Solar Coronal Loops Workshop V; Palma de Mallorca, Spain; June 2011

George Mason University, Fairfax VA

Investigators

Abstract

The Principal Investigator will provide travel support for eight students and postdocs to attend the Fifth Coronal Loops Workshop to be held in Mallorca, Spain in 2011. This 2011 meeting is very timely, coming about a year after the 2010 launch of the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) spacecraft. SDO has dramatically improved our ability to observe activity in the solar corona, and its data are now widely available to the public. The Coronal Loops Workshop will provide a broad community service by giving solar physics theorists and observers the opportunity to develop collaborations, confront opposing views and test them, and ultimately inspire new investigations to address open scientific questions. Since 2002, when the Coronal Loops Wokshop series originated, the venue has become an ideal setting for researchers to discuss in detail the basic physical processes behing the formation, dynamics, and evolution of coronal loops in solar active regions. An open mailing list developed by the Coronal Loops Workshop community communicates with over 170 scientists worldwide, allowing those researchers to continuously exchange ideas, new results, publications, and information on coronal loops research. The workshop has traditionally been supportive of the attendance and participation of Ph.D. students and young postdocs. This meeting will therefore create meaningful opportunities for students and young scientists to engage experts in the field, and ultimately to become key participants in the next generation of solar physics research.