"Our Sun's 11-Year
Magnetic Cycle Destined to Disappear," read the headline on an item in the
June 1 edition of the ARRL Letter,
leading to an initial response of alarm amid a weak Cycle 24 and talk of a
possible "Maunder minimum" with virtually no sunspots in the near
future. But rather than a new prediction of doom and gloom for sunspot-hungry
hams, the article actually held out new hope for future solar cycles.
In a new paper in the
journal Solar Physics, titled
"Magnetic Evolution and the Disappearance of Sun-like Activity
Cycles," solar scientists Travis Metcalfe and Jennifer van Saders
reinterpret earlier data to conclude that while we are in the beginning of a
"transitional phase" that may lead to longer cycles, they will not
disappear altogether for at least 800 million years! Hardly a cause for concern
for anyone reading this in 2017…
