A bit more about yesterday.

When I first started building the Jackite support, I went the cheap route and tried cutting up the 2 foot sections of PVC in half using a hand saw. That was idiotic on my part. After about 15 to 20 minutes of getting not much anywhere, and only getting a sore and tired arm I decided I had enough of that. I went to Home Depot and bought one of these:

The brand is Husky, and it is a ratcheting  2" PVC pipe cutter.  A little pricey for the little I will probably make use of it, but I got the PVC pieces cut in SECONDS! A chore that would have taken all afternoon was accomplished in an "n-th" of the time, so I consider it money well spent. And you'd think that cutting 2" PVC with a cutter like this would be hard, but it took almost no effort.

The other thing about yesterday - that G4 geomagnetic storm ........WOW! I tired checking into the St. Max Net last night. Lloyd K3QNT, who is NCS, is usually 10 to 20 over 9 dB here at the W2LJ homestead. Last night I could barely hear him at times. I managed to get checked in, and when he called my turn, I made a few comments. When I let go of the mic, all I heard him say was, Larry W2LJ, are you still there?" So I knew I wasn't getting through. I was only able to hear two or three stations, so I shut the rig down early.

I was hoping to see Northern Lights last night like I did last year when we had a G5 storm. The skies were clear last night, but no dice. I checked several times and have come to the conclusion that a storm needs to be at least G5 before we'll see anything in New Jersey.

This week, one of the local Churches in town is holding their annual Feast of St Anthony carnival. I have sent an e-mail to our CERT Coordinator that I am available for duty a couple of nights this week, but I have not heard anything back. Last year, I spent most of my time escorting carnival go-ers across a busy street, making sure no one got injured, or worse. Maybe it's just me being an old curmudgeon, but is seems like drivers are more inconsiderate and reckless these days.  What I've witnessed on the roads recently could fill up another whole three, four or five or more blog posts. But this is not the place for that. My son Joseph has one of those dash cams in his car and some of the things that he has shown me that have occurred during his commute are enough to curl your hair. I should get one, but hopefully by this time next year, my commuting days will be a thing of the past.  334 to go!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Let's face it ........ I suck

when it comes to using a straight key. I am so out of practice, that I was embarrassed how my fist sounded on Straight Key Night. I only made two QSOs, and for the second I switched to my Vibroplex Original. Can you imagine that? I sound better on a bug than I do on a straight key! How pathetic is that? 

I've dropped a long way off from my Novice days, which were completed entirely with a Nye Viking straight key.  I suppose given time, I could get my straight key fist sounding reasonably decent again, but if I'm going to go mechanical, I'll stick with my bug. My fist there may not be the best, either, but it's yards better than my straight key fist! 

As far as only two QSOs go on Straight Key Night, I took a break after the second QSO and came upstairs to get some iced tea. While I was in the kitchen, I saw a bright flash and heard a very loud rumble of thunder. I raced back down to the shack to shut down and disconnect the antennas. We had intermittent thunder and lightning for the next couple of hours. New Year's Eve thunder and lightning - wacky weather!

Tomorrow, Friday, we're supposed to get another Arctic blast and we're looking at a possible snow event next Monday into Tuesday. I'll have to make sure the outside Christmas decorations come in this weekend. We've already have had wind gusts exceeding 20 MPH, that have knocked a few things over. It won't be pleasant doing this in sub-freezing temps, but it will have to get done while the ground is not covered with snow.

On another note, that SpaceWeather Live app has been sending me all kinds of alerts. We're experiencing a lot of geomagnetic activity and just a few minutes ago, I received a notification concerning a large trans equatorial coronal hole that is directly facing the Earth. Looks for band conditions to be on the wild side for the next few days.

The QRP Fox hunts resume tonight on 80 Meters and the Foxes are "local" enough that i should be able to work both. For whatever reason, I slept terribly last night, kept waking up every few hours it seemed like. I may be sawing wood tonight by the time the Hunts begin at 9:00 PM local time.

Mom was right when she used to tell me, "Larry, don't get old." I always used to answer, "There's not much I can do about it." But boy howdy, was she ever right!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

So yesterday

I mentioned yesterday that I was probably a day late and a dollar short and with all the geomagnetic activity, the Northern Lights must have been pretty up in the 1,000 Islands .........right?

This was posted to Facebook by K & N photography - of course this happened  AFTER we left.

Of course!  Of course!

I guess the silver lining is that the geomagnetic activity that promulgated these auroral displays did not happen until after my two successful POTA activations. So for bands that were in decent shape and allowed for some amazing contacts ....... I am grateful. (Always have to look at the bright side!)

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Wouldn't you know it?

My anticipation was growing last week in Upstate NY as Geomagnetic activity was getting greater and greater all week long. My SpaceWeather Live app was going off all week with news of flares, CMEs and such. Finally, there was a better than good chance that I would finally get to see the Northern Lights on Friday night - the last night before we left to return to New Jersey.

Upstate NY decided to pull a New Jersey on me and it clouded up and rained Friday night.

Sheesh.

In any event, I got my POTA logs uploaded yesterday as well as getting them into AC Log. Tonight, I want to make QSO maps for both activations and see how they compare to the RBN maps that I captured. I'll post them here.

The long range forecast for this week is showing the upcoming weekend to be nice. Maybe I can get away for an hour or two to activate Washington Rock, or perhaps the Washington-Rochambeau Trail. Doing POTA activations is kind of like eating Lays potato chips - You can't do just one! It's super easy o get hooked.

But as far as activations go, I'm not one of these guys that needs to get triple digit QSOs in the log. I'm quite happy getting my 10 or more, enjoying the outdoors and nice weather. If 20, 30, or 40 come easy because the bands are good .......great! If the bands are crappy and I only make 10 or 11 contacts, I'm fine with that, too. I'm in it for the experience and the fun.

The 4States QRP Group has come out with a new kit designed by Dave Cripe, NM0S - a CW VOX keyer. For those who may not be able to send Morse in the traditional way due to disabilities  - this will allow Morse to be sent by your transceiver by speaking into it. According to the 4States website: "The CWvox is a unique solution that leverages the ability of Morse Code operators to vocalize Morse Code using "da" for dashes and "dit" for dots. This practice isn't just a novelty; it's a skill that, when done correctly, mirrors the proper length ratio of dashes and dots in Morse Code."

The kit is available for $40 and all the details can be found here - https://www.4sqrp.com/kits/CW-VOX/4SQRP_CW_VOX_%20Manual.pdf

72 de Larry W2LJ 

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Another one

I've decided to make the 4States QRP Group 4S-Tuner the official tuner of the W2LJ QMX Portable Ops bag. So I ordered another one for the shack for when I use the HW-8.  This way, I don't have to keep transferring the one I have back and forth between car and shack.

I really, really like the function of the two LEDs.  Great design feature by David Wayne Cripe NM0S!

When the red one is bright and the green one is out, the SWR is too high. When the two LEDs are of equal brightness, you have a 2:1 SWR. When the green LED is at max brightness, and the red LED is at minimum brightness or out altogether, your SWR is around 1:1.

This is a T-Match Tuner and I find it a bit easier to use, having the inductor in the circuit. Nothing against the ZM-2 as it is a wonderful little unit and will stay in the KX3 bag, should the autotuner fail for whatever reason. But sometimes, I just have a bit of trouble getting that single red LED to dim. I guess it's range is just a little narrower than the 4S-Tuner.

I already know it works well with my KM4CFT EFRW antenna. This weekend, time and weather permitting, I'd like to see how it handles the AX1 from our patio tabletop - a simulated POTA activation. Have to practice, just like the astronauts did! HI HI !

Onto another subject, with all the CMEs and solar flares that have been occurring the past few weeks, I saw this photo on Facebook, taken just yesterday, from the 1,000 Islands region in Upstate NY.

Marianne and I are heading up there soon for some away time for our Anniversary - I know I've mentioned that before. Will this finally be a good chance for me to see the Northern Lights? I hope so! If I'm lucky enough, I'll try to get some photos.

While I'm on the subject of photos - here's a neat one I came across the other day, for the QRP Image of the Day. This was posted on Facebook by  Chris Farnham W1YTQ.  He was camping with his son's scout troop in Boston Harbor Island up in Massachusetts and one of the licensed Scouts actually accomplished his first POTA activation. Later, after the hustle and bustle of the day was over, Chris decided to stroll on down to the beach to activate - Boston Islands Park - US-2421, himself.

Isn't that a beauty of a shot? The moon and it's reflection on the water, the KH1 with the antenna sticking up, and that cube-ish  lantern. What a great mood shot! And once again, it shows that you don't have to tote around a whole mess of equipment to have a good time!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Weekend mish-mash

This weekend saw a mix of various Amateur Radio activities. Getting on HF was not predominant, although I did get on Sunday morning for a bit and worked a few POTA activations. Brave souls, those activators, because all weekend long, the Space Weather Live app was VERY active. It seemed like every time I turned around I was getting a notification of a new solar flare or a "minor" radio blackout. On Facebook, more than one activator commented about the crummy band conditions and the noticeably fewer stations that they were able to log.

Saturday morning saw our monthly VE Session. We had two candidates, one of whom upgraded to Amateur Extra. Our other candidate got his Technician class license and missed becoming a General by only three wrong answers. He got 12 wrong and you're allowed up to 9. So close! The bright side is that he saw the exam, he has an idea now of what's on it and he should have a good idea where he's comfortable with his knowledge and where he needs to study more. I predict he'll be a General class Ham within a month or two.

On Sunday morning, I made the additional "modification" to my drive on mast holder. The lid hinges that I ordered through Amazon were delivered on Thursday. They did the trick to a "T" - or maybe I should say to an "L". HI!

The hinges lock in and brace the two boards at a 90 degree angle, just as I need them to. In fact, this configuration is so stable that in a pinch, any heavy weight will suffice, such as a heavy rock, or a cinder block, or a sand bag or something like that  It's an ideal drive on mast holder, and while a vehicle is certainly preferred, it's not absolutely necessary. Conceivably, with a heavy enough weight, I could use this in the field on Field Day would no longer have to mess with the PVC holder that uses the tent pegs and CamJams. That would be a time saver! The only prerequisite is that I'd have to find a location flat enough to place this on so that it's not leaning in any one direction too much.

BTW, before you ask, the 4 holes in the horizontal board are there to give the protruding U-Bolt threads and the nuts the space they need so that when collapsed, this contraption can lay totally flat and not wedged.

Other than that, the weekend was occupied with the normal weekend chores and duties. Hope you had a good weekend and I'm looking forward to the Skeeter Hunt next Sunday! 

Tonight we have a CERT training session with the NorthStar helicopter. NorthStar is the helicopter owned and utilized by the NJ State Police for the northern half of New Jersey. (SouthStar covers the southern half of the state). It is used primarily for transporting medivac patients to wherever they need to go depending on the circumstances and extent of their injuries. The session tonight will certify that we've been properly trained on procedures and safety requirements, so that we can approach the helicopter and assist with loading and unloading victims should it ever become =necessary.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Volunteer weekend

The weekend was Ham Radio related (sort of) without any time on the HF bands.

Saturday was our monthly VE Session, and we had a good one. Three new Techs and a General who upgraded to Extra. In June we usually have two sessions and this year is no exception. On June 29th, the Saturday after Field Day, we'll hold another exam session at the W2QW Hamfest in Piscataway, NJ. I had to send an e-mail to the ARRL this weekend, cancelling our July 13th exam session. When I scheduled that one I didn't realize at the time that I'd be away from NJ.

Later in the afternoon, I was with some members of our CERT Team at the Feast of St. Anthony, a carnival hosted by one of the Churches in town. I spent the afternoon helping pedestrians to safely cross one of the high traffic thoroughfares in town.  We were on high alert during this one, as about a month ago, a fair in one of our neighboring towns was disrupted by a bunch of protesters and had to be shut down for the day. There was some trepidation that the same group would try again at this fair, but luckily those fears didn't pan out.

Even though it was quite warm (mid 80's), there was a nice steady breeze on Saturday which made it very comfortable. Some chatter amongst ourselves on the NJ2SP repeater was about all the radio I was able to accomplish all weekend.

Yesterday was soup kitchen Sunday, and by the time that was over, with all three events accomplished (and some "regular" weekend stuff accomplished as well) I was too "pooped to pop" and my "dogs"(my feet) were loudly barking at me to let me know that they did not appreciate all the standing I had done all weekend. So I pretty much vegged out Sunday evening. I wanted to join in on the fun of the 4 States Second Sunday Sprint at 8:00 PM, but I probably would have fallen asleep behind the key. As it was, I fell asleep almost the instant my head hit the pillow, which is a rarity for me these day.

One thing that I need to accomplish one evening this week. There's been some debate within SPARC as to exactly where we will locate within Spring Lake Park. The location where we had set up in previous years might be problematic for antenna placement as our two end feds need to be placed perpendicular to each other. The other location, which has a bit more leg room for the antennas is closer to the street, but also closer to some power lines. I was asked to take my KX3 and AX1 to both locations within the park and compare S level background noise levels. If the power lines are problematic, that will make the decision a lot easier to make.

I saw on the internet this morning that there was a major flare exploding from the Sun yesterday. Apparently, it sent enough "hard protons" Earthbound so as to fog some satellite cameras for a few hours. The follow up CME is expected to hit us today. Will it be strong enough to generate aurora visible as far south as New Jersey? I doubt it, as weather conditions for favorable viewing are forecast for all week. Aurora is only visible from New Jersey when it's overcast or raining.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

It's baaaaack!

Remember the monster sunspot that caused all the CME's and X-Ray flares a few weekends ago? You know, the mini-Carrington Event?

Well, guess who's coming back?

AR 3697 was the cause of the ruckus that weekend and is coming around for a second shot at things.

And AR 3691 is no small matter, either.  AR 3697 released a CME yesterday, but because of its position on the very edge of the SouthEast limb of the Sun, it's not headed in our direction.

It will be interesting few days - maybe we'll get a chance to see some aurora yet! As of this moment in time - 17:45 UTC on May 29th - the K index is 1 and the GeoMagnetic Field is very quiet. The Solar Flux Index is 166 and there are 131 freckles on the face of Ol' Sol. Band conditions should be decent. That could change in the days to come.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Disappointing weekend

Not only were the bands kaput, but also were the nighttime skies.

Only in NJ could the skies be cloudy Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights during the geomagnetic storm of the decade.  Saturday night, the clouds were thin enough that they turned pink, so the aurora must have been pretty intense behind them. But rather than thin out from that point, they got even thicker and just an hour or two later, there was no color to be seen.

The weekend was for the most part raw, damp and rainy. There were some outbreaks of sun, but they were far and few in between. I got on the air on Saturday and all the HF bands were quiet. I did hear some raspy aurora affected CW on 6 Meters, but that was it.

I hope the bands are on their way to recovery. The K Index is down to 4 and the geomagnetic activity is described as "active" and not "stormy". So maybe we've seen the worst.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Must have been a slow news day!

Yesterday, in my "weekend" post, I mentioned the upcoming solar weather conditions for the weekend. No big deal, right?

Well, if you went on the internet yesterday you got treated to apocalyptical, end-of-the world-as-we know-it warnings and messages.

"Worst geomagnetic storm to hit the Earth in 20 years!" - You know what we said 20 years ago?? "Boy, the bands sure sucked today!".

While CNN was calling for the breakdown of civilization as we know it, what was even more disturbing to me was the number of Hams who were freaking out.

One in particular - "Boy! This is NOT good!" - Why? Were you planning a POTA activation or rove? I mean, really, it's not like we're having another Carrington event. Now THAT would be newsworthy! Wake me up for THAT!

Color me disappointed that this storm has generated more clickbait than aurora, while at the same time shutting the bands down for a period of time. But I'll let you in on a little secret ......... THEY RECOVER! In the meantime melt some solder, or get caught up on QSLing, or re-organizing that portable ops bag, or something! Sheesh!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

This was always cool!

From the ARRL:

05/09/2024

The US Department of Defense (DOD) is hosting this year’s Armed Forces Day (AFD) Crossband Test on Saturday, May 11.

For more than 50 years, military and amateur stations have taken part in this event, which is an interoperability exercise between amateur and government radio stations. The event is open to all licensed amateur radio operators and will not impact any public or private communications.

The AFD Crossband Test is a unique opportunity to test two-way communications between military communicators and radio stations in the Amateur Radio Service (ARS), as authorized in 47 CFR 97.111. 

The annual DOD message will be transmitted via RTTY on 14.667 kHz at 1400 and 2000 UTC. These tests provide opportunities and challenges for radio operators to demonstrate individual technical skills in a tightly controlled exercise scenario. Military stations will transmit on selected military frequencies and announce the specific ARS frequencies monitored. All scheduled times will be in Zulu, and all scheduled frequencies will be upper sideband (USB), unless otherwise noted. Information on frequencies, times, and other technical information can be found at DoD MARS - Armed Forces Day. 

The Battleship IOWA Amateur Radio Association (BIARA) and the ship’s Innovation, Engineering and Technology Team will activate NEPM, which was the ship’s original radio station call sign from 1942 until 1997. It was reassigned to the ship in 2015. The activation will begin at the same date and time as the Armed Forces Day Crossband Test, from 1400 to 2000 UTC. All SSB operations are USB only for transmit and receive. 

Assigned transmit and expected receive frequencies are: 

4.0435 to 3.943 MHz USB

6.9035 to 7.295 MHz USB

9.9440 to 10.113 MHz CW

14.4635 to 14.343 MHz USB

18.2930 to 18.143 MHz US 

Information for QSL cards and contact information is available at Armed Forces Day QSL request form.

I've worked this several times and have the QSL Cards hanging on the shack wall!

For the rest of the weekend:

Contests:

FISTS Saturday Sprint - https://fistsna.org/operating.html#sprints

Canadian Prairies QSO Party - https://cpqp.ve6hams.ca/ (Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan)

CQ-M International DX Contest - https://cqm.srr.ru/en/rules/

SKCC Weekend Sprintathon - https://www.skccgroup.com/operating_activities/weekend_sprintathon/

4 States QRP Group Second Sunday Sprint - http://www.4sqrp.com/SSS/sss_rules.pdf

Special Events - Lots!

05/10/2024 | Golden Spike Celebration

May 10-May 11, 1500Z-2300Z, W7G, Corinne, UT. Ogden Amateur Radio Club (OARC) - W7SU. 14.255 7.235 14.040 7.040. QSL. Ogden Amateur Radio Club, - W7SU, PO Box 3353, Ogden, UT 84409. Commemorating the anniversary of the 1869 Driving of the Golden Spike completing the Transcontinental Railroad at Promontory Summit, Utah. Golden Spike National Historical Park. www.ogdenarc.org, www.nps.gov/gosp/index.htm, or w7g.org

05/11/2024 | Armed Forces Day Crossband Test 2024

May 11, 1400Z-2300Z, NEPM, San Pedro, CA. Battleship Iowa Amateur Radio Association. DOD message will be broadcast via RTTY on 14.667 at 1400 and 2000 UTC USB/J3E or CW/A1A: 7.469 14.667 18.444 21.856 21.918. QSL. Battleship Iowa ARA, Inc., c/o NEPM QSL Manager, 250 S. Harbor Blvd. Berth 87, San Pedro, CA 90731-2830. See website for complete information. The annual DOD message will be BROADCAST via RTTY on 14.667 KHz at 1400 and 2000 UTC. 7.469 KHz USB/J3E or CW/A1A listening on 7.261 KHz or 7.061 KHz. 14.667 KHz USB/J3E or CW/A1A listening on 14.261 KHz or 14.061 KHz. 18.444 KHz USB/J3E or CW/A1A listening om 18.161 KHz or 18.061 KHz. 21.856 KHz USB/J3E or CW/A1A listening on 21.361 KHz or 21.061 KHz. 21.918 KHz RTTY listening on 21.150 KHz. https://biara.org

05/11/2024 | Commemorating Armed Forces Day

May 11, 1600Z-2300Z, NI6IW, San Diego, CA. USS Midway Museum Ship. 7.250 14.320 14.070 PSK31 DSTAR on Papa system repeaters. QSL. USS Midway Museum Ship COMEDTRA, 910 N Harbor Drive, San Diego, CA 92101. www.qrz.com/db/ni6iw

05/11/2024 | Jamestown Landing Day Event

May 11, 1400Z-2000Z, K4RC, Williamsburg, VA. Williamsburg Area Amateur Radio Club. 7.265 14.265. Certificate & QSL. QSL Manager, WAARC, PO Box 1470, Williamsburg, VA 23187. Celebrating the 417th anniversary of the founding of the first permanent English settlement in North America on Jamestown Island in Virginia in May 1607. FOR CERTIFICATE: The Virginia Historic Triangle Certificate is available for contacting the Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown Special Event Stations. You don’t need to contact these stations in the same calendar year. For a Certificate send QSO info from the three stations to qslmgr@k4rc.net. https://www.k4rc.net/events/special-event-stations

05/11/2024 | Minnesota Fishing Opener

May 11, 1400Z-2000Z, N0F, Anoka, MN. Anoka County Radio Club. 7,255 ssb 14,255 ssb 7.056 ft8 14.091 ft8. QSL. Anoka County Radio Club, PO Box 982, Anoka, MN 55303. Instead of catching fish we will be at Ham Lake Park in Ham Lake,MN making contacts and enjoying spring. We will also send out gsl cards. anokaradio.org

05/11/2024 | National Train Day

May 11, 1400Z-1930Z, W4LX, Fort Myers, FL. Fort Myers ARC. 14.050 14.240 14.070 7.240. Certificate & QSL. FMARC W4LX, PO BOX 061183, FORT MYERS, FL 33906-1183. CW, PSK31, SSB SASE for QSL/Cert Info on website. fmarc.net

05/11/2024 | National Train Day at the Hearne Depot

May 11, 1500Z-1900Z, W5BCS, Hearne, TX. Bryan Amateur Radio Club. 7.050 14.050 21.050 14.325. QSL. Bryan Amateur Radio Club, PO Box 4442, Bryan, TX 77805. National Train Day event in cooperation with the Hearne Depot Museum, Bryan Amateur Radio Club and Robertson County ARES. w5bcs.radio

05/12/2024 | National Police Week - To Honor Our Fallen Heros

May 12-May 18, 0001Z-2359Z, K3FBI/0-9, Fredericksburg, VA. FBI Amateur Radio Association. 14.275 7.060. Certificate. Jay Chamberlain - NS4J, 27 Fox Run Ln, Fredericksburg, VA 22405-3303. To honor all Law Enforcement members who have died in the line of duty. All bands and all modes. Multiple stations from around the U.S. Downloadable PDF certificate by the end of June at QRZ, https://www.qrz.com/db/K3FBI k3fbi@arrl.net

05/12/2024 | Police Services Week

May 12-May 18, 0000Z-0000Z, N4P, Gainesville, FL. W. Travis Loften High School Amateur Radio Club - K4WTL. 14.335. Certificate. Robert Lightner, 3435 NW 34th Terrace, Gainesville, FL 32605. www.qrz.com/db/k4wtl

All of the above might be for naught if the bands crap out this weekend:

NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a WATCH in anticipation of a potential G4-Severe Geomagnetic Storm or greater which is expected to impact the earth May 11, 2024.  The effects of a storm of this intensity may last from six hours up to a day.  During periods of very high solar activity, geomagnetic storms can persist for days.

Potential Impacts: Area of impact primarily poleward of 45 degrees Geomagnetic Latitude.

Induced Currents - Possible widespread voltage control problems and some protective systems may mistakenly trip out key assets from the power grid. Induced pipeline currents intensify.

Spacecraft - Systems may experience surface charging; increased drag on low earth orbit satellites and tracking and orientation problems may occur.

Navigation - Satellite navigation (GPS) degraded or  inoperable for hours.

Radio - HF (high frequency) radio propagation sporadic or blacked out.

Aurora - Aurora may be seen as low as Alabama and northern California

PSA: Might not be a good weekend for a POTA Activation or Rove.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP  - When you care to send the very least1

I love stuff like this!

 Definitely from the "Don't believe everything you see on the internet" file.

In all my 67 years of living in New Jersey and in the some 45 years of paying attention to this stuff as an Amateur Radio operator, I have never seen aurora in New Jersey, ever!

I think it would take an almost Carrington type event for aurora to be seen this far south of the Arctic Circle. And if aurora was actually able to be seen over my state, then invariably it would be cloudy or overcast and that would "86" the opportunity.

This latest geomagnetic storm was intense, but it didn't shut down HF communications - not by a long shot. I was able to make contacts on 20 and 30 Meters yesterday afternoon, and the St. Max Net on 75 Meters last night went exceptionally well. I was able to hear everyone who participated and that's not often the case. Yeah, the band was a little noisier than it has been, but that's probably due more to the fact that we're approaching Spring atmospheric conditions. 

In addition, I'm not sure where places like earth.com get their information. The aurora maps that I saw that were published by NOAA yesterday didn't even show NY State as a possibility. And as far as I'm concerned, I think the best chance of me EVER being able to see aurora would be if a very severe geomagnetic storm occurred while we are up at Lake George some summer from now.

Aurora visible from Alabama? Maybe I'm dead wrong, but I would think that if that were the case, then the skies over New Jersey would be a spectacular light show!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Hunting the 80 Meter Foxes - lesson learned

Last night, during the event, the K Index was zero and the Geomagnetic Field was "Very Quiet". The CMEs had not had their effect .......yet.  This morning is a different story with the K index up at 7 and the Geomagnetic Field is described as "Severe Storm". I can see why forecasters are saying band conditions may deteriorate throughout the day. As an aside, despite the claims being made on social media, I was not able to see any Aurora last night - I checked before hitting the sack at 10:30 PM, once during the night around 2:30 AM and then when I awoke at 5:00 AM. It may well be visible tonight, but par for the course, rain and clouds are forecast for later this afternoon through Sunday.

As I said, last night band condition were nice. I found Milt K4OSO pretty easily. He was the Upper Fox and had a very nice signal - truly 579.  It took a while to work him as he seemed to be inundated with K4 stations, but once they thinned out, I was able to snag him at 0240 UTC. He was originally listening about 2 kHz up, but had to move his listening frequency down a bit when the 3rd Section CW Traffic Net started up.

Steve WD4CFN was a bit more of an elusive quarry for me. He was the Lower Fox and it turned out that he was parked on a frequency which had a lot of local QRN on it. If an observer were standing next to me and was listening on the outboard speaker, they would have never heard Steve. Thank you Elecraft for the APF function on the KX3. That was the only way I was able to pick out Steve from the background noise.

Let me back up a few minutes. Before finding Steve, I had to first locate his pack of howling Hounds. That was not an easy chore at first, even using the KX3's sub receiver and Dual Receive function. When I had that turned on, the idea was that the Fox would have been in my left ear and the pack in my right. However, my right ear is really bad .......REALLY BAD! I'll talk about that in a little bit.  I had to flip the headphones, and once I did that, I was able to locate the baying Hounds with my left ear. It was like they came out of nowhere! Of course, they were there all along, my right ear just couldn't hear them, and that jolted me. I knew my right ear was bad, but that really brought home "how bad"!

That frequency plugged into VFO B, I flipped the headphones back and began the search for Steve, beginning around 1 kHz down. Nothing at first, but once I turned the APF on, he was a pretty easy find. It was just a matter of time and I finally worked Steve at 0305 UTC. Steve was 559 at best, so that's the report I gave him. 

I really need hearing aids. My left ear is still not terrible, but the right one is. In situations like these Fox Hunts, I am either going to have to keep flipping headphones or go the old fashioned route and not using the Dual Receive feature on the KX3 until I remediate the right ear situation. I'm hoping to do that after Christmas. I want to make an appointment with the hearing lab at Costco. Marv K2VHW got his hearing aids there and he recommends them without hesitation and absolutely raves about them - and the prices are way better than the Miracle Ear office that I went to for my hearing evaluation. I could buy the high end Elecraft K4D for what they were asking for a pair of hearing aids - and those were their "less expensive" ones!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Aurora Alert!

Today and tomorrow, December 1st, we will be feeling the effects of three CME's all headed our way. NOAA ,as well as a private meteorologist that I follow and trust (he is amazingly spot on when forecasting winter storms and how they will affect New Jersey) are both predicting that even New Jersey might be able to see the Aurora resulting from these ejections.

https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/news/g3-strong-geomagnetic-storms-now-likely-01-dec-full-halo-cme

https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/news/g1-and-g2-watches-30-nov-1-dec-2023

To which I say:

That seems to be always the way it is around here. I've never seen the Northern lights except in videos. Heck, I've only seen the Milky Way from up in Lake George. I'd sure like to see the Aurora, but ........

And tonight is the 80 Meter Fox Hunt. Should be interesting. As of this moment, in the early morning, the K Index is still 1 and the Geomagnetic Field is still very quiet. I expect that will change drastically, sooner than later.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least.

Solar report

With ARRL Sweepstakes CW coming this weekend, I thought it would be a good thing to post the solar forecast.

And so it begins for Central New Jersey:

One of the chores I will have to complete this weekend is to go out and buy a new winter coat/jacket. My old one was so battered and tattered that I had to pitch it last Spring. I really don't like the weather this time of year.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Dead bands?

I saw on various e-mail reflectors (and FB) that we were on the receiving end of a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) and that the bands were dead. Last evening as our side of the globe began to face away from the Sun, the bands seemed to be starting to come back to life. 

I was in the shack working on Skeeter Hunt certificates, and when I finished for the evening, I turned on the KX3 and twiddled the dial, looking for POTA stations to work. Signals on 20 Meters were way down. I found a couple activations thanks to the POTA spotting page, but I could barely hear them. 40 Meters was much better and I worked two, including Dave AB9CA - 2nd Place winner in this year's Skeeter Hunt.

Speaking of the Hunt, I received an e-mail from Kevin N2TO, another Skeeter. Kevin was announcing a new-to-me Sprint that his club, the Brooklyn QRP Club will be holding the Saturday before Thanksgiving. It may have been held before, but I think it's a new one.

Brooklyn QRP Doghouse Operation Sprint 2023

Here is a sprint you can work and stay out of the doghouse on the Saturday afternoon prior to Thanksgiving. Play radio, and have plenty of time to mow the lawn, shovel snow, clean the guest room; do whatever it takes to get ready for Thanksgiving.

 Date: Saturday, November 18, 2023

Time: 1700-2100 UTC

Suggested QRP Frequencies: 7.030, 14.060, 21.060, 28.060 MHz.

Exchange: RST, home telephone area code, first name

72 Kevin N2TO

Their webpage is here: https://www.qsl.net/bklynqrp/, and they also have a blog, which I will be adding to the blogroll on the side: https://brooklynqrp.blogspot.com/

I like this idea, because after the Leaf Peeper Sprint (of which I haven't heard anything this year) and the NoGA Peanut Power Sprint - which WILL be taking place this year, there really are not many events of this type as we head into Fall.

Yes, there's always the Zombie Shuffle, which is popular as all get out, and there are the monthly Spartan Sprints and NAQCC Sprints - but "special" QRP Sprints like these are always welcome to see. I hope word gets out about this and that there's lots of participation. I'll be talking this one up from time to time, because there are too many QRP events that are starting to fall by the wayside, and publicity is one of the keys to a successful event. The QSOs aren't going to make themselves and they definitely won't get made if there's no one there to make them!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Solar Weather Widgets

 I re-installed Paul N0NBH's Solar Weather Widget. If you scroll down all the way to the bottom of the blog you will see it:

Interestingly, as I was looking at the page,  https://www.hamqsl.com/solar.html, I noticed there was an Android app available. So I clicked on the link, only to find out that while the app is available at the Google Play store, it was not available to me because it was written to work on an older version of Android.  BUT ........ there was a link to downloading the APK file - so I clicked on that and got it running on my Galaxy S10E.

Nice! There's a little overlap between the second and third photos (screenshots from my phone), but you get the idea. Wish I had this with me last week up at the lake.  Once again, hindsight is 20/20.

By the way, there are also versions of the phone app available for iPhones and there are versions of the main widgets available for iOS and Linux machines.

I'm not associated with Paul N0NBH, other than that I think that he provides we Amateur Radio ops an excellent service. If you would like for him to keep developing widgets like these, there is a link on the webpage where you can make a free will donation, if you so desire - just sayin'.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Solar Weather

I should have checked the solar weather report yesterday before getting on the air. Looking at it later, I discovered that it was a lousy day to concentrate on 40 and 20 Meters. I should have spent my time on 15 Meters or perhaps 10 Meters, where conditions were much better.

As it was I only made three contacts in about an hour. One was a Park to Park, which made up for the otherwise "meh" of the day. At 19:04 UTC, I worked WI5D who was at K-7390, Leavenworth Park in Kansas.

If I get a chance later today, I may set up with the Buddistick. I have to make 5 more contacts here before I can count this as an activation. The weather forecast for today is "ok". Tomorrow and Friday are looking iffy.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Solar weather

Found this photo on the Interweb (my XYL jokingly calls it that). For you newbies who get confused by solar weather index numbers ..... and for some of us veterans who keep forgetting which way is which:

So take right now, for instance - as of this moment on July 6th 2022, the SFI is 155 (best), the A index is 4 (best) and the K index is 2 (OK) and the number of sunspots on the side of the sun facing us is 92. This indicates pretty good solar weather for those of us in radioland.

We seem to be on the upswing of the current sunspot cycle, so take advantage of good propagation while you can! It never lasts forever - but then again, the crummy conditions never last forever, either. They just seem to.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Egads! It's Autumn! Where has the year gone?

 

At least in the Northern Hemisphere, anyway. It's time to say good-bye to longer days, warmer temperatures, and hopefully soon - lawn mowing.

But on the other side of the coin, Winter will soon be approaching, making it's presence felt long before Autumn is officially over. I'll be going to work in the dark, coming home in the dark, and soon I'll go back to wearing three layers of shirts/sweaters as the cold temperatures return. And the Farmer's Almanac (if they're to be believed) is no help. They are prognosticating a "colder, snowier and longer lasting" Winter for my part of the Eastern Seaboard. As you can guess, I am hoping they're wrong.

The bright side is that the bands should become noticeably less filled with QRN from Summertime thunderstorm activity. Both 160 and 80 Meters should be welcome refuges of night time activity in the weeks and months to come. I haven't decided as to whether or not I'll be participating in the Winter QRP Fox Hunts this season. They start at 9:00 PM local time here in the Eastern Time Zone. It's hard for me to stay up much later than that these days. I wake up for work in the morning at 5:30 AM, and my job has been very demanding on this 64 year old body. I'm definitely no Spring Chicken anymore, and I'm not embarrassed to admit that, as I guess I've earned it. I do find I need as much sleep as I can get, so it comes down to whether I fall asleep in bed - or whether I fall asleep in front of the radio in the shack.  

At least I won't be falling asleep in front of the TV like my Dad used to do. I remember asking my Mom once, when I was just a tyke, as to why my father did that so often. That's a hard thing to understand when you're just a kid. She said, "Someday you'll know why.". You were right, Mom - you were right.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!