Batson - NOT amateur radio

This small hamlet is near Salcombe in Devon. 

It seems amazing that it was a month ago that I visited my brother and walked here.

8m experiment (Tuesday)

At the moment I am on 10m QRP FT8 transceive, but will probably QSY to 8m later this morning if the Es sticks around.

UPDATE 1247z: Now on 8m FT8 TX. 

UPDATE 1458z:  EI9KP (649km) has spotted my 8m QRP FT8 TX.

10m FT8 QRP transceive

This morning at 0752z I went straight to 10m FT8 transceive. So far,  7 stations spotted on RX and 3 stations have already spotted my QRP FT8 TX. There is definitely Es around today. It feels quite different from early yesterday.

472 kHz transverter

It seems amazing that I made this transverter 10 years ago! This was me testing it just before boxing. 

Sunspots - Tuesday July 26th 2022

 Solar flux is 102 and the SSN 100. A=6 and K=4.

Ted Williams G4NUA

In years gone by, I used to speak with Ted on 2m every Monday. Last week, I sent him an email, but he has not replied. Has anyone any news please?

Myanmar executions - NOT amateur radio

This saddens me.  The BBC reports that some opposition people in Myanmar (was Burma) have been executed. Now, I do not know the facts admittedly,  but this seems brutal in the 21st century.

See https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-62287815 .

10m FT8 QRP

 As results on 10m WSPR and 8m FT8 were so dire, I have changed to 10m FT8 to see if that is any better. Looking at the WSJT-X screen, I can see no stations, which does not bode well!

UPDATE 1355z:  Just a spot of me by G0FWX (160km) so far. Nobody spotted on RX.

UPDATE 1730z:    All the RX spots seem to be local or F2, with a general absence of Es. On TX, I think most (all?) my spots are within the UK.

Thatched cottages - NOT amateur radio

Especially in nearby Norfolk and Suffolk, there are some very attractive villages. This is an example. This is about 15 minutes drive away. 

Bad Es day?

Unless things suddenly change for the better, today looks like being a very bad day for Es on both 10m and 8m. 

On 10m I have received just 2 spots of me (from the same station!) and on 8m FT8 I have been spotted by no-one and spotted no-one. 

Es can be like this: here one minute and gone the next. It is quite possible it will be very good tomorrow, or remain poor for days. Also a very small movement can make a lot of difference. Move just 20km and it could be completely different. Hence the name "sporadic-E".

Things might change, although I am not holding my breath!