Heavenly lights: An exploratory review of auroral ecosystem services and disservices

Abstract

Auroral ecosystem services (ES) is a subject that has not yet been formally addressed in the expansive ecosystem services literature. This study conducts a systematic literature review using the Search, Appraisal, Synthesis and Analysis (SALSA) method to investigate the vast multi-century auroral literature for synthesis with the ES concept and identifies the main ES provisioned by the auroral phenomenon. A total of 2,900 publications concerning the aurora were sourced from three scientific databases (ScienceDirect, Scopus and Google Scholar), 1,054 articles were advanced to the synthesis and analysis stage, and 525 of the most illustrative examples were retained for the purposes of this review. Based on the categorization in accordance with Version 5.1 of the Common International Classification for Ecosystem Services typology, a total of 14 auroral ES are identified: provisioning (4), regulation and maintenance (1) and cultural (9). In addition, 9 ecosystem disservices (EDS) are also identified and classified: provisioning (4), regulation and maintenance (3) and cultural (2). The aurora is found to function in geophysical, biophysical and socio-ecological systems in a variety of ways. A novel extension of the ES concept is introduced as “exosystem services” (EXS), accounting for the aurora as an overlap between flows into ecosystems from the space environment, mirroring the geosystem services (GS) concept and its flows into ecosystems from the subsurface environment. Auroral ES in management and decision-making is discussed, and multiple opportunities for additional research are explored.