[Physics] How is Earth protected from the gamma rays generated by the Sun

atmospheric sciencegamma-rayssun

The Sun is generating energy by nuclear fusion. This nuclear fusion will emit energy in the form of gamma rays.

Normally, the earth's ozone layer filters the ultraviolet radiation while the earth's magnetic field deflects cosmic rays (charged particles).

But what kind of natural system protects us from the sun's gamma rays?

Note: As we know gamma rays can be blocked by denser materials like
several meters of thick lead (Pb).

Best Answer

That's a good question and I think the answer may surprise you. It turns out that indeed, there's a lot of gamma ray radiation being produced in the sun's core from fusion reactions, so why are we not bombarded by gamma ray radiation? Those gamma ray photons need to escape from the sun's core, into the outer edge, and then finally from the surface. These photons are colliding with matter constantly, resulting in a photon diffusion process. It actually takes the average gamma ray photon about 170,000 years to diffuse out of the radiative zone. Once a gamma ray actually diffuses outward to the surface as a result of the constant collisions it has been converted into millions of visible wavelength photons.

more here: Solar Core Wiki

Related Question