US-Africa Workshop on Expanding the Africa Array Network to Support Multidisciplinary Science in Africa, Washington, DC

知识价值：2010年6月将在华盛顿特区举行一个研讨会，将在非洲从事地球科学研究的美国科学家和他们的非洲合作者聚集在一起，以检验和编纂将非洲阵列（AA）地震网络扩展为一个多学科科学网络的科学依据。随着近年来AA地震台网的发展，来自相关领域的许多科学家表示有兴趣扩大网络的地理范围，并在网络中增加额外的传感器，以进行一系列现场测量，包括大气科学（包括气候）、大地测量学、地理学、水文学、地震学和空间天气。讲习班的主要目标是：(1)获得社区对关键科学问题（多学科和特定学科）的投入，这些问题如果没有来自非洲的新观察就无法解决；(2)确定为解决科学问题提供通用数据集所需的观测基础设施；(3)确定为解决科学问题提供学科特定数据集所需的观测基础设施；(4)探索(2)和(3)中确定的观测基础设施与AA网络内现有基础设施之间的交集和重叠；(5)调查更广泛的影响，包括向非洲和美国的政府和非政府组织决策者沟通和传播科学信息以及支持教育活动的最佳选择。这些目标与研讨会的三个具体成果有关；(a)一个科学计划，它将描述扩大AA网络的科学原理；(b)一个后勤计划，它将概述每个科学领域的观测需求，并指出如何调整现有的AfricaArray网络以满足这些需求；(c)一个更广泛的影响计划，它将讨论支持非洲科学教育的方法。更广泛的影响：本次研讨会的更广泛影响包括为扩大非洲许多科学领域的研究和教育活动奠定基础，使许多非洲教师和学生以及在非洲进行研究的美国教师和学生受益。此外，讲习班将提供一个论坛，以便制定向国内外广大受众传播数据和研究的计划。初出茅庐的科学家和研究生都将参加研讨会。

Intellectual Merit: A workshop will be held in Washington, DC in June, 2010, bringing together U.S. scientists engaged in geoscience research in Africa and their African collaborators in order to examine and codify the scientific rationale for expanding the AfricaArray (AA) seismic network into a multidisciplinary science network. As the AA seismic network has been developed over recent years, many scientists from allied fields have expressed interest in expanding the geographic extent of the network and adding additional sensors to the network for making a range of in-situ measurements, including for atmospheric science (including climate), geodesy, geography, hydrology, seismology, and space weather.The primary objectives for the workshop are: (1) To obtain community input on key science questions (multidisciplinary and discipline-specific) that cannot be addressed without new observations from Africa; (2) To determine the observational infrastructure needed to provide common data sets for addressing the science questions; (3) To determine the observational infrastructure needed to provide discipline-specific data sets for addressing the science questions;(4) To explore the intersection and overlap between the observational infrastructure identified in (2) and (3) and existing infrastructure within the AA network;(5) To investigate broader impacts, including best options for communicating and disseminating science information to government and non-government organization (NGO) decision-makers and supporting educational activities in Africa and the U.S. These objectives are linked to three specific outcomes for the workshop; (a) a science plan that will describe the scientific rationale for expanding the AA network, (b) a logistics plan that will outline the observational needs for each science field and indicate how the existing AfricaArray network can be adapted to meet those needs, and (c) a broader impacts plan that will discuss ways to support science education in Africa.Broader Impacts: The broader impacts of this workshop include laying the foundation to expand research and education activities in many science fields in Africa for the benefit of many African faculty and students and for the U.S. faculty and students who are conducting research in Africa. In addition, the workshop will provide a forum for developing plans for communicating data and research to a broad audience, both domestic and international. Both early career scientists and graduate students will participate in the workshop.