Overview
ISO/TR 23689:2024 provides internationally accepted descriptions of the main phenomena associated with space weather, outlining their sources and effects on space systems. The document serves as a critical reference for professionals operating in various engineering and scientific domains related to space systems. Covering both natural and artificial space environments, ISO/TR 23689 addresses operational needs for ground-based, on-orbit, and deep space automated satellite systems. It is particularly useful for developers of space system software, system designers, and launch operators requiring accurate, timely, and actionable space weather information to ensure reliable spacecraft performance and safety.
Key Topics
- Space Weather Phenomena: Describes the origins and domains of space weather, including solar activity (e.g., solar flares, coronal mass ejections), galactic cosmic rays, and artificial debris.
- Space Weather Sources and Effects: Details the mechanisms by which energy and particles from the sun and galaxy affect satellite operations, ground-based technology, and the near-Earth environment.
- Space Weather Domains: Explains the impact of space weather in different regions-including the magnetosphere, plasmasphere, Van Allen radiation belts, and the ionosphere.
- Impact on Space Systems: Highlights how space weather can disrupt satellite communications, navigation signals, orbit determination, and electronics via phenomena like geomagnetic storms or increased radiation levels.
- Operational Models and Information: Describes the development, usage, and benefits of space weather models, including historical data analysis, nowcasting (current condition assessment), and forecasting for space system decision-making.
- Time Frames for Space Weather: Defines the importance of historical, current, and forecast data for diverse operational and engineering requirements.
Applications
ISO/TR 23689:2024 is applicable to a wide range of practical scenarios in the space industry:
- Satellite Operations: Operators use the standard for pre-mission planning, in-orbit monitoring, and anomaly resolution by assessing real-time and forecasted space weather conditions.
- Spacecraft and Subsystem Design: Engineers leverage the document to understand the relevant environmental hazards, ensuring that satellites are built to withstand solar energetic particles, cosmic rays, and orbital debris.
- Software Development for Space Systems: Software specialists implement operational space weather models and integrate data feeds to enhance situational awareness, collision avoidance, and communication reliability.
- Mission Planning and Launch Operations: Launch providers apply the guidelines to reduce space weather-related launch risks and to maintain the safety of human and robotic missions.
- National Agencies and Academic Research: Government agencies and researchers utilize standardized space weather descriptors and indices to coordinate international space environment monitoring and data sharing, supporting global space situational awareness initiatives.
Related Standards
ISO/TR 23689:2024 references and complements several other space environment and space weather standards, including:
- ISO 15390: Galactic cosmic ray models used for radiation flux prediction
- ISO 16457: Ionospheric models and sunspot activity indices
- ISO 14200: Guidelines for micrometeoroid and space debris environment characterization
- ISO 21348: Solar irradiance reference spectra
- ISO/TR 18147, ISO 16698, ISO 17520: Additional guidance on solar wind, fields, and particles
- ISO 19923, ISO 22009: Magnetospheric and radiation belt characterization
By harmonizing space weather information and models, ISO/TR 23689:2024 supports the broader ecosystem of space operations, enabling cross-organizational cooperation and robust space system design against the dynamic challenges posed by the natural and artificial space environment.