[OKDXA] CQWW propagation question

[John Geiger]

A couple of weeks ago in the CQWW CW contest, I encountered some
propagation that has me a bit puzzled.  On Saturday afternoon around 2200Z
(4pm local) the 15m band had been closed to Europe for a couple of hours,
when all of a sudden OH8X and SM2M showed up with very good signals, and
definite polar flutter on their signals.  I didn't hear any other EU
stations further south of those countries.  Now this had to be midnight
local for them, and well into several hours or more of darkness, but the
path was there.

It returned on Sunday, a little earlier, and ES9C was also present this
time.

The Saturday opening especially has me puzzled, as to how the MUF was
supporting propagation for them that long into darkness on 15m.  I was
doing a 15m single band entry so don't know what was going on on 10m or 20m
around this time.

Anyone have ideas as to how to explain this propagation?  It seems the
longer I am on the air, the less I understand about propagation.

73 John AF5CC (ex. NE0P)