ES1005 - Towards a more complete assessment of the impact of solar variability on the Earth's climate

The role of solar variability in climate change is a topic of considerable scientific and societal importance, and also a topic of controversy. The mechanisms by which solar variability affects various layers of the terrestrial atmosphere are still poorly known. European teams have developed strong expertise on various aspects, but the lack of interaction has hampered progress toward a more global and quantitative picture. The objective of this Action is to make solid progress on this problem, by assessing quantitatively the different contributions of solar variability to the terrestrial environment.

Four working groups will address respectively the impact of solar radiative forcing, interplanetary perturbations, and energetic particles upon the atmosphere, and the interfacing between upper and lower atmospheric layers and corresponding models. The deliverables include online tools such as a catalogue of proxy data for solar, interplanetary and energetic particle variability, a catalogue of models, best practices for validation, fact sheets for policy makers, and capacity building events for training young researchers.

The main benefits will be an authoritative source of information on the role of the Sun in global climate change, a significant enhancement of present knowledge and a long-term structural improvement in the interaction between scientific communities.