SM41B-2479
The Origin of the Term "Space Weather"
Thursday, 17 December 2015
Poster Hall (Moscone South)
William B Cade III, Baylor University, Center for Astrophysics, Space Physics, and Engineering Research, Waco, TX, United States and Chan-Park Christina, Baylor University, University Libraries, Waco, TX, United States
Abstract:
Where did the term “space weather” come from? More broadly, from the earliest days how did humanity refer to the science that we now call “space weather”? “Space Weather” came into popular use in the 1990’s, but its origin is somewhat murky with no satisfactory attribution. It is therefore useful to explore it’s origin and the heritage of similar terminology. We will explore terminology very similar to “space weather” that can be traced back to the mid-19th century where terms such as “solar meteorology,” “magnetic weather,” and “cosmic meteorology” all appeared. We will also present the earliest known usages of the exact term “space weather.”
