[Lowfer] MP LF - Was: Re: hifers

[us66soft at aol.com]

>>> Thanks for the report - amazing since every time I check the 
"lightning" website, it seems all the activity is centered on your QTH  
:-)

Yes, I get home some nights from the field and look at the lightning 
map and wonder how I survived electrocution, let alone saw anything on 
Argo.  :)

In reality, the lightning detection network seems to be off by as much 
as 50 miles sometimes.  Lightning storms have been visible in the 
distance, but nothing within 50 miles of here.  If you were to make a 
composite of the radar maps of the Plains for the past two weeks and 
plot the regions where nothing actually fell, the center of the one 
remaining dry spot would be my farm!  With a corn crop ready to tassle, 
I'd be delighted to be forced home by a good wet thundershower.

I've been watching 1750m and 2200m every evening this week, and it 
turns out that Tuesday and Wednesday had lower average static levels 
than Monday did, but reception was not as clear as Monday.  Odd.  I 
think one of my upcoming projects will be to simultaneously record or 
spectrum-analyze the kinds of lightning static I get each day, and see 
if there's occasionally some characteristic of the noise that Argo 
can't handle as well, despite comparable levels on an S-meter.

Yesterday, there were frequent crashes above S9+20, but I could tell 
there were fraction-of-a-second gaps with no noise at all, and MP did 
fine both before and after sunset--well, except for QRM.  A wandering 
carrier got in the way for a while.

I'll put together a night-by-night composite image of this week's 
captures, probably on Sunday.

Good reception of the HiFER each day until well after dark.

John D.

-----Original Message-----
From: Mitch Powell <mitch.powell at sympatico.ca>
Tent: Tue, Jul 2, 2013 7:26 pm
Subject: Re: [Lowfer] hifers

John:
Thanks for the report - amazing since every time I check the 
"lightning" website,
it seems all the activity is centered on your QTH  :-)
Despite a few storms here - the loop is holding up well and no off-air 
time
so far this Spring/Summer except for my  own occasional listening times.

Hifer is still on - now horizontally polarized - broadside to you.
73
Mitch