The International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) is an international scientific association that focuses on the study of terrestrial and planetary

magnetism Magnetism is the class of physical attributes that are mediated by a magnetic field, which refers to the capacity to induce attractive and repulsive phenomena in other entities. Electric currents and the magnetic moments of elementary particles ...

and

space physics Space physics, also known as solar-terrestrial physics or space-plasma physics, is the study of plasmas as they occur naturally in the Earth's upper atmosphere (aeronomy) and within the Solar System. As such, it encompasses a far-ranging number of ...

. IAGA is one of the eight associations of the

International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics The International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG; french: Union géodésique et géophysique internationale, UGGI) is an international non-governmental organization dedicated to the scientific study of Earth and its space environment usi ...

. It is a non-governmental body funded through the subscriptions paid to IUGG by its member countries. IAGA have been responsible for developing and maintaining the

International Geomagnetic Reference Field The International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF) is a standard mathematical description of the large-scale structure of the Earth's main magnetic field and its secular variation. It was created by fitting parameters of a mathematical model of ...

, a reference for the magnetic field of the Earth that was adopted in 1968 and is updated every five years. The most recent version is IGRF-12.

History

IAGA has a long history and can trace its origins to the Commission for

Terrestrial Magnetism and Atmospheric Electricity The ''Journal of Geophysical Research'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal. It is the flagship journal of the American Geophysical Union. It contains original research on the physical, chemical, and biological processes that contribute to the un ...

, part of the

World Meteorological Organization The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation on atmospheric science, climatology, hydrology and geophysics. The WMO originated from the Internati ...

originated from the

International Meteorological Organization The International Meteorological Organization (IMO; 1873–1951) was the first organization formed with the purpose of exchanging weather information among the countries of the world. It came into existence from the realization that weather systems ...

(IMO), which was founded in 1873. At the First IUGG General Assembly (Rome, 1922), the Section de Magnétisme et Electricité Terrestres became one of the constituent sections of the Union. At the IV IUGG General Assembly (Stockholm, 1930), it became the International Association of Terrestrial Magnetism and Electricity. It took its present name at the X IUGG General Assembly (Rome, 1954).

Commissions

IAGA is subdivided into the following divisions and commissions, each with working groups on subjects of interest: * Division I: Internal Magnetic Fields * Division II: Aeronomic Phenomena * Division III: Magnetospheric Phenomena * Division IV: Solar Wind and Interplanetary Field * Division V: Geomagnetic Observatories, Surveys and Analyses * Division VI: Electromagnetic Induction in the Earth and Planetary Bodies * Interdivisional Commission on Developing Countries * Interdivisional Commission on History * Interdivisional Commission on Education and Outreach * Interdivisional Commission on Space Weather

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:International Association of Geomagnetism And Aeronomy Geophysics societies International scientific organizations 1873 establishments in Europe

History

Commissions

See also

References

Further reading

External links