Attendees gather for a blessing for two new neutron monitor stations on Haleakalā.
The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa held a blessing for two new neutron monitor stations atop Haleakalā on January 8, marking a significant advancement in space weather forecasting capabilities across the Pacific region.
The Haleakalā Neutron Monitor Station (HLEA) and Thailand-Hawaiʻi Monitor (THIMON) stations, funded by a $2.5 million National Science Foundation grant, fill a critical 162-degree gap in the global neutron monitor network between Mexico and Thailand. The strategic placement at 10,000 feet elevation also enables scientists to capture more solar neutron particles with longer daily sun exposure and fewer seasonal variations.
Related UH News stories:
- Advancing space weather forecasts ahead of 2025 solar maximum, October 28, 2024
- $2.5M grant to monitor space weather, making space travel safer, May 29, 2022
The ribbon-cutting ceremony of the neutron monitor facility was preceded by a workshop attended by more than 40 scientists from around the world, from Europe and Asia to South America. The Neutron Monitor Workshop brought together researchers, local officials, and community members, emphasizing the significance of this installation in advancing global space weather forecasting.
The monitoring stations measure powerful particles emitted by the Sun, including solar energetic particles and solar neutron particles. These particles can pose significant risks to astronauts, potentially cause major failures in space electronics, and disrupt satellites and technologies used in commercial space travel.
Led by UH Mānoa Department of Physics and Astronomy Chair and Professor Veronica Bindi, the project established the monitors among approximately 50 ground neutron monitor stations worldwide. The university also created a new space weather control center on the UH Mānoa campus to process and analyze the data.
"This installation represents more than just scientific advancement---it positions Hawaiʻi as a crucial guardian of our modern way of life, protecting everything from our local power grid, gas and oil pipelines to the satellites that enable our daily communications and navigation," Bindi said. "By placing these monitors on Haleakalā, we're not only advancing global space weather forecasting capabilities, but we're also establishing UH as a leader in space weather research, creating new opportunities for our students and researchers to contribute to this critical field of science."
Solar Cycle 25
The launch timing aligned with the approaching solar maximum of Solar Cycle 25---expected in summer 2025---allowing researchers to collect crucial data during a period of intense solar activity. During a solar maximum, the Sun undergoes more frequent and intense solar flares and coronal mass ejections, which can cause geomagnetic storms that disrupt long infrastructure systems such as power grids and pipelines, as well as radio communications on Earth.The project represents a significant step forward in protecting both space-based assets and Earth-bound infrastructure from solar storms.
The collected data will be analyzed alongside observations from NASA and NOAA satellites, as well as the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS)---the most precise instrument for measuring cosmic ray flux---installed on the International Space Station (ISS) in 2011. This joint analysis will enable the calibration of the global neutron monitor network and extend measurements to cover periods both before the AMS launch and after the ISS decommissioning. This comprehensive approach aims to improve space weather forecasting accuracy, which currently lags decades behind weather prediction capabilities on Earth (rain, temperature, wind, storms, etc.).
Both HLEA and THIMON are set to operate for many years as integral parts of the worldwide neutron monitor network, providing the scientific community with crucial data on galactic cosmic ray variations, Forbush decreases, detecting solar neutrons and advancing space weather forecasting.
Neutron Monitor Workshop attendees