Yes neutrinos do affect decay rates and I suspect that they are the
actual drivers of decay in the first instance. Since I am able to
actually model them (unpublished.) I am comfortable with that
statement.
Actually this is great news because I always suspected that it was
the neutrino flux that triggered all radioactive decay. Keep in mind
that we are only able to observe the energetic neutrinos. The rest
we miss and describe as dark matter.
This also suggests that it behooves us to figure out how to produce
and manage a neutrino flux as it would swiftly solve our problems
with radioactive materials.
Understanding dark matter as neutral neutrinos also implies
concentration in gravity wells. Thus managing a flux on Earth is at
least conceivable and we may in fact have been doing so and not
knowing it. Note that a completely neutral neutrino at its ground
level will show no gravitation effect.
Advance warning
system for solar flares hinges on surprising hypotheses
By James Holloway
August 14, 2012
Scientists may have
hit upon a new means of predicting solar flares more than a day in
advance, which hinges on a hypothesis dating back to 2006 that
solar activity affects the rate of decay of radioactive materials on
Earth. Study of the phenomenon could lead to a new system
which monitors changes in gamma radiation emitted from radioactive
materials, and if the underlying hypothesis proves correct, this
could lead to solar flare advance warning systems that would assist
in the protection of satellites, power systems and astronauts.
In 2006, nuclear
engineer Jere Jenkins of Purdue University noticed a change in the
decay rate of a radioactive sample 39 hours before a solar flare.
Since joined by a Purdue University professor of Physics named
Ephraim Fischbach, Jenkins' subsequent research has reinforced the
discovery, using two samples of the same isotope, chlorine 36, in two
separate experiments in two different labs.
It isn't just solar
flares that seem to induce changes in radioactive decay rate. Changes
in solar rotation and activity, and the Earth's position on its
orbital path around the Sun also appear to have an effect, and it's
the latter variable which seems to have been decisive in the
research. Between July 2005 and June 2011, continued monitoring has
apparently shown consistent annual variation in the decay rate of
chlorine 36, peaking in January and February, and ebbing in July and
August.
An 11-year solar cycle
is set to peak in 2013, and the researchers claim a solar storm as
strong as the Carrington Event of 1859 would be devastating
to the technology of today.
"There was so
much energy from this solar storm that the telegraph wires were seen
glowing and the aurora borealis appeared as far south as Cuba,"
said Fischbach. "Because we now have a sophisticated
infrastructure of satellites, power grids and all sort of electronic
systems, a storm of this magnitude today would be catastrophic.
Having a day and a half warning could be really helpful in
averting the worst damage."
Among the proposed
protection measures are the temporary shutting down of satellites
(the designs of which would need to be adapted to accommodate this
feature) and power networks prior to solar flares.
Purdue's proposed
detector uses a sample of manganese 54 which is monitored with a
gamma-radiation detector as it decays into chromium 54. It's hoped
that anomalies in the rate of decay would indicate forthcoming solar
flares. A US patent has been filed to protect the idea.
The research has
significant implications for science. To date, the rate of
radioactive decay is understood to be constant. Further, the
researchers hypothesize that it's neutrinos that are affecting the
change in the rate of decay: an idea sure to turn heads.
"Since neutrinos
have essentially no mass or charge, the idea that they could be
interacting with anything is foreign to physics," Jenkins said.
"So, we are saying something that doesn't interact with anything
is changing something that can't be changed. Either neutrinos are
affecting decay rate or perhaps an unknown particle is."
Jenkins hopes to
continue the research, verifying the findings using more sensitive
equipment. The latest findings were published last week in the
report Analysis of gamma radiation from a radon source:
Indications of a solar influence in the journal Astroparticle
Physics.
solar Flares
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