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Solar Cycle 25

The technical side of broadcasting. Think IBOC is a sham? Talk about it here! How about HDTV? Post DX reports here as well.
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Turkeytop
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Joined: Mon Aug 16, 2010 9:27 pm

Solar Cycle 25

Post by Turkeytop » Sun Dec 02, 2018 10:52 pm

According to Arnie Coro, of Radio Havana, Solar Cycle 24 is over and we are now into Cycle 25.

Scientific predictions are that Cycle 25 will be even weaker than Cycle 24. But anything will be better than the solar minimum we're in now.


I started out with nothing and I still have most of it.

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SolarMax
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Joined: Sat Dec 04, 2004 5:59 pm
Location: 313

Re: Solar Cycle 25

Post by SolarMax » Mon Dec 03, 2018 11:44 am

The sighting of a northern solar hemisphere sunspot has been reported elsewhere recently too, which indeed may herald the onset of Cycle 25. However, the minimum (yeah I know what my Nickname here is) is not yet at it's low point, and any relief coming with Cycle 25, however wimpy it may turn out to be, is easily still a few years off.

Amateur Radio operators are finding lower frequencies (the 40, 80 and 160 meter bands) to be providing some entertaining propagation, especially in these winter months, and, the now-very-popular digital mode, FT8, is providing solid, reliable contacts on the upper HF bands (20 thru 10 meters) even when those bands have appeared to be completely dead.



k8jd
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Joined: Fri Jun 28, 2013 3:35 pm
Location: Commerce, MI

Re: Solar Cycle 25

Post by k8jd » Mon Dec 03, 2018 3:48 pm

I have been logging a lot more CW contacts on 160, 80 and 60 meters the last few years. More are coming down to the low freq bands because of poor propagation on he old "DX" bands like 20, 15 and 10 Meters.
Get a big spool of # 14 wire from the big home improvement supply store and hang up some low-band antennas !



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Turkeytop
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Joined: Mon Aug 16, 2010 9:27 pm

Re: Solar Cycle 25

Post by Turkeytop » Mon Dec 03, 2018 4:13 pm

k8jd wrote:
Mon Dec 03, 2018 3:48 pm
I have been logging a lot more CW contacts on 160, 80 and 60 meters the last few years. More are coming down to the low freq bands because of poor propagation on he old "DX" bands like 20, 15 and 10 Meters.
Get a big spool of # 14 wire from the big home improvement supply store and hang up some low-band antennas !

I don't have enough real estate to put up a decent one. I would have to overcome the objections of the XYL. But the biggest barrier is just the noise level around here. More antenna would probably just pick up more noise.

Once a year I do what I call a mini DXpedition. I head off to a quiet place in the country for a few hours where there is space for a decent antenna. I did it this year about 3 weeks ago. Short wave reception was a little disappointing, so I tried for long wave beacons. Mostly they were from Ontario and Michigan, but I did catch some from as far away as British Columbia and Mississippi.


I started out with nothing and I still have most of it.

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