Topband: W5UN this morning (Tuesday 25th September) - long path into EI?

[N1BUG]

On 09/25/2012 03:12 PM, Cormac Gebruers wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I was up early this morning (Tuesday 25th September) and heard W5UN come up
> on 160m at 0444utc. Though very weak and with deep QSB, he was by far and
> away the strongest  on my K9AY when switched NE and next strongest when
> switched SE. I'm in IO51, he is in EM19; direct bearing is 296 degrees
> (WNW), long path is 116 degrees (SSE).
>
> Was he really long path (33428km) or is some other propagation mechanism at
> play here?
>

Hi Cormac,

I have four reversible Beverages giving directions every 45 degrees 
around the compass starting at due north 0 degrees. It is not 
uncommon to experience DX stations coming in at wildly different 
headings from direct path, even 180 degrees off. Often when this 
happens, the signal will be there on more than one Beverage, 
sometimes all of them! In almost all cases, switching to a low 
dipole has resulted in good reception, sometimes better than any of 
the Beverages. I suspect the phenomenon is caused by signals 
arriving at a high vertical angle, where directivity of the 
Beverages is questionable or non-existent. I have no experience with 
K9AY loops.

73,
Paul N1BUG