‰ NOW 40 WPM ‰ TEXT IS FROM MARCH 2014 QST PAGE 91 ‰ NAT GOPALSWAMY, NASA GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER, GREENBELT, MD. ON THE BANDS 50 MHZ. NO MAJOR AURORA OR F2 OPENINGS LIKE THE BIG ONE ON NOVEMBER 9 OCCURRED IN DECEMBER. THE 2013 WINTER ES SEASON PICKED UP IN DECEMBER BUT SEEMED WEAKER THAN IN PAST YEARS, MORE LIMITED AND MOSTLY SINGLE HOP ES. AN EXAMPLE IS A ONE HOP ES FROM THE MIDWEST TO FLORIDA AND GEORGIA THAT TOOK PLACE THE EVENING OF DECEMBER 3 4TH UTC. N0JK EM28 WORKED AD4RE EM80 AT 0240Z. ZL1RS HAD A STRONG OPENI WAS A K3 TRANSCEIVER, KPA 500 AMPLIFIER AND A FORCE 12 6 METER YAGI SEE FIGURES 1 AND 2. WHAT A PERFECT COMBINATION. I WAS ASSIGNED TO THE CW STATION, BUT DID WANDER OVER TO THE SSB STATION DURING AN OFF TIME. AFTER A FEW DAYS, THE SSB CREW WAS GIVEN PERMISSION TO USE THE SPARE RADIO ON 6 METERS. THERE WERE A FEW ENTRIES IN THE LOG. I CALLED CQ AND A WEAK KH6 CALLED AND SAID WE WERE BLASTING IN. EVENTUALLY I FIGURED OUT THAT THE PREAMP WAS NOT IN, AND HE SOON BECAME QUITE STRONG. I WORKED ABOUT 10 MORE IN HAWAII. ONCE AFTER DINNER THE SSB OP MENTIONED THAT 6 WAS OPEN. I WALKED OVER TO THE STATION AND RAN ABOUT 200 JAPANESE, CHINESE, AND KOREAN STATIONS ON SSB, THEN TURNED IT OVER TO K9NW FOR SOME CW. HE RECALLED HE WORKED A PY, BUT WE WERE SO TIRED THAT I CANT EVEN REMEMBER WHAT DAY IT WAS. WEAK CORONAL MASS EJECTIONS IN SOLAR CYCLE 24? DOES IT SEEM TO YOU THE AURORAS AND OVERALL GEOMAGNETIC ACTIVITY FROM CORONAL MASS EJECTIONS HAVE BEEN WEAKER IN SOLAR CYCLE 24 COMPARED TO PAST SOLAR CYCLES? THERE MAY BE SOME SOUND SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE FOR THIS. NAT GOPALSWAMY, OF THE NASA GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER PRESENTED THIS PRESS RELEASE AT THE 2013 THE WORLD ABOVE 50 MHZ JON JONES, N0JK, N0JK ARRL. ORG K9W WAKE ISLAND DXPEDITION THE K9W WAKE ISLAND DXPEDITION MADE 1100 CONTACTS ON THE 6 METER BAND LAST SEPTEMBER. K9W TEAM MEMBER RALPH BELLAS, K9ZO, PREPARED THE FOLLOWING COMMENTARY ABOUT THEIR ACTIVITY ON 50 MHZ. THE 6 METER STATION AT K9W WAS SET UP AT THE SSB LOCATION ON WAKE, IN A MOSTLY OPEN BEACH SHACK JUST A FEW FEET FROM THE LAGOON OF THE ATOLL AND A SHORT WALK FROM THE BARRACKS AND MESS HALL. THE CW STATION WAS A FEW MILES AWAY IN A DECOMMISSIONED CHURCH. EVERY 4 HOURS WE MADE A RUN THERE TO CHANGE OPERATORS. VERTICALS WERE USED ON THE HF BANDS. THE WEATHER WAS SPLENDID, THOUGH HOT AND HUMID, WITH RAINS THAT REQUIRED COVERING THE EQUIPMENT, DUE TO LEAKS IN THE ROOF OF THE BEACH HOUSE. WE HAD 12 OPERATORS MANNING FOUR STATIONS AROUND THE CLOCK, AND AN ADDITIONAL STATION THAT WAS AVAILABLE FOR 6 METERS. MOST OF US FELL INTO A ROUTINE OF 4 HOURS OPERATING, 4 HOURS OF SLEEP, AND 4 HOURS OF SOCIALIZING THEN BACK TO THE RADIO FOR ANOTHER SHIFT. SHIFTS WERE OFFSET SLIGHTLY TO GIVE EVERYONE A SAMPLE OF PROPAGATION AT DIFFERENT TIMES. WE TOOK TIME OFF AS A GROUP TO TOUR THE ISLAND, VISIT THE MEMORIAL TO THE FORGOTTEN 98, AND OBSERVE VETERANS DAY. WE EXCHANGED INFORMATION WITH THE TEAM DURING MEALS AT THE MESS HALL, AND COULD TAKE HOT PROVISIONS TO THOSE WHO WERE OPERATING DURING MEALS. THE 6 METER STATION ‰ END OF 40 WPM TEXT ‰ QST DE W1AW ƒ