[IRCA] Quiet sun

["Craig Healy" <bubba@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

This story was taken from the Slashdot web site.  Good news!
-=-=-=-=-
"The phrase sounds like an oxymoron, and maybe it is, but the sun is
extremely quiet right now, so much in fact that the Solar Influences Data
Center in Belgium issued an unusual 'All quiet alert' on October 5th. Since
then the sunspot number has remained at zero - solar cycle 24 has not yet
started. There are signs that the sun's activity is slowing. The solar wind
has been decreasing in speed, and this is yet another indicator of a slowing
in the sun's magnetic dynamo. There is talk of an extended solar minimum
occurring. There are a number of theories and a couple of dozen predictions
about the intensity solar cycle 24 which has yet to start. One paper by Penn
& Livingstonin in 2006 concludes: 'If [trends] continue to decrease at the
current rate then the number of sunspots in the next solar cycle (cycle 24)
would be reduced by roughly half, and there would be very few sunspots
visible on the disk during cycle 25.' We'll know more in about six months
what the sun decides to do for cycle 24."
-=-=-=-=-

Craig Healy
Providence, RI

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