FINDING ON THE SUBORBITAL PROGRAM

The suborbital research program has been and continues to be: (1) the most cost-effective access to space for scientific investigations which must be done from above the atmosphere, (2) the principal proving ground for new instruments, (3) the principal training ground for space instrumentalists, and (4) a major source of first-rate science. Rocket and balloon borne instruments were the first to glimpse solar ultraviolet, x-ray, and gamma-ray emission, as well as hard x-rays from superthermal gases. The suborbital program enables the low-cost reconnaissance of new areas of space science, many of which have paved the way for major NASA orbital missions. High resolution/high-sensitivity imaging and spectroscopic instruments incorporating the new multilayer coating technology were conceived, developed and successfully flown as part of this program. The imaging capability led directly to TRACE (Transition Region and Coronal Explorer) selected in the last SMEX review. Numerous other examples exist. The SMOWG finds that the suborbital program is an essential and highly cost-effective component of NASA's space research, and strongly urges its continuation at the present or an enhanced level.

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FINDING ON THE SPACE PHYSICS THEORY PROGRAM

The Space Physics Theory Program (SPTP) was created in 1980 to fill a need for additional theoretical support of NASA's space physics missions, as identified by the NAS Colgate committee. The SPTP's mandate differentiates it from the SR&T theory component in two key areas: the emphasis on groups comprising a ``critical mass" of scientists collaborating on a focussed set of problems; and the development and implementation of advanced analytic and numerical techniques, tailored to a wide range of space physics issues, which would require greater amounts of time and effort than could be sustained through smaller grants. Benefits from the SPTP to the Space Physics Division have been manyfold. The use of computer models largely pioneered under the SPTP has revolutionized the studies of solar convection as well as coronal, heliospheric, and magnetospheric magnetized plasmas. Greater closure between observations and theory has been achieved, and much of the fundamental scientific motivation for such missions as Yohkoh, SOHO, TRACE, and Solar B has resulted from SPTP-sponsored research. In addition, the magnitude and longevity of SPTP grants has enabled the creation of several tenured (or equivalent) positions at research institutions such as U. Chicago, UNH, Bartol Institute, and NRL.

The Solar MOWG finds that the SPTP should remain a separate, division-wide program as originally conceived. Maintaining this distinct entity will preserve its unique strengths, including the opportunities for cross-fertilization among diverse research topics throughout space physics linked by common physical processes or solution methods.

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FINDING ON A SOHO GUEST INVESTIGATOR PROGRAM

The joint NASA/ESA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) will obtain exciting new observations that will provide an unprecedented view of the Sun, ranging from the deep solar interior, through the transition region and corona, and into the solar wind. In order to optimize the scientific payoff from the diverse yet complementary data sets, it is vital that a healthy guest investigator program be established and fully supported. The funding level of the program should be commensurate with the size of NASA's investment in SOHO. Such a GI program has been an important part of NASA and community planning since the early stages of mission conception, and it remains a top priority. The Solar MOWG finds that a GI program for SOHO needs to be initiated as soon as possible, and certainly no later than FY96.

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FINDING ON THE HIGH ENERGY SOLAR IMAGER - HESI

The Solar Physics community identifies the High Energy Solar Imager (HESI), an integral part of the Solar Connections Program, as its highest priority new mission. HESI will revolutionize our understanding of solar flare energy release and particle acceleration. It is recognized that, to accomplish the scientific objectives of this mission, HESI must be launched no later than the year 2000, at the next peak in the solar activity cycle. Consequently, the Solar MOWG strongly urges the Space Physics Division to press for an early new start so that HESI can achieve this tight schedule.

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FINDING ON THE PLANNED SOLAR-B MISSION

The Solar-B mission, which ISAS plans to launch in the year 2002, will explore the generation and structure of solar magnetic fields and the mechanisms by which they control the variable radiative and particulate output of the Sun. The mission will consist of a half-meter optical telescope optimized for the measurement of vector magnetic fields, an X-ray telescope that builds on the spectacularly successful Yohkoh instrument, and an XUV spectrograph. In an orbit that initially provides more than one year of continuous sunlight, Solar-B will address many of the prime objectives of the Mechanisms of Solar Variability (MSV) program that was strongly endorsed by the SScAC.

The US has unique expertise to contribute to this mission in focal plane instrumentation for vector magnetic field measurements, optics for high-resolution X-ray imaging, and XUV spectroscopy. These instruments are essential for understanding how the solar dynamo works, how magnetic fields regulate solar variability, and how the emergence and reconnection of magnetic flux control the corona's structure and interplanetary events. The MOWG finds that the Solar-B science goals are directly consistent with those of the U.S. community, and that the Solar-B mission provides an opportunity for major advances in understanding the origins of solar variability. We urge prompt NASA action to enable strong US participation in this premier international mission of the coming decade.

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FINDING ON SPACE WEATHER

Space weather encompasses all particle and electromagnetic disturbances that originate at the Sun and adversely affect ground-based and space-based systems, including human life. The National Space Weather Program is an initiative to coordinate interagency activities leading to an operational and predictive understanding of space weather. In order for this program to be successful, NASA must play a leading role in providing the fundamental research that identifies the crucial observables and develops the physical models on which the predictive algorithms ultimately will be based. In particular, the ISTP and Solar Connections programs would be an important part of the broader NASA effort. The Solar MOWG, in recognizing the vital importance of understanding the solar origins of space weather, enthusiastically encourages NASA to join the national space weather effort.

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FINDING ON A UNIVERSITY-FACULTY INITIATIVE Understanding the Sun and its effect on the Earth, other planets, and interplanetary space is fundamental to NASA's basic objectives. The Solar MOWG, therefore, encourages the preservation and enhancement of Space Physics within the nation's universities in order to foster NASA-related research and to fulfill NASA's ongoing mandate for education and public outreach. The Solar MOWG finds that the Division should encourage the establishment of new faculty positions in Space Physics, either tenure-track or non-tenure-track, through relatively large, long-duration (5-year) grants to well-qualified candidates.

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FINDING ON THE ADVANCED HITCH HIKER CONCEPT

The Advanced Hitch Hiker (AHH) is a small, light-weight, low-cost (~$2.14 M) spacecraft with fine pointing (1 arcsec) capability which can be ejected into orbit from a Hitch Hiker cannister in the Shuttle bay. The Solar MOWG finds the AHH concept to be an exciting opportunity which could significantly reduce the cost of orbital missions. The AHH spacecraft could be used as the basis of a low-cost flight program with 5-10 flights per year. Such frequent access to space would be a tremendous benefit to all of space science.

Therefore, we find that the Space Physics Division, in cooperation with the Astrophysics and Micro Gravity Divisions, should encourage a study to promote the early implementation of the AHH concept.

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