The Sun turns out to have a far more complex influence on Earth than\nsimply providing light and heat.<\/p>\n
Recent NASA-supported research reveals how solar activity and the\nsolar system\u2019s passage through the interstellar environment may have\nhelped shape Earth\u2019s conditions and climate in the past.<\/p>\n
The findings come from two studies that traced the history of the Sun\nand its interactions with the space environment. They offer a new\npicture of the relationship between the Sun, the heliosphere, the\natmosphere, and Earth\u2019s conditions over billions of years.<\/p>\n
One study focused on the heliosphere, the giant bubble formed by the\nsolar wind and the Sun\u2019s magnetic field. This structure acts as a shield\nfor the solar system against some of the high-energy particles\noriginating from outside it.<\/p>\n
However, the size of the heliosphere has not always been constant. As\nthe solar system travels around the centre of the Milky Way, the Sun can\npass through interstellar regions with different densities and\npressures.<\/p>\n
Researchers found it likely that the solar system once passed through\nan interstellar cloud dense enough to compress the heliosphere\nsignificantly. In extreme conditions, the heliosphere could even shrink\nto a size smaller than Earth\u2019s orbit.<\/p>\n
If that occurred, Earth would potentially have been left outside the\nheliosphere\u2019s protection and exposed to a greater interstellar\nenvironment. NASA says some of these events may have taken place\nmillions of years ago.<\/p>\n
Another study sheds light on a puzzle concerning Earth\u2019s conditions\naround three billion years ago. At that time, the Sun is estimated to\nhave had only about 70 percent of its current brightness.<\/p>\n
In theory, a dimmer Sun should have made Earth much colder. Yet\ngeological evidence shows the planet still had liquid water.<\/p>\n
One possible answer is that the young Sun was far more active.\nHigh-energy particles from that activity are thought to have triggered\nchemical reactions in Earth\u2019s atmosphere and produced greenhouse gases\nthat helped maintain the planet\u2019s temperature.<\/p>\n
Although the Sun is the primary energy source for Earth\u2019s climate\nsystem, NASA stresses that changes in solar activity are not the main\ncause of modern global warming.<\/p>\n
Variations in solar energy can influence the climate, but the scale\nof those changes is not sufficient to explain the rise in global\ntemperatures over recent decades.<\/p>\n
The increase in greenhouse gases from human activity is the dominant\nfactor in current global warming.<\/p>\n
This research shows that the relationship between the Sun and Earth\nis far more complicated. By tracing the history of the Sun and its\nsurrounding space environment, scientists can better understand how\nspace conditions have influenced Earth\u2019s atmosphere and environment\nthroughout its history.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/nasa-reveals-how-solar-activity-influenced-earth-and-its-climate-in-the-past-1787932269", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }