Tropo forecasts

Usually, I just randomly see if VHF/UHF conditions are "up". These days there are some forecasts which can give you a little warning of when conditions could be promising. One of these is the Hepburn Tropo Forecast. 

From this, it looks like conditions could be promising in the UK on Tuesday to the east. I shall certainly try 70cm FT8 again on RX (and maybe QRP TX) on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Clicking on the map steps the forecast forwards 3 hours for the next few days. Further out, it appears to step forward every 6 hours.

Transatlantic 2m tropo in the North Atlantic?

According to tropo forecasts, there is remote chance of transatlatic tropo on 2m early this week between Canada and western Europe. There are people trying on FT8. As far as I am aware we have never had a transatlantic QSO on 2m in the North. People have spanned from Cape Verde to the Carribean. FT8 is a good mode to try as it works with very weak signals. Crossing the North Atlantic with 2m tropo is a very long way!

See https://ei7gl.blogspot.com/2021/04/vo1fn-144-mhz-trans-atlantic-sdr.html .

Hepburn tropo forecasts

This is a resource that I rarely use, but it looks useful for looking ahead at VHF tropo conditions.

See http://www.dxinfocentre.com/tropo_eur.html

Hepburn tropo forecasts

It is worth looking at the Hepburn tropo forecasts for the next few days. Looking at this, the next few days look quite promising in NW Europe.

See http://www.dxinfocentre.com/tropo_eur.html

Microwave tropo

As amateurs, we are usually pleased when tropo ducting affects microwave frequencies.  As Southgate News reports, to commercial users it can be bad news, as happened recently in Australia.

See http://southgatearc.org/news/2019/january/tropospheric-ducting-event-hits-nbn--fixed-wireless-services.htm#.XD8_GfZ2u00

Tropo forecasts

Although I rarely use this myself, there is a useful program to predict tropo openings on 2m.

Tropo DX on 2m

Here in the UK there has been some good VHF tropo of late, not that I have tried! Martin Cranage in Salisbury has been copying European beacons at great range and he has worked quite a bit of DX on 2m via tropo.

See http://www.dxinfocentre.com/tropo.html .

Tropo on the radio

Listen to www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03x0dq0

Southgate News has a link to the BBC Radio Lincolnshire broadcast featuring Jim Bacon talking about tropo.

10GHz DX

I get excited about German spots on 10m WSPR. Meanwhile I noticed this from G4HTZ:

"Just worked DF6IY on 10GHz SSB at 618km ..fantastic conditions but little activity @UKGHZ

Now that is DX!  No doubt helped by being on the coast, but really well done Steve.

VHF/UHF tropo forecasting

Usually I go on 2m and 70cm (mainly the Tuesday evening UKAC sessions) and work what I can with my QRP.  Some users use prediction maps, to get some idea of the likely tropo ranges. I came across one today and there is Hepburns available at http://www.dxinfocentre.com/tropo_eur.html . No doubt keen users have their own favorite.

A reminder that tomorrow evening is the June 2m leg of the RSGB's UKAC contest. This is usually well supported. With the fine, settled, weather there are likely to be quite a few portable stations out and about on good hilltop sites. Even with 5W QRP and an omni antenna I can usually work about 200km in flat conditions, further with a lift, from home.

6m - all quiet so far

It is about a day now since I was last spotted by anyone on 6m. I am still active (vertical omni V2000 and 1W ERP) but the level of activity is very low and Es has still to really get going this season on 6m. I am on 6m TX 20% and RX 80%.  I will be on 6m all day and this evening.  So far, a few days ago, I was still only being spotted by G stations by tropo and aircraft reflection.

Sunspots and 10m

Sunspot number has risen to 68 today, which is quite a jump. 10m propagation is expected to be "fair" yet again. Yesterday a total of 16 different North Americans spotted my 10m 500mW WSPR beacon.

UPDATE 1106z:   Plenty of 10m spots  from  EA8BVP (2886km), one from 4X4TAU (3864km) and a scatter overnight and this morning from G4CUI (172km) the latter probably by aircraft reflection and tropo.

UPDATE 1404z:   Still no USA spots as yet.

UPDATE 1452z:   EA8BVP has spotted me 80 times in the last 12 hours. This is perfect N-S single hop F2 propagation. Still no North Americans spotting me on 10m WSPR.

10m GDX

In along side the "real" DX on 10m WSPR today I notice G3ZTY (232km) and I were exchanging WSPR spots (-22dB S/N for my 2W signal) by what looks like tropo late lunchtime. I guess it could be F2 backscatter. There were also lots of Europeans as well as EI and GI stations too.

PA0O - Es, F2 backscatter, or tropo?

PA0O (440km) has been spotted 8 times since 1342z today on 10m WSPR. This is an odd distance and I am unsure of the propagation mode. It would be very short Es skip (and it is late in the Es season) and I would prefer to think this is tropo. He has been copied all afternoon. However, with HF F2 conditions good on 10m WSPR I guess it could be F2 backscatter?

No USA stations have been copied on 10m WSPR since KZ8C (6290km) at 1656z, whereas PA0O has been spotted several times since, tending to suggest tropo.

10m GDX - M6FOJ and G8JNJ/A

M6FOJ (103km) has been spotted several times this afternoon. It looks like pure tropo GDX with not a hint of aircraft reflections. G8JNJ/A (184km) has also been seen this afternoon.

UPDATE 1526z: DL2ZQ has been spotted at 1512z at -21dB S/N. Yet more 10m Es today.

10m WSPR - breakfast time Es

10m was open early again this morning by Es with DC8SE copied at 0820z and HB4FL copied at 0814z.   M0EMM (192km) has been coming in on tropo several times.

6m - overnight

Just resync'd the internet clock and will leave WSPR running on 6m overnight looking for very long distance, multi-hop Es (ever hopeful), GDX and near continentals by tropo or aircraft reflections. Just got to hope the software does not stop working on my Win 8.1 machine in the middle of the night!

There is some debate about tropo versus aircraft reflection on 6m. David G0LRD is of the view that most of my 6m WSPR GDX is tropo, whereas I feel it is because of aircraft reflection, but only when the Doppler is low enough. Sometimes you have to wait hours and hours for  this.

I'd much prefer it if these relatively long (for me) GDX paths were pure tropo, but feel the evidence points to aircraft reflections. The debate and evidence gathering continues, HI.

10m Es and early morning MS?

LB9YE and I have been exchanging WSPR spots since 0458z this morning. In both directions there is considerable Doppler. On another signal (not currently decoding) there are clear signs of meteor reflections as the signals are strong but in short bursts. I wonder if MS was playing a part in LB9YE's decodes?

Earier in the night PB0AIC (288km) was decoded STRONGLY at -8dB S/N . At this range I assumes this was early morning tropo or again possibly MS? At the very same time 0404z, G8VDQ (93km) , was decoded strongly at -12dB S/N.

Otherwise all quiet on the Es front.

I do wonder sometimes about Es (SPORADIC E-layer) reflections. Many signals do come into this category with fleeting, often quite localised, strong openings, but many others are anything but sporadic. Are these really Es as we know it or some other propagation?

Odd start on 6m today

As 0438z OZ7IT (853km) spotted my 1W ERP 6m WSPR signal by very early morning Es I assume. Then, just spots from local G4IKZ (18km) until I spotted G3RCE (185km) a little while ago, presumably by tropo with some aircraft reflection (2Hz Doppler). Interesting that a lot of the local spots by G4IKZ had a fair bit of Doppler too.

6m - G8JNJ/A (184km)

This evening at 2034z G8JNJ/A (184km) was copying my 1W ERP vertical signal at -23db S/N with very little Doppler. Is this tropo? Good GDX on 6m. 

Still no Es here on 6m today.