A cosmic superstorm – an event in which the Sun releases radiation bursts 80 times stronger than what it emits during modern geomagnetic storms – has left an indelible mark on Earth’s organisms.
According to Live Science, these Miyake cosmic superstorms have struck Earth approximately every 1,000 years or longer, affecting all living beings by flooding the Earth’s atmosphere with cosmic particles, causing excess nitrogen in the atmosphere to transform into a strange form of carbon that trees – and possibly animals – have absorbed.
While short-lived animals, which decompose soon after death, leave little evidence of cosmic impacts from millennia ago, ancient trees provide clear evidence.
The Earth’s atmosphere may struggle to withstand a powerful cosmic superstorm – (Photo: SPACE)
A research team led by astrophysicist Benjamin Pope from the University of Queensland, Australia, investigated ancient tree rings and discovered signs of carbon-14, an isotope that can only be produced when the atmosphere is inundated with cosmic rays colliding with nitrogen.
Earth’s organisms quickly became contaminated with this material, with trees storing it distinctly. The study focused on an ancient forest with both living and dead trees, revealing instances of Miyake cosmic superstorms occurring in the years 7176, 5410, 5259, and 600 BCE, as well as in the years 660, 774, and 993 CE.
Scientists carefully cross-referenced a model of the global carbon cycle, examining potential causes for different carbon isotopes, to confirm that carbon-14 must have a cosmic origin.
The Sun often undergoes intense activity phases – specifically, it is currently in such a phase, amid an 11-year cycle – making the likelihood of a similar event occurring within our generation very real.
According to some earlier studies, the impacts of these cosmic events could significantly affect animals, leading to mass extinctions and ushering in new chapters in evolutionary history. However, the impact on humanity remains unclear.
But at present, predicting such an event is of utmost importance, which is a primary reason scientists are diligently researching.
“We need to know more, because if one of these events were to happen today, it would destroy many technological systems, including satellites, Internet cables, long-distance power lines, transformers…” – Dr. Pope stated.
The research has just been published in Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical, and Engineering Sciences.
