Six-meter activity is picking up as we enter the Sporadic E season. Even before that, I’ve been able to work a few new DXCC entities and grids. Here are the highlights.

AI6EM in CN70 on 16-May-2024

This one ranks higher than the following DXCC entities. The reason is that, when confirmed (come back soon Logbook of the World), it will be grid 484 in my effort to earn the FFMA award by confirming contacts with all 488 grids.

This QSO actually took a long time to come. I’d identified stations in the grids I still needed, added them to JT-Alert, and listed them in the HamAlert app on my phone. HamAlert had let me know that AI6EM was on the air several times, but nothing was heard.

When I finally heard him, JT-Alert shouted, “Needed grid” and “Wanted call sign. It was great to work him. Once our QSO was completed, nothing else was heard from him. We’ll see how the confirmation goes.

VK8AW on 16-May-2024

This is the station I was watching for when I heard AI6EM. I had decoded VK8AW on the previous two days. He would be there, I’d call, and he would be gone. I picked him up on the third day, but there was no alert because the grid wasn’t shown, and the DXCC was already worked. I lost him for a while, but eventually, I decoded him once more, and we completed the QSO!

J88BTI, St. Vincent, on 10-May-2024

This was a new DXCC and grid. I’d been watching for this country for a while. I had previously heard J88IH but couldn’t complete the QSO. I got it done this time after much effort with the signal in and out. I am waiting for confirmation after completing the online QSL request.

D4L, Cape Verde, on 1-May-2024

This one was a real surprise. I saw a few people calling him, turned the antenna, and, after some time, started to decode him, eventually completing the QSO. I looked at QRZ.com to inquire about confirmation but couldn’t find anything. While I was scratching my head over this, a confirmation on Logbook of the World showed up. Excellent!

YJ0VK, Vanuatu, on 4-April-2024

This happened a little while ago, but it was an exciting new DXCC and grid. It was a back-and-forth effort, but I finally got the RR73. The confirmation is in LoTW, and the QSL card has also arrived.

NJ6D on 2 meters MSK144 3-May-2024, Aquarids Meteor Shower

I also like to chase grids on 2 meters. I have 165 grids worked and 161 confirmed. At this point, I’m watching for Sporadic E openings and Meteor Showers. Chuck, NJ6D, was kind enough to run with me during the Aquarids shower. It went surprisingly well. He’s got a good station.

Butt-in-Chair

All these new DXCCs and grids were due to keeping my butt-in-the-chair watching what others were working, watching DXmaps, and listening for the alerts I’d set up some time ago. It works, but it takes considerable effort. Let’s hope I can find those other four FFMA grids during this season.

Madison DX Club — VK2ZRH Long-Haul Ionospheric Propagation on 50 MHz

It also pays to study propagation on the Magic Band. You can find my writing on this topic in my book Magic Band Revealed, which is free to download. But I also encourage you to watch this week’s presentation by Roger, VK2ZRH, to the Madison DX Club. Here’s the YouTube link https://youtu.be/WsPaadICFqA?si=bLIPIcrJmZG5jlKy

When I watch this type of Zoom presentation, I often take a few screenshots to serve as my notes. A recent presentation by Paul, N2EME, on SDRs was a case in point, as I collected about a handful of screenshots that I’ve been consulting as I update settings, etc., in my station.

But for Roger’s presentation, I literally captured every screenshot. There was so much new information and new wrinkles on how the propagation worked that I didn’t want to miss a single slide. You’ll learn a lot. Check it out.

Have fun on 6 meters as the E season warms up.