A report on the community study of the early November 1993 geomagnetic storm

Abstract

In anticipation of the upcoming solar maximum a large segment of the solar-terrestrial community has joined in an effort to document and benchmark the strengths and shortcomings of the community's observational and modeling capabilities. Approximately 100 scientists are participating in a study of a significant solar-terrestrial event which influenced the Earth between 2 and 11 November 1993. The goal of the study is to follow the event from its origin at the Sun, tracing the flow of particles and energy through the interplanetary medium and into the dissipative elements of the magnetosphere, ionosphere and thermosphere, thus providing a test-bed for existing space weather analysis and modeling capabilities. The geomagnetic storm of early November 1993 was identified as a candidate for study. While the study was inspired by the US National Space Weather Program, it has become an international event study. The following paper provides information about the origin and significance of the storm, the reasons for its selection as a community study event and a brief status report of the study.