Indian Ocean Wefax

Hi,

I am searching through all the published WEFAX Fequencies for the Indian Ocean WEFAX - but I am hearing nothing !!!

I should add at the moment I am on terra-firma, with a large HAM Radio setup, but will be jumping onto a yacht in 4 weeks time, and would appreciate getting some decent weather charts.

So - which frequencies are working please ?

I hear the UK Northwood for Middle East - very weakly (18,202.3 US , and in the past I have heard an Australian Station... but not for a long time.

Many thanks

Tim

P.S. I'll be taking my portable Pactor3 setup with me as well - so GRIB will be the most likely solution.

[MMNETSEA]

Originally Posted by a45wg

Hi,

I am searching through all the published WEFAX Fequencies for the Indian Ocean WEFAX - but I am hearing nothing !!!

I should add at the moment I am on terra-firma, with a large HAM Radio setup, but will be jumping onto a yacht in 4 weeks time, and would appreciate getting some decent weather charts.

So - which frequencies are working please ?

I hear the UK Northwood for Middle East - very weakly (18,202.3 US , and in the past I have heard an Australian Station... but not for a long time.

Many thanks

Tim

P.S. I'll be taking my portable Pactor3 setup with me as well - so GRIB will be the most likely solution.

QRZ, Tim,

At this time Propagation very poor (rock bottom of the cycle)

A first class software program (free) PropHF v 1.3a by Christian Ramade F6GQK is to be found on his website http://www.dxfile.free.fr

This program will provide best MUFs for freqs.

You can also receive WX via Sailmail - grib files OK but have their limitations in micro situations.

Where are you heading to ?

Richard

Richard,

I agree the (Solar) cycle is at the bottom at the moment, I have played with MUF frequency prediction software, however generally I have found them to be a best guess.

A far better way of seeing what the prediction in real time is (not using Packet Cluster info) and fully applicable on a Yacht, is to listen to the NCDXF beacons - they transmit on all the 14-28 Mhz Ham bands. If you can read morse (which I can), then you do not need to use a software product.

For example, last night I was trying to connect to India for a Pactor Modem test - no joy..... Listen to the NCDXF for 3 minutes (the time for 1 cycle on 1 band), and South Africa was booming in.... change to the South African Pactor Frequencies..... 1 call - 1 E-Mail sent.... easy.

NavText here in Oman - this is where I live and work, is very good; Using a good receiver I would be confident of picking up this signal 400 miles away from Muscat. Using the SCS Pactor Modem, I can occasionally acquire Qatar's NavText transmissions - but not reliably enough.

Having said all that - I still am drawing a blank on any reliable WEFAX transmission into the Northern Indian Ocean/ Gulf of Oman.... I will of course keep trying.

I should be doing a yacht delivery from Oman to Sri Lanka in mid March, our yacht however lives in Malaysia; As Marina fees here are just too stupid to pay.

Tim

A45WG/M0FGC