To Norway (yet again) on 472kHz TX (5mW ERP)

Last night I was again spotted by LA8AV (1035km) on 472kHz WSPR.  I run 5mW ERP from the earth-electrode "antenna".

There are fewer active stations on the band now (getting too noisy?) than earlier in the year. I only spotted 2 French stations last night. For the first time in a long time more stations copied me than I copied! This is rarely the case.

472kHz WSPR this evening

Several reports of my 5mW ERP this evening, but I am suspicious that I am not reporting stations I am copying to WSPRnet! Have I forgotten to tick a box (again) or is this a bug? I am sure I ticked the upload spots button (checked - it was ticked). I shall close and reopen the V1.6.0 program. According to my local screen, I spotted no stations at all. This is most unusual, so I have restarted the program and resynced time. We will soon see if I spot others now!

Labour Party - NOT amateur radio

So the UK Labour Party has suspended Ken Livingstone (ex Mayor of London) for being anti-Semitic! Like many, he is appalled by how badly the state of Israel has treated the Palestinians. No, let these people speak out about wrong in this world, where ever it comes from. Sorry, but the UK Labour Party is tearing itself apart. This will let the UK Conservative Party back into power in 2020.

In the last 70 years the state of Israel has done much wrong, as have several Arab nations. Let's try for some real peace. Up to now we have seen very little real effort to forge a lasting peace in the Middle East. Arab blames Jew and vice versa.

On an individual level I know many Jewish people who are kind and generous. I wish well for every human being. We all need tolerance and understanding. All human beings have a right to peace and justice. We all need to be tolerant of our neighbours, whatever their creed or colour. We may not agree with them on many things but they share this small rocky planet with us.

6m WSPR

All is very quiet on 6m WSPR with not even spots from G stations by aircraft reflections. There has been no evidence here of 6m Es. Either everyone is on SSB/CW or Es has yet to reach this band. On 10m WSPR there was a brief Es opening at lunchtime but this has now gone. There is a further chance of Es peaking around teatime.

Swallow outside - NOT amateur radio

It is several weeks late, but a swallow has just flown by the window. Summer will soon be here with the return of these migrant birds from South Africa.

As I said before, swallows have been making this journey for thousands of years and will be doing so long after I have gone I hope.

All is well. It gladdens my heart to see them.

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

Sepura shares rebounding? - NOT amateur radio

Although basically a very sound and profitable company, shares in my old company, Sepura (SEPU), fell this last week after a profits warning. Since then, the shares have rebounded a bit. I hope it is sustained. Sepura makes and sells secure TETRA digital radios and DPMR radios. It is now 8 years since I retired. It is a long time now.

See http://www.lse.co.uk/ShareChart.asp?chart=intraday&sharechart=SEPU&share=sepura.

Weather - NOT amateur radio

Hail in the back garden

The  weather this year has been strange indeed. We started off here in East Anglia, UK with a mild, wet winter followed by a cold spell in February and March. We are now at the end of April and there have been hail storms and thunder. It has been very cold for late April.  Only yesterday did I definitely see a swallow in Cambridgeshire whereas I usually see these by April 7th and they are common by now. It is as if spring is late. Very odd.

Sunspots and 10m - Thurs April 28th 2016

Solar flux is 91 today (up a little) and sunspot number 86 (which is way up). K=2. The forecast for 10m propagation remains "poor".

10m and 6m WSPR today

As yesterday, I am on 10m WSPR TX (500mW,100%, randomised TX frequency) and 6m (1W ERP, vertical, 20%, RX 80%) but I will switch to 630m tonight.

UPDATE 1112z:  No spots yet.

UPDATE 1226z:  A couple of Es spots of my 500mW 10m WSPR this lunchtime. OZ9QV (864km) was the station who spotted me twice.

UPDATE 1552z: OE6PWD (1232km) has spotted me on 10m WSPR a couple of times this afternoon.

472kHz WSPR overnight

Guess who forgot to press the "enable TX" button? Yes, me. Overnight the usual suspects were copied: EA5DOM, LA8AV, LA3EQ, F6GEX and F1AFJ, but no Germans. As I was not transmitting I was (unsurprisingly!) copied by no-one at all.