International solar terrestrial energy programme and the UK participation

The Solar Terrestrial Energy Programme (STEP) aims to improve our general understanding of how mass, energy and momentum are transferred between the various regions that form the Solar Terrestrial environment. STEP began in 1990 and will continue until 1997, during which time a number of major new spacecraft and ground-based projects will become operational. Six Working Groups form the basis of STEP, covering topics such as the Sun as a source of energy and disturbance, energy and mass transfer through the interplanetary medium and the magnetosphere-ionosphere system, ionosphere-thermosphere coupling and response to energy and momentum inputs, middle atmosphere responses to forcing from above and below, solar variability effects in the human environment, and informatics. A Royal Astronomical Society Geophysics Discussion meeting took place in March 1992 to draw to the attention of UK scientists the diverse nature of STEP and the opportunities offered by STEP. This paper consists of individual sections prepared by the speakers at the meeting and which cover most of the STEP Working Group topics. The main aims of each section are to provide a benchmark for the present status of the research area and to look ahead to the possible contributions that UK scientists can make during STEP.