High performance computers are central to the quest to understand the sun’s behavior and its role in space weather events. Scientists are using the Frontera supercomputer to improve the state-of-the-art in space weather forecasting. Researchers described the role of backstreaming pickup ions in the acceleration of charged particles in the universe, which play an important role in space weather.

Astronomers have studied the sun’s activity for centuries with greater and greater understanding. Today, computers are central to the quest to understand the sun’s behavior and its role in space weather events.

The bipartisan PROSWIFT (Promoting Research and Observations of Space Weather to Improve the Forecasting of Tomorrow) Act, passed into law in October 2020, is formalizing the need to develop better space weather forecasting tools.

«Space weather requires a real-time product so we can predict impacts before an event, not just afterward,» explained Nikolai Pogorelov, distinguished professor of Space Science at The University of Alabama in Huntsville, who has been using computers to study space weather for decades. «This subject — related to national space programs, environmental, and other issues — was recently escalated to a higher level.»

To many, space weather may seem like a distant concern, but like a pandemic — something we knew was possible and catastrophic — we may not realize its dangers until it’s too late.

«We don’t think about it, but electrical communication, GPS, and everyday gadgets can be effected by extreme space weather effects,» Pogorelov said.

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Materials provided by University of Texas at Austin, Texas Advanced Computing Center. Original written by Aaron Dubrow. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.