The Solar Observing Optical Network (SOON) consists of three U.S. Air Force (USAF) Air Force Weather Agency (AFWA) solar observatories.[1] AFWA operates a solar telescope at each site to monitor solar active regions at optical wavelengths. The National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) archives histograms of intensity versus area every minute for the active regions. It also archives magnetograms of the magnetic field structure and tachograms of plasma velocities on an irregular schedule.[2]
The SOON observatories are operated by detachments of AFWA's 2nd Weather Group at the following sites:[1]
RAAF Learmonth, Western Australia, Australia 22°14′30″S114°04′54″E / 22.24180°S 114.08156°E / -22.24180; 114.08156
Holloman AFB, New Mexico, USA 32°49′53″N106°06′59″W / 32.83130°N 106.11646°W / 32.83130; -106.11646
San Vito dei Normanni Air Station, San Vito dei Normanni, Italy (contractor-run site) 40°38′40″N17°50′33″E / 40.64433°N 17.84262°E / 40.64433; 17.84262
Telescopes at Palehua, Hawaii and Ramey Air Force Base, Puerto Rico have been shut down.
SOON Telescope History: The original SOON network was designed by Dr. Richard B. Dunn, a Harvard educated engineer/astrophysicist. Dr. Dunn commissioned the Tower Telescope (later designated the Dunn Solar Tower) on Sacramento Peak, Sunspot, NM in the late 60s. The SOON network of 5 solar telescopes was built at Sunspot for the USAF working with international partners at far flung sites. The Dunn Solar Tower at Sunspot, NM will potentially be idled when the Advanced Technology Solar Telescope, or DKIST, is commissioned on Maui.
There is an active Consolidated Repair Activity (CRA) based out of Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico which is operated by the 49th Communications Squadron. The CRA provides depot-level maintenance and support to the SOON program. The CRA also develops maintenance procedures, institutes physical (non-software) updates, and overhauls all three telescopes on a regular basis.
^ abCite error: The named reference 2ND was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference NGDCSOON was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
and 27 Related for: Solar Observing Optical Network information
The SolarObservingOpticalNetwork (SOON) consists of three U.S. Air Force (USAF) Air Force Weather Agency (AFWA) solar observatories. AFWA operates a...
re-entering space object; The Space Surveillance Network includes dedicated, collateral, and contributing electro-optical, passive radio frequency (RF) and radar...
and plasma physics. Most solar observatories observe optically at visible, UV, and near infrared wavelengths, but other solar phenomena can be observed...
message from the received optical signal. When electronic equipment is not employed the 'receiver' is a person visually observing and interpreting a signal...
The Solar Orbiter (SolO) is a Sun-observing probe developed by the European Space Agency (ESA) with a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)...
January 15, 2012. Littmann, Mark; Willcox, Ken; Espenak, Fred (1999). "ObservingSolar Eclipses Safely". MrEclipse.com. Archived from the original on July...
solar rotation rate - solar transition region - solar wind - solstice - SolarObservingOpticalNetwork (SOON) - South Atlantic anomaly - Southern Hemisphere...
technique in the fields of astronomy, fiber optics, engineering metrology, optical metrology, oceanography, seismology, spectroscopy (and its applications...
has a 1.6-meter (5.2 ft) clear-aperture Goode Solar Telescope (GST), which has no obscuration in the optical train. BBSO is located on the north side of...
were presented in Solar Physics, volumes 170 and 175 (1997), edited by B. Fleck and Z. Švestka. As a consequence of its observing the Sun, SOHO (specifically...
would be detected by observing if its transits across the star abruptly end with the thruster in front. Asteroid mining within the Solar System is also a...
Ground-based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance, a network of telescopes used in a United States Air Force program for observing space junk GEOS – (organization)...
motion vectors and optical depth to obtain forecasts up to 30 minutes ahead. These methods leverage the several geostationary Earth observing weather satellites...
of frequency 2.29 GHz passed through the solar coronal region at solar offset distances between 4-20 solar radius. The experiment was conducted in a...
RObotic NETwork) is a network of ground-based sun photometers which measure atmospheric aerosol properties. The measurement system is a solar-powered...
was specially launched for the "global network of satellite geodesy", which occupied about 20 full-time observing teams all over the world until 1973. All...
on empirical knowledge gained from observing the effects of the lenses rather than using the rudimentary optical theory of the day (theory which for...
orbiter was however canceled, then replaced by Hera which plans to start observing the asteroid four years after the DART impact. Live monitoring of the...
mission on Maui was formally called Air Force Maui Optical Station (AMOS) and the Air Force Maui Optical and Supercomputing observatory; the use of the term...
astronomy forming the higher rungs of the ladder. Parallax also affects optical instruments such as rifle scopes, binoculars, microscopes, and twin-lens...
period. A total of 460 hours of observing time was awarded to these 13 programs, which span science topics including the Solar System, exoplanets, stars and...
of observing conditions 1939 Film of the dedication ceremony for McDonald Observatory Portals: Texas Astronomy Stars Spaceflight Outer space Solar System...
The Parker Solar Probe (PSP; previously Solar Probe, Solar Probe Plus or Solar Probe+) is a NASA space probe launched in 2018 with the mission of making...
Radar astronomy is a technique of observing nearby astronomical objects by reflecting radio waves or microwaves off target objects and analyzing their...
astronomical object to Earth. The Moon may be observed by using a variety of optical instruments, ranging from the naked eye to large telescopes. The Moon is...
Global Information