Brother’s visit - NOT amateur radio

My brother and his wife have come up from Devon for a few days.

Sunspots - Monday September 16th

Solar flux is 173 and the SSN 68 . A=19 and K=3.

10m QRP WSPR TX (Sunday)

As there were no spots at all on 8m RX or TX, I have QSYed to 10m 500mW WSPR with my tiny beacon. Apart from time synchronisation at the start, it is totally stand alone and does not tie up a PC. 

UPDATED 1525z:  Already spotted 10 times by EA8BFK (2880km).

Smelling diseases - NOT amateur radio

 When our children were young they had a "poorly smell". It was not unpleasant at all, but both my wife and I were aware of it. Maybe it is a parental thing that nobody else is aware of. 

Today I read of a nurse who has a remarkable sense of smell. She can literally tell if a patient has early signs of a disease by smelling their breath or even a swab. Her success rate is extremely high.

WebSDRs

There are huge numbers of these, enabling you to hear what bands sound like in other parts of the planet. It is interesting to listen via some of these.

See http://websdr.org/

Reach - NOT amateur radio

 

This sleepy village 2 miles from us has some fine walks. There has been a fair here since the 1200s.

8m QRP FT8 (Sunday)

 Today, I am concentrating on 8m QRP FT8 (40.680MHz USB dial). As the match on my end-fed Par antenna is poor on 8m, I shall have to have breaks to let the PA cool.

Crystal set DXing

 

Many years ago I tried making and using a short wave crystal set. It is on my website.  As you can see, it does not cost much to have fun. I had aims of making a crystal set that covered VLF to VHF. Then my stroke scuppered plans!

Short wave radio is changing and there are far fewer English language broadcasters. I was pleasantly surprised by what I could hear back then. It is not just broadcast stations you can hear.

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/hf-mf-and-lf/crystal-set-dxing .

Nice sunrise - NOT amateur radio

It  looks like we’re in for a decent week with a big high pressure system over UK.

Oscar 100 narrowband activity

To say I am disappointed is an understatement. 

It certainly has encouraged some to assemble a ground station, but general activity is way below what I would have expected. 

My last "peek" at the narrowband webSDR at Goonhilly Down was mid evening in the UK on a Saturday evening, when I would have expected activity levels to be good.

Based on the activity levels seen, I think it is very unlikely we will see another geosynchronous amateur satellite in a hurry.

See https://eshail.batc.org.uk/nb/.

Sunspots - Sunday September 15th

 Solar flux is 172 and the SSN 136. A=24 and K=2.

8m QRP FT8 (Saturday)

 At about 1554z, I QSYed to 40.680MHz QRP FT8. No spots. There are far more 8m monitors.

UPDATE 2030z:  Spotted 1 Italian, but I was unable to work him. Now QRT.

Es or F2 or F2 backscatter?

Today, my QRP 6m FT8 has been widely copied in SE and central Europe. At the last count, 89 stations had spotted me. Now Es can occur at any time of year, but I wonder if these spots are related to F2 propagation?

I am definitely not a propagation expert, so would appreciate your thoughts.

The latest Es map suggests it is Es. See https://www.tvcomm.co.uk/g7izu/radio-propagation-maps/europe-sporadic-e/ .

Last Tuesday on 70cm QRP SSB

Once a month I try my luck with 10W pep on 70cm in the activity contest UKAC. Because of my poor voice I rarely stop on more than 30 minutes. 

Also, I only have a 2m big-wheel omni antenna. Talk about making things hard, HI! 

In all I made 3 QSOs with the furthermost G4CLA (105km). He must have great antennas and ears.

Blackberry picking - NOT amateur radio

Autumn can be a great time of year. It is usually not too hot and the wild fruits are maturing in the hedgerows. When the sun is shining it is a perfect time to pick blackberries. 

Although we really should have gone last week, we still managed plenty for a blackberry and apple crumble and breakfast.

80m FETer transceiver

Years ago I was inspired by a circuit for a 40m transceiver by W2UW who is now a SK. My challenge was to see if I could make an 80m version with even fewer parts. 

This is a complete transceiver using just a single FET and very few components. It is detailed on my website.

10m 500mW WSPR TX

My tiny stand alone W5OLF 10m WSPR beacon has been on since just after breakfast. So far (at 1100z) 11 unique stations have spotted me.

UPDATE 1438z:  26 spots of me. See table. Usually I look on WSPRnet for spots. I am not sure how PSKreporter works but it seems to miss many WSPR spots.

6m QRP FT8 (Saturday)

Stations spotting
my 2.5W 6m FT8

My 6m 2.5W FT8 has been on most of the morning. 51 stations have spotted me. 

It looks as busy as in the peak Es season! All my spots are in Europe.

UPDATE 1458z: 89 stations have spotted me. See map.

Malta - NOT amateur radio

This was Malta last week. The photo makes it look lush. Actually mostly dry and barren.

Sunspots - Saturday September 14th

 Solar flux is 186 and the SSN 127. A=37 and K=4.

Eco-Worthy batteries

MLS is doing a promotion  of /P gear including the IC705, no doubt expecting many IC705s to be traded for the new Yaesu field portable transceiver next year.

One of their items is the Eco-Worthy 30A, 12V lithium battery pack for use with the IC705 out portable. I was about to blog how expensive this was. Then I checked on Amazon and the battery was £99.99 to which you have to add the charger. Overall, not a bad price from MLS with the charger if you really need a 30A battery. However, there are lower capacity batteries and chargers available from other suppliers for far less.

UPDATE 0827z Sunday:  Steve G1KQH says the same capacity battery may be bought elsewhere for far less. Shop around?

Memories - NOT amateur radio

Something just occurred to me. We assume time passes from the past to the future. and that we remember things in the past.  Altogether I can recall about 200 things from before the age of 5 as can my wife.  Many cannot.

What if this is all an illusion?  Perhaps every time we wake we think we have lived in the past but our brains have a finite memory that is in the here and now and not in the past? What I am wondering is time really there at all? We think we have a past, present and future, but this could all be an illusion.

In the world of quantum mechanics we have come to realise that things are stranger than we think. There is so much we do not know.

All we can do is keep an open mind and realise our brainpower is very limited. I wonder what our memory capacity has been estimated as? I imagine it must be well in the TB region and probably much much bigger.

UPDATE 1230z:  Googled it!  Estimated as 2.5 million Gigabytes. Huge! I wonder what the biggest super-computers in the world have by way of memory. As memory increases I wonder what will be possible in 20 years' time.

6m QRP FT8 (Friday)

My 2.5W FT8 to the omni V2000 antenna just spotted by 9 English stations so far with 3 English stations spotted on RX.

UPDATE 1225z: 20 stations have spotted me on 6m QRP FT8 today. See map for stations spotting me.

UPDATE 2045z:  QRT.

10m 500mW WSPR TX (Friday)

 o far just EA8BFK (2880km) spotting my beacon. I am pretty sure this is F2 propagation. I

UPDATE 0845z:  Interesting that even with the disturbed HF conditions my QRP WSPR beacon still makes it to the Canary Isles. Still just spots by EA8BFK. There is 9dB S/N difference between my best and worst report. I am not sure if this is QSB or local noise. 

UPDATE 1105z:  Now 2 stations spotting me (EA8 and YO). Pretty sure this is F2.

UPDATE 2019z:   4 stations spotted me today. See table.

UPDATE 2028z:  QRT.

Sunset last night - NOT amateur radio

This was the sunset last night taken through the windscreen of a moving car.

Sunspots - Friday September 13th

 Solar flux is 201 and the SSN 160. A=67 and K=3.

10m QRP WSPR (Thursday)

 My 500mW 10m WSPR TX was turned on just after 1700z, So far, just spotted by EA8BFK (2880km).

Rallies this weekend

 The following have been notified to me. As always, please  check bore going a long way.

• September 14th/15th - Broadcast Engineering Museum open days, Near Gainsborough, DN2 15XS. Contact contactus@becg.org.uk .
• Sunday September 15th -  British Vintage Wireless Society Swapmeet and Auction, Biggleswade,SG18 8JH. Contact secretary@bvws.org.uk .

OFCOM and shared rural coverage in the UK

OFCOM agreed certain targets for rural mobile phone coverage with the major UK mobile operators. It looks as if these targets have been met, but not in Scotland yet. See the OFCOM website for details.

Anglesey Abbey - NOT amateur radio

 

This National Trust property is not far from us. We went for a walk there earlier. 

In each season there is something to see. At the moment, it is a good time to see dahlias.

8m FT8 RX (Thursday)

My "proper" 8m dipole has still to be erected as I need some help putting it up as I am very giddy now on a ladder. 

Instead, I am on my endfed Par antenna on 8m FT8 RX where the match on 8m is not very good. This was the antenna with which I worked 2 Spanish stations on 8m FT8 over the summer. As the match on 8m is poor, I do not like to TX on 8m FT8 with this antenna for too long.

I hope to be on 8m QRP FT8 TX very soon with the dipole and a good match.

Stations monitoring
8m FT8 today

UPDATE 1435z:  No spots on TX or RX. I am briefly on 8m QRP FT8 TX. It is encouraging to see so many stations in Europe now monitoring 8m FT8 (see map). If you want to monitor this autumn 40.680 USB dial is where the FT8 activity is. The European DX record with just 10mW and a 35m longwire is now HA to EA8 (Canaries) which is a long way! Under ISM rules you do not need a permit, licence or even a callsign (certainly in the UK). In the UK ISM rules mean 2-way contacts are not the intention although I imagine OFCOM are unlikely to police this, especially if the intention is scientific research.

UPDATE  1723z: ZS3/V51NJ  in Namibia spotted calling CQ. No spots of me.

70cm FT8 activity contest

Last night was the September 70cm activity contest (UKAC). I usually TX for a short while and then go RX only. I usually do not submit an entry for this contest, coming on for the activity. 

It never fails to amaze me what distances can be spotted at any time on 70cm. My antenna is just a 2m omni big-wheel. Imagine if I had a 70cm yagi on a mast! It is a great pity 70cm is underused. Especially with FT8, I would expect it to be a great band for working Western Europe and the UK.

The disappearance of AM broadcasters

Many AM broadcasters are closing down. 

In 10 years' time the MW and LW broadcast bands may be empty of AM stations. This is a great pity as many of us came into RF via simple MW and LW crystal sets. These are easy to make.

Many AM shortwave broadcasters are also closing down as many now prefer to access these stations via the internet. This is also cheaper.

In 20 years' time I wonder what MF and HF will sound like? I suppose much of this spectrum will be kept by the military "just in case" it is ever needed if the satellites were jammed or destroyed.

It seems the shortwaves will largely be abandoned. In this case, I do hope amateurs (or licence free services) are granted access to a wider array of frequencies. Not that I can see it ever happening, but wouldn't it be great if we were granted access to all of HF at low power on a non-interference basis?

Sunspots - Thursday September 12th

 Solar flux is 207 and the SSN 179. A=8 and K=4.

365project - NOT amateur radio

One of the pleasures of 365project.org is seeing some wonderful photos from around the world. 

One of my friends is Elizabeth Saeter who lives in Norway and posts some splendid photos especially of sunsets. As an example, see the photo attached.

Tomatoes- NOT amateur radio

When we got back from holiday we found these growing in our two tomato bags. Home grown always smell and taste delicious.

Holiday over - NOT amateur radio

We returned from our week in Malta yesterday to the cold, rain and green countryside. Everyone we met was kind and helpful. It was hot and sunny almost all the time we were there. The hotel and food were excellent.

However, Malta is very built up (the most dense in Europe) and what little countryside there was was rocky and barren.

If you go on holiday for sun, swimming pools and food it might suit you. Overall, I am glad we went, but I doubt we will return.

70cm activity contest entry

Often I forget to submit my entry into this UKAC session. With my pathetic score I shall never even be close to winning, but it is good to show my support. 

It is great to see the activity. The "real" stations were working some serious DX.

6m QRP FT8 (Wednesday)

Just 3 stations in the UK spotting me so far today.

UPDATE 0940z:  Just 5 UK stations spotting me.

UPDATE 1445z:  16 stations have spotted me today, including several in mainland Europe. See map.

UPDATE 1840z: 25 stations have spotted me. See map.

10m QRP WSPR (Wednesday)

My 500mW beacon has been on since just before breakfast. Just EA8BFK (2880km) spotting me multiple times. I assume this is F2 propagation. 

UPDATE 1427z:  16 stations have spotted me today. A lot of these are in the USA. See table.

UPDATE 1855z:  23 stations have spotted me today. See table.

WSPY and 10FT8R

 One of my Facebook memories today was the circuit for my 10m WSPR RX on which my 10m FT8 RX was based. See my website for details.

Sunspots - Wednesday September 11th

 Solar flux is 205 and the SSN 147. A=7 and K=1.

Malta cathedral - NOT amateur radio

This was St John’s Co Cathedral in Valletta yesterday. I prefer East Anglian simple churches! It seems there is gold leaf everywhere.

Most churches on continental Europe seem highly decorated - not to my taste.

6m QRP FT8 (Tuesday)

My 2.5W 6m FT8 has been on for the last few hours. Spotted by 7 stations (mostly England) with the furthermost DK8NE/6 (702km). See map.

10m 500mW WSPR (Tuesday)

Since returning home again from Malta this afternoon, I have been on 10m QRP WSPR with my little beacon. Already spotted by 5 stations with the furthermost the German research station in Antarctica.

70cm activity contest

 This is this evening starting at 1900z. I usually go on for a short time with 10W to the 2m big-wheel.

UPDATE 1956z: I did not stay on long, but worked 3 stations with the furthermost G4CLA (105km). It was a miserable evening with lots of rain.

Sunspots- Tuesday September 10th

 Solar flux is 215 and the SSN 213. A=9 and K=3

472kHz transverter

 It will soon be time to go back to 472kHz. For some reason a myth has grown up that you need very big antennas and extensive ground systems. Also that high power helps! Nothing could be further from the truth.

I can only speak from personal experience. My transverter produces about 10W into 50 ohms and gave about 10mW ERP into my earth-electrode antenna in the ground. My earths are about 10m apart. It has been received on WSPR as far away as Finland and I got spotted in Norway most nights. It was in QST about 10 years ago. It is also described on my website.

Valletta- NOT amateur radio

 We visited the capital of Malta called Valletta. We had torrential rain ☔️ earlier but it was hot and sunny ☀️ whilst we were there. Home tomorrow where I gather it’s turned autumnal.

VLF converter

 Many people want to have a dabble at VLF reception and want to know what is down there but most receivers don’t go that low. Many years ago I designed and built this up converter so I could take a listen. Receiving commercial stations such as time signals and MSK signals is easy . Reception of AMATEUR VLF signals is highly unlikely to work as this usually needs very narrow bandwidth and precise frequency setting. Details of this upconverter and how to improve it are on my website.

Malta rain - NOT amateur radio

 

All week we’ve had hot sunshine ☀️ until today when we had heavy rain.

Sunspots - Monday September 9th

Solar  flux is 228 and the SSN 176. A=9 and K=2.

Marsaxlokk, Malta - NOT amateur radio

 Today we visited the fishing “village” of Marsaxlokk in SW Malta famous for its colourful fishing boats. It was not what I would call a village!

Over the horizon optical tests

 It’s many years since I last did these tests and I remember being amazed that on a cloudless night I could clearly receive my 481THz beacon way over the horizon without any signal visible. Had my stroke not got in the way, I am sure much much further would have been possible even with my simple QRP system. The receiver I used is attached. It was also in RadCom. It is also on my main webpages.

Typical on Malta - NOT amateur radio

 It’s probably fair to say the countryside on Malta 🇲🇹 is barren. In the hot summer months it looks dry and arid. This cactus 🌵 is typical of Malta.

Original 10m WISPY TX

One of my Facebook memories today was of the original breadboard version of my WISPY WSPR TX on 10m. The date was 2012. I think the PA originally had a 2N3866 which I later replaced with several 2N3904s in parallel which was far less expensive.

2m beam?

What looked like an 8 over 8 yagi for 2m was spotted this morning on a rooftop somewhere in Malta 🇲🇹. It was on an extendable mast. I guess Italy 🇮🇹 and North Africa are in range. I am not sure what town it was.

Sunspots- Sunday September 8th

Solar flux is 222 and the SSN 179. A=7 and K=1.

Rooftop meal ( Malta) - NOT amateur radio

On Saturday evening we ate at this (very posh!) restaurant on the 11th floor of our hotel. With our inclusive deal we were able to eat here for “free”. Both food and service were excellent as was the view.

Expensive tipple - NOT amateur radio

Apparently this bottle of cognac was bottled in 1696 and sold at auction recently for a stupid price. Imagine accidentally dropping it! It probably tastes like vinegar, not that anyone would open it.

Bird wattmeters

MLS is advertising Bird wattmeters and inserts . Now, I understand dealers have to make a profit, but what incredible prices! At work we just used them and I had no idea how much they cost. There is no way I would buy one now!!

Holiday amateur radio

 One of my favourite activities on holiday when in a car or coach is counting the HF beams. This is probably a good indication of amateur radio activity, although many will use wire antennas and go unnoticed. I have also been kindly invited to an eyeball QSO with someone on Malta 🇲🇹 that I have to decline as we have so much to pack in. I must say that everyone has been so friendly and helpful.

Sunspots - Saturday September 7th

 Solar flux is 249 and the SSN 188. A=8 and K=1.

Gozo, Malta earlier in the week

These photos were taken on Gozo earlier in the week. Gozo is less crowded than Malta but there were more buildings than I expected and it was still very barren.

OFCOM publications

A reminder that OFCOM publishes many documents about the licences we hold as well as many publications on matters of importance. See the OFCOM website for details.

Inland sea - NOT amateur radio

 This was Gozo, Malta 🇲🇹 yesterday. You go through this cave to access it.

Rally this Sunday

The following has been notified to me. As always, check details are correct.

Sunday September 8th - Caister Lifeboat Radio Rally, Caister on Sea, NR30 5DJ. Contact m1bfi@outlook.com .

136kHz beacon

 Earlier this year I tried to resurrect my 136kHz CW beacon. Then I blew it up!

English churches - NOT amateur radio

 At the moment I am enjoying our holiday in Malta which involves visiting historic sites including churches. I have to admit that I prefer the simplicity of English churches. Many of the churches here are very beautiful but ornate.

Sunspots - Friday September 6th

 Solar flux is 241 and the SSN 167. A=7 and K=1.

Cynical - NOT amateur radio

 When we stayed at a hotel recently they stated they saved 17 litres of water 💦 when towels were reused. Very sensible when multiplied by the number of rooms.

What was NOT mentioned was this probably means fewer people and greater profits. Cynical, me?

Sunspots - Thursday September 5th

Solar flux is 262 and the SSN 151. A=13 and K=2.

Oscar 100

Every few weeks (when I remember!) I give an update on activity on the narrowband transponder of this geosynchronous satellite. The last time I checked was a European midweek evening. As you can see - quiet.

Excellent food - NOT amateur radio

The hotel we are staying in on Malta 🇲🇹 is excellent with free food and drinks 🍷. Malta is as I expected - hot and very built up - whereas the hotel well exceeds my expectations.

We are off to Gozo the sister, smaller, island tomorrow .

Room with a view - NOT amateur radio

This is the view from our hotel room in Malta 🇲🇹.It shows Salina Bay on a hot, sunny ☀️ Tuesday. This hotel is excellent. 

Sunspots - Wednesday September 4th

 Solar flux is 242 and the SSN 133. A=6 and K=1.

Shack 2022

This was me in the shack in 2022. Since then some gear has changed.

Sunspots- Tuesday September 3rd

 Solar flux is 238 and the SSN 200. A=8 and K=1.

European Es

Outside the peak season, Es is less frequent. Take today for example: it looks like there is some Es mainly eastern Europe, but it is mainly on bands like 10m.

See https://www.tvcomm.co.uk/g7izu/radio-propagation-maps/europe-sporadic-e/ ,

New QRP book

To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the G-QRP Club, they have brought out a new book available from the RSGB bookshop entitled “50 Years of G-QRP”. As the title suggests, it is a collection of the best articles in the club quarterly magazine. SPRAT.

I am biased, but I still think SPRAT is the best amateur magazine. It comes out quarterly and is filled with simple projects. It’s a full colour A5 magazine. I think it is entirely run by volunteers and nobody is paid.

As I have said many times before, it would be the very last magazine to go if I was pushed.

See https://www.gqrp.com/.

Solar Peak

My favourite site of solar data has just updated. as it usually does early in the month. 

It looks like the peak of the solar cycle has been pushed well into 2024. It depends how the smoothing is done exactly when the peak is marked. Clearly we will not know the smoothed date until some time later.

Sunspots - Monday September 2nd

 Solar flux is 226 and the SSN 156. A=16 and K=2.

10m 500mW WSPR (Sunday)

Although my QRP 10m WSPR beacon has been on for hours, no spots.

UPDATE 1720z:  No spots all day. QRT soon.

6m QRP FT8 (Sunday)

My 2.5W FT8 to the V2000 omni antenna has been spotted by 21 stations. See map. 

As mentioned before, DX is till to be had. I assume the stations in southern Europe are by Es, but I suppose they could be via F2 back scatter. I suppose some could even be tropo.

UPDATE 1515z: Spotted by 26 stations.

UPDATE 1719z: Spotted by 27 stations. QRT soon.

Michael Rainey AA1TJ

It is some time since I heard news of Michael. That’s the trouble with the internet and social media: people just disappear and you are not sure why. Some people move to different social media, some have become ill or died, have dementia or something else. The trouble is you just realise they are not there, often months later.

Sunspots - Sunday September 1st

 Solar flux is 232 and the SSN 180. A=26 and K=3.