Topband: N7NM's book

[n4is at n4is.com]

Hi Bill 

I noticed that too, long path was very different past solar cycles. I am not
sure if long path happened the same way before 2010. During 2010 to 2011, I
heard and worked XU7ACY 50% of the days from October to March, SSE-SSW.
December 31st 2011 the log path was stronger than  never. Several stations
on East coast worked Peter with inverted V and L's with no RX antennas.

January 1st, 2012 this path just closed back the way it used to be, very
rare and short duration.

My take is that the size of the E clouds and the height of the ionosphere
were responsible for these openings. Es is well measured at 50 MHz and
above, but at 1.8 MHz, the size of the Es cloud is very large and little or
no space for spot lights. 

The 6 meter band opened at same time the SSE SSW long path closed. The
ionosphere height was very low 2010 2011 because the unusual long solar
minimum. All layers was unusual close to earth.

The long path on 2009 was not intense as 2010, 2011. What I am expecting is
this SSE-SSW long path similar to 2010 2011 to come back after 2020 solar
minimum. The difference between this and the rare long path is that the
SSE-SSW long path opens every day for weeks, on 160, 80 and 40m.

Another important point is the new observations on 6m about TEP along the
equator, the 160m long path could be the same way because some South America
stations heard XU7 and 9M2 from NNE and we SSE, the equator is between us,
it is only explanation I come up with. 

We still have a lot to learn on SSE-SSW path. Like VY2ZM was working long
path at the same time I was working XU7, both of us receiving SSE and at the
center of the gray line, including Peter but receiving SSW on XU7 land.

This solar minimum could bring us new lifetime events on 160m 

73's

JC
N4IS

---Original Message-----
From: Topband <topband-bounces at contesting.com> On Behalf Of Bill Tippett
Sent: Sunday, July 15, 2018 4:25 PM
To: topband <topband at contesting.com>
Subject: Re: Topband: N7NM's book

N4IS wrote:

Here ..page 36.

https://k9la.us/NM7M_The_Big_Gun_s_Guide_to_Low-Band_Propagation.pdf

     I had never seen Bob's book before but thanks to JC for posting that

link.  There's a statement on page 93 which needs correction.  Bob wrote

that he had examined several logs provided by Joerg DL3DXX (including S21XX)

and "I never found a single 160 meter long-path contact, NOT ONE!"  Well,

maybe "not one" but actually three LP contacts with S21XX (SE direction

after NA sunset) that I know of (W4DR, N4SU and myself).

http://lists.contesting.com/archives//html/Topband/1997-02/msg00202.html


     I was also surprised Bob omitted any mention of the N7UA <-> A61AJ
(K1ZM

op) tests in November 2000 using 4-squares at each end of the path.  That
test

proved to me that the SW (post NA sunset) and SE (pre A6 sunrise) directions

were real and not an RX antenna problem.  Note that this test was done prior

to publication of Bob's book in 2002.

http://lists.contesting.com/archives//html/Topband/2001-09/msg00088.html


     Suffice it to say, we've learned much about this propagation

mode in the 15 years since Bob's book was published.


73,  Bill  W4ZV
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