Seventy-four percent of influenza pandemics and epidemics (26/35 events) since 1700 CE occurred at or within one year of the peak or trough in sunspot numbers, increasing to 89 percent (31/35) within two years. The average sunspot number for pandemics occurring at sunspot number troughs was 12 (18 for pandemics occurring within one year of a sunspot number trough). The 2018 sunspot number was 22.