An international team of scientists led by Dr.sc. Christian Möstl from the Space Research Institute (Institut für Weltraumforschung, IWF) in Graz, including couple of Hvar Observatory team members, recently published a scientific paper in Nature Communications. The paper Möstl et al. regards the non-radial propagation of CMEs, using a synthesis of data of a fast CME from seven different space missions. CME, which originated in an active region near the disk centre, was forecasted to have a significant geomagnetic impact. However, the CME is demonstrated to be channeled during eruption into a direction away from its source region, leading only to minimal geomagnetic effects. In situ observations near Earth and Mars confirm the channeled CME motion, and are consistent with an ellipse shape of the CME-driven shock provided by the new Ellipse Evolution model, presented in the paper. The results enhance our understanding of CME propagation and shape, which can substantially influence the geomagnetic effects of CMEs. The publication of the paper was covered by several media such as space.com(ENG), the Conversation(ENG), Discovery News(ENG), Sueddeutsche Zeitung(GER), Der Standard(AUT), tportal(CRO).

Hvar Observatory participated in the 13^th Festival of Science, with special topic "the Sun" which was held across Republic of Croatia 20-25. April 2015. The aim of festival is to promote and raise awareness of science, technology and the environment with the aim of getting children interested in science and technology. This year Hvar Observatory together with Hvar local elementary school organized for the first time Festival of Science in Hvar. In addition, a public lecture was held in Rijeka and a workshop for children, as well as a public lecture, was given in the Technical museum in Zagreb.

From 2nd to 5th March 2015 Bojan Vršnak took part in a team-workshop „Large‐Amplitude Oscillations in Solar Prominences" organized by Manuel Luna at the International Space Science Institute in Bern. The results on the physical nature of the solar prominence oscillations excited by coronal large amplitude waves, obtained in collaboration with Tomislav Žic in the frame of SOLSTEL research program, were presented.

From 23th to 27th February 2015 Bojan Vršnak took part in a team-workshop „The Nature of Coronal Bright Fronts“ organized by David Long and Shaun Bloomfield at the International Space Science Institute in Bern. The results on the initiation, evolution and characteristics of large-scale large-amplitude solar coronal waves, obtained in collaboration with Tomislav Žic in the frame of SOLSTEL research program, were presented. 

From 14. to 15. November 2014 University of Zagreb organized University Fair held in Student Centre in Zagreb. The Fair aims to inform prospective students about courses of study, the faculties achievements in fields of science and technical equipment, programmes of study, career opportunities, and many other interesting details. Faculty of Geodesy was also one of fair participants where part of its exhibition space was devoted to Hvar Observatory. Our instruments, work and projects (including SOLSTEL) were presented in "Solar and stellar research on Hvar Observatory" presentation as well as by brochure and a poster about Hvar Solar Telescope. Efforts of Faculty of Geodesy were recognized by organizers and Faculty of Geodesy was titled as the best institution in category of most comprehensive information about study programme.

11th European Space Weather Week (ESWW) was held in Liege, Belgium 17-21nd November 2014. The ESWW adopts the central aim of bringing together the diverse groups in Europe working on different aspects of Space Weather. This includes the scientific community, the engineering community, applications developers, space weather service providers and end users. The meeting organisation is coordinated by the Belgian Solar-Terrestrial Centre of Excellence (STCE), ESA and the Space Weather Working Team. J. Čalogović and M. Dumbović attended this year ESWW, where J. Čalogović gave a talk "Does Europe's Wind Show Signs of the Solar cycle?" and M. Dumbović presented a poster "Testing and improvement of the CME geomagnetic forecast tool (CGFT)".

Mateja Dumbović visited Prof. Dr. Željko Ivezić at the University of Washington Astronomy department, where she held a seminar titled "Solar-terrestrial relation and space weather". Željko Ivezić is a system scientist in the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope project, in which Hvar Observatory also has a collaborative contribution regarding the usage of comets in research of the 3D propagation of interplanetary coronal mass ejections.

The very first results of the SOLSTEL project related research were published in November 2014 in Solar Physics.

A paper by Dumbović et al. „Geoeffectiveness of Coronal Mass Ejections in the SOHO Era" presents the results of the statistical analysis of the relation between remotely observed properties of CMEs and associated solar flares, indicating the importance of the initial CME speed, apparent width, source position, and the class of the associated solar flare. The results of the statistical study are employed to construct an empirical statistical model which can be used for future space-weather forecasting.

In the paper by Muhr et al. „Statistical Analysis of Large-Scale EUV Waves Observed by STEREO/EUVI" the evolution and wave pulse characteristics of 60 strong large-scale global EUV wave events that occurred during January 2007 to February 2011 with the STEREO twin spacecraft was analyzed. Correlations between the peak velocity and the peak amplitude, impulsiveness, and build-up time of the disturbance were found, providing strong evidence that the EUV waves are large-amplitude fast-mode MHD waves. The explanation of the obtained empirical reults is the main objective of the ongoing analysis of the MHD numerical simulations performed in the scope of SOLSTEL.

The 2014 Living with a Star (LWS) Science Meeting „Evolving Solar Activity and Its Influence on Space and Earth" was held Nov. 2-6, 2014 in Portland, Oregon, USA. The focus of the meeting was on advancing the understanding of the integral system coupling the Sun to the Earth. M. Dumbović attended the meeting and presented a poster titled "The CME Geomagnetic Forecast Tool (CGFT)". More information on the meeting can be found at: http://lws-sdo-workshops.org/.

Prof. Peter Foukal, member of U.S. National Academy of Sciences Panel on Sun-Climate Influences and the author of the book Solar Astrophysics, visited the Hvar Observatory on September 20th, 2014. After showing the observatory, M. Dumbović, J. Čalogović, and D. Sudar exposed to the distinguished guest the SOLSTEL project.

Next day, Dr. Martin Leitzinger, Dr. Robert Greimel from Institute of Physics, University of Graz, arrived to the observatory to stay for three days. During their stay the collaboration on the 1-m telescope observations of the solar-like stars was agreed.