Charting nearby stellar systems: The intensity of Galactic cosmic rays for a sample of solar-type stars

Galactic cosmic rays are important for exoplanetary atmospheres. They can contribute to the formation of hazes, prebiotic molecules and atmospheric electrical circuits. A number of so-called fingerprint ions, such as oxonium, have been identified from chemical modelling which are thought to be signatures of ionisation by energetic particles, such as Galactic cosmic rays. These fingerprint ions may be observed in exoplanetary atmospheres with upcoming JWST observations.

I will discuss our recent results that model the propagation of Galactic cosmic rays through the stellar winds of a number of nearby solar-type stars. Our sample comprises of 5 well-observed solar-type stars that we have constructed well-constrained stellar wind models for. This allows us to calculate the transport of Galactic cosmic rays through these systems. I will present our results of the Galactic cosmic ray fluxes that reach (a) the habitable zone and (b) the location of known exoplanets. The systems show a variety of behaviour and I will discuss the most promising systems for upcoming JWST observations.