Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Sun: Sleepy Now, Party Later

Now: Quiet sun.

20 (da-da-daa-DUMMM!) 12: Angry sun.

Stock up now.

--Do you know what the propagation's gonna be like on 20 meters in 2012 if the Sun hots up in the manner of our prophets-of-doom? On 10m? On Six?

Oh, yeah, massive power outages, all that. We'll be catchin' rainwater to supplement our stored supplies and cookin' canned goods in the chimenea but hey, there will be all manner of DX to help pass the time!
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11 comments:

  1. Turk TuronApril 22, 2009 at 8:12 AM

    I have batteries and solar panels to power my little 100-watt Tx when propagation improves. And if the environment has to tank as a consequence, well, at least I can get Century Club!

    ReplyDelete
  2. homebruApril 22, 2009 at 12:11 PM

    In the past, I proved that, given sufficient DX, all else I need is the three basic food groups: caffeine, nicotine, and twinkie. I expect that I could do without the nicotine now, substituting Diet Pepsi.

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  3. Joe HuffmanApril 22, 2009 at 12:17 PM

    The Obama administration and other national governments are not aggressively focused on contingency preparations for the 2012 solar flare impacts, or on introducing available anti-gravitic, new energy sources that would transform centralized high-power electrical grid systems into de-centralized, anti-gravitic and quantum process energy sources.Uhhh... sure. Whatever you say...

    ReplyDelete
  4. TJPApril 22, 2009 at 2:53 PM

    Astronomers aren't "baffled" by solar cycle 24. It's just interesting, and our record of solar activity is fairly short and lacks the detail afforded by recent technological advances.

    Sheesh! Is Millenarianism 101 a required course for journalism students?

    Also: I'm all for decentralized power. I'd love to have a Toshiba mini-reactor in my town, instead of depending on a dilapidated boiler, two pressure reactors, and two coal-fired plants.

    ReplyDelete
  5. JoannaApril 22, 2009 at 5:17 PM

    I knew there was a reason for me to learn Morse code ...

    ReplyDelete
  6. samApril 22, 2009 at 5:26 PM

    No one else noticed the date on the "Angry Sun" article? April 1.

    ReplyDelete
  7. TJPApril 22, 2009 at 7:00 PM

    Scratch that comment about the doomsday oracles of journalism. I read the titles of the other articles on the Examiner's page.

    -... ...

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  8. Roberta XApril 22, 2009 at 8:17 PM

    Joe, umm, when tinfoil-hattedness meets 1 April, the going gets...psycho. Delic. -Ish, ;) I thought it was amusing. Plus I'm vexed at the present sunspot minimum. No big lunchtime DX! >sigh<

    ReplyDelete
  9. ogApril 22, 2009 at 9:01 PM

    Been trying to think of a good reason to buy a little multi-band, or a dedicated qrp unit.

    ReplyDelete
  10. RitchieApril 22, 2009 at 10:50 PM

    And that puzzle about the even-year polarity? 11 years is the half cycle. A complete solar cycle is (average) 22 years. Just like that AC lurking in teh wallz.

    ReplyDelete
  11. AnonymousApril 23, 2009 at 3:37 PM

    Might's well hold out for a Hallicrafters (and spare tubes) then, and avoid the EMP rush too.

    ReplyDelete

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