Week 27 / 2026 | 29 June – 5 July | SFI 163 | SSN 108 | A 11 | K 1 | X-Ray C1.4
Summary
A flux boost early, a storm at the weekend. Week 27 has two faces: in the first half a strong solar flux around 163 (SSN 108) meets a quiet geomagnetic field — the ideal combination for genuinely good HF conditions. From Friday (3 July) the picture turns: NOAA expects a geomagnetic disturbance up to G1 level (Kp 5, Ap 18) that temporarily dampens the upper bands.
At 163 the flux is well above recent weeks (around 128 lately) and lifts the upper HF bands noticeably. Per the NOAA forecast the week starts at F10.7 ~132, peaks Wednesday at ~145 and eases to ~130 by the weekend.
Add the high-summer bonus: the Sporadic-E season is still very active in early July. Daily Es openings on 6 m and 10 m are likely, occasionally multi-hop beyond 2,000 km. The downside of the short summer nights: on 160/80 m the DX window stays narrow and thunderstorm QRN is high.
Band Forecast
With SFI ~163 the upper bands are in much better shape than recently — 15 m and 17 m carry reliable F2 DX again, joined by strong Sporadic-E on 10 m and 6 m. The low bands stay weak for summer reasons. Values apply to quiet days; from Friday the geomagnetic disturbance mainly dampens 15–6 m.
| Band | Day | Night | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 160m | Poor | Poor | Summer lull — shortest nights, high QRN |
| 80m | Poor | Fair | EU-only in the brief darkness, thunderstorm QRN |
| 40m | Fair | Good | Reliable EU/DX at dusk, NA from ~21 UTC |
| 30m | Good | Good | Stable all-rounder, steady FT8/CW |
| 20m | Very good | Good | Main band — long daylight opening, worldwide DX |
| 17m | Very good | Fair | SFI 163 delivers — DX to JA, VK, NA, long into the evening |
| 15m | Good to very good | Poor | Clearly benefits from high flux — worldwide DX by day |
| 12m | Good (F2 + Es) | Poor | F2 usable again, plus Sporadic-E |
| 10m | Good to very good (F2 + Es) | Poor | High flux plus daily Es — loud, short openings |
| 6m | Very good (Es) | Poor | Magic Band — daily Sporadic-E, multi-hop possible |
Geomagnetic Forecast
Split in two: quiet through Thursday, then a disturbance. For Friday 3 July NOAA expects Kp up to 5 (Ap 18) — a minor G1 disturbance that dampens the upper bands but opens the chance of auroral propagation on VHF at higher latitudes. The disturbance slowly fades over the weekend.
| Day | Kp expected | SFI forecast | Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, 29 Jun | 2 | 132 | Quiet — solid upper bands, Es on 6 m |
| Tue, 30 Jun | 2 | 135 | Quiet — flux rising, good DX 20–10 m |
| Wed, 1 Jul | 2 | 145 | Very quiet — flux peak, best DX of the week |
| Thu, 2 Jul | 2 | 138 | Quiet — upper bands still strong |
| Fri, 3 Jul | 5 | 140 | G1 disturbance — 15–6 m dampened, VHF aurora chance |
| Sat, 4 Jul | 4 | 135 | Unsettled — recovery begins, fading |
| Sun, 5 Jul | 4 | 130 | Slightly unsettled — conditions normalising |
Recommendations for the Coming Week
- Use the first half for DX: Mon–Thu offer high flux and a quiet field — the best combination. Wednesday (flux peak ~145) is the day for worldwide DX on 20/17/15 m.
- 15 m and 17 m back in play: the high SFI brings the upper F2 bands back reliably by day — good odds toward JA, VK and North America.
- 6 m stays the summer band: Sporadic-E remains strong in early July. Watch beacons and FT8 (50.313 MHz), and work weaker multi-hop signals with a Yagi.
- Friday = change of plan: the G1 disturbance drops the upper bands. Then look to the lower bands — and at higher latitudes to possible aurora on 2 m and 6 m.
- Low bands = early birds: 40/80 m DX only in the narrow twilight window — the grey line is worth its weight in gold.
Week 26 Review and Outlook
Week 26 was mostly quiet, and the solar flux climbed strongly: from around 128 to 163 now. Cycle 25, on its declining leg, speaks up clearly once more — the upper bands benefit noticeably. The geomagnetic field stayed quiet recently (K 1, A 11).
For Week 27 the high flux holds at first, but the field tips over at the weekend. Bottom line: four very good DX days early on, then a short storm interlude. Larger flares remain possible at any time in this active cycle.
On VHF summer Sporadic-E stays the constant. If you are QRV on 6 m or 4 m, listen daily — the best openings often arrive unannounced in the late morning and early evening.
Live Data
| Band | Tag ☀ | Nacht ☾ |
|---|---|---|
| 160m | Schlecht | Mäßig |
| 80–40m | Schlecht | Gut |
| 30–20m | Gut | Gut |
| 17–15m | Gut | Gut |
| 12–10m | Gut | Schlecht |
Further Reading
- MUF maps (prop.kc2g.com)
- NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center
- HamQSL Solar Dashboard
- DXHeat DX Cluster
- PSK Reporter (live Es openings)
Transparency Notice
This forecast was created with the assistance of AI (Claude, Anthropic) based on current data from NOAA/SWPC and HamQSL. All content was reviewed by the oeradio.at team. Corrections or additions to [email protected].
