SPACE WEATHER EFFECTS STUDIES IN AZERBAIJAN: POTENTIAL IMPACTS ON GEOSPHERE, BIOSPHERE AND PERIODIC COMETS

Abstract. For getting more and better knowledge about the physical links between major space weather sources (solar, geomagnetic and cosmic ray activities) and short- and long-term effects on technical-engineering systems and biosphere, particularly, human life and health state in middle latitudes, we are conducting complex (theoretical, experimental and statistical) space weather studies in the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences. Part of main and recently obtained results of these collaborative investigations of potential space weather effects on functioning of power supply systems, sudden cardiac death mortality as well as an influence of changes of heliogeophysical conditions on dynamics of traffic accidents is briefly provided in this review paper. An influence of solar activity on changes of brightness curves of periodic comets 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann and 1P/Halley is investigated on the basis of data with about 1300 and 5900 estimations of brightness and using improved by authors calculations for visual magnitude of comets