Maunder Minimum

American  

[mahn-der min-uh-muhm] / ˈmɑn dər ˈmɪn ə məm /

noun

1. a period between 1645 and 1715 characterized by unusually low sunspot activity and global cooling.

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Maunder minimum Scientific  

/ môn′dər,män′- /

1. A period of unusually low sunspot activity lasting from approximately 1645 to 1715, as noted in records kept by contemporary observers. The Maunder minimum corresponds roughly to the middle and coldest portion of the climatic period known as the Little Ice Age, and although no definitive link has yet been proved, many scientists believe that the two phenomena are likely related. The Maunder minimum is named after its discoverer, British astronomer Edward Walter Maunder (1851–1924).

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Example Sentences

By building a decades-long record of observations of a few dozen stars at specific wavelengths that trace stellar activity, a team of astronomers has identified another star going through its own Maunder Minimum period.

From Science Magazine • Aug. 9, 2022

Besides the Maunder Minimum in the seventeenth century, sunspot numbers were somewhat lower during the first part of the nineteenth century than they are now; this period is called the Little Maunder Minimum.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

Historical accounts also indicate that auroral activity was abnormally low throughout the several decades of the Maunder Minimum.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

As far as anybody knows, a repeat of the Maunder Minimum could start within a few years with the next dip in the number of sunspots.

From Science Magazine • May 26, 2011

"We found that you could accommodate both the Maunder Minimum and the last few years into the same framework," he told BBC News.

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2010