Pyxidis supernova: time to build the earth some 'shades'?

[Eclipse Now]

Hi all,

I'm wondering if, assuming civilisation gets through the many challenges we face today, it is possible to build giant "shades" in space that can stop cosmic rays?

 

This SCIAM article raises the issue: Pyxidis looks "close" to blowing (in 10 million years or so ).

 

So assuming we get through peak oil etc OK, and our grandchildren have maybe Fusion power or an endless supply of Gen3 and Gen4 nuclear reactors, or gosh-darn-it, even space solar!, what sort of barrier would we need to build between us (the earth, Mars, O'Neil colonies and any other human settlements) and any huge local supernovae events?

"In their news release, the scientists say that a thermonuclear explosion at such a close distance will "fry the Earth", dumping as much gamma ray energy as 1,000 solar flares at once. It will strip away the ozone layer, allowing deadly radiation to bombard all life."

 

How long does a supernova release cosmic rays in dangerous quantities? Is it a few days, few weeks, few centuries, few millennia?

 

So if we can stop the ozone layer being stripped away we're right?

 

In other words, some sort of thin-nano material might be able to protect us from cosmic rays if the Ozone layer can? Just checking the physics...

 

EG: If our "robot-assisted" grandchildren can build a huge barrier in space and just point it between 'us' and any supernovae threatening us, can we stop cosmic rays or are they planet-penetrating? I just don't know the physics... the paragraph above seems to suggest that an intact Ozone layer would protect us, but this supernova will be so strong as to blow away the Ozone layer.

 

 

 

Supernova star too close for comfort: Scientific American