TopBand: The Condix..30 Dec

[lew@teleport.com]

Got to the radio around 0300Z. Heard several European stations..The
loudest then was DK2FG..but couldn't get his attention through the
mid-west that had the favored propagation. The typical long, deep QSB was
occurring and then was able to work F5IN & OZ7C with 5-7-9 to 599 signals.
   Then there came over the band, what I can describe as only a very slow
swishing sound right at the noise level with no more signals here on the
West Coast until AL7O weakly came through at first..then built up as I
could occasionally hear variations in the ether from the European stations
that were working him. At 0530Z, SL3ZV popped up to a 449, just long
enough to work him...and then he was gone..with only the slow swish on the
band that is very reminiscent of aurora on 6M as you turn the beam there
from off the side northerly into an active aurora.
   Don't know just what caused that phenomena, but it sure killed the
propagation. The most recent A & K indices were 1 & 4 respectively (0600Z
on 30 Dec). Looks like we have a polar path....as long as the A & K remain
low..
     73 and I remain,
       Lew

         Lew  Sayre   W7EW/W7AT           lew@teleport.com
         P.O.Box  3110                    Fax 503-391-2258
         Salem, Oregon 97302              160M thru 1296MHz



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