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Solar and Space Physics: A Science for a Technological Society
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SOLAR AND SPACE PHYSICS: A SCIENCE FOR A TECHNOLOGICAL SOCIETY
Mission Guest Investigators
In addition to MO&DA, a vibrant NASA mission-specific GI program helps ensure mission success
by broadening participation and facilitating new discoveries. Future funding should keep pace with new
missions.
Recommendation: A directed guest investigator program, set at a percentage (~2 percent) of the total
future NASA mission cost, should be established in order to maximize each mission’s science return. Further, just as an instrument descoping would require an evaluation of impact on mission science goals, so,
too, should the consequences of a reduction in mission-specific guest investigator programs and Phase-E
funding merit an equally stringent evaluation.
Integrate: Integrate Observing Platforms and Strengthen Ties Between Agency Disciplines
The frontiers of current solar and space physics research are at the interfaces between traditional
disciplines (Figure 4.4). Moreover, increasingly complex observational requirements (multipoint and multiscale) are becoming tractable thanks to platform diversification and other technological advances (see
Appendix C). In particular, recent efforts such as the Whole Heliosphere Interval have demonstrated the
effectiveness of coordinating multiscale instruments and a multidisciplinary analysis approach to yield
cutting-edge science at modest cost (Box 4.3). Similarly, solar and space physics can benefit science investigations in related fields, such as planetary science, Earth science, physics, and astrophysics, and can also
benefit from novel experimental (e.g., laboratory) and theoretical tools that provide end-to-end integration.
Dedicated Laboratory Experiments
Laboratory studies probe fundamental plasma physical processes and produce chemical and spectroscopic measurements that support satellite measurements and atmospheric models. They provide benchmarks for integrating theory and modeling with observation in solar and space physics (Box 4.4). Such
laboratory experiments should be funded in a multiagency fashion.
Recommendation: NASA should join with NSF and DOE in a multiagency program on laboratory plasma
astrophysics and spectroscopy, with an expected NASA contribution ramping from $2 million per year
(plus increases for inflation), in order to obtain unique insights into fundamental physical processes.
Multidisciplinary Science
Solar and space physics is a multidisciplinary science, in terms of both the range of topics within its subfields and its interfaces with physics, chemistry, astronomy, and planetary and Earth science. Understanding
how solar structure, evolution, and dynamics relate to those of other stars, how the heliosphere relates to
astrospheres, and how Earth’s magnetosphere compares to those of other planets illustrates why research
in each of the subdisciplines of solar, planetary, stellar, galactic, and heliospheric physics benefits the
others. Solar-irradiance variations and other indirect forcings of Earth, such as top-down coupling of solar
ultraviolet heating and photochemistry in the stratosphere and the possible influence of galactic cosmic
rays, affect global climate changes and also regional changes due to subtle shifts in the atmosphere, ocean
circulation patterns, and cloud cover. Breakthrough science can arise at the interfaces of these disciplines.
The multidisciplinary nature of solar and space physics is reflected in its placement within multiple
divisions and directorates at NSF. However, the survey committee concluded that this organizational
structure may be limiting in particular for science lying at the interfaces between solar and space physics
and research in Earth science and astrophysics. A key example of the consequences of the current NSF
Solar and Space Physics: A Science for a Technological Society
84
SOLAR AND SPACE PHYSICS: A SCIENCE FOR A TECHNOLOGICAL SOCIETY
Mission Guest Investigators
In addition to MO&DA, a vibrant NASA mission-specific GI program helps ensure mission success
by broadening participation and facilitating new discoveries. Future funding should keep pace with new
missions.
Recommendation: A directed guest investigator program, set at a percentage (~2 percent) of the total
future NASA mission cost, should be established in order to maximize each mission’s science return. Further, just as an instrument descoping would require an evaluation of impact on mission science goals, so,
too, should the consequences of a reduction in mission-specific guest investigator programs and Phase-E
funding merit an equally stringent evaluation.
Integrate: Integrate Observing Platforms and Strengthen Ties Between Agency Disciplines
The frontiers of current solar and space physics research are at the interfaces between traditional
disciplines (Figure 4.4). Moreover, increasingly complex observational requirements (multipoint and multiscale) are becoming tractable thanks to platform diversification and other technological advances (see
Appendix C). In particular, recent efforts such as the Whole Heliosphere Interval have demonstrated the
effectiveness of coordinating multiscale instruments and a multidisciplinary analysis approach to yield
cutting-edge science at modest cost (Box 4.3). Similarly, solar and space physics can benefit science investigations in related fields, such as planetary science, Earth science, physics, and astrophysics, and can also
benefit from novel experimental (e.g., laboratory) and theoretical tools that provide end-to-end integration.
Dedicated Laboratory Experiments
Laboratory studies probe fundamental plasma physical processes and produce chemical and spectroscopic measurements that support satellite measurements and atmospheric models. They provide benchmarks for integrating theory and modeling with observation in solar and space physics (Box 4.4). Such
laboratory experiments should be funded in a multiagency fashion.
Recommendation: NASA should join with NSF and DOE in a multiagency program on laboratory plasma
astrophysics and spectroscopy, with an expected NASA contribution ramping from $2 million per year
(plus increases for inflation), in order to obtain unique insights into fundamental physical processes.
Multidisciplinary Science
Solar and space physics is a multidisciplinary science, in terms of both the range of topics within its subfields and its interfaces with physics, chemistry, astronomy, and planetary and Earth science. Understanding
how solar structure, evolution, and dynamics relate to those of other stars, how the heliosphere relates to
astrospheres, and how Earth’s magnetosphere compares to those of other planets illustrates why research
in each of the subdisciplines of solar, planetary, stellar, galactic, and heliospheric physics benefits the
others. Solar-irradiance variations and other indirect forcings of Earth, such as top-down coupling of solar
ultraviolet heating and photochemistry in the stratosphere and the possible influence of galactic cosmic
rays, affect global climate changes and also regional changes due to subtle shifts in the atmosphere, ocean
circulation patterns, and cloud cover. Breakthrough science can arise at the interfaces of these disciplines.
The multidisciplinary nature of solar and space physics is reflected in its placement within multiple
divisions and directorates at NSF. However, the survey committee concluded that this organizational
structure may be limiting in particular for science lying at the interfaces between solar and space physics
and research in Earth science and astrophysics. A key example of the consequences of the current NSF