"Dee D. Flint" wrote:

Just a few short weeks ago, auroral activity
imposed so much distortion on HF voice
that it was not useable. (snip)


Perhaps you mean HF voice was limited, not unusable. I wasn't aware that
all HF voice communications, including short range, was impossible during
that period. Regardless, a very temporary condition doesn't make a mode
itself necessary in the overall scheme of Amateur Radio. Amateur Radio
continued on during that period, even for those HF operators who simply
decided to turn the radio off or to other frequencies during that period. At
the same time, I heard no reports of emergency services, or other similar
Amateur Radio activities, being seriously disrupted.


Dwight Stewart (W5NET)

http://www.qsl.net/w5net/