Contact:  Barbara McGehan, PA         FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
          Ron Zwickl, SEC             5/1/96

NOAA, NASA, AIR FORCE TO COORDINATE ON SOLAR STORM ALERTS

Ever wonder what the weather's like in outer space? You would if you were managing a power company, or operating navigation or communication systems. While not a daily occurrence, storms in outer space can cause major disruptions to modern technological systems on Earth. But coordinated efforts between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NASA and the U.S. Air Force may be the first step in making these storms easier to predict.

As a result of these efforts, NOAA and Air Force space forecasters will soon be able to issue one-hour geomagnetic storm alerts. Geomagnetic storms develop when masses of highly energetic charged particles are ejected from the sun and, subsequently, hit Earth's magnetic field. When the Earth encounters these storms, extraordinary fluctuations occur, severe enough to upset delicate technological systems on satellites and on the ground as well.

In late 1997, NASA will launch a research satellite, the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE), into orbit to measure the chemical composition of escaping particles from the sun. It will also take background measurements of the interplanetary magnetic field and the solar wind. These measurements, promptly relayed to Earth by radio, can be used to develop a one-hour alert of major geomagnetic storms headed toward Earth. The data from the ACE mission will provide measurements of the solar winds' speed, density, and magnetic field, major factors when issuing these alerts.

"By placing a satellite in front of Earth so that it intercepts the solar wind before it reaches us, we can warn radio and satellite operators, electric power control centers and others of the upcoming threat," according to Ernie Hildner, director of NOAA's Space Environment Center in Boulder, Colo. A disturbance traveling outward from the sun toward Earth will hit the ACE spacecraft about an hour before it hits Earth. When this happens, the information will be instantly transmitted to Earth, making it possible to issue one-hour alerts with almost 100 percent accuracy.

Power companies are extremely interested in knowing when these storms will occur, and for good reason. In 1989, during a period of high solar activity, a geomagnetic storm caused a power blackout in Canada's Quebec Province. Fortunately, this blackout was confined to Quebec, but equipment malfunctioned throughout the United States.

NOAA and NASA earlier arranged to modify the ACE spacecraft using NOAA funds to enable ACE to broadcast continuously its background data. The data broadcasts are called Real Time Solar Wind (RTSW) data.

The United States Air Force Space Command has agreed to track the ACE satellite and capture RTSW data with its global network of satellite dishes, the Satellite Control Network, headquartered at the 50th Space Wing, Falcon Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colo. In addition to the USAF and NASA, international partners have been sought to acquire data during the times the sun is in view from their ground stations. In exchange, they will receive all of the RTSW and alerts and warnings issued by the Space Environment Center.

After acquisition on the ground, the information will be relayed immediately to space weather forecast centers at the Space Environment Center and the Air Force's 50th Weather Squadron, Falcon Air Force Base, Colo. Forecasters at the Space Environment Center and Falcon AFB will use the data to develop geomagnetic storm alerts, which will then be distributed to the military and civilian communities.

The ACE mission is expected to last for three years. U.S. Air Force planners, in collaboration with NOAA colleagues, are examining ways to acquire solar wind data continuously after NASA's ACE mission expires.

   
                    
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