View Full Version : Propagation!
"The Solar Flux Index yesterday was 100 and is expected to reach 125
tomorrow and then 135 from March 24th through March 29th. You can see
the latest forecast for both SFI and A index here (http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/ftpdir/la45DF.txttest/). Watch the high
bands!"
...then 135 from March 24th through March 29th.
WPX will be interesting. It's a shame I'm working all weekend.
I'm hearing reports of 10m openings into Europe from the Midwest/East Coast.
WØTKX
03-23-2011, 05:09 PM
I worked England and Sweden on 10 a few weeks ago.
A blast running 25 watts on AM rag-chewing coast to coast.
With these kinds of numbers, an IOMH gathering would be feasible on 17 meters... and up!
Dang, bout time!
What do you mean by that?
During ARRL DX SSB, 10m was wide open to just about anywhere. Did you miss it?
WØTKX
03-23-2011, 06:15 PM
I listened, and heard a lot of trans equatorial contacts to South America, even OZ and NZ. Europe was there, but not as strong. Plenty of Asian stations too. I feel like a six lander sometimes.
But if I can get a beam going someday... use the Gap Titan on 10, mostly.
KG4CGC
03-23-2011, 08:39 PM
Just hearing hash and trash due to the nearby storms. Who wants to make a sked for tomorrow or set up a series of times and frequencies to check. I dunno, set up contact times once every hour. Daytime 20m-10m. Later 160m-40m.
Who knows how to set that up?
I've been planning some early morning listening on 160 Saturday & Sunday, trying to catch Alaska during the WPX. Otherwise, I'll be cruising 12 meters when I can for new entities (picked up Australia right after I got home tonight!)
If a sked gets set, someone drop me a note. My call at arrl dot net will get through.
WØTKX
03-23-2011, 10:10 PM
If the propagation continues to improve, we could probably start trying something regular.
It almost worked the last few times... but it's so much easier on higher frequencies with smaller antennas and less power. More can participate. SNR is almost always a lot better than 40 or 75... and 20 is a zoo. I'm toying with the idea of a pair of mono band slopers (reversible, E/W) in a VEE with a reflector under it. Or maybe with jumpers to make it work on a few bands. Cheap and easy, something a lot of us could build.
17m has been pretty good lately.
WØTKX
03-23-2011, 10:31 PM
Yea, but it's not an evening band. So maybe this weekend. Folks gotta work to support Missiles for Libya. ;)
Yea, but it's not an evening band. So maybe this weekend. Folks gotta work to support Missiles for Libya. ;)
Don't want them to go hungry now, do we?
Yea, but it's not an evening band. So maybe this weekend. Folks gotta work to support Missiles for Libya. ;)
I don't know... 17 has been open west early evenings, and I worked a VK4 on 12 meters after getting home from work.
17 wouldn't work REAL late, but early evening (depending of course on where we are on the continent), I wouldn't neccesarily rule it out.
PA5COR
03-24-2011, 09:34 AM
17 open, 15 and 12 open to the USA LOL
17 open, 15 and 12 open to the USA LOL
Cor, are you hearing anything on 10m yet from the U.S.?
Word from some of the propagation gurus is that the high bands should be very open this weekend. VK4TI mentioned on the CQ Contest reflector this morning that last night, he and several other VK's were working multiple US stations on 75 phone. QRP stations, that is.
And last night around 2200Z, I nabbed KH2L on 12 meter CW -- started as a solid (as in legit) 599, although he went down to a 559 at one point. (Ed only gave me a 339, but since I'm running 100 W into a stock HF6V, you think I'm complaining?)
So an on-air get-together is do-able this weekend. I would suggest 12 or 17, though, for obvious reasons...
KG4CGC
03-25-2011, 08:34 PM
Anyone want to try something now? Tomorrow through Tuesday is supposed to be nothing but thunderstorms here.
From the ARRL Website:
On Wednesday, April 13, the daily sunspot number reached a new high for Solar Cycle 24 when it hit 153. [...] the last time the daily sunspot number was higher than this was July 7, 2005, when it was 149.
But I haven't been seeing as many DX stations on the bands as I did a month ago. Weird.
KG4CGC
04-15-2011, 01:24 PM
And I'm about to hit a 24 hour period of thunderstorms.
WØTKX
04-15-2011, 01:30 PM
As long as they are not too close to you, it won't affect the SNR on the upper bands as much as the lower bands.
PA5COR
04-15-2011, 01:43 PM
I'm not very active on 10 but there have been a few openings i heard, missed them all.... oh well, next few years i think we will have a few chances to work IOTMH people there ;)
From the ARRL Website:
On Wednesday, April 13, the daily sunspot number reached a new high for Solar Cycle 24 when it hit 153. [...] the last time the daily sunspot number was higher than this was July 7, 2005, when it was 149.
But I haven't been seeing as many DX stations on the bands as I did a month ago. Weird.
No major contest scheduled. ;)
WØTKX
04-15-2011, 05:41 PM
I'm not very active on 10 but there have been a few openings i heard, missed them all.... oh well, next few years i think we will have a few chances to work IOTMH people there ;)
I worked Kris from Denmark, OZ7X on 15 two days ago. We even got to rag chew a bit before a frenzy started. Look him up on QRZ, killer antenna farm. Neat guy, we yakked about SDR radios for a while. And it was on SSB, not CW.
It's getting to be interesting on the upper bands. SWL'ing has been good, late at night. I was listening to a music station that I think was from Africa on 31 meters a few nights ago. It was really neat music, the broadcast was in French, with a weird accent.
I worked Kris from Denmark, OZ7X on 15 two days ago. We even got to rag chew a bit before a frenzy started. Look him up on QRZ, killer antenna farm. Neat guy, we yakked about SDR radios for a while. And it was on SSB, not CW.
It's getting to be interesting on the upper bands. SWL'ing has been good, late at night. I was listening to a music station that I think was from Africa on 31 meters a few nights ago. It was really neat music, the broadcast was in French, with a weird accent.
Well, you're weird, Brother Dave, so I guess it worked out!
Seriously, on DX QSO's it IS a bummer when you find someone interesting and there are constant breaks for contact. I didn't think Denmark was that rare.
WØTKX
04-15-2011, 06:11 PM
No it's not that rare, but Kris and I kept pausing and inviting others to speak up. I suggested it, and he laughed because I mentioned it was going to happen, so we might as well be proactive about it.
W2NAP
04-15-2011, 06:11 PM
im waiting for 10 to open
Theres DX on every day, and i am about 95% only on CW...but i am starting to hear Abdullah, 9K2GS on 14.200 loudly like i used to again. Its definately firing back up!
im waiting for 10 to open10's been open... it was most of the day, although I spent my time on 12. Picked up 4 new entities!
10's been open... it was most of the day, although I spent my time on 12. Picked up 4 new entities!
Thats what im talking about! Im getting all kinds of good stuff from all corners of the globe with just 100w and a Vee...nows the time to break out the HF!
We just closed on our new house, its in a pretty controlled HOA subdivision, so im going to be tricky about outside antennas, but its my house and im going to get creative...ive been renting up to now and have been lucky to get away with the Vee. The drawback about the new house is the attic. The space from the access hatch to the vent in the back (where the wires would emerge from) is above my vaulted ceiling and i dont think i can crawl back there. An attic dipole is out of the question because the house was built with an upgrade of Polar Ply, which is a metallic coating on the underside of the roofing sheets. While Polar Ply is a great upgrade for keeping the attic 40-50 degrees cooler/warmer in summer/winter, its not very friendly for an antenna underneath it.
So my plan is to get a 20' ladder, hide the coax behind the overhang, run it to the gable in the back, hide the balun behind the peak and run a white enamel wire down the edge and out to the back corners of the property, kind of a sloped half-square centered on 20m, throw a tuner on it and call it a day. I dont own an amp so im thinking i can coexist with my new neighbors just fine as long as im properly grounded.
So thats my plan, but im always open to new ideas from you homeowners in HOA controlled territory.
Thats what im talking about! Im getting all kinds of good stuff from all corners of the globe with just 100w and a Vee...nows the time to break out the HF!
We just closed on our new house, its in a pretty controlled HOA subdivision, so im going to be tricky about outside antennas, but its my house and im going to get creative...ive been renting up to now and have been lucky to get away with the Vee. The drawback about the new house is the attic. The space from the access hatch to the vent in the back (where the wires would emerge from) is above my vaulted ceiling and i dont think i can crawl back there. An attic dipole is out of the question because the house was built with an upgrade of Polar Ply, which is a metallic coating on the underside of the roofing sheets. While Polar Ply is a great upgrade for keeping the attic 40-50 degrees cooler/warmer in summer/winter, its not very friendly for an antenna underneath it.
So my plan is to get a 20' ladder, hide the coax behind the overhang, run it to the gable in the back, hide the balun behind the peak and run a white enamel wire down the edge and out to the back corners of the property, kind of a sloped half-square centered on 20m, throw a tuner on it and call it a day. I dont own an amp so im thinking i can coexist with my new neighbors just fine as long as im properly grounded.
So thats my plan, but im always open to new ideas from you homeowners in HOA controlled territory.Can you put up a flag pole?
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.