SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP053
ARLP053 Propagation de K7RA
ZCZC AP53
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 53 ARLP053
From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA December 21, 2007
To all radio amateurs
SB PROP ARL ARLP053
ARLP053 Propagation de K7RA
Sunspot 978 faded this week, with Tuesday, December 18 its last day
visible. The average daily sunspot number dropped nearly 13 points
from last week to 24.1, and average daily solar flux was down over
three points to 83.9. Geomagnetic indicators were up, with the
average daily planetary A index up three points to 7.4, and the
mid-latitude A index up two points to 5.4.
Sunspot 978 held no indication for the next sunspot cycle, because
the magnetic polarity was the same as spots from Cycle 23, which is
now ending. It was also at mid-latitude, and spots from a new cycle
tend to be high latitude. But there was quite an interest this week
in a high-latitude area of reverse magnetic polarity. So far this
has not turned into an actual sunspot, so we wait. You can read
about it at, http://sidc.oma.be/news/100/welcome.html.
On Wednesday, December 19, Proplab-Pro version 3 was finally
released. It claims to be "the most advanced propagation
ray-tracing system in the world," and works on personal computers
running Windows Xp or Vista. The introduction to the manual says it
"is a state-of-the-art software package not for the feint of heart."
Since the word "feint" implies a daring move, I suspect the author
intended to say "faint," implying timidity in this context. With
only a short time to look it over, I can say that it is quite
complex. You can find information at,
http://www.spacew.com/proplab/.
Tomorrow, December 22, 2007, the Sun reaches its lowest point in the
sky, marking Winter Solstice for the Northern Hemisphere, which
begins at 0608 GMT. For much of North America, this happens late
tonight, and this week we begin the long shift toward more daylight.
Perhaps better propagation will appear this Spring. The equinox is
on March 21, 2008 at 0548 GMT. See an article at,
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/dark_days.php for an explanation
from the U.S. Naval Observatory on why the earliest sunset in the
mid-northern latitudes is around December 8, the latest sunrise is
around January 5, with solstice in the middle.
We've seen no sunspots for a couple of days, and if this continues
through the end of the year (10 days from now) the average sunspot
number for the calendar year will be just 12.8. We will know for
sure by the time the first propagation forecast bulletin of 2008
comes out, on January 4. The daily sunspot numbers averaged over
each calendar year from January 1, 2001 through December 31, 2007
should be 170.3, 176.7, 109.2, 68.6, 48.9, 26.1 and 12.8. By
comparison, the average daily sunspot numbers for each year,
1995-1997 (the previous solar minimum) were 28.7, 13.2 and 30.7. It
seems 2007 must have been a solar minimum year, but of course
dividing the data into calendar years is completely arbitrary.
We may not end the year with a blank Sun. The predicted solar flux
from NOAA and the US Air Force for December 21-22 is 72, 71, and
then 70 for December 23-28, then rising to 75 December 29 through
January 1, then 80 for January 2-3, and 85 for January 4-11.
Recently when solar flux was above 80 for ten days, sunspot numbers
ranged from 24 to 43.
The predicted planetary A index for December 21-23 is 15, 10 and 8,
then dropping to 5 for December 24 through January 5. Geophysical
Institute Prague predicts unsettled conditions December 21-22, quiet
to unsettled December 23, and quiet December 24-27.
If you would like to make a comment or have a tip for our readers,
email the author at, k7ra@arrl.net.
For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service at,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html. For a detailed
explanation of the numbers used in this bulletin see,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/k9la-prop.html. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at, http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/prop/.
Monthly propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve
overseas locations are at, http://www.arrl.org/qst/propcharts/.
Sunspot numbers for December 13 through 19 were 39, 35, 39, 28, 14,
14 and 0 with a mean of 24.1. 10.7 cm flux was 93.8, 91.9, 88.9,
81.7, 79.5, 76.8, and 74.5 with a mean of 83.9. Estimated planetary
A indices were 4, 2, 1, 2, 17, 18 and 8 with a mean of 7.4.
Estimated mid-latitude A indices were 3, 2, 2, 1, 12, 11 and 7, with
a mean of 5.4.
NNNN
/EX
