PROPAGATION

Quick Look at Current Cycle 25 Conditions: (Data rounded to nearest whole number)

Sunspots:

Observed Monthly, June 2021: 24

12-month smoothed, December 2020: 15

10.7-cm Flux:

Observed Monthly, June 2021: 80

12-month smoothed, December 2020: 76

ONE YEAR AGO: (Data rounded to nearest whole number)

Sunspots:

Observed Monthly, June 2020: 6

12-month smoothed, December 2019: 2

10.7-cm Flux:

Observed Monthly, June 2020: 70

12-month smoothed, December 2019: 71

Once again, it is time for some of the best long-range DX openings of the year. With autumn right around the corner, the season for radical improvement in radio propagation conditions is beginning. This is the time to ensure that you finish any antenna project, double-check your feedlines and your grounding system. The DX hunting season is opening this month.

In late September, the Sun will be directly over the equator. In 2021, the September Equinox (Autumnal Equinox in the Northern Hemisphere and Vernal / Spring Equinox in the Southern Hemisphere) is on Wednesday, September 22nd at 19:21 UTC.

Because the Earth is positioned such that the Sun is directly over the equator during the equinox, the hours of daylight are about the same in both hemispheres (Figure 1). This results in an ionosphere of almost similar characteristics over large areas of the world, making it the best time of the year for DX openings between the temperate regions of the northern and