S3ME Surveillance solaire sol pour la météorologie de l'espace

Details

Objectives

The S3ME ( "Surveillance solaire sol pour la météorologie de l'espace" or ground based solar bbservations for space-weather) service of the INSU (Astronomy and Astrophysics), carried by the Paris Observatory, the Côte d'Azur Observatory and the Midi-Pyrénées Observatory is dedicated to the observation of the Sun and phenomena related to its magnetic activity. It merges several services that previously existed and provides a variety of ground observation data:

  • Spectro-imagery of the Sun in visible light with the spectroheliograph of Meudon;
  • imaging at discrete radio frequencies with the Radioheliograph of Nançay;
  • spectrography of solar radio bursts with the ORFEES spectrograph in Nançay
  • monitoring of the galactic and solar cosmic radiation with the neutron monitors of the Kerguelen and Terre Adélie (IPEV) stations.
  • Continuous and high-rate imaging of the chromosphere (H-alpha and Ca K) with the MétéoSpace instrument on the Calern Plateau (OCA)
  • The coronagraphy with the CLIMSO instruments of the Pic du Midi (OMP).

Identity

A common web portal is under developpement. It will include the following web pages of individual services:

Data

These observations are currently accessible through several databases: BASS2000 (http://bass2000.obspm.fr/) for visible-light imaging, solar-db.oca.eu for high-cadence chromospheric imaging, and the Radio Solar Database (https://rsdb.obs-nancay.fr/) for radio imaging and spectroscopy.

Implication at OCA

At OCA, the responsibilities associated with MétéoSpace include the operation and monitoring of the instrument, automation and maintenance of the observing system, data acquisition, quality control, processing and archiving. We also cover the development and maintenance of the full database of images and of the software for data management and dissemination, as well as the scientific exploitation of the observations, including the study of solar flares, chromospheric dynamics and large-scale solar disturbances.

Involved researchres and engineers at OCA

Thierry Corbard (Ast. Adj.), Frédéric Morrand (IR), Florence Guitton (IE) , Sébastien Flament (AI)

Needs and prospectives (short term)

Short-term needs and prospects at OCA include:

  • Participating in the daily monitoring and operation of MétéoSpace, including checking data acquisition, instrument status and data quality, and assisting with troubleshooting and automation.

  • Developing new scientific products from MétéoSpace observations, for example automated flare detection and characterization, solar activity indices, filament and prominence tracking, Doppler-shift products from the multi-wavelength observations, and detection and characterization of Moreton waves and other large-scale chromospheric disturbances.

  • Developing AI/ML tools for real-time detection and classification of solar features and events, including flares, filaments, eruptive events and propagating disturbances, with the objective of providing automated event alerts and near-real-time scientific products.

  • Improving data processing and quality-control pipelines, including automated assessment of observing conditions, image quality and data completeness.

  • Developing tools for data visualization and dissemination, including event-based quicklooks, time sequences and interfaces for accessing MétéoSpace observations.

  • Contributing to the scientific exploitation of the data, in particular through the comparison of MétéoSpace observations with complementary solar observations and space-weather data such as GOES.

  • Contributing to the evolution of the MétéoSpace software and data infrastructure, including automation, archiving and integration with existing solar-data services.