Scientists
believe that Earth could experience a “big freeze” as the sun goes through
what’s known as “solar minimum.” During this time, sunspots are minimal and the
globe could be in for a wicked cold snap.
Scientists are reporting that
the sun has been free of sunspots for a total of 133 days this year, according
to The Express UK. With
only 241 days of 2018 passing, that means the sun has been blank for the
majority of the year. Experts continue to warn that this is a sign that the solar minimum is on
its way. “The sun is spotless again. For the 133rd day this
year, the face of the sun is blank,” wrote the website Space Weather. “Solar minimum has returned, bringing extra cosmic rays,
long-lasting holes in the sun’s atmosphere, and
strangely pink auroras,” the
website continued.
The sun follows a cycle of
roughly 11 years where it reaches a solar maximum and then a solar minimum.
During a solar maximum, the sun gives off more heat and solar particles and is
littered with sunspots. Less heat in a solar minimum is due to a decrease in
the sun’s magnetic waves. Our sun was not expected to head into a
solar minimum until around 2020, but it appears to be heading in that direction
a little early which could prove to be bad news for warm weather lovers.
But a prolonged solar
minimum could mean a “mini ice age.”
The last time there was a prolonged solar minimum, it did, in fact, lead to a
mini ice-age which was scientifically known as the Maunder minimum. That little cold snap
lasted for 70 years between the years 1645 and 1715. During this period,
temperatures dropped globally by 1.3 degrees Celsius leading to shorter seasons
and ultimately food shortages.
“Low solar activity is known
to have consequences on Earth’s weather and climate and it also is well
correlated with an increase in cosmic rays that reach the upper part of the
atmosphere. The blank sun is a sign that the next solar minimum is approaching
and there will be an increasing number of spotless days over the next few
years,” wrote a meteorological website
called Vencore Weather.
Mac
Slavo [send him
mail] is a small business owner and independent investor.
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