NOAA confirms beginning of Sunspot Cycle 24
January 4, 2008 was a big day in the world of HF radio propagation. Sunspot #10,981 was declared to be the first of Solar Cycle #24. This means decent ham radio propagation is going to get much better over the coming months. After such an extended period of no activity followed by a glimmer of hope in December, I had a hunch that we’d be hearing something like this soon. 
Next year’s contesting should bring much better propagation and the following years will see greater solar activity. I certainly hope that Cycle 24 is kind to ham radio.