Opening on the 40 MHz band between Australia and Europe - 16th Oct 2024

It was interesting to see that there was a good opening on the 40 MHz (8m) band on the 16th of Oct 2024 from the north of  Australia to Europe.

The map above shows the FT8 reports from PSK Reporter and the frequency is use was 40.680 MHz, the main centre of activity for all modes on the 8m band.

Mark, VK8MS in Australia was operating under the terms of the LIPD (Low Interference Potential Devices) Class Licence.  LIPD allows Australian citizens to operate on several bands in the low VHF spectrum with the need for a licence if the power output is below certain levels.

For the frequency range of 40.660 to 41.000 MHz (340 kHz), a maximum of 1-watt ERP can be used.

I have more details about the Australian LIPD licence in this previous post... https://ei7gl.blogspot.com/2024/01/low-vhf-band-lipd-licence-in-australia.html

I have included a log of reports below...

Some of these are reception reports by the stations in Europe but FT8 reports were exchanged with EA7KBX in Spain who was running 25-watts to a 4-element beam.

I believe EA3ERE who was running 10-watts also exchanged FT8 reports with VK8MS.

In conclusion... This is a nice example of some long distance paths which are now possible at the peak of the solar cycle on the 40 MHz band. There will be many times where the maximum usable frequency will support 40 MHz propagation but 50 MHz is a little too high. Sometimes, these 40 MHz openings can give advanced warning of potential openings on 6m.

Over the next few months, we should see plenty of long distance paths like this on the 8m band.

If you want to try and you have a suitable radio, just tune to 40.680 MHz USB and set up FT8 on your computer. Leave your radio on that frequency during daylight hours and see what you can hear.

Link... For more information on the 8m band, see my 40 MHz page.