Nearby Supernovae Were Essential to Life on Earth - Universe Today

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A study uncovers a connection between supernovae and life on Earth. Some supernovae close enough to Earth, but not too close, might have helped life thrive.

.” The sole author is Henrik Svensmark, a physicist and professor in the Division of Solar System Physics at the Danish National Space Institute in Copenhagen. The paper is published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

The ionizing energy from those cosmic rays creates aerosols in Earth’s upper atmosphere. That increases cloud formation. Clouds block solar radiation from reaching Earth’s surface, cooling the climate. A cooler climate has greater temperature differences between polar regions and mid-latitudes. Those differences create stronger winds and ocean currents, which in turn drive stronger nutrient cycles.

On geological time scales, supernovae activity can fluctuate wildly, by several hundred percent. So the effect on climate can be pronounced on long time scales. This wouldn’t happen without nearby supernova and the GCRs they produce. Without enough nearby supernova activity, the climate would be warmer. The winds and ocean currents would be weaker, and would move fewer nutrients around. The strong upwelling ocean currents required to deliver chemical nutrients to the ocean’s bioproductive zone would be absent. The consequence of a warmer climate would be less bioproductivity because ocean currents and atmospheric winds would be weaker.

and water. The burial of organic material prevents this reverse reaction. Therefore, supernovae indirectly control oxygen production, and oxygen is the foundation of all complex life,” says author Henrik Svensmark.

 

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