Public Access to Neutron Monitor Datasets

Over the last few years, great strides have been made in providing access to data, both archival and near-real-time, for researchers throughout the field of Space Science. Neutron monitor data, in particular, has for many decades enjoyed a unique history of world-wide collaborative efforts and the unrestricted sharing of datasets among researchers. This is in large part due to the nature of the measurements made by neutron monitors; an understanding of the time-varying, anisotropic galactic or solar cosmic ray spectrum in most cases requires that data from a large array of stations needs to be considered, and often that array must be global in scope. This paper will attempt to summarize the current availability of neutron monitor data, by (a) describing the current status of archival data and near-real-time data access to neutron monitor data, and (b) looking into the future, with an emphasis on the use of the World Wide Web and other electronic means as the source mechanism. Public outreach efforts using active neutron monitors will also be discussed. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Aeronomy of Extra-Solar Giant Planets

The intense stellar UV radiation field incident upon extra-solar giant planets causes profound changes to their upper atmospheres. Upper atmospheric temperatures can be tens of thousands of kelvins, causing thermal dissociation of H₂ to H. The stellar ionizing flux converts H to H⁺. The high temperatures also drive large escape rates of H, but for all but the planets with the smallest orbits, this flux is not large enough to affect planet evolution. The escape rate is large enough to drag off heavier atoms such as C and O. For very small orbits, when the hill sphere is inside the atmosphere, escape is unfettered and can affect planet evolution.