rjr@mgweed.UUCP (Bob Roehrig) (05/21/85)
qst de k9eui hr propagation forecast bulletin nr 20 from arrl headquarters newington ct may 19, 1985 to all radio amateurs bt for the first time in several months, there were three sizable sunspot groups visible may 18 and 19. the solar flux reached 93 on the 16th, dropped back to 90 the next day, and was down to 88 by the 19th. the large group responsible for the 90 peak on may 10 went around the west limb on the 20th. it appeared to be shrinking and the two groups now in the eastern portion do not appear large enough to sustain flux values in the high 80s very long. the area of the sun that started a major flux rise on april 20 is back again, but thus far has not shown anything like its april vitality. a return to flux readings in the low 70s does not appear as an immediate prospect, but it could happen late in may. a decline in average geomagnetic activity below the late april peaks is expected to help propagation prospects during the balance of may. the normal 27 day interval for recurrence of the major disturbance of april 21 has already passed. indications are for fairly good conditions through may 22, with recurrent disturbances may 23 to 26. these will degrade east west communication in the higher latitudes mainly. sporadic e skip was more prevalent last week. it will come more often with increased effect in late may. it will enliven the 10 and 6 meter bands with short skip increasingly through late june and the chances for 2 meter skip will improve. american sunspot numbers for may 9 through 15 were between 43 and 21 with a mean of 29.7 ar
stephany.WBST@Xerox.ARPA (05/22/85)
Just a note to tell you that the ARRL bulletins are well appreciated. Joe N2XS