Hi Marshalland VHFers
There was a lack of Aurora activity on 222 as compared to the 144 band
during the AU opening. I have made so many contacts on 144 over the
years, that I would rather try something a bit rarer and exciting. I
spent all of my time on 222 MHz and even listened on 432 for any
action. Now that the ice has been broken and Solar activity is rising,
I would ask all the folks who were just on 50 and 144, to turn the band
switch a bit to the right and at least check out 222 whenever you hear
an aurora on 144. This past AU session was quite good and I was hearing
W9 land with 55A signals. That does not happen on a marginal aurora from
here. I am pretty sure that I could have worked a W0 station in
Minnesota if anyone was on 222. I am sorry but I did not check back
later in the evening when often times the aurora roars back louder than
ever. Aurora on 222 is almost as good as on 144. (It is only 88 MHz
higher folks!)
Trudging up the hill to operate is getting old, so I just bit the bullet
and am working on getting a permanent power source for the shack. I
picked up a few more solar panels and a 300 AH lithium battery.
Unfortunately, the solar panels are not very compatible with the
original set, so I am not sure if I can combine them well, but the new
ones are rated at 900 watts for the two of them. I am thinking of
further expanding the Solar array to 1350 or 1800 watts, and adding
another 300 AH battery. The electrical requirements need about 250 AH of
capacity to power the remote setup overnight. Possibly I can reduce
that amount with an inexpensive computer that runs on 12 volts. As it is
now, I need to power up an 1800 watt sine wave inverter and it is power
hungry. I am working out the problem. WA1T will help on the setup. He
knows ones and zeroes better than I do.
As far as the aurora went, it was very exciting. I was calling CQ
blindly in hopes of someone checking out the 222 band. After about 15
minutes, I heard my call coming through with a very hissy note. At first
I thought it might be a very strong station calling off frequency with
noise sidebands! Then I copied the call, VA3ELE and realized it was a
real aurora signal. It has been a long time since I have heard aurora on
222 (or 144 for that matter) It did not take long for me to get in the
swing of things. It is just like riding a 2 wheel bicycle. I jockeyed
the beam heading for best signal and then started making more calls! It
would have been a lot better had there been more activity.
So next time, don't be shy and try 222 when there is an aurora going
on. That is where it is all happening. Remember that all the cool kids
are on 222. 😁 For my part, I am rigging up a remote setup to monitor
the band.
73
Dave K1WHS
On 3/25/2023 10:52 AM, Marshall-K5QE wrote:
Hello to all in the 222Activity group....I have been on VHF since the
early 70s. I have only heard Au three times, once from Oklahoma City,
and twice from here in east TX. So, for me, it is pretty rare. It is
great that the guys and gals in the northern tier of the US and the
Canadian hams can get into it a lot more often. For those of us
living in the warmer climes, IF you ever get in to some Au, it will be
a really thrilling experience.
Keep up the good work....
73 Marshall K5QE
On 3/24/2023 3:02 PM, David Olean wrote:
Hello VHF ops,
I was watching the solar indices in hopes that we might get a dump of
Solar particles down on the poles to spark off a real bonafide
aurora. After dinner, I trudged up the hill and turned on the
generator to get stuff running. I started calling CQ on 222.100 and
also monitored the ON4KST page. There was some concerted activity on
six and two meters. I was atad disappointed that more folks didn't
make the move to the higher band as conditions warranted. Still,
ther was activity on the 222 MHz band. My first AU contact was good
old VA3ELE running just 25 watts! Peter had a great signal via
aurora. Next station worked was VE3DS who was really pounding in. I
found that my "sweet spot" seemed to be between 295 and about 305
degrees. As time went along I found that 295 degrees was the best
heading later on. I heard N4PZ near Chicago with a great 55A signal
several times, but Steve did not answer my calls. Both VE3DS in
Toronto, and Steve N4PZ peaked at about the same heading. That N4PZ
contact would have been a great QSO and I suspect RX problems were
the fly in the ointment. I also heard and worked WX3K in PA.
Stephanie lives near the Delaware Water Gap in FN20. She announced
that this was her first 222 MHz aurora QSO! Congratulations are in
order for that. WX3K had a good 55A signal as well. Totals for me
were three 222 MHz AU QSOs and four stations heard.
I have been thinking about the best way to utilize the hilltop shack.
Not having remote capabilities is a big problem as getting up there
can be a problem. It does not get any better when you factor in the
age of the poor slob who has to do the walking. It is like walking
to school back in the old days. It was all uphill both ways!! I just
bit the bullet and am starting on a hilltop power project to allow
permanent power up there. I am enlarging my solar installation. I
have ordered a new big Lithium battery along with some killer solar
panels to generate 1 KW of DC power. The new batteries have internal
heaters. They can be powered by the Solar panels directly. This will
allow charging in the winter months. Now I have to remove the
original 150 AH lithium battery or keep the shack heated all winter
with a propane furnace. ($$) I am hoping that with a bigger system,
it will be possible to keep things running continuously. I will need
power for the 5 GHz internet link, a dedicated computer, and the K3
radio. All of this will have to run off a sine wave inverter that
must also be powered up continuously. I figure about a 15-20 amp
continuous draw at 12 VDC. I'll probably have to add a second lithium
battery to achieve my goal, but I'll start with just one 300 AH
battery. They are not cheap. If you figure 20 amps per hour of use,
a 12 hour period of no Sun will amount to 240 AH of battery drain!
Yikes. I suspect the correct battery capacity is three batteries for
a 900 AH capacity. That is only $5000. (a mere drop in the bucket) I
might be getting into trouble here! Walking up the hill is sounding
better and better!
73
Dave K1WHS
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