Yamagata University

A research group was able to measure a spike in radiocarbon concentration of trees in Lapland that occurred after the Carrington flare. This discovery helps to prepare for dangerous solar storms. A research group coordinated by the University of Helsinki was able to measure a spike in radiocarbon concentration of trees in Lapland that occurred after the Carrington flare. This discovery helps to prepare for dangerous solar storms. The Carrington Event of 1859 is one of the largest recorded solar storms in the last two centuries. It was seen as white light flares on a giant sunspot group, fires at telegraph stations and disturbances in geomagnetic measurements, as well as aurorae even in tropical regions. In a joint study carried out by the University of Helsinki, Natural Resources Institute Finland and the University of Oulu, a sign of an increase in radiocarbon concentrations following the Carrington storm was detected for the first time in tree rings. Previously, radiocarbon traces have only been detected from far more intense solar storms. Discovery through a cosmic marker Encounters between strong magnetised clouds of charged particles released from the Sun, known as solar plasma flows, and Earth's geomagnetic field result in geomagnetic storms. The geomagnetic field directs the solar storm particles into the atmosphere primarily through the Polar regions. The most visible consequence of the phenomenon are aurorae. In the upper atmosphere, sufficiently high-energy particles can, through nuclear reactions, also produce radiocarbon (14C), a radioactive isotope of carbon. Over the course of months and years, radiocarbon ends up in the lower atmosphere as part of atmospheric carbon dioxide, and eventually in plants through photosynthesis. The process of photosynthesis preserves the information contained in carbon dioxide in the annual rings of trees. To obtain the information held by radiocarbon, samples are extracted by carving from the wood material grown over individual years. The samples are processed to cellulose and the cellulose into pure carbon by burning and chemical reduction. The fraction of radiocarbon in pure carbon is measured using a particle accelerator. "Radiocarbon is like a cosmic marker describing phenomena associated with Earth, the solar system and outer space," says Markku Oinonen, Director of the University of Helsinki's Laboratory of Chronology, who headed the study. Mapping solar storms A solar storms corresponding to the Carrington event in modern times would disrupt electrical and mobile networks and cause major problems for satellite and navigation systems, leading to problems in, for example, air traffic. This is why accurate knowledge of solar behaviour benefits society. Solar storms smaller and more common than the Carrington storms can be studied with measuring devices and satellites nowadays, while larger ones can be investigated, for example, by measuring radiocarbon concentration in tree rings. So far, it has not been possible to study specifically medium-sized storms such as the Carrington event, which have not occurred in modern times, using conventional radiocarbon techniques. This recent study opens up a potential new way of investigating the frequency of Carrington-sized storms, which may help to better prepare for future threats. Increasingly accurate information on the carbon cycle The results were interpreted using a numerical model of radiocarbon production and transport developed by researchers at the University of Oulu. "The dynamic atmospheric carbon transport model was specifically developed for describing geographical differences in the distribution of radiocarbon in the atmosphere," says Postdoctoral Researcher Kseniia Golubenko from the University of Oulu. What was significant in the recently published study was how the radiocarbon content of trees in Lapland differed from that of trees at lower latitudes. The first measurements were carried out at the Accelerator Laboratory of the University of Helsinki, while repeat measurements conducted in two other laboratories significantly reduced the previous uncertainties. The discovery can help to better understand atmospheric dynamics and the carbon cycle from the time before human-generated fossil fuel emissions, enabling the development of increasingly detailed carbon cycle models. "It's possible that the excess of radiocarbon caused by the solar flare was primarily transported to the lower atmosphere through northern regions, contrary to the general understanding of its movement," muses Doctoral Researcher Joonas Uusitalo from the Laboratory of Chronology. Other sources of radiocarbon "It's also possible that the cyclic change in the production of radiocarbon in the upper atmosphere caused by the variation in solar activity has resulted in the local differences on the ground level seen in our findings," Uusitalo adds. According to Uusitalo, the dominant fraction of radiocarbon is produced by galactic cosmic rays coming from outside the solar system, even though exceptionally strong solar storms generate individual bursts of the isotope in the atmosphere. Cosmic rays, in turn, are weakened by solar wind, a continuous flux of particles originating in the Sun that fluctuates between stronger and weaker in 11-year cycles. The topic requires further research. Historical records show that significant geomagnetic storms also took place in 1730 and 1770, which is why their tracking is likely to be in focus next. The recently published study was carried out as a collaborative project of the University of Helsinki's Laboratory of Chronology and Department of Physics, and Natural Resources Institute Finland. Researchers from the University of Oulu, Nagoya University, Yamagata University and ETH Zurich also contributed to the study. The study received funding from the Research Council of Finland, the Finnish Cultural Foundation and the Emil Aaltonen Foundation.

STOCKHOLM, April 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- RaySearch Laboratories AB (publ) announces that the new carbon ion therapy center at Yamagata University Hospital in Northern Japan, has treated its first patients using the RayStation®* treatment planning system in combination with Toshiba's treatment delivery system. The center opened this year, and the first treatments were carried out in February 2021. The first treatment – a prostate cancer case treated in the horizontal fixed beam treatment room – was successfully carried out on February 25. The number of cases has steadily increased, and 12 prostate cancer patients had started treatment by March 18. In the next few months, treatments will commence for other tumor sites, using the rotating gantry port. Carbon ion therapy is an advanced form of radiation therapy that targets cancer cells with high precision and favorable dose distribution compared to photon and proton beams, providing a higher tumor control probability while minimizing the dose for the surrounding normal tissues. Yamagata is the first carbon ion therapy center in Japan to use RayStation, and the first facility in the world to be directly accessible from a general hospital. Since the center can use the hospital's facilities and infrastructure, it can provide carbon ion therapy safely and smoothly for very elderly patients and patients with pre-existing conditions that were previously challenging to treat. Yamagata University Hospital and Toshiba jointly selected RayStation, based on its outstanding functionality and comprehensive support for this cutting-edge treatment technique. The RayStation installation features carbon pencil beam scanning with robust biological optimization using the microdosimetric kinetic model (MKM), and Yamagata is the first center to use MKM clinically with RayStation. Other functionality includes deformable registration, dose tracking and adaptive therapy. Dr. Takayuki Kanai, Medical Physicist says, "The commissioning process involves many time-consuming tasks, such as creating QA plans and verifying dose distributions. The sophisticated scripting capability and fast dose calculation of RayStation have greatly helped us to achieve these tasks. RayStation is also providing us a very smooth clinical workflow, since many functionalities, such as contour delineation, dose calculation, deformable registration, and robust optimization, are integrated in a single platform, that is difficult to realize with other treatment planning systems in carbon ion therapy." Johan Löf, CEO of RaySearch, says: "We are very pleased to see the first treatments with MKM in RayStation taking place at this highly advanced center. Cutting-edge techniques such as carbon ion therapy offer excellent potential for hard-to-treat cancers, and we look forward to supporting Yamagata University Hospital in bringing the benefits to many more patients." About Yamagata University Hospital Yamagata University Hospital is a major general hospital located in Yamagata prefecture, northern Japan. Established in 1976, the hospital offers a wide range of medical specialties, including oncology. The hospital's clinical cancer center was established in 2007. Yamagata University Hospital works to pursue its philosophy of "deeply humane and reliable medical care." About RaySearch RaySearch is a medical technology company that develops innovative software solutions to improve cancer care. The company markets worldwide its treatment planning system RayStation andother stand-alone software products for comprehensive cancer care . Over 2,600 clinics in more than 65 countries use RaySearch software to improve life and outcomes for patients. The company was founded in 2000 and the share has been listed on Nasdaq Stockholm since 2003. About RayStation RayStation is a flexible, innovative treatment planning system, chosen by many of the leading cancer centers worldwide. It combines unique features such as unmatched adaptive therapy capabilities, multi-criteria optimization, market-leading algorithms for IMRT and VMAT optimization with highly accurate dose engines for photon, electron, proton and carbon ion therapy. RayStation supports a wide range of treatment machines, providing one control center for all treatment planning needs and ensuring centers get greater value from existing equipment. By harmonizing the treatment planning, we enable better care for cancer patients worldwide. * Subject to regulatory clearance in some markets. More information about RaySearch is available at For further information, please contact: Johan Löf, Founder and CEO, RaySearch Laboratories AB (publ) Telephone: +46 (0)8-510 530 00 johan.lof@raysearchlabs.com Peter Thysell, CFO, RaySearch Laboratories AB (publ) Telephone: +46 (0)70 661 05 59 peter.thysell@raysearchlabs.com This information was brought to you by Cision The following files are available for download: Company Codes: Bloomberg:RAYB@SS, ISIN:SE0000135485, RICS:RAYB.ST, Stockholm:RAY-B