Screen capture via Spaceweather.com
Many thanks to my good friend Mike Hansgen (K8RAT) who notes that another CME may affect the HF bands tomorrow. Spaceweather.com has posted an update:
“GREEN SKIES FOR ST. PATRICK’S DAY? Yesterday, a CME billowed away from the sun’s western limb: SOHO movie. The massive cloud could deliver a glancing blow to our planet’s magnetic field on March 17th, filling Arctic skies with green auroras just in time for St. Patrick’s Day. NOAA forecasters estimate a 40% chance of geomagnetic storms on March 17th, increasing to 60% on March 18th as Earth passes through the CME’s turbulent wake.
The incoming CME was propelled into space by sunspot AR2297. During the early hours of March 15th, the sunspot’s magnetic canopy erupted in tandem with a nearby magnetic filament.[…]
NOAA notes that there is a 50% chance this CME will cause geomagnetic storms, thus potential for unsettled HF band conditions.
Thomas
at 11 pm last night, there was a complete HF blackout on 41 and 49m bands. I didn’t get chance to check any others as I was just retiring for the night. A very curious experience, one which I haven’t witnessed before.
Charlie
Thanks for that report, Charlie. Several years ago, I chatted with a a buddy in Morse Code on 40M, I believe. During the conversation, his signal was very strong, but mid sentence, he simply disappeared. I called back for him and heard no response. I tuned around and nothing else was on the band. I thought my receiver has just gone out or my antenna had fallen. I phoned my buddy and he reported the same thing–everything was gone from the band. Turned out, it was a radio blackout due to a similar situation. Amazing how quickly propagation can be swept away!
-Thomas