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Cold comfort: The sun is cooling; doesn’t mean there will be no global warming

Published

5 years ago

2020/09/28

A new 11-year-cycle of the Sun has begun. Scientists believe the Sun was at its weakest in 2019 in the last 100 years or so — known as the solar minimum — and 2020 marks the beginning of the 25th cycle. But the odd thing is that solar activity, measured by the number of Sun spots at any given time, is pretty low even in 2020.

Sun spots are areas of strong magnetic forces on the surface of the Sun — sometimes as large as planets — that appear as darker spots because they are cooler.

The Sun had no Sun spots for around 71 per cent in 2020 through September 21, 2020, compared to 77 per cent in 2019, according to the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Space Environment Centre. In May this year, it was as high as 78 per cent, sparking fears of a Little Ice Age.

Scientists say the Sun may be going through a long period of decreased activity known as the Modern Grand Solar Minimum from 2020 to 2053. The last time such an event occurred was during the Maunder Minimum — from 1645 AD to 1710 AD, which was part of what is now known as the Little Ice Age — when Earth went through a series of elongated cold periods during the medieval centuries.

The alarm went off when a study predicted that the surface temperatures on Earth will go down noticeably during the Modern Grand Solar Minimum due to a 70 per cent reduction in solar magnetic activity.

The research paper, by Valentina Zarkhova of Northumbria University, the UK, was published in Temperature on August 4, 2020. To arrive at her conclusion, Zarkhova studied the complex magnetic activity in the interior of the Sun and how this impacts its total energy output measured as solar irradiance.

Variations in solar irradiance lead to heating of the upper layer of the Earth’s atmosphere and influences the transport of solar energy towards the planet’s surface.

Zarkhova studied the magnetic activity through the solar background magnetic field which occurs in the form of two magnetic waves inside the Sun.

When Zarkhova combined these two waves for solar cycles 21-26, she found that the Sun’s magnitude is going down in cycles 24-25 and becoming almost zero in cycle 26. She also found multiple grand solar minima events, including the current event from 2020-2053.

During the Maunder Minimum in the middle ages, the solar irradiance went down by 0.22 per cent or 3 watt per square metre (W/sqm) in 1710 AD when the period ended.

This brought down the temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere, especially in Europe, by 1-1.5 degree Celsius and led to frozen rivers, long cold winters and cold summers. This happened because of the complex impacts of decreased solar activity on the abundance of ozone in the Earth’s atmosphere and on climatic cycles such as the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO).

The NAO, the balance between a permanent low-pressure system near Greenland and a permanent high-pressure system to its south, was in a negative phase during the Maunder Minimum. This plunged Europe into colder-than usual temperatures. – Down to Earth

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High Posts Committee approves nomination of three Ambassadors and High Commissioner

Published

54 seconds ago

2026/01/15

Sahan Weerasooriya

The nominations for the appointments of three new Ambassadors and a new High Commissioner have been approved by the Committee on High Posts of Parliament.

The Committee on High Posts approved the nomination of Dharshana Mahendra Perera as the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Malaysia, the nomination of Dassanayake Mudiyanselage Sumith Priyantha Dassanayake as the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Dayani Mendis as the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the Republic of Austria, and for the nomination of Samantha Priyadarshana Weerasinghe Pathirana as the Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Romania.

News

CRIB becomes corporate partner of BASL

Published

2 mins ago

2026/01/15

Sahan Weerasooriya

The Credit Information Bureau of Sri Lanka (CRIB) has become the first Corporate Partner of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) for 2026, marking the launch of BASL’s newly introduced Corporate Partner Scheme, the BASL stated.

The text of BASL statement: “The partnership was formalised by signing a Memorandum of Understanding at the BASL Secretariat. The event was attended by Mr. Rajeev Amarasuriya, President of BASL; Mr. Pasindu Silva, Treasurer of BASL; Mr. Pushpike Jayasundera, Director/General Manager of CRIB, Mr. Janaka Lakmal, Deputy General Manager of CRIB, and Ms.Saumya Wijesinghe, Manager Legal of CRIB, together with other office-bearers and officials.

BASL represents over 26,000 legal professionals across 93 regional branches, providing a strong platform to engage legal practitioners nationwide. Through this initiative, CRIB and BASL will conduct in-person awareness programmes and webinars, focusing on credit information systems, CRIB’s services, and the Secured Transactions Registry (STR), in line with CRIB’s national campaign “We Care for Your Credit Health.”

Speaking at the event, President BASL Mr. Rajeev Amarasuriya stated that the Corporate Partner Scheme reflects BASL’s commitment to reach out to different sectors and collaborate in areas of mutual benefit to the respective organisations.

General Manager of CRIB, Mr. Pushpike Jayasundera noted that CRIB sees this as an important opportunity to enhance understanding in the legal sector of credit information and secured transactions.

The inclusion of CRIB as BASL’s first Corporate Partner underscores BASL’s efforts to support a more informed and future-ready legal profession.”

News

Nayaka Thero’s 50th birthday marked by ordination ceremony

Published

3 mins ago

2026/01/15

Sahan Weerasooriya

Arrangements have been made to ordain two boys in commemoration of the 50th birthday of Venerable Ambaliyadde Sangharatana Nayaka Thero, at a ceremony scheduled to be held today (15) at the Sri Bharathi Kusumachethiyarama Pirivena, Peradeniya.

Venerable Ambaliyadde Sangharatana Nayaka Thero is the Principal of Panideniya Sri Bharathi Vidyayathana, the District Sangha Supervisor of the Northern Sangha Council of the Sri Lanka Ramanna Maha Nikaya, Chief Prelate of the Sri Bharathi Kusumachethiyarama Moolika Pirivena, and a recipient of the Sasana Seva Vibhushana honour, as well as a scholar and Pandit.

The two boys to be ordained are Heman Sankalpa Ranawira of Unantanna, Hanguranketha, and Pamindu Bhanuka Wijerathna of Embilipitiya.

Heman Sankalpa Ranawira, born on May 16, 2013, is the second son of Kekulandara Mudiyanselage Gedera Wijerathna Banda and Hewage Sumithra Jayanthi, residents of No. 23, Unantenna, Hanguranketha.

Pamindu Bhanuka Wijerathna, born on May 17, 2013, is the second son of Ranawira Kankanamge Chaminda Kumara and Chamila Niroshani, residents of Embilipitiya.

Following the ordination ceremony, an alms were offered to (dana ) to 59 monks A series of religious observances are scheduled to be held within the premises of the Kusumachethiyarama Pirivena to mark the event.