Thanks to Astrococktail for this link to a NASA article on the Solar Minimum, the expected period of low sunspot activity. The Solar Minimum came right on schedule back in 2006, as I reported in this earlier article. But this Solar Minimum is setting all kinds of records.
In 2008 the Sun was completely blank of sunspots 73% of the time, the lowest activity since 1913. As of March 31, according to the NASA article, the Sun has been free of sunspots 87% of the time in 2009. This is a particularly deep solar minimum that follows a 50-year period of heightened sunspot activity.
The Solar Minimum could create cooler than usual weather conditions, just as the Maunder Minimum did between 1645-1715, coinciding what was called the “Little Ice Age.” There is also a speculated connection between the Solar Minimum periods and increased earthquake activity. USGS statistics that indicate that earthquake activity seems to have peaked in 2003-2006, so there appears to be some correlation since the Solar Minimum appears to have begun in 2004.
Spaceweather has a new calculator for the Solar Minimum and reports that while the typical Solar Minimum lasts 485 days, we have had 592 days of a blank Sun with no sunspots.
posted April 7, 2009 at 8:13 pm
So much for the much-vaunted global warming. Just another tax on trying to make a living.
posted April 8, 2009 at 12:55 am
I’ve been wondering about this recent solar inactivity.
Yes, solar minimum is very evident by the protracted pause in activity, however, this could be the lull before the storm, or the internal building of critical tension/mass within the Sun’s engine.
Solar Maximum by 2012 has been forecasted by NASA to be significantly stronger than first anticipated. Possibly, a significant jump in solar flare levels as well as intensity could coincide with Uranus’ entry into Aries and Saturn into Libra sq Pluto come mid-2010. Then again, if the Sun remains quiet and planet climate turns colder, unpredictable Uranus may remind us once more why “surprise” is its middle name.
posted April 8, 2009 at 6:40 am
So far there’s no evidence that we are entering any kind of an ice age, and there is plenty of evidence on global warming. Even Republicans are coming around to realize that the scientific evidence is overwhelming. Looking at everything in terms of how much money is being taken from your pocket gives one a very narrow view of the world.
posted April 9, 2009 at 10:19 pm
Al Gore forgot to include the Sun in his hypothesis. Read what others without an agenda have to say.
The Sun influences our weather.
posted April 10, 2009 at 4:30 am
Joseph, NASA has revised their predictions and is now projecting a weak solar maximum for cycle 24. See http://solarscience.msfc.nasa.gov/predict.shtml
The notion, promoted by global warming devotees, that the sun is an insignificant player in climate change is just bizarre, and soon to be exposed as foolish.
posted April 23, 2009 at 6:01 pm
The sun is at a minimum far longer than normal. It’s maximums had been gaining strength for several decades.
The strength of solar maximums goes a long ways towards explaining why global temps declined from the 40′s through the early 70′s, and increased during the later part of the 20th Century.
The notion that global mean surface temperature is uneffected by the intensity of solar radiation is laughable at best, and stunning ignorance of science at worst.
Agenda driven science must end, the goverment must be forced to stop outcome based funding, and in fact ought to be forced out of the funding of non-defense/aerospace science altogether (see Eisenhower’s farewell address for reference).
Our government is funding science who’s basic objective is to convince the people go give up freedom for security. See Jefferson’s famous quote on that.
The notion that the Obama administration is promulgating a ‘return to science’ is again, laughable. Their objective is clear; more power to the government, less freedom for the people. That is demonstrated on many levels.
My rant for the day.