Ancient Supernovae Shaped Earth's History

A recent study using the live radioactive isotope 60-Fe has determined that Earth was hit by supernovae blasts 3 million and 7 million years ago. The study found that the blasts originated from distances of 20 to 140 parsecs (65 to 457 light-years) and 110 parsecs (359 light-years) from Earth, respectively. While these distances are considered relatively safe, if a supernova were to occur too close to Earth, it could have devastating consequences for life due to high-energy radiation and the depletion of the ozone layer. Although there are currently no threatening supernova candidates, it is likely that one will explode near Earth over millions of years. The star Betelgeuse, located approximately 550 light-years away, is a well-known supernova candidate, but its exact timing of explosion remains unknown.