UK General Election - NOT amateur radio

OK, if I was Theresa May I guess I would have been persuaded to hold a General Election on June 8th. The opposition parties are in a mess and there is a good chance the ruling Conservative Party will win a few more (or a lot more?) seats.

However, General Elections often result in surprises. 52% voted OUT in the recent EU referendum, but most wanted a return to "good old England" with control over our laws and borders. I suspect most would prefer us to still be in the single EU market without tariffs.

It would not totally surprise me if this General Election threw up a few surprises. This is a chance for the Lib Dems to start a comeback. Personally I think Labour is committing suicide.

2m UKAC results

The latest results have just been published and I am now 51 out of 131 in the AL section. This is up. Considering I only use 5W to a big-wheel omni and I am usually on for less that 40% of the time because of my poor voice, this is fine. I only really go on to exercise my voice and see if I can reach new squares. The contest is always fun and people are friendly and helpful.

See http://www.rsgbcc.org/cgi-bin/vhfresults.pl?Contest=144MHz%20UKAC&year=2017

Decluttering - NOT amateur radio

My daughter-in-law runs a decluttering business (SpaceinMind) in North London. She has a special offer.

As usual, clicking the image brings up a bigger, clearer image.

See www.yourspaceinmind.com

70cm antenna

A lot of people are plagued by noise on HF. Not only that, HF conditions on F2 are likely to be poorer in the coming years, so people look elsewhere for their fun.

70cm is quiet here and there is always activity on SSB in the RSGB's UKAC activity contests each month. If you are looking for a really low cost antenna for the band raid your XYL's wardrobe! The antenna linked is easy to make, low cost and definitely works.

See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/antennas/70cm_moxon .

UK Pound - NOT amateur radio

The UK pound seems to be gaining ground against most major currencies including the euro and the US dollar. BREXIT talks are at an early stage, but talk of a UK pound "melt-down" seems premature.

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business/market_data/currency/default.stm

More on International Marconi Day

From Jos:

Hi Roger,
More on Marconi Day...https://www.kerryamateurradiogroup.com/news/international-marconi-day-2017
Kind regards,
Jos.

Brampton Wood - NOT amateur radio

This morning we went bluebell hunting. One of the nearest places was Brampton Woods which is 900 years old at least. It is a very large, ancient wood. Nowadays it is a nature reserve. We saw plenty of bluebells.

The wood is some way out of Brampton, famous for the Samuel Pepys connections. We ate lunch at a pub mentioned in his 1600s diaries.

Marconi Radio International

Although I have no more data, Southgate News reports that Marconi Radio International will be on the air tonight (Tuesday April 18th) and looking for SWL reports.

See http://southgatearc.org/news/2017/april/mri-on-air-on-tonight.htm#.WPXR1YWcHmI

6m MSK144 RX and 10m WSPR TX

Repeating the pattern of yesterday, I am on 6m MSK144 RX and 10m TX with my 500mW WSPR beacon. Best DX on 6m MSK144 RX this morning is IS0GQX (1595km).

As yet, nothing (again) on 10m WSPR.

UPDATE 0848z:  So far 7 stations in 6 countries spotted on 6m MSK144 RX today.

UPDATE 1600z: 15 stations in 9 countries spotted on 6m MSK144 RX so far today. Nothing on 10m WSPR still.

UPDATE 1814z: No spots on 10m WSPR. On 6m MSK144 RX 17 stations in 9 countries spotted today.

Sunspots and 10m - Tuesday April 18th 2017

Solar flux is 75 today and the sunspot number remains zero.  A=4 and K=1.