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Nitrogen is a critical ingredient of complex biological molecules 1. Molecular nitrogen, however, which was outgassed into the Earth's early atmosphere 2 , is relatively chemically inert and nitrogen fixation into more chemically reactive compounds requires high temperatures. Possible mechanisms of nitrogen fixation include lightning, atmospheric shock heating by meteorites, and solar ultraviolet radiation 3,4. Here we show that nitrogen fixation in the early terrestrial atmosphere can be explained by frequent and powerful coronal mass ejection events from the young Sun-so-called superflares. Using magnetohydrodynamic simulations constrained by Kepler Space Telescope observations, we find that successive superflare ejections produce shocks that accelerate energetic particles, which would have compressed the early Earth's magnetosphere. The resulting extended polar cap openings provide pathways for energetic particles to penetrate into the atmosphere and, according to our atmospheric chemistry simulations, initiate reactions converting molecular nitrogen, carbon dioxide and methane to the potent greenhouse gas nitrous oxide as well as hydrogen cyanide, an essential compound for life. Furthermore, the destruction of N 2 , CO 2 and CH 4 suggests that these greenhouse gases cannot explain the stability of liquid water on the early Earth. Instead, we propose that the e cient formation of nitrous oxide could explain a warm early Earth. Here we develop a new concept for the rise of prebiotic chemistry on early Earth that suggests abiotic nitrogen fixation mediated by the energy flux from palaeo-solar eruptive events. The flare statistics of Kepler data suggest that the frequency of occurrence of superflares with energies >5 × 10 34 erg observed on G-type dwarfs follows a power-law distribution with a spectral index between α = −2.0 and −2.3, which is comparable to those observed on active M-type red-dwarf stars and the Sun 5,6. If the occurrence rate of superflares on young solar-like stars is ∼0.1 events per day 6 , then the frequency of super Carrington-type flare events with energy

International audienceMany models with different characteristics have been published so far to study the chemical processes at work in Titan's atmosphere. Some models focus on neutral species in the stratosphere or ionic species in the ionosphere, but few of them couple all the species throughout the whole atmosphere. Very few of these emphasize the importance of uncertainties in the chemical scheme and study their propagation in the model.We have developed a new 1D-photochemical model of Titan's atmosphere coupling neutral species with positive and negative ions from the lower atmosphere up to the ionosphere and have compared our results with observations to have a comprehensive view of the chemical processes driving the composition of the stratosphere and ionosphere of Titan. We have updated the neutral, positive ion and negative ion chemistry and have improved the description of N2 photodissociation by introducing high resolution N2 absorption cross sections. We performed for the first time an uncertainty propagation study in a fully coupled ion-neutral model.We determine how uncertainties on rate constants on both neutral and ionic reactions influence the model results and pinpoint the key reactions responsible for this behavior. We find very good agreement between our model results and observations in both the stratosphere and in the ionosphere for most neutral compounds. Our results are also in good agreement with an average INMS mass spectrum and specific flybys in the dayside suggesting that our chemical model (for both neutral and ions) provides a good approximation of Titan's atmospheric chemistry as a whole. Our uncertainty propagation study highlights the difficulty to interpret the INMS mass spectra for masses 14, 31, 41 and we identified the key reactions responsible for these ambiguities.Despite an overall improvement in the chemical model, disagreement for some specific compounds (HC3N, C2H5CN, C2H4) highlights the role that certain physical processes could play (meridional dynamics or sticking on aerosols). We find that some critical key reactions are important for many compounds including both neutrals and ions and should be studied in priority to lower the remaining model uncertainties. Extensive studies for some specific processes (including photolyses) are required

The search for life in the Universe is a fundamental problem of astrobiology and modern science. The current progress in the detection of terrestrial-type exoplanets has opened a new avenue in the characterization of exoplanetary atmospheres and in the search for biosignatures of life with the upcoming ground-based and space missions. To specify the conditions favourable for the origin, development and sustainment of life as we know it in other worlds, we need to understand the nature of global (astrospheric), and local (atmospheric and surface) environments of exoplanets in the habitable zones (HZs) around G-K-M dwarf stars including our young Sun. Global environment is formed by propagated disturbances from the planet-hosting stars in the form of stellar flares, coronal mass ejections, energetic particles and winds collectively known as astrospheric space weather. Its characterization will help in understanding how an exoplanetary ecosystem interacts with its host star, as well as in the specification of the physical, chemical and biochemical conditions that can create favourable and/or detrimental conditions for planetary climate and habitability along with evolution of planetary internal dynamics over geological timescales. A key linkage of (astro)physical, chemical and geological processes can only be understood in the framework of interdisciplinary studies with the incorporation of progress in heliophysics, astrophysics, planetary and Earth sciences. The assessment of the impacts of host stars on the climate and habitability of terrestrial (exo)planets will significantly expand the current definition of the HZ to the biogenic zone and provide new observational strategies for searching for signatures of life. The major goal of this paper is to describe and discuss the current status and recent progress in this interdisciplinary field in light of presentations and discussions during the NASA Nexus for Exoplanetary System Science funded workshop ‘Exoplanetary Space Weather, Climate and Habitability’ and to provide a new roadmap for the future development of the emerging field of exoplanetary science and astrobiology.

Decades of air quality improvements have substantially reduced the motor vehicle emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Today, volatile chemical products (VCPs) are responsible for half of the petrochemical VOCs emitted in major urban areas. We show that VCP emissions are ubiquitous in US and European cities and scale with population density. We report significant VCP emissions for New York City (NYC), including a monoterpene flux of 14.7 to 24.4 kg ⋅ d−1 ⋅ km−2 from fragranced VCPs and other anthropogenic sources, which is comparable to that of a summertime forest. Photochemical modeling of an extreme heat event, with ozone well in excess of US standards, illustrates the significant impact of VCPs on air quality. In the most populated regions of NYC, ozone was sensitive to anthropogenic VOCs (AVOCs), even in the presence of biogenic sources. Within this VOC-sensitive regime, AVOCs contributed upwards of ∼20 ppb to maximum 8-h average ozone. VCPs accounted for more than 50% of this total AVOC contribution. Emissions from fragranced VCPs, including personal care and cleaning products, account for at least 50% of the ozone attributed to VCPs. We show that model simulations of ozone depend foremost on the magnitude of VCP emissions and that the addition of oxygenated VCP chemistry impacts simulations of key atmospheric oxidation products. NYC is a case study for developed megacities, and the impacts of VCPs on local ozone are likely similar for other major urban regions across North America or Europe.

The discovery of exoplanets orbiting red dwarfs, such as Proxima Centauri b, has led to questions of their habitability and capacity to retain liquid surface water. While Proxima b is in a “temperate orbit,” i.e., an Earth at that location would not freeze or boil its oceans, its proximity to a parent star with quite high magnetic activity is likely to influence its atmospheric evolution and habitability. Planetary magnetic fields can prevent direct stripping away of the planetary atmosphere by the stellar wind, but ion escape can still occur at the magnetic poles. This process, the polar wind, is well known to occur at Earth and may have contributed to the habitability of Earth’s early atmosphere. The polar wind is highly variable and sensitive to both ionizing radiation and geomagnetic activity. The higher ionizing radiation levels of M dwarfs at habitable zone distances are expected to increase the polar wind by orders of magnitude and, instead of helping create a habitable atmosphere, may strip away enough volatiles to render the planet inhospitable. Here, we compute the ionospheric outflow of an Earth-twin subject to the enhanced stellar EUV flux of Proxima b, and the effect on atmospheric escape timescales. We show that an Earth-like planet would not survive the escape of its atmosphere at that location, and therefore the pathway to habitability for Proxima b requires a very different atmospheric history than that of Earth.

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The habitability of the surface of any planet is determined by a complex evolution of its interior, surface, and atmosphere. The electromagnetic and particle radiation of stars drive thermal, chemical, and physical alteration of planetary atmospheres, including escape. Many known extrasolar planets experience vastly different stellar environments than those in our solar system: It is crucial to understand the broad range of processes that lead to atmospheric escape and evolution under a wide range of conditions if we are to assess the habitability of worlds around other stars. One problem encountered between the planetary and the astrophysics communities is a lack of common language for describing escape processes. Each community has customary approximations that may be questioned by the other, such as the hypothesis of H‐dominated thermosphere for astrophysicists or the Sun‐like nature of the stars for planetary scientists. Since exoplanets are becoming one of the main targets for the detection of life, a common set of definitions and hypotheses are required. We review the different escape mechanisms proposed for the evolution of planetary and exoplanetary atmospheres. We propose a common definition for the different escape mechanisms, and we show the important parameters to take into account when evaluating the escape at a planet in time. We show that the paradigm of the magnetic field as an atmospheric shield should be changed and that recent work on the history of Xenon in Earth's atmosphere gives an elegant explanation to its enrichment in heavier isotopes: the so‐called Xenon paradox.