6m QRP FT8 (Saturday)

Switched on the 6m QRP FT8 gear just after breakfast. Looks like there is Es, but no JAs spotted here although I see them being worked from Eastern Europe.

UPDATE 1130z:  64 stations have spotted my 2.5W 6m FT8 today.

Poldu, Cornwall

A few weeks ago some friends called at the Poldu radio museum. They mentioned that I used to work for Philips and the person there said he knew me. It was Terry who must have retired to Cornwall. Small world. 

Sunspots - Saturday July 22nd 2023

Solar flux is 173 and the SSN 121. A=13 and K=2. 

Bee patient - NOT amateur radio

This morning, I tried to take a photo of a bee on a thistle. I waited and waited, but the bee refused to make itself visible. In the end I gave up! The bee is the black blob in the right hand thistle. Well, I tried.

Spelling - NOT amateur radio

These days, I am finding spelling far harder. 

Years ago I would look at a word and know if it was wrong. It is as if my built-in spell check no longer works. Errors no longer stand out as wrong. Now, this may just be old age or yet another after effect of my 2013 stroke. 

Please, be patient. If I realise a word is wrong, I shall try to correct it.

Carpe diem (sieze the day) - NOT amateur radio

 The dictionary definition is:

"to urge someone to make the most of the present time and give little thought to the future"

I guess as we age, we have to make the most of the time we have.

10m QRP WSPR (Friday)

Having been on since 0750z, most of my 500mW 10m WSPR spots are from local G4KPX (14km). OH6BG (1718km) could be F2.

UPDATE 1205z:  There would appear to be Es on 10m with 10 spots of my 500mW WSPR even though the charts do not look to great. See https://www.tvcomm.co.uk/g7izu/radio-propagation-maps/europe-sporadic-e/.

Stations spotting me today
on 10m QRP WSPR

UPDATE 2124z:  9 stations have spotted me today.

JA spotted on 6m FT8 (again)

At this time of year Japan is regularly worked from Europe on 6m. This year was no exception. Even with my V2000 vertical, JA7QVI (9273km) was spotted here. I suspect my V2000 and 2.5W is not enough! So far, all my six 6m spots are of G stations working JAs. 

These openings are linked to the formation of noctilucent clouds in the mesosphere.

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/vhfuhfmicrowaves/super-dx .

UPDATE 0951z:   8 spots of me so far, all Gs.

Stations spotted today
on 6m FT8 RX

UPDATE 2117z:   QRT soon.  25 stations spotted here.

Sunspots - Friday July 21st 2023

Solar flux is 183 and the SSN 131. A=10 and K=3.

Yaesu FT-710

This is a very good transceiver, scoring very highly on the Sherwood tests. However, I missed 2m and 70cm and found 4m a disappointment. In the end, I went back to the ICOM IC-705 that better matched my needs. 

It is my view that Yaesu has lost its way in the amateur radio market. They are capable of making some excellent products, but need to get a grip before it is too late. In my professional life, I saw signs. Yaesu has them all. Let's hope I am very very wrong. I like Yaesu.

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/hf-mf-and-lf/commercial-rigs/yaesu-ft-710 .