Tag Archives: tropo

Tropo opening 7th – 8th October 2023

Posted on October 16, 2023 | Leave a comment

After such a long and barren period for tropo we were taken by surprise by the exceptional conditions on the weekend of 7th to 8th October coinciding with the 70 cm and microwave contests in the UK and Continental Europe.

I know that some contest stations worked Spain on 70cm and there were stories of Italians but that is hearsay. I was pleased to work the French stations down to mid/southern parts, the two HB9s, and also the French and German contacts on 23. Anyway, here are some picked out from my log.

2450 2023-10-07 11:50 F4CKV/P 144.304 SSB France JN16nl

2451 2023-10-07 15:36 F6KPL 432.201 SSB IN99io France Radio club c/o Mr Ala

2455 2023-10-07 16:47 PI4GN 432.230 SSB JO33ii Netherlands VRZA AFD. GRONIN

2456 2023-10-07 17:00 F5RZC 432.264 SSB JO10ar France Jean-Francois DELP…

2457 2023-10-07 20:15 HB9XC 432.210 SSB JN37of Switzerland Club station PIEPER

2458 2023-10-07 20:19 DL8LR 432.233 SSB JN39ni Germany Frank Paulus-Rieth

2459 2023-10-07 20:24 DR9A 432.292 SSB JN48eq Germany Contest Station

2460 2023-10-07 20:36 HB9IAB/P 432.285 SSB JN36mi Switzerland ERIC

2461 2023-10-07 20:51 F4KJP/P 432.207 SSB France JN29ln

2462 2023-10-08 07:31 F5SGT/P 432.221 SSB France IN88kd

2463 2023-10-08 07:39 F4DVZ 432.313 SSB France IN98wv

2464 2023-10-08 07:57 F6KFH 432.265 SSB JN39oc France Radioclub du Ref.

2465 2023-10-08 08:04 F8KHP/P 432.287 SSB France JN38cc

2466 2023-10-08 10:16 DR9A 1,296.270 SSB JN48eq Germany Contest Station

2467 2023-10-08 10:25 F4KJP/P 1,296.200 SSB France JN29ln

2468 2023-10-08 10:34 DN4KHJ/P 432.280 SSB Germany J031aa

2469 2023-10-08 10:43 ON4CCM 432.203 SSB JO21jg Belgium WARD VAN BERCK…

2471 2023-10-08 20:44 F4HBY 144.235 SSB IN97at France Laurent JOBEY

Let us hope it will not be so long until the next opening, the last one having been back in June. Still, this one was very satisfying.

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Mostly 144 MHz Sporadic E June and July 2023

Posted on August 7, 2023 | Leave a comment

It seems the Sporadic E season is pretty much over, and it has been a fairly poor one, as even 50 MHz enthusiasts are saying. Anyway, here is my mostly 2 metres DX summary for June and July 2023.

Sporadic E

5.6.23              HA8AR          KN06

                        LZ2LY            KN13

                        HA3KZ           JN97

13.6.23            LZ1ZP KN22

                        LZ2ZY            KN13

15.6.23            I7CSB JN71

                        IK7RWE         JN80

                        IK7JNM          JN80

                        IK7BZY         JN61

                        IK8HJC          JN70

                        LZ1RDD         KN12

                        E73O              JN95

6.6.23 Re tropo, several OZs, JO45, JO46, JO44 and a German JO54 and the two on 7th.

7.6.23 SM7EYW JO65

            DK5HQ JO53

On 70 cms OV3T JO46 was a huge signal 13.6.23 in the contest and worked him on SSB of course but had to go QRT so I don’t know what else was about. All seemed gone the following morning.

A bit more Sporadic E fun in the afternoon, 9th July.

All 2 metres SSB

IZ7FLS/6 JN62

IK7EOT JN80

IZ6ZER JN63

IZ7UMS JN81

IZ7DPB JN80

It all lasted about 40 minutes here from the first at 1608z. Others may well have worked more.

I am happy with what I worked but Sporadic E has been very sporadic this summer.

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September 2020 tropo

Posted on September 23, 2020 | Leave a comment
IC-9700

After a long time with no decent tropo it has been an interesting week with a good opening to Scandinavia and the Baltic. Conditions were first good on 17th September when I worked OZ on 23 cms, but on 2 metres it seemed initially that the good propagation was going over our heads on the East Coast, with the West, Wales and Northern Ireland being favoured into Scandinavia. I cannot complain too much. I did make some good QSOs as the days moved on, the highlights being on 2 metres SM4GGC at 1183 km and on 70 cms SP1MVG who called me when I was just finishing with OZ1BNN. Poland was a new country on 70 cms and obviously a new square.

I run 100 watts on 2 metres and 10 watts on 23 cms with my IC-9700, and 50 watts on 70 cms using my FT991.

Here is a summary of the most pleasing contacts, all SSB:

2 metres
17/09/20OZ1BEFJO46
18/09/20DK4EEJO41
DL2RZJO54
19/09/20GM4YXIIO87
GM0OQVIO85
20/09/20DG8LGJO44
DL0CXJO43
DL5BBFJO42
SM4GGCJO691183 km
OZ1BNNJO55
OZ6OLJO65
21/09/20SM7GVFJO77
OZ8ZYJO54
GM4JOJIO97
SM6VTZJO58
70 cms
17/09/20SM6VTZJO58
OZ9FWJO65
20/09/20DJ8MSJO54
DL4EECJO33
MM0CEZIO75
OZ1BNNJO55
SP1MVGJO74987 kmNew country on 70 cms
21/09/20SM7GVFJO77
OZ4VWJO45
23 cms
15/09/20OZ1FFJO45
20/09/20DB8WKJO33

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Tropo opening 28th to 30th December 2019

Posted on January 4, 2020 | Leave a comment

20200104_205110We had an interesting tropo event starting on 28th December and ending at my QTH on 30th. All QSOs were SSB. Conditions were very good to the East and North East, and good to the South and South West, but surprisingly from my QTH there was less propagation to the South East, so no HB9s etc. On 2 metres I used my newish IC9700 with 100 watts to my 7 element and on 70 cms my FT991 with 50 watts to a 13 element.

On 2 metres amongst others I worked on the 28th:

F5ICN    JN03    933km

F3EZJ     JN05

EA1MX  IN73   974km

F4CQA   JN17

F0FHU    JN06

On 29th:

SM7EQL   JO65  940km

OZ7UV      JO65

SM7NGR   JO65

DL2RZ        JO54

GU0UVH    IN89 not so far but I had never worked Alderney!

On 30th:

EB1AH    IN73 and he was running 5 watts to a 3-element antenna

On 70 cms amongst others and still all on SSB on 29th:

GJ8CEY   IN89  not so far but a new country and square on 70 coms

GU6EFB  IN89  new country 😊

DL1YAW  JO41

DJ8MS    JO54   793km

OZ9FW   JO65   883km

OZ1HDF   JO55   852km

OZ9GE      JO66   905km

OZ8ZS     JO55   851km

EI19RE    IO51  New country and square on 70 cms

Conditions were so good for a period that the OZs called me on the back of the beam as I was looking South West.

I know that others worked more DX than did I, but I enjoyed the event and am happy with the results.

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2 metre tropo on 14th and 15th September

Posted on September 18, 2019 | 2 comments

20190916_215503We had an interesting opening over the evening of 14th and the following morning. It started with a couple of very strong French stations in JN18. I then found the following all worked on SSB on 14th:

DL2GWZ/P   JN49

OE5XBL   JN68, 700m asl, 988 km

DF6MH/P  JN57 2400m asl, 902km

DJ6AG   JO51

On the morning of 15th when there was a contest in Central Europe:

OM3RM   JN88  1263 km!

OE3REC   JN77  1147 km

OK1DOL   JN69   906 km

F5LEN/P   JN38

OE/OK5SE/P   JN77  1137 km

OK1KKI   JN79   1059 km

Plus, some more local Continentals.

My return to 2 metres SSB after 30 years absence was only in February 2018, so OE, OK and OM are new countries on the band for me from this QTH. The Slovak Republic was a particular surprise, being so strong and my thinking he was Belgian until he gave his locator. It was early and I was still half asleep; at least that is my excuse.

The above was my first DX foray with my FT991 running 50 watts rather than the 25 watts from my old FT290R and small amplifier, but I am not mothballing the old radio and will keep it ready to go.

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Late June tropo

Posted on July 10, 2019 | Leave a comment

IMG_1245Having missed out on all the Sporadic E on 2 metres save IK8EVE (JN71) on 1st June it was good to be treated to some decent tropo. Starting on the evening of 27th June, on 2 metres I worked with my 25 watts all on SSB:

DF2WF   JO30

DM8MM JO31

DF0WD  JO42

DJ6AG  JO51

DK5DQ  JO31

On 28th June in the evening on 2 metres:

SK7MW  JO65

SM7XWX  JO65

OZ6TY  JO55

OZ1BEF JO46

DL3TW  JO44

DL2RZ  JO54

On 29th June in the morning earlyish

DK3EE   JO41

SM7YES  JO67 and incredibly strong signal.

On 29th June, SK6VHF (JO57) on 144.404 MHz was audible until about midday but faded as pressure fell so that when we were down to 1012 millibars at 1700 I knew the event was over.

I did try my luck on 70 cms with my one watt, and worked on 28th June:

SM6CEN  JO67

OZ9FW   JO65

So, a little bit of fun finding and working a little way away. I seem to have some advantage with sea paths, being near to the Thames and Crouch estuaries, and reaching mainly stations near the coast in Scandinavia.

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More October tropo

Posted on November 9, 2018 | Leave a comment

This was a week or so back, so I am reporting somewhat belatedly.

Starting on 24th October There was some enhanced propagation. In the afternoon on 2 metres I worked EI9KP in IO54, in Sligo, for a rare square. In the evening I worked:

F6DBI    IN88

F6FGQ  IN78

F9OE      IN78

And on 25th:

GJ7LJJ/P IN89

F6GPT   IN94

F4EZJ     JN05

And I heard EA2TZ who did not stay on frequency to work calling G stations.

I also worked on 24th with one watt on 70 centimetres F6FGQ immediately before the contact on 2 metres.

A limited opening but a nice one.

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Tropo update October 2018

Posted on October 20, 2018 | Leave a comment

After several decades absence I have been operational on 2 metres SSB since the end of February 2018. I have been using an old Eighties FT290R and a small amplifier running only 25 watts to a 7-element antenna.

I have not observed any spectacular tropo openings, but last week we had some propagation into Scandinavia.

On 8th October in the evening I worked

OZ6OL JO65dj 878 km

SM7DTT JO65lj 923 km

SM7NR JO76rc 1091 km

And on the morning of 9th

SM7NR JO76 again with minimal activity from UK.

On 70 cms with one watt SSB from an FT790R I worked on the morning of 9th:

OZ9FW JO65co 882 km

And in the UKAC 70 cms contest in the evening of 9th with one watt:

SK7MW JO65mj 923 km

OV2T JO46qh 774 km

The opening seemed very localised. There was not much good propagation in between, at least as far as my location in Hockley, Essex was concerned. However, good results can be had with a modest station. I am hoping to have a bit more power soon.

 

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