Here's the 1997 version of band openers in the ARRL
160 Contest. Conditions seem much poorer than last
year, with very few signals heard before local sunset,
and most signals several s-units below normal strength.
0508z N6ND 1.846
0510z K8MK 1.832
0518z WB9Z 1.823
0548z KH6CC 1.830
0555z K6XX 1.838
0604z N6RO 1.841
0606z W9RE 1.838
0609z K8ND 1.828
0611z W1XT 1.826
0616z W6NL 1.828
0624z N4AR 1.828
0628z N5JA 1.835
0633z W4WA 1.839
0634z W0AH 1.853
0642z NA5B 1.861
It seemed notable that there wasn't a trace of
propagation to 4 or 5 land until over an hour
after the first signals appeared from the "black
hole." In contests past, the band has opened
to those areas almost simultaneously.
The FKRQ beacon must have had a pretty fair
signal to the states, as it got a few "???'s" every
time it ID'ed (on 1.830). I suppose it's in New
Caledonia? It's loud in Samoa.
Most of the signals I heard ran from s2-s3, with
a few peaking around s5. I'll need a couple
more s-units of cooperation from the band to
work most of you tomorrow night, but I'm just
another PAC contact in this contest, anyway.
Good luck to all on Top Band,
73, Don KH8/N5OLS
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