Pilot projects

Auroras Now! is one of the Service Development Activities (SDAs) which European Space Agency (ESA) supports in its pilot project for operational space weather applications. The project started in April 2003 and it includes 17 SDAs with ESA sponsorships and 9 SDAs with some other funding. The operational phase of Auroras Now! will end in November 2004 and it will be followed by a reporting phase including cost-benefit evaluation under the coordination of ESA. Finally all the SDAs will be integrated to a common network called SWENET. In addition to this public service Auroras Now! includes a tailored service for Finnish Lapland hotels and it has a sister SDA, GasumNow! that is also maintained by the Finnish Meteorological Institute.