Do these poor conditions last all summer?

[radiozed]

I took some time away from broadcasting back in early May following a significant equipment failure.  At that time, I was still managing to get decent reception reports from the East Coast and even a smattering in Western Europe at times.  But when I came back in the middle of June, band conditions had definitely changed.  Most times when I tune up 43 meters on the Arizona SDR I use as a monitor, all I hear is what sounds like a steady and super fast "tapping" (OTHR?).  The 43 meter waterfall pretty much looks like a blizzard is hitting it from left to right.  Even when I'm not getting this interference, I'm barely audible on the SDR (when before I was always a blowtorch in to AZ).  Reception reports across the rest of the country are spotty, typically not getting out much farther east than the mid-west. 

I wasn't around the scene last summer, so I'm just trying to determine if this is a taste of what's to come for the rest of the season?  Should I just throw a cover over everything and take a break until the winter cold returns? 

[ChrisSmolinski]

I think there's a few factors at work. Solar activity has been dropping. Right now as I type this, foF2 is only about 6 MHz over most of the USA. That means that 43 meters is iffy for NVIS operation in the daytime. Maybe OK once you get a few hundred miles away from the transmitter. As night, looks like it has been dropping down to 3 or 4 MHz. That creates a pretty large skip zone, about 450 miles around the transmitter site (in theory).

Also, Summer means more thunderstorms, which increases the noise levels, especially at night. Winter will reduce noise levels, although solar activity may be even slightly lower by then. My guess is that nighttime DX propagation on 43 meters will be better, but we'll see many days when NVIS is not possible during the daytime.

[ka1iic]

The thing that p's me off is I might never live to see the next solar Max... not that he last one was much to talk about.... grrrrrrr  damn the Sun...

[Josh]

The solar cycle as well as season and time of day can have drastic effects upon hf propagation.
You might try antennas with differing polarisations to see if that helps in reception or transmission.

[EliteData]

i can tell you that propagation during the daytime for VHF and UHF is quite excellent during the summer but non-existent during the winter.

[ChrisSmolinski]

i can tell you that propagation during the daytime for VHF and UHF is quite excellent during the summer but non-existent during the winter.

Likewise, there's a several week period each in the Spring and Fall when 11 meters to Europe is great, and the UK CBers, Irish church stations, and SSTV stations are easily heard. Usually sometime in October is the best. I'll be hearing nothing, then have that several week period of lots of activity, then back to nothing again. There are so many things about propagation I wish I would have known decades ago. It would resulted in much less wasted time trying to hear the impossible. 

[Nella F.]

The thing that p's me off is I might never live to see the next solar Max... not that he last one was much to talk about.... grrrrrrr  damn the Sun...

                              Don't let the Propagation Gods hear you cursing our S U N.
                                                                   

[Pigmeat]

To answer the original question, yup. Monsoon season is getting ready to start in the SW in a few weeks as prevailing winds start push the remnants of the tropical storms and hurricanes that form off the west coast of Mexico into the region. Try a remote receiver in California or the Rockies and see if the noise you're hearing on the Arizona receiver is on those.

You can always try transmitting on weekend mornings, noise is significantly lower in the first 4-5 hours after daylight, though the distance your signal travels drops substantially after roughly 10 am. local time in summer.