Authors: Mario M. Bisi (RAL Space, UK Research and Innovation – Science & Technology Facilities Council – Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Harwell Campus, Oxfordshire, OX11 0QX, UK), Richard A. Fallows (ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Postbus 2, 7990 AA Dwingeloo, The Netherlands), René Vermeulen (ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Postbus 2, 7990 AA Dwingeloo, The Netherlands), Stuart C. Robertson (RAL Space, UK Research and Innovation – Science & Technology Facilities Council – Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Harwell Campus, Oxfordshire, OX11 0QX, UK), Mark Ruiter (ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Postbus 2, 7990 AA Dwingeloo, The Netherlands), Nicole Vilmer (Observatoire de Paris, Paris, France), Hanna Rothkaehl (Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland), Barbara Matyjasiak (Space Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland), Joris Verbiest (Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany), Peter T. Gallagher (Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS), Dublin, Ireland), Tobia Carozzi (Onsala Space Observatory (OSO), Onsala, Sweden), Michael Olberg (Onsala Space Observatory (OSO), Onsala, Sweden), Michael Lindqvist (Onsala Space Observatory (OSO), Onsala, Sweden), Eoin Carley (No affiliation, Ireland), Carla Baldovin (ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Postbus 2, 7990 AA Dwingeloo, The Netherlands), Paulus Kruger (ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Postbus 2, 7990 AA Dwingeloo, The Netherlands), Maaijke Mevius (ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Postbus 2, 7990 AA Dwingeloo, The Netherlands), Biagio Forte (University of Bath, Bath, UK), Steve Milan (University of Leicester, Leicester, UK), David Jackson (Met Office, Exeter, UK), Bernard V. Jackson (Center for Astrophysics and Space Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA), Dusan Odstrcil (George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA), Oyuki Chang (RAL Space, UK Research and Innovation – Science & Technology Facilities Council – Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Harwell Campus, Oxfordshire, OX11 0QX, UK), and David Barnes (RAL Space, UK Research and Innovation – Science & Technology Facilities Council – Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Harwell Campus, Oxfordshire, OX11 0QX, UK).

Space-weather (SW) monitoring/forecasting/operations, and its unpinning research, are all important topics of the global effort to better understand and mitigate-against SW impacts. Knowledge/understanding of interactions in the Sun-Earth system, the physics behind observed SW phenomena, and the direct impact on modern technologies are all crucial areas of technological and scientific interest. A better understanding of the Heliosphere-Earth system is crucial, and this can be achieved by exploiting novel ground-based radio observations of such.

The tracking of plasma structures across the inner-heliosphere is possible using instruments such as the LOw Frequency ARray (LOFAR) via observations of radio-wave scintillation – in the heliosphere, this is known as interplanetary scintillation (IPS). LOFAR is also capable of detecting ionospheric scintillation as well as undertaking other scientific investigations of the ionosphere and heliosphere. LOFAR observes over a wide radio bandwidth (~10-250 MHz) at high spatial/temporal resolutions and has capabilities that enable studies of several aspects of SW to be progressed beyond today’s state-of-the-art. However, in its present setup, it can only be used for SW campaigns. This severely limits its ability to contribute to SW monitoring/forecasting beyond its core strength of enabling world-leading scientific research.

The LOFAR For Space Weather (LOFAR4SW) project (see: http://lofar4sw.eu/) was a Horizon 2020 (H2020) INFRADEV design study to undertake investigations into upgrading LOFAR for regular SW science/monitoring observations in parallel with normal radio-astronomy/scientific operations. It involved all aspects of political/scientific engagement with various stakeholders under the full recognition that SW is a worldwide threat with varied local/regional/global impacts.

Here, we summarise key LOFAR observing capabilities in the context of LOFAR4SW, and, where possible, explore project ideas aiming to investigate how LOFAR can be utilised for advanced forecasts of SW conditions/impacts, via a new understanding of the Earth’s magnetosphere-ionosphere space-environment.