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Auroral Belts as Magnetically Localized Reactors for Prebiotic Chemistry on Early Earth

Authors: Kato, Shinya;

Auroral Belts as Magnetically Localized Reactors for Prebiotic Chemistry on Early Earth

Abstract

Most models of prebiotic chemistry focus on globally distributed energy sources such as ultraviolet radiation, lightning, or impacts. However, spatially localized environments capable of repeatedly concentrating reactive chemistry may also have played an important role in sustaining nonequilibrium chemical evolution on the early Earth. Here, we propose that Earth’s polar auroral belts may have acted as persistent, spatially focused environments in which prebiotic reactions could repeatedly occur. Magnetically guided charged particles from the solar wind preferentially access the atmosphere through high-latitude cusp regions, depositing energy locally rather than uniformly across the planetary surface. This geomagnetic focusing may have generated geographically restricted reaction zones characterized by recurrent plasma–atmosphere interactions. We outline the physical basis of auroral particle precipitation and discuss its potential chemical consequences in a nitrogen- and carbon dioxide–rich prebiotic atmosphere. Order-of-magnitude estimates of auroral energy deposition and radiochemical production rates suggest that particle precipitation could provide a sustained source of reactive intermediates in localized regions. The hypothesis also yields several falsifiable predictions that distinguish particle-driven chemistry from UV- or lightning-dominated scenarios. If valid, this framework implies that planetary magnetic fields may have played an active role in shaping chemical evolution on early Earth and may influence the distribution of chemically favorable environments on magnetized exoplanets exposed to active stellar winds.

Related Organizations
Keywords

Aurora, Enceladus, Enceradus, Energy, Geomagnetic Field, Origin of life; Prebiotic chemistry; Aurora; Geomagnetic field; Plasma chemistry; Early Earth; Astrobiology, Origin of Life, Early Earth, Astrobiology, Plasma Chemistry, Prebiotic Chemistry

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selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
0
Average
Average
Average
Green