Monte Cassino, Italy - NOT amateur radio

On our way to Caserta today we visited the abbey at Monte Cassino. This was totally destroyed in WW2 as it was believed to be occupied by Nazi forces blocking the allied assault on Rome and Northern Italy. It is perched high up above the town of Cassino. It was very old and totally rebuilt after the war ended. It took 20 years of rebuilding. 50000 people died before the allied forces took it in 1944. It occupies a very strategic point.

Geosynchronous amateur satellite?

As you know, we are entering a period which could last very many years when the higher HF bands will not be good for F layer DX. OK, we will have Es to liven things up, but much of the time bands like 10m will seem "dead".

To the rescue (if successful and this is a big "if") could come amateur geosynchronous satellites using linear transponders at microwaves. One such is a Qatar satellite that may be launched next year. I say "maybe" as the launch has already been delayed. Geosynchronous satellites stay in the same place, so antennas can be fixed.

A 2.4GHz uplink and 10GHz downlink is quite an investment, but could be worth it if the satellite is a success.

See https://amsat-uk.org/satellites/geosynchronous/eshail-2/

Sunspots - Friday September 15th 2017

Solar flux is 73 today and the sunspot number 11. A=25 and K=6.

Colosseum, Rome - NOT amateur radio

Another shot from Rome yesterday - this time the famous Colosseum. This is an amazing place. As I said yesterday, Rome was very busy.

See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colosseum.

Rome, Italy - NOT amateur radio

Today, we visited Rome, Italy. We were last there in 1974. We saw most of the main sites, but all were very crowded and heavily guarded by armed police and troops. It is still a fine city though.

OFCOM latest

OFCOM has recently published its penalties.

See http://ofcom.cmail20.com/t/ViewEmail/i/9352918349A715362540EF23F30FEDED/59D1BD3EA2F08127C67FD2F38AC4859C

Sunspots - Thursday September 14th 2017

Solar flux is 73 and the sunspot number is 11. A=15 and K=2.

Anagni, Italy - NOT amateur radio

Local cheese and coldmeats

We visited this hilltop town this morning. At one time it was the place where popes came to in high summer to avoid the oppressive heat in Rome.

It was market day so there were stalls a various places along the main medieval street. It had a nice atmosphere: local out enjoying the market.

We also had a decent coffee for just 1 euro each.

15m Pipit QRP Rig

Some years ago my only rig in use was my homebrew QRP transceiver on 15m. With just a low wire dipole and 800mW I worked lots and lots. Sadly, it got dismantled so I could use the case for another project.

See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/hf/15m_pipit.

Sunspots - Wednesday September 13th 2017

Solar flux is 78 today. The sunspot number is 23. A=11 and K=3.