Everyday Effects of the Solar Cycle
(World News Science)

On Sept. 15, scientists announced that the Sun has entered a new cycle, marked by solar minimum in December 2019. Read on to meet a few people whose everyday lives are affected by the regular ebb and flow of solar activity. 01_chris_ratzlaff-2015-11-07.jpg Chris Ratzlaff under the aurora about an hour north of Calgary, Canada, on Nov. 7, 2015. Credits: Chris Ratzlaff, Alberta aurora chaser Mid-latitude aurora photographers are intimately familiar with the solar cycle. For us, the solar cycle means the difference between being able to catch the aurora once or twice a month during solar maximum, or seeing it only a few times a year during solar minimum (and knowing that we have a few years to...