More (and bigger) Tropo!

Wow! Almost 100 QSOs in one-and-a-half-days on 2m outside of contests must mean there was something special. And indeed it was, we had some nice tropo across the North Sea again, this time on a more northerly path so the typical mid-summer “water tropo” (as long as meteorological conditions fit) could play out it’s full potential. 🙂

It all started yesterday in the evening. After last weeks small tropo lift I kept checking the F5LEN forecast more regularly and predictions looked promising. So called CQ every now and then and finally GM4SJB/IO88 heard me and we could easily work. Later on old friend Jim, GM4FVM/IO85, made it into the log, too. 😎

------------------------------------------------------------------
TIME   CALLSIGN      LOCATOR   TX    RX    BAND  MODE   PROP.  QRB
------------------------------------------------------------------
21:12  GM4SJB        IO88BA   -11   -06    2 m.  FT8    TR    1251
21:19  G4BAO         JOØ2CG   -10   -19    2 m.  FT8    TR     946
21:36  GM4FVM        IO85WU   -15   -06    2 m.  FT8    TR    1092
22:02  G4GFI         IO91VH   -16   -08    2 m.  FT8    TR    1001
------------------------------------------------------------------

Today was even better. Besides Scotland the lift shifted a bit southwards, too, allowing a lot of contacts into England as well as western and northern France (surprise, surprise). But the icing on the cake certainly was working Northern Ireland as the ODX.

------------------------------------------------------------------
TIME   CALLSIGN      LOCATOR   TX    RX    BAND  MODE   PROP.  QRB
------------------------------------------------------------------
07:21  F5DRD         JO1ØGA   -06   -05    2 m.  FT8    TR     878
07:46  F1NQP         JN19GL   -16   -06    2 m.  FT8    TR     908
07:56  F6EAS         IN98LV   -18   -11    2 m.  FT8    TR    1165
07:59  F1NDO         JN19FM   -20   -10    2 m.  FT8    TR     910
12:50  GMØHQG        IO88JW   -02   -01    2 m.  FT8    TR    1250
15:01  GØSYP         IO83TK   -13   -12    2 m.  FT8    TR    1099
15:16  G4DHF         IO92UU   -07   -16    2 m.  FT8    TR     969
15:19  MØCVX         IO93XB   -13   -19    2 m.  FT8    TR     949
16:21  GM6VXB        IO97AQ   -16   -04    2 m.  FT8    TR    1132
16:28  G4KUX         IO94BP   +06   +04    2 m.  FT8    TR    1063
16:33  G4PLZ         JOØ2PT   -09   +01    2 m.  FT8    TR     864
17:00  MØCVX         IO93XB   -16   -07    2 m.  FT8    TR     949
18:28  G4EZT         IO92CE   -12   +08    2 m.  FT8    TR    1082
18:46  G4AEP         IO91MB   -18   -11    2 m.  FT8    TR    1059
18:50  F4EMG         JOØØWU   -23   -10    2 m.  FT8    TR     881
18:53  F4FWT         JOØØXU   -10   -01    2 m.  FT8    TR     876
19:00  G3YDY         JOØ1FQ   -16   -20    2 m.  FT8    TR     945
19:04  GØJCC         IO82MA   -10   -04    2 m.  FT8    TR    1163
19:05  G3NSM         IO91IS   -04   -08    2 m.  FT8    TR    1059
19:14  G8JLY         IO82WG   -12   -08    2 m.  FT8    TR    1102
19:14  GØBNR         IO92WL   -17   -09    2 m.  FT8    TR     964
19:18  F5APQ         JOØØVW   -11   -05    2 m.  FT8    TR     883
19:19  G4TRA         IO81WN   -18   -16    2 m.  FT8    TR    1120
19:32  GM4SJB        IO88BA   -12   -04    2 m.  FT8    TR    1251
19:49  G4YHF         IO92XW   -19   -02    2 m.  FT8    TR     951
19:52  GW7SMV        IO81LN   -21   -12    2 m.  FT8    TR    1181
19:54  GØXDI         IO91RQ   -16   -19    2 m.  FT8    TR    1011
19:57  MØIOY         IO93QO   -20   -22    2 m.  FT8    TR     983
20:12  G3YKI         IO82QL   -17   -19    2 m.  FT8    TR    1131
20:39  G8TTI         IO81WM   -13   -10    2 m.  FT8    TR    1122
20:41  MØPNN         IO82TS   -17   -13    2 m.  FT8    TR    1108
20:45  G8REM         IO93TP   -18   -14    2 m.  FT8    TR     966
20:48  G3PWJ         IO82WK   -13   +09    2 m.  FT8    TR    1098
21:01  MØBUL         IO82NG   -22   -10    2 m.  FT8    TR    1152
21:04  GI4SNA        IO64XM   -07   -04    2 m.  FT8    TR    1331
21:19  GØJJG         JOØ2ME   -22   -13    2 m.  FT8    TR     893
21:28  MØKKM         JOØ2EO   -16   -10    2 m.  FT8    TR     928
21:33  GØCUZ         IO82WM   -16   -19    2 m.  FT8    TR    1096
21:51  M7REV         IO82SP   -15   -11    2 m.  FT8    TR    1116
21:53  MØNPT         IO92KX   -12   -04    2 m.  FT8    TR    1022
21:58  GI6ATZ        IO74AJ   -15   -08    2 m.  FT8    TR    1326
22:07  G8GXP         IO93FQ   -09   -16    2 m.  FT8    TR    1042
22:15  MØSLY         IO93VS   -12   -10    2 m.  FT8    TR     954
22:20  GX3WSC        IO91VC   -13   -18    2 m.  FT8    TR    1008
22:25  G8GXP         IO93FQ   -02   -08    2 m.  FT8    TR    1042
22:45  GM1BAN        IO88GO   -14   -07    2 m.  FT8    TR    1250
------------------------------------------------------------------

In total 96 QSOs were made on 2 m, 50 of them being over 800 km! The following map shows all QSOs worked during the two day tropo opening (including the odd ones):

Tropo QSOs made July 22-23, 2021

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