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Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
from
examiner.com
on
October 26, 2009
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Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by KF7CG on October 26, 2009
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Don't know about the sunspots but the one that showed u for this weekend made CQ WW SSB interesting. 20 was noisy and strange, but 15 and 10 took up the slack.
KF7CG
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RE: Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by KZ1X on October 26, 2009
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Yes, 15 was hoppin' but ... I saw lots of 10 meter spots but heard not a thing. Just wasn't open to W4, to anywhere, that I could find. Wonder what others have to say about that?
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Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by AI2IA on October 26, 2009
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During this weekend's contest, I moved up to 15 meters just to see how it was doing. I was very surprised with the activity and stayed there for some time on Saturday and then again on Sunday. The result was that 27 percent of my contacts ended up being on 15 meters. I never would have expected that. It may not prove anything at all in regard to improvement in sunspot activity, but it was a very welcome situation.
Anybody else have good experience with 15 meters?
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RE: Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by NU0R on October 26, 2009
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Propagation was good to me in "0" land. I made about 75% of my contacts on 15 meters and the rest on 10 and 20. I worked 25 countries in about 3 hours of operation divided between Fri. evening, Sat evening, and Sunday morning. All on 100 watts. I was elated to see 15 open every time I tuned in and 10 was the icing on the cake.--- The solar flux was 76. Bruce/NU0R
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RE: Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by KF7CG on October 26, 2009
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KZ1X
It was open into middle TN on Saturday. I almost missed it as I had the wrong antenna programmed to 10 for a while and also I was looking below 28.400 There was a very nice connection to South America for a while.
My power and antennas are limited so it takes real work to get contacts made all of 130 for the entire contest 50% on 15, 25% on 40, 12% on 20, 10% on 10, 3% on 80.
For atmospheric conditions 15 was the best to work with, 20 was much noisier than usual.
KF7CG
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Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by KE8FO on October 26, 2009
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Nada on 10m in Michigan. I checked periodically all weekend and it was deadly silent, as it has been for the past couple of years here!
15m was busier than its been in the past couple of years, so that was a nice improvement. 20m was its normal wall-to-wall mania. Good to hear 40m DX working non-split.
Heard some DX on 80m and was able to work some of it, but mostly VEs -- they were easy pickings on all bands from here.
In any case, there was some improvements on the lower bands during CQWW from the past couple. Looking forward to next couple of years!
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Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by K0UA on October 26, 2009
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15 was great, but I didn't hear a thing on 10 in southwest Missouri.. I checked several times, maybe looked at wrong segment of the band? I checked below 28.400. 40 seemed a little better than usual on Saturday night also.
73
Jim
K0UA
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Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by KI4NVK on October 26, 2009
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I tried 10 here in Florida, and didn't hear a thing. I went straight back to 15m and was there all weekend spinning the dial. I don't do the contest's, but enjoyed listening to stations from all over EU, Africa, S. America, and the North country calling. Strong signals and a busy busy 15m band. I know where I'll be camping out very soon (around 21.305!).
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Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by KB1RDL on October 26, 2009
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I'm a fairly new ham, operating on HF bands since March 09, so the days of solar maximums on the high bands are mostly elmer war stories to me. Well, before I got my ticket I used to SWL back in the days of past solar peaks, but not understanding propagation the way I do now I took a lot of "DX" I was hearing back then for granted, thinking it happens all the time.
Having said that, the way 15 m "came alive" over the contest weekend was the 1st time for me and a very pleasant surprise. I would monitor the band during other contests (Field Day, WAE) and whenever we had any sunspots at all, but it was mostly dead with an occasional European or Latin American QSO. Usually not very strong signal. I'm running a very modest barefoot station and don't have "big gun" power to make bad band conditions work for me.
Over the two contest days I made twice the number of contacts on 15 m than I did since the beginning of the year. Worked all kind of DX all over Europe and as far east as Russia in the early morning, then Latin America and Hawaii in the afternoon. The first contest day I did not go to 15 m early enough not thinking it would be of much use. When I did I was surprised to hear the entire phone segment buzzing with stations so I stayed there for a while. Lots of "firsts" for me on that band. On Sunday I was there with the sun rising working greyline prop. I know contest stations run typically high power and big beams but still it was very impressive compared to everything else I heard on that band this year - even compared to any other contest, Field Day, etc.
The contest contacts on 15 actually took me over the 100 DXCC entities worked, so its time to get buzy confirming all these contacts.
Then in the afternoon around 1800-2000Z I actually stepped up to 10 meters several times hoping for something better than the summer Sporadic E (pretty much all I've seen this year) and there was South American DX, Brazil and Argentina contesters.
Not very many of them, but I worked a couple each. This is the best DX I've seen on 10 this year as well.
I sure hope this is a sign of better things to come.
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Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by W8KQE on October 27, 2009
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15 meters was amazing for the contest weekend, and since. Made several QSO's with Euro stations yesterday and this morning too, running 100w and a small, 2-el 'junior' tribander. Things are looking up!
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10m was open in the Pacific for the CQ WW Contest
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by G3SEA on October 27, 2009
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10m was open for several hours each day with booming signals from South America,Asia,Oceania and the Mainland.
Nice to hear it open after so many long dead spells.
KH6/G3SEA
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RE: 10m was open in the Pacific for the CQ WW Contest
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by AE6RO on October 27, 2009
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It seems a little strange. For a solar flux of 81 there ought to be more sunspots, like 25 or so.
Also, no-one is reporting good propagation from the West Coast. I don't have HF now. Can't hear WWV Colorado much at night. Can't hear WWVH at all on 5 or 10. 73, John
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Sunspots: End of Cycle 23/24 Solar Minimum?
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by KB1RDL on October 27, 2009
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Today, worked more Europe on 15 in the mid-late afternoon as well as French Guyana and Brazil before the band closed.
ER4DX was heard in the early morning with the Sun rising, but not strong enough to reliably copy.
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RE: 10m was open in the Pacific for the CQ WW Contest
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by N5TGL on October 27, 2009
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"For a solar flux of 81 there ought to be more sunspots, like 25 or so. "
Flux is 82 and sunspot number is 29, so that seems to be right in line with what you're thinking. Looks like I might just be making it home in time to catch the tail end of the fun.
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