COSPAR-2014. Although a special emphasis will be paid upon multi- and cross-disciplinary studies of physical processes dynamically coupling different systems which are otherwise often considered separately, all the subjects related to Space Climate will be discussed. The event is addressed to a wide community including but not limited to solar physics, heliospheric physics, cosmic ray physics, magnetospheric and ionospheric physics, and atmospheric and climate sciences, with special focus on cross-boundary studies.

Received on Feb 10, 2016
Brigitte Schmieder, MSO
Co-Sponsored by VarSITI

Magnetic structures ejected from the Sun typically involve solar prominences or jets, which can play critical roles in the initiation of coronal mass ejections (CMEs). We will focus on different aspects of the prominences, including their formation and destabilization in the first part of this session. Is mass loading important for CME initiation, or for preconditioning the CMEs? In a second part we will focus on the CMEs, and in particular the role of the ejected cool material as with the prominence. What is the nature of the energy balance, and the role of flux ropes if they exist? How does the environment of the corona through which the ejected material travels affect the kinematics and deformation of the CMEs? What is the role of magnetic topology? Due to the wealth of observational data from multiple viewpoints over a wide range of wavelengths and covering various distance ranges, as well as recent progress in simulations, these issues can be adequately addressed. This session focuses on studies covering observations, as well as simulations of how prominences, jets, and CMEs erupt and interact with the environment in solar and stellar coronae.

Received on Feb 10, 2016
Sarah Gibson, MSO

The Sun's magnetic field lies at the heart of most if not all of the outstanding problems relating to the dynamics, energetics, and morphologies that define its atmosphere. Establishing the three-dimensional structure of the magnetic field throughout this solar atmosphere remains a challenge, and one that requires a combination of advanced modeling techniques and new observations. The goal of the proposed session is to bring together observations, theory and modeling, and data assimilation/incorporation techniques to diagnose the magnetic field in the solar atmosphere. In addition, this session will offer a forum for discussion of the future instrumentation and missions for remote-sensing and in-situ measurements of these magnetic fields.