Earth faces another ICE AGE within 15 YEARS as Russian scientists discover Sun 'cooling' THE Earth is heading towards another ice age as solar magnetic activity is set to drop by up to 60 per cent in the next 15 years. By Sean Martin 06:22, Sat, Oct 22, 2016 | UPDATED: 13:49, Sun, Oct 23, 2016
Experts say that solar activity as low as it currently is has not been seen since the mini-ice age that took place between 1645 and 1715 – a period known as the Maunder Minimum where the entire Thames froze over.
A new model has allowed experts to predict solar activity with more accuracy than ever before and it suggests that magnetic activity will fall by 60 per cent between 2030 and 2040.
The model looks at the Sun’s ’11-year heartbeat’ – the period it takes for magnetic activity to fluctuate. This cycle was first discovered some 173 years ago.
However, a mathematician has established a more up-to-date model that can forecast what the solar cycles will look like based upon dynamo effects in two layers of the Sun.