SOLAR CONDITIONS
4.6 billion years ago: under the influence of gravity, a glowing sphere formed from a huge cloud of dust and gas. A star is born. One star in a cosmos of billions, and yet the most special to planet Earth and its ecosystems. The ever-shining sphere in our sky may sometimes seem obvious - but chance strikes a multitude of precise conditions for life as we know today.
- Earthly conditions -
Orbiting 150 million kilometers around this central star is Planet Earth. It is precisely this distance that allows to maintain an atmosphere and temperature in which water occurs in liquid, gas and solid form, and thus allowing life to thrive on Earth. Yet it will take a long time until life on Earth - as we know it today - can develop.
- Viable atmosphere -
2.4 billion years ago: an essential turning point in the history of life on Earth .
Cyanobacteria
develop the ability to use sunlight to convert water and carbon into hydrogen and oxygen, a process known as photosynthesis. The abundant byproduct oxygen from this process leds to an irreversible change in the composition of the atmosphere. The newly created environment gave aerobic life forms a chance, and respiration became the norm for all life on Earth. The large amount of oxygen - escaping as a byproduct from this process - leads to the formation of the ozone layer. Organisms deep in the ocean could now spread to shallow waters and land, protected from the extremely harmful uv-c radiation.However, it is only when the sun eclipsed for a long period of time that mammals could fully develop. In the absence of the sun, they occupied a new ecological niche. And under the influence of the sun's energy, light and heat, the first primates evolved. Many organisms, including anthropoid apes, developed complex light receptors to take advantage of the abundant sunlight, making them more proficient at finding food, navigating and avoiding predators which increased their chances of survival.
The sun's radiation varies depending on the position on Earth and is strongest around the equator, where early human development took place. In response to this strong exposure,
skin pigmentation
developed. Dark skin filters UV radiation and protects against its adverse effects. When humans moved from the equatorial region to less sunny areas, strong skin pigmentation prevented them from absorbing enough sunlight. Neanderthals, however, who had lived in these areas for 150,000 years, had developed lighter skin in response to the less sunny conditions. It is through procreation with the Neanderthals that homo sapiens was able to adapt and survive. It makes the modern European a human with the genetic solar adaptations of the Neanderthals . ...
- Agricultural revolution: a turning point in the relationship to the sun -
In 365.265 days, Planet Earth orbits the sun. The orbit and specific inclination of the Earth's axis on this orbit determine the rhythm of the seasons, climate, vegetation, resources and agriculture peculiar to each location.
8500 B.C.: The agricultural revolution marks a turning point in the relationship between human beings and the sun. Climatic conditions in the so-called “Fertile Crescent” were opportune for agriculture, with a suitable, relatively dry climate and plant and grain species suitable for domestication.
Food-gatherer-hunters settled in permanent settlements and daily activities changed from a search for food in a vast area to hard labor in an open field. An important consequence of agrarian society was that over the centuries, those who did not have to work in the field spent most of their time indoors and considered themselves privileged.
...
- Rhythmic sun -
A closer look at the sun reveals a dynamic and unpredictable cosmic body.
Sunspots
, for example, are capable of sending energy bursts far into interplanetary space. These cooler regions on the surface, formed by intense magnetic activity, follow an 11-year cyclical pattern. Although these rhythmic fluctuations of energy are not directly perceptible to the naked eye or consciously felt, it has a significant impact on our daily lives. It affects our circadian rhythms, which in turn affects our development, metabolism and daily information processing. Rhythmic fluctuations in solar activity are reflected in blood flocculation and cell yield, while peaks and troughs in solar activity are associated with global epidemics. Underlying this, according to many scientists, is a global vitamin D deficiency - due to a change in ozone layer thickness and associated excessive weakening of UV radiation. But the sun also seems to be a political player.
Chizhevsky
- pioneer in solar biology - related the sun's higher activity to revolutionary mass movements. According to his observation, sunspot activity peaked during such historical events as the French and Russian Revolution. The year 2008, on the other hand, had more than 265 days without solar activity; it will go down in history as the year of the global credit crisis. Research shows that the sun has known this behavior for a long time. The oldest evidence
currently known dates back at least 290 million years. In the annual rings of a fossilized tree from the Paleozoic era, scientists read the same 11-year cyclical behavior...
Humans are not the only species subject to solar activity. Nature controls a wide variety of mechanisms and behavioral patterns that attest to a fundamental connection with the sun. Scientists hypothesize that cyclical solar energy is responsible for the enigmatic flowering rhythms of exotic bamboo species. 11, 22, 33, some even only every 88 years. The red theunis flower blooms mainly during high solar activity. In fact, their relationship is so strong that the plant can be used as a measure of the number of sunspots, to the day. Several animal species have mastered the art of sunbathing,
sunning
, in which their black skin, fur or feathers maximally absorb sunlight for heat regulation and energy conservation. The seemingly simple nudibranchs
enter into a unique symbiosis with chloroplasts, the organelles responsible for photosynthesis in plants. By feeding on algae and then incorporating the chloroplasts into their own cells, they can use solar energy to supplement their metabolism. ...