evidence: A given solar cycle begins at solar minimum, where the sun is near sunspot-less. During this window, there can be no solar flares or coronal mass ejections (CMEs) for months at a time. From this period of solar minimum, solar activity gradually ramps up over several years, to a period of solar maximum. During solar maximum, large solar flares and CMEs are at their most frequent. [...] CircuitBurner Seriously, this is the 1st time in my 56 years that the 11 year solar cycle has gone rogue. The truth is we really have no control over the sun and what our star will do next. I find it curiously worrisome to observe our science institutions fraying at the edges not able to definitively dictate the natural behavior of our closest star, and the subsequent lack of coverage in main stream media. It might very well turn out that global warming wasn't driven by human activities after all....Reply