Why some Galactic-plane maximum excursions lack strong radiolarian blooms

Identify the factors that explain why certain maximum excursions of the Solar system from the Galactic plane do not coincide with strong radiolarian blooms within the proposed cosmic-ray exposure framework.

Background

The study reports a suggestive correlation (approximately 2.2σ) between peaks in radiolarian origination and the Solar system’s maximum vertical displacements from the Galactic plane, where magnetic shielding of cosmic rays may be reduced.

However, the authors note that not every such maximum excursion is associated with a strong bloom, indicating additional moderating or confounding factors that are not yet understood.

References

However, it is also clear that not all maximum excursions resulted in strong blooms among radiolarians, although the exact reasons remain unclear.

— Cosmic radiation drives quasi-periodic changes in the diversity of siliceous marine microplankton  (2402.09163 - Ozsvárt et al., 2024) in Section 5: Discussion and Summary