That’s impressive: scientists have proposed a new version of the origin of life on Earth.

humanity’s greatest mystery

The quest to understand the origin of life on Earth has intrigued scientists for centuries. Since the 1800s, the idea of ​​a “warm little pond” where life could have originated from a primordial chemical soup has fascinated the scientific community. Experiments in the 1950s with artificial lightning and gas mixtures containing methane, ammonia, water and molecular hydrogen demonstrated the formation of 20 different amino acids.

However, solving the exact conditions that triggered the emergence of life turned out to be a difficult puzzle. The researchers found that Earth’s first atmosphere contained less ammonia and methane than previously thought, but higher levels of carbon dioxide and molecular nitrogen—gases that require much more energy than lightning to break down.

A recent study published April 28 in the journal Life sheds new light on this intriguing subject. Scientists used a particle accelerator to explore the possibility that cosmic rays from highly energetic superflares could be the necessary catalyst for life on our planet.

Kensei Kobayashi, a professor of chemistry at Yokohama National University in Japan, the lead author of the study, emphasized that galactic cosmic radiation was underestimated in this process.

Most researchers ignore galactic cosmic rays because they require special equipment such as particle accelerators. I’m lucky enough to have access to a few of these near our facilities.

Why are there solar flares?

Stars create strong magnetic fields through the flow of electric charges in their molten plasma. Sometimes these magnetic field lines get tangled and break abruptly, releasing bursts of radiation known as solar flares and explosive eruptions of solar material called coronal mass ejections (CMEs).

Composed of mostly electrons, protons, and alpha particles, this solar material collides with Earth’s magnetic field, causing geomagnetic storms that perturb the molecules in our atmosphere, resulting in a fascinating spectacle of colorful aurora borealis, or northern lights.

The 1859 Carrington Event, the largest solar storm ever recorded, pales in comparison to the immense power of the superflare, despite releasing the equivalent of 10 billion 1-megaton atomic bombs. that can be hundreds and thousands of times more energetic.

Young Sun was more active.

Although superflares occur rarely, about once a century, new data shows that this is not always the case. A 2016 study published in the journal Nature Geoscience analyzed data from NASA’s Kepler mission, which observed Earth-like planets and stars between 2009 and 2018. The study found that during the first 100 million years of Earth’s existence, the Sun was 30% dimmer than it is today. superflares occur on the surface of our star every 3-10 days.

Details of the new research

To investigate the role of superflares in the formation of amino acids on ancient Earth, scientists combined carbon dioxide, molecular nitrogen, water and varying amounts of methane to recreate the gas mixtures characteristic of the early atmosphere. They then bombarded these mixtures with protons using a small particle accelerator and simulated lightning discharges.

The results showed that increased methane levels increased the production of amino acids and carboxylic acids in both proton and lightning experiments. However, to produce detectable levels of these important chemical compounds, proton mixing required a methane concentration of only 0.5%, while lightning discharges required a concentration of 15%.

Volodymyr Hayrapetyan, an astrophysicist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and co-author of the study, stressed the significance of the findings.

Even with 15% methane, the rate at which lightning produces amino acids is a million times slower than that produced by protons. Lightning never strikes in cold conditions, and early Earth was under a rather weak sun. That doesn’t mean it couldn’t have been caused by lightning, but solar particles now seem more likely.

The study not only provides new insight into the origin of life, but also highlights the vital role of solar activity in the complex processes that led to the emergence of life on Earth. By looking at the effects of superflares, researchers have broadened our understanding of the conditions necessary for amino acids and ultimately organic life to emerge. As scientists continue to unravel the mysteries of our planet’s past, this work is another step in unraveling the mysteries of life’s origins.