[50mhz] Re: [Moon-net] ONLY 50 MHz EME corrected

LANCE COLLISTER w7gj at q.com
Wed Apr 16 12:03:49 EDT 2008



Kim Liljekrans [OZ5IQ] wrote:
>
> HI guys
>
> I am trying to collect a group of amateurs who has interest / capable of EME on 
50MHz
> PSE mark your reply with a  mark  such as  CW , JT6  etc.
>
> 
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>
>
>     CALL           Antenna             AZ / EL           loc. 
note
> 
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>    OZ5IQ           2 x 9 M2              AZ                JO65AO        CW
>
>
>
>
>
> VY 73  de  OZ5IQ, Kim
> _______________________________________________
> Moon-Net posting and subscription instructions are at 
http://www.nlsa.com/nets/moon-net-help.html
>
>
W7GJ			4x9 M2		AZ/EL		DN27ub		JT65A



Hello Kim,

I am not sure exactly what your goal is, but I have included my information 
according to your request above.

Your email is a little bit confusing because it asks about people who are "capable 
of EME on 50 MHz". I have personally completed with over 175 different stations in 
77 different DXCC on 6m EME, and there are MANY HUNDREDS of additional stations 
capable of EME on 6m who simply do not realize it.  Just about any station with a 
6m yagi and a few hundred watts who also can run the digital the mode of JT65A is 
capable of successfully completing contacts on 6m EME (during local moonrise and 
moonset, when the effective size of their antennas is increased through additional 
ground gain).  With the huge increase in popularity of modes like PSK31 on HF, and 
radios such as the K3 with their built-in capability to operate digital modes, I 
am sure the number of stations with built-in 6m EME capability is going to 
continue to increase.

There is very little random activty on 6m EME which requires people to stay up all 
night long hoping that someone, somewhere in the world might decide to get on the 
air.  Most of the new contacts on 6m EME are made by setting up schedules via 
email, although some stations can sometimes be found through the internet on 
regional 6m chat pages or (rarely) on the N0UK JT65EME page.  Because of the 
worldwide nature of EME, it is difficult to find operating times that are 
convenient with all stations at the same time.  That is why email skeds are so 
popular....I know personally, before I get up for a sked at 0300 local time, I 
want to make sure that there will be somebody else on the band - HI!  That having 
been said, I have had a fair amount of success by getting on during days of good 
conditions when the moonrise or moonset is also occurring at a convenient time of 
day in the area where I want to contact people.  For example, a weekend afternoon 
for the other stations ;-)

Other "capable stations" can be identified by looking through magazines such as 
the UKSMG "SIX NEWS", or at lists of DXCC standings or contest results. If you 
want a better idea of who is already active on 6m EME, you also can check the 
websites of some stations such as IW5DHN, PE1BTX and OY3JE which show some of the 
stations they have contacted.  You can also take a look at my web page to get an 
idea of a sampling of some 6m EME stations:

   http://www.bigskyspaces.com/w7gj/6mEMEstns.htm

Although I have contacted a dozen or so very large 6m stations on CW during the 
most optimum conditions, VIRTUALLY ALL the current 6m EME activity involves 
operation on JT65A mode.  The reason for this is very simple.  Nobody I have met 
(so far, at least) has the ability to enlarge the size of their antenna system 10 
times, but they achieve that kind of increase in dB (compared to CW) by using 
JT65A mode.  Similarly, if there were someone dedicated to AM or FM, I am sure 
they could also be successful completing a contact on 6m EME using those modes if 
they made even further increases in the size of their antenna arrays.  However, 
until more people have 20 or 30 yagi arrays on 6m, it is very unlikely to see such 
modes become popularly used for 6m EME ;-)

That is not to say anything negative about any particular modes, and I am sure SSB 
and CW will still be around for a long time to work weak signals on 6m (at least 
for "terrestrial propagation modes").  And I know I am sure going to use whatever 
mode I need to answer a weak DX station!  However, the reason that the digital 
mode of JT65A has essentially become the standard for 6m EME communication is 
because it works so much better for this particular application, which is an 
especially challenging one where signals are almost always exceedingly weak. There 
is no question that, if a station wants to make more than a few contacts on 6m 
EME, the first step is to become QRV with digital mode capability and then find 
other stations who are similarly capable.

GL and VY 73, Lance

-- 
Lance Collister, W7GJ (ex: WN3GPL, WA3GPL, WA1JXN, WA1JXN/C6A, ZF2OC/ZF8)
P.O. Box 73
Frenchtown, MT  59834  USA
QTH: DN27UB
TEL: (406) 626-5728   URL: http://www.bigskyspaces.com/w7gj
2m DXCC #11, 6m DXCC #815



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