Sun Shows Signs of Rising Activity Following Decades of Weakening, Study Finds

The Sun, long thought to be entering a period of extraordinary quiet, has become violently active since 2008 — occasionally with real consequences for the Earth. This is the conclusion from a recent press release issued today based on a Scientific American article here:The Works' Correspondent. Solar activity had already been declining since the 1980s but plummeted to new lows that year, and researchers were expecting a historic minimum. Instead, the data show a reversal – and potentially an increase – of space weather activity such as solar flares, storms and coronal mass ejections.

Study Reveals Solar Wind Strengthening After Deep Minimum, Signaling Sun's Awakening

As per findings published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, solar wind plasma and magnetic field parameters have been rising since the 2008 “deep solar minimum”. It was surprising, said lead author Jamie Jasinski of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory: “The Sun is coming out of its quiet phase.” The study used data from the heliosphere collected by NASA's ACE and Wind missions through a system called OMNIWeb Plus, which is operated at NASA Goddard.

The behaviour of the Sun, in both the more recent calm period corresponding to the Maunder Minimum and on longer time scales, remains unpredictable.

One of NASA's priorities is the field of space weather forecasting, with missions set to launch on Sept. 23 that will better detect and provide early warning of solar events.

Deciphering the Sun's ever-changing personality is key to safeguarding both Earth-bound infrastructure and future Moon- and Mars-bound explorers.

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