Scientists speculate: sunspots began in 2020, or enter "hibernation"

U.S. researchers predicted that the sun will enter a long time is not unusual and "super quiet mode," from about 2020, disappearance of sunspot activity may be years or even decades.

The scientific community believes that by 2012, the sunspot activity will enter a peak period. But the U.S. National Solar Observatory and the Air Force Research Laboratory experts have discovered that sunspots unusually quiet recently, specific signs of an high-speed stream of charged particles disappeared gradually weakened some of sunspots, solar poles activities slowed down.

These researchers published 3 June 14 research reports that people familiar with the sunspot activity may be into "hibernation", the situation has never occurred since the 17th century.

"This is unusual, unexpected," National Solar Observatory, "Solar weather monitoring network," deputy director of the Frank Hill said, "But that three entirely different items found similar signs of solar observations, the fact that there is convincing indicators, shows sunspot activity cycle, perhaps into hibernation. "

Groups of sunspots is to periodically appear in the surface of the sun's dark spots, the temperature is relatively low, with the strong magnetic field related. Sunspot activity is usually every 11 years to enter the peak of solar storms will produce that high-speed ejection from the sun's atmosphere flow of charged particles that can seriously affect the Earth's space environment, disrupt radio communications and other human activities.

Hill said the researchers are studying this period of "hibernation" will become the second "Maunder minimum", that from 1645 to 1715 is almost impossible to observe any sunspot activity continued low solar activity period.

This three research reports published in the U.S. city of Las Cruces, New Mexico at the Solar Physics Branch of the American Astronomical Society annual meeting.