Topic 35 of 92: Gaia Magnetosphere
Mon, May 8, 2000 (20:18) |
Mike Kana (aa9il)
Greetings From Radio Earth!
This topic is dedicated to the sounds of Natural Radio i.e. whistlers, dawn chorus, sferics, solar wind, earthquake emissions, aurora, etc. and the
practice of monitoring and recording this phenomena.
585 responses total.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 1 of 585: Curious Wolfie (wolf) * Mon, May 8, 2000 (20:41) * 1 lines
including SETI???
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 2 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 8, 2000 (20:42) * 1 lines
Mike! Aloha! Off to do a google search for a good diagram to show what we (YOU?!) are talking about! (Yippee!!!)
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 3 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Mon, May 8, 2000 (21:18) * 7 lines
SETI?
Ya, sure... Makes it more easy to sneak in comments from the
radio astronomy side....
Mike
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 4 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 8, 2000 (21:31) * 1 lines
Excellent! *delighted grin* Love the name you chose, Mike! Perfect!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 5 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 8, 2000 (21:36) * 29 lines
http://www.agu.org/sci_soc/cowley.html
It begins:
A Beginner's Guide to the Earth's Magnetosphere
Earth in Space Vol. 8, No. 7, March 1996, p.9. © 1996 American Geophysical Union. Permission is hereby granted to journalists to use this
material so long as credit is given, and to teachers to use this material in classrooms.
The magnetosphere is the region of space to which the Earth's magnetic field is confined by
the solar wind plasma blowing outward from the Sun, extending to distances in excess of
60,000 kilometers from Earth. Much has been learned about this dynamic plasma region over
the past 40 years, since the first direct measurements were made by the early Sputnik and
Explorer spacecraft.
by Stanley W. H. Cowley, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester,
Leicester, United Kingdom
The Earth's magnetosphere is formed from two essential ingredients. The first is the Earth's magnetic field, generated by
currents flowing in the Earth's core. Outside the Earth this field has the same form as that of a bar magnet, a dipole field,
aligned approximately with the Earth's spin axis. The second ingredient is the solar wind, a fully ionized hydrogen/helium
plasma that streams continuously outward from the Sun into the solar system at speeds of about 300–800 kilometers per
second. This wind is therefore composed of protons and alpha particles, together with sufficient electrons that it is
electrically neutral overall. The solar wind is also pervaded by a large-scale interplanetary magnetic field, the solar
magnetic field transported outward into the solar system by the solar wind plasma. There is a third ingredient that also
plays an important role: the Earth's ionosphere. The upper atmosphere is partially ionized by far-ultraviolet and X rays
from the Sun above altitudes of about 100 km. The resulting ionosphere forms a second source of plasma for the
magnetosphere, mainly of protons, singly charged helium and oxygen, and the requisite number of electrons for electric
charge neutrality.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 6 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 8, 2000 (21:45) * 0 lines
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 7 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 8, 2000 (21:53) * 21 lines
The Earth's Magnetic Field
The Earth has a magnetic field with north and south poles. The
Earth's magnetic field reaches 36,000 miles into space.
The magnetic field of the Earth is surrounded in a region called the
magnetosphere. The magnetosphere prevents most of the particles
from the sun, carried in solar wind, from hitting the Earth.
Some particles from the solar wind can enters the magnetosphere. The particles that enter
from the magnetotail travel toward the Earth and create the auroral oval light shows.
The Sun and other planets have magnetospheres, but the Earth has the strongest one of all the rocky planets. The
Earth's north and south magnetic poles reverse at irregular intervals of hundreds of thousands of years.
Lots of links on this url - all are worth a look
http://www.windows.umich.edu/cgi-bin/tour_def/earth/Magnetosphere/overview.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 8 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 8, 2000 (22:12) * 1 lines
*Whew* Ok. Mike, it's your sand box. I'll try to stay out of it as much as possible. Enjoy! (Isn't that a killer diagram? I liked it so much I had to delete the post with the pix from the web and save it on my space on Spring's hard drive...)
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 9 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Tue, May 9, 2000 (13:48) * 11 lines
Greetings all
Well thats a good start!
An interesting tool that is available for the analysis of whistlers is a
FFTDSP program that runs on your PC. Check out www.webcom.com/af9y/
for information on this application. Also on this page is some good
info on Earth Moon Earth communications and other weak signal applications.
Mike
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 10 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Tue, May 9, 2000 (13:57) * 1 lines
Mike, I think you're gonna have to write out what FFTDSP means (I'm gonna look it up 'cause I don't remember. About the EME communications, there is a rather lively group on the 14 MHz band which sets up schedules for folks to work in pairs so they know to listen very carefully. One sends the signal (often CW or Morse Code) to the moon at such an angle that the other guy with a calculated amount of time lapse for the signal to travel can receive the bounced signal. I think that is truly amazing. I have listened for it, but my antenna is all wrong for those frequencies they work. Going to check out the program you suggest.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 11 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Tue, May 9, 2000 (14:28) * 5 lines
http://www.webcom.com/af9y/ is a totally amazing place. That one little program ($32 US to get by email) will allow you to "see" signals from NASA's Lunar Prospector, EME signals(see above), And has SETI applications. There is a month's free trial also available. Kew Features are available on
http://www.webcom.com/af9y/radio10.htm
Check it out! Thanks, Mike!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 12 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Tue, May 9, 2000 (20:40) * 7 lines
Solar Flux is on the rise! This morning it was 137. This just came in:
SFI=150 | A=10 down from 11 | K=1 down from 2 at 0000 on 10 May. SAF: low to moderate, GMF: quiet to unsettled Aurora Level: 7
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 13 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Thu, May 11, 2000 (15:22) * 7 lines
Check out posting
http://www.spring.net/yapp-bin/restricted/read/geo/2.180
I wonder how much of that stuff will interefere with our global well-being and wave propagation. Never heard of ejecta from anything but out Sun having an effect on terrestrial matters. Mike, do you know?
SFI=179 | A=3 | K=1 down from 2 at 1800 on 11 May. SAF: low to moderate, GMF: quiet to active Aurora Level: 5
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 14 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Thu, May 11, 2000 (15:47) * 3 lines
Mike, gotta few questions for you since you are going to be making the array to detect these things and please let us know what you are doing and how it is progressing. It will be like being at Genesis 1:1
You must not live in an urban stetting if a radio-telescope dish is in your future. What size are you planning and is it gonna be one of those altasimuth mounts or are you opting for a U-shaped movable yoke? Clock drive is imperitive, of course. This will be for the Project SETI observations.
What sort of antennas are you going to need for the ELF and EME listening? You must be building the world's most amazing antenna switch! Please let us hear your thinking and planning for these prohjects. That is almost the most exciting part - aside from actually capturing the signals themselves!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 15 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Thu, May 11, 2000 (16:13) * 16 lines
Space Weather News for May 11, 2000
Material from a coronal mass ejection that left the Sun on May 8 is
expected to pass by our planet late on May 11 or early May 12. Depending
on the characteristics of the magnetic field within the disturbance, it
could trigger minor geomagnetic storms on Earth. There is a slim chance of
aurorae at mid-latitudes, but auroral activity will more likely be
concentrated over high latitude regions including northern Europe, Canada
and Alaska.
Visit http://www.spaceweather.com for more information and updates.
SpaceWeather.com
---
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 16 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, May 12, 2000 (14:36) * 43 lines
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 19 - May 12, 2000
Solar flux and sunspot numbers were sharply lower over the past ten
days, but are now heading higher. Solar flux reached a low on
Saturday, May 6, when the three readings for the day were 126.3,
126.8 and 126.7. The noon 126.8 reading is the official flux for the
day. Daily solar flux values have not been this low since October 2,
1999, when it was 126.3. Average solar flux for the past week was
off by over 30 points when compared to the previous week, and
average sunspot numbers were down by nearly 13.
Another interesting number to look at is the total sunspot area
visible on the solar disk. These numbers are expressed as millionths
of a hemisphere, and you can see the daily value along with the
solar flux and sunspot numbers online at
gopher://sec.noaa.gov/00/indices/DSD. We reached a low of 130 for
visible sunspot area on May 7. Sunspot area has not been this low
since September 30 and October 1, 1999. This value represents a
nearly spotless sun, and is actually equivalent to .013 percent of
the visible surface. Contrast this with a short time back, April 23,
when the sunspot area number was 2860, representing 22 times the
visible area of the May 7 value.
All of this does not mean that we have passed the peak of the solar
cycle, however. Activity jumps around quite a bit, even during a
peak year of the cycle such as this one. It is only later when
viewing smoothed numbers on a graph that the progress of a cycle
looks steady. For more information, read Solar Ups and Downs at
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast09may_1m.htm.
As this bulletin is written on Thursday evening, the solar flux
seems to be ramping upward. It is measured three times per day in
Penticton, British Columbia at 1700, 2000 and 2300z, and the last
four values measured, from 2300z Wednesday through 2300z Thursday
are 167.7, 177.7, 177.7 and 186.5. The predicted solar flux for the
next five days, Friday through Tuesday, are 190, 195, 200, 200, and
205. Solar flux is expected to peak for the short term around 220 on
May 18, then drop down around 130 from June 1-3.
Unfortunately, this weekend there may be effects from a coronal mass
ejection that occurred on May 8. Predicted planetary A index for
Friday through Tuesday is 20, 20, 15, 8, 8 and 8.
Sunspot numbers for May 4 through 10 were 105, 122, 111, 130, 131,
149 and 174 with a mean of 131.7. 10.7 cm flux was 134.5, 129.8,
126.8, 130.9, 137, 149.5 and 179.2, with a mean of 141.1, and
estimated planetary A indices were 8, 14, 12, 7, 6, 11 and 7, with a
mean of 9.3.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 17 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, May 12, 2000 (16:46) * 4 lines
Mike! Look!!! You should get all sorts of stuff tonight on short wave. Pop the BFO and enjoy! I plan to
SFI=190 up from 178 | A=15 up from 5 | K=2 at 2100 on 12 May. SAF: low to moderate, GMF: quiet to active Aurora Level: 7
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 18 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, May 12, 2000 (16:47) * 1 lines
Of course, it'll be really noisy with the A index so high. The lower the better with that and the K.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 19 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, May 12, 2000 (17:35) * 80 lines
The Cosmos Was Alive With the Sound of Matter
By K.C. COLE
When the universe speaks, astronomers listen.
When it sings, they swoon.
That's roughly what happened late last month when a group
of astronomers led by Caltech's Andrew Lange published the
most detailed analysis yet of the cosmos' primordial song: a low
hum, deep in its throat, that preceded both atoms and stars.
It is a simple sound, like the mantra "Om." But hidden within
its harmonics are details of the universe's shape, composition
and birth. So rich are these details that within hours of the
paper's publication, new interpretations of the data had already
appeared on the Los Alamos web for new astrophysical papers.
"It's stirred up a hornet's nest of interest," said UCLA
astronomer Ned Wright, who gave a talk to his colleagues on
the paper the next week.
So what is all the fuss about? Why are astronomers churning
out paper after paper on what looks to a lay person like a
puzzling set of wiggly peaks--graphic depictions of the sound,
based on hours of computer analysis?
Because there's scientific gold in them there sinusoidal hills.
The peaks and valleys paint a visual picture of the sound the
newborn universe made when it was still wet behind the ears, a
mere 300,000 years after its birth in a big bang. Nothing existed
but pure light, speckled with occasional subatomic particles.
Nothing happened, either, except that this light and matter
fluid, as physicists call it, sloshed in and out of gravity wells,
compressing the liquid in some places and spreading it out in
others. Like banging on the head of a drum, the compression of
the "liquid light" as it fell into gravity wells set up the "sound
waves" that cosmologist Charles Lineweaver calls "the oldest
music in the universe."
* * *
Then, suddenly, the sound fell silent. The universe had gotten
cold enough that the particles, in effect, congealed, like the
salad dressing left in the fridge; the light separated and
escaped, like the oil on top.
The rest is the history of the universe: The particles joined
each other to form atoms, stars and everything else, including
people.
"The universe was very simple back then," said Lange. "After
that, we have atoms, chemistry, economics. Things go downhill
very quickly."
As for the light, or radiation, it still pervades all space. In fact,
it's part of the familiar "snow" that sometimes shows up on
broadcast TV. But it's more than just noise: When the particles
congealed, they left an imprint on the light.
Like children going after cookies, the patterns of sloshing
particles left their sticky fingerprints all over the sky.
The pattern of the sloshes tells you all you need to know
about the very early universe: It's shape, how much was made of
matter, how much of something else.
The principle is familiar: Your child's voice sounds like no one
else's because the resonant cavities within her throat create a
unique voiceprint. The large, heavy wood of the cello creates a
mellower sound than the high-strung violin. Just so, the sounds
coming from the early universe depend directly on the density of
matter, and the shape of the cosmos itself.
Astronomers can't hear the sounds, of course. But they can
read them on the walls of the universe like notes on a page.
Compressed sound gets hot, and produces hot splotches, like a
pressure cooker. Expanded areas cool. Analyze the hot and
cold patches and you get a picture of the sound: exactly how
much falls on middle C, or B flat.
What they've seen so far is both exciting and troubling. The
sound suggests that the universe is a tad too heavy with
ordinary matter to agree with standard cosmological theories; it
resonates more like an oboe than a flute. Something's going on
that can't be explained. The answers may come when an even
more ambitious probe launches into space later this year.
Lest you think these sounds are music only for astronomers'
ears, consider: The same wrinkles in space that created the
gravity wells that gave rise to the sounds also blew up to form
clusters, galaxies, stars, planets, us.
Even Hare Krishnas murmuring: Om.
....and Mike and we are listening, too *grin*
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 20 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, May 12, 2000 (19:35) * 2 lines
SFI=190 | A=17 up from 15 | K=4 up from 2 at 0000 on 13 May. SAF: low to moderate, GMF: quiet to active, Aurora Level: 8
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 21 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Fri, May 12, 2000 (22:04) * 27 lines
FFTDSP - Fast Fourier Transform Digital Signal Processing
Spectral Analysis using software algorithms....
Re the SETI, EME, and ELF stuff
EME calls for very large (for lower frequencies) antenna arrays
althogh some single yagi type arrays have been used at 144mhz.
At 1.2ghz, some EME antennas are yagi type antennas but the dish
starts coming into play - a large dish however.....
My initial dish is a reinforced solid aluminum 9ft dish that
came from a nondisclosed defense contractor antenna test range.
It is currently residing behind a garage covered with decaying
leaves... My goal would be to put up a 5meter or larger dish
but the backyard would be obscured - I was told to just put the
thing up and quit asking about it. The neighbors couldnt tell
an L-band feed from a hole in the ground....
As far as steering the antenna goes, I plan to use an AZ-EL
although the cheap alternative is to fix the position and just
do drift scan. Its ok as long as I do not clutter too much
of the yard - kind of interferes with summer parties.
The VLF antenna is actually quite small - just a short whip
connected to a high gain amplifier. Other experimenters have
used long wires. The design I have will get by with a small
vertical.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 22 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, May 12, 2000 (22:16) * 2 lines
How nice - you already have the Big stuff in the back yard, and what a conversation piece for your summer parties! Just a short whip? Not a rubber duckie coiled miles of antenna wire into a little space? A real little whip? That must be some high-gain amplifier you have (and I have no reason whatever to question you on it - you are the expert and I am the novice in here). How are you going to record the stuff - rolls of paper like seismographs, autio tape, other I cannot imagine? Ummm...I like the idea of the 5 meter dish (or larger!)
Your less with-it neighbors are gonna want to know what TV programs you get on that dish! EME stuff is line-of-sight... How many of the others you are planning depend on propagation rather than line-of-sight? I wish I knew more to ask more intelligent questions. But, I'll work on it! Thanks, Mike!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 23 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, May 12, 2000 (22:21) * 5 lines
Off to find an english (simple, hopefully) explanation of
"FFTDSP - Fast Fourier Transform Digital Signal Processing
Spectral Analysis using software algorithms.... "
I've heard it discussed often enough between two people who already knew what they were talking about. Off to try to teach myself a few new things...!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 24 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, May 13, 2000 (16:33) * 3 lines
SFI=217 up from 190 | A=14 down from 17 | K=3 at 2100 on 13 May. SAF: low to moderate, GMF: quiet to active, Aurora Level: 7
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 25 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sun, May 14, 2000 (16:35) * 5 lines
SFI=233 up from 217 | A=16 up from 14 | K=2 at 2100 on 14 May. SAF: moderate, GMF: quiet to unsettled, Aurora Level: 5
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 26 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 15, 2000 (16:43) * 2 lines
SFI=244 up from 233 | A=13 down from 15 | K=2 down from 3 at 2100 on 15 May. SAF: high, GMF: quiet to active, Aurora Level: 7
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 27 of 585: geospring (sprin5) * Tue, May 16, 2000 (13:37) * 1 lines
How's the radio telescope project, Mike?
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 28 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Tue, May 16, 2000 (16:34) * 3 lines
SFI=259 up from 244 | A=15 up from 12 | K=2 down from 3 at 2100 on 16 May. SAF: moderate, GMF: quiet to active, Aurora Level: 6
Ok guys, how high can this go? Another coronal outburst is due to hit May 17-18
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 29 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Thu, May 18, 2000 (00:45) * 2 lines
Please check post
http://www.spring.net/yapp-bin/restricted/read/Geo/34.66
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 30 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 22, 2000 (13:45) * 12 lines
Radio JOVE -- NASA helps students tune in to radio bursts from Jupiter
Jupiter is a source of powerful radio bursts that can
produce exotic sounds on common ham radio receivers.
NASA scientists are helping students tune in to the
giant planet as part of an innovative educational program
called Radio JOVE. FULL STORY at
http://spacescience.com/headlines/y2000/ast22may_1.htm?list
Radio JOVE
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 31 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Mon, May 22, 2000 (19:27) * 34 lines
Greetings all
Back from the bog.....
Well, some of the obnoxious distractions are behind me so
I can focus on the more important things like building
equipment - as far as the ELF monitoring equipment goes,
the antenna is a 57 inch steel whip that is part of an
E-field preamp - this was a construction project in the July
1999 'Lowdown' publication (Longwave Club of America).
This might take a back seat to my 24ghz transmit/receive
system which I need to get to building. I will post more
info as time allows - also check out: www.triax.com/vlfradio/
which is a webpage dedicated to VLF monitoring along with
actual recordings of whisters.
Finally, regarding the radio telescope project - I need to
come up with some designs for the down converter and receiver
assembly then how to log the data - plus have to get that
8ft dish moved over....
The first stage is (other than the dish, feed, LNA, AZ EL, etc...)
is to build a stable L band (1.4ghz) down converter which will
feed some type of analogue to digital converter which then feeds
the PC doing data logging. This is a very long term project
with the end not in sight at the moment. Not to say that components
will not be built up and integrated - the dish will allow for some
satellite or EME experiments as well.
Re the Jovian experiments - listening to Jupiter is one of the initial
steps in radio astronomy and can be copied on radio receivers that
tune 21Mhz. The next would be a simple 12ghz solar observatory
using available ku band satellite tv components.
With the arrival of new surplus components, the 24ghz project beckons...
radio free cosmo
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 32 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 22, 2000 (19:57) * 2 lines
Yay! Mike is back. Terry and I were about to send out a posse to rescue you!
Now to read what you posted. We thought mebbe a DXpedition or a swap meet had taken you hostage...*grin* It is great to have you back. Now, I'm gonna read what you wrote...!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 33 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 22, 2000 (20:04) * 5 lines
Have the receiver with the 21 MHz band right beside me - surely not in SSB or is it? Know any freq's off hand for the Jovian listening (or I could hunt at the url I posted above - which is what I should be doing...)
It is really great to have such great long-term projects which will interface. I know Terry is eager to know what you are doing and I am sure you will be seeing his posts in here.
The propagation was out of sight last week and weekend - and I could get stations in daylight which I normally do not get. It was interesting and not too noisy - something of a surprise!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 34 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 22, 2000 (20:21) * 4 lines
Check out Mike's suggested url
http://www.triax.com/vlfradio/
Lots of what he will be talking about is there and a terrific photo of an Aurora over Canada. Too bad it is black and white!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 35 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 22, 2000 (20:22) * 2 lines
but keep going...http://www.triax.com/vlfradio/sndbites.htm
is the sound page and it is in color there! Absolutely spectacular. Thanks for the URL !
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 36 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 22, 2000 (20:25) * 1 lines
The sounds are phenomenal. Have you ever heard Aurora sounds, Mike? How loud are they and how much like this wav file do they sound?
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 37 of 585: Claudine (Passionata) * Mon, May 22, 2000 (22:35) * 1 lines
Testing
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 38 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, May 22, 2000 (22:38) * 1 lines
Coming in loud and clear. Welcome!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 39 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Tue, May 23, 2000 (19:04) * 5 lines
Mike, I am downloading and installing SETI@home software
http://setiathome.ssl.berkeley.edu/windows.html
There is a topic concerning this software and what it does
http://www.spring.net/yapp-bin/restricted/read/software/172/new
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 40 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Tue, May 23, 2000 (19:08) * 1 lines
I am up and running! I signed in and now it is data crunching. I feel joined to the cosmos!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 41 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Tue, May 23, 2000 (22:09) * 21 lines
Im still here for the moment but will have to observe radio silence
for a bit - no need to call out the rescue units (grin) Will try
to check in if possible.
Re Aurora - a popular mode of communcating amongst the VHF and up
crowd is Aurora scatter - point the antenna at the aurora and use
it as a giant reflector - have not heard cw signals from aurora
propagation but I think it has a raspy note to it (?) I have
listened to microwave signals using rain scatter - once during
the June VHF contest, I listened to 5ghz ssb signals from a station
35 miles to the west (off the back of my dish) talking to a station
across the lake in central Michigan - neat stuff. This type of
propagation also can happen in snow blizzards. The mode I want
to work on is tropo-ducting where the hot and cold air near the
lake surface form a 'duct' that acts as an excellent propagation
medium. For 24ghz, I will have to rely on dry days with little
humidity due to the absorption problems caused by moisture.
Anyway, be back sometime in the near future....
Mike
AA9IL
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 42 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Wed, May 24, 2000 (12:06) * 4 lines
Good business, Mike. I have heard tropr-ducting across a small lake in upper NY State. We could hear quite plainly the voices and allied noises of the people across the lake who were making breakfast and using china plates. It is amazing how loud and clear it is. How is skip doing these days? It has been years since it was worth the effort.
My SETI software is still crunching numbers from Arecibo. This is the most fascinating program I ever downloaded! Take care - we await your next post
3's n 8's
Marcia
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 43 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, May 26, 2000 (00:20) * 24 lines
Here's another interesting monitoring and data crunching possibillity:
From: Glenn Thompson - glenn@mvomrat.com
With a single PC workstation it is now possible to compute plots (e.g.
spectrograms) of continuous seismic data for dozens of stations and display
these on the World-Wide Web within minutes. Web-based seismic monitoring of
volcanoes offers several advantages, perhaps the main one being that a
person on beeper duty can respond to an alarm without having to leave home
in the middle of the night. It also makes it easy to share data with other
scientists and schools.
I spent the last two years developing a Web-based system to monitor the
seismicity at Alaskan volcanoes. I am curious to learn what other systems
exist out there. I would be very grateful if the creators of such systems
would get in touch with me and give me a short (a paragraph would be fine)
description of your system (would be helpful if you included URL and related
publications if any). I would also be happy to hear from anyone who is
currently developing (or thinking about developing) such a system, or
anyone's views on the future of Web-based monitoring of volcanoes (including
web-cams, satellite data etc.).
Many thanks,
Glenn Thompson (glenn@mvomrat.com)
Seismologist
Montserrat Volcano Observatory
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 44 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jun 3, 2000 (23:41) * 11 lines
Lack of coronal outbursts lately caused the solar flux to plummet. They are recovering nicely, now - and they have added another parameter to their reports:
SFI=166 | A=11 | K=2 down from 3 at 0300 on 4 June.
SAF: moderate to high, GMF: quiet to unsettled
Aurora Level: 4
Solar Wind: 443.1 km/s at 3.5 protons/cc
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 45 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Jun 5, 2000 (14:21) * 16 lines
First Light for a Space Weather Satellite
NASA Science News for June 5, 2000
NASA's IMAGE mission, a unique satellite dedicated to the
study of space storms, has returned its first pictures of
electrified gas surrounding our planet. Using antennas as
large as the Empire State Building, IMAGE is taking
an unprecedented look at Earth's magnetic environment and
its response to fierce gusts of solar wind.
FULL STORY at
http://spacescience.com/headlines/y2000/ast05jun_1m.htm?list
__
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 46 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Tue, Jun 6, 2000 (19:28) * 11 lines
Ok, back again....
The seismic monitoring seems tres kewl - have to dig up that
web page and give it a look-see.
First on the list is some goofy microwave stuff but I need to
build up the final parts for a project INSPIRE receiver to
take out into the country for Whistler monitoring. Free
time, what is that?
Let Chaos Reign! Hail Eris!
Mike
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 47 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Tue, Jun 6, 2000 (19:45) * 3 lines
Mike! There you are! Another solar burst is on its way - use your cosmic umbrella this week. I am just about finished crunching my 8th block of SETI data. Welcome home.
Of course, Chaos reigns... and there is even order in Chaos!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 48 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Wed, Jun 7, 2000 (14:13) * 20 lines
Solar Storm Warnings
Date: Wed, 7 Jun 2000 12:30:08 -0500
From: NASA Science News
NASA Science News for June 7, 2000
An interplanetary shock wave from a solar coronal mass ejection is
expected to pass our planet this Thursday, possibly triggering
aurora at middle-latitudes. This story includes animations of
the solar eruption as well as aurora borealis observing tips.
Note: Science@NASA readers who capture photos of the aurora
are invited to send them as email attachments to
phillips@spacescience.com for possible inclusion in a follow-up
web story.
FULL STORY at
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast07jun_1m.htm?list
__
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 49 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Thu, Jun 8, 2000 (19:31) * 9 lines
Anyone going out tonite to watch for the Aurora?
- In the VLF communications area, another organization that
is doing research in VLF communications is AMRAD - the Amateur
Radio Research and Development Corporation. See their web
page at www.amrad.org
73's de Mike
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 50 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Thu, Jun 8, 2000 (20:07) * 2 lines
Thanks mike - my ex is gonna try!!!
I posted the coronal storms on Geo 34 I'll try but we are pretty far south...
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 51 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jun 9, 2000 (11:23) * 17 lines
June 8-9 Aurora Update
Space Weather News for June 8-9, 2000
Geomagnetic disturbances are finally subsiding after an interplanetary
shock wave struck Earth's magnetosphere around 930 UT on June 8. The event
triggered intense aurora over sparsely-inhabited regions of northern Asia
and the Pacific. However, by nightfall over North America conditions had
quieted. There is still a chance for isolated auroral substorms that might
be visible tonight (June 8-9) at middle latitudes.
The next opportunity for viewing aurora borealis may arrive as soon as June
10, when another solar wind disturbance is expected to reach Earth. For
more information and updates please visit http://www.spaceweather.com
SpaceWeather.com
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 52 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jun 9, 2000 (12:25) * 29 lines
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 23 - June 9, 2000
A large coronal mass ejection on June 6 is raising havoc with HF
propagation. Geomagnetic conditions were rough on Wednesday, with K
indices of 3 and 4, but the big effect was measured on Thursday,
when the planetary K index was 7 at 0900 and 1200z, followed by 6 at
1500z. The planetary A index for Thursday was 53, while the College
A index (in Alaska) was 79. This indicates a severe geomagnetic
storm, which should disrupt HF communications but may provide
interesting auroral communication opportunities for VHF enthusiasts.
Regarding visible aurora effects, the chances over North America are
declining on Friday morning, although earlier in the day there was
an intense aurora visible over Asia.
To add to the excitement, there was another coronal mass ejection on
Wednesday, June 7. The latest word has solar wind providing another
disruption on Saturday, June 10.
Planetary A index should rise on Friday to 75, then drop to 40 on
Saturday, 25 on Sunday, 18 on Monday and 15 on Tuesday. Solar flux
is expected to rise over the same period, to 185 on Friday, 190 on
Saturday, 200 on Monday and 210 on Tuesday. Solar flux is expected
to peak over the short term around 245 on June 16.
Last week's bulletin mentioned monitoring WWV for the latest solar
and geophysical numbers, and both WB6RIB and W9LYN wrote to suggest
the URL of ftp://ftp.sel.noaa.gov/pub/latest/wwv.txt for the latest
text of the WWV bulletin that appears at 18 minutes after every
hour.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 53 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Fri, Jun 9, 2000 (22:10) * 8 lines
No aurora here but plenty of mosquitos. Took the high tech
scooter around the neighborhood and barely made it to the
door alive. Oh well, see what happens on 6-10 with the
solar wind blast.
de Mike
Radio Cosmo International
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 54 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jun 10, 2000 (00:08) * 1 lines
Thanks for reporting in, Mike. My respondants reported city light glare, clouds and rain but no aurora. Don't think my message got to the European contingent. I had a transfusion when I got back as well. Eruptions are much nicer. They smell bad enough and are hot enough to discourage mosquitoes. Maybe you need to burn mosquito coils on your high-tech scooter?!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 55 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jun 10, 2000 (18:11) * 9 lines
The solar storm has hit us:
SFI=180 up from 169 | A=25 up from 7 | K=3 at 2100 on 10 June.
SAF: low to moderate, GMF: quiet to active
Aurora Level: 9
Solar Wind: 460.7 km/s at 1.6 protons/cc
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 56 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Sat, Jun 10, 2000 (21:09) * 10 lines
Well, did some VHF/UHF operating during the June ARRL contest.
Worked across the lake into Michigan on 144Mhz and heard some
bursts on 223Mhz. Someone else was working 6 meters (50Mhz)
but the band did seem open - most likely sporadic E propagation
although maybe F??? No Aurora but plenty of storm clouds
to the North. Brought the 5.7ghz transverter out for show
and tell - need to hook that thing up and operate!
73 de Mike
AA9IL
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 57 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jun 10, 2000 (21:19) * 1 lines
Let me know when you are GOING to be on (rather than after it) - would love to hear your voice... the 14 MHz is sort of dead but there is a huge pile up on 14.204. Pretty quiet, actually!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 58 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jun 10, 2000 (21:55) * 17 lines
A solar flare, a CME, and a solar wind disturbance -- all in one day!
Space Weather News for June 10, 2000
The prolific flare-producing sunspot group #9026 unleashed another
moderately strong solar flare today. The eruption was accompanied by a
partial halo coronal mass ejection (CME) that might be Earth-directed. If
so, material from the CME would arrive in the vicinity of our planet on
June 12 or 13. A SOHO coronagraph animation of the event shows a beautiful
billowing CME peppered by speckles and meteor-like streaks resulting from
energetic particles hitting the spacecraft's camera.
Earlier in the day, as predicted, a solar wind disturbance from a CME on
June 7 struck Earth's magnetosphere. Active geomagnetic conditions were
observed for about nine hours, but have since subsided.
For more information and pictures, please visit
http://www.spaceweather.com
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 59 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jun 10, 2000 (22:06) * 12 lines
This rare red-colored aurora over North Carolina
was photographed by Chuck Adams on April 6, 2000.
The bright object near the horizon is the Moon. Also
visible in the background are the Pleiades, Taurus, and
Orion. The photographer used a Nikon FM2 camera
equipped with a 28mm f/2 lens. The exposure time was
one minute on Kodak Elite 100 slide film. (Copyright
2000, Chuck Adams, all rights reserved.)
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 60 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sun, Jun 11, 2000 (16:52) * 12 lines
The storm is approaching:
Date: Sun, 11 Jun 2000 14:31:21 -0700
SFI=187 up from 180 | A=25 up from 23 | K=5 up from 4 at 2100 on 11 June.
SAF: moderate, GMF: at unsettled to minor storm levels
Aurora Level: 9
Solar Wind: 569.3 km/s at 7.2 protons/cc
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 61 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Jun 12, 2000 (18:56) * 12 lines
Wonder how high its going to go....
Date: Mon, 12 Jun 2000 14:30:44 -0700
SFI=193 up from 187 | A=16 down from 24 | K=3 down from 4 at 2100 on 12 June.
SAF: moderate, GMF: at unsettled to minor storm levels
Aurora Level: 7
Solar Wind: 466.1 km/s at 1.5 protons/cc
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 62 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Mon, Jun 12, 2000 (19:10) * 11 lines
Greetings all
In the most recent Lowdown (Long Wave Club of America), there was
a short description of a ELF/ULF/SLF receiver built by John WB7TQT.
- frequency range 0.03 to 300Hz - 47000 turn loop. John has tapes
available of the signals heard at these frequencies. I will post
the address once I find it.
73 de AA9IL
Mike
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 63 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Jun 12, 2000 (19:34) * 1 lines
Great news. The last ones you posted the urls for were spectacular!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 64 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Tue, Jun 13, 2000 (19:40) * 10 lines
Supposedly the solar storm has passed us (see Geo 34 today) but the numbers keep going up. The latest:
SFI=199 | A=16 | K=3 up from 2 at 0000 on 14 June.
SAF: low to moderate, GMF: quiet to unsettled
Aurora Level: 6
Solar Wind: 433.5 km/s at 8.5 protons/cc
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 65 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Wed, Jun 14, 2000 (19:09) * 10 lines
Date: Wed, 14 Jun 2000 14:32:20 -0700
SFI=201 up from 199 | A=17 up from 16 | K=4 at 2100 on 14 June.
SAF: low to moderate, GMF: quiet to active
Aurora Level: 6
Solar Wind: 447.0 km/s at 41.7 protons/cc
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 66 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Wed, Jun 14, 2000 (19:10) * 1 lines
Note the increase of velocity of the solar wind. I think it is not over yet...
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 67 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Thu, Jun 15, 2000 (21:26) * 5 lines
Check the sunspots with this amazing little updating image:
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 68 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Fri, Jun 16, 2000 (20:52) * 14 lines
Howdy all
Well, just finished a neat book - 'Boffin' which was a historical
account of early radar during WWII. Also some neat info about
the early experiments at Jodrell Bank and design work on interferometers.
I know book reviews should be in the Books section but this should
appeal to the Geo crowd. BTW, the author is R Hanbury Brown.
Currently plodding through 'Gravity's Rainbow' and will also be
starting up on the history of the crypto group at Bletchley Park
that cracked the Enigma Cipher.
73 de Mike
Radio Cosmo International
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 69 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jun 16, 2000 (22:34) * 0 lines
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 70 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jun 16, 2000 (22:36) * 0 lines
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 71 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jun 16, 2000 (22:55) * 7 lines
HanaHou......
Mike! Been there and seen them. Amazing stuff Gotta get that book. Was at your webpage today. Really great
antenna you have and it is widely used here with palm trees at the corner posts and the ubiquitous chain link fence below.
Check AA9IL http://www.qsl.net/aa1ll/
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 72 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jun 23, 2000 (17:39) * 19 lines
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 25 - June 23, 2000
Average solar flux and sunspot numbers rose slightly this week, and
geomagnetic indices were lower. Planetary and mid-latitude A indices
have been mostly in the single digits. Unfortunately, geomagnetic
conditions may be a bit more active for Field Day this weekend. The
predicted planetary A index for Friday through Tuesday is 15, 15,
20, 20 and 12, but no major disturbance is likely. Solar flux for
the same period is expected to be around 175, 175, 170, 165 and 165,
and should begin rising again around July 1. The short term outlook
is for flux values to slowly rise and then peak around 200 before
the middle of next month.
NASA has an article this week on a proposed model for better
predicting the arrival time of the effects from Coronal Mass
Ejections. You can see the NASA article at
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast22jun_1m.htm?list and see
more info from a solar physics meeting at
http://www.lmsal.com/spd/Press/ .
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 73 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (12:55) * 24 lines
Greets to all
Well, back again after another week of silliness. Did pick
up some microwave goodies tho and visit with a fellow radio
op regarding mysterious signals on the HF bands - primarily
Numbers Stations and bizarre digital modes. Also, discussion
on a cw 'beacon' that transmits at intervals on 10.106 Mhz
in the 30 meter band. Strange slow cw text that could be
a prank or a coded message? (ooooh...) No luck hearing it
now since it is early afternoon - will have to try again
at sunset due to propagation.
Speaking of propagation, an interesting book to read is 'Beyond
Line of Sight' by Emil Pocock and is published by the ARRL.
This is a series of reprints from QST covering VHF and up
progagation studies. Kewl Stuph
Also, checked out the web page listed above (AA1LL) - not mine
but does have some interesting links plus a picture of a bug
semi auto key similar to one that I have.
73 de Mike
Radio Cosmo International
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 74 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (14:56) * 3 lines
No wonder I had trouble connecting it with you.....you are AA1IL......sigh. I did note the big brass bug and though it would be an object of envy for sure.
Ever catch those voice 'number stations' which recite two number units on and on?? It has been suggested that it is the method of choise to covey covert information - I have heard all accents but the numbers are always in English.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 75 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (19:59) * 15 lines
Ok, looks like another hot thread with number stations - will have to
move that to the 'Radio' page. I have listened to Spanish speaking
number stations - might have heard some in English as well in my
far distant past... The ones I remember the best are the Spanish
ones tho... There are many theories regarding the purpose of the
stations - most likely a means of passing secret info to operatives
in the field. Not likely a hoax...? It is just about nitefall here
where there will be a peak in grey line propagation - the HF rig is
tuned to 30M but all I hear is static - the HF bands were kind of
poor today to begin with. Well, back to the listening post.
73 de
Secret Agent Mike
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 76 of 585: Mata Hari (MarciaH) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (20:15) * 2 lines
I kept a list of frequencies a few years ago...must dig it out and post it.
Wow, I wonder what reminded of them... No hoax... You are right about to operatives in the field and every country did it... Read an article a few years back by an ex CIA operative writing in a Ham-trade magazine (not sure now which one) The code changes daily and an hour which varies from day to day.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 77 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (20:25) * 1 lines
Please create the new topic in radio while I hunt for my list... Meet you there!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 78 of 585: Mike Kana (aa9il) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (20:38) * 22 lines
50291 39710 71002 52983
47016 84392 91023 62091
89015 39102 75223 97738
.....
Well, I can see that even my pseudo random key strokes are hardly
pseudo random - you can notice a distinct frequency of 1-0's
plus a pattern of upper 5 digits alternating with lower 5 digits.
The Cray's do have job security, dont they.....
Thought I heard some possible traffic of interest on the target
frequency but was just someone calling CQ.
Shades of the monitoring stations in the Mediterranean that would
copy diplomatic traffic up and down the coast along with a bit
of intercept of North African signals to liven things up a bit.
Ok, back to the static - will have to move this to the radio
page if this keeps up.
RYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRY
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 79 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (20:41) * 1 lines
You have a pretty good fist and you came up with those results? Amazing! It is very funny that the guy calling CQ was so bad you mistook it for something else. Talk about Novice Class...! Hey, we can topic drift right here. All that stuff was bounced off the Kennelly-Heavyside Layer, anyway.....
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 80 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (20:42) * 1 lines
RY? aa9il, what is RY? (I'll get your call right one of these days...sorry!)
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 81 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (20:53) * 20 lines
Howdy again
RY harkens back to ye olden days of teletype where commercial
stations would send a string of RY's on their channel in between
traffic. Also, (not quite memorized the Baudot) I think the letters
R and Y mirror themselves - kind of like 73 which would be:
_ _ ... ... _ _
Have to look up the baudot sheet for that.
Also, regarding the chap sending CQ - heard a faint cw signal
down in the noise floor - got my attention never the less...
Probably the same effect of trying to pull cw signals out of
the noise on microwave or EME. During the June contests years
ago, I could have sworn I was hearing CW down in the noise floor
on 5.7 GHz. Sleep depravation more likely.
73 de Mike
Radio Cosmo International
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 82 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (21:03) * 5 lines
Sleep Depravation can make for interesting notes in the log book, never again to be duplicated. I remember doing it for my Dad when I was the little kid in the family. But, never do I recall anything like in the GHz range. The old HRO just did not have that capacity and I don't think anyone was broadcasting in that range in any case. Not when I was a little kid.
Oh Yeah, *That* RY... Yes! I think you are correct about the mirror image call
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 83 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (21:08) * 30 lines
Regarding Number Stations (I recall hearing them in the 6MHz band)
Number Stations
Timothy Lehto
1. Introduction
When listening around the lower frequencies of the international shortwave bands, one may hear stations, usually weak,
reciting endless groups of numbers (usually groups of five, with a letter at the end of each group). These stations, dubbed
"number stations" have been found to be radio stations, operated by foreign governments for the purpose of
communicating to their field agents. Yes, folks, spy radio, and you can listen in!
The first thing you must realize is that, there is no given frequency for certain number stations. They do change frequency
when they feel that security is being compromised. However, they do tend to stay in the lower frequencies for two
reasons. One reason is that at night, an enormous amount of range can be achieved with low power output on low
frequencies. Another is that, for the most part, international broadcasts are above 7 MHz (giving ham operators
headaches).
2. Where and when to look
The best range of frequencies to hunt in is anywhere from 2 MHz to 6.5 MHz. And the best time of day to go hunting for
them is at night. However, it is not impossible for you to hear these clandestine broadcasts during the day -- you just have
to look harder.
3. Listening tips
It is useful to write down the beginning and the end of the broadcasts. Some people are saying that there is a form of
identifier for the station, and it is usually at the beginning or end.
Keep a careful log of where you heard the station, and at what time. Over a period of a few weeks, you may notice a
pattern that will make monitoring easier. And you will be able to determine what part of the world they are communicating
with, the day of the week and time at which they communicate, and if you are lucky, figure out a frequency pattern so that
you can make listening regular.
more at: http://www.tdyc.com/archive/radio/number.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 84 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sun, Jun 25, 2000 (21:13) * 7 lines
The Ultimate Frequency list for the Number Stations:
http://www.btinternet.com/~simon.mason/page51.html
This guy thinks they're fake
http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Hall/5751/what.html
And, if you are truly interested in this subject, I did a google.com search and they came up with 421,997 hits for Number stations.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 85 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Mon, Jun 26, 2000 (21:54) * 30 lines
I guess the secret on number stations is out judging from the number
of hits. But has anyone cracked the code yet? Most likely one time
pad ciphers...
Anyway, working back towards earth science, saw a nice picture of
the Aurora in the July issue of CQ. This was a red one. The only
Aurora I ever saw was out a plane window on the way to Seattle.
Looked out and saw this powder blue curtain in the sky - a few
seconds later, the captain announced over the PA that the Aurora
was visible - seconds later after that it was gone.
Just thought of another interesting theory about whistlers - there
was an article in a book titled RadioText(e) published by Semiotext(e)
about an experiment to correlate whistlers with the Marfa lights.
The Marfa lights was a strange visible phenomenon that occurred in
Marfa, Tx (natch...) - strange orbs of light that would jet across
the ground. Speculation ranged from ball lightning, to ghosts, to
strange plasma balls formed from intense geological pressure on
rocks (quartz fissures perhaps?). No end conclusions but interesting
none the less. Closest I ever came to ball lightning was once
witnessing the plasma dissipation after a close lightning strike.
Sort of like strings of lightning pearls.
3's de Mike
radio cosmo international
p.s. - never saw the Marfa lights but did see hundreds of jack rabbits
along the road side during one night of an epic road trip through
West Texas....
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 86 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Jun 26, 2000 (23:08) * 7 lines
Interesting and nice try, Mike! (random coeds no cracking re number stations)
Your near-ball lightning reminds me of my experience with it. Purple sheet lightning succeeded by these odd plasma pearls (good name for them). Don't ever want to be that close to them again.
The best aurora pix from the latest coronal ejections I posted the best on
http://www.spring.net/yapp-bin/restricted/read/geo/35.59
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 87 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Jun 26, 2000 (23:12) * 1 lines
Make that Random CODES not coeds......*grin*
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 88 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Tue, Jun 27, 2000 (19:20) * 6 lines
Random coeds
- ah yes, shades of my college days....
:-)
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 89 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Tue, Jun 27, 2000 (19:50) * 17 lines
anyway...
Another interesting form of lightning that has been more in
the news in the past decade are the 'sprites' and 'jets'.
These were observed by astronauts and pilots as upward charges
that flare up from the top of a cloud during a strike. These
can be seen as red tendrils and white bursts - must have to
do a search on these as to what is the theoretical (or actual)
cause. One other interesting form of lightning I had a chance
to witness (although, given the circumstances, rather had not...)
was some of the cloud to cloud bursts that would light up the
night sky while viewed from an airplane window. Intense
beauty but rather un-nerving - flying by storms aint much fun.
73 de mike
radio cosmo....
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 90 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Tue, Jun 27, 2000 (20:52) * 3 lines
You're right about flying in storms. Ain't fun. Did that landing in Tucson once. Blind lighning everywhere. Have NO idea how the pilot landed the place but we gave him a hearty ovation when he emerged from the cockpit!
I've seen NASA footage of Elfs and Sprites and jets. Truly amazing - and colors too. Wonder if I can find pix of them to post...going hunting!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 91 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Tue, Jul 4, 2000 (21:35) * 21 lines
And howdy once again....
Got the latest Lowdown yesterday - why is it when I finally
hunker down to work on one project - I get some info on
something completely different that distracts me. This
issue had a discussion on SLF continuous and irregular pulsations.
Frequency range is in the 0 to 3hz range. I guess I'll have
to do some web searches and find some design criteria for
receivers or tunable amplifiers that work at that low frequency.
Then, off to the surplus store to by a 10lb spool of #30awg
copper wire to wind up a 50000 turn pickup loop. Until then,
packaging on the 10ghz transverter will continue....
Talk about interests at the opposite ends of the spectrum.
At least I have not decided to move up to the THz range and
experiment with long range laser communications and optical
cloud bounce. Stay tuned....
73 de Mike
Radio Cosmo International
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 92 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Tue, Jul 4, 2000 (22:52) * 2 lines
No middle of the road for you, Mike! 10 GHz is WAY up there!
I have wound transformers with my Dad - that is a really laborious task. How tedious is winding that loop?
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 93 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Thu, Jul 6, 2000 (21:14) * 15 lines
Hi Marcia and Geo-ites
I need to do some web research on these loops - I remember from an
old Scientific American book that included a chapter on amateur
seismology that the pickup loop was wound on a large bobbin which
was balanced between the polls of a magnetron magnet. The balance
was fixed to a large concrete pier which picked up the activity
by moving the coil up and down between the magnet poles - awesome
book - wished I could find a copy. The coil for this receiver will
probably be wound on a good dielectric former - not sure if it is
an air coil or has a ferro-magnetic core - probably does. Needless
to say, 50000 turns will require automation!
73 de Mike
radio cosmo international
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 94 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Thu, Jul 6, 2000 (21:45) * 2 lines
Aloha Mike!
Wow!!! 50000 turns....indeed! I shall hunt too for that book. One of us should find what you are looking for. They are reissuing those old but great Scientific American books. Gotta check on the web to see what is available. I would like it as well to make the seismology loop. When my son was young we looked everywhere for that book, but have not looked recently... And, if it as elaborate as you say, it is not a job for a novice former transformer winder!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 95 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Fri, Jul 7, 2000 (18:22) * 27 lines
The title of the book is: "The Scientific American Book of Projects for
the Amateur Scientist" or something close to that - the book was written by
CL Stong and sadly it is out of print. This was one of those 'mad scientist'
books which included articles on model rocketry (not Estes!), building
Van de Graff generators, particle accelerators, X Ray machines and other
way cool gadgets that, if printed today, would cause litigation jittery
folks to excrete bricks. This is hard core science in the classic sense
and not for the weak of heart. - I.e. you could either get a cool project
up and running or kill yourself in the process. Now, this is what I
call a science book. The lilly livered can stick to making plaster
of paris volcanos that use baking soda and vinegar.
Anyway, there was a whole section on amateur seismology including mechanical
and electrical designs. Of course, today, you can build up the system
using OP Amps but the pickup coil and pivot/balance should still apply.
Speaking of cool old books - there is an outfit called Lindsay Publications
that puts out books on lost technology - stuff like how to build steam
engines, lathes, tesla coils, and other weird science stuff. They seem
to have quite a bit on Tesla - would like to build up something that
generates a couple of MEV and throw lightning bolts around the basement.
I found a perfect corona discharge orb at a ham fest once and just need
to get a large plexiglass pipe to wind the coil. Kewl stuff.
73 de Mike
radio cosmo international
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 96 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jul 7, 2000 (21:49) * 5 lines
For out of print books and rareties: http://abebooks.com/
The things of which dreams are made - Mine, anyway...Van de Graf Generator, Tesla Coil, wood-panelled library with a ceiling orerary. Never mind the rest of the house...I definitly need to find that book! Particle accellerators?!
Mike, if you have not been the British Museum of Science off Cromwell Road in London, get thee hither and watch the lightning in there. What a show - and what a bang! oh, I also need a full length Foucault Pendulum...and...and...
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 97 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jul 8, 2000 (14:47) * 14 lines
Coronagraphs
on board the Solar and Heliospheric
Observatory (SOHO) recorded a full halo
coronal mass ejection (CME) on July 7 at
1030 UT (6:30 a.m. EDT). Forecasters
estimate that material from the CME,
which was expanding away from the Sun
at 455 km/s, will arrive in the vicinity of
Earth on July 11, 2000.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 98 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jul 8, 2000 (18:32) * 10 lines
And the propagations rises:
SFI=210 up from 187 | A=7 | K=2 down from 3 at 2100 on 8 July.
SAF: low to moderate, GMF: quiet to unsettled
Aurora Level: 5
Solar Wind: 368.6 km/s at 3.4 protons/cc
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 99 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Sun, Jul 9, 2000 (23:03) * 12 lines
Got a chance to go to the Science Museum last time I was in London.
Way cool stuph. Only had a short time and focused on the space
section and the telecom/wireless section. Even got to see an
Enigma machine and did also see the pendulum. Missed the lightning
show. Anyway, I'll have to do some rare book searches for the
Sci American book. Probably alot of updated info already exists
on the web. Still need to do some searches on ELF and SLF monitoring
and the integration and/or DSP methods used to extract data.
Mike
radio cosmo international
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 100 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Jul 10, 2000 (00:14) * 1 lines
Mike, you gotta to the the top floor and look at the old boat anchors - there is my dad's HRO there!!! On the same floor and room as the Enigma Machine!!! The lightning generator was in the next building back I think - science and technology. Really great stuph in there!!! Good luck on your searches!!!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 101 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jul 14, 2000 (12:01) * 51 lines
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 28 - July 14, 2000
Solar activity rose substantially this week. Average sunspot
numbers compared to the previous week rose nearly 68 points to
244.6, and average solar flux rose nearly 39 points to 207.5. A
strong solar flare around 1037z on Wednesday sent a bubble of
electrified gas, or plasma, toward the earth at more than 2 million
miles per hour. Effects of the blast are being felt on Thursday,
and a second more powerful wind is expected to arrive on Friday.
This could be bad news for the Pacific 160 Meter Contest this
weekend, although possible aurora could prove interesting for the 6
Meter Sprint. There is a good chance that any geomagnetic upset may
decline through the weekend though.
These flares originate in sunspot group 9077, which is large and
magnetically complex. It harbors energy for powerful solar flares
which could erupt on Thursday or Friday. For late updates, visit
www.spaceweather.com.
Another URL that bears checking is www.qsl.net/w3df. Dan has put
together some great links of interest to propagation and sun
watchers, including a chart which compares solar cycles 19 through
23. Go to http://www.qsl.net/w3df/sol_f0.html and click on ''Cy
19-23 Comparison.'' You will see that the current cycle is not as
bad as cycle 20, but weaker than cycles 21 or 22, and of course
nowhere near the biggest one of all, cycle 19. The author suffered
through cycle 20 as a teenaged ham in the 1960s, but as a small
child heard the effects of cycle 19, which peaked in the late 1950s.
Father's low band VHF FM business radio in the company car brought
in unfamiliar voices from all over the country to our home in
California's San Joaquin Valley.
The three daily 2000z flux values reported by the Penticton
observatory for July 10-12 were 244.5, 241.6 and 314.6. Because
they were flare enhanced, the NOAA Space Environment Center and the
U.S. Air Force collaborated to come up with more realistic solar
flux numbers, which were 215, 225 and 230. The lower numbers are
the ones used here in our weekly summary.
The latest prediction shows solar flux peaking on Friday around 230,
then drifting down below 200 by July 18, and reaching a short term
minimum around 165 from July 23-26. The next expected peak in solar
flux is around August 6-9. Expect geomagnetic conditions to remain
active. Based on the previous solar rotation, there are no
predicted days over the next month when the planetary A index is
expected to be in the single digits.
Sunspot numbers for July 6 through 12 were 210, 226, 260, 262, 232,
281 and 241 with a mean of 244.6. 10.7 cm flux was 174.3, 187.1,
210, 211.3, 215, 225 and 230, with a mean of 207.5, and estimated
planetary A indices were 7, 8, 7, 7, 19, 31 and 12, with a mean of 13.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 102 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jul 14, 2000 (14:55) * 12 lines
Powerful Solar Flare Triggers Radiation Storm
Space Weather News for July 14, 2000
This morning an X5-class solar flare, one of the most powerful flares of
the current solar cycle, triggered a proton storm in the neighborhood of
our planet. Just after the eruption, coronagraphs on board the ESA/NASA
Solar and Heliospheric Observatory recorded a full halo coronal mass
ejection heading toward Earth at greater than 1000 km/s. Please visit
http://www.spaceweather.com for details and updates on this developing
story.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 103 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jul 14, 2000 (19:20) * 22 lines
The following Alerts and Warnings are in effect:
sr@hfradio.org
The following Alerts and Warnings are in effect:
Magnetic A-Index greater than 50 Watch for 15 Jul 2000 UT
Comment: K-indices of greater than 6 are possible beginning at 1800 UT on 15 July
Magnetic A-Index greater than 50 Watch for 16 Jul 2000 UT
Comment: K-indices of greater than 6 are possible beginning at 1800 UT on 15 July
Magnetic A-Index greater than 50 Watch for 17 Jul 2000 UT
Comment: K-indices of greater than 6 are possible beginning at 1800 UT on 15 July
Magnetic K-Index of 6 Observed 14 Jul 2000 from 15:00 to 18:00 UT
Comment: None
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 104 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jul 15, 2000 (16:36) * 22 lines
An Extreme Geomagnetic Storm is Underway
Space Weather News for July 15, 2000
A powerful shock wave from the fast-moving July 14th coronal mass ejection
has arrived in the neighborhood of Earth. An extreme geomagnetic storm
was underway at 1900 UT (3:00 p.m. EDT) on July 15th. If conditions
persist as they are now, aurora could be visible at middle (and possibly
even equatorial) latitudes. The best time to view aurora is usually near
local midnight. In this case, sky watchers are advised to look for aurora
as soon as night falls. For more information and updates please visit
http://www.spaceweather.com
Readers are invited to send pictures of tonight's aurora and the July 16,
2000, total lunar eclipse (visible across the Pacific Ocean) as an email
attachment to phillips@spacescience.com for possible posting on
spaceweather.com and/or spacescience.com.
For more information about the lunar eclipse:
Pacific Lunar Eclipse
http://spacescience.com/headlines/y2000/ast14jul_1m.htm
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 105 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jul 15, 2000 (18:01) * 8 lines
SFI=213 up from 204 | A=118 up from 29 | K=9 up from 8 at 2100 on 15 July.
SAF: moderate to high, GMF: at minor to severe storm levels
Aurora Level: 10
Solar Wind: 257.2 km/s at 0.7 protons/cc
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 106 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Sat, Jul 15, 2000 (18:07) * 36 lines
SEVERE GEOMAGNETIC STORM:
Kp Index is at 9. A Index is 118.
We are in a catagory G5 Storm. NOAA's Space Weather
scale indicates the following effects:
Power systems: grid systems can collapse and
transformers experience damage.
Spacecraft operations: extensive surface charging,
problems with orientation, uplink/downlink, and
tracking satellites.
Other systems: pipeline currents reach hundreds of
amps, HF (high frequency) radio propagation
impossible in many areas for one to two days,
satellite navigation degraded for days,
low-frequency radio navigation out for hours, and
the aurora seen as low as the equator.
The Proton Monitor on the Solar and Heliospheric
Observatory is registering solar wind speeds in
excess of 900 km/s
The wave of solar particles - known as a solar
proton event - is already four times more intense
than any other event detected since the launches
of SOHO in 1995 and ACE in 1997. At mid-afternoon
(UT) on July 14th, the storm of particles from
the Sun was still intensifying.
More: http://hfradio.org/propagation.html
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 107 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jul 21, 2000 (12:14) * 123 lines
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 29 - July 21, 2000
This has been quite a week for solar activity, with blasts of solar
wind dominating space weather news. Saturday was the big day for HF
radio blackouts and aurora, with the planetary A index jumping to an
incredible 152 and the mid-latitude A index at 148. The planetary K
index, updated every three hours, was at 9 for three readings on
Saturday. A K index reading of 9 over a 24-hour period would be
equivalent to an A index of 300. This is big, really big.
These numbers are associated with an extreme geomagnetic storm that
was nearly off the scale. On Friday one of the most powerful solar
flares of the current cycle triggered a storm of protons directed
toward earth. The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory recorded a full
halo coronal mass ejection heading toward earth at greater than
one-million meters per second. Check out animations of this event at
http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/data/CME/.
There are only a few events of this magnitude in the average solar
cycle. The only factor that probably impeded a spectacular aurora
visible far down into the U.S. was that this is the summer season.
A dark evening sky would reveal a rich tapestry of northern lights.
Of course, it being winter in the southern hemisphere, bright
displays were reported in Australia and New Zealand. The author made
a weak attempt Saturday night, walking barefoot into the middle of
the street and trying to peer north past city lights, but no auroral
glow was visible. Seattle is north of the 47th parallel, and
although there were no local reports of aurora, there were
observations as far south as 40 degrees in Europe, Asia, and parts
of Eastern North America. If you point your web browser toward
http://www.sec.noaa.gov/info/kp-aurora.html you will see a nice map
from the June, 1968 issue of Sky and Telescope which shows how far
south aurora may be visible depending on the planetary K index.
What is not clear from this map is whether it shows how far south
the edge of the aurora extends, or how far south it is visible when
looking north.
Another coronal mass ejection emerged on Wednesday, July 19, but the
predicted effect is uncertain because the ejection may not be aimed
squarely at earth. On Thursday the planetary K index went up to 6
for several hours, but by the end of the UTC day it was 3. The
planetary A index for Thursday was 43, and the College A index,
recorded in Alaska, was 57.
The latest forecast shows the planetary A index rising to 50 on
Friday, then dropping to 20 and 15 and then 10 on Saturday through
Monday. Solar flux peaked for the recent short term at 252.9 on
Thursday, and is expected to drop to 245, 235, 230 and 225 on Friday
through Monday. The next short term minimum is predicted around July
28 at 170, followed by another peak above 200 around August 6-9.
The author has received many more inquiries recently asking for
explanations of the various parameters reported in this bulletin.
Although the explanations were repeated six weeks ago, it is
probably time to run them again, and they follow this paragraph.
Feel free to send questions to the author via k7vvvarrl.net.
Amateur Radio operators who use HF generally like increased sunspots
because they correlate with better worldwide radio propagation.
When there are more sunspots, the sun puts out radiation which
charges particles in the earth's ionosphere. Radio waves bounce off
of these charged particles, and the denser these clouds of ions, the
better the HF propagation. When the ionosphere is denser, higher
frequencies will reflect off of the ionosphere rather than passing
through to space. This is why every 11 years or so when this
activity is higher, 10 meters gets exciting. 10 meters is at a high
enough frequency, right near the top of the HF spectrum, that radio
waves propagate very efficiently when the sunspot count is high.
Because of the wavelength, smaller antennas are very efficient on
this band, so mobile stations running low power on 10 meters can
communicate world wide on a daily basis when the sunspot cycle is at
its peak. There are also seasonal variations, and 10 meters tends to
be best near the spring or fall equinox.
The sunspot numbers used in this bulletin are calculated by counting
the sunspots on the visible solar surface and also measuring their
area. Solar flux is measured at an observatory in British Columbia
using an antenna pointed toward the sun tuned to 2.8 GHz, which is
at a wavelength of 10.7 cm. Energy detected seems to correlate with
sunspots and with the density of the ionosphere.
Other solar activity of concern to HF operators are solar flares and
coronal holes, which emit protons. Since the charged ions in the
ionosphere are negative, a blast of protons from the sun can
neutralize the charge and make the ionosphere less reflective.
These waves of protons can be so intense that they may trigger an
event called a geomagnetic storm.
The Planetary A index relates to geomagnetic stability.
Magnetometers around the world are used to generate a number called
the Planetary K index. You can hear the Boulder K index updated
every three hours on WWV, or by calling 303-497-3235.
A one point change in the K index is quite significant. A K index
below 3 generally means good stable conditions, and above 3 can mean
high absorption and poor reflection of radio waves. Each point
change reflects a big change in conditions.
Every 24 hours the K index is summarized in a number called the A
index. A one point change in A value is not very significant. A full
day with the K index at 3 will produce an A index of 15, K of 4
means A of 27, K of 5 means A of 48, and K of 6 means A of 80. You
can find an explanation of these numbers on the web at
http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/stp/GEOMAG/kp_ap.html.
The number reported here is the Planetary A index, which is a
worldwide average based on the K readings from a number of
magnetometers. The numbers reported on WWV are the Boulder K and A
index, measured in Colorado. Generally the higher the latitude of
the measuring station, the higher the K and A indices reported.
This is because the effects of geomagnetic instability tend to
concentrate toward the polar regions of the globe.
Currently we are near the peak of the solar cycle, so conditions are
generally better because of the increased ionization of the
ionosphere. But along with the increased sunspots come more solar
flares and coronal holes, producing disturbed conditions.
Sunspot numbers for July 13 through 19 were 240, 243, 229, 268, 335,
343 and 342 with a mean of 285.7. 10.7 cm flux was 231.9, 203.9,
213.1, 218.9, 228.3, 261.9 and 249.9, with a mean of 229.7, and
estimated planetary A indices were 33, 35, 152, 46, 9, 13 and 15,
with a mean of 43.3.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 108 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Wed, Jul 26, 2000 (19:39) * 10 lines
And, back again....
No real activity during the last geo storm - there was supposedly
band openings in TX but I didnt work any and no contacts on 2m
SSB.
when is the next one?
de AA9IL
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 109 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Wed, Jul 26, 2000 (20:58) * 1 lines
Soon, Mike, and I shall let you know as soon as I do!! I stayed up looking for both Comet Linear and the Aurora and saw nothing.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 110 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Thu, Jul 27, 2000 (12:48) * 1 lines
(If I could predict the next coronal mass ejection (CME) I would be a wealthy and classified person!)
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 111 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Fri, Jul 28, 2000 (18:20) * 19 lines
If you could predict CME's, Id think you were working on the
HAARP project. Or, at least simulating geo storms in the upper
atmosphere.
Back down on earth, the need to do the across the lake propagation
experiments is high on the list. The weather just seems right
for such stunts. Just need to schedule with someone on the
Michigan side.
Speaking of HAARP and such, ever heard of the International Tesla
Society - used to publish a magazine on weird science stuff
including those govt conspiracy projects. There is probably
a web page covering this group. Needless to say, a good place
to look for info on Scalar Waves and generating signals at the
earth's resonant frequency.
de Mike
radio cosmo international
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 112 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Jul 28, 2000 (23:49) * 2 lines
Yup....plenty of weird stuff in the "real" world about Tesla including "the Philadelphia project.
Protecting my identity by assuming the guise of a mild-mannered Geo conference host...Maaarcia
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 113 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Wed, Aug 2, 2000 (16:51) * 18 lines
Mike, here's one for you, or did you know about this frequency?!
Unknown Submarine Volcano
Volcano Islands, Japan
22-27 N, 138-141 E
Robert Dziak at the NOAA/Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in
Newport, Oregon reported that 10 Hz band-limited tremor was detected from
the Volcano Islands area after a 6 month hiatus (Bulletin, v. 24, nos. 11
and 12). The current episode of signals began at 0800 UTC on 13 June, but
were loudest at 0100-0200 UTC on 14 June. The tremor tracks to presumed
submarine volcanism at an uncertain volcano.
Information Contact: Robert P. Dziak, Oregon State University/NOAA,
Hatfield Marine Science Center, 2115 SE OSU Drive, Newport, OR 97365 USA
(Email: dziak@pmel.noaa.gov; URL: http://newport.pmel. Noaa.gov/).
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 114 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Aug 4, 2000 (20:48) * 41 lines
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 31 - August 4, 2000
Solar activity for last week (July 28 - August 3) was mostly at low
levels. A minor M-class flare from region 9090 occurred on July 28.
Several new regions (9110, 9111, 9112, 9113, 9114, and 9115) emerged
later in the week. Region 9114 produced a C7 flare and associated
CME on August 2.
The 10.7 cm solar flux, following the sun's 27-day rotation period,
decreased to a minimum of about 155 at the beginning of last week.
Solar flux is forecasted to steadily climb to a maximum of about 240
around mid-August. A comment about 10.7 cm solar flux - although
10.7 cm solar flux is easy to measure because the Earth's atmosphere
is transparent at that wavelength, energy at 10.7 cm is about 1
million times less energetic than the true ionizing energy. Thus
10.7 cm solar flux contributes nothing to the formation of the
ionosphere. But it is an indicator of the general activity level of
the sun, and smoothed solar flux values (a 12 month running average)
correlate very well with smoothed sunspot numbers (SSN).
Solar activity for next week (August 4 - August 10) is expected to
be at moderate to high levels. Isolated M-class flares are
expected, along with a chance for an isolated major flare.
Historically the equinox months (September and March) give us the
greatest amount of magnetic storms due to the orientation of the
Earth at these times with respect to the solar wind. Thus expect an
increase in storms up to mid-September, then a gradual decrease
after that to a minimum in December.
Cycle 23 continues its march upward, with a peak forecasted by the
end of the year. For details, see the web site referenced in last
week's bulletin (http://www.sec.noaa.gov/weekly/index.html). The
latest SSN data is 113 for January 2000. The estimated SSN for the
month of August is 120. Cycle 23 appears to be similar to, but just
a bit higher than, Cycle 20, which peaked at an SSN of 110. This
level of activity, while not approaching that of Cycles 22 and 21,
will still give us excellent conditions on the higher HF bands as we
progress from Summer to Fall and into Winter.
Sunspot numbers for July 27 through August 2 were 174, 163, 183,
138, 123, 139 and 153 with a mean of 153.3. 10.7 cm flux was 162.4,
157.8, 153.2, 149.9, 147.9, 149.4 and 150.6, with a mean of 153, and
estimated planetary A indices were 9, 30, 27, 10, 19, 15 and 14,
with a mean of 17.7.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 115 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Wed, Aug 9, 2000 (19:11) * 20 lines
Greetings All
I would suspect the SLF crowd and earthquake monitoring bunch
got some good integration signals from that volcano.
New web page - check oug www.vlf.it
No new info otherwise on this end - started pulling out parts
for a 5.7ghz transverter that is close completion.
Weird weather info tho - we have been having some strong
thunder storms pass through the area. One day, it was very
balmy and hot prior to a big storm front pushing through.
Went driving and watched the outside temp shoot from the
80's to 101 in one area - some kind of heat cell? Of course,
after the storm hit, the temp dropped down to the 70's.
Have to do some research on that.
73 de Mike
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 116 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Wed, Aug 9, 2000 (23:55) * 3 lines
WOW!!! The conspiracy theorists would have a field day with temperature inversions like that! Let us know what you discover!
You do know about the mass coronal emissions headed this way?! Posted it next door on 34 today.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 117 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Aug 11, 2000 (21:12) * 13 lines
and yet another one...
SFI=187 up from 181 | A=49 up from 26 | K=3 at 2100 on 11 August.
SAF: low to moderate, GMF: at active to minor storm levels
Aurora Level: 9
Solar Wind: 645.3 km/s at 4.0 protons/cc
SFI=187 | A=56 up from 49 | K=6 up from 3 at 0000 on 12 August.
SAF: low to moderate, GMF: at active to major storm levels
Aurora Level: 10
Solar Wind: 627.8 km/s at 10.8 protons/cc
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 118 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Aug 21, 2000 (14:46) * 14 lines
Ham Radios in Space
NASA Science News for August 21, 2000
Ham radio operators are notorious for their love
of long-distance radio chats. Now, thanks to
NASA's SAREX program, hams and students on Earth
can enjoy the ultimate long-distance radio
experience by contacting astronauts in orbit.
FULL STORY at
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast21aug_1.htm?list
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 119 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Aug 25, 2000 (11:56) * 57 lines
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 34 - August 25, 2000
Solar activity took a big dive over the past week, with sunspot
numbers dropping to 84 on August 22 and 23. Although NASA's
Spaceweather.com reported that the Boulder sunspot number has not
been this low in this calendar year, our records from past bulletins
show that it has been lower than this several times in January.
Boulder sunspot numbers, which are the ones reported weekly in this
bulletin, were 69 on January 1 and 2, 77 on January 3, 81 on January
29 and 82 on January 31, 2000.
Does this drop mean that the peak for the current cycle has passed?
Not at all. There are many wild variations in solar activity over
the course of the average 11 year cycle, and the only real way to
determine the peak or the minimum is to look back at a moving
average many months later.
The quieter sun did present some advantages for HF operators,
because while the activity was lower, the earth's geomagnetic
conditions were quieter as well. The College A index, from
Fairbanks, Alaska, was mostly in the single digits, and there were
19 three-hour periods over the week when the College K index was
actually 0, lower than the planetary K index at any time. This is
significant because the higher latitudes have greater geomagnetic
instability at times of heightened solar activity. During this week
the area near the Arctic Circle, at least in Alaska, was quieter
than the average for the entire planet.
Conditions look quieter for the near term as well. Solar flux is
probably bottoming out over the next few days, with predicted values
for Friday through Tuesday at 128, 128, 130, 132, and 135.
Predicted planetary A index looks quiet as well, with unsettled
conditions possible for August 30 through September 3. Solar flux
for the next few weeks is expected to peak at only 175 near
September 7-9. This is based only on what is known about activity
during the previous rotation, and any new activity could change
this.
The fall equinox is less than one month away (September 22), and
soon we should see a transition from summer to fall conditions.
Daytime absorption on the upper bands and atmospheric noise on lower
frequencies should be lessened, and stronger signals should be the
rule for this equinox at the peak of solar cycle 23.
AE4TM sent along a web link for his experiments using Pactor with
ionospheric observations. Check out his web page at
http://home.earthlink.net/~ae4tm/hamradio.html and send him your
feedback. Another interesting link was received this week. Check
http://www.discovery.com/cams/sun/uv.html to see a live webcam from
the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory which is updated every 12
minutes with a new ultraviolet solar image.
Sunspot numbers for August 17 through 23 were 252, 231, 209, 150,
132, 84 and 84 with a mean of 163.1. 10.7 cm flux was 177.1, 169.5,
157.1, 152.4, 151.4, 144.2 and 136.9, with a mean of 155.5, and
estimated planetary A indices were 11, 6, 6, 7, 12, 5 and 11 with a
mean of 8.3.
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 120 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Mon, Sep 4, 2000 (12:19) * 16 lines
Ok, and back again....
Another part of the radio telescope has been found - a 1.1 to
1.2 GHz phase locked brick oscillator - this requires an external
source to get lock. Hopefuly this is a 'quiet' oscillator (i.e.
low phase noise) otherwise I will have to resort to 'plan B'
whatever that is....
This oscillator will be good for a hydrogen line receiver (1.4ghz).
With fall/winter coming up, plenty of time to be cooped up in the
house to work on projects.
73 de Mike
p.s. - most recent Sky and Telescope has an interesting article
on detecting gravity waves - more details to follow....
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 121 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Sep 4, 2000 (12:59) * 4 lines
How fantastic that progress is by leaps and bounds now rather than by things measured by micrometers! You will know soon enough if you are doing your searching "silently" - neighbors seldom suffer in silence!
I found another site to listen to some of the goodies Mike will be hearing in his quest of things not normally discernable by the human ear...
http://216.156.129.123/home/
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 122 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Mon, Sep 4, 2000 (15:34) * 20 lines
Howdy howdy
Yea, it will be interesting to see the reaction to the 8 foot
solid aluminum dish in the back yard. Thats scheduled for
after the spring thaw tho... (2001 - an appropriate year to
start the search)
Until then, all the work will be indoors - building receivers
and such - I might try to whip together a VLF loop antenna
for winter listening. BTW, there is quite a bit of VLF
activity in the UK on 137khz. There has also been research
on VLF beacons conducted by AMRAD - dont have their URL
but a search on AMRAD will turn up the pages.
Finally, a couple of good articles on the Magnetosphere in
CQ magazine.
73 de Mike
radio cosmo international
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 123 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Sep 4, 2000 (16:01) * 5 lines
Aloha Mike, the man from RCI,
Thanks for the heads-up on the activity in the UK (from whence commeth your latest hernia and boat anchor...) I think I need to climb back onto the roof with emery paper, sharp knife, wire strippers and soldering iron plus a bunch of shrink tubing and duct tape to fix the corroded antenna downlead connection to the rooftop trap dipole. It has gotten to the point where wiggling does not work and I am sure the next time I wiggle it will disconnect it altogether.
Marcia, fluxing my way to aural fulfillment....
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 124 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Mon, Sep 4, 2000 (16:29) * 17 lines
Hey Marcia
I take it that you are crunching for seti@home? Might be phun
to post what part of the sky you are doing analysis on.
Oy - forget what its like to have salt air to corrode the
antenna - we just have acid rain from Chicago. Get hold
of some RTV cement and liberally coat the solder connections.
That should help.
73 de Mike
radio cosmo international
currently crunching:
from 18hr 23' 56" RA 13deg 35' 24"
1.419472626Ghz
(splish splash in the water hole...)
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 125 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Mon, Sep 4, 2000 (20:18) * 11 lines
Well, judging how fast the old P90 is cranking, this data
reduction will take a while....
Good reason to get a Beowulf cluster up and running....
crunch crunch crunch
pull back mechanical tabulation handle
crunch crunch....
de Mike
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 126 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Sep 4, 2000 (20:26) * 7 lines
Currently crunching my 76th block of data (1193 hours on...)
5 hr 3' 7" Right Assention, +10° 13' 47" Declination
recorded on Fri, June 16th 16:15:03 GMT
Thanks for the tip on protecing the new solder joint... Yeah not only do we have salt air, we also have mother nature's very own acid rain when the volcano fumes are wafted in this direction and it rains. Cannot believe how it corrodes glass! I hate to think of metals which are so much more reactive...
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 127 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Sep 4, 2000 (20:26) * 1 lines
sigh...Ascention...
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 128 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Mon, Sep 4, 2000 (20:40) * 9 lines
Base Frequency: 1.420556641 GHz
Doppler drift rate: -6.7730 Hz/sec
Best Gaussian: power 1.49, fit 5.172
(have no idea what that last refers to... what is a fit??!)
I gather you are also receiving data from Arecibo?!
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 129 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Thu, Sep 7, 2000 (20:03) * 12 lines
Yep, the data is from Arecibo.
Just started crunching on data again but this is gonna
take a while. I figure it will be nice to analyze
data parallel to building my system. Of course, the
frequency stability and sensitivity will be a far
cry from the big dish but it should collect some
good sky data (given I overcome drifty receivers,
man made noise, internal system noise, dish pointing,
etc. etc. etc....) Should be fun!
73 de Mike
radio cosmo international
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 130 of 585: Marcia (MarciaH) * Fri, Sep 8, 2000 (00:53) * 1 lines
Looking forward to seeing how your dish data compares with Arecibo's...hardly in the same league of course. Not eveyone has has a bunch of mountains in their back yard into which to set a super-sized radio telescope dish...!!! Please let us know how it progresses. I am salivating at the thought and I can see atleast 7 world class telescopes from my front yard!!! If only they'd build one closer to the house...
Topic 35 of 92 [Geo]: Gaia Magnetosphere
Response 131 of 585: _cosmo_ (aa9il) * Sat, Sep 9, 2000 (13:25) * 23 lines
Howdy howdy Marcia and Geo-ites
Well, still cranking on the FFT's - so far no unique modulation
patterns although there is some distinct noise sources that are
showing up - have to take the RA/DEC coordinates from Arecibo
and see what part of the sky they are pointing at. I wonder what
the data display looks like for folks who are actually pointing
at galactic