Special Issue: Physical links between Weather and Climate in Space and the lower Atmosphere

This Workshop seeks a deeper understanding of the solar-terrestrial interactions, through energy and momentum transfer processes, between the ionosphere and the upper, middle and lower atmosphere, and thus possibly enabling the detection of signatures of space weather and anthropogenic hazards. The results of such analyses should be based on existing worldwide observational capabilities and should support the conceptual design of future space-borne and ground-based observing capabilities. Central to the Workshop would be the establishment of a framework where all related observations can be combined for assimilation and visualisation (including data from ground-and space-based systems). This would necessitate an interoperable ‘working’ environment with homogeneity in data formats. etc. and the improvement of the discoverability and interoperability of ground and space-based data. As a result the concept development of an Ionosphere-Thermosphere-Mesosphere Observatory could be enabled, using existing and planned missions as focal points, towards the next International Solar-Terrestrial Physics Programme.

The Workshop will aim to:

• Provide a scientifically unified view in the area of Space and Atmospheric weather and climate, in light of the plans of the involved disciplines

• Act as focus for discussion of the scientific interests of these communities, including the European ground-based community and data archiving activities

• Assess potential synergies and provide inputs and recommendations as relevant

• Receive inputs from the scientific community cutting across Space and other Agency Programmes to encourage inter-agency activities to improve communication