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Credit: NASA s Goddard Space Flight Center/S. Wiessinger
Although violent and unpredictable, stellar flares emitted by a planet s host star do not necessarily prevent life from forming, according to a new Northwestern University study.
Emitted by stars, stellar flares are sudden flashes of magnetic imagery. On Earth, the sun s flares sometimes damage satellites and disrupt radio communications. Elsewhere in the universe, robust stellar flares also have the ability to deplete and destroy atmospheric gases, such as ozone. Without the ozone, harmful levels of ultraviolet (UV) radiation can penetrate a planet s atmosphere, thereby diminishing its chances of harboring surface life.
By combining 3D atmospheric chemistry and climate modeling with observed flare data from distant stars, a Northwestern-led team discovered that stellar flares could play an important role in the long-term evolution of a planet s atmosphere and habitability.
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Upside of volatile space weather
Although violent and unpredictable, stellar flares emitted by a planet’s host star do not necessarily prevent life from forming, according to a new Northwestern University study.
Emitted by stars, stellar flares are sudden flashes of magnetic energy. On Earth, the sun’s flares sometimes damage satellites and disrupt radio communications. Elsewhere in the universe, however, robust stellar flares also have the ability to deplete and destroy atmospheric gases, such as ozone. The destruction of gases like ozone could allow harmful levels of ultraviolet (UV) radiation to penetrate a planet’s atmosphere, thereby diminishing its chances of harboring surface life.