'Extreme solar event' that could pose devastating threat to human life could be round the corner, experts say

A severe solar event could pose a threat to the human race, if scientists are to be believed.

That's right, the latest news from certain boffins is that an 'extreme' solar particle event could soon occur on Earth, which could prove catastrophic.

According to our history, our blue planet is subjected to an event like this every thousand years or so, with experts reckoning that the next is coming in fast.

Luckily, though, it's nothing to do with the explosion heading our way - that we can actively look out for.

The solar storm could damage the Earth's atmosphere. (Getty Stock Photo)

Solar particle events, which are also known as solar storms, occur when the sun blasts protons straight from its surface into space, and sometimes these protons can damage the Earth.

If something like this were to occur today, it would damage the ozone layer, which protects the Earth and its atmosphere, and then this would heighten levels of ultraviolet radiation (UV).

Just yesterday (14 July), a paper was released by scientists Alan Cooper, a professor at Charles Sturt University and Pavle Arsenovic and a senior scientist at the University of Natural Resources and Life Science (BOKU), which detailed what could happen if such an event were to occur.

Apparently, solar particle events have the ability to 'kick-start' a chain of chemical reactions that could seriously damage the ozone layer, therefore threatening human life as a whole. Not the best news.

They further explained: "Ozone absorbs harmful solar UV radiation, which can damage eyesight and also DNA (increasing the risk of skin cancer), as well as impacting the climate."

We would become exposed to more UV rays. (Getty Stock Photo)

If this were to happen, they claim that for a year or so, UV levels would rise to such a dangerous level that it might even damage DNA.

However, they added: "(If) A solar proton event arrived during a period when Earth’s magnetic field was very weak, then ozone damage would last six years, increasing UV levels by 25% and boosting the rate of solar-induced DNA damage by up to 50%."

Basically, if this were to happen while we were here, us and our potential descendants would be in huge trouble.

The scientists further wrote about the chances of a 'weak magnetic field and extreme solar proton' event happening simultaneously, and unfortunately, they stated that the chances are very 'likely' that they would happen together.

As an extreme solar particle event only happens every few millennia, we might be okay - the most recent one occurred in 993 AD, and we survived that. Might not be all doom and gloom, eh?

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