THIS ABOVE SOLAR-TERRESTRIAL DATA AUGMENTS MY "KH6BZF REPORTS" H.F. PROPAGATION FORECAST WHICH IS EDITED BY MYSELF, KH6BZF (KH6 Bloomin' Zipper Flipper)

MY LIFE HISTORY: I grew up in Mentor, Ohio, which was first settled in 1797, Mentor was ranked 68th in a list of the top 100 best place to live, in Americaas rated in 2006 by CNN MONEY.COM. By July 2010 it Mentor, OHIO was ranked 37th best place to live in America! according to CNN MONEY.COM.

My first venture into radio was from 1091 Maple Street in Mentor, Ohio ( I was Born @ 1382 East State St; Sharon, PA) where my Maternal Grandfather gave me an Atwater-Kent AM radio with a "cat's eye tuning in 1938. I did not realize that I was achieveing a form of SWL only on A.M. commercial stations.

I found out the hard way, from that Atwater-Kent radio, that I discovered VERY A STRONG D.C VOLTAGE BY GETTING MY EARPHONES ACROSS THE SPEAKER COIL, the speaker coil was use as a"L" INDUCTANCE FILTER FOR THE HIGH VOLTAGE D.C. POWER SUPPLY. WE ALL LEARN THE HARD WAY, DON'T WE???!!!! I experienced a shocking discovery!!!

I soon became a SWLer of sorts by logging then 50,000 watt clear channel A.M. stations, in the late 1930s,1940s and 1950s, in those days, from East to West coast of America and Canada. I sent and received Short Wave Listner (SWL) reports.

BTW in those days (daze) Penny postal cards , which I used, were, (that's right, only a U.S. penny) and I received QSL's from all the A.M. stations, from East to West coast,I logged and sent reports to as to their programming and reception conditions and the equipment and assorted antennas I was using

I soon graduated into H.F. shortwave listeningwith an Allied Radio (Chicago, IL mail order store) by buying a Knight Kit radio to which I assembled, applied solder and then listen to many shortwave stations. Then, I discovered some people talking to one another in a radio "jiberish-type" language, which I know now, as Amateur Radio shorthand, with CW and A.M. transmissions with Q-signals in those days.,i was and still am an unusual Radio and Antenna nut.

At the age of 13-yrs old I was the second runner-up to the 1948 Cleveland Plain Dealer's Cleveland Indians batboy contest (( from 946 Dalhia Drive Mentor, OHIO (44066 now,)). I was awarded as a runner up, a 1948 season pass, which I still havein my speciial drawer. BTW, the winner of that contest was the batboy for the Cleveland Indians and the first runner up got the visitor team.That was in the days of the powerful NY Yankees' Yogi Berra, Joe Dimagio and other baseball "luminaries" too many to mention. I still had my burning radio interests! I was trying for a career in minor league baseball as I batted both right and left handed. Boy, I could nail base runners at the plate with a great right throwing arm from center field. My coaches wanted me to become a fast ball right-hander, but I wanted to be a daily team player and not a once and a while pitcher!

But the U.S. Selective Service had a lot to change my professional goals by drafting me into the U.S. Army for two years. I finally spent 2-yrs and one day as I was drafted and serving during a leap year! But, I am getting ahead in my thoughts words and experiences

My Uncle, Paul Terrell, was a former rotarity a "spark gapper" in the 1920's on his Ohio farm. Then he became a General Class Amateur, K8PSM, (K8 Papa Spends Money), from New Vienna, OHIO. His Son, my cousin, Doctor BillTerrill,MD, who was W8NTZ (W8 Nancy's Tangled Zipper after years of non-licensed "bootlegginbg" his non-Ham Radio career/efforts.). That later led to the "Zipper" in my callsign! Which is KH6 Bloomin' Zipper Flipper!!! But that is again is getting head in my detailed Bio.

Background, I learned my Morse Code while in Cub Scouts which carried over to my BSA tenderfoot daze!!!! Later because of that radio daze, it cost me in a US Army draff Morse Code test, therefore the US Signsl Corp thought I could help win the Korean War! I was assigned after my boot camp at Camp (Fort) Knox. (No gold seen) while I was stationed there. The closest I got to gold was at the Kentuky Derby where there was fast women and beautiful horses!!!), and then on to U.S.Army's Signal School. It was then I had to learn Z-signals, the Army's equivalent to Amateur "Q" signals a radio shorthand! I was then assigned overseas to the Korean War's 25th INF Division and to the 35th Inf. Regiment and. I next earned my novice Class licence in 1955 from KH6WW, on Maui,who let me work CW that same passing day, with an Italian station. I had only just passed my Novice Class license examination and code and then the DX bug bit me harder!).

The severe DX bug bit me again at that time. I returned to higher education on the G.I. Bill graduating with a BSEE in 1960. During my higher education I passed my General Class in front of the FCC Engineer-in-Charge, FCC Inspector Richard "Dick" Cotton, W8DX at the Federal Bldg. in Cleveland, OHIO. Years later, I later worked Mr, Cotton (SK) ex-W8DX via a low-level AMSAT satellite pass and what a thrill. But, I am getting ahead on my tome!I moved on to take and pass my First Class FCC Commercial class RADIOTELEPHONE license with a R.A.D.A.R. endorcements, again from Mr. Cotton I then worked for WMNI -AM (920 kHz) and WBNS-TV(Channel 10) in Columbus, OHIO while attending school on the G.I. bill. I also worked a Serv-ALL TV store repairing TV, service calls,and repairs of many things in Columbus,OH

During my forth year in serious Amateur radio ventures I experienced Solar Cycle 19 the greatest cycle and best Solar cycle ever recorded, so far. My next employment after I graduated I returned to Hawai'i and was as an Engineer in Radio & Carrier branch of Hawaiian Telephone, Honolulu, Hawai'i. I next worked with theU.S.A.F's G.E.E.I.A- Pacific working in Crypto engineering, then RFI/EMC and Data transmission engineering all over the Pacific theater. Then I moved to the US Army's U.S.Stratcom-Pacific in radio engineering move into more radio engineering of data, Microwave and HF engineering. I then took my Advanced Class license and the my FCC Commercial RADIOTELEGRAPH LICENSE adding a R.A.D.A.R. endorsement and then moved on to Headquarters Defense Communications Agency Pacific (DCA-PAC) and where I retired after 36 years of Federal Service. After that retirement I was then was rehired by AT&T and worked radio engineering/ and satellite communication setups, et.al. in Germany and then onto Bosnia-Herzocovinia to install satellite earth stations in support of the U.S. Army presence there. I then finally retired from engineering from LUCENT Technoligies in 1997

Then, I next took my EXTRA Class license examination for the second time with a score of 22-WPM passing thusup from my Advanced Class license. BTW, I was never a Technician Class licensee! I have then been a W5YI and an ARRL Volunteer and Chief Commercial Volunteer to put something back into radio which gave mea great vocation and a great hobby. This was done for several decades! Well, that some of my past history of radio in my life.

I presently run ICOM digital transceiver gear driving a COMMAND TECHNOLOGIES, Model HF-2500-E,1500 watts amplifier and a combination of different antennas, Yes, I have participated in DXpeditions and as KA1BZF in Japan, in the 1960s. I then was a QSL Manager for KH6EDY (Kure Island) from 1960-1970 for the US Coast Guard Station-Kure which ran a LORAN transmitting station there. i still have those old Kure Island log books and QSLs.HF was their only outlet to the outside world.

BTW, In those (1960-1970s years) at Kure Is. there was no satellte connections to the outside world from Coast Guard's Kure Island facilities. H.F. was Kure's only contact with the outside world at that time.

I lost my heavy-duty Tri-Ex tower and multiple (Christmas type) group of antenna arrays due to a violent wind of near Hurricane forces storm in January 2003.

I later studied for more F.C.C. Commercial license exams obtaining two (2) FCC Satellite license examinations, they were both G.M.D.S.S. Operating and G.M.D.S.S. Maintance licenses both with R.A.D.A.R. Endorsements on both these licenses. That makes a running total of One (1) FCC AMATEUR Extra Class license and Four (4) Commercial F.C.C. licenses. Radio has been VERYgood to me and good for me. All aspects of radio has been good to me and good for me in one reason or another!!!

BTW, I first my equipment (daze) days started, in the fiftys,with a brand new HALLICRAFTER'S SX-38E HF/AM radio then I graduated to an HALLICRAFTER'S, SX-99 and a HEATHKIT, DX-35, allrock bound! There was a GLOBE SCOUT in there somewhere in there. Later, I built the kit and graduated to a HeathKit DX-100-B with a VF-1. There was a an Army M.A.R.S. receiver a BC-312 and a BC-342 ship board gear from WW2. I still have my Hallicrafter's SX-38E.

In the 1960's,then I switched to a deluxe analog rig, a Collins S-line, Collins 30l-1 (which I still have) and a Collins Radio KWM2-A transceiver (i used while working for the U.S.A.F.'s GEEIA-Pacific as a radio engineering in VIETNAN for the U.S.A.F. I was responsible for finding, identifying and curing RFI/EMC problems with Radio, Microwave and Radar Interferences. I did the same work in Vietnam, Japan, Okinawa, Taiwan and Philippines as well as on Oahu Island. In the 1970's I graduated to a pair of digital ICOM-720A's, (which I still have) then followed with a pair of ICOM-735's (which I still have) then to a ICOM 781 (which I still have and maintain).

My mobile rig is an ICOM 706MIIG driving a Tar Heel multiband mobile screwdriver antenna on the back of my Toyota matrix

That is a 77-yr wrap!!! ( I believe that makes me 11-years in dog years!) HIKI NO!!!!!@