Related papers: The Cambrian impact hypothesis
Cosmic rays (CR), both solar and Galactic, have an ionising effect on the Earth's atmosphere and are thought to be important for prebiotic molecule production. In particular, the $\rm{H_2}$-dominated atmosphere following an ocean-vaporising…
The large scale structure of the Solar System has been shaped by a transient dynamical instability that may have been triggered by the interaction of the giants planets with a massive primordial disk of icy debris. In this work, we…
The early start to life naively suggests that abiogenesis is a rapid process on Earth-like planets. However, if evolution typically takes ~4Gyr to produce intelligent life-forms like us, then the limited lifespan of Earth's biosphere…
In this paper it is suggested that inclusion of mutual gravitational interactions among the particles in the early dense universe can lead to a 'pre-big bang' scenario, with particle masses greater than the Planck mass implying an…
Much attention has been given in the literature to the effects of astrophysical events on human and land-based life. However, little has been discussed on the resilience of life itself. Here we instead explore the statistics of events that…
Impactors have hit the Earth since its formation and have continued to be infrequent guests throughout the Earth's history. Although the early part of the Earth's history was marked by these violent events, life was present early, possibly…
Anthropogenic effects on the space environment started in the late 19th century and reached their peak in the 1960s when high-altitude nuclear explosions were carried out by the USA and the Soviet Union. These explosions created artificial…
The study of the origin of life on Earth has been broadened due to panspermia models that suggest that early life may have been transferred between planets. Mars likely once had conditions that could support life, and it is interesting…
The Earth's climate has experienced numerous critical transitions during its history, which have often been accompanied by massive and rapid changes in the biosphere. Such transitions are evidenced in various proxy records covering…
Whether natural factors could interpret the rise of the Earth's surface temperature is still controversial. Though numerous recent researches have reported apparent correlations between solar activity and the Earth's climate, solar activity…
We present gravitation as a theory in which the coordinates are distances and velocities between galaxies. We show that there are three possibilities for the Universe to expand: decelerating, constant and accelerating, and it is shown that…
With the Cassini-Huygens Mission in orbit around Saturn, the large moon Titan, with its reducing atmosphere, rich organic chemistry, and heterogeneous surface, moves into the astrobiological spotlight. Environmental conditions on Titan and…
Energetic particles may have been important for the origin of life on Earth by driving the formation of prebiotic molecules. We calculate the intensity of energetic particles, in the form of stellar and Galactic cosmic rays, that reach…
The terrestrial fossil record shows that the exponential rise in biodiversity since the Precambrian period has been punctuated by large extinctions, at intervals of 40 to 140 Myr. These mass extinctions represent extremes over a background…
Understanding the co-evolution of complex life with Earth's geology is an enduring challenge. The rock record evidences remarkable correlations between changes in biology and the wider Earth system, yet cause and effect remain unclear.…
An analysis of the distribution and kinematics of interstellar material within 500 pc of the Sun leads to the conclusion that the galactic environment of the Sun changes with time. Consideration of evidence for interstellar gas interacting…
Climate change is an important current issue and there is much debate about the causes and effects. This article examines the changes in our climate, comparing the recent changes with those in the past. There have been changes in…
The future biosphere on Earth (as with its past) will be made up predominantly of unicellular microorganisms. Unicellular life was probably present for at least 2.5 Gyr before multicellular life appeared and will likely be the only form of…
Warm inflation is an interesting possibility of describing the early universe, whose basic feature is the absence, at least in principle, of a preheating or reheating phase. Here we analyze the dynamics of warm inflation generalizing the…
When the universe was about 10 $\mu $seconds old, a first order cosmological quark - hadron phase transition occurred at a critical temperature of around 200 MeV. In this work, we study the quark-hadron phase transition in the context of…