Sunspots and 10m today - Sun March 8th 2015

Today has been a non-radio day.  We went to Canterbury by train to see our son, his wife and our "Kent" grandchildren. If going for the day Sunday travel by train works out as cheap as by car. We have done this several times now since I was ill, I would not want to drive that far.

Sunspot number has fallen further to just 20, the lowest for some time, and 10m propagation was expected to be "fair".

I see from WSPRnet that 10m opened to the USA from G although none of radio gear has been on today.

472kHz WSPR this evening

So far, no great TX DX on 472kHz this evening although G3XKR (347km) in North Devon is copying my 5mW ERP from the earth-electrode "antenna". It would be good if this evening or overnight I was copied again over 1000km. Last night the PC crashed just after midnight so all DX overnight was missed.

UPDATE 2140z:  PE1RKT (285km) has spotted me a couple of times this evening.

Sunspots and 10m - Sat March 7th 2015

Sunspot number today is 37 and 10m is expected to be "fair". Already the 10m band is well open to the USA and there was some decent stuff coming through on 10m well before lunch.

Over 1000km on 472kHz TX with earth-electrodes

Last night LA4ANA (1047km) copied my 5mW ERP from the earth-electrode "antenna" on 472kHz WSPR. This is my best DX yet on the non-antenna, nearly 300km further than my best previous TX record.  I was also spotted by DL4YHF (556km) for the first time on the earth-electrode "antenna".   My PC decided to crash some time after midnight last night, so I missed any DX overnight. These spots were during the evening period.

In the last 2 weeks alone I have been spotted by 28 different stations when I've been using 5mW ERP from the earth-electrode "antenna" on 472kHz WSPR.  Let no-one say 472kHz is out because they cannot fit an antenna! If my signal can span over 1000km with WSPR then you can surely do better. I make no claims for the earth-electrode "antenna" but if you are unable to erect a proper antenna give it a go.

I have still to try it at this QTH on 136kHz but at my old QTH I managed to be spotted at 250km with very low ERP.

10m WSPR - North American spots Sat March 7th 2015

KB4SC (6560km) was the first USA station to spot my 500mW WSPR signal at 1222z (quite early). Quite a few others have been spotting me since. TJ1TS (5478km) in Yaounde,Cameroon was spotting me very early, at breakfast time1 UPDATE 1848z:  Best USA DX is a spot from AE7YQ (8533km) in DM41kx, which puts him in southern Arizona.'' UPDATE 2012z:    At the moment the Canadians are still copying me. VA3XCD (5496km) is not the last I am sure from North America tonight. UPDATE 2138z:   N2NOM (5581km) was the last North American to spot me today at 2016z.

Stroke

My brain is still exhibiting some bizarre effects. I still have problems with drinking thin liquids, speaking, getting tired and feeling drunk when walking, but it is not seeing obvious errors with words on my blogs that is fascinating. My problem, back in Sept 2013, was a cerebellum brain bleed, that was operated on.

http://www.healthline.com/human-body-maps/cerebellum

For example, in my last post on this blog I wrote "as" instead of "has" but it took a long time to realise this was wrong. It is as if my brain does not process words quite correctly, or at least not quickly. It is not a serious issue and I correct the errors as soon as I do spot them. It happens quite a bit so I think it is real and not just me being paranoid.

I am finding it harder to get absorbed in TV dramas too. It is as if my memory has been affected in some way. My basic intellect is still sharp, but recalling some things can be a problem. Maybe this is just age? I am desperate to get my "old self" back, but know it could be a long road. Knowing now how bad I was I guess I was pretty lucky and I could have ended up a terrible mess.

Richard G3TFX told my XYL to get me into hospital fast in Sept 2013. Looking back, this probably saved my life.

See http://www.healthline.com/human-body-maps/cerebellum.

472kHz WSPR today

G3WCB (101km) has been spotting me all day. Although he runs a higher ERP than me, I seem to always give him poorer reports. I think this is because my FT817 is a bit deaf on 472kHz. When I feel fitter, I should try to improve my MF RX system as I may be missing a few stations.

Plenty of USA 10m WSPR spots today

KB4SC (6560km) was the first USA station to spot my 500mW WSPR today, at 1316z. Since then, a lot of USA stations have been spotting me. It has been a good day on 10m today, despite the lowish sunspot number and the "fair" forecast.
 
UPDATE 1836z:  Still lots of spots of my 10m 500mW WSPR beacon by stations in the USA today. I have the feeling that the 10m band will be open to the USA for some while yet?

UPDATE 1926z:   Still wide open to the USA on 10m.

UPDATE 2012z:   At the moment it looks like KC1AWS (5308km) was the last USA station to spot me today at 1928z. Only local G4IKZ (18km) since then. Will soon be going QRT on 10m WSPR.

UPDATE 2024z:  The opening to the USA is not yet over! K9AN (6505km) and others were just spotting me strongly! I'll stick around a bit longer, HI. Perhaps this is the "last gasp" as the F2 MUF falls?

UPDATE 2050z:  USA stations are still spotting my 500mW WSPR. This is very late now. A total surprise.

UPDATE 2150z:   The last spot from the USA was an hour ago. I think the opening to the USA is now, at last, over. It was a good and long one. Now going QRT on 10m WSPR.

UPDATE 2230z:  Now QRT on 10m. Have reset my PC to internet time on MF.

10m Lincoln multi-mode rig

My poor health has rather stopped me using my Lincoln President Mk2 rig. It seems to work fine, but I have stuck with my 500mW WSPR beacon as it requires no talking and less effort on my part.

I am pretty sure it will get well used in the coming months though. A few dB extra power will make some difference when using SSB on 10m as the sunspots come "off the boil".

40m Pixie

I must have another go with this rig. As I mentioned before, a 7.030MHz crystal would be more useful than the 7.023MHz crystal it came with. The rig definitely works and the RX nets perfectly to the TX frequency. Sensitivity is better than I expected and BC breakthrough far less of an issue than I had expected. It is certainly a good little kit for the price. I need to check the Reverse Beacon Network in case I get out OK but don't hear any replies to my CQs.