Shawn Dahl “Space Weather Storms, Global Risks, History & International Collaboration”

Our Bill Kellogg UNA-BC Discussion Series meeting was held on Wednesday, May 27, from 1:30–3:00 p.m. in the Boulder Creek Room of the Main Branch of the Boulder Public Library. Our discussion,

Shawn Dahl is a U.S. Air Force (USAF) retiree with 22 years of service, during which he spent most of his military career in the fields of meteorology and space weather. He retired from active duty in 2007 and held several meteorological forecasting positions with the USAF and the National Weather Service until 2015, when he was hired as a physical scientist and senior space weather forecaster by the Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC). He was selected as SWPC’s first Service Coordinator in August 2023 and leads Impact-based Decision Support Services (IDSS) issues, relationships, and products. He also manages education and outreach initiatives and conducts numerous customer and partner engagements on behalf of SWPC.

Shawn’s presentation covered space weather storms and detailed the global risks posed by significant space weather events. He explained how the Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) provided decision support to operators of critical technological infrastructure, government leaders, and emergency response personnel when warranted. He also emphasized the importance of collaboration with international partners because space weather is a global threat. The presentation highlighted SWPC’s collaborative efforts, key messaging, warning systems, and related topics. Finally, attendees looked at several historical space weather storms as well as recent events that had—or could have had—a much more pronounced impact on society.

We appreciated everyone who attended this interesting and unusual discussion and thank those who invited other members of the community to participate. An optional RSVP and donation link for UNA-BC was made available through Humanitix.