US-Africa International Workshop: International Heliophysical Year in Africa: Space Weather and Its Effects, Addis Ababa Nov. 15/2007

North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University, Greensboro NC

Investigators

Abstract

Abebe Kebede of North Carolina A&T University will lead a team of ten US scientists and two students to conduct a one-day workshop in conjunction with International Heliophysical Year-Africa, a larger conference on space weather and its effects. The scientists are from various organizations and institutions including NOAA, NASA, Boston University, the U. S. Air Force, NC A&T State University, Addis Ababa University and Bahir Dar University. The workshop will be jointly hosted by Addis Ababa University and Bahir Dar University. The goal of the workshop is to develop international collaborations among space scientists whose research interests include (1) longitudinal and seasonal variations of total electron content (TEC), (2) variations in ionospheric plasma parameters, and (3) scintillations at mid and low-latitudes. This collaboration uses various groundbased instruments to gather data. The workshop will focus on the impact of solar phenomena and associated magnetospheric, ionospheric and geomagnetic effects on the near-earth space environment. Data on these phenomena are used in forecasting space weather. To date, relatively little data from Africa has been collected. Because data from all over the world is needed to develop robust forecasting models, obtaining more data from the continent is vital. The collaborative network developed through this workshop will investigate the phenomena during quiet and disturbed space weather conditions and contribute to a better understanding of space weather and upper atmospheric processes during low and high solar activity periods. Geomagnetic storms can cause electric power blackouts by inducing damaging currents in the electric power grids, form high energy particles that cause damage to satellites, present an increased risk of radiation exposure for humans in space and in high- altitude aircraft, change the atmospheric drag on satellites, cause errors in Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and in VLF navigation systems, cause loss of HF communications, and cause disruption of UHF satellite links. Improvements in the prediction of these storms will be of great benefit to the civilian and military communities. The workshop will strengthen US-African collaboration in this field of space weather, allow for greater data collection in Africa that is important for US modeling in this field, and it will give US students experience in global engagement. The workshop is co-funded by the Office of International Science and Engineering and the Division of Atmospheric Sciences.