| Session Details | |
| Section | ST - Solar & Terrestrial Sciences |
| Session Title | Strange State of Heliosphere, Ionosphere, Thermosphere and Geomagnetic Field in Mini-Max/23-24 |
| Main Convener | Dr. Yuichi Otsuka (Solar-Terrestrial Environment Laboratory, Nagoya University, Japan) |
| Co-convener(s) | Dr. Nanan Balan (Nagoya University, Japan) Dr. Amit Patra (National Atmospheric Research Laboratory, India) Dr. Guozhu Li (Beijing National Observatory of Space Environment, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China) Dr. Nat Gopalswamy (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, United States) Dr. Martin Mlynczak (National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), United States) Dr. Alexis Rouillard (University of Toulouse, UPS-OMP, IRAP (CNRS), France) Dr. Kanya Kusano (Nagoya University, Japan) Dr. Gufran Beig (Indian Institute of tropical Meteorology, India) Dr. Jan Lastovicka (Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Czech Republic) |
| Session Description | The solar activity in Mini-Max/23-24 has been at the lowest level since the dawn of Space Age. The low solar activity has resulted in a weak heliosphere with diminished density, magnetic field and pressure among other interesting signatures. The effect of the weak solar activity has been observed from the solar interior, solar surface, corona, interplanetary medium, Earth’s magnetic field, ionosphere and thermosphere, and even the termination shock. The modified physical state of the heliosphere has resulted in significant impact on the propagation of coronal mass ejections (CMEs), shocks, lowest number of high-energy (>500 MeV) solar energetic particle events since they were discovered in the 1940s, which all resulting in extremely mild space weather. The Min-Max has witnessed the weakest level and frequency of large geomagnetic storms and ionosphere-thermosphere storms since 1957. The weak activity is also a good opportunity to understand the role of the Sun in global warming. Since the low solar activity in Mini-Max resulted from the weak polar field of cycle 23, the natural question is whether this trend will continue resulting in a grand minimum over the next few solar cycles. Thus we have an opportunity to understand the weakening solar activity in terms of the variability of the solar dynamo. In order to promote active research to understand the peculiar state of the Sun and its consequences, we invite papers dealing with observations, theory, and modeling investigations related to Mini-Max. Comparative studies involving the current weak activity with historical low-activity periods are also solicited. |