Scientists are saying that the Sun is in a phase of "solar lull" - meaning that it has fallen asleep - and it is baffling them.

History suggests that periods of unusual "solar lull" coincide with bitterly cold winters.

Rebecca Morelle reports for BBC Newsnight on the effect this inactivity could have on our current climate, and what the implications might be for global warming.

Scientists are saying that the Sun has entered a phase of Solar lull, which in essence, means it has fallen asleep. The scientists feel this could lead to another ice age. History suggests that periods of unusual "solar lull" coincide with bitterly cold winters.

The sun's activity hit a dramatic low in 2008, a historic lull that caused a similar drop in magnetic effects on Earth - with an eight-month lag, a new study suggests.The study found that many magnetic changes on Earth are indeed strongly linked to the solar activity cycle, though not in perfect synchrony, and it can help scientists map out some causes. The speed of the solar wind - the 1-million-mph stream of particles coming from the sun - as well as the strength and direction of the magnetic fields embedded in it helped produce the low readings on our planet, researchers said.

This is the powerful photo of a horizontal streak of lightning that was captured by a photographer in Bangkok, Thailand.

Saranya Chalermchai, 32, waited for over an hour on the 23rd floor of a building after setting up her camera to capture the split-second shot.

Taken amidst a magnificent storm in the capital city, the photo shows a fork of lightning streak across the sky.

Saranya, a Bangkok native, posted the photo on the National Geographic website to the acclaim of other users.

Explaining the shot, she said: "I was in friend's apartment (on the) 23 floor.

We are about to enter a very interesting period, and while I know that many of you like the cold, this next Arctic outbreak could be dangerous and even historic. I put out an article about a week ago and then one before that that basically restated that I thought that mid to late January going into February could end up being dangerously cold for the central and eastern U.S. While I have really been putting myself out on the line over these last few weeks, I am now getting a lot of forecast model support to back up what I saw coming several weeks ago. Like I said on the Facebook page, the GFS model did not handle the last Arctic outbreak that well in predicting this in the long-range, so I absolutely had no reason to believe that anything would be different this time. Yet again, many fell into the trap of using the GFS as their model of choice for their long-range forecast, and they got burned. See, weather and climate works in cycles, and you have to be able to see those cycles. If you miss that, then you're left depending on a model that dictates your forecasts, and those forecasts can change A LOT! You're at the mercy of the forecast models, and I try to never put myself in that situation.

Now that I'm getting the support of the forecast models and we're much closer to the event, I want to show you what the models are predicting. In fact, if what the forecast models are predicting for the last week of January going into February comes to fruition, then we have a historic Arctic outbreak on our way that would give us brutal cold. The Canadian model also supports a big East Coast storm later in January, which I really think could happen. From the way things are starting to look, this cold pattern could lock in, which would continue into February, and we could also move into a very stormy pattern. Many of you have commented on the Facebook page (yes, I take the time to read almost all of your comments and messages) that you were disappointed that you didn't get any snow with this last Arctic outbreak. I'm really thinking things will be different this time. No, I'm not saying that Miami, FL will get snow, but I do think many areas in the Southeast and up the East Coast will.

It now appears that the stratosphere will kick off a number of indices that deem February to be the coldest prolonged period of winter thus far. In today's post, I will address multiple indices that favor a significantly colder than normal February.

Part I: The Stratosphere

- First Warming
In the opening days of January, we saw a stratospheric warming event occur. This event was minor, as the chart above (depicting temperature anomalies in the upper latitudes) shows. Nevertheless, this first warming event, coupled with the ongoing warming event is helping to destabilize the polar vortex in the stratosphere. So far this winter, the stratospheric polar vortex has been resistant to any and all attempts to be put down. We can attribute this to the positive phase of the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO), which is unfavorable for a weak polar vortex. These two first warmings are just tastes of what is to come. While the first warming was minor, it seems to have shaken up the vortex at least a bit, and this ongoing warming event right now is most likely helping with some slight (at the very least) destabilization of the polar vortex.

The volcano experienced an earthquake swarm during 14-15 January, IGP reported in its latest bulletin. An increase of approx. 25% in seismic activity overall with respect to last year's average was calculated, but IGP stresses that this activity is still low and does not suggest new activity in a near future.

According to the report, a total of 418 seismic events were recorded during the first half of January, most of them during the swarm that occurred on 14-15 Jan when almost 120 quakes were registered within 17 hours. From these events, 144 were so called long-period quakes (internal fluid movements), 269 volcano-tectonic earthquakes (internal rock fracturing) and 5 short pulses of tremor (internal vibration).
El Misti, which is only 17 km from the center of Arequipa city, is one of the countries major and most active volcanoes. Due to its closeness to a large city and its history of explosive eruptions, it is also one of the most dangerous volcanoes in South America, and clearly one that deserves being closely monitored.

Eruption of the Shyhzerli volcano - one of the most active and largest mud volcanoes in Azerbaijan, occurred due to an earthquake, head of the Mud Volcanoes Department of Geology Institute of Azerbaijani National Academy of Sciences (ANAS), Professor Adil Aliyev told Trend on Jan. 17.

"The earthquake, which occurred at about 18 kilometres away from the volcano towards Shamakhi caused eruption of the Shyhzerli volcano. An earthquake occurred two or three days before the eruption," the scientist said.

The earthquake and the eruption did not occur on the same day, but sometimes such cases happen, Aliyev said.

"For example, 15 minutes after the Shamakhi earthquake that destroyed the city in 1902, there was a strong eruption of the Shyhzerli volcano. Such strong earthquakes result in the volcano erupting the same day. Volcanos may also erupt a day or two days after, when the seismic wave reaches it. We have found out that the volcano itself should be ready to erupt, there should be enough energy. The earthquake simply contributes to its eruption," the scientist said.

The immediate cause of the unexpected rise has now been solved, U.S. officials say in a new report (hint: it wasn't global warming). But the underlying reason remains a mystery.

Usually, predicting seasonal tides and sea levels is a pretty cut-and-dried process, governed by the known movements and gravitational influences of astronomical bodies like the moon, said Rich Edwing, deputy director for the Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services at the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

But NOAA's phones began ringing this summer when East Coast residents reported higher than predicted water levels, much like those associated with short-term weather events like tropical storms. But these high seas persisted for weeks, throughout June and July.

The startling rise caused only minor coastal flooding - but major head scratching among scientists.

The smog has become so thick in Beijing that the city's natural light-starved masses have begun flocking to huge digital commercial television screens across the city to observe virtual sunrises.

The futuristic screens installed in the Chinese capital usually advertize tourist destinations, but as the season's first wave of extremely dangerous smog hit - residents donned air masks and left their homes to watch the only place where the sun would hail over the horizon that morning.

Commuters across Beijing found themselves cloaked in a thick, gray haze on Thursday as air pollution monitors issued a severe air warning and ordered the elderly and school children to stay indoors until the quality improved.

The air took on an acrid odor, and many of the city's commuters wore industrial strength face masks as they hurried to work.

'I couldn't see the tall buildings across the street this morning,' said a traffic coordinator at a busy Beijing intersection who gave only his surname, Zhang. 'The smog has gotten worse in the last two to three years. I often cough, and my nose is always irritated. But what can you do? I drink more water to help my body discharge the toxins.'

• 43-year-old mortgage banker Mark Mihal was playing golf with three friends

• He was at the 14th hole of the Annbriar golf course in Waterloo, Illinois

• Noticing a depression in the ground, he walked over and ground gave way

• He became trapped in the 12-foot sinkhole and had to be rescued

• Mr Mihal suffered a broken shoulder and torn tendons after the fall

A claustrophobic mortgage banker has told the story of how a round of golf ended up with him plunging into a sinkhole that opened as he walked across the 14th hole.

Mark Mihal, 43, and his partner Mike Peters, were easily beating regular opponents Ed Magaletta and Hank Martinez during a game in early March last year.

Mr Mihal and Mr Peters had both outdriven the other pair on the 14th hole of the Annbriar golf course in Waterloo, Illinois.

Each landed the ball nicely on the fairway, leaving Mr Magaletta and Mr Martinez at the edge of the woods trying to clear a bunker.

But while Mr Mihal was waiting for Mr Peters to hit his second shot, he noticed a shallow, bathtub-size depression in the grass of the fairway.

It was out of place on the well-kept course, and looked as if it would be tricky to play out of.

He walked over and stepped into the depression - and promptly vanished.