• Question: How bad are the explosions?? Do they effect Earth?? - Niamh xxx

    Asked by anon-219410 to Nicolas, Laurence, Emma on 10 Jun 2019.
    • Photo: Laurence Datrier

      Laurence Datrier answered on 10 Jun 2019:

      For kilonovae, while you probably wouldn’t want to be standing next to one, it’s not quite as dramatic as something like a supernova. The accompanying gamma ray burst (a very energetic beam of light) would be what you’d really worry about – they’re incredibly powerful and a nearby one could wipe us out!
      Kilonovae have affected Earth in the past, as they are where a number of elements that you can find on Earth are formed! Things like gold, titanium, etc. were formed in kilonovae.

    • Photo: Emma Davies

      Emma Davies answered on 11 Jun 2019:

      The explosions I study are very different to what Laurence studies. I study explosions from the Sun which are made up of lots of hot and energetic particles. If they come from a part on the Sun facing the Earth they do reach hit us! The stronger ones can affect Earth in good and bad ways. One good way is that they are one cause of the Northern Lights which are really pretty! But they can be dangerous to astronauts and damage satellites too.

      The biggest explosion from the Sun happened in 1859 and this was named the ‘Carrington event’ after Richard Carrington who studied the Sun and saw it. This was thankfully before we had astronauts and satellites, but the Northern Lights were so strong that there were reports of it being seen very far South in Cuba and Hawaii!

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