Abstract

Contributed Talk - Splinter ISM

Thursday, 24 September 2020, 14:34   (virtual room F)

Terrestrial 60Fe deposition and the implication for Near-Earth Supernovae

D. Breitschwerdt, J. Feige, M. Schulreich
Zentrum für Astronomie und Astrophysik, TU Berlin

Terrestrial 60Fe deposition and the implication for Near-Earth Supernovae D. Breitschwerdt, J. Feige, M. Schulreich The Solar System is embedded in a region of a tenuous hot plasma, the so-called Local Bubble, with extensions of 200 pc in the Galactic disk and 600 pc perpendicular to it. Its existence has long been debated, with supernova explosions being the major contender. During the last two decades evidence supporting this hypothesis from 60Fe measurements mounted, which has now been discovered on all major ocean floors, on the moon, in cosmic rays and even in fossil bacteria. The major source of 60Fe are late nucleosynthesis stages in massive stars. The isotope with a half-life of 2.6 Myr can be used for tracing supernova activity by measuring the fluence in samples of ocean crusts and sediments. We present a coherent picture of when and where nearby supernovae exploded, how they created the Local Bubble and discuss our model in the light of recent measurements.