20m FT8 RX with the tiny indoor loop

As 10m was dire here yesterday, I decided to try 20m FT8 RX using the tiny wire loop on the back of the rig indoors. I made the switch yesterday afternoon.  In the last day, 618 stations on 4 continents spotted.

Sunspots - Friday October 11th 2019

Solar flux is 66 and the SSN=0. A=6 and K=2.

More UK rallies

Sunday 13 OCTOBER : HORNSEA AMATEUR RADIO RALLY

Floral Hall, Hornsea HU18 1NQ. Doors open at 10am with admission being £2 with under 14s free. There will be trade stands exhibiting radio equipment, computers etc. The Bring & Buy will be run by Hornsea ARC. There will be an RSGB book stand. Hot and cold food will be available in the café. See latest information on www.hornseaarc.co.uk or contact Les, 2E0LBJ on 01377 252393 or by email lbjpinkney1@hotmail.co.uk.

13 OCTOBER 2019 (NEW VENUE) : HOLSWORTHY RADIO RALLY

Holsworthy Leisure Centre, Well Park, Western Road, Holsworthy, Devon EX22 6DH. There will be Traders, a Bring & Buy and catering will be available on site. The venue has separate disabled access via the Traders side door entrance. A club steward will be on duty in the car park. Doors open 8am for Traders and 10am for visitors. Email Howard, M0MYB at holsworthyarc@gmail.com [https://www.qsl.net/m0omc/].


A list of rallies can be found at http://rsgb.org/main/news/rallies/

Extinction Rebellion - NOT amateur radio

I am not sure what I think about this.

It seems to me to be totally wrong if the UK government is subsidising fossil fuels when we should be doing all we can to persuade people to adopt "carbon neutral" solutions for everything. If we are even to meet carbon neutral by 2050 targets then people really have to change. This is not optional. This means eating less red meat and adopting energy saving methods in all new homes.

At the same time the Extinction Rebellion protests may turn people off. This is a hard one, but I think the duty of government is to encourage habits to change.

Electric cars will be the norm when they are less expensive and ranges better. This alone is not enough. The Prime Minister of the UK is wrong when he labels protesters as "crusties". We are seeing really concerned people of all shades protesting.

BREXIT rabbits? - NOT amateur radio

Unless there is a metaphorical rabbit about to be pulled out of a hat, I think the UK Prime Minister is about to see the total annihilation of the Conservative Party and a General Election. At the moment I think a BREXIT deal seems unlikely.

We are in totally uncharted waters in the UK and no-one knows what the next few weeks will bring.

The Yaesu FT7 HF transceiver

This was the first HF rig I bought, back in 1979. It was 10W on all the then HF bands. With it I worked all over the world on 10m QRP SSB using simple antennas (CB half wave vertical or wire dipoles). It was a very good radio.

It was never used mobile. These days more bands are possible in about a fifth of the size. It was sold to a friend in Cambridge many years ago.

It had a very quiet (non-synthesised) VFO. As I recall it only covered parts of 10m. The later FT7B had more power and full 10m coverage. This is the best rig I have ever owned.

See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/hf/ft7 .

10m FT8 on the indoor loop

For a change, I am trying the small magnetic loop (mounted on the back of the rig) on 10m FT8. Initially I called CQ but now I am RX only. So far, no spots, although I am not too surprised.

UPDATE 1225z: Still no spots on RX or TX.

Sunspots - Thursday October 10th 2019

Solar flux is 67 and the sunspot number 0. A=6 and K=2. Still bouncing along the bottom of the cycle.

2m FT8 RX - the last day (and night)

For most of the last day, I have been monitoring 2m FT8 RX. 28 stations spotted in 5 countries in the last 24 hours..

BREXIT non-deal - NOT amateur radio

At the moment the rest of the world must look at the UK as a right bunch of idiots. It seems highly improbable we will get a deal in the next few days and most must look on us as a bunch of dimwits.  It is hardly surprising as we look like a bunch of turkeys voting for Christmas.

Yes, we want the EU to reform and, yes, the EU is terrified of the institution falling apart if others see us getting a good deal. At the moment I see both the UK Parliament and the UK people deeply split over BREXIT. Healing these wounds could take years. UK politics feels fractured.

At one time we would have compromised. This seems very unlikely.