[HCRA] new solar cycle prediction

[Mike DeChristopher]

Holy solar cycle, Batman!

The SWPC has released a new prediction for cycle 24.  I figure most of you
have seen it already, but if you haven't, here it is: 
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/SolarCycle/index.html.

To paraphrase, the longer the solar minimum, the lesser the solar maximum.
 That isn't so good, but anything is better than this.  The 10.7cm flux is
actually ahead of the curve, heading back up (hopefully).  The sunspot
number will get to 25 just after 2010, and eventually reach maximum just
after 2013.  They don't quite know just how big [or small] this maximum
will be, but will know for sure when they figure out where the minimum
was.  Currently, the minimum is thought to be August, 2008, but as we
continue on the 0 sunspot trend, that minimum shifts ahead.

In other news, 40m has been fantastic.  The DX can now come up to 7200;
you no longer need to work split (aside from a few of the DX who prefer
it).  I've worked more 40m DX in the past few weeks than on all the other
bands combined.  Happy radio'ing,


-- 
Mike DeChristopher, K1KAA
http://www.k1kaa.net
AR-Cluster node telnet://dx.413ma.org