The ARRL Current

ARRL’s Cycle 25 initiative is here! Beginning with the April issue of QST and the March/April issue of On the Air, look for the Cycle 25 logo on content that’s designed to teach you about the most recent solar cycle, and prepare you for its eventual peak — which will hopefully mean optimal propagation and increased on-air activity!

Cycle 25 articles will cover the various aspects of the solar cycle, as well as wide-ranging activities you can undertake to further your understanding of it — and perhaps even contribute to the scientific community’s understanding.  Here are some quick ideas for enhancing your operating:

• Add a Raspberry Pi and two monitors to your shack for the purpose of keeping websites visible while you’re operating. Which sites? DXMaps, PSKReporter, DXWatch, Reverse Beacon Network (RBN), and WSPRNet are a few. If you’re running FT8 and using PSKReporter, even when the bands seem dead, you may be shocked to see where you’re being heard! Likewise if you’re running CW and RBN. Leverage this real-time information to make more contacts.
• Dive into space weather. Develop a habit of reviewing the solar numbers — SSN, SFI, A-index, and K-index — and correlate them to your own operating conditions. ARRL provides a fantastic propagation bulletin you can subscribe to via your profile page at arrl.org, and there are many other sources of this information as well.
• Cycle 25 may make 10 meters more exciting, so be prepared to operate on that band if you aren’t already. One benefits of 10 meters is that the antennas are relatively small, so it’s easy and inexpensive to build and install 10-meter antennas with gain. This will give you the opportunity to experiment with different antennas, switching between them during band openings to see which ones favor the propagation you’re experiencing at that moment.