When the Moon blocks the Sun during a solar eclipse,
there is a noticeable impact on Earth's upper atmosphere known as the ionosphere.
These changes can affect radio communications,
including amateur radio, also known as ham radio.
Ham radio is a way you can talk to people all around the world.
You set up a radio, and antenna. You talk into the radio.
The radio sends a signal up to the antenna.
The antenna sends a signal up to the sky.
It bounces off of the electrified layer of the sky
back down to Earth, where you can talk to the person on the other side.
During the 2024 total solar eclipse, the HamSCI Citizen Science
Project is inviting ham radio operators to transmit radio signals.
The goal is to have people make as many radio contacts as they can
with operators in different locations during the celestial event.
By recording how strong their radio signals are and how far they go,
ham radio operators and scientists can learn about
how the ionosphere changes during solar eclipses.
Sometimes you can talk around the world and sometimes you can’t,
and that's all based on what the ionosphere is doing,
what the Sun is doing.
When it works and you are able to talk to these faraway places,
I find that really magical. To learn how you can participate,
Follow @DoNASAScience on X and Facebook.
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