FCC - so so S L O W .....wake me!

It is hard to believe just how slow the FCC is being over the release of the 137kHz and 472kHz bands in the USA.  Years have passed and neither band is released. The FCC is worried about interference to utilities. For goodness sake! Surely they could release both bands with a tight ERP level initially on a "non interference" basis? I moan about OFCOM but the FCC seems far far worse!

This is from the ARRL site...

"Meanwhile, the Amateur Radio community continues to await action on ET Dockets 12-338 and 15-99 that would spell out service rules for the new 2200 and 630 meter Amateur Radio bands. The FCC was expected to issue a Report and Order last fall. That subsequently got moved back to the first quarter of 2016, which also has slipped.
Regulatory provisions under consideration have included a possible notification requirement by some radio amateurs to utilities that operate PLC systems in that region of the spectrum, prior to their starting operation on either new band. Utilities use unlicensed PLC systems to control parts of the electrical power grid.
Earlier this year, the ARRL has asked the Commission not to adopt overly broad requirements to notify utilities in advance of intended Amateur Radio operation on the pending bands. The Amateur Service would gain access to 135.7-137.8 kHz (2200 meters) and 472-479 kHz (630 meters). Both bands have been used by numerous Experimental (Part 5) licensees, and the ARRL’s WD2XSH 600 Meter Experiment continues."

FCC - the world looks on and is amazed!! Wake up!! One cannot help thinking that the FCC is a pile of bureaucrats who do not understand radio. Please, release these bands in the USA.

Ossett UKAC Operators

I received a very kind letter from Robert G8BUN inviting me to become an Honorary Member at Ossett Amateur Radio Operators as I operate in the UKAC contests. This was very kind and much appreciated. My voice is not good and I am pretty limited in operating time on all speech modes.

10m and 6m WSPR

I went QRT on 630m (472kHz) WSPR about 50 minutes go and returned to 10m and 6m WSPR. Overnight on MF there were no great surprises with just DC0DX (467km) spotted. There are far fewer active TX stations on the band now.

UPDATE 0940z:  No spots yet on 10m WSPR and 6m WSPR.

UPDATE 1048z:  Still no 10m and 6m WSPR spots. 

UPDATE DF4UE (758km) spotted my 500mW 10m WSPR this afternoon. Es I assume.

Sunspots and 10m - Wed May 4th 2016

Solar flux is 91. Sunspot number is 57 today (moderate) and K=0. The propagation forecast for 10m remains "poor" again. Let's hope there is some Es to liven things up on 10m and 6m.

Dad - NOT amateur radio

Yesterday would have been my dad's birthday. He would have been 98 although sadly he died in his late 60s in 1987 from a heart attack. I can't imagine him being 98. He died young but he was otherwise healthy to his end.

I regret not speaking to him about his Pathfinder years in the RAF. There were brave young men on both sides in WW2. Dad did not like to speak about those days. Looking back he was very very brave.

The war years impacted him greatly and he was happy not to be reminded of them. The funny thing is if he walked in the door now it would seem so natural. There is so much I'd want to talk with him about.

If your parents are still alive ask them the questions before it is too late.

Sepura shares - NOT amateur radio

Although a long way below their peak, Sepura (SEPU) shares are rising again today despite a large fall in the FTSE 100 share index. At the moment they are trending upwards. You may recall that this was the company I worked for before I retired 8 years ago. How time flies!

See http://www.lse.co.uk/ShareChart.asp?chart=intraday&sharechart=SEPU&share=sepura

UPDATE 1500z:  At the moment these are 80.5p. They have been climbing for several days in a row now.

More from OFCOM

See http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/?utm_source=updates&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=1st-tues-0516 for more from OFCOM.

"Ofcom is committed to a thriving telecoms sector where companies can compete fairly and businesses and customers benefit from the choice of a broad range of services."

Yes. 

2m UKAC tonight

A reminder that the 2m leg of the RSGB's activity contest is tonight 1900-2130z. The 2m leg is the first Tuesday of the month. With warmer weather, we can expect more portable stations active on hilltops.

As usual, I shall be on with 5W SSB QRP and my big-wheel horizontal omni antenna. 200km seems about my maximum range, although I rarely stay on for more than 60 minutes as my voice is so poor.

Not having to turn the antenna is helpful. If the station is a decent strength then it is worth calling. I usually go looking for others which I find is the best tactic with QRP. This is usually productive although I keep missing others using the same technique such as G2XV who is quite local!

UPDATE 2100z: In the end I worked 9 stations with best DX 172km. See map below of QSOs. Heard but not worked were stations in Wales, Cornwall and France. I had to give up after 60 minutes because of my poor voice.

Matching the earth-electrode "antenna" at 472kHz

I get asked how I match my earth-electrode "antenna" at 472kHz. Well, it depends on your ground resistance. At my old QTH I just connected the transverter directly to the earth electrodes as my ground looked like somewhere between 40-60 ohms resistive. I used an audio oscillator and looked for half voltage by adjusting the series resistance. At the "new" QTH the earth resistance is much higher so I added a 3C90 step-up 42mm diameter transformer and adjust the tap on the secondary for maximum antenna current. I am sure the purists will have a good laugh, but it works. Here is a photo showing the arrangement. I am sure the purists will ask how did you determine the windings? In good amateur fashion I experimented and found what worked. Incidentally, I tried the earth-electrode "antenna" on 160m and on the first night was spotted in Sweden! I think it works as a loop in the ground and would be bigger at lower frequencies. At 137kHz it should form quite a large loop in the ground, although I have not tried this band at all at this QTH. I got the 3C90 toroid from Farnell a few years ago. I assume these are still available.

3C90 matching transformer and antenna current meter for 472kHz

Sunspots and 10m - May 3rd 2016

Solar flux is 91 today. Sunspot number is a decent 75. K=4. The forecast for 10m (F2) propagation remains "poor", although we hope Es livens up 10m and maybe 6m.

UPDATE  1600z:  No spots as yet on 10m or 6m WSPR. So far, a very disappointing day here on 6m and 10m WSPR. I shall remain on until dark, ever hopeful!

Returned to 10m and 6m WSPR

Since about 0815z I have been active on 10m WSPR (500mW, 100% TX, randomised freq) and 6m WSPR (1W ERP vertical  20%, RX 80%). I went QRT on MF but may return after dark.

Overnight on MF

No great DX last night on 472kHz WSPR. EA5DOM (1525km) was the best DX on RX again (he is always a good signal when active) and the best TX DX (5mW ERP) was to Holland. There are definitely fewer stations on the band now than at the peak of the season.

10m amd MF WSPRing

It was gone teatime when I noticed no spots at all on 10m. Then I saw the PC had closed the WSPR program to install updates so I had not actually been on 10m WSPR for some time! This may have been several hours! Doh!

Anyway, at 1900z I restarted the PC and did a time resync and started up on 472kHz (630m) WSPR. No great DX so far but I am being copied in the Sheffield area (IO93) and am copying a Dutch station. Nothing special but I am definitely on 472kHz WSPR! I shall remain on this band overnight and switch to 10m WSPR after breakfast.

Fewer swallows definitely - NOT amateur radio

On our recent trip to Lichfield I only saw 1 swallow, confirming what I thought that there are fewer swallows around this year.

They are around now, but I have seen far fewer than in previous years.

I hope this is just a blip, although there have been far fewer house martins than years ago. Is this global warming or an El Nino effect?

Guess what? - NOT amateur radio

Yes, you guessed, Alibris were offering 15% off for 24 hours only.

All quiet on 10m WSPR

As mentioned in an earlier post, I have been on 10m WSPR since just after lunch when we arrived back home.

UPDATE 1600z:  No 10m WSPR spots given or received so far today.#

UPDATE 2200z:  See later post. Doh!  Idiot.

Away so nothing yesterday - NOT amateur radio

We were in Lichfield for my brother-in-law's 70th birthday party, so I was not able to update the blogs. It was a good family get-together. I guess it won't be too long before some of us meet for funerals! It will be some years before there is a round of grandchildren's weddings. For some of these we may be around, but it is unlikely we'll see them all get married. Still, this is how it has always been since time began.

Lichfield is a small city to the north of Birmingham. It has a very nice cathedral with three spires. Unusually, the cathedral is made in red sandstone. It has some fine carvings over the entrance. Lichfield itself is charming with many fine old buildings and a pedestrianised centre. There are 2 large lakes near the cathedral. I guess at one time these were stocked with fish for monks nearby?

More (about China) via Steve G1KQH

This came from Steve yesterday. He like his Chinese bargains!

China cuts TAX, Cuts, not increase! Standby for even Cheaper Baofengs!

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2016-05/01/c_135327077.htm

73 Steve
http://www.g1kqh.talktalk.net/

Sunspots and 10m - Mon May 2nd 2016

Solar flux is 82 today and the sunspot number is 23 (K=1). The forecast for 10m propagation remains "poor" today. I b=have been active on 10m WSPR (RX and TX) since about 1304z.  There was no forecast yesterday as we were away for the weekend.

Another UK rally

Monday 2 MAY : DARTMOOR RADIO CLUB RALLY
Tavistock College, Crowndale Road, Tavistock, Devon. PL19 8DD. The venue has free car parking as well as disabled facilities but please note there is no talk-in station. Doors open at 10.15/10.30am and admission is £2. There will be trade stands, a Bring & Buy and special interest groups. Catering is available on site. Contact Roger Hann, 2E0RPH on 01822 840 723, or by email to 2E0RPH@gmail.com.

A list of rallies can befound at http://rsgb.org/main/news/rallies/

Being in the west of England this may be of interest to readers in Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Dorset especially.

472kHz WSPR overnight

No great DX. I did spot one Norwegian station, but he did not spot me. My best DX on TX was only the Netherlands. I shall soon stop TXing on MF until the autumn.

Sunspots and 10m - Sat April 30th 2016

Solar flux 92 today. Sunspot number is 82 (K=1) and forecast for 10m propagation remains "poor".

Facebook - NOT amateur radio

For some reason Facebook is very very slow here today. All else seems normal. Have they been attacked?

No luck on 10m WSPR today

Perhaps surprisingly, no spots at all today of my 500mW 10m WSPR beacon. Certainly here there was no Es propagation evident. I shall be on the band for a few more hours so things might change before dark.

On 630m WSPR with far less ERP (about 27dB less!) I have been regularly been copied at 223km in IO93 square.

On 10m, if there is no propagation that is it - no reports unless there are some Gs spotted by aircraft reflection.  On 630m WSPR there seems to be inter-G propagation all the time.

UPDATE 1912z:  Still no spots at all on 10m WSPR here all day. I shall be going QRT on 10m very shortly.

UPDATE 1945z:  QRT on 10m. Copying G0MRF (103km=64miles) well on 472kHz WSPR. Sadly it looks like G0MRF is only on TX WSPR and not RX at all. If he was looking on RX too, this would be a new one for me on TX.

Bury St Edmunds - NOT amateur radio

Bury St Edmunds is our favourite place to shop. It is a bit further than Cambridge but easier to get to. It is a classic Suffolk market town with charming shops and a good market twice a week. Most of the people you see are true locals from the area with Suffolk accents. In Cambridge it seems that a good proportion of the people are from China!

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

OFCOM consultation

See http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/talk-talk-licence-variation/?utm_source=updates&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=talk-talk-licence-variation .

OFCOM are consulting our views. You may want to respond.

Rallies

I have been reminded of these rallies in the UK:

Sunday 1 MAY : DAMBUSTERS HAMFEST
Thorpe Camp Museum, Tattershall Thorpe, near Coningsby, Lincolnshire LN4 4PE. The venue is all on one level and doors open at 10am. Admission is £3 and includes entry into the museum. Hot food will be available in addition to the NAFFI. This is mainly an outdoor rally but some limited space is available indoors with a small charge for tables. More information by email to tony.nightingale@yahoo.co.uk

1-2 MAY : SHANES CASTLE STEAM TRACTION RALLY CASHOTA
Shanes Castle, Randalstown Rd, Antrim BT41 4NE. Including a CASHOTA station operated by Ballymena ARG. Family attractions, catering, disabled facilities, car parking, accessible by public transport. Contact Hugh Kernohan, GI0JEV, 028 2587 1481.

A list of rallies can be found at http://rsgb.org/main/news/rallies/

Spot the PW?

Have you noticed how few radio magazines there are nowadays on the shelves of magazine shops?  The photo shows part of the magazine racks in W.H.Smith's in Bury St Edmunds. There are lots of mags on trains and transport, quite a few on PCs and smart phones, but it took me ages to find any mags on radio. It is as if our hobby no longer exists.

Out of interest, Practical Wireless was eventually found! Can you spot it?

Sunspots and 10m - Fri April 29th 2016

Solar flux is 93 today and the sunspot number 84 (K=1). Sadly the propagation forecast for 10m remains "poor" although Es may yet again liven up the band.

630m and 10m WSPR daytime today

For a change I shall remain on 630m (472kHz) WSPR all day today as well as TXing 100%  with my 500mW 10m WSPR beacon. I shall not go on 6m today.

Although I do not expect to copy many (any?) stations on 472kHz WSPR, it will be interesting to see who spots me in the daytime on this MF band.

Recent 472kHz spots (by day)

Yesterday there was Es on 10m with 3 unique stations spotting my 500mW 10m WSPR signal.

UPDATE 1440z:  Plenty of spots received on 472kHz but none so far on 10m today.

UPDATE 1450z:  M0LMH (223km) seems to copy me all the time as does G0MQW (123km).

To Norway (yet again) on 472kHz TX (5mW ERP)

Last night I was again spotted by LA8AV (1035km) on 472kHz WSPR.  I run 5mW ERP from the earth-electrode "antenna".

There are fewer active stations on the band now (getting too noisy?) than earlier in the year. I only spotted 2 French stations last night. For the first time in a long time more stations copied me than I copied! This is rarely the case.

472kHz WSPR this evening

Several reports of my 5mW ERP this evening, but I am suspicious that I am not reporting stations I am copying to WSPRnet! Have I forgotten to tick a box (again) or is this a bug? I am sure I ticked the upload spots button (checked - it was ticked). I shall close and reopen the V1.6.0 program. According to my local screen, I spotted no stations at all. This is most unusual, so I have restarted the program and resynced time. We will soon see if I spot others now!

Labour Party - NOT amateur radio

So the UK Labour Party has suspended Ken Livingstone (ex Mayor of London) for being anti-Semitic! Like many, he is appalled by how badly the state of Israel has treated the Palestinians. No, let these people speak out about wrong in this world, where ever it comes from. Sorry, but the UK Labour Party is tearing itself apart. This will let the UK Conservative Party back into power in 2020.

In the last 70 years the state of Israel has done much wrong, as have several Arab nations. Let's try for some real peace. Up to now we have seen very little real effort to forge a lasting peace in the Middle East. Arab blames Jew and vice versa.

On an individual level I know many Jewish people who are kind and generous. I wish well for every human being. We all need tolerance and understanding. All human beings have a right to peace and justice. We all need to be tolerant of our neighbours, whatever their creed or colour. We may not agree with them on many things but they share this small rocky planet with us.

6m WSPR

All is very quiet on 6m WSPR with not even spots from G stations by aircraft reflections. There has been no evidence here of 6m Es. Either everyone is on SSB/CW or Es has yet to reach this band. On 10m WSPR there was a brief Es opening at lunchtime but this has now gone. There is a further chance of Es peaking around teatime.

Swallow outside - NOT amateur radio

It is several weeks late, but a swallow has just flown by the window. Summer will soon be here with the return of these migrant birds from South Africa.

As I said before, swallows have been making this journey for thousands of years and will be doing so long after I have gone I hope.

All is well. It gladdens my heart to see them.

See www.rspb.org.uk/discoverandenjoynature/discoverandlearn/birdguide/name/s/swallow/ .

Sepura shares rebounding? - NOT amateur radio

Although basically a very sound and profitable company, shares in my old company, Sepura (SEPU), fell this last week after a profits warning. Since then, the shares have rebounded a bit. I hope it is sustained. Sepura makes and sells secure TETRA digital radios and DPMR radios. It is now 8 years since I retired. It is a long time now.

See http://www.lse.co.uk/ShareChart.asp?chart=intraday&sharechart=SEPU&share=sepura.

Weather - NOT amateur radio

Hail in the back garden

The  weather this year has been strange indeed. We started off here in East Anglia, UK with a mild, wet winter followed by a cold spell in February and March. We are now at the end of April and there have been hail storms and thunder. It has been very cold for late April.  Only yesterday did I definitely see a swallow in Cambridgeshire whereas I usually see these by April 7th and they are common by now. It is as if spring is late. Very odd.

Sunspots and 10m - Thurs April 28th 2016

Solar flux is 91 today (up a little) and sunspot number 86 (which is way up). K=2. The forecast for 10m propagation remains "poor".

10m and 6m WSPR today

As yesterday, I am on 10m WSPR TX (500mW,100%, randomised TX frequency) and 6m (1W ERP, vertical, 20%, RX 80%) but I will switch to 630m tonight.

UPDATE 1112z:  No spots yet.

UPDATE 1226z:  A couple of Es spots of my 500mW 10m WSPR this lunchtime. OZ9QV (864km) was the station who spotted me twice.

UPDATE 1552z: OE6PWD (1232km) has spotted me on 10m WSPR a couple of times this afternoon.

472kHz WSPR overnight

Guess who forgot to press the "enable TX" button? Yes, me. Overnight the usual suspects were copied: EA5DOM, LA8AV, LA3EQ, F6GEX and F1AFJ, but no Germans. As I was not transmitting I was (unsurprisingly!) copied by no-one at all.

QSY to 472kHz WSPR

Just after 1900z I went QRT on 6m and 10m and moved down to 630m (472kHz) WSPR.  It would be good to reach Norway again, as last night on 472kHz, although I think this is unlikely. I shall stay on MF until after breakfast.

UPDATE 2102z:  LA8AV (1035km) has been spotted several times already, but no-one has yet spotted me. I get the feeling signals are not as good?  Maybe the noise levels are creeping up?

Witchford Walk - NOT amateur radio

This morning the sun shone. As I write this, we have hail again!

On the walk we saw baby moorhens, swallows, house martins, a blackcap, a chiffchaff and a buzzard among the many. It was a shortish walk. It is years since I was last in this village near Ely.

The name "Witchford" comes from witches. Not far away is the village of "Coveney", which must also have past connections with the dark side.

Lots of 10m Es this lunchtime

There was a lot of Es around on 10m WSPR today. Some of the signal reports are very strong.  I think I need to switch to my TX only 500mW W0LF 10m WSPR beacon so I can use the FT817 and PC for 6m WSPR.

UPDATE 1325z:  It is hailing again here. Quite heavy too!

UPDATE 1406z:  I have now switched to 1W ERP on 6m WSPR and 500mW (TX only) on 10m WSPR. No spots yet on either band since switching over.

UPDATE 1648z: Spots from EA7 and OZ of my 10m 500mW WSPR beacon, but nothing on 6m either given or received.

Sunspots and 10m - Wed April 27th 2016

Solar flux is 86 but the sunspot number has jumped to 65 (K=2). The 10m propagation forecast remains "poor".

UPDATE 0909z:  No 10m spots given or received, as yet.

Over 1000km again on 472kHz WSPR TX (5mW ERP)

Although there are fewer stations active now as the DX season ends, I was spotted in Norway again last night on 472kHz WPSR by LA8AV (1035km) at 0242z.  I think this is the third time I have been spotted this year in Norway on 472kHz WSPR using my earth-electrode "antenna". Not my best DX on TX but pleasing nonetheless.

Return to 472kHz WSPR

Since finishing in the 6m UKAC contest after 30 minutes because of my poor voice, I returned to 472kHz WSPR. As yet, no spots given or received.

UPDATE 2045z:   M0LMH (223km) and G0MQW (123km) now spotting my 5mW ERP 472kHz WSPR.

UPDATE 2206z:  Now G8LCO (58km) is also spotting me. M0LMH has spotted 9 times so far this evening. As yet I have spotted no-one, which is unusual.

50MHz (6m) UKAC tonight

Although I only have only a vertical V2000 for 6m and can only run 5W pep, I shall give this contest a go this evening.  Usually I stop on for less than an hour because of my poor voice.

See www.rsgbcc.org/cgi-bin/contest_rules.pl?year=2016&contest=6mukac&seq= .

UPDATE 1950z:  Just 3 local QSOs tonight, although I was only using 5W pep, omni-vertical (V2000) and only on for 30 minutes.

Sepura shares? Time to buy? - NOT amateur radio

See http://www.lse.co.uk/ShareChart.asp?chart=intraday&sharechart=SEPU&share=sepura . Sepura (my old Company) shares fell recently.

They make TETRA and DMR (terminals and base stations) and sell these all over the world. In troubled times people will always need secure communications. Maybe now is a good time to buy shares before go up again?

They have been in profit since they were first listed.

SEPU.

Storms - gone QRT for now

We have just had a second hail storm and thunder, so I have disconnected all my amateur radio gear for now. The photo was taken through the window. It feels more like February than nearly May! According to the map, the storms are passing right over us.

See https://www.lightningmaps.org/realtime?lang=en .

UPDATE 1513z: The storms seem to be moving away, but I shall probably stay off the air for a few hours, then return to 472kHz WSPR.

UPDATE 1534z:  An internet friend has reported 5cm of snow in Vermont, USA.  I should stop moaning about the UK weather. :-)

Spring late? - NOT amateur radio

Hail on our front lawn

We had a very mild and wet winter followed by a cold spell in February and March. Here we are at the end of April with a wind from the north, 7 deg C, hail, and now thunder! We have had daffodils in flower since the end of November. The weather is crazy! Because of the storm risks, I have disconnected all my amateur radio gear.

There has just been another hail storm and the grass is white!