The sun has been 'hibernated' for 70 years: A replica world has appeared

The 4-century mystery of the 70-year hiatus of the solar cycle is expected to be solved through the discovery of HD 166620, a star that is experiencing the same phenomenon.

According to Science Alert, the strange phenomenon observed between 1645 and 1715 by many famous astronomers, including Galileo Galilei, is known as the "Maunder minimum".

Change of the Sun in a typical 11-year cycle

Normally, the Sun operates in a steady cycle every 11 years: initially mild, then gradually flares up with intense, severe solar storms, and then calms down again for the rest of the cycle. . But during those 70 years of "hibernation", the sunspots stopped appearing, meaning the Sun suddenly became gentle, scary and quiet.

Of course scientists can't go back in time to learn more about the Maunder minimum. To solve the mystery, physicist Anna Baum from Lehigh University and her colleagues have been tracking 59 stars with similar features to the Sun for several decades, according to PHYS.

They eventually determined the HD 166620 also behaves similarly. Previously, it operated with a 17-year cycle, but from 2003 to now, no black spots have appeared.

HD 166620 is a star 36 light-years away, about 80% of the size and mass of the Sun, and about 6 billion years old.

The discovery of a hibernating "replica" suggests that our Sun is not alone. HD 166620 will be studied further to find out what led to this mysterious minima, and could yield more data to help us understand more about our Sun, as a way of understanding our Sun. mirror.