2015 AAAS Annual Meeting (12-16 February 2015)

February 12 - 16, 2015

Advancing Solar and Space Physics: Combining Observations, Models, and Analysis

The study of solar and space physics is being revolutionized by new high-resolution observations and by simulation results from high-performance computing platforms. The Solar Dynamics Observatory from NASA provides high-resolution images of the sun and presents significant challenges for integrating small-scale features into solar simulations. The plasma that constantly flows out from the sun forms the heliosphere, and recent observations are changing our understanding of the physics occurring at outer boundaries of the solar system. The interaction of the solar wind plasma with the Earth’s magnetic field creates the magnetosphere. Latest ultra-high resolution simulations are revealing small-scale features as well as producing large data volumes that require application of advanced data analysis tools to effectively compare them with observations. Within the magnetosphere, observations from the NASA Van Allen Probes mission are providing remarkable discoveries about the structure and dynamics of the Earth’s radiation belts. Currents flow from the magnetosphere into the Earth’s ionosphere, and space physics researchers are using data from commercial spacecraft to construct a global view of these fundamental coupling currents. Closer to Earth, new simulations tools are providing global understanding of coupling between the ionosphere and thermosphere and are providing insights as to how constellations of CubeSats can be used to observe the neutral winds in the thermosphere.