The influence of the Sun on the Earth is well known, but the extent to which the solar influence permeates the space environment from the solar surface out to the heliopause, beyond the orbit of Pluto, and in particular its effect on terrestrial technological systems, is less familiar. Prior to 1940 research identified some of the many ways solar disturbances could affect, for instance, high-frequency communications. During World War 2, this problem was of practical importance, and solutions, plus the lack of solutions, were highly classified. At the end of the war, sufficient skill had been developed that some countries found it worthwhile to continue to provide forecasts, tailored to their local needs, to mitigate the solar influence on high-frequency communications and to a lesser extent on magnetic observations. There was limited to no exchange of observations and forecasts between national agencies other than the URSIgram (e.g., Davis, 1935) for those who could receive the Morse code transmissions. The proposal that led to the development of the International Geophysical Year (IGY) needed solar forecasting services to carry out a more efficient scientific programme. This led to the development of the concept of a Regional Warning Centre (RWC) and Associate RWC (ARWC). To facilitate the exchange of data between agencies a set of agreed codes were endorsed and were refined throughout the IGY period and subsequently. The RWC and ARWC used local and exchanged data to make forecasts for the forthcoming day, and they were exchanged and the final forecast compiled from these at the US RWC, called the World Warning Agency (WWA), at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, USA. These and other activities formalized during the IGY are outlined in Shapley (1959). Following the IGY the RWCs were grouped together with a common purpose under the auspices of the International URSIgram and World Day Services (IUWDS) (Simon, 1981). The term “space weather” came into common usage somewhere between 1990 and 1995. It was the common term that recognized the pervasive impact of the Sun and the space environment on man’s activities. To align IUWDS better with the growing field of space weather, in 1996 it was renamed the International Space Environment Services (ISES), which more accurately described its functions. Poppe and Jordan (2006) provide a general summary of these early developments, focusing especially on the US developments. The people responsible for staffing the RWCs prior to and immediately after the IGY have now all retired, and many, possibly most, are dead. In fact, in many cases their successors have also retired. Each RWC will have evolved in a different way: some may have recorded their history already, and others will possibly find it hard to develop a clear vision of these early beginnings. In other cases, countries recognizing the importance of ISES have developed their RWCs more recently. Finally, recognizing the importance of space weather services, all the current RWCs are working to cooperate with the World Meteorological Organization to enhance the global recognition and distribution of space disturbance warnings. This special issue will collect together papers that describe the evolution of the RWCs that make up ISES, in some cases from their beginnings prior to IGY, through to nearer the present day.

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前言：区域预警中心的历史

太阳对地球的影响是众所周知的，但是太阳的影响在多大程度上从太阳表面一直延伸到太阳的更年期，直到冥王星的轨道范围之外，特别是它对陆地技术系统的影响。不太熟悉。在1940年之前，研究确定了太阳干扰可能影响高频通信等多种方式中的某些方式。在第二次世界大战期间，这个问题具有实际重要性，解决方案以及缺少解决方案的情况高度分类。战争结束时，已经发展了足够的技能，一些国家认为值得继续提供适合其当地需求的预报，以减轻太阳对高频通信的影响，并在较小程度上减少对磁观测的影响。除了可以接收摩尔斯电码传输的人，除了URSIgram（例如，戴维斯，1935年）以外，国家机构之间没有交换任何观察和预报。促成国际地球物理年（IGY）发展的提案需要太阳预报服务来执行更有效的科学计划。这导致了区域警告中心（RWC）和准RWC（ARWC）概念的发展。为了促进各机构之间的数据交换，在IGY期间及随后的整个过程中，批准并完善了一套商定的代码。RWC和ARWC使用本地和交换的数据来对即将到来的一天进行预测，并且在美国RWC（位于美国弗吉尼亚州贝尔沃堡）的世界预警机构（WWA）进行了交换和最终预测的汇总。Shapley（1959）概述了IGY期间正式开展的这些活动和其他活动。在IGY之后，在国际URSIgram和世界日服务组织（IUWDS）（西蒙，1981年）的主持下，将RWCs归为共同目标。“太空天气”一词在1990年至1995年间普遍使用。该词是公认的太阳和太空环境对人类活动的普遍影响。为了使IUWDS与空间天气的增长领域更好地保持一致，1996年将其更名为国际空间环境服务（ISES），以更准确地描述其功能。Poppe和Jordan（2006年）提供了这些早期发展的总体总结，尤其是美国的发展。在IGY之前和之后立即负责RWC的人员现已全部退休，许多人（可能多数）已经死亡。实际上，在许多情况下，他们的继任者也已经退休。每个RWC都将以不同的方式发展：有些可能已经记录了他们的历史，而另一些可能会发现很难为这些早期的起点建立清晰的愿景。在其他情况下，认识到ISES重要性的国家最近才发展了其RWC。最后，认识到空间天气服务的重要性，所有现有的RWC都在与世界气象组织合作，以增强全球对空间干扰预警的认识和分发。本期专刊将收集描述构成ISES的RWC演变的论文，