"Goodnight Sun: Sunspots May Disappear for Years"

"WASHINGTON – The sun is heading into an unusual and extended hibernation, scientists predict. Around 2020, sunspots may disappear for years, maybe decades.

But scientists say it is nothing to worry about. Solar storm activity has little to do with life-giving light and warmth from the sun. The effects from a calmer sun are mostly good. There'd be fewer disruptions of satellites and power systems. And it might mean a little less increase in global warming.

It's happened before, but not for a couple centuries.

'The solar cycle is maybe going into hiatus, sort of like a summertime TV show,' said National Solar Observatory associate director Frank Hill, the lead author of a scientific presentation at a solar physics conference in New Mexico."

Seth Borenstein reports for the Associated Press June 14, 2011.

SEE ALSO:

"A Solar Scientist Rebuts a Cool Sunspot Prediction" (Dot Earth)

"Scientists See Sunspot 'Hibernation' But No Ice Age" (Reuters)

"Sunspot Drop Won’t Cause Global Cooling" (Wired Science)

"Sun’s Magnetic Levels Ebb as Scientists Note Missing Sunspot Activity" (Bloomberg)

"How Missing Sunspots Could Lead to Global Cooling " (PC Magazine)