REU Site: Solar and Space Physics with the Boulder Solar Alliance

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The goals of this ten-week summer REU site at the University of Colorado Boulder and partner institutions is to provide undergraduate students with the opportunity to conduct research in solar and space physics, including space weather, the Sun-Earth connection, solar physics, magnetospheres, Earth's upper atmosphere, the solar wind, and their impacts on society. A diversity of projects will be undertaken ranging from purely theoretical studies to observational data analysis to instrument design and calibration. Students will gain experience in doing authentic research that will prepare them for graduate school and careers in science, conducted under the guidance of experienced mentors in the field of space physics. Understanding the Sun-Earth system is particularly important to our technological society where solar events can potentially disrupt satellite communication, power grids, and GPS technology. This program will target students from small liberal arts colleges and community colleges where research opportunities for undergraduates are often limited. This site leverages the combination of two previously run programs; one at the National Solar Observatory and one operated by CU-Boulder in conjunction with the Boulder Solar Alliance. Participants of this program will participate in an introductory week long summer school to prepare them for their research experience. They will also participate in training on sexual harassment awareness, ethics training, weekly brown bag seminars, a cohort building group project, individual research projects, and a final presentation at a research symposium. These activities support the 3 primary goals of the program: 1) introduce students to authentic research in solar and space physics, 2) give students valuable job skills in the sciences, and 3) provide an environment where long-term relationships between students and their science mentors can develop. Partner institutions (the Boulder Solar Alliance) include the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at CU, the National Solar Observatory, the High Altitude Observatory at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center, Southwest Research Institute, Northwest Research Associates, Space Science Institute, and Atmospheric & Space Technology Research Associates.