Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site mgweed.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxj!ihnp4!mgnetp!mgweed!rjr From: rjr@mgweed.UUCP (Bob Roehrig) Newsgroups: net.ham-radio Subject: arrl propagation forecast bulletin nr 41 Message-ID: <12843@mgweed.UUCP> Date: Tue, 9-Oct-84 10:41:16 EDT Article-I.D.: mgweed.12843 Posted: Tue Oct 9 10:41:16 1984 Date-Received: Wed, 10-Oct-84 04:25:22 EDT Organization: AT&T Consumer Products - Montgomery Illinois Lines: 32 qst de k9eui hr propagation forecast bulletin nr 41 from arrl headquarters newington ct october 8, 1984 to all radio amateurs bt solar flux and sunspot numbers were well below predicted levels since early may, and the sun has been all but devoid of spots for the past four weeks. this has changed all aspects of the dx picture, at a time of year that normally brings some of our best propagation. it is possible that a shift to higher solar activity will develop before winter, but there is no credible evidence on which to base a prediction at this time. there were brief spurts of dx on 28 mhz in recent days, and 21 mhz has been fairly lively for short periods, but both bands are far below what had been expected for the northern u.s. and adjacent areas of canada. during the forecast week, propagation is expected to improve gradually up to the middle of october. fairly severe disturbances will return about october 17 through 25. the month will close with generally better propagation on all frequencies, but with 28 and 21 mhz not performing up to earlier expectations for this autumn. for more than a month the sun has looked very much like it did at the beginning of the current solar cycle in the summer of 1976. dx on the higher bands has suffered markedly as a result. american sunspot numbers for september 27 through october 3 were between 0 and 7, with a mean of 1.3 ar