Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Climate

How unusual is today's solar activity?

  • Brief Communications Arising
  • Published:

From Nature

View current issue Submit your manuscript

Abstract

Arising from: S. K. Solanki, I. G. Usoskin, B. Kromer, M. Schüssler & J. Beer Nature 431, 1084–1087 (2004); Solanki et al. reply.

To put global warming into context requires knowledge about past changes in solar activity and the role of the Sun in climate change. Solanki et al.1 propose that solar activity during recent decades was exceptionally high compared with that over the preceding 8,000 years. However, our extended analysis of the radiocarbon record reveals several periods during past centuries in which the strength of the magnetic field in the solar wind was similar to, or even higher than, that of today.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Figure 1: Measured atmospheric 14CO2:12CO2 and 13CO2:12CO2 ratios and model results for δ13C from AD 1500 to 1950.
Figure 2: Radiocarbon production rate and solar modulation parameter compared with the group sunspot number.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Solanki, S. K., Usoskin, I. G., Kromer, B., Schüssler, M. & Beer, J. Nature 431, 1084–1087 (2004).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Beer, J. Space Sci. Rev. 93, 107–119 (2000).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. McCracken, K. G. & Heikkila, B. in Proc. 28th Int. Cosmic Ray Conf. 2003, Tsukuba, Japan 4117–4120 (Univ. Acad. Press, Tokyo, 2003).

    Google Scholar 

  4. Stuiver, M., Reimer, P. J. & Braziunas, T. F. Radiocarbon 40, 1127–1151 (1998).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. McCormac, F. G. et al. Radiocarbon 44, 641–651 (2002).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Siegenthaler, U. J. Geophys. Res. 88, 3599–3608 (1983).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Joos, F. et al. Tellus B 48, 397–417 (1996).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  8. Masarik, J. & Beer, J. J. Geophys. Res. 104, 12099–12111 (1999).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Yang, S., Odah, H. & Shaw, J. Geophys. J. Int. 140, 158–162 (2000).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  10. Gerber, S. et al. Clim. Dynam. 20, 281–299 (2003).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  11. Bard, E., Raisbeck, G. M., Yiou, F. & Jouzel, J. Tellus B 52, 985–992 (2000).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  12. Muscheler, R., Beer, J., Kubik, P. W. & Synal, H. -A. Quat. Sci. Rev. 24, 1849–1860 (2005).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  13. Snowball, I. & Sandgren, P. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 227, 361–376 (2004).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Francey, R. J. et al. Tellus B 51, 170–193 (1999).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  15. Hoyt, D. V. & Schatten, K. H. Solar Phys. 179, 189–219 (1998).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Climate and Global Dynamics Division, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Paleoclimatology, Boulder, 80305-3000, Colorado, USA

    Raimund Muscheler

  2. Climate and Environmental Physics, Physics Institute, University of Bern, Bern, 3012, Switzerland

    Fortunat Joos & Simon A. Müller

  3. GeoBiosphere Science Centre, Quaternary Sciences, Lund University, Lund, 22362, Sweden

    Ian Snowball

Authors
  1. Raimund Muscheler
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Fortunat Joos
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Simon A. Müller
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Ian Snowball
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Raimund Muscheler.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Muscheler, R., Joos, F., Müller, S. et al. How unusual is today's solar activity?. Nature 436, E3–E4 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04045

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04045

  • Springer Nature Limited

This article is cited by

Search

Navigation