IAU Symposium 335 – July 17-21, 2017 – University of Exeter, UK

Space weather is increasingly recognised as an international challenge faced by several communities. The ability to understand, monitor and forecast the space weather of the Earth and the heliosphere is of paramount importance for our high-technology society and for the current rapid developments in knowledge and exploration within our Solar System.

The symposium is planned over 5 days from Monday through Friday (including half-day excursion on the Wednesday afternoon). Key Topics of the scientific program are the following:

Solar drivers and activity levels;
Solar wind and heliosphere;
Impact of solar wind, structures and radiation on and within terrestrial and planetary environments (including magnetospheres, ionospheres and atmospheres);
Long-term trends and predictions for space weather;
Challenges and strategy plans for Earth and the heliosphere;
Forecasting models;
Space weather monitoring, instrumentation, data and services.

The Symposium aims to further knowledge on space weather by linking various aspects of research in solar, heliospheric and planetary physics, and by putting great emphasis on cross-disciplinary developments, merging different communities, learning from interplanetary comparisons and linking to atmospheric and meteorological research for the first time at the international level.

Location

Exeter, UK, offers world-leading expertise in weather research and forecasting, and is rapidly expanding its efforts in space weather. Thus Exeter provides an ideal combination of communities to host the Symposium.

Within walking distance from the venue will be affordable (out of term) University accommodation (offered at discounted rates) and a choice of accommodation in the heart of the city (pre-booked at preferential rate for the participants). The heart of the city offers a wealth of history, interesting architecture, cafés, pubs and restaurants for spending the evenings. The close proximity of these arrangements is most favourable for all scientific interactions.

The LOC and SOC will explore all opportunities in order to facilitate meeting attendance and inclusion in all social and cultural events. The LOC will pay special attention in assisting the participants with potential childcare needs. The chosen dates are outside of University term and are ideal for the planned parallel education program.

Other scientific activities, social and cultural program

A welcome reception will take place on the Monday evening. Scientific excursions to the UK Met Office space weather operational and computational facilities will be planned in groups. A half-day excursion planned on the Wednesday will take participants to experience some of the many cultural and natural attractions in and around Exeter, including the Norman Lockyer Observatory (Sidmouth, about 12 miles from campus), a public amateur observatory with rich historical heritage in solar physics. A conference dinner will be planned on the Thursday evening.