ALERT NEWSLETTER – August 2026

Hi everyone,

I hope this finds you safe and well as we enter these midsummer days. As you bake and broil in the sun, remember that fall is just a little over a month away, and eventually the heat and humidity will retreat towards the tropical realms from whence it came and in about 6 months we will be griping and wishing we could borrow one of these days for a welcomed winter thaw.

Until then hug the air conditioner and remember to stay hydrated.

As mentioned in last month’s newsletter ALERT dues are due.

For information on where to send the dues and also for the form if you are not a member and would like to join, visit our blog at https://alert-alabama.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/Documents/alertapp.pdf

Our next ALERT meeting will be on August 11.

Hope you can attend!

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That Little Radio

“The whole operation had to be handled carefully.

First, you waited until the house settled.

The last footsteps in the hallway.
Last light clicking off.
The last reminder that it was “time to sleep.”

Then, very slowly, you reached for that little radio by the pillow and
turned the dial just enough to catch a voice through the static.

It felt like sneaking into a bigger world without ever leaving your room.

Music from somewhere far away.
A late-night DJ talking like he knew you were listening.
The soft crackle between stations.
One ear pressed close, one eye on the bedroom door.

You kept the volume low because getting caught would ruin the whole adventure.

But for a little while, under the blankets with the moon in the window,
that tiny radio made bedtime feel like a secret only you knew about…
like a secret window to the whole world.”

The preceding, which was copied from the Good Old Days group on Facebook, describes the experience perfectly, as in 1966 an eight year old Mark would be secretly listening to a tiny “transistor radio”, as every other creature in the house was hopefully snoozing away, Listening first to the local stations playing the music of those days, and then accidentally finding that after dark, stations would drift in from far away.

It was like a portal to another dimension, listening to distant talk shows, which gave you a glimpse of life in Pittsburgh, New York and Chicago. Spanish drifting in from who knew where, and music, much the same, yet also different, as you learned that “country music” and “western music” weren’t necessarily the same thing, and that the music callers in requested in St. Louis might not be the same as that requested in Philadelphia, or Birmingham.

Listening to local AM stations accidently led to AM DXing, then on to Shortwave Listening, then to a now teenage Mark sitting in a darkened room with cushioned headphones listening to long format rock aka AOR or Album Oriented Rock, now an extinct format, the only light coming from the glow of the stereo lights. Then scanners, CB, ham, GMRS and MURS. Along the way I found a group called ALERT, maybe 25 years ago, or so.

The magic of radio has never left me. Whether it’s hearing cities hundreds of miles away on the car radio driving home late at night, or calling someone on the radio and them hearing me from 1000 miles away, using my old equipment, an antenna that looks like my mom’s clothesline and sporting a right ear blown from using an earphone so I wouldn’t get caught listening to midnight voices from “somewhere” in the night.

And, how you have today. Still listening, and probably still interfering with radios, TVs, stereos and PA systems for miles & miles & miles

So, here’s to radio, in all its forms. One of the niftiest inventions ever created by man.

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Summer Propagation Or The Lack Thereof

If you have spent any time on the HF bands recently you will notice that conditions have just been awful, with poor propagation and a sharp decrease in signals being heard.

Many blame this on us being on the downward slope of the solar cycle. And, this may indeed figure in. However, there is another factor that is the major culprit – the seasonal variation.

It is Summer and the Earth’s Northern axis is tilted towards the Sun. This increases the incoming solar radiation, causing extended daylight hours and increased heat and ionization.

Long range HF radio communications are thanks to the F layer of the Ionosphere. At night it is a single layer between 93 to 137 miles up and during the day it divides into the F1 & F2 with the F2 layer rising.

This is normally a good thing radiowise as the F2 layer enables coast to coast and transatlantic communications.

But, during the Summer we get too much of a good thing as the increased solar radiation causes the height of the F2 layer to expand upward too much and as it expands its overall density also decreases. The combination of increasing height and reduced density weakens its ability to reflect radio waves.

Meanwhile the D layer, at 40 to 55 miles high which normally absorbs radio signals, tends to become more absorbent during the day and higher both in actual height and in the frequencies affected. The D layer normally dissipates at night, but since the daylight hours longer, it takes longer to dissipate, adding to terrible band conditions. While this normally affects signals from the AM Broadcast Band and upward to 40 & 30 Meters, during the Summer it at times it can affect 20 and 17 Meters as well

As Fall and eventually Winter approaches, ionospheric conditions will gradually improve, as the
F2 layer descends to a more normal lower altitude, and becomes denser, and the D layer becomes less absorbent and lower in height and frequency.

Meanwhile in the Southern Hemisphere they are having the opposite situation. Since its winter there, its prime DX season.

The solar heating also affects VHF and UHF signals. Consider when you are driving on a long stretch of road. You may see a mirage in the distance that looks like standing water on the road that seems to constantly retreat as you near it. The heat is causing the light rays to be bent upward, and that “water” you see is actually the sky. This is called an “inferior mirage”.

Radio signals behave the same way. In hot weather signals are bent upward, so the radio horizon, which in cool weather may extend 60% beyond the visible horizon (5.6 miles compared to 3.5 miles at 5.5 feet on flat ground) is shortened.

In the Winter on frigid days, you can have the opposite situation where light is bent downward causing you to see beyond the horizon or for the radio horizon to extend. Visually mountains may have inverted images hovering above the actual image, or you may see distant mountains that are normally not to be seen. I’ve seen this only once, when the temperature in Birmingham was in the teens.

This is a “superior mirage”, and may be how the Vikings were able discover Greenland, the distant peaks appearing and disappearing over the horizon. So, on Winter days your VHF & UHF range may be extending beyond your normal range.

Back to the blistering days of Summer, the miserable humidity adds to your torment, as it wants to absorb your signals, and with every plant in the world being in full leaf, the foliage jumps in absorbing and physically blocking your signal.

Coincidentally, while the atmosphere and ionosphere are misbehaving, the on the air ham population thins out with less signals to be found on the bands as people are out doing warm weather things – gardening, mowing grass, doing house repairs, and fun stuff such as fishing, camping, grilling and spending time with family and friends. They may not be near a radio or be in a “radio mood”. The net result is miserable band conditions and no on wanting to play.

As the weather cools once again, the operators will withdraw into their caves and lairs to escape the cold, and dusting the cobwebs off the knobs and microphones, once again they will roam the airwaves.

Meanwhile don’t give up, and don’t assume a band is dead just because you are not hearing or seeing much activity.

If a band seems dead, do a little checking. If you tune above and below the band and are hearing aeronautical, marine or shortwave broadcasts, then the ham band in between is open also, it’s just everybody thinks it’s dead. Some of the best DX I’ve worked, especially towards Africa, has been on “dead” bands.

Waterfall displays can give a decent overview or sneak peek at band conditions, and I like them, but know that they are not foolproof, as they can miss weak or marginal signals . For me turning the VFO knob and listening is still the best way of exploring a band.

My equipment doesn’t have waterfall display capability, yet I use one to check the activity on the HF bands. How do I do that? There is an online Web SDR receiver near Birmingham with a waterfall display, courtesy of Brian Wingard, N4DKD. N4DKD WEB-888

This is not only a great way for determining band conditions and general listening, but you can also use it as a monitor to hear your own signal. Got a report of mushy audio? Go to N4DKD WEB-888 and tune in your signal and see if it is true.

Don’t be shy to try to reach weak stations. Just because the signal is weak on your side doesn’t mean that you are weak on their side. I’ve worked some nice DX stations I could barely hear. And the reverse is often true, with them booming in, but, them not hearing me.

This can be due to the Alligator vs Elephant theory. An “Alligator Station” transmitting a great signal, but having a poor receiver – big mouth and tiny ears. Where an “Elephant Station” is the opposite, having a great receiver, but transmitting a poor signal – big ears, tiny mouth.

Another trick I use, though I don’t run FT8, is to use FT8 signals as a propagation beacon, along with actual propagation beacons, especially on 10 and 6 Meters.

FT8 is booming in popularity for its unique operating advantages – the ability to “hear” signals beneath the bands noise floor, and the ease of operation. With this ability of superior reception, given the same power levels, antenna, and propagation conditions, FT8 will outperform CW, which in turn out performs SSB.

Critics point out, with some justification, that seemingly everyone is abandoning traditional modes like SSB and CW for FT8. For example, as I write this 6 Meters is wide open and CW beacons and FT8 signals are booming in, but not a single SSB, CW or FM signal is to be heard.

Another point of contention is the impersonal nature of the contacts. You see a CQ on a computer screen, you click the station and the computer takes care of the rest. It seems so easy. Maybe too easy, some say as the meme floating around with a guy in a lawn chair saying “Hey Alexa, get me a DXCC on FT-8”.

But it could be argued that passing contest exchanges of 599 (even if you can barely hear them), grid squares or whatever bare minimum of information is required for a valid contact, is about the same thing. FT8 is just not designed to be a conversational mode.

As I mentioned, I don’t run FT8. I’m not against the mode, but I am behind the high-tech curve and the process of setting up FT8 – figuring how to connect everything and make everything with my beloved Stone Age equipment, for me anyway, is a monumental task. I look at YouTube videos, read articles, Bing this, Google that and that quacking duck on DuckDuckGo just sits there laughing at me.

Also, there is another factor. While some have stations that look like Starbase 187, with screens glowing everywhere, mine looks like classic drab and I don’t even have a computer in my ham shack, as I don’t have room for one. So, woe is me.

But, so far this year I have worked 541 stations, including 50 states and 68 countries, using CW, SSB and FM, so this Wrinkled Old Coot is doing ok using two cans and a string.

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Mark’s Almanac
August was originally named “Sextilis”, the sixth Roman month. It was renamed August in honor of Caesar Augustus and lengthened to 31 days, to equal Julius Caesar’s month of July.

August is hot and humid and summer temperatures remain at or near their summer peak.

The rapid vegetation growth of spring is over, and, since conditions are now perfect for the growth of mold, fungi & germs, plants have a “used” look, which is enhanced if rainfall is scarce. In August the choir of cicadas whine in the afternoon & towards the end of the month the big Yellow Sulphur Butterflies will begin heading to the South-Southeast, giving hints of their soon upcoming fall migration & cats will begin to hint of growing their winter coats.

Hurricane breeding grounds in August are the Atlantic, with Low Latitude “Cape Verde” storms forming off Africa crossing the Ocean and either threatening the Eastern Seaboard or striking the Leeward Islands, entering the Caribbean and then striking the Yucatan, or the Western or Northern Gulf coast. Breeding grounds also include the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico.

August is second only to September in the number of Tropical Storms and Hurricanes. From 1851 to 2025 there have been 409 Tropical Storms and 257 Hurricanes, 85 of which made landfall in the United States, the most notable storms being Hurricanes Camille, Katrina and Ida in 1969, 2005 and 2021, which devastated Mississippi and Louisiana and Hurricane Andrew which ravaged South Florida in 1992.

21% of a year’s Hurricanes occur in August, however, 85 to 95% of land falling Hurricanes have not occurred by August 15.

Days grow shorter as the Sun’s angle above the noonday horizon steadily decreases from 74.4 degrees at the beginning of the month to 65.0 degrees at the month’s end. Daylight decreases 54 minutes from 13 hours 49 minutes on August 1 to 12 hours 55 minutes on August 31.

Sunrise and sunset times for Birmingham are:

August 1 Sunrise 5:59 AM Sunset 7:48 PM
August 15 Sunrise 6:09 AM Sunset 7:34 PM
August 31 Sunrise 6:20 AM Sunset 7:15 PM

Looking skyward, the Sun, magnitude -26.7 is in Leo, The Lion.

Mercury, magnitude -1.28 in Cancer, The Crab, emerges from the glow of the Sun into the dawn sky. At the first of the month, he becomes visible rising at 4:29 AM CDT)– 1 hour and 28 minutes before the Sun and reaching an altitude of 10° above the eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 5:29 AM CDT

He will reach his widest separation from the Sun, or “Greatest Western Elongation” on August 2 and his highest point in the sky on August 4 when he reaches 17° altitude, shining brightly at
-0.0. He will then steadily recede back towards the Sun as the month progresses.

At midmonth he becomes visible in the dawn sky, rising at 5:03 AM CDT – 1 hours and 3 minutes before the Sun – and reaching an altitude of 8° above the eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 5:50 AM CDT.

He will disappear into the glow of the Sun on August 16.

Venus, magnitude -4.4 in Virgo, The Virgin, is the brilliant “Evening Star” above the western horizon.

At the first of the month, she becomes visible 8:03 PM CDT, 21° above the western horizon, as dusk fades to darkness. She will then sink towards the horizon, setting 2 hours and 5 minutes after the Sun at 9:51 PM CDT.

She will reach her greatest separation from the Sun in its 2026 evening apparition or “Greatest Western Elongation”, on August 14. Shining brightly at magnitude -4.3 and reaching a peak altitude of 30° above the horizon.

At midmonth, she becomes visible around 7:50 PM CDT, 19° above the western horizon, as dusk fades to darkness. She will then sink towards the horizon, setting 1 hour and 55 minutes after the Sun at 9:29 PM CDT.

The Moon will pass within 2.1° of Venus on August 16.

At month’s end she becomes visible around 7:29 PM CDT, 16° above the south-western horizon, as dusk fades to darkness. She will then sink towards the horizon, setting 1 hour and 42 minutes after the Sun at 8:55 PM CDT.

Earth, magnitude -4.0 as viewed from the Sun, and her Moon is in Aquarius, The Water Bearer.

Mars, magnitude +1.2, with his Moons Phobos and Deimos is in Gemini, The Twins, is an early morning object.

At the first of the month, he becomes visible rising at 2:25 AM CDT – 3 hours and 31 minutes before the Sun – and reaching an altitude of 32° above the eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 5:15. AM CDT.
At midmonth he becomes visible rising at 2:09 AM CDT – 3 hours and 57 minutes before the Sun – and reaching an altitude of 38° above the eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 5:26 AM CDT.

At month’s end he becomes visible rising at 1:53 AM CDT and reaching an altitude of 44° above the eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 5:39 AM CDT.

Dwarf Planet Ceres, magnitude +9.0, is in Taurus, The Bull.

Jupiter, magnitude –1.8, and his 95 moons and (invisible from Earth) ring, in Cancer, The Crab, is hidden in the glow of the Sun until mid-month when he emerges in the morning sky.

Midmonth he rises at 5:03 AM CDT, 1 hour and 4 minutes before the Sun – and reaching an altitude of 8° above the eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 5:51 AM CDT.

At months end he rises at 4:20 AM CDT – 1 hour and 57 minutes before the Sun – and reaching an altitude of 19° above the eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 6:02 AM CDT.

Saturn, magnitude +0.6 and his 274 moons and extensive debris ring system, in Pisces, The Fish, is a morning object.

At the first of the month, he becomes accessible around 11:46 PM CDT, when he reaches an altitude of 10° above the eastern horizon. He will then reach his highest point in the sky at 5:03 AM CDT, 59° above the southern horizon. He will be lost to dawn twilight around 5:25 AM CDT, 59° above the southern horizon.

By midmonth he becomes accessible around 10:50 PM CDT, when he reaches an altitude of 10° above the eastern horizon. He will then reach his highest point in the sky at 4:07 AM CDT, 59° above the southern horizon. He will be lost to dawn twilight around 5:36 AM CDT, 53° above the south-western horizon.

At month’s end he becomes accessible around 9:46 PM CDT, when he reaches an altitude of 10° above the eastern horizon. He will then reach his highest point in the sky at 3:02 AM CDT, 59° above the southern horizon. He will be lost to dawn twilight around 5:49 AM CDT.

Uranus, magnitude +5.7, and his 28 moons and ring, in Taurus, The Bull, is an early morning object.

At the first of the month, he becomes visible rising at 1:15 AM CDT) and reaching an altitude of 42° above the eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 4:50 AM CDT.

By midmonth he rises at 12:22 AM CDT, and reaches an altitude of 56° above the eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 5:03 AM CDT.

At months end he rises at 11:20 PM CDT, and reaches an altitude of 73° above the southeastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 5:17 AM CDT.

Neptune, magnitude 7.7, and his 16 moons and ring, is in Pisces, The Fish, is an early morning object.

At the first of the month, he becomes accessible at 12:09 AM CDT at an altitude of 21° above the eastern horizon and reaches an altitude of 55° above the southern horizon at 4:23 AM CDT and fades into the dawn twilight around 04:50 AM CDT, 56° above the southern horizon.

By midmonth he becomes accessible at 11:14 PM CDT at an altitude of 21° above the eastern horizon and reaches an altitude of 56° above the southern horizon at 3:27 AM CDT and fades into the dawn twilight around 5:03 AM CDT, 49° above the southern horizon.

At months end he becomes accessible at 10:10 PM CDT at an altitude of 21° above the eastern horizon and reaches an altitude of 56° above the southern horizon at 2:23 AM CDT and fades into the dawn twilight around 5:17 AM CDT, 37° above the southern horizon.

Pluto, the largest Dwarf Planet, with his five moons shines at a dim 14.5 in Capricornus, The Sea Goat.

Dwarf Planet 136108 Haumea, her ring and moons Hiʻiaka and Namaka, shines at a faint magnitude of 17.3 in Bootes, The Herdsman.

Dwarf Planet 136472 Makemake with his moon S/2015 (136472) 1, nicknamed MK1 by the discovery team, shines faintly at magnitude +17.1 in Coma Berenices.

Dwarf Planet 136199 Eris, the second largest Dwarf Planet, and her moon Dysnomia, originally referred to as Xena and Gabrielle, is barely visible in the most powerful telescopes at magnitude +18.7 in Cetus the Sea Monster.

At least seven additional bodies with the preliminary criteria for identifying dwarf planets, and though not “officially” declared as such, are generally called dwarf planets by astronomers as well.

90482 Orcus, and his moon Vanth shines at magnitude 19.1 near Auriga, The Charioteer.

50000 Quaoar, his two rings and his moon Waywot shines at magnitude +18.6 in Cancer, The Crab.

90377 Sedna, the coldest, and at one time, the most distant known place in the Solar System, glows faintly at magnitude +20.8 in Taurus, The Bull.

25088 Gonggong, the third largest Dwarf Planet, originally nicknamed Snow White by the discovery team, and his moon Xiangli glows dimly at +21.5 magnitude in Andromeda, The Chained Maiden.

2014 UZ224 nicknamed “DeeDee” for “Distant Dwarf” is 8.5 billion miles from the Sun, at magnitude +23.0 in Eridanus, The River.

120347 Salacia, and her moon Actaea glows at magnitude 20.7 in Hydra, The Sea Serpent. Salacia is considered a “borderline” Dwarf Planet. Some astronomers saying she “most certainly is a Dwarf Planet”, while others disagreeing based on her size, saying she is too small to have compressed into a fully solid body, to have been resurfaced, or to have collapsed into “hydrostatic equilibrium”, that is to assume spherical shape like a planet.

“Dwarf Planet Candidate” 2017 OF201, magnitude 23.2 is in Triangulum, The Triangle.

Currently the most distant observable known object in the Solar System, an asteroid unofficially called Asteroid 2018 AG37, and nicknamed FarFarOut, glows at a barely detectable +25.5 magnitude in Lynx.

FarFarOut is currently 12,397,103,817 miles or in Light Time, 18 hours, 29 minutes and 10 seconds from Earth.

The most distant man-made object, Voyager 1, still operating after 48 years, 9 months and 7 days is 15,843,495,728 miles or in Light Time, 23 hours, 38 minutes from Earth as of 1:32 PM CDT, July 16, 2026, sailing 38,027 miles per hour through Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer.

Near Earth Object, asteroid 99942 Apophis, is expected to pass within 19,794 miles of the Earth on Friday, April 13, 2029.

Apophis, magnitude +21.7, in Leo, The Lion, is 165,580,962 miles or 1002 days from the Earth as of 1:28 PM CDT, July 16, 2026.

There are 1,552,936 known asteroids and 4,069 comets as of July 16, 2026 per NASA/JPL Solar Dynamics Website.
6,324 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of July 16, 2026 per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive.

Last Quarter Moon, or when the moon has only the Eastern side illuminated, will occur August 5 at 9:22 PM CDT or 02:22 UTC August 6.

During the Quarter Moon the Moon’s magnitude is -10.0.

The moon will be at Perigee or its closest approach to Earth on August 10, when she will be
225,737 miles from Earth.

New Moon will occur at 12:37 AM CDT or 17:37 UTC on August 12. The Moon will be located on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere.

A Total Solar Eclipse will occur on August 12. A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon completely blocks the Sun, revealing the Sun’s beautiful outer atmosphere known as the corona.

The path of totality will begin in the Arctic Ocean off the Northern coast of Russia. It will move across Greenland, Iceland, and the Atlantic Ocean before ending in Spain. A partial eclipse will be visible Alaska, Canada, western Africa, and the northern United States.

The Perseid Meteor Shower peaks on the night of August 12 & 13, with 50 to 60 meteors per hour. This shower, produce by debris from Comet Swift-Tuttle, which was discovered in 1862, ranks as the best of the best, famous for producing bright meteors. The shower runs annually from July 17 to August 24. It peaks this year on the night of August 12 and the morning of August 13.

The New Moon will provide for an excellent year for the Perseids, as there will be no moonlight to interfere with the show so be prepared for what could be an impressive display. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Perseus, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

First Quarter Moon, or when the moon has only the Western side illuminated, will occur on August 19 at 9:46 PM CDT or 02:46 UTC on August 20.

During the Quarter Moons the Moon’s magnitude is -10.0.

The moon will be at Apogee or its farthest distance from Earth on August 22, when she will be 251,434 miles from Earth.

August’s Full Moon will occur August 27 at 10:19 PM or 04:19 UTC August 28. August’s Full Moon was called “Fruit Moon” in Cherokee Folklore, “Women’s Moon” among the Choctaw, “Sturgeon Moon” by the Algonquin because the large sturgeon fish of the Great Lakes and other major lakes were more easily caught at this time of year. This moon has also been known as the Green Corn Moon and the Grain Moon and at one time was called “Dog Days Moon” by the Colonial Americans.

During a Full Moon the Moon’s magnitude is -12.7.

There will be a Partial Lunar Eclipse on August 27 crossing into August 28. A partial lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes through the Earth’s partial shadow, or penumbra, and only a portion of it passes through the darkest shadow, or umbra. During this type of eclipse, a part of the Moon will darken as it moves through the Earth’s shadow. The eclipse will be visible throughout most of North America, Mexico, Central America, South America, the Atlantic Ocean, and most of Europe and Africa.
Eclipse times for Birmingham are:

Penumbral Eclipse begins: 8:23 PM – Earth’s penumbra starts touching the Moon.
Partial Eclipse begins: 9:33 PM – Moon begins to darken visibly.
Maximum Eclipse (93%coverage): 11:12 PM – Moon is closest to the center of the shadow.
Partial Eclipse ends: 12:51 AM – Moon starts to brighten.
Penumbral Eclipse ends: 2:01 AM – Earth’s penumbra fully leaves the Moon.

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Ham News

HF band conditions continue to be weak, while 6 Meters continues to experience very good Sporadic E openings. There also have been Sporadic E openings on 10 Meters, 2 Meters, the lower VHF TV channels & FM Broadcast Bands.

The Sporadic E season will last through August and afterward openings will become rarer and rarer, so catch them while you can!

With the Perseid Meteor Shower peaking on the night of August 12 & 13, one might give thought to meteor scatter, especially on 6 Meters.

Using USB, CW or digital modes, meteor scatter is best around dawn almost any morning, but especially from 2 AM to sunrise during meteor showers, with the Earth heading directly into the meteor stream. The velocity of the Earth’s rotation increases the effective velocity of inbound meteors. Conversely, the evening hours around 9 PM local time, is usually the worst time for observations or meteor scatter, as the Earth is rotating away from incoming meteors

On 6 meters, activity usually starts at 50.130 MHz and moves up, with many operators listening around 50.200 MHz. Contacts are fast, so one must keep their ears perked!

A beam antenna, such as a three element Yagi will help, especially during a meteor shower, by beaming in the general direction of where you hope to make contact. But many Meteor Scatter contacts can be made with dipole, vertical and even mobile antennas, using 50 to 100 Watts. So, you don’t need a NASA grade setup to do this.

In North America, most meteor-scatter work is done on USB, although there is some activity on CW.

As to voice, there is an informal daily gathering of meteor operators, “Meteor Scatter Mornings”, on 50.145 MHz every morning, from 11:00 – 12:00 UTC or currently 6:00 – 7:00 AM CDT (time can vary +/- an hour as this is not a formal net, but rather a gathering of like-minded operators).

This group covers from Wyoming to the East Coast, Florida, Texas, and “everything in between” using SSB and CW.

The procedure for working general meteor scatter is to call CQ for a few seconds and then listen for a few seconds. “CQ CQ CQ scatter WD4NYL WD4NYL”—spoken fast and clearly, without pausing for syllables. A quick reply might be “WD4NYL WD4NYL W3EP.” Contacts are complete when call signs and one other piece of information, usually the grid locator or state, is exchanged and acknowledged by “rogers.” Repeats are often required. Sometimes you may have to wait for the next burst to complete the contact. Keep the transmissions short and stay with a station until a full exchange of information is made.

Many use and promote digital mode MSK144, which was developed for Meteor Scatter, with good success, centered on 50.260 MHz. But, as I am not knowledgeable in that area, I’ll leave that for your own research, and remind folk that long before modern digital modes were invented, USB and CW were being used and used very successfully.

August contests and events of note are:

August 1 10-10 International – Summer – USB
ARRL 222 & Up Contest
North American QSO Party – CW

August 8 Maryland-DC QSO Party

August 15 North American QSO Party – SSB
CVA DX – Brazil – CW
Keyman’s Club Of Japan – CW

August 22 Hawaii OSO Party
Ohio QSO Party

August 29 W/VE Island QSO Party – Canadian & US Islands
Kansas QSO Party

The North American QSO Parties are great opportunities for those looking to work all states, as are the state QSO parties.

For more details and for a more comprehensive list go to WA7BNM Contest Calendar: WA7BNM Contest Calendar: Home

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This month’s meeting will be on August 11. Watch for Russell’s email announcement for details.

Hope to see you there!

Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
ALERT Newsletter