«Health Risk.» Scientists warn of dangerous cosmic event

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MOSCOW, July 4. Proton storms associated with solar flares could have serious consequences for human health and evolution if they coincide with a weakening of the Earth's magnetic field, an international team of scientists reported in a paper for the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
A proton storm is a stream of charged particles that have acquired high energy as a result of solar eruptions. According to the scientists, particularly powerful storms can destroy the Earth's ozone layer, but under normal conditions the planet is protected by a magnetic field. However, in Earth's history, strong proton storms have often coincided with periods of weakening of the magnetic field. The authors of the study tried to model the consequences of such coincidences.

« “Possible consequences include health risks and long-term climatic and evolutionary changes,” the article says.
According to the authors, a proton storm in conditions of a very weak magnetic field will provoke depletion of the ozone layer throughout the planet for several years. UV radiation levels will remain elevated for six years. Finally, the amount of UV-related DNA damage in living organisms will increase by 40-50 percent, scientists noted.

Study participants Alan Cooper and Pavle Arsenovich, in an article for the Conversation portal, noted that the coincidence of proton storms and the Earth’s weak magnetic field could repeatedly cause evolutionary changes. Among the events that could be affected by radiation, scientists named the emergence of multicellular organisms, the explosive growth of the Earth's fauna during the Cambrian period, and the disappearance of the Neanderthals.
«How likely is the deadly combination of a weak magnetic field and a powerful proton storm? Considering how often each occurs of these phenomena, most likely they coincide relatively often,” scientists warned.
In May, the Earth was subjected to a powerful magnetic storm She achieved the highest score of G5, which has not happened since 2005. The cosmic event led to northern lights, which were observed in many regions of Russia.