Scientists have long warned against the adverse effects of global warming, including such scenarios as famine and entire areas being wiped out due to rapid sea level rise.
A team of European researchers, however, is putting forward a completely different but equally alarming model about a potential change in the Earth's climate: global cooling triggered by the sun's decreased activity.
In fact, the research team, led by Northumbria University professor Valentina Zharkova, warned of a possible "mini Ice Age" being experience on Earth from 2030 to 2040 because of the fluctuations in the 11-year cycle of solar activity the sun goes through.
At the National Astronomy Meeting in Wales, Zharkova explained that this is not the first time the Earth will experience freezing climate related to the sun's "hibernation."
The lead researcher cited for instance the "Maunder Minimum," a 70-year ice age experienced on Earth from 1645 to 1715 after decreased solar activity caused global temperatures to drop. During this period, the River Thames in London became completely frozen.
To be able to predict when our planet will experience similar freezing temperatures, Zharkova's team developed the so-called "double dynamo" model.
Using this model, the researchers predict that the sun's activity will dwindle for a 10-year period starting in 2030.
The sun's hibernation, Zharkova explained, will be the result of two magnetic waves cancelling each other out in about 2030.
"In cycle 26, the two waves exactly mirror each other, peaking at the same time but in opposite hemispheres of the Sun. We predict that this will lead to the properties of a Maunder minimum," the lead researcher said.
Due to this, the number of sun spots, or temporary dark concentrations of magnetic field flux that causes reduced temperature on the sun's surface, will decrease.
The frequency of solar flares, or bursts of radiation and energy on the sun's surface, meanwhile, will rise to about 60 percent.
"Over the cycle, the waves fluctuate between the Sun's northern and southern hemispheres. Combining both waves together and comparing to real data for the current solar cycle, we found that our predictions showed an accuracy of 97 percent," Zharkova said.
