TY - JOUR
T1 - Exploring solar-terrestrial interactions via multiple imaging observers
AU - Branduardi-Raymont, G.
AU - Berthomier, M.
AU - Bogdanova, Y. V.
AU - Carter, J. A.
AU - Collier, M.
AU - Dimmock, A.
AU - Dunlop, M.
AU - Fear, R. C.
AU - Forsyth, C.
AU - Hubert, B.
AU - Kronberg, E. A.
AU - Laundal, K. M.
AU - Lester, M.
AU - Milan, S.
AU - Oksavik, K.
AU - Østgaard, N.
AU - Palmroth, M.
AU - Plaschke, F.
AU - Porter, F. S.
AU - Rae, I. J.
AU - Read, A.
AU - Samsonov, A. A.
AU - Sembay, S.
AU - Shprits, Y.
AU - Sibeck, D. G.
AU - Walsh, B.
AU - Yamauchi, M.
N1 - Funding Information: GBR and AAS acknowledge support by the UK Space Agency under grant ST/T002964/1. YVB is supported by the STFC RAL Space In-house research grant. EAK is supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) under number KR 4375/2 − 1 within SPP ‘Dynamic Earth’. KML, KO and NØ acknowledge financial support by the Research Council of Norway under the contract 223,252. SEM is supported by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), UK, grant no. ST/S000429/1.
PY - 2022/12/1
Y1 - 2022/12/1
N2 - How does solar wind energy flow through the Earth’s magnetosphere, how is it converted and distributed? is the question we want to address. We need to understand how geomagnetic storms and substorms start and grow, not just as a matter of scientific curiosity, but to address a clear and pressing practical problem: space weather, which can influence the performance and reliability of our technological systems, in space and on the ground, and can endanger human life and health. Much knowledge has already been acquired over the past decades, particularly by making use of multiple spacecraft measuring conditions in situ, but the infant stage of space weather forecasting demonstrates that we still have a vast amount of learning to do. A novel global approach is now being taken by a number of space imaging missions which are under development and the first tantalising results of their exploration will be available in the next decade. In this White Paper, submitted to ESA in response to the Voyage 2050 Call, we propose the next step in the quest for a complete understanding of how the Sun controls the Earth’s plasma environment: a tomographic imaging approach comprising two spacecraft in highly inclined polar orbits, enabling global imaging of magnetopause and cusps in soft X-rays, of auroral regions in FUV, of plasmasphere and ring current in EUV and ENA (Energetic Neutral Atoms), alongside in situ measurements. Such a mission, encompassing the variety of physical processes determining the conditions of geospace, will be crucial on the way to achieving scientific closure on the question of solar-terrestrial interactions.
AB - How does solar wind energy flow through the Earth’s magnetosphere, how is it converted and distributed? is the question we want to address. We need to understand how geomagnetic storms and substorms start and grow, not just as a matter of scientific curiosity, but to address a clear and pressing practical problem: space weather, which can influence the performance and reliability of our technological systems, in space and on the ground, and can endanger human life and health. Much knowledge has already been acquired over the past decades, particularly by making use of multiple spacecraft measuring conditions in situ, but the infant stage of space weather forecasting demonstrates that we still have a vast amount of learning to do. A novel global approach is now being taken by a number of space imaging missions which are under development and the first tantalising results of their exploration will be available in the next decade. In this White Paper, submitted to ESA in response to the Voyage 2050 Call, we propose the next step in the quest for a complete understanding of how the Sun controls the Earth’s plasma environment: a tomographic imaging approach comprising two spacecraft in highly inclined polar orbits, enabling global imaging of magnetopause and cusps in soft X-rays, of auroral regions in FUV, of plasmasphere and ring current in EUV and ENA (Energetic Neutral Atoms), alongside in situ measurements. Such a mission, encompassing the variety of physical processes determining the conditions of geospace, will be crucial on the way to achieving scientific closure on the question of solar-terrestrial interactions.
KW - Coupling
KW - Global imaging
KW - In Situ measurements
KW - Ionosphere
KW - Magnetosphere
KW - Solar wind
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85106397386&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s10686-021-09784-y
DO - 10.1007/s10686-021-09784-y
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85106397386
SN - 0922-6435
VL - 54
SP - 361
EP - 390
JO - Experimental Astronomy
JF - Experimental Astronomy
IS - 2
ER -