Get a life II
Yet for it to be perfect, there are some details to iron out. The Sun, in the process of generating copious amounts of energy, pumps its outer atmosphere and corona so as to create a swift wind of charged particles. To these it must be added the smaller but non-negligible flux of charged particles pervading the interstellar space, the result of other phenomena in neighboring regions.
Were it not for the fact the Earth has a molten iron core, it should not have a magnetic field. The magnetic field created by the liquid metal currents deep in the core shepherd charged particles along the lines of force well above the atmosphere to converge in the mostly sterile polar regions, away from the more habitable zones and creating spectacular auroras. Our internal dynamo generated magnetosphere fends off the steady global bombardment of charged particles that could have made the Earth's surface too harsh for life, probably eroding the atmosphere to oblivion in the process.
In the next part, we carry on with the down to Earth but space-driven phenomena that steered life from its humble beginnings.
Latest Articles