Session 1: Moderator - Gang Lu
 Intercomparisons of timelines of substorm events in the ionosphere and magnetosphere.  Discussion topics include:

• Auroral emissions compared to magnetospheric ejections as observed at geosynchronous orbit and by GEOTAIL.
  
• Time scales of substorm onset:
  (a) Time delay from the brightening of highly localized aurora to the large-scale poleward expansion of bright aurora.
  (b) Time scale of dipolarization in the near-Earth plasma sheet.
  (c) Time delay between dipolarization in the plasma sheet and the poleward expansion of bright aurora.
  

Session 2: Moderator - Dan Swift
The cause and effect of plasma sheet thinning during the growth phase.
Discussion topics include:

• The cause and effect of BBFs.
  
• The role of the Hall current in the thin plasma sheet.
  
• Is the plasma sheet in equilibrium during the growth phase? If so what are the relevant stresses and how do they balance out?
  
• BBF's seem to have the same temporal behavior as flux transfer events. Are the two phenomena related?
  
• Do BBF's have a role in stretching the magnetotail and thinning the plasma sheet? If so what is it?
  
• During an extended growth phase the magnetosphere can get into a very excited state. What is it that postpones the occurrence of a substorm?
  

Session 3: Moderator - Tony Lui
The cause and effect of dipolarization in the near-Earth plasma sheet at substorm onset and during the substorm expansion.  Discussion topics include:

• Dipolarization initiated by the braking of sunward convection in the near-Earth plasma sheet due to "Ring Current Buildup" or "Northward Turning of the IMF".
  
• Dipolarization caused by plasma instabilities disrupting the cross-tail current flow and the subsequent release of the magnetic stress in the stretched tail.
  
• Dipolarization due to disruption of field-aligned current and the subsequent reaction of the system to over compensate the field-aligned current disruption.
  
• Dipolarization due to positive feedback from the low altitude ionosphere which demands a large field-aligned current from the magnetosphere.
  

Session 4: Moderator - Bill Bristow
Convection electric field in the ionosphere during the growth phase
and the expansion phase. Discussion topics include:

• What convection features are observed during substorms.
  
• To what degree is steady convection possible and are substorms necessary to allow replenishment of dayside magnetic flux.
  
• How can convection observations help to distinguish between substorm models.
  

Session 5: Moderator - Larry Lyons
Substorm onsets with and without northward turning of the IMF.
Discussion topics include:

• Is there strong evidence for substorms occurring without IMF changes that would be expected to lead to a decrease in the strength of large-scale convection?
  
• If so, what are the differences between these substorms and those associated with such IMF changes?
  
• How can theories account for substorms that are associated with such IMF changes?
  
• Is there more than one type of substorm?
  What observations support the idea that different types occur?
  What mechanisms are responsible?
  

Session 6: Moderators - Vytenis Vasyliunas
      Summary of our understanding of substorm onset physics.