In the log this week
* MVARC In the Park: Club POTA Activation Tomorrow (8/23/2025)
* MVARC Breakfast Tomorrow (8/23/2025)
* Operating Spotlight: International Dog Day Special Event Stations
* What's happening with DX?
* Solar Activity Update
* Upcoming Contests
* Interesting Online Radio Content
MVARC In the Park: Club POTA Activation Tomorrow (8/23/2025)
Tomorrow MVARC will be activating POTA after our monthly breakfast at Belle Haven Park. It will be great to spend the morning together and have a lot of fun. Also, we'll be running a full 100 W station on battery power and the band conditions have been favorable recently.
If you've ever had interest in doing portable operations but weren't sure how to get started, come out and join us. There will be Extra Class licensees on hand, so if you're a Technician (or even unlicensed) and want to see what it is like to operate on the HF bands, this will be a fun way to dip your toe into the world of HF.
We'll activate with our club call K4US, and if you have a call of your own we can add it to the operator log so you'll get credit for your part of the activation, too. I've done 310 POTA activations so far, so I'd be glad to assist and provide any information you need. Family, friends, and the ham-curious are welcome to join in the fun as well. We hope to see you there.
MVARC Breakfast Tomorrow (8/23/2025)
Tomorrow, Saturday, August 23, 2025, is the date of our next monthly breakfast. As usual we will meet up at 8 AM in the IHOP at 7694 Richmond Highway in Alexandria, Virginia for great conversation, camaraderie, and breakfast too. We have been having a great turn out in the last few months and there is always room for you to join in the fun. We hope to see you there.
Operating Spotlight: International Dog Day Special Event Stations
Tuesday, August 26, 2025 brings International Dog Day and a team of operators around the world have been operating to celebrate and will continue until the 26th. In the US look for special event station K2D and internationally look for DA0DOG, DL0DOG, GB4DOG, and YL1DOG on the airwaves to celebrate our furry friends. The event seeks to promote adoption and rescue of dogs, raise awareness about their needs, and encourage responsible pet ownership. More information about the event can be found at https://www.qrz.com/db/K2D. Good luck.
MVARC Nets on the Air
* 2 Meter FM Net: Tuesdays at 7 PM [146.655/- MHz (141.3 Hz PL Tone) ]
* 2 Meter Digital Net: Immediately Follows 2 Meter FM Net [146.655/- MHz C4FM]
* MVARC Slow Speed CW Roundtable: Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 AM [3.565 MHz CW]
* MVARC Cherry Tree Net: Saturday and Sunday at 8:30 AM [3.920 MHz LSB]
What's Happening with DX
There will be a good amount of DX on the bands this week including Vanuatu (YJ0CA), Zanzibar Island (5H1UM), Benin (TY2AA), South Sudan (Z81D), Tarawa Kiribati (T30TTT), Kuwait (9K2HN), and Antarctica (DP0GVN).
A calendar of DXpeditions can be found at https://dxnews.com/calendar/
Solar Activity Update
As we go to press the Solar Flux Index (SFI) was 121 and the estimated sunspot number was 59 with 6 numbered sunspot regions visible from Earth. Over the last week the SFI has decreased. Solar activity has been at low levels recently. The geomagnetic field was at quiet levels to unsettled levels and the Kp index reached 2 yesterday. The solar wind peaked at 672 km/s. Solar activity is predicted to be at quiet to unsettled levels levels today and at quiet levels over the weekend. The chance of solar radiation storms at the S1 or greater level is low at 1%. R1 to R2 radio blackouts are possible in the near term with a predicted probability of 15% today and and tomorrow and 20% Sunday. R3 or greater blackouts are unlikely with a 1% chance predicted. There is a chance of 6 meter propagation so keep an eye on the band and spotting clusters to be ready for the next time the magic band does its thing. HF conditions have been favorable overall. It remains a fantastic time for amateurs to get on the air and work the world.
Good sources of real-time solar information include https://www.spaceweatherlive.com/ and https://solarham.com/. A good overview of conditions can be found at https://dx.qsl.net/propagation/. To see D-layer absorption data and associated radio blackouts, visit https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/d-region-absorption-predictions-d-rap. To see real-time Maximum Usable Frequency (MUF) and Critical Frequency (foF2) information from radiosonde data, visit https://prop.kc2g.com/.
Upcoming Contests
On the contest calendar this weekend we will see the Turkey HF SSB Contest, the Hawaii QSO Party, the YO DX HF Contest, the ARSI VU DX Contest, the Ohio QSO Party, the CVA DX Contest on SSB, and the SARL HF CW Contest. As always the K1USN SSTs, MSTs, and CWTs will also be on the air.
The full contest calendar with events and exchanges can be found at https://www.contestcalendar.com/weeklycont.php
Interesting Online Radio Content
Steve KM9G experiments with loading coils for portable operations -
Michael KB9VBR tests the 34 foot Alpha Antenna SS34+ Whip -
Kevan 2E0WMG plays radio from an island and gets QRM from a biplane -
Ray KC3RW talks to some of POTA's top activators at Huntsville Hamfest -
Matt M0DQW tries the Radtel RT-920 with new firmware and finds it versatile -
Vince VE6LK bikes into the backcountry to attempt an ATNO -
Walt K4OGO talks ionospheric blanketing -
Kevin W1DED talks to Neil WB9VPG about Youth on the Air (YOTA) -
Hayden VK7HH gets on 160m with the Big Dog Coil -
Callum M0MCX talks QRP -
Matt M0DQW sings the praises of the Xiegu G90 -
Doug N4HNH suggests you give 12 meters a try -
Takeshi JS1QIZ goes camping in Japan and works some QRP in the rain (in Japanese, but has translated closed captioning) -
Elle Marie KJ5LXP attempts SOTA with some friends -
Kevin KB9RLW uses a Si4732 as a CW receiver with a QRP rig he designed -
Manuel WP4TZ activates SOTA in Arizona -
That's it for this week.
Best 73,
Ed
N2EC
