Belated 6 Meter Season Report

Each year I report on my 6 meter experiences after the end of the sporadic E season. It usually comes out in mid-August. This year I'm 2 months late; it is not because I've been putting it off. The season was not the greatest and with the increasing solar flux and the approach of the fall equinox I hoped that I would have more of interest to say by waiting. 

I regret to say that I was disappointed with both sporadic E and equinox north-south propagation (TEP). That makes the year interesting in some respects and less so with regard to my (and others') achievements this year. 

Despite the disappointments, let's go ahead and recap the year. We can learn from mediocre results, often more than with spectacular results. Many may therefore find this article uninteresting. Since I find it educational, I'll press on regardless. Read on if you will.

Perspectives on propagation

Reports of the sporadic E season have varied. In this part of the world the experience seems to have been mostly poor. Others had greater success. Propagation is not the same for everyone. If you're an ARRL member, please read the VHF column in the October QST which contrasted the differences among locations. A lucky few had great propagation this year.

Antennas matter. The more marginal the propagation the more the antennas matter. It is common for those stations to have openings that others nearby do not. I frequently notice this since my 6 meter antenna is higher and bigger than many of my friends. There are many bigger stations and in better locations who do far better than I ever will.

TEP to the southern hemisphere has been productive though not as good as I had hoped. The fall equinox season had one good opening and many "teasers" in which little could be worked. However the spring equinox season was good. It delivered numerous openings to South America which netted two new countries (more on that below).

Europe, the usual stalwart, delivered only a handful of good openings during the sporadic E season. When it was in it was pretty good, covering every corner of the continent. There is a lot of activity in Europe so that when there is a path we know it on this side of the Atlantic. Unfortunately I failed to work any new European countries. That said, there are only a few European countries that I have yet to work!

F2 paths that rely on a sustained high solar flux have been absent in 2023. Our geomagnetic latitude is higher than the geographic latitude due to the position of the geomagnetic pole. The average flux is rising at a steady and slow pace so there is hope for better next year. I say next year because as daylight fades with the approach of winter so do our prospects for F2 openings over the next several months.

Perhaps my disappointment is due to having experienced several good years of sporadic E propagation. Although 2023 has been poor, it was not worse than the worst I've seen since I returned to 6 meters in 2017. Propagation has its ups and downs, sporadic E is sporadic and sunspots come and go. 6 meters is the magic band and magic is fickle. The long anticipation of yet-to-arrived DX openings requiring a sustained solar flux of 200 tries our patience.

As I often say, if it was easy what would be the point? A challenge is what motivates station and skills improvement. It's us against nature and the laws of physics. Technical advances have made predicting and finding DX openings easier, but technology cannot manufacture openings. We learn, improve and measure our progress by our successes and our failures.

There was one very good aurora session this year. That netted contacts stretching across the northern US as far as Idaho. Although not DX, it was exciting to do well on aurora. That's one of the rare times I shut down WSJT-X and put the paddles to work. FTx modes are not compatible with aurora Doppler. We can expect more aurora propagation as the solar cycle peaks and then slides down the other side.

My log tells me that I made about 350 contacts on 6 meters this year. Most was via sporadic E. The total could have been much higher but I am not very interested in non-DX. I monitor most openings, scan the DX spotting networks and I will occasionally CQ into a seemingly dead band. Catching those brief and weak DX openings takes effort. Many times I am out of the shack when the band opens and I miss out.

New countries

My count of DXCC countries increased from 120 to 131. That's worked, not confirmed. On LoTW (the only way I confirm contacts) I have 120 confirmed. While I do operate CW and SSB when conditions warrant, all of my new countries are on FT8.

11 countries isn't much. A higher annual increment is unlikely until the solar flux increases enough to sustain F2 openings at this high geomagnetic latitude. As I said at the end of the 2022 season, I've reached the point on diminishing returns: each new one takes more effort than those that came before.

The most noteworthy new country I worked this year was New Zealand. I've heard ZL before but previous openings were too fleeting to make a QSO. Back in June, ZL1RS was not only workable, I was able to copy him pretty well for more than 20 minutes. I briefly heard but could not work two other ZL stations that evening. 

The other new one in the Pacific direction was FK8. They were in fairly consistently for several days in the spring. Then they were gone and they haven't been heard since. The solar flux hasn't risen too high for several months. On one of the days FK8 was heard, several strong Hawaii stations were rolling in but none that I haven't work before.

Another interesting new country was Angola. D2UY has been heard here and elsewhere in eastern NA quite regularly early in the year. On one day, and one day only, his signal was in for long enough to allow a QSO. There is not a lot of activity in Africa so every new country from there is an accomplishment. I heard and was heard in V5 and ZS but, again, there wasn't enough sustained propagation for a contact. Southern Africa was a common opening during the 1989-1990 solar maximum so there is reason to hope for better next year.

The rest of the new countries were in many respects uninteresting yet challenging in their own way. There was J8, V2, V4, FJ, OA and other Caribbean, South America and Central America countries that found their way in my log this summer. It should be an easy shot from here but, like for many parts of the world, there is limited activity on 6 meters from many of those countries and few have big antennas or pay close attention to the band.

For TEP-enhanced equinox propagation to the south, the new ones this year were OA and VP8 in March. The latter was a difficult contact since he had difficulty copying stations. Perhaps the local noise was high. I am running out of unworked countries in South America other than the rare islands. Galapagos Island (HC8) was worked by many locals. My attention was elsewhere and I missed it.

The final notable country was CY0S. That one was done on MSK144 meteor scatter. These were random meteors so it was very tough for everyone. A lucky few got through. We had no good sporadic E openings on this short path during the DXpedition.

Other stations heard and worked

Although not a new country, I was pleased to work OX3LX on a grid-pedition to northern Greenland. We don't often hear arctic stations on 6 meters. Although I don't enthusiastically chase grids and islands, working these unusual locations is always a pleasure.

There were numerous brief openings on long DX paths. Few delivered results but it was nice to hear them. These included:

• Japan: only two stations worked. This year was similar to the first time I briefly heard Japan but didn't work them. This time I was watching but this was all I could accomplish. There were other evenings with a few signals form JA netted no QSOs. Nothing else was heard from east Asia.
• Central Asia: We had one fleeting opening to UN. That's typical for us. Last year's bounty of UN stations was very unusual. Two stations called me but signals faded before we could complete the contacts. PSK Reporter told me that I was heard in another country in the region but I didn't hear them if they called me.
  
• Indian Ocean: Early in the year I heard 3B8, 3B9 and FR, and had a partial QSO with FR4OO. I was being heard, as seen on PSK Reporter, but I wasn't always hearing them. It is likely due to a power difference.
  
• A scattering of other DX: 9K, Z6, TR, among others. The only one of these worked was 9K.
  
• W6: We had many openings to California this year. That's unusual. W6 isn't DX but a long path nonetheless. I worked some though most were stations I'd worked before. I pay close attention when I hear the southwest US and northern XE because they can herald openings to the Pacific, which are on the same western bearing.

How can I do better? 

We are all at the mercy of propagation. We can monitor, let others know what we hear or toss a CQ into the aether. Bigger antennas and higher power can help. However, the several decibels you can glean that way pales in comparison to the far greater range of propagated signal levels. On the HF bands you can see results every day with a superior station because the propagation is more consistent.

That does not mean station improvements are pointless. I already run the legal limit on 6 meters so all I can do is improve the antenna. I can replace the optimized A50-6 with a bigger (longer boom) yagi or put another antenna higher up on one of my two big towers, and I may do so, even though that'll get me 1 or perhaps 2 db. 

To go further I'd need a stack, both for gain and for a variety of elevation angles. That would require a new tower since I'm out of room on the ones I have. My priority is HF contests so VHF and other antennas must be placed wherever I can find room left for them. A new tower is unlikely since I'm not getting any younger and station maintenance will eventually become a burden.

I continue to consider the possibilities despite the obstacles. Since I'll soon sate my HF station objectives there will be time to devote to other projects. A long boom yagi in 2024 is a possibility. That's about all I can say at this point while I ponder the alternatives.

Closing note

I think this will be the last of my annual 6 meter reports. I've had a lot to report on for the past 6 years, and many seem to have enjoyed those articles. The rise of FT8 and FT4 was partly responsible due to its novelty and how it drew many hams to the magic band.

The diminishing returns I spoke about in the 2022 report about DXCC countries can now also be applied to these articles. There will continue to be individual articles on select topics about 6 meters, including notable propagation, new technology and station improvement, but not annual reports.

Update Oct.20, 2023:

My gloomy report about DX for the remainder of the year proves that my belated report ought to have been belated a little longer. I got an email alert on October 19 from the newest member of our local 6 meter buddy group (VE3KG) that stations from the Indian Ocean were rolling in.

Frantic activity followed, with most of us working 3B8FA, 3B8CW and 3B9FR. A few hours later I worked 7Q7EMH. But that wasn't all! That evening saw an excellent TEP opening to South American. I worked a number of Brazilian stations while my friends chased ZP9HTL, who I worked last year. Then today, October 20, VP8LP was worked by many stations in this corner of North America. 

I guess the magic band still has a few surprises in store for us this year! It is remarkable considering that the solar flux index is hovering around 130. The key factor appears to be a rare October sporadic E opening bridging to TEP. Both days saw strong signals from VO1 and VY2, and later from W4.

It's a good thing someone in our group was checking 6 meters or I'd have missed all of it. The buddy system works.

3B8, 3B9 and 7Q are new DXCC countries for me, bringing my total to 134. My 2023 increment is now 14 countries. TO8FH (Mayotte) was heard by others nearby but not by me. That would have been a fine catch. I am no longer quite so gloomy about 6 meter prospects in the coming days and weeks.