Consequences of Energetic Magnetar-Like Outbursts of Nearby Neutron Stars: $^{14}$C Events and the Cosmic Electron Spectrum

TL;DR

This paper proposes that energetic outbursts from nearby pulsars can produce high-energy electrons and $^{14}$C increases on Earth, linking astrophysical phenomena with terrestrial environmental changes and cosmic ray observations.

Contribution

It introduces a novel mechanism connecting pulsar outbursts to $^{14}$C events and the cosmic electron spectrum, highlighting the environmental impact of neutron star activity.

Findings

Relativistic outflows from pulsar outbursts can generate shocks that accelerate electrons to trillions of eV.

High-energy synchrotron photons from these shocks can produce $^{14}$C in Earth's atmosphere.

These events may explain observed $^{14}$C increases and contribute to cosmic electron fluxes.

Abstract

Four significant events of rapid $^{14}$C increase have taken place within the past several thousand years. The physical origin of these rapid increases is still a mystery but must be associated with extremely energetic cosmic processes. Pulsars are highly magnetized neutron stars that emit a beam of electromagnetic radiations. Any sudden release of the energy stored in the magnetic multipole field will trigger outbursts similar to the giant flares of magnetars. Here we show that the relativistic outflow from the outbursts of a nearby pulsar interacting with the interstellar medium generates a shock, which accelerates electrons to trillions of electron volts. The high-energy photons from synchrotron emission of the shock interact with Earth's atmosphere, producing the cosmogenic nuclide $^{14}$C, which can cause the rapid $^{14}$C increases discovered in tree rings. These same relativistic electrons can account for a significant fraction of the cosmic electron spectrum in the trillion electron volts energy range, as observed by space-borne satellites. Since these outburst events can significantly affect our environment, monitoring nearby pulsars for such outbursts may be important in the future.