The Next Decade in Astrophysics Could Reveal Our Solar System’s Biggest Secrets

The latest Decadal Survey for Solar and Space Physics just dropped, and it is filled with goodies ranging from new missions to plans for space weather.

The report comes from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and it outlines top priorities for space agencies and affiliated institutions in better understanding the solar system in the next decade. The report draws on 450 papers from the science community as well as other events including presentations and town halls.

Decadal surveys are important; they outline science objectives for a wide array of scientists. In 2021, the academies outlined finding Earth-like exoplanets, understanding the universe’s densest objects, and improving understanding of the birth and growth of galaxies as top astronomical priorities.

The following year, the report dedicated to planetary science and astrobiology concluded that a Uranus probe should be the highest priority mission. Last year, a report from the academies put a sustained human presence off-Earth on the docket.

This year’s report covered the gamut of solar and space physics, including how to better track the dynamic environment of our solar system and better understand the star at its heart.

The report called for NASA to pursue a mission that would launch a constellation of satellites that would observe the space environment near Earth and a spacecraft that would image the Sun at its poles. The report identified the National Science Foundation’s Next Generation Global Oscillations Network, a solar observatory network, as the highest-priority large construction project.

“Lack of progress in solar and space physics over the next decade could have devastating consequences to society, in part because it would inhibit our ability to predict and mitigate against potentially harmful space weather impacts,” said committee co-chair Stephen Fuselier, acting vice president of the Southwest Research Institute’s space science division, in an academies release.

“While making substantive progress will require modest additional investments from the government, research into these areas is of paramount importance,” Fuselier added. “This report helps provide a window into the future of the field and safeguard a growing range of industries here on Earth, and enables humanity to become a true space-faring civilization.”

Space weather is a dynamic phenomenon that even affects those of us on Earth; our planet was hit by several intense geomagnetic storms this year, causing auroras around the world and some electronic disruptions. But in space, such weather events can be severe for equipment that, albeit shielded, is not within the relatively safe cocoon of our planet’s magnetosphere.

“The solar and space physics field is at a pivotal point right now, and we have the opportunity in the coming years to pursue some really exciting science—both for science’s sake and to achieve major improvements to our understanding of things like space weather,” said Robyn Millan, an astronomer at Dartmouth College and co-chair of the committee that wrote the report, in an academies release.

As we Earthlings ramp up exploration of our solar system (and, dare I say, beyond?), it’s crucial for governing bodies to outline the types of missions and the funding required to take those ambitious next steps sooner rather than later. The report provides a north star for those goals, and gives the public something to get excited about.