Earth will enter a new ice age

According to NASA scientists, within the next 30 years, humanity will have a problem that is the Sun will be significantly weakened. In the future, the solar energy supplied to the Earth will be greatly weakened. This will likely cause the Earth to enter a new ice age.

The reason scientists say so is because when they study the Sun, they discovered that its activity follows a cycle. Specifically, the solar cycle, also known as the solar activity cycle, lasts on average for 11 years.

The Solar Cycle is the term for the periodic change in the number of sunspots on its surface. In which, when the Sun has the fewest sunspots, it is called the minimum period and when the Sun is most active, i.e. has the most sunspots, it is called the maximum phase.

Normally, a solar cycle extends from one minimum to the next. Experts from NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) collaborated and established the Solar Cycle Prediction Committee (SCPP). According to SCPP, the solar minimum occurred in December 2019, officially marking the beginning of a new solar cycle – Solar Cycle 25. This cycle is expected to last from 2019 to 2030.

During the 25 solar cycle, the Sun is expected to be at its maximum in July 2025. The peak will often increase the number of sunspots, solar flares, and magnetic storms. Sunspots are the starting sign for explosions and events that release light, matter, and energy into space.

Magnetic storms can disrupt radio communications, damage satellites, and affect the electrical system on Earth. In addition, during peak periods, solar activity can affect electrical grids, aviation, rockets, GPS, satellites and astronauts in space.

And recently, in a new study of the sun from the University of California, scientists have made predictions about the next period of the Sun’s minimum phase is in 2050. They also predicted this time the Sun. will fall into the most unusual period. It is during this time that the Sun will become “very cold”.

The risk of falling into the Little Ice Age in 2050

According to research by experts at the University of California, the Sun in 2050 will enter a “prolonged sunspot minimum cycle”, also known as the Maunder Minimum. During this prolonged sunspot minima, sunspots will become extremely rare. This term was introduced by American astronomer – John A, Eddy in an article in the journal Science in 1976.

Previously, a prolonged sunspot minimum period was first recorded by Gustav Spörer, a German astronomer, in 1887 and 1889. This work was forwarded to the Royal Astronomical Society in London. and expanded by astronomers Edward Walter Maunder (1851–1928) and his wife Annie Russell Maunder (1868–1947).

This prolonged sunspot minimum period occurred during the Little Ice Age. During this time, temperatures in Europe and North America were recorded to be much lower than average. The correlation between the low number of sunspots and the cold British winters of 1683-1684, 1694-1695 and 1708-1709 was analyzed based on the British meteorological data set.

Alternatively, an alternative explanation is given by observations from NASA’s Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment that suggest that ultraviolet light output varies more during the solar cycle. The study also found that low solar activity leads to colder winters in parts of southern Europe, Canada, northern Europe and the US.

In the 17th century, when the prolonged sunspot minima cycle took place, England’s Thames turned into a glacier because of its unusually low temperatures. Even the Baltic Sea has extremely rare ice, and the thickness of the ice reaches unimaginable levels. During that time, the Swedish army directly crossed the Baltic Sea into Denmark.

For this phenomenon, American physicist – Dan Lubin has conducted special research on the prolonged sunspot minima period. Through his research, he believes that the phenomenon of some areas of the Earth becoming colder is closely related to the Sun’s prolonged sunspot minima period. Dan Lubin thinks that by 2050, the Earth will enter a Little Ice Age worse than in the 17th century.

Once the Sun enters this cycle, not only will its ultraviolet rays be significantly weakened, but its luminosity will also decrease. As a result, the amount of heat received from the Sun by the Earth will be greatly reduced and this will lead to a series of frozen areas. And when the Sun enters the maximum period, the ultraviolet rays and light intensity received by the Earth will also increase many times.

The weakening of solar energy will lead to a thinning of the ozone layer in the stratosphere of the Earth. The atmospheric currents below will change and cause impacts on weather and the environment. But experts also point out that the effects of the Sun’s prolonged sunspot minimum cycle are not uniform. As a result, Europe and North America will become extremely cold, and southern Greenland will become warmer.

Regarding the impact of this cycle, some have questioned whether it has a positive effect on global warming. Experts have also given the answer, although the Little Ice Age cannot completely prevent climate change, a prolonged blackspot minima cycle will slow down global warming. In addition, although the temperature of some parts of the Earth can drop to minus degrees during the prolonged sunspot minimum period, global warming is still the main trend.