Cosmogenic radionuclides reveal an extreme solar particle storm near a solar minimum 9125 years BP


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Date

2022-01-11

Publication Type

Journal Article

ETH Bibliography

yes

Citations

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Data

Abstract

During solar storms, the Sun expels large amounts of energetic particles (SEP) that can react with the Earth’s atmospheric constituents and produce cosmogenic radionuclides such as 14C, 10Be and 36Cl. Here we present 10Be and 36Cl data measured in ice cores from Greenland and Antarctica. The data consistently show one of the largest 10Be and 36Cl production peaks detected so far, most likely produced by an extreme SEP event that hit Earth 9125 years BP (before present, i.e., before 1950 CE), i.e., 7176 BCE. Using the 36Cl/10Be ratio, we demonstrate that this event was characterized by a very hard energy spectrum and was possibly up to two orders of magnitude larger than any SEP event during the instrumental period. Furthermore, we provide 10Be-based evidence that, contrary to expectations, the SEP event occurred near a solar minimum.

Publication status

published

Editor

Book title

Volume

13 (1)

Pages / Article No.

214

Publisher

Nature

Event

Edition / version

Methods

Software

Geographic location

Date collected

Date created

Subject

Organisational unit

08619 - Labor für Ionenstrahlphysik (LIP) / Laboratory of Ion Beam Physics (LIP) check_circle

Notes

Funding

824096 - Research And Development with Ion Beams - Advancing Technology in Europe (EC)

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