Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef
I was on Conway Reef in 2001, I might still have the 160 log. I will look for it and report the times worked USA. I still remember the NI6T QSO he was one of the loudest. (If I remember correct he has wires in his trees). 73 Will K6ND -Original Message- From: Topband [mailto:topband-boun...@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Milt -- N5IA Sent: Sunday, September 30, 2012 8:20 PM To: Robin; 160 Subject: Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef -Original Message- From: Robin Sent: Sunday, September 30, 2012 3:52 PM To: 160 Subject: Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef SNIP During the VP6DX expedition, we made many contacts before sunset and after sunrise, some quite notable distances. There is a recording of the SSB contact during the SSB contest with EA6 when it was almost 2 hours after sunrise at EA6. SNIP- I believe the contest contact Robin is referencing was the 2nd one with CN3A during the 2nd night of the contest. I had worked CN3A earlier in the evening and it was a bit difficult. It was now hard daylight in all of EU and AF, and the terminator was out in the Atlantic on the Cape Verde Islands, past the Canaries and the Azores. I was giving a few minutes of directional calls for the central Pacific and ZL/VK. CN3A calls in while I am listening on the Beverage in the opposite direction, directly to ZL/VK. He reports the VP6DX signal is unbelievable. I switch to the EU Beverage and the CN3A signal is 10-15 dB stronger. CN3A and I exchange signal reports with his report of that VP6DX was like local 20 Meters to CT (Portugal). It truly was an exciting minute of time inside the unreal two night of the CQ 160 SSB contest from the middle of nowhere in the South Pacific. Sum total was only two contacts out of more than 1,000 Qs that were less than 3,000 miles. Anyone interested in listening to the MP3 of the contact and viewing a jpeg graphic of the path taken from the GeoClock screen can request them in a direct E-mail. 73 de Milt, N5IA. Also VP6DX and XZ0A. ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK
Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef
So, it looks like there is a window of about 6 hours of darkness. Any time in that window is a chance. I have also read that there is sometimes an increase in signal strength during the terminator. It's not clear to me if that means the terminator at the DX location or my QTH. Either one. There are also peaks we miss that are not at either terminator. They may not be as frequent, but they are there at odd times during darkness. When I had daily skeds with VK3ZL and ZL3REX, we would frequently have peaks only during off times. Assuming 3D2C is transmitting on 160 throughout that period of 6 hours, when am I more likely to work them? When they are on. :-) ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK
Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef
Tom is correct. It's probably unlikely that they're going to be on 160M at their sunsetthey're going to be on other bands and their operating pattern, so far, has confirmed this. I would guess that the time your most likely to work them is 1 or 2 hours before your sunrise with sunrise +/- 30 minutes being the peak time. On 9/30/2012 1:43 PM, Tom W8JI wrote: So, it looks like there is a window of about 6 hours of darkness. Any time in that window is a chance. I have also read that there is sometimes an increase in signal strength during the terminator. It's not clear to me if that means the terminator at the DX location or my QTH. Either one. There are also peaks we miss that are not at either terminator. They may not be as frequent, but they are there at odd times during darkness. When I had daily skeds with VK3ZL and ZL3REX, we would frequently have peaks only during off times. Assuming 3D2C is transmitting on 160 throughout that period of 6 hours, when am I more likely to work them? When they are on. :-) ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK -- 73, Gary K9GS Greater Milwaukee DX Association: http://www.gmdxa.org Society of Midwest Contesters: http://www.w9smc.com CW Ops #1032 http://www.cwops.org ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK
Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef
They were weak here earlier this morning, but the signal came up nicely at around 1115Z, about 15 minutes before sunrise here. Made the contact for a new one at 1122Z. Good luck. 73, Tim - N3XX - Original Message - From: Wayne Willenberg wewill...@gmail.com To: topband@contesting.com Sent: Sunday, September 30, 2012 2:26 PM Subject: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef As I always start my posts on this reflector, I will explain again that I am very new to 160M. I would like to work 3D2C on 160. I have read enough to know that propagation programs are of very limited value in predicting propagation on 160. But, what I have read is I need total darkness between my QTH, in South Carolina, and Conway for any chance of working them on 160. I have been working with DXAtlas to find the hours of darkness. Here is what I have found. The terminator at 3D2C heading toward dark starts at about 05:30Z and continues until full darkness at 06:30Z. Throughout that 1 hour, there is complete darkness for the remainder of the path to my QTH. The path from 3D2C remains completely dark until the terminator starts at 10:30Z at my QTH and continues until sunrise at 11:15Z. So, it looks like there is a window of about 6 hours of darkness. I have also read that there is sometimes an increase in signal strength during the terminator. It's not clear to me if that means the terminator at the DX location or my QTH. Assuming 3D2C is transmitting on 160 throughout that period of 6 hours, when am I more likely to work them? Thanks again for explaining the basics to a newcomer. 73, Wayne KK6BT ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK
Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef
schedule. The problem with many DX-peditions today rather than in the past is they rely on SR/SS charts for the East Coast before they even check the band for a few test CQ's prior to what the charts or the computer tells them what to do. It is a HUGE mistake for anyone to assume propagation only peaks at sunrise or sunset, or that the sunrise or sunset peak is always the optimum or best time. It really is terrible planning. There are many days working ZL/VK, and working Europe from here, when there was no propagation at sunrise or sunset and great propagation well away from the two. Sometimes sunset at one end is the peak, sometimes sunrise at one end is the peak, and very often the only opening or best peak is not near either. During noise season operating at sunrise/sunset can produce a great reduction in noise at the end near daylight, and the lower noise makes things better, and many times there is a signal strength peak, but there are many times the best or only peak is not remotely close to dawn/dusk at either end of the path. People familiar with 160 listen at all times there is darkness in the path, and people unfamiliar listen only at sunrise/sunset. 73 Tom ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK
Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef
In the trip across the south pacific from ZL to VP6DX, we were about in the middle when the CQWW160 CW contest started. ( I was the only expedition member aboard at that point- we were bound for Mangareva to collect the rest of the crew). I had a 125 ft horizontal wire running the length of the Braveheart. When the contest started I hadn't finished getting things set up for operating topband effectively, but I could listen (and /MM isn't a multiplier, or even a 10 pointer) I started listening about 4 PM local - 2 hours before sunset. I had 100 callsigns written down on a yellow tablet in the first hour, ALL easy copy (but then, there isn't much man made noise 1000 miles from the nearest land). All of the callsigns were 5000 miles plus away - 99% North America. During the VP6DX expedition, we made many contacts before sunset and after sunrise, some quite notable distances. There is a recording of the SSB contact during the SSB contest with EA6 when it was almost 2 hours after sunrise at EA6. I also note a comment about the signals coming in from the SW to eastern USA. During our XZ0A trip, if you had a directional RX antenna and wanted to hear us, that is the direction you had to listen from. There is significant repeatability to the data on skew paths and odd arrival angles near the terminator hours, We had to listen (at XZ0A) on a low horizontal dipole during the 2 hours at Sunset or we heard nothing. There appears to be some correlation with how well developed the northern oval is and the magnitude of the skew paths and high arrival angles. We were on the air with 1500W and a full size quarter wave (elevated) vertical for close to a month with daily repeatable results that required us to listen on a very high angle receive antenna at sunset, and eastern stateside to listen for us from the SW. With all of this, the bottom line is: 1: If you aren't on the air, you cant work them 2: do not assume that traditional propagation modes and times are the only ones that are useful. 3: encourage the expedition folks to note both 1 and 2 Robin Critchell WA6CDR, VP6DX, XZ0A - Original Message - From: Tom W8JI w...@w8ji.com To: topband@contesting.com Sent: Sunday, September 30, 2012 15:21 Subject: Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef schedule. The problem with many DX-peditions today rather than in the past is they rely on SR/SS charts for the East Coast before they even check the band for a few test CQ's prior to what the charts or the computer tells them what to do. It is a HUGE mistake for anyone to assume propagation only peaks at sunrise or sunset, or that the sunrise or sunset peak is always the optimum or best time. It really is terrible planning. There are many days working ZL/VK, and working Europe from here, when there was no propagation at sunrise or sunset and great propagation well away from the two. Sometimes sunset at one end is the peak, sometimes sunrise at one end is the peak, and very often the only opening or best peak is not near either. During noise season operating at sunrise/sunset can produce a great reduction in noise at the end near daylight, and the lower noise makes things better, and many times there is a signal strength peak, but there are many times the best or only peak is not remotely close to dawn/dusk at either end of the path. People familiar with 160 listen at all times there is darkness in the path, and people unfamiliar listen only at sunrise/sunset. 73 Tom ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK
Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef
-Original Message- From: Robin Sent: Sunday, September 30, 2012 3:52 PM To: 160 Subject: Re: Topband: Propagation to Conway Reef SNIP During the VP6DX expedition, we made many contacts before sunset and after sunrise, some quite notable distances. There is a recording of the SSB contact during the SSB contest with EA6 when it was almost 2 hours after sunrise at EA6. SNIP- I believe the contest contact Robin is referencing was the 2nd one with CN3A during the 2nd night of the contest. I had worked CN3A earlier in the evening and it was a bit difficult. It was now hard daylight in all of EU and AF, and the terminator was out in the Atlantic on the Cape Verde Islands, past the Canaries and the Azores. I was giving a few minutes of directional calls for the central Pacific and ZL/VK. CN3A calls in while I am listening on the Beverage in the opposite direction, directly to ZL/VK. He reports the VP6DX signal is unbelievable. I switch to the EU Beverage and the CN3A signal is 10-15 dB stronger. CN3A and I exchange signal reports with his report of that VP6DX was like local 20 Meters to CT (Portugal). It truly was an exciting minute of time inside the unreal two night of the CQ 160 SSB contest from the middle of nowhere in the South Pacific. Sum total was only two contacts out of more than 1,000 Qs that were less than 3,000 miles. Anyone interested in listening to the MP3 of the contact and viewing a jpeg graphic of the path taken from the GeoClock screen can request them in a direct E-mail. 73 de Milt, N5IA. Also VP6DX and XZ0A. ___ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK
