From Space.com
Astronomers will unveil a “major result” on Tuesday (June 14) regarding the sun’s 11-year sunspot cycle.
The announcement will be made at a solar physics conference in New Mexico, according to an alert released today (June 10) by the American Astronomical Society. The discussion will begin at 1 p.m. EDT (1700 GMT).
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I’m not sure what this is, but it may be related to the previous announcement about the collaboration with the Met Office on Space Weather Forecasting for protecting the electric grid.
It is also possible that it is related to Livingston and Penn’s findings or related to the sunspot forecasts that have been constantly changing.
However, given the state of science promotion these days, I’m going with sensationalism, maybe something to justify the new US-UK joint venture.
We’ll see.
h/t to reader Scarlet Pumpernickel
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Could it be that Solar Cycle 24 is ending and Cycle 25 will begin soon?
They’ll probably be giving themselves a pat on the back for how accurate their sun spot predictions have been for sc 24.
It’s almost certainly going to be something banal, followed by an appeal for funding.
“We have found the Solar/ climate link which explains all the observed warming since the Little Ice Age.”
Anything Is Possible (:-
Maybe there’s too much CO2 in the sun’s atmosphere and it’s warming up.
They are going to blame the ‘L&P effect’ for the failure of their SSN24 predictions.
(+ although gave a good prediction vukcevic formula is pseudoscience!)
Most assuredly an announcement of new modeling proving that man is having a major impact on sunspot activity.
The energy output of the sun does vary, but has no effect on planetary temperatures?
sarc off
Astronomy is concerned primarily with Observation. The Met. Office has stated that observation confuses model predictions and should be discouraged. I cannot see these two being good bed fellows. We will have to see.
George Noury had a space weather guy on last night discussing it. Not that I ever tune in to George Noury.
Oh boy, am I sick of “science by press release”
I don’t expect any more out of them than some guy in a white coat pointing at the sky and shrieking “SHINY!”
Leif is at this conference. Which taking place in a town called Sunspot. You couldn’t make it up.
Maybe he can tell us something?
tb
clue is in the Dr.S’s comment to Geoff in the previous solar thread.
Oatley says:
Most assuredly … that man is having a major impact on sunspot activity.
Thanks Oatley, I appreciate these little asides while I smack my head against a wall.
Chrs JJ
And thanks Anthony, mods and posters … as usual.
Well, there has been that SORCE (Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment) satellite that has one portion (the Spectral Irradiance Monitor) that breaks down the light and measures the spectrum rather than the total (early tests show that while the TOTAL irradiance is at minimum, portions of the spectrum vary wildly).
Robinson says:
June 14, 2011 at 2:52 am
“Its almost certainly going to be something banal, followed by an appeal for funding.”
I agree. Why do these supposedly august scientific groups have to pull a cheap PR stunt like this? I guess they see the writing on the wall – no one can afford to attend their colleges and universities these days, and government funding will soon be drying up for their bloated science budgets.
They found a new positive feedback and will hold a conference to say: OMG it’s worse than we thought!
…and of course ask for more funding.
tallbloke says:
June 14, 2011 at 4:57 am
> Leif is at this conference. Which taking place in a town called Sunspot. You couldn’t make it up.
Sunspot NM is the home of The National Solar Observatory and hence a completely reasonable place to have such an event. (Great tours of the equipment, I’m sure.) I suspect the observatory came first and then a town grew up around it, and then split off from Tucson.
Livingston and Penn work there, but if the news is about “regarding the sun’s 11-year sunspot cycle,” then I’d expect it to be related to what we’re learning thanks to SC24 and not related to the 20 year decline in sunspot field strength. Besides, if it were about L&P, I’d expect the NSO to be touting the news.
Has someone worked out that the Sun affects Earth’s climate?
Astronomy: Etymologically, the “science” which names heavenly bodies. Astronomer: An individual who can not explain what he sees: he/she is constantly surprised. 🙂
I’ll go with science by press release. Which I also hate. Just get to fricken work already.
They have another Astronomical announcement to make on climate change?
After a hundred years of star gazing and deliberation, they will announce that they have finally concluded that good old Sol appears to fit the parameters for actually being a star.
Next order of business is to decide what type of star it might be. :p
“The energy output of the sun does vary, but has no effect on planetary temperatures?” – More likely, sunspotcycles do vary, but have virtually no effect on the sun’s energy output.