Carrington-type events but in the context of other stars, not just the Sun.

Carrington-type events but in the context of other stars, not just the Sun.

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🌟 What a “Carrington Event” Is

• The Carrington Event (1859) was an extremely powerful solar storm caused by a coronal mass ejection (CME) hitting Earth.
• It produced intense aurorae and severely disrupted telegraph systems.
• Its estimated energy release was ~10^32 ergs — an order of magnitude above most typical CMEs.

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🌠 “Carrington-Type” Events on Other Stars

Begun to identify stellar superflares — analogues to Carrington-type events, but often much more powerful. These are seen on Sun-like stars and other spectral types.

1. Superflares on Solar-type (G-type) Stars

• Data from Kepler and TESS has revealed many stars similar to the Sun experiencing flares 10–1000× stronger than any solar flare on record.
• These superflares likely involve huge CMEs and magnetic reconnection events far beyond solar scale.
• For example:
  • Maehara et al. 2012 identified dozens of superflares on G-type stars.
  • Energy release up to 10^35 ergs (three orders of magnitude above Carrington).

2. Flares from Young or Active Stars

• M dwarfs (red dwarfs) and young stars flare frequently and violently.
• Proxima Centauri, our nearest star, produces flares thousands of times more energetic than typical solar flares, with dramatic effects on exoplanet atmospheres.

3. Indirect Observations

• We don’t directly detect the CME plasma from other stars yet, but we infer them via:
  • X-ray and UV flare profiles
  • Balmer line asymmetries (Hα, Hβ)
  • Radio bursts consistent with stellar mass ejections.

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🪐 Impact on Exoplanets

• Carrington-type (or super-Carrington) events on exoplanet hosts can:
  • Strip atmospheres over time.
  • Increase surface radiation doses drastically.
  • Complicate biosignature detection.

For M-dwarf exoplanets in habitable zones, this is a major habitability hazard.

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🔭 Current Research Directions

• TESS + Kepler: Cataloging superflares on G- and K-type stars.
• Radio astronomy (LOFAR, VLA): Searching for stellar Type II radio bursts as CME signatures.
• Modeling: Magnetic reconnection and CME mass-loss on other stars.

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📊 Quick Comparison

Property	Solar Carrington Event	G-type Star Superflare	M-dwarf Flare
Energy (ergs)	10^32	10^34–10^35	10^33–10^36
CME Mass (g) (est.)	10^16–10^17	10^18–10^19?	10^19+
Frequency	~1 per 500 years?	1 per decade (star)	Daily/Weekly

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