Abstract:

Particles that originate on the Sun or are trapped in near-Earth space can sometimes come raining down to our atmosphere in a process we call precipitation. Energetic particle precipitation across a wide range of energies is caused by various processes in Earth’s magnetosphere and affects many aspects of our atmosphere and ionosphere. Several new studies using ground-based observations and satellite data examine the process by which some particles are precipitated and the resulting effect on phenomena like the aurora or northern lights. While new investigations are giving us a better understanding of the whole system, there are still outstanding mysteries to be solved – like what role this precipitation can play in Earth’s climate. What would be useful to dramatically enhance our understanding of the impacts of energetic particles? We’ll discuss the measurements and future studies needed to unravel the complexities of energetic particle precipitation.