Kilonova space explosion could end life on earth, Here’s what you need to know
In a recent study conducted in the US, scientists studied how neutron star collision, ‘Kilonova,’ would pose as a threat to life on Earth.
In a recent study conducted in the United States, scientists figured out how close a neutron star collision, known as ‘Kilonova’ would pose as a threat to life on Earth. ‘Kilonova’ space explosion is a super powerful event in space. Scientists say that it could be bad for us because it released dangerous elements like gamma rays, cosmic rays, and x-rays.
Scientists further explained that when ultra-dense neutron stars collide, they create a big blast of particles. This blast would wreck our planet’s Ozone layer, making it open to harmful ultraviolet radiation for about 1,000 years. Among all these harmful particles, cosmic rays seem to be the biggest worry. The collision in space would make a cosmic ray bubble that would go everywhere and shoot charged particles at Earth.
Gamma rays are also a problem. When they hit stardust in space, they can develop X-rays. These X-rays can mess up Earth’s ozone layer too. However, the effects of gamma rays last longer than X-rays. Still, earth needs to be pretty close, about 16-light years, to feel the impact of these events. The good news is that the Kilonovas are rare, so there is no need to worry too much.
The team of scientists also said that there are other more common events, like solar flares, asteroid impacts, and supernova explosions that could be more harmful. So the kilonovas space explosion seed not be our topmost concern.
One more interesting thing is that the scientists studied a kilonova that happened in 2017, but it was super far away. Approximately, it was about 130 million light years. This kilonova burst out a bunch of particles. This helped scientists learn about how heavy elements like platinum, uranium, and gold came into existence.
Ms Kalinga