Modeling atmospheric effects of the September 1859 Solar Flare

Abstract

We have modeled atmospheric effects, especially ozone depletion, due to a solar proton event which probably accompanied the extreme magnetic storm of 1-2 September 1859. We use an inferred proton fluence for this event as estimated from nitrate levels in Greenland ice cores. We present results showing production of odd nitrogen compounds and their impact on ozone. We also compute rainout of nitrate in our model and compare to values from ice core data.

arXiv commentRevised version including improved figures; Accepted for publication in Geophys. Res. Lett, chosen to be highlighted by AGU

References in corpus (4)

• Superflares on Ordinary Solar-Type Stars
• Gamma-Ray Bursts and the Earth: Exploration of Atmospheric, Biological, Climatic and Biogeochemical Effects
• Terrestrial Consequences of Spectral and Temporal Variability in Ionizing Photon Events
• Solar X-ray Flare Hazards on the Surface of Mars

Cited by in corpus (22)

• The Effect of a Strong Stellar Flare on the Atmospheric Chemistry of an Earth-like Planet Orbiting an M dwarf
• A History of Solar Activity over Millennia
• Astrophysical Ionizing Radiation and the Earth: A Brief Review and Census of Intermittent Intense Sources
• Causes of an AD 774-775 14C increase
• Numerical convergence of simulations of galaxy formation: the abundance and internal structure of cold dark matter haloes
• Risks for life on habitable planets from superflares of their host stars
• Do extragalactic cosmic rays induce cycles in fossil diversity?
• Terrestrial effects of possible astrophysical sources of an AD 774-775 increase in 14C production
• A supernova at 50 pc: Effects on the Earth's atmosphere and biota
• Cometary airbursts and atmospheric chemistry: Tunguska and a candidate Younger Dryas event
• Solar irradiance changes and photobiological effects at Earth's surface following astrophysical ionizing radiation events
• Solar irradiance changes and phytoplankton productivity in Earth's ocean following astrophysical ionizing radiation events
• Lookup tables to compute high energy cosmic ray induced atmospheric ionization and changes in atmospheric chemistry
• Photobiological effects at Earth's surface following a 50 pc Supernova
• Superluminous supernovae: No threat from Eta Carinae
• Atmospheric ionization by high-fluence, hard spectrum solar proton events and their probable appearance in the ice core archive
• Ground-level ozone following astrophysical ionizing radiation events: an additional biological hazard?
• Has the Earth been exposed to numerous supernovae within the last 300 kyr?
• Atmospheric Consequences of Cosmic Ray Variability in the Extragalactic Shock Model II: Revised ionization levels and their consequences
• Ozone depletion-induced climate change following a 50 pc supernova
• Searching Signals in Chinese Ancient Records for the ${}^{14}$C Increases in AD 774-775 and in AD 992-993
• Revisiting the Carrington Event: Updated modeling of atmospheric effects