Re: [IRCA] Latin America DX western US/Canada (was: Oklahoma TP DX 10/3/16)

[Nick Hall-Patch <nhp@xxxxxxxx>]

I think that the westerners lack of enthusiasm for auroras is 
generally poor results when one occurs.   Possible reason is that the 
aurora has to be quite intense to affect us, as our geomagnetic 
latitude is further south than the eastern and midwestern USA.   An 
aurora that wipes out midwestern interference for easterners is also 
going to start to block paths from say Venezuela to the Pacific 
northwest.    An aurora that shuts down reception of the still 
dominant eastern clear channels  for eastern DXers, allowing southern 
DX to get through, has little effect on our principal interference 
sources here, which are from the south (San Francisco, Portland 
etc.)   Our interference from Boise, Calgary and Billings, MT is just 
not that important in comparison.   As someone said once to me in 
Vancouver, BC, when you face north, the next city of any size is St 
Petersburg; there is just not much interference up that way.

So, we're  spoiled here.   Compared with the east and mid west, the 
band is not so full of powerful signals. However, what powerful 
signals we have are all in the way of reception from Central and 
South America, which is a fair bit further away than those locations 
are from the eastern part of the continent....mostly a land path too, 
whereas your paths often involve water.    And the aurora won't 
affect them without affecting targets further south.

So, we'll just have to wait for split frequencies and continent wide 
clear channels to return.

best wishes,

Nick


At 17:38 03-10-16, you wrote:
> ....
> My "two cents."  I'm always surprised at how auroras are not usually 
> a cause for great DX enthusiasm out west and that so little 
> non-Mexico Latin American activity is ever reported even with 
> probably 4 times as many active DXers out there as compared to the 
> northeastern USA and adjacent Canadian provinces.  (And you guys are 
> often running better antennas.)

Nick Hall-Patch
Victoria, BC
Canada 

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