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Summer 2003 Issue |
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The VHF
Bands
Solar-flare activity creates major openings on 6 and 2 meters! Photo A. Taken late in the day on May 28th, sunspot group S169, located on the equator of the Sun, is seen just hours after the emission of a major X-level flare. S169 is in a good geo-effective position for Earth by being located near the equator of the Sun. (Photo courtesy NOAA) |
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Just when many VHF operators folded their logbooks on F2 activity for 6 meters, it appears that there is still some life left in solar Cycle 23! The supporting evidence for this occurred when a significant geomagnetic event took place on May 29 and 30, resulting in a number of different propagation modes that appeared on 6 and 2 meters; aurora, auroral-E, and F2 were observed. There were periods of strong aurora propagation. As a result, great excitement ensued, with some major observations being made with regard to the behavior of these propagation modes.
Prior to this there had been some significant
geomagnetic events that occurred during the current solar cycle which
resulted in some major aurora openings on 6 and 2 meters, followed by F2
openings on 6. These were on April 6, 2000; March 30 and 31, 2001; and
April 11, 2001. The K-index values on these dates reached 8.
During spring 2003 VHF operators were still
checking out the bands and spotting the network daily to see if there were
some signs of life for Cycle 23 in the form of geomagnetic activity. Some
minor aurora events on 6 meters were observed in the northern U.S. and in
Europe at the end of March. During April, however, there was very little
geomagnetic activity. On May 28 the sunspot group designated S169 (photo A) emitted a major X flare on the order of X3.1 (photo B). Since this group was near the equator of the Sun and the flare went straight out from the Sun, it was geo-effective. There was a reasonable expectation that the Earth would be impacted within the following two days. As early as 3:00 PM local time in the east Lefty, K1TOL, in Maine, was hearing aurora signals. I was able to make a short QSO with him from my work QTH on Long Island by pointing my beam north. There was the feeling that this was going to be a significant event. When I arrived home, I worked a few stations on 6 meters, beginning with John, K1GUN, in Maine. The distinctive auroral tones on signals were present. Next I set up a portable 2-meter station in my driveway with my 3-element Yagi on a 10-foot mast directed toward the north. I made a CW QSO with K4QI in grid FM06 in North Carolina and then with K1ZC, grid FN43, in New Hampshire. I managed one new grid on this band with Mark, W3MRG, in grid FN10.
The activity I observed on 2 meters was fairly
significant. I copied as many as five or six different stations that could
be heard at any one time; of course, they were all on CW. I went back to 6
meters and found virtually the same number of stations. I then made some
QRP contacts with stations in the New Jersey area. The K-index value
reached a high of 8 at the peak of the aurora event in the early evening. Click here to return to Summer 03 highlights Click here to subscribe to VHF.. _________________ © Copyright 2003, CQ Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced or republished, including posting to a website, in part or in whole, by any means, without the express written permission of the publisher, CQ Communications, Inc. Hyperlinks to this page are permitted.
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