[hackpgh-ham] Re: VOAProp - HF propagation estimator
- From: "j. eric townsend" <jet@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: hackpgh-ham@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 07 Mar 2011 20:09:23 -0500
If you're on OSX, there's a similar-but-different program called DX Toolbox:
<http://www.blackcatsystems.com/software/dxtoolbox.html>
It will show you hops from your location at a given frequency and power
and also has SPACE WEATHER BULLETINS.
On 2/17/11 19:31, Ed Paradis wrote:
Hi guys,
The recent solar shenanigans have me interested in thinking about what
bands to use when. If you're using Windows, check out VOAProp:
http://www.g4ilo.com/voaprop.html
Unfortunately it is no longer in development, but works find on the
Windows XP machines I've run it on. You set your location, the power
you're transmitting with, and it will download the latest space
weather data.
It produces a nice graph of the estimated signal strength that your
signal will be received at across the globe.
For example, it looks like right now the 20 meter band (14.0 MHz) is
closing, but that the 30-160 meter bands (10.1 to 1.8MHz) are doing
great. I typically use the lowest or second lowest power setting to
estimate my 5W QRP rig. You'll notice during the day that some of the
higher bands open up into Latin America. When I lived in Texas I
could confirm the estimates by hearing various stations in Spanish
that were coming from that region.
Remember, its just an estimate and your signal could do something
really different or a station with a really good antenna could hear
you where you'd not expect. That said, it does teach you something
about propagation in a practical "What if I were to want to transmit
_right_now_?"
Ed
--
J. Eric Townsend
design: www.allartburns.org; hacking: www.flatline.net; HF: KG6ZVQ
PGP: 0xD0D8C2E8 AC9B 0A23 C61A 1B4A 27C5 F799 A681 3C11 D0D8 C2E8
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