Thunder risks

This next few days we are at great risk of thunder and lightning. We are in the middle of a heatwave with hot, damp air moving up from the south. As a precaution I have disconnected the 10m and 6m WSPR rigs, PC, antennas and mains plugs.

Luckily I have never suffered a lightning strike but know friends who have. One was living in a very ordinary home, was not a radio amateur or SWL, had no big antennas, but his electrics were knocked for six and ruined. Earth's natural electrical activity should always be treated with respect. I don't like thunderstorms at all.  Even if not directly hit, the power surges can cause damage.

As I write this, Greece is having bad storms according to the maps.

See http://www.lightningmaps.org/realtime?lang=en .

Sunspots and 10m - Tues June 30th 2015

Sunspot number has little changed. Today it is 36 (K=2) and 10m propagation remains "poor". I am not expecting great F2 propagation but have gone QRT (storm risks) on 10m and 6m.

UPDATE 1025z:  There was early Es evident here on 10m WSPR (Italian spotting me ) but quiet on 6m WSPR

6m WSPR - just Gs here all day

What a disappointing day on 6m!  Quite a few WSPR spots given and received but all have been G stations with no sign of Es here. With thunderstorms close, I shall probably go QRT on 6m and 10m in the morning

EA8BVP (2986km) - 39 spots on 10m WSPR so far

EA8BVP (2986km) has spotted me 39 times so far on 10m WSPR today. There has been some Es on 10m but very little. I suspect some of these spots were Es but most, I think, were F2. EA8BVP has spotted me most days now for months.

JT9-1 on 20m and 10m

As 10m and 6m were doing nothing much, I had another outing on JT9-1 on 20m QRP.  There were several stations active.  A look on PSK reporter showed that my CQ signals were crossing Europe (see map), but sadly no-one wanted a QSO. With QRP, I think the best strategy is to call others calling CQ. There seems plenty of space on JT9-1 on 20m.

A CQ call on 10m JT9-1 was not successful, although I have used this mode on 10m in the past. Unlike WSPR, JT9-1 is a true 2-way digital mode, with QSOs taking about 6 minutes to complete. WSPR works with weaker signals but needs 2 minute periods, whereas JT9-1 overs are just 1 minute.

Hate and the internet - NOT amateur radio

There is no doubt that the internet is a powerful force for good and evil. It allows people to connect, whether fit or disabled and irrespective of class, creed, or sexual orientation. However there is also a dark side. People can use it to spread hate and violence. There is a fine line between openness and censorship. I am a believer that what a person does in private is his or her affair as long as no-one else is hurt. What is acceptable to one person may not be to someone else. However, I believe it is right to take down anything that is hateful or incites others to act in a hateful way. As long as all the people involved are consenting it matters not what happens in private. A line is crossed when hate is incited. Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter and ISPs should remove all material likely to incite hate.

Disappointing day so far on 10m and 6m WSPR

It has been disappointing on 10m with very little Es seen here so far. On 6m, it has been even worse with just G spots given and received.

If things continue to be poor I may try some JT9-1 on a lower band.

Sunspots and 10m - June 29th 2015

Sunspot number is a little up on yesterday at 39 (K=2), but 10m is expected to remain "poor" today.  I have already been spotted by EA8BVP (2986km) on 10m WSPR,which is hopeful, but this may have been Es.

JT9-1 (20m) and a change on 10m

For a complete change I went on JT9-1 on 20m for a little while (worked LZ5QZ) then returned to 10m WSPR using the FT817 so I could receive as well as transmit. I am running about 2W and see that EA8BVP (2986km) has yet again spotted me on 10m.  I am spotting G4IKZ (18km).

Hard reset time

As part of my recovery I usually do a short 5 minute walk morning and night.  When out this evening I did a "hard" reset of my 10m and 6m WSPR stations.  All power was removed, the PC (used with the FT817 on 6m) was turned off for the duration of the walk. Now home again both the 6m and 10m WSPR kits were turned on again and the whole lot sync'd to Internet time.

I hope to stay on both bands overnight, although, so far, I have not managed to catch any transatlantic Es openings. I remain hopeful. Because of the high thunder risk later in the week I may have to go QRT though, which will be a pity. Hopefully this will be a short break only.