Sunspots - Sunday February 16th 2020

Solar flux is 71 and the SSN 0. A=5 and K =1.

160m FT8

For the last few hours I have been on 160m FT8 using 10W and the earth-electrode "antenna" in the ground. At 2300z 159 stations spotted so far. An earlier CQ was spotted widely in western Europe.

At the moment I am monitoring 1908kHz in the hope of catching a few Japanese stations on FT8. A few Europeans are operating up there, but nothing spotted from Japan as yet.

UPDATE 2212z: The first Japanese station JA4LKB spotted on 160m FT8. Yet again, for reasons I do not understand, this was not reported on PSKreporter.

UT1FG/MM

A recent 2m FT8 CQ got a reply and QSO with UT1FG/MM. I am not sure where he was located, but it was good to get called by a /MM station on 2m. I did not see this station on PSKreporter. He was calling several German stations later, so I guess he is somewhere in the southern North Sea.

Not an amateur radio tower

I have never had a head for heights! Luckily, this is not one of my amateur antennas!

Westgate, Canterbury - NOT amateur radio

The photo shows the 1379 Westgate in Canterbury, UK. This is the oldest intact medieval gate in the country.

We stayed near here earlier this week.

Canterbury Cathedral is covered in scaffolding.

New ICOM IC-705 video

Apart from the price, many of us are lusting after the new 10W HF, VHF and UHF radio about to be released by ICOM. In my view this will become a classic in the mode of the FT817. ICOM has tried very hard to make a radio that many of us will want to buy.

2m FT8

As it is Saturday morning, I decided to try 2m FT8.  A recent 2m FT8 CQ was widely spotted from as far apart as Cornwall and Germany . Best DX was a spot by DF6PW (562km) with 1 QSO. On 2m FT8 RX 5 stations spotted so far.

As usual, using 10W and the big-wheel omni antenna.

UPDATE 1127z:  Recent 2m FT8 CQs  have been  spotted by 14 stations in 3 countries. On 2m FT8 RX 14 stations in 2 countries spotted so far.

Stations spotted on 2m FT8
RX so far today

UPDATE 1314z:  31 stations in 5 countries spotted so far today on 2m FT8 RX. An average day today so far. I suspect many of these stations are via aircraft scatter rather than tropo.

Stations spotting me today 

on 2m FT8 TX so far

UPDATE  1416z: 21 stations have spotted me so far today as shown on the map. On 2m FT8 even with 10W and the omni antenna, Germany is in reach every day! FT8 has transformed 2m for me.


UPDATE 1607z:  My most recent 2m FT8 CQ was spotted by 18 stations in 5 countries. So far today, 25 stations in 6 countries have spotted my 2m FT8 TX (10W) today.

Old Lapthorn? - NOT amateur radio

This "photo" is probably about 160 years old. It is on a hand tinted metal plate found when clearing my mother's house when she died some years ago. I had no idea it existed. She looks like a distant relative - maybe my great great grandmother. She certainly looks like a Lapthorn.

Some years ago I met a Lapthorn who moved away from South Devon (where most Lapthorn's are found and where I come from) in the 1700s: he looked just like my uncle!!

We can trace our family history back to the mid 1500s continuously and know we were around in the South Hams of Devon in 1427. We were probably around much earlier in these parts, in prehistoric times.

160m FT8 overnight

Quite a decent session with 670 stations spotted including 10 in North America plus some in the Caribbean and South America.

160m FT8 RX overnight
- stations spotted 

Sunspots - Saturday February 15th 2020

Solar flux is 71 and the SSN 0. A=3 and K=0.