Wednesday, 9 December 2020

G3 Storm is arriving!

A CME impact with Earth is predicted to occur later today (09/12), continuing into tomorrow.  

Peak activity is forecast to reach Kp=7, or a G3 event - by far the most significant such event for a while.

Data shows the early part of the CME arrived at about 06UT this morning.

Even from my latitude of 53 degrees north, good aurora is not so uncommon.

These events afford plenty of opportunity for unusual propagation on all bands, both during and immediately afterwards.

From 12m up, you can experiment with direct reflections off any aurora that you may be within sight of.  Unlike many other areas of radio work, auroral propagation is best worked with a 2-element or similarly small beam, such that you don't focus too narrowly on one, rapidly changing area of the event.  

To whet your appetite (I mean, you have enough time to build a 6m beam today!), have a listen to this fabulously atmospheric auroral SSB QSO going on in 2015:

 

Below upper HF, you might discover the beautiful trans-polar flutter or warble that affects signals taking that path over a disturbed geomagnetic field.  

Or you might want to see how WSPR transmissions are effected by the disturbance - unexpected local and DX spots, enhancements and band closures are all possibilities, as is the phenomenon of signal spreading on lower HF, which may render many or all WSPR signals non-decodable.

The biggest problem with an event like this is deciding what to concentrate your efforts upon!


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