Monitoring Band Conditions

I’m a ragchewer, not a DXer, but I do like to monitor band conditions.

In my last post, I discussed the HamClock that includes a wide variety of ways to monitor conditions.  Unfortunately, however, HamClock is planning to close in June due to the developer’s death.

Fortunately, a group has developed an open-source, web-based version of Hamclock entitled Open Hamclock.  This will run in your browser and thus doesn’t not require anything but a computer.   It provides a lot of information though being DX-oriented, I don’t find it quite as useful for my ragchewing needs as the original Hamclock.  Still, it is one way to keep track of conditions and I’m guessing that development is continuing.

Another way to monitor real-time propagation is through WSPR.  I have a WSPR beacon (see earlier entry) and it gives me great feedback on my antenna’s propagation at any given time.  However, it is a bit awkward to use regularly due to my antenna setup. 

My alternative is to monitor another WSPR beacon in the region that runs 24/7; for my purposes I have chosen NB3A.   It clearly has a better antenna than I do, so the reach is farther, but it provides real-time information about current and changing propagation conditons on the various bands.  I use the WSPR Watch app on an iPad, but there are web-based alternatives as well (see my earlier entry on WSPR).

Solar data, etc, is helpful to understand what is happening, but there’s nothing like seeing where signals are actually being heard.