Topband: Long Daytime Propagation

[Steve London]

Yes, I have played around in the 160 contests during the mid-afternoon, too. 
 From SW New Mexico, I can typically work the better equipped east coast 
stations at sunset....but I'm not talking about my sunset, but their sunset 
around 21Z. At the same time, the closer-in stations in W8 and W9 can't hear me. 
Strange.

73,
Steve, N2IC

On 10/08/2012 10:12 AM, Jim Brown wrote:
> While we're talking about propagation, I'd like to understand what form I'm
> experiencing during the beginning hours of 160M contests. They start at 2 pm out
> here on the left coast, which is at least 2 1/2 hours before sunset, depending
> on which contest. Within the first year after moving here, I've had a dipole at
> 120 ft and a Tee vertical with a lot of radials. I find that I can repeatably
> work the better stations at distances of 800 miles or so on the vertical, but
> don't get even a QRZ? from the dipole (I'm 70 miles S of San Francisco, so that
> includes Seattle, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, and parts of WY, MT, NM, and CO.
>
> Now, 120 ft is only a quarter wave on 160, so that's still a "low dipole," and
> the radiation at low angles isn't as much as from the vertical, but the
> difference seems greater than just angle. So I'm wondering what form of
> propagation this is at this time of day? Could it be ordinary ground wave?
>
> Also by 3 pm I can always hear the stronger stations from W9 and VE3, but can
> almost never work them. I understand the differences in the noise levels between
> my daytime and their darkness, and there's also the fact that they're all
> listening with NE RX antennas. But again the question is, what form of
> propagation is this? W9 and VE3 are 2,000 miles from me, and the path is in
> daylight!
>
> 73, Jim K9YC
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