More storms?

At the moment there are thunderstorms in the UK, but these seem to be out to the west and in the Oxford area according to http://www.lightningmaps.org . I shall remain on 10m WSPR and 6m WSPR,but if they get nearer I shall go QRT.

They seem to be moving this way - maybe disconnect everything in a few hours?

http://www.lightningmaps.org

Unlike weather forecasts these are actual storms. At this time of year especially, it is worth going to the linked maps to keep an eye on storm progress.

UPDATE 1857z:  At the moment the storms seem to be going in the Chelmsford and Corby directions and not coming towards us.

UK Weather Forecasts are Rubbish - NOT amateur radio

OK, I moan about weather forecasts a lot and here I go again. 

Yesterday the forecast for OUR VILLAGE on the day said rain showers all afternoon. It was dry until we went to bed. 

Today OUR VILLAGE was supposed to be dry all day. It is raining! 

If you cannot rely on the forecast for NOW, what IS the point? Before readers tell me how complex our UK weather is may I say, yet again, our forecasts are rubbish.

The only reliable weather forecast in the UK is to look out of the darn window.

Millions have been spent on super-computers to enable better forecasting - oh yes? 

UPDATE 1400z:  Perhaps the best is to look at the forecast and assume the opposite?

All quiet so far on 10m WSPR and 6m WSPR

It is now, as I write this, 0800z. So far, both 10m and 6m WSPR have been very quiet although it is very early still. Certainly there have been no signs here of Es as yet.

UPDATE 1140z:  So far just a single spot on 10m WSPR from HA9AL (1455km). Nothing as yet on 6m WSPR.

UPDATE 1306z:  Apart from the above Es spot, just G4KPX (14km) spotting me on 10m WSPR. All still quiet here on 6m WSPR.

UPDATE 1342z:  Spots exchanged with G4NRG (58km) on 6m WSPR. I am giving him much better reported S/N. OK, he is running a little more power, but maybe he has a higher local noise level?

UPDATE 1712z: OZ7IT (853km) has just spotted me strongly (+10dB S/N) on 6m WSPR. This is incredibly strong - more than a local! It implies just uW would have been enough.

UPDATE 1852z:  OZ5XN (812km) running 5W WSPR was a colossal signal on 6m WSPR at +13dB S/N. Almost like he is in the same street!

England Football Fans - NOT amateur radio

Yet again, I am ashamed of the England supporters abroad. Now, I am sure it is a small minority who cause all the unrest and violence but these tarnish the game. Also, sometimes others start the violence knowing that England fans will be blamed.

Personally, I think a lot of this is due to drinking to excesses. Maybe there should be a blanket ban on alcohol within a certain radius of games? This seems unfair on "normal" fans who just go to follow the teams.

I am not a great football fan. Some games are watched on TV but I would never follow my teams abroad. It must be 30 years (at least) since I last went to a football match!

Sunspots and 10m - Sun June 12th 2016

Solar flux is 95 today. Sunspot number is 40 (K=2). The forecast for 10m F2 propagation yet again remains "poor". Luckily there has been Es around to liven up 10m and 6m.

Queen at 90 - NOT amateur radio

Although not a royalist, I think the UK queen has done very well over her long reign. The very survival of the institute of monarchy is in no small part due to her. The money that royalty brings in must more than make up for the expense of the royal household.

Ours is a constitutional monarchy: although the queen has weekly discussions with the Prime Minister of the day, she in no way influences the day-to-day running of the nation. She does open Parliament (The State Opening of Parliament) in her "official" role as queen and head of state.

I cannot imagine us as a republic with a president. We are lacking people that we could all look up to and respect. Somehow I cannot imagine the monarchy after Elizabeth dies. It is bound to happen sooner rather than later. Will we still have a monarchy 50 years from now?

QRP and QRP Club

More from Oleg:

Dear Club 72 members and friends,
72 QRP Net (Rendez-Vous) weekly report (June 6 to 12, 2016)
Visitors  of  the  week:  US5EFU, UA1CEG, RU3NJC, F/PA0PJE/p, UA1ADF, SM7RYR,  UR0ET,  UA3PCJ,  UR7VT,  UA4NU,  R1OA, RN4NAA, US3EN, ON6KZ, US5ERQ, IT9IFI
IT9IFI became Rendez-Vous Frequenter
See full Visitors and Frequenters lists on the Club 72 web page - www.club72.su
Welcome  all  QRP  operators  on  the  "72  QRP Net" (Rendez-Vous) in Tuesdays,  Thursdays,  Saturdays  at  9 UTC on 14060 kHz (alternative 10116 kHz if contents) +/- QRM, QRL.
P.S. Full "rendezvous" weekly reports published on the blog page - http://qrp-club72.blogspot.ru/
72! Oleg RV3GM / KH6OB "Mr. 72"

472kHz transverter

472kHz transverter (homebrew design and build)

All winter, spring and indeed right up to now, I have been using my FT817 and a homebrew transverter for 472kHz WSPR. Although the transverter puts out about 12W, my ERP on 472kHz is a measured 5mW from the earth-electrode "antenna". Although far from efficient, it provides me with a means of radiating a signal on 472kHz WSPR.  Best TX DX this season on the band was well over 1000km to Norway on several occasions. It has copied 1525km on RX with just the FT817 without a preamp.

New UK record on 241GHz

I guess we do things the hard way "because it is there".  There are far easier ways to communicate over this distance! As  I said before, personally I think 481THz (optical) is much easier than microwaves.

UK distance on 241 GHz improved to 400m in latest tests by G8ACE. Tweeted by @UKGHZ which is the UK microwave group.

See https://twitter.com/UKGHZ/status/74124618582711091 .

Local Church Fete - NOT amateur radio

Church Fete in the churchyard

This is usually held the next weekend in June each year, but it was changed to coincide with the Queen's 90th birthday celebrations. Although thundery showers have been threatened all afternoon, they have kept off for now. My wife is running the cake stall as she does most years. It is usually a good chance to meet village people not seen for a while.