I was doing some searching on the sun spot thing last year. Came up with something about how they predicted the new cycle would start in Feb. or something. And it was already in the fall and I thought the same thing - some of these guys with their models are really bad. Upon closer inspection of the article, it had predicted Feb. 2007! (It was fall of 2008 that I was reading it).
There is still debate of if we have started the next cycle yet! (Depending on what the meaning of IS is type thing). There are several cycles that seem to be aligning for many chilly years ahead.
If we subtract 'late' Cycle 23 spots from 'early' Cycle 24 spots, we may have a negative number of sunspots for the first time in history.
Invest in eider ducks, fur, and parka companies.
Oh, and look for seeds for fast maturing cool-season veggies...kale comes to mind.
There are times when I think it’s best to simply observe, and not be so heavily inclined to spout off about predictions.
There’s no shame in admitting that we aren’t able to understand everything. I’d rather have accurate observations than inaccurate predictions.