While it's true the 10 year - 1 year spread is negative, usually when you're talking about yield curve inversions, the duration people focus on is the 10 year - 2 year. That's not currently inverted, but very shortly it was, which kind of triggered all the news stories.

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/T10Y2Y

The 10 year - 3 month spread has been negative since May when the last big stock market selloff was.

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/T10Y3M

Iamwil: can you run this backwards for as far back as data exists?

Yes. I just didn't display all the data. I think it goes back to the 90's or so.

What does it mean if yield curve is inverted?

Typically, people that lend out their money for longer periods of time want a higher interest rate for lending out that money, than if they lend out at a shorter time frame.

The yield curve inverts when the interest rate you get for lending long term bonds (~10 years) is less than the interest rate you get for short term bonds (~1 year). Every recession in the last 8 or so recessions had been predated by a yield curve inversion, so people take it to be a predictor of a slowing economy now.

usually after how long into a recession will the yield curve reverse back? And how will that predict an economic recovery?

Site is down

Just takes a little bit to load if someone hadn't hit it in a while.