"This is a temple for humanity, for science, for the next generation and for education. We want to make it a center of heliophysics. As specialists in solar science, we would be grateful if you could guide us to improve the solar and space science based theme in the Sun Temple by giving us your suggestions. Could you suggest your ideas, links and models related to heliophysics so that we can incorporate them into the Temple. You can also help by sending posters, CDs, DVDs, models and other useful material which will be placed in the temple with your name as a donor. Your contributions will be seen by the millions of visitors to the Sun Temple every year."

George Maeda
Editor of ISWI Newsletter

(2nd Circular) SCOSTEP-WDS Workshop on
"Global Data Activities for the Study of Solar-Terrestrial Variability"
28-30 September 2015

Place: National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT), Tokyo, Japan

Web Page: http://isds.nict.go.jp/scostep-wds.2015.org/

Contact Point: contact-scostep-wds(at)icsu-wds.org

Principal Sponsors:
Scientific Committee on Solar-Terrestrial Physics (SCOSTEP) http://www.yorku.ca/scostep/
ICSU World Data System (ICSU-WDS) https://www.icsu-wds.org/

(1) Scope of the Workshop The principal objective of this joint SCOSTEP-WDS workshop is to stimulate interaction among data providers (data centres, data networks, etc.), data scientists, and data-oriented researchers. SCOSTEP’s current program VarSITI (Variability of the Sun and Its Terrestrial Impact, http://www.varsiti.org/) will strive for international collaboration in data analysis, modeling, and theory to understand how the solar variability affects the Earth’s environment in a vast range of time scales, from seconds to billions of years. Long-term preservation and provision of quality-assessed data and information are common objectives for SCOSTEP and WDS. Development of advanced data systems to enable scientists to perform multidisciplinary data-analysis is another common target. This workshop will be a remarkable opportunity to initiate close collaboration between SCOSTEP and WDS to promote our data-oriented activities by introducing state-of-the-art information technology. Principal topics of the workshop are:

• Application of information technology to mutual data activities
• Data systems for VarSITI (data centres, data networks, data analysis systems, etc.)
• Data analysis (VarSITI Campaign Intervals and others)
• Data-oriented collaborations between SCOSTEP and WDS.

(2) Special Event Study In the planned Data Analysis session shown above, we have blocked a time slot to perform "on-line" data analyses of solar-terrestrial phenomena observed in the interval around --- "St. Patrick’s day (17 March 2015)" geomagnetic storm. A partial halo CME was observed on 2015/03/15, in association with a C9.1/1F flare (S22W25) and II/IV radio bursts. A super geomagnetic storm commenced at 04:45 UTC on 17 March (Kakioka), and the Dst reached its minimum value (-228 nT) at around 00 UTC on 18 March (WDC for Geomagnetism, Kyoto). This geomagnetic storm is the largest one in the current solar cycle. Presentations on data analyses of this solar-terrestrial event are welcome. To stimulate collaborative data analysis of this event, the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) will prepare an environment to enable on-line access to relevant data, through the collaborations of VarSITI participants in Japan. Further information on this event will be posted on the Workshop Web page.

(3) Workshop Information The workshop Web page http://isds.nict.go.jp/scostep-wds.2015.org/ has been updated to include registration, abstract submission and accommodation pages. Information on these important items are given below but please visit this web page for details.

Registration: Please use the registration form, posted on the Workshop web page, and submit it to the "contact point" (see above). The registration deadline is 15 September 2015. Although on-site registration will be accepted, we ask all participants to submit the form in advance to eliminate additional paper work at the registration desk. No registration fee is required.

Abstract Submission: The abstract format is a "one-pager" that may include figures or tables, in addition to the main text of less than 600 words (a WORD template can be found in the workshop web page). All figures will be reproduced monochromatically in the workshop booklet to be distributed to the participants. Please submit the abstract as e-mail attachment to the "contact point" of the Workshop by 1 August 2015. All submitted abstracts will be reviewed.

Accommodation: For foreign participants, we are keeping a block of rooms (single and non-smoking) in Hotel Mets Kokubunji ( http://www.jrhotelgroup.com/eng/code/codeeng123.htm). This hotel is located within walking distance from NICT (public bus services are also available). Hotel reservation form, posted on the Workshop page, should be sent to the "contact point", not to the hotel. Although the dead line for hotel reservation has been set as 31 August 2015, we strongly recommend you to make the reservation as early as possible. For domestic participants, please see the hotel information posted in our Web page.

Inquiries on this Workshop should be addressed to: contact-scostep-wds(at)icsu-wds.org

Announcement of Opportunity
The SCOSTEP Visiting Scholar (SVS) program

Applications are invited to the SCOSTEP Visiting Scholar (SVS) program, a new capacity building activity of SCOSTEP (the Scientific Committee on Solar-Terrestrial Physics). The SVS program complements the current scientific program, VarSITI (Variability of the Sun and its Terrestrial Impact) and public outreach activities of SCOSTEP.

The objective

The objective of the SVS program is to provide training to young scientists and graduate students from developing countries in well-established solar terrestrial physics laboratories, for periods of between one and three months. Our aim is to fund four scholars each year, one related to each of the four SCOSTEP VarSITI themes (http://www.varsiti.org/). The training will help the young scientists to advance their career in solar terrestrial physics using the technique/skill they learned during the training. SCOSTEP will provide the airfare, while it is expected that the hosting lab will provide the living expenses (lodging, meals, ground transportation, visa fees and other incidentals). Trainees should have their own health insurance or arrange a provision with the host lab.

Frequency: At least four scholars each year, starting in 2015.

Application Procedure
Please contact one of the SVS program listed below and work out the details of the visit. Once the applicant and the host agree on a visit, please prepare an application package including the following details of the visit:
(i) work to be performed;
(ii) dates of the visit and an estimate of the airfare in economy class;
(iii) letter from the applicant’s supervisor, and
(iv) letter from the host scientist.

Prepare a single pdf file of the above materials and email it to: Dr. Marianna G. Shepherd (mshepher[at]yorku.ca). All applications should be sent to the SCOSTEP Secretariat by not later than May 31, 2015. The applicant will be informed within three months after this date.

List of hosts:

• Leibniz Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAF), Germany.
  Contact: Dr. Franz–Josef Lübken – luebken[at]iap-kborn.de
• The Solar-Terrestrial Environment Laboratory (STEL), Nagoya University, Japan.
  Contact: Dr. Kazuo Shiokawa - shiokawa[at]stelab.nagoya-u.ac.jp
• National Institute of Polar Research (NiPR), Japan.
  Contact: Dr. Takuji Nakamura - nakamura.takuji[at]nipr.ac.jp
• National Space Science Centre (NSSC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, China.
  Contact: Dr. Yihua Yan - yyh[at]nao.cas.cn
• NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), USA.
  Contacts: Dr. Antti Pulkkinen - antti.a.pulkkinen[at]nasa.gov,
  Dr. Nat Gopalswamy – Nat.gopalswamy[at]nasa.gov,
  Dr. Seiji Yashiro – seiji.yashiro[at]nasa.gov
• South African National Space Agency (SANSA), South Africa.
  Contact: Dr. Lee-Anne McKinnell – seiji.yashiro[at]nasa.gov

In the Temple there will be a statue of the sun god on a chariot being pulled by seven horses (representing the seven parts of the spectrum) which will be illuminated by actual sunlight from a large lens on the top of temple (kindly see the pictures). There will be a book stall with books on solar science from the Vaidik age to the present and a display on Hindu solar mythology.

There will also be Radio Jove from NASA, Super Sid from the Stanford Solar Center, pin hole cameras for long exposure of the ecliptic, large pictures of the Sun from SDO, STEREO etc., a live feed from SDO, recordings of solar storms, a multimedia show and a live kiosk to answer visitors' questions will be there to represent Heliophysics in its purest form. At the top of the dome, there will be a large solar telescope.

Dear Colleagues.

We would like to remind you to take part in the first consortium workshop to discuss the proposal for an operational space-weather mission to L5. This is a follow-on and associated workshop to those previously taken place in the USA (e.g. Boulder, CO, 02-04 December 2014 was the latest).

The registration places are going fast (on a first-come basis) and registration will close promptly at 12:00UT on 30 April 2015 - please register sooner rather than later if you intend on taking part in the workshop.

Once your registration place is confirmed, you will be sent an E-Mail with the necessary instructions on how to submit your abstract (the abstract deadline has been brought forward to 24 April at 23:59:59UT to accommodate planning of the final programme, so please register well ahead of this deadline if you also wish to submit an abstract. Abstracts can be for either discussion topics and for individual presentations fitting within the overall theme of the workshop.

The workshop will take place 11-14 May 2015 at the Business Innovation Skills (BIS) Westminster Conference Centre, 1 Victoria Street, London, SW1H 0ET, UK
(http://www.1victoriastreet.co.uk/1_victoria_street).

As a reminder, the objectives for the meeting include:

• - Agreeing the continuing need for an operational mission to L5;
• - Confirm good science can be achieved from an operational mission;
• - Discuss the instrumentation to be included within the spacecraft; and
• - Demonstrate to key stakeholders that there is a global

interest and need for an Operational Mission to L5.

To register your attendance and for additional information and updates on the workshop details as they are made available, please go to the official workshop website: and scroll down for further information as well as for a preliminary agenda.

There will be no registration charges, lunches and tea/coffee breaks will be provided on the Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday for all registered participants, and we will also hold events on the Tuesday and Wednesday evenings for all workshop participants. Full details will be updated on the official website in due course.

Contact Points:
Dr David Miles david.miles[at]ualberta.ca
University of Alberta, Canada https://ualberta.ca/
Department of Physics https://uofa.ualberta.ca/physics
Postdoctoral Fellows Office http://www.postdoc.ualberta.ca/
Phone: 780-492-8179