Suspended in a Sunbeam: How the Sun Influences Earth, from Surface to Space - Judith Lean

A generator in space, 150 million km away, heats the Earth, structures its atmosphere and organizes the surrounding space environment. The Sun's energy output exhibits pronounced variability on all time scales, from minutes to 11-year cycles and longer, with myriad Earthly consequences all the way from its surrounding space environment, to the surface. How might the Sun affect navigation, communication and Earth-orbiting objects that can impact economic and security operations? How much of atmospheric ozone depletion and surface warming is solar rather than human-induced? How well can we forecast future changes in Earth's extended environment for societal, economic and security applications? Scientific curiosity and societal utility both call for a robust understanding of the Sun-Earth system-our home in space that extends well beyond the surface where we live.