Work

Cosmogenic 10 Be as a Tracer for Recent Heliospheric Encounters With Interstellar Cold Clouds and Nearby Supernovae

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Recent works suggest there are periods when the Sun encountered massive interstellar cold clouds which compressed the heliosphere to within Earth's orbit, exposing Earth to interstellar galactic cosmic rays and energetic particles of heliospheric origin. We model 10 Be production in Earth's atmosphere during possible interstellar cloud encounters and supernovae. We find that, if the heliosphere is compressed to 0.2 AU ( AU), the 10 Be production rate is elevated above the background. To be distinguished in marine sediments (iron‐manganese crusts) beyond terrestrial variability, this signal must be sustained for Myr ( Myr). A 0.7 AU ( AU) compression increases the 10 Be production rate above the background, which may be detectable if the event lasts Myr. We find that the 10 Be peak observed by Koll et al. (2025, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467‐024‐55662‐4 ) 10 Ma is too prolonged to be produced by a supernova, but could be attributed to an interstellar cloud crossing.

Source: Geophysical Research Letters

DOI: 10.1029/2026gl123133

Authors: Anna Nica, Merav Opher, Jesse A. Miller, Jennifer L. Middleton, Joe Giacalone

Institutions: Boston University, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, University of Arizona

Language: English

Topic: Solar and Space Plasma Dynamics

Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,190

Funders: National Science Foundation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration