[50mhz] Good gain verticals?

[Bill W5WVO]

Hi Chris,

You wrote:

> When the band is open, it doesnt really matter as to polarization.

I've always believed this, because the polarization would obviously get skewed 
in the active ionospheric layer. BUT... I've never seen any results from a 
side-by-side test using a horizontal and vertical antenna of the same gain 
(dBi) at the same elevation above ground during an E opening to see if this is 
really true. Has anybody here ever actually done this, or something 
approximating it?

The reason for my skepticism is that sporadic-E couds are very highly charged, 
very planar (i.e., flat), and very thin -- all compared to the F layer, which 
is structured very differently and refracts signals gradually back to earth. 
E-clouds tend to act more like reflectors (mirrors) than refractors. The 
flatter and more highly charged the surface of the E cloud is, the less 
polarity distortion should take place. Theoretically.  :-)

Which would imply that a horizontally polarized antenna of the same gain and 
same elevation as a vertical might work better during strong sporadic-E 
openings (assuming, as is the case, that most stations are also using 
horizontally polarized antennas for DX work).

Comments?

Bill / W5WVO