The Antarctic Geospace and ATmospheric reseArch (AGATA) kickoff meeting (KOM) was held in Berlin during the IUGG General Assembly on 12 July 2023 and online. It was very well attended, reaching about 80 participants. Financial support was provided to six students and ECRs to attend the AGATA KOM (thanks to the support of SCAR and SCOSTEP/PRESTO). The AGATA KOM was scheduled to last one hour and a half, but active participation resulted in further discussion extending beyond the official close.
The main inputs to AGATA come from:
- the SCAR AAA community that welcomes the AGATA initiative as a very promising opportunity for collaboration;
- students and ECRs asking for dedicated schools and training initiatives and for participation in polar expeditions;
- ANGWIN members to strengthen collaboration in view of being part of AGATA;
- the scientific community working on neutral atmosphere and on neutral-ionized atmospheric coupling to reinforce their contribution to AGATA;
- the upper atmosphere community that welcomed the sharing of data and coordination of activities;
- students and ECRs asking to facilitate data access and information.
More information about the AGATA Programme Planning Group is available on the AGATA pages of the website.