Does weather affetc skip?

[BammBamm]

O.K. before some of you are laughing too hard out there I am new to skip. I have heard it for years but always thought only the big radios could do it up until about a year ago. So here is my question Does weather play a role in skip? I guess what I mean is if I am here in Chicago on a clear sunny day it seems I hear everything and can make at least 1 or 2 contacts but today it was gray and lightly drizzling all day and I could hear a little DX but couldn't get out to save my life. Even the locals around here sounded poor. My SWR's are still good and nothing in the shack has changed. Anybody else ever have this problem? It is killing me because it was my last day off and I was looking forward to trying to make a few contacts.

 

[wcsd106]

Misread the original post.

 

[GnG8d]

Nothing I've ever read suggests that weather fronts effect radio at 27mHz.

 

[999]

It's more about how sunspots effect the earths magnetic field and the interaction with the ionosphere than anything else.

 

[North Texas Mudduck]

several times i have noticed while talking skip
folks have mentioned going to unplug before the storm hit
i asked about the storm they said a big thunderstorm is coming
and sure enough i check their weather and they have a cloud over head
and this was around florida the other day

few months back i was talking to a guy in Yuma just out the blue on 19 am
skip rolls in guys from Yuma
so i just pulled up the weather again and checked sure enough there was a thunderstorm out east of Yuma

so to answer your question Yes

 

[GnG8d]

several times i have noticed while talking skip
folks have mentioned going to unplug before the storm hit
i asked about the storm they said a big thunderstorm is coming
and sure enough i check their weather and they have a cloud over head
and this was around florida the other day

few months back i was talking to a guy in Yuma just out the blue on 19 am
skip rolls in guys from Yuma
so i just pulled up the weather again and checked sure enough there was a thunderstorm out east of Yuma

so to answer your question Yes

Pure coincidence.

 

[999]

Not really. That's more of a coincidence than anything. I have been yacking with the east coast with clear weather here for a couple of weeks. No rain, no storms, just nice clear days. I have talked from Illinois to Europe on nice clear days. When I was driving over the road I was in AZ in 38 LSB and had CA LOCKED DOWN with just my radio (President Grant) and a 5' Firestick. Clear, warm night at dusk.

 

[skybolt58]

weird noise

OK here is a good one, may be stupid or a good question

Now on just about all 27mhz 1-40 and the free band, there is a strange noise,

to explain what the noise is, the best I can do

it sounds like a SawZaw cutting a piece of plywood and not being held tight ot the wood. but it has different tones at time. a ham guy here said it was the cycle coming in again of the sun spots? it is heard all over NYS. with a s signal from 7 to the red. anyone else hear it out side of NYS?

OH yes.. it is on AM

 

[RatsoW8]

So far you got some accurate answers. Here's a link to a very basic radio wave propagation tutorial that will explain how "skip" works.

RADIO WAVE PROPAGATION

 

[BammBamm]

Thanks for all the info. it just seemed that on rainy and overcast days here that it was just so quiet and clear but on sunny days I hear a lot more. I have read some of the posts here about sunspots. Must just be the way it's rolling out here.

 

[RatsoW8]

Thanks for all the info. it just seemed that on rainy and overcast days here that it was just so quiet and clear but on sunny days I hear a lot more. I have read some of the posts here about sunspots. Must just be the way it's rolling out here.

If anything on rainy days, especially when there's even distant lightning, the bands will be noisy with electrical discharge. Low bands, 40 and 75/80 meters are darn near unusable during lightning events.

 

[BammBamm]

I only go from about 26.605 to 27.965. I have no desire for the other bands. I'm not a licensed ham and only freeband around the 11 meter band.

 

[74IN]

t sounds like a SawZaw cutting a piece of plywood and not being held tight ot the wood. but it has different tones at time. a ham guy here said it was the cycle coming in again of the sun spots?

I dunno what he meant by that. Never heard of that before, is it on your radio or on others?

 

[kd-5-bgt]

When I was freebanding alot I used to hear what I called a waterfall gurgling ....when that would happen the band would start to open up a bit....sometimes...and everyone that was in my area would hear it as well,so I know it want just me

But since I get into ham radio I havent been hearing that water fall sound....or maybe I just havent been listening for it

 

[mackmobile43]

My radio sounds like mexicans on rainy days.