10 Sept 2022

10m WSPR and 8m FT8 TX

 After a few days away, I hope to be on again tomorrow. Normal service should resume on Sunday.

Stamps and seals - NOT amateur radio


In the centre of Amsterdam is a shop selling stamps and seals. I have never seen such a shop before. 

160m FT8

 Many people think they can't go on 160m as they need huge antennas and extensive ground systems and/or their noise is very high. Using just QRP and my earth-electrode antenna in the ground on FT8, both North and South America have been widely copied on RX and I have worked all over Europe on TX . As FT8 needs only 50 Hz bandwidth provided by the free software, it works well with very weak signals much weaker than SSB or CW. If you have local noise then you can try FT8. 

UK Prime Ministers - NOT amateur radio


This will mean more to people in the UK than elsewhere in the world. It made me chuckle. 

Sunspots - Saturday September 10th 2022

Solar flux is 126 and the SSN 72. A=13 and K=3.

9 Sept 2022

The Chinese are coming?


Several UK dealers have been advertising the new Chinese SDR portable (the Xiegu G106) that in many ways looks like a much better radio than the FT818 and far less expensive.

My main objection in the past to Chinese amateur radio products has been quality control and consistency. Maybe this is the first of a new breed? 

This radio is HF only, but look at the price!! 


OFCOM announces spectrum earmarked for the police in Northern Ireland - NOT amateur radio

 OFCOM has released some spectrum in the 700-900 MHz region for police use in Northern Ireland. 

Sunspots - Friday September 9th 2022

 Solar flux is 127 and the SSN 75.  A=19 and 4.

Sad news - NOT amateur radio


This cartoon was posted on FB earlier. Whatever your views on monarchy, the UK's Queen Elizabeth II was well respected across the world as a head of state. The new king will have a hard act to follow. 

8 Sept 2022

Rembrandt's Night Watch - NOT amateur radio

Today we went to the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam to see the famous Night Watch by Rembrandt. We first saw this priceless painting many years ago when my younger son commented that the colouring in was not very good! He was very young at the time!