Automated shock detection and analysis algorithm for space weather application

Space weather applications have grown steadily as real‐time data have become increasingly available. Numerous industrial applications have arisen with safeguarding of the power distribution grids being a particular interest. NASA uses short‐term and long‐term space weather predictions in its launch facilities. Researchers studying ionospheric, auroral, and magnetospheric disturbances use real‐time space weather services to determine launch times. Commercial airlines, communication companies, and the military use space weather measurements to manage their resources and activities. As the effects of solar transients upon the Earth's environment and society grow with the increasing complexity of technology, better tools are needed to monitor and evaluate the characteristics of the incoming disturbances. A need is for automated shock detection and analysis methods that are applicable to in situ measurements upstream of the Earth. Such tools can provide advance warning of approaching disturbances that have significant space weather impacts. Knowledge of the shock strength and speed can also provide insight into the nature of the approaching solar transient prior to arrival at the magnetopause. We report on efforts to develop a tool that can find and analyze shocks in interplanetary plasma data without operator intervention. This method will run with sufficient speed to be a practical space weather tool providing useful shock information within 1 min of having the necessary data to ground. The ability to run without human intervention frees space weather operators to perform other vital services. We describe ways of handling upstream data that minimize the frequency of false positive alerts while providing the most complete description of approaching disturbances that is reasonably possible.