G0KSC website update

As you may know, I like simple and small antennas that do not need towers and rotators. These have the advantage of being neighbour friendly.

Luckily we are all different which is one of the joys of our hobby. To many, big antennas help with DXing or EME. Each to their own.

The G0KSC website has been updated and this has a lot about antennas.

See www.g0ksc.co.uk

Reflections - NOT amateur radio

This is not one of my photos! It appeared on 365project earlier. It is a great shot which is why I am sharing it.  

I do 365 every day. Each day you post a photo, however mundane, and it is great fun. Looking back it is interesting to see how much the grandchildren have changed over the years. I have been doing it for 8 years. Some use it to show how good they are at photography, whereas to me, and many, it is just a visual diary. There is no way I would win prizes for great photos! Many of mine are very boring! What I am saying is there is no need to be a good photographer: this is for you. Others can enjoy your photos if you want or you can keep them private. You can join for free or pay $19.99 a year if you want more albums and privacy.

See https://365project.org/g3xbm/365 for my photos. 

See www.365project.org to join.

Sunspots - Thursday February 11th 2021

 Solar flux is 74 and the SSN 0. A=3 and K=1. 

Rant time - NOT amateur radio

Have you noticed that some things get worse over time? 

My wife has a coat that she got many years ago, so she decided to buy a new one. It is thinner and has fewer pockets. She recently bought me some new pants - they are thinner and shorter. A new National Trust bag has fewer pockets. I could go on and on....

You can see what happens. The buyer tries to get the best "bang per buck" and has a fixed price. He asks the supplier to keep the price down so accepts some compromises to hold the price, hoping the consumer won't care. 

Result? Thinner, poorer, material, fewer pockets. Basically poorer.

Rant over.

Snowy walk - NOT amateur radio

Just now we went for a walk. The forecast was full sun, so it snowed! 

Recently seen flowers - NOT amateur radio

Already, the nights are getting shorter and there is a promise of spring, although we are still in the depths of winter. My wife took these pictures a few days ago.

Yesterday's snow - NOT amateur radio

We had snow yesterday. Most of it had gone by late afternoon, which surprised us.

It is sunny, but icy, this morning. Wind has dropped.

When we get a drop of snow here in the UK we all panic. I can only imagine what people in New England and Canada think of us!  To us, 0 deg C is cold!

The last day on 2m FT8 using 2.5W

In the last day, 30 stations have spotted me on 2M FT8 using 2.5W and the big-wheel omni antenna. Irrespective of conditions these ranges are always possible.

2m FT8 QRP (Wednesday)

The 2m FT8 gear was turned on early this morning. I am again running 2.5W to the big-wheel omni antenna.

UPDATE 0925z:  8 spots of my QRP including EI2FG (565km) again.  If this is aircraft scatter (I have my doubts), it is there very often, which is why I wonder if some other form of scatter is involved on some paths.

UPDATE 1001z:  7 stations spotted here so far. At the moment I am RX only on 2m FT8 with the big-wheel omni.

Elephants - NOT amateur radio

My wife took this photo last week when we had plenty of sunshine. It was taken at the entrance to the walled garden at Hare Park, Chippenham near Cambridge.