Amsterdam - NOT amateur radio

The last few days we were in Amsterdam, Holland. We traveled there by train, through the Channel Tunnel on Eurostar. Our journey took us through France, Belgium (Brussels) and Holland. My wife and I have "divisions" in cities, with Amsterdam in our top division - we have been there 6 times now. Having had a stroke nearly 3 years ago, I found negotiating the cobbled streets and bikes made me very dizzy. Despite this we had a great few days. Now that I'm back you can expect blog updates most days.

SAQ (17.2kHz VLF) reception

This link takes you to a recording of SAQ on 17.2kHz as heard by M0LMH in IO93 square.  It is quite strong when the signal starts. I listened on the Dutch online SDR and SAQ was not as strong there as I would have expected at 1600z. This is a recording of SAQ in Connecticut USA made by Jay W1VD earlier today.

Netherlands to get 500kHz

Full licence amateurs in The Netherlands can opt for an experimental permit to conduct experiments in the band 501-504 kHz with a maximum power of 5 W EIRP and a maximum bandwitdth of 100 Hz. The experiments will start on 1 January 2010 and will continue for one year maximum. News came via Rik OR7T and the RSGB LF reflector.