Trinity Great Court, Cambridge, UK - NOT amateur radio

This is where the Trinity Great Court run is held. Of all the Cambridge University colleges, I believe Trinity is most endowed.

See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Court,_Trinity_College,_Cambridge .

Sunspots - Monday January 13th

  Solar flux is 158 and the SSN 99.  A=6 and K=2.

Greenland capital - NOT amateur radio

It has been pointed out to me that the capital of Greenland is called Nuuk.

Of late, the US president-elect has shown an interest in buying Greenland. No doubt, its strategic importance between the USA and Russia and the easier accessibility of its vast resources has not gone unnoticed.

See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenland .

Rip off?

One big UK dealer is asking for £274.99 for an ECO Worthy 100Ah LiFePO4 battery with charger. The same battery from Amazon (without charger) can be bought for £169.99.

Hmm.

Frosty cobweb - NOT amateur radio

 

Last night it was again cold and frosty here. 

At breakfast, we noticed this cobweb covered in frost just outside the kitchen window.

8m QRP FT8 (Sunday)

 My QMX+ was turned on 8m FT8 just before 1000z. No spots yet.

UPDATE  1955z:   No spots all day. QRT.

10m QRP WSPR (Sunday)

My 500mW WSPR TX beacon was turned on at 0942z.

UPDATE 1955z:   Spotted by 26 stations. QRT.

Sunspots - Sunday January 12th

 Solar flux is 156 and the SSN 82. A=7 and K=1.

More Lode walk - NOT amateur radio

As mentioned yesterday, we went for a walk around the nearby village of Lode. The photo shows another thatched cottage in the village.

Lode walk - NOT amateur radio

It has been cold and sunny for several days. We decided to go for a walk in the nearby village of Lode. 

It was too icy to go on our usual route.

Village cottage - NOT amateur radio

This is Church Lane in our village.

8m QRP FT8 (Saturday)

My QMX+ was turned on after breakfast. It gives about 2W out on 40.680 MHz.  No spots at 1120z.

UPDATE 1800z:  Just 2 European spots of me today. QRT soon.

10m QRP WSPR (Saturday)

My 500mW beacon was turned on after breakfast.

UPDATE 1120z:   9 spots of me so far.

UPDATE 1820z:  40 stations have spotted me today. QRT now.

Advice - NOT amateur radio

 This was on LinkedIn yesterday. The advice given may be helpful.

"My husband passed away unexpectedly last year on his 43rd birthday.There is nothing more jarring than returning to work when your world has fallen apart. 10 months on, I've thought a lot about how many of us must be facing unimaginable hardship whilst pushing through the day-to-day grind. Grief in the workplace can be tough to navigate - not only for the person grieving but for those wanting to support them.We could all be better at it, if we knew how. These are a few things that have helped me, and may help someone you know:

1. Acknowledge their loss/person/special occasions - you may be worried about saying the wrong thing, but saying nothing at all could make the person feel worse. Mentioning their person isn't going to remind them of their loss - they're thinking of them all the time anyway. Acknowledge how challenging holidays, birthdays and anniversaries must be without them.

2. Offer support - there are countless challenges that accompany a loss and the life admin is enormous! Anything that can lighten the load at work is helpful. Offer to grab them a coffee or lunch, ask if they'd like to go for a walk to get away from their desk and if you work from home, a virtual check-in could do the trick. And if you don't know how to help, simply ask 'how can I support you?'

3. Avoid platitudes, comparisons and advice - everyone's grief journey is different and even if you've suffered a loss yourself, please don't compare! Don't tell them 'time will heal' or 'it will get better'. Often grief feels worse as time passes, especially in those early weeks, months or years. Advice can be well-meaning but know that there is no solution or 'getting over' grief.

4. Language is important - asking 'how are you?' or 'how was your weekend?" can be superfluous. Instead, you could ask, 'how has the transition back to work been?', or 'would you like some company/a chat?' In grief, everything can become amplified including common words/phrases that may come across as insensitive.

5. Avoid commenting on the grieving person's appearance - if they have lost/put on weight, or look tired they are well aware. If you're worried they're not eating then offer to cook them a meal or gift them a voucher for a food delivery service. If you're worried about their health, invite them along for a walk or exercise class. If they look tired, acknowledge how hard it must be to sleep when grieving.

6. Praise their effort - getting up each day, showering and getting dressed is a huge feat in itself, let alone showing up for work each day and interacting with people. If they are caring for children or elderly/sick parents on top of that, the weight of this can be excruciating alongside their grief. Acknowledge how they show up despite this and tell them you're proud of them.

7. If nothing else, be kind!"

Saturday plans

Today, I expect to try 10m QRP using my 500mW stand-alone beacon and 8m FT8 QRP TX using my QMX+ where the output is about 2W to a low dipole.

Sunspots - Saturday January 11th

 Solar flux is 157 and the SSN 105.  A=12 and K=0.

Canada 11th province? - NOT amateur radio

 This made me laugh earlier. Makes you think.

QMX+ QRP on 8m FT8

 My QMX+ should work on 8m TX just by adding a band configuration using PuTTY. 

I successfully altered a parameter with this PC and PuTTY, so I must be experiencing "finger trouble" with PuTTY at the moment as I cannot (yet) get it to work in terminal mode. My trouble is I cannot remember what I did!

I should be able to use the 6m TX LPF and make no internal changes. RX is a different matter, as I would need to create a new BPF, something which is now beyond my fine motor skills. So I shall have to accept that my 8m RX will be deaf.

UPDATE 1220z:  Indeed it was finger trouble!  My QMX+ is TXing about 2W on 40.68MHz FT8.

UPDATE 1528z: Already spotted on 8m FT8 in the USA, Greenland, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico with the QMX+. It works!!

UPDATE 1610z: This once again shows that the MUF reaches 40.680 MHz far more often than 6m, once again showing a very small amateur band at 8m worldwide would be so useful for propagation research. As I have said very many times even a 5 kHz, digital only, low power allocation would be of use.

LA fires - NOT amateur radio

The wildfires in Los Angeles look horrendous. It is so sad when whole districts are destroyed like this. On the whole, this was a natural disaster. 

See https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cg7z9zjv90jt .

It makes me furious when Man causes destruction through wars that just aren't necessary such as in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan. Surely, by now, you would think that we would have learnt from history. Obviously not.  Sadly, I can only conclude that Man really can be basically evil.

All we can do is to try is try to make the world a kinder and more compassionate place a step at a time.

Brrrr- NOT amateur radio

Today is the coldest day in the UK this winter. 

We have a hard frost and it is bitterly cold and icy, but we missed the snow.

Check the facts - NOT amateur radio

 It would appear if you have billions you can say almost anything, whether true or not, and get away with  it.

A plea - before opening mouth please, everyone, check what you say is factually correct.  People with even smaller brains may assume it is correct. This is how riots and wars often start.

10m 500mW WSPR TX (Friday)

My beacon was turned on at about 0942z. 

UPDATE 1515z:  So far, spotted by 31 stations.

6m QRP FT8 (Friday)

My gear was turned on at about 0942z.  I am running just under 3W from the QMX+ to the V2000 vertical omni antenna.

UPDATE 1020z:  So far, spotted by 7 English stations.

Sunspots - Friday January 10th

 Solar flux is 162 and the SSN 126.  A=10 and K=1.

10m QRP WSPR (Thursday)

 As my 10m antenna will be free, I intend later to turn on my 500mW stand-alone WSPR beacon later. Most USA stations start to spot me early afternoon.

UPDATE 1100z:   Turned on at about 1056z:  No spots at 1101z.

UPDATE 1219z:  Spotted by 11 stations.

Cambridge art gallery - NOT amateur radio

 

This was in a window yesterday.

6m QRP FT8 (Thursday)

Yesterday , my QRP 6m FT8 from the QMX+ was spotted in Canada for the first time in 2025, so I shall try again today.

UPDATE 1100z:   Turned on at about 1056z.  4 English spots of me so far this morning.

UPDATE 1643z:    15 spots of my 6m QRP FT8 today.  Nothing "across the pond" today! QRT soon.

Sunspots - Thursday January 9th

 Solar flux is 160 and the SSN 113. A=8 and K=2.

10m 500mW WSPR (Wednesday)

 My QRP beacon was turned on at about 0915z. No spots of me yet at 0929z.

UPDATE 1710z:  Spotted by 25 stations.

6m QRP FT8 (Wednesday)

 My gear was turned on at about 0915z. At 0926z, 3 English spots.

Sunrise- NOT amateur radio

 

This was the sunrise in our close yesterday.

Sunspots - Wednesday January 8th

 Solar flux is 168 and the SSN 113. A=12 and K=2.

10m QRP WSPR (Tuesday)

 Whilst on the 2m activity contest, I turned on the 10m QRP WSPR beacon. At 2047z, no stations had spotted me. I suspect I came on too late.

Magnetic North Pole - NOT amateur radio

 

This was posted earlier and I presume it is correct. It certainly shows how this moves.

Yaesu FTX-1F video

 As mentioned before, the Yaesu FTX-1F (due "early 2025") is meant to be the competitor to the ICOM IC-705 and the successor to the FT817/818 QRP radios. I have not yet heard any more details of specs or price. With the stiff competition, it has to be keenly priced.

I came across this video earlier. Many are trying to show what it can do, but without full specs there are lots of guesses!

A  quick check at  Ham Radio Japan (all in Japanese!) had no more details. I wonder if Yaesu was "testing the waters" to judge interest?  It would not surprise me if Yaesu decided the competition is just too fierce to make any money and drop it even before it is launched. Do you have any more details?

I cannot imagine the IC-905 sells many and makes ICOM any profits.

Amazon algorithms - NOT amateur radio

This has been discussed before I continue to be amazed at how stupid Amazon is with its algorithms and how easy it would be for them to change.

Regularly I get suggestions about what to buy. Here is the thing. These suggestions are almost always based on what I've just bought, meaning it is highly improbable I will want something similar soon. How daft is that!  

Surely the algorithm could be changed to exclude items similar to those recently bought. This is not rocket science!

10m QRP FT8 (Tuesday)

My QMX+ was turned on at about 0900z. So far, 37 spots of me at 0929z.

UPDATE 1209z: 316 stations spotted with the furthermost VK6APK (14532km) in Western Australia. My own 10m FT8 QRP has been spotted by 216 stations.

UPDATE 1856z: 580 stations have spotted my 10m QRP FT8 today. Basically, a few watts of 10m FT8 gets all around the planet. 

QRT soon.

"Our" windmill - NOT amateur radio

 

This was "our" windmill next door yesterday.

Sunspots - Tuesday January 7th

Solar  flux is 172 and the SSN 154.  A=15 and K=2.

Signs of better weather - NOT amateur radio

 

There are definite signs of better times ahead.