GB2RS Propagation News
Propagation News – 17 December 2023
We had a fairly settled time last week with only the solar wind and some solar flare activity to contend with. Sunspot region 3514 produced a moderately strong M5.8 solar flare on the 14 December. This event was responsible for a coronal mass ejection, or CME, but that was directed to the west and missed […]
Propagation News – 10 December 2023
We dodged a bullet last week as a high-speed solar wind stream from a coronal hole sped past the Earth. Although the wind speed was often in excess of 600 kilometres per second, its Bz, or magnetic field, was pointing north. The net result was that most of this passed harmlessly away from Earth and […]
Propagation News – 3 December 2023
We were lucky last week – the solar flux index remained quite high and, after the geomagnetic upsets around the 25 November, we had settled conditions, with the Kp index below two. Unfortunately, it looks like that is all about to change. On Tuesday 28 November, two M-class solar flares and associated coronal mass ejections […]
Propagation News – 26 November 2023
What a difference a week makes! Last week the solar flux index was at 118 but, by Thursday the 23 November, it had climbed up to 190 with the Sun’s surface covered in spots with up to nine groups showing. The maximum useable frequency over a 3,000km path was estimated at more than 40MHz at […]
Propagation News – 19 November 2023
We had another rollercoaster week with periods of reasonably settled geomagnetic conditions followed by more unsettled times. Luckily, it didn’t get too bad, as it did when the Kp index hit seven the week before. This, coupled with a lower solar flux index of 119 on Thursday, has meant HF conditions have not been outstanding. […]
Propagation News – 12 November 2023
Last week was characterised by very unsettled geomagnetic conditions which took their toll on the high-frequency bands. The Kp index hit seven on the 5 November, sparking visible aurora all over the UK. This also caused auroral conditions on the bands with many people commenting on the auroral flutter on the lower HF bands and […]
