Mini Ice Age

This is a few weeks old but I just remembered it -- had not blogged about it before. From United Press International:

Scientist predicts 'mini Ice Age'
A Russian astronomer has predicted that Earth will experience a "mini Ice Age" in the middle of this century, caused by low solar activity.

Khabibullo Abdusamatov of the Pulkovo Astronomic Observatory in St. Petersburg said Monday that temperatures will begin falling six or seven years from now, when global warming caused by increased solar activity in the 20th century reaches its peak, RIA Novosti reported.

The coldest period will occur 15 to 20 years after a major solar output decline between 2035 and 2045, Abdusamatov said.

Dramatic changes in the earth's surface temperatures are an ordinary phenomenon, not an anomaly, he said, and result from variations in the sun's energy output and ultraviolet radiation.

The Northern Hemisphere's most recent cool-down period occurred between 1645 and 1705. The resulting period, known as the Little Ice Age, left canals in the Netherlands frozen solid and forced people in Greenland to abandon their houses to glaciers, the scientist said.

And before the Little Ice Age, it was warm enough in Greenland to grow wine grapes. Grapes being grown for wine generally need a lot more heat and sunshine to 'sugar up'. At the latitudes of Greenland, sunlight is not an issue but warmth is -- archaeological digs in coastal settlements there show a pronounced wine industry. And, by the way, the Pulkovo Observatory is no slouch when it comes to Science. Founded in 1839, it is presently one of the top research centers in Russia with a specialty in Solar (and Stellar) Physics...