A ten-week summer program will be conducted for the next three years at the Montana State University in Bozeman. The program consists of independent research projects carried out with a faculty mentor, a lecture series on solar physics, lectures by visiting scholars, an IDL (Interactive Data Language) primer course, a selection of social activities, and web-publication of final reports. The program will accept six participants each summer, targeting undergraduates based in physics, mathematics and computer science, and it specifically encourages the participation of women and minorities. This effort will run in parallel with a similar NSF REU program in solid state physics, and the American Indian Research Opportunities (AIRO) program for Native American high school students and teachers. Since solar physics is being taught at relatively few colleges and universities, this program, with its strong Space Weather component, has the double benefit to society of adding to our understanding of the subject while training potential future researchers.
