Sunspots (creeping up) and 10m - June 4th 2015

Sunspot number is creeping up again and stands at 55 (K=1) today. 10m propagation is expected to remain "poor" so we depend on Es to liven up 10m and possibly 6m. So far, Es is quiet with no evidence here of the overnight Es we had a day earlier.

6m Es - yes! 6m super DX?

6m WSPR has come to life with spots exchanged several times this afternoon with EA1KV (1304km).  DL4MFC (916km) spotted me on 6m WSPR at 1356z. Perhaps the 6m Es season is taking off at last? I notice there is thunder over central Europe. I wonder if this is helping? Sprites? I know one of the theories for Es involves thunder activity and upward movement into the E layer. Es is pretty complex.

No idea if the better equipped stations are working from Western Europe to Japan on 6m. This path seems to open every year around now, and some theories suggest reflections from mesospheric noctilucent clouds which are more common around this time of year. I suspect reflections would be possible right up to microwaves, but I doubt anyone is trying. See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/vuhf/noctilucent .

I am very suspicious of some of the multi-hop explanations for very long path Es. To me, there has to be a better explanation. Es yes. Multi-hop? Really? I have my doubts.  Some Europeans may indeed be multi-hop but some of the openings to South East Asia, Africa and South America?  I really doubt that many of these are multi-hop Es in the way most understand this. Some sort of chordal hops perhaps?

Optical mirages - NOT amateur radio

These have fascinated me for years. When I first created this page many years ago there was very little on optical mirages on the internet, but now there are lots of resources.

There are some indications that some extreme amateur optical DX may be influenced by optical refraction. The most extreme "over the horizon" (NLOS) amateur optical DX is by cloud bounce when signals are reflected off the base of clouds.

Under very favourable conditions places way beyond the normal horizon become visible. This is most common in conditions when warm(er) air passes over very cold water. The common mirages seen over roads, that look like puddles are just the opposite (hot roads and cooler air above).

See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/optical/mirages .

10m - LOTS of Es early today

Today looks very promising on 10m WSPR with lots of Es propagation very early.

So far, 6m has been just GDX but I am hopeful that with 10m WSPR being so lively 6m will come to life with some Es later. We will see!

PY2OHH pages

One of the best web resources is on the pages of PY2OHH.  Many pages are now in English and the site is filled with good ideas for simple circuits. If you are a home brewer then please do check this out. You will not be disappointed.

See http://py2ohh.w2c.com.br/ and look for the English translations.

Sunspots and 10m - June 3rd 2015

Sunspot number is 39 today (K=1). 10m propagation is expected to be "poor" again. Several 10m Es spots overnight from Italy and Germany.

Thunderstorms

According to the Met Office (by the way, time you bought new seaweed as a piece of wet seaweed would be nearly as good as your super-computers I think) we are due to get thunderstorms in south east England on Friday.  Very useful maps for tracking thunderstorms are available at http://www.blitzortung.org/Webpages/index.php?lang=en&page=1 . Last year, I used these maps to help me with early warnings of thunderstorms in the UK that required me to safeguard rigs.

Poor Es season so far?

Maybe it is just a lack of activity on WSPR on 10m and 6m but so far this Es season has been poor. I am sure things were better last year. Up to now there has been very little Es activity on either band. So far, hardly anything outside Europe. I certainly hope things improve on both bands.

Field tests?

Although I still have several of my stroke-related symptoms, I do, on the whole, feel less tired than I did. I still get tired but seem to recover more quickly than I once did. I still feel very wobbly when doing anything on my feet (although I do not fall) and my thin liquid swallow and voice are still poor.

I am hopeful that field experiments can resume soon. My only field test was a VLF test a few months ago and that was a total failure in that what was a good location before was a "non-event" from the new QTH. I did do a quick at-home optical test bouncing a signal off our windmill, but that hardly counts. The signal was very strong and easy to find.

6m WSPR - only GDX so far today

Although I am spotting, and being spotted, by lots of G stations, I have seen no signs, yet anyway, of any Es on 6m WSPR today. Things could well change later, especially around teatime when Es often peaks.

UPDATE 1305z:  I see that I am now being spotted in Sweden on 10m WSPR.  Alas, only Gs still on 6m.