Abstract　 　　  

   Alfvénic waves and turbulence are widespread in the solar corona, solar wind, and Earth’s magnetosphere. They contribute to energy transport and release in solar-terrestrial connection chain and influence space weather. I will discuss recent progress in the theory of Alfvénic turbulence and its application to observed phenomena. Anisotropic spectral dynamics of the turbulence at short kinetic scales is of particular interest, as it defines how the turbulence is dissipated and particles energized. In this talk I will focus on the turbulence dissipation due to interaction with ions, which leads to their anisotropic heating and acceleration. Two particular examples will be considered in more details: (i) parallel ion acceleration and beam formation in the solar wind, and (ii) perpendicular ion acceleration in the terrestrial aurora. These phenomena are common in plasmas penetrated by kinetic-scale Alfvénic turbulence.