VK - VK propagation
very nice signals today,
& much more than normal…
the 30m was actually being used. .. yah.
VK - VK propagation
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» VK - VK propagation
Summary:
what propagation is working
VK2JDR and VK5EEE both calling around QTT CoA frequency of today but in dead zone to each other, at night skip of course goes long on 30m, especially in winter I would think.
Today 20m was very poorly ionised by the looks of it, VK6RR and VK4QC at 06Z net were very weak. 30m signals at 0606Z net were good from both stations. This morning VK6IS heard while in QSO with VK2DLF. Listening out today on 10115.3 while doing other things.
Having been in VK now for a few years on air, I believe that there are many CW stations that are only using 40m during the day and 80m at night, with VK to VK QSO and missing out on many DX QTT.
On the other hand, I think there are also many who only engage in DX QSO or 5NN on the 20m band and higher.
But on 30m, we have the best of both worlds: we can have QSO during the day and night with ZL stations, and even the other side of the world, Europe both via long path in our local afternoon and short path through the night until morning when the sun is already high in the sky. America comes in short path from our afternoon up until late evening until the sun is up in USA. Asia is available at all times except when the sun is high in the sky.
Even when the sun is high in the sky, we have VK wide propagation on 30m, unlike on 40m, which leaves those in VK6, VK8 and to a lesser extent VK4 and VK5 often without QSO as the absorption of the D layer is too intense to allow signals to refract back off the E or F layers. This is much less of a problem on 30m.
Simply put and as a FACT: 30m is open 24 hours a day to many more locations around VK and the world, in the amount of hours, than 40m, and at this time of the solar cycle, even more so than 20m. SO by not using 30m, VK CW Ops are really missing out on a lot of excitement.
One could be forgiven for thinking the 30m band is CLOSED to propagation. I myself have often thought this to be the case. But it is just the lack of activity at times. So if you call CQ you will be surprised what can come back, at pretty much any time. The best and easiest tool I find, to keep me reminded and confident of the coverage of 30m at the present time, no matter the hour and date, is a wonderful software called VOAProp which can be found on the Propagation page.
VOAProp gives you an automatically updated (with solar data, time, date) map of the world, and you only need to select the Band, to see just what coverage you will expect. It really is very useful and encouraging, and will assure you that if you keep calling CQ and/or tune around the band IS open to many more areas of the world than you might otherwise expect.
I'd love to hear from others also using G4ILO's VOAprop, as I think that many would really benefit from this software. It is so easy to set up and use, but if you have questions, just ask in this 30cw.net Propagation forum!
Below is a screen shot of my current VOAprop screen on 30m at the time of writing this post: the countours show you what areas are open to my QTH and with what approximate signal strengths:
it seems that 30m is working, quite well:
- - vk2 - vk3 & I'm able to hear both of them !.
it mystifies me as to why everyone has to go so fast, with their Keyer, though.
- got no chance on decoding what they are sending
maybe, just some bits of it, though …
/forum/t-3223531/vk-vk-propagation#post-