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Thursday 6 January 2011

Time to break out the long johns

The last solar minimum should have ended last year, but something peculiar has been happening. Although solar minimums normally last about 16 months, the current one has stretched over 26 months—the longest in a century. One reason, according to a paper submitted to the International Astronomical Union Symposium No. 273, an online colloquium, is that the magnetic field strength of sunspots appears to be waning.

Scientists studying sunspots for the past 2 decades have concluded that the magnetic field that triggers their formation has been steadily declining. If the current trend continues, by 2016 the sun’s face may become spotless and remain that way for decades—a phenomenon that in the 17th century coincided with a prolonged period of cooling on Earth.

Shamelessly nicked from WUWT

3 comments:

  1. Rubbish. You are well off message here FE. There is neer a mention of CO2 and AGW nor even a polar bear dying.
    Get a grip man Pachuri is the Pope and AGW is the New Catholicism.

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  2. Mmmm. Where can I find a dead polar bear pic I wonder?

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  3. Polar bear? Would you like fries with that...

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