Quo vadis, European Space Weather community?

Abstract

This paper was written by a group of European researchers believing that now is the right time to frame the Space Weather and Space Climate discipline in Europe for future years. It is devoted to openly discussing the organisation and sustainability of the European Space Weather community and its assets in the (near) future. More specifically, we suggest that the European Space Weather community lacks a uniting organisation to help the community to sustain and develop the successful efforts made thus far. Our aim is not to draw a complete and exhaustive panorama of Space Weather throughout the world, nor even throughout Europe. It is not a new white paper on the science and applications: there exist many (e.g. Tsurutani BT et al. 2020. Nonlinear Processes Geophys 27(1): 75–119); nor another roadmap: several important have been published recently (e.g. Schrijver CJ et al. 2015. Adv Space Res 55(12): 2745– 2807; Opgenoorth HJ et al. 2019. J Space Weather Space Clim 9: A37). Our aim is to question our practices and organisation in front of several changes that have occurred in the recent years and to set the ground to provide coordinated answers to these questions being posed in Europe, and to make these answers discussed throughout the world. This group was assembled first through a series of sessions devoted to the sustainability of Space Weather research during the European Space Weather Week (ESWW) series of meetings, specifically: ESWW 14 (2017), ESWW 15 (2018), and ESWW 16 (2019). It then grew from discussions and personal contacts.