40 meter RTTY DX

The low sunspot cycle, though discouraging for 20 meters and up, transforms 40 and 80 meter into evening MUF bands. Last night at roughly 0300 UTC, 40 was open to Cyprus, 5B and 80 to Italy, during the CQ RTTY WPX contest. I worked a 5B/UT0 on 40 RTTY, which turns out to be my first 5B and first contact on 40 for that region.

I have an inverted-vee 40 meter dipole that faces N-S. It normally favors EA, EA8 at night, but last evening, the band really opened up. But my DX QSO on 80 was a real surprise!