2m UKAC results so far

Out of 125 entrants in the AL section of the 2m UKAC I see I am 83rd so far. This is not bad considering my 5W, omni antenna and very limited operating time in each session. I shall enter most months if I am around.

RadCom arrived today

The May 2016 RadCom arrived in the post today.

On the outside rear cover was an advert by MLS showing a £223000 Rolls Royce and a Yaesu FTdx9000NP for £8399. Do people really need their egos stroking so badly that they fork out this sort of money on what is supposed to be a hobby? Each to their own, but I could never spend this sort of money. Add a linear, HF beam and a big rotator and you are talking really serious silly money.

All I can say is I think this is very very sad. It is not for me to say how others spend their money, but I think this is about egos and not about amateur radio. I don't recognise this "cheque book radio" as being my hobby any more.

Swallows - NOT amateur radio

Only yesterday I was that I'd seen no swallows (birds) in East Anglia. Today I saw two! I still think they are less numerous but at least I have now seen some this season.

Oxborough Hall - NOT amateur radio

Today we visited Oxborough Hall in Norfolk. This is a splendid moated Tudor house owned by the National Trust. The Bedingfield family has lived here for 500 years.

We ate at Hingham in a small cafe where we had been before.  This is my XYL tucking into her "healthy" meal.

Hingham is where Abraham Lincoln's ancestors came from. It is between Norwich and Watton. It is a lovely place.

See http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/oxburgh-hall

See http://www.lincolns-of-hingham.co.uk/

Active on 10m and 6m WSPR

Since about 0630z I have been active on 10m WSPR (100% TX 500mW) and 6m WSPR (20% 1W ERP TX, 80% RX, vertical).

So far just G8VDQ (93km) and G8AXA (103km) spotted several times on 6m WSPR and nobody spotting me yet on 10m WSPR.

UPDATE 1600z:  No spots at all on 10m WSPR and just G8VDQ and G8AXA still on 6m WSPR. I shall leave both running in case there is some Es at teatime.

Sunspots and 10m - Wed April 20th 2016

Solar flux has fallen again to 28. Sunspot number is also down at 28 (K=2). The forecast for 10m propagation remains "poor", although 10m has been livened up by sporadic-E (Es) in recent days. Yet again, I am not expecting great F2 propagation on 10m today.

481THz experiment - abject failure

Well, I am sorry to report that my 481THz lightbeam experiment was a total failure.

Although I could detect my QRSS3 signal strongly across the house bouncing off the windmill I was unable to detect any sign of the signal at my remote site. I had problems with aiming which did not help, but I was not expecting the total exhaustion this test brought on. In days gone by this would have been easy, but even soldering a headphone jack tired me. Doing the actual test left me totally "done in".  I really should repeat the test with better aiming, but I am not ready in my body.

If one thing this has taught me it is that I am still too feeble for field work. It was a great disappointment, but there will be other opportunities.

In past years I loved doing this sort of experiment. Sadly, my body is telling me, "not yet".

Fewer swallows? - NOT amateur radio

Usually by this time I have seen quite a few swallows here in East Anglia, UK. They migrate from deep in Africa (often South Africa) and I usually see them here in East Anglia, UK from April 7th. In South Devon they are usually arriving by the beginning of April. Sand Martins arrive sooner. I remember my dad telling me when he first saw them. He died in 1987 and many is the time since when I have missed talking with him.

I know there are swallows around in Devon - they appear every day in the reports - but I am surprised not to have seen any up here yet. I may have seen one last week at Felixstowe Ferry but I was not certain. I definitely saw a house martin.

So, I am beginning to wonder if there are fewer swallows about this year, as by now I would be seeing them quite commonly on telegraph wires. Of course, it could just be that I have been unlucky. It is not as if I have not been looking.

See http://www.rspb.org.uk/discoverandenjoynature/discoverandlearn/birdguide/name/s/swallow/ .

All India Radio going?

Southgate News reports that All India Radio's external service may close due to high costs. Soon HF will sound quite different as more and more broadcasters cut back or close services.

Noise levels are creeping up.  More space for amateur bands?

See http://www.southgatearc.org/news/2016/april/air_short_wave_may_shut_down.htm .

BBC accents - NOT amateur radio

At 1200-1215pm local time BBC Radio 4 has a series looking back 100 years to ordinary people in WW1. Call me a grumpy old man, but I get appalled by the BBC's weak attempts at local accents. It is not just the BBC. Why can't they get rural accents right? You can always tell a BBC Radio 4 drama a mile off!

I watched the film "Warhorse" . It was appalling: a Dartmoor, Devon village was actually filmed in Wiltshire I think. It looked nothing like Devon. The Devon accents were very very bad. No excuses: they spend millions making these films and need to get the basics right. 

No, get the accents right please!