The remarkable legacy of the International Space Weather Initiative

by Daryl Ilbury

From a celestial perspective, Earth’s position is anything but serene. It is like an exposed rock on a storm-lashed coastline, constantly battered by the elements, primarily, ironically, by what is essential for life on our planet: the Sun. Just as it is the primary driver of Earth’s weather, the Sun immediately powers the weather in the space around it. The term ‘space weather’ refers to the phenomena triggered by solar activity, such as solar wind – the stream of charged particles emitted by the Sun – and its effects in our thermosphere, magnetosphere, and ionosphere – a series of regions within our atmosphere hosting a relatively large number of electrically charged atoms and molecules.

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Spektr-UF:Unlocking the secrets of UV

by Daryl Ilbury

For most of us, what we know of the marvels of space lies in what we can see, with or without optical telescopes. However, the majority of the Universe’s secrets are hidden from view, buried within the furthest reaches of light’s spectrum and other electromagnetic radiation. For astronomers, using telescopes to observe such extreme forms of radiation allows them to get a far more detailed view of the Universe. In the near future, that view will come to life, courtesy of a complex array of instruments currently being built by Russia in collaboration with Spain, Germany, and Japan. Once completed, the Spektr-UF, also known as the World Space Observatory–Ultraviolet (WSO-UV), will scan the Universe’s ultraviolet (UV) wavelength signals to see what it can find. Astronomers can hardly wait.

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Avoiding Armageddon: The urgent search for near-Earth objects

by Daryl Ilbury

In 1998, American actor Bruce Willis blew up an asteroid and himself to save Earth’s inhabitants from extinction. The asteroid in question, roughly the size of Texas, was fictional, but the film, Armageddon, encouraged the millions who watched it to consider the actual scenario of a strike by one of the many celestial bodies that brushes past us. The film was inspired by a convention of leading scientists a few years earlier. Ever since, decisions made at that convention have guided international efforts to take action when a rogue asteroid has Earth in its sights.

It’s tempting to think there’s little in Earth’s path as it hurtles through space, but in reality, it must dodge innumerable obstacles. Space is not a wilderness; it bristles with all manner of activity. Much of it stays far away, but some travel to our neck of the woods. Some we

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UNBSSI – planting the seeds of space exploration

by Daryl Ilbury

There are two indisputable yet oft-forgotten facts about space exploration: space belongs to no one, and you don’t need to enter space to study its immense wondrousness. For centuries, cultures across the world have stared up at the night sky and wondered what lies among the stars. Exploring space needs a keen eye, an inquiring mind, a basic understanding of any of the space sciences, and access to some of the troves of data pouring in from space every day. Knowing this, one organisation within the United Nations is quietly and resolutely expanding the frontiers to space exploration by making education, teaching, and research a key part of its focus. In the process, it has bridged the perceptual and infrastructural barriers around reaching out to space and highlighted the benefits of networking and sharing knowledge.

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