The total eclipse of the
sun on 21 August offers coast-to-coast opportunities for radio experimenters to
examine diurnal propagation variations on a shortened time scale...and perhaps
anomalous variations that aren't analogous to the normal day/night changes.
Effects can be expected from VLF through HF (probably even at ELF), so nearly
every longwave enthusiast in the US and Canada should be able to observe and
document signal variations during the eclipse with their current
equipment.
This will be discussed
further in the August issue of The LOWDOWN.
Meanwhile, to get a sense
of the potential range of experiments possible, LWCA member Rick Ferranti W6NIR
suggests these Web sites as an introduction: Whitham D Reeve and HamSci.org.
Rick notes that the latter is a little vague on some of the organized
activities, and more can be gleaned from an addition HamSci paper on the
subject.
HamSci's own effort is
strictly in the HF amateur bands and employs tools like the Reverse Beacon
Network and WSPRnet, the latter of which will also be useful to monitors tuned
to the WSPR segments of 2200 and 630 meters. But as previously noted, all
longwave buffs can get in on the action. HiFER and LowFER signals, NDBs, Navy
stations monitored on SID receivers, and whistler/natural radio receivers will
also all provide unique opportunities to observe the transient effects on our
ionosphere of the moon's shadow. (Longwave Radio Club)
