Solar Activity Observed via WWV Signal Monitoring

I've been monitoring the time station WWV in Fort Collins, Colorado on 15 MHZ for some time, in hopes of detecting solar activity as a change in signal stength of WWV's broadcast signal. Below are two such cases, both strong X-class solar flares. In each case, the normally fluctuating signal suddenly simply goes away, when the flare erupts on the sun. At the same time, the amateur radio bands of 20 thru 10 meters (15 Mhz thru about 30 MHz) cease their normal radio frequency propagation, and the bands become dead. When the flare activity stops, the bands come back to life.

This was accomplished using a 1960's era vacuum tube communications receiver, and a simple dipole antenna with only bidirectional properties.

9 April 2001  

Here's the entire recording for 9 April 2001 UTC.  

 

 Here's the time frame of 15:00 to 17:59:

 

Data taken from the NOAA/SEC website:


:Product: 20010409events.txt


:Created: 2001 Apr 10 1202 UT
:Date: 2001 04 09
# Prepared by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Environment Center.
# Please send comments and suggestions to sec@sec.noaa.gov
#
# Missing data: ////
# Updated every 30 minutes.
# Edited Events for 2001 Apr 09
#
#Event Begin Max End Obs Q Type Loc/Frq Particulars Reg#
#-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9330 + 1520 1534 1600 GO8 5 XRA 1-8A M7.9 1.3E-01 9415
9330 + 1522 1535 1614 SAG G RBR 4995 3800 9415
9330 + 1522 1530 1614 SAG G RBR 8800 5300 9415
9330 + 1522 1526 1614 SAG G RBR 15400 5900 9415
9330 + 1523 1537 1614 SAG G RBR 2695 1600 9415
9330 + 1524 1547 1614 SAG G RBR 410 5100 9415
9330 + 1524 1530 1614 SAG G RBR 606 39000 9415
9330 + 1524 1526 1614 SAG G RBR 1415 4500 9415
9330 + 1524 1529 1614 SAG U RBR 245 6700 9415
9330 + 1524 1534 1703 RAM 3 FLA S21W04 2B ERU 9415
9330 + 1527 //// 1552 SAG C RSP 030-080 II/3 800 9415
9330 1558 //// 1611 HOL C RSP 025-180 III/1 9415
9330 1558 //// 1752 HOL C RSP 025-180 IV/1 9415

Data taken directly from my recording file 010409a.log

Radiometer observation for: 4/9/2001 Start time: 11:0:3:31 UTC
Data sample interval: 0:0:10:0 , duration: 12:0:0:0
Alarm level: 2048 Frequency used: 15.000 Mhz, integration time = 0 seconds
Observation number: 200100056 File: 010409a.log

Time stamp | data

15:24:20:8

1427

15:24:30:13

1429

15:24:40:18

186

15:24:50:23

1427

15:25:0:17

494

15:25:10:23

481

15:25:20:22

224

15:25:30:0

222

15:25:40:32

253

15:25:50:27

280

15:26:0:15

99

15:26:10:20

124

15:26:20:26

85

15:26:30:25

142

15:26:40:14

102

15:26:50:19

82

15:27:0:19

84

15:27:10:29

86

15:27:20:1

77

15:27:30:7

72

15:27:40:12

76

15:27:50:17

70

==========================================

15 April 2001

A major flare erupted on the limb of the sun from sunspot 9415 on 15 April, 2001 at 13:50 UT.

This flare was an X14 class flare, one of the most powerfull ever recorded.

My timing is off on the chart. At the time of this flare, my time stamp is behind by about 10 minutes.

 

The entire recording:

 

Time from 13:00 to 15:59 

 

Data taken from the NOAA/SEC website:


 :Product: 20010415events.txt
:Created: 2001 Apr 16 1802 UT
:Date: 2001 04 15
# Prepared by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Environment Center.
# Please send comments and suggestions to sec@sec.noaa.gov
#
# Missing data: ////
# Updated every 30 minutes.
# Edited Events for 2001 Apr 15

#
#Event Begin Max End Obs Q Type Loc/Frq Particulars Reg#
#-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
620 + 1336 1349 1535 RAM 3 FLA S20W85 2B ERU 9415
620 1344 //// 1346 SAG C RSP 030-080 III/1 9415
620 1345 1418 1521 SAG G RBR 1415 54000 9415
620 1346 1347 1424 SAG G RBR 245 61000 9415
620 1346 1347 1514 SAG G RBR 410 1500 9415
620 1346 1447 1521 SAG G RBR 606 2700 9415
620 + 1348 //// 1355 SAG C RSP 030-080 II/3 1000 9415
620 + 1352 //// 1505 SAG C RSP 030-080 IV/3 9415
630 1438 //// 1951 HOL 3 LPS S22W87 0.04 B.9A 9415
640 1454 //// 2010 RAM 3 LPS S22W90 0.04 B.7A 9415
650 1603 1603 1603 SAG G RBR 1415 86

Data taken directly from my recording file 010415a.log

Radiometer observation for: 4/15/2001 Start time: 12:8:50:52 UTC
Data sample interval: 0:0:10:0 , duration: 11:0:0:0
Alarm level: 2048 Frequency used: 15.000 Mhz, integration time = 0 seconds
Observation number: 200100064 File: 010415a.log

Time stamp | data

13:40:0:11

1719

13:40:10:16

1745

13:40:20:21

1659

13:40:30:32

1721

13:40:40:26

1756

13:40:50:26

1767

13:41:0:20

1709

13:41:10:8

1746

13:41:20:19

1139

13:41:30:19

1624

13:41:40:7

1101

13:41:50:18

1680

13:42:0:23

1703

13:42:10:1

1099

13:42:20:0

600

13:42:30:33

1651

13:42:40:16

887

13:42:50:49

1474

13:43:0:21

639

13:43:10:26

924

13:43:20:4

145

13:43:30:42

156

13:43:40:36

609

13:43:50:19

173

13:44:0:8

670

13:44:10:2

115

13:44:20:24

133

13:44:30:1

393

13:44:40:1

297

13:44:50:1

213

13:45:0:0

163

13:45:10:22

238

13:45:20:0

322

13:45:30:5

91

13:45:40:21

119

13:45:50:31

122

13:46:0:15

93

13:46:10:20

89

13:46:20:25

87

13:46:30:3

79

13:46:40:19

85

13:46:50:7

85

13:47:0:18

84

13:47:10:18

83

13:47:20:1

78

13:47:30:11

79

13:47:40:0

78

13:47:50:0

77

13:48:0:32

85

13:48:14:49

88

13:48:24:16

77

13:48:34:16

86

13:48:44:32

91

13:48:54:26

77

13:49:0:19

92

13:49:10:2

77

13:49:20:13

76

13:49:30:18

81

13:49:40:29

78

13:49:50:12

75

 

 

========================================================================

Please review this data and send any comments or comparative data

to: jrs@zoo.uvm.edu