On checking equipment in his laboratory, he was surprised to discover that the rate of radioactive decay changed before the solar flare.

BBC: System could warn of solar storms

The team of physicists was investigating the possibility of using radioactive decay rates to generate random numbers, since the rate is constant but the emission of individual atoms is unpredictable, it seemed like a perfect fit.

FORBES: Radioactive Decay Rates May Not Be Constant After All

Physicists have long held the view that the rate of breakdown - or decay - for any given radioactive substance is constant.

BBC: System could warn of solar storms

It is unclear how solar particles affect rates of radioactive decay, but Prof Jenkins asserts that "either neutrinos are affecting the decay rate or perhaps an unknown particle is".

BBC: System could warn of solar storms