10m QRP WSPR (Monday) - plenty of Es

My 500mW beacon was turned on mid morning. It looks like there is widespread Es .

UPDATE  2005z:  Spotted by 37 stations. Now QRT.

6m 5W FT8 (Monday)

My gear was turned on mid morning using the V2000 vertical omni antenna. 

UPDATE 2004z:  409 stations have spotted me mostly, I presume, by Es. See map. This includes 5 in the USA. Now QRT.

Thoughts on 8m

As many know, I decided not to renew my 8m TX permit. This was costing me £50 every year! 

I was hoping that OFCOM was going to issue a Notice of Variation to my amateur licence for a limited time around sunspot maximum. 

It would appear the RSGB was not prepared to support this, which I personally found extremely sad. In all my dealings with the RSGB I found them very against, not even neutral!! If ever there was a case for an NoV, this was surely it around sunspot maximum. I was hoping the RSGB would have been supportive of real research - not so.

In the event, and without the backing of the RSGB and OFCOM my 2.5W FT8 to a low wire dipole was spotted in Europe, South Africa, the USA, Canada, Caribbean and Asia . Continuing as the MUF declines would probably contribute less, hence my decision.

Instead I have concentrated on 6m, where my 5W FT8 to the V2000 omni has reached the Far East, Europe, South Africa, the USA, the Caribbean, Canada and Argentina probably by E layer, TEP and scatter. 

My outings on 8m have left me with a very bitter taste: if you want real experimentation in the true spirit of amateur radio do not expect to be supported in the UK by the RSGB and OFCOM sadly.

Monday plans

Where my 6m 5W FT8 was spotted on Sunday

After being spotted in Argentina 🇦🇷 yesterday with my  5W FT8 on 6m, I plan to go on QRP 6m FT8 and 10m WSPR today. 

Sunspots - Monday July 14th

 Solar flux is 128 and the SSN 102. A=23 and K=2.

40s day at museum - NOT amateur radio

 

Today was the 1940s day at the local museum . It is very popular.

Family meal - NOT amateur radio

After seeing our granddaughter doing her ballet 🩰 on stage at the Royal Opera House in London we shared a lovely meal together. 

SSTV from the International Space Station (ISS)

Amateur radio Weekly reminds us that there will be SSTV from the ISS this week. I guess you have to know when it will be in range in your location. In the past I have not tried. Perhaps I should.

See https://amsat-uk.org/2025/07/11/sstv-from-the-iss-in-july .

10m 500mW WSPR TX (Sunday)

My beacon was turned on at about 0830z.

UPDATE 1407z:  42 spots of me today.         

Healthy breakfast - NOT amateur radio

We are lucky to have a wild blackberry bush within metres of our bungalow, so we have some in season with breakfast.

6m 5W FT8 (Sunday)

My gear was turned on at about 0830z.

UPDATE  1504z:  So far, 285 spots of my QRP.

Sunspots - Sunday July 13th

 Solar flux is 139 and the SSN 93. A=12 and K=4.

Day off - NOT amateur radio

Today I had a day off from radio going instead to the Royal Opera House in London to see my granddaughter do her ballet 🩰 to a full house. It was excellent.

Sunspots - Saturday July 12th

 Solar flux is 132 and the SSN 98. A=19 and K=2.

Made to a price - NOT amateur radio

Having been in a very price competitive environment for part of my career I know the extreme pressure the retail market must be suffering now. In recent years it must have got far worse. 

I see this in bags and clothes where material is thinner or there are fewer pockets to save a bit more.

Just now I tried to clean my shoes. After struggling to open the polish with a knife I gave up as the rotatable clip that used to be there to open the lid had gone, presumably to save a little.

We are addicted to ever lower prices.

Each to their own?

The latest MLS video "something for the weekend" is about learning CW. 

I could not help noticing their advert for a deluxe straight key for nearly £210 . 

Now, each to their own, but my first CW key was tapping a wire on a piece of copper laminate used for the rig. Price? £0. 

I have nothing against good dealers making a fair profit, but is this really sending out the right message to attract new amateurs?

If MLS have any issues with me posting this I shall remove it immediately.

Incidentally over the years I have had excellent service from MLS.

10m 500mW WSPR (Friday)

My QRP beacon was turned on at about 0844z.

UPDATE 1353z:  28 stations have spotted me. Furthest is V51RS (8481km).

6m QRP FT8 (Friday)

My 5W 6m FT8 was turned on at about 0844z.  

UPDATE 1424z:  So far, spotted by 214 stations.  84 spotted on RX. Widespread Es today.  See map.

Sunspots - Friday July 11th

 Solar flux is 129 and the SSN 72.  A=4 and K=2.

The Es season

In the Northern Hemisphere this usually peaks in May, June and July. It often goes on longer, but less often. Bands most affected are 10m and 6m, although less often it can extend to 4m, Band II FM and even 2m.

The sad thing is outside the Es season, these bands may be deserted for hours on end. With modes like FT4 and FT8 it is much more likely that short openings will be caught. Peaks in propagation may be very short.

It is worth reminding people that Es can occur at any time.

Does MFJ still exist?

Many years ago I owned an MFJ 1W CW transceiver for 15m. Some impressive DX was worked with it before it was sold. Not having heard of MFJ for some years I was wondering if MFJ still exists. It would not surprise me if they had gone.

The demise of Ten-Tec

Recently we heard that Ten Tec were closing (I think). I had forgotten that the famous Argonaut rigs were made by Ten Tec. These were once very popular with QRPers. 

Ten Tec made some quite useful gear over the years and will be missed by many. 

Where I come from - NOT amateur radio

Going back very many centuries (mid 1500s) I can trace my family history continuously to Hope Cove in South Devon. 

It is probable that one of my ancestors thousands of years ago manned the promontory Iron Age fort visible in the distance in the photo. Quite humbling.

10m 500mW WSPR (Thursday)

My QRP beacon was turned on about 0900z.

UPDATE 1619z: Spotted by 9 stations with the best V51RS (8481km).

6m 5W FT8 (Thursday)

Yet again my PL259 plug came off and had to be re-soldered. 

In days past, this would have been trivial, but not any more. My eyesight close-up is less good and my fine motor skills are poorer, so something as simple as soldering a plug is now a big deal.

UPDATE 1724z: So far, 106 stations in Europe and Africa have spotted my 6m 5W FT8 TX.  Lots of Es recently in the last few hours. Furthest is South Africa.

The future of amateur radio

Some remain optimistic about the future of our hobby and I very much hope they are right. 

What is clear is the "magic of radio" is no longer there. As a teenager in the 1960s radio was still magic and an amateur licence allowed one to communicate across the world. These days we can all do this in colour video from a phone in the hand for free!

Unless we can connect with (especially young) people I can see our hobby evolving and dying out.

Amateur radio as we knew it will not be the same in the future. I cannot predict the trajectory it will follow,  but change is inevitable.

Am I worried?  No.  Most people use amateur radio like CB anyway.

My predictions have not changed:

• Most radio amateurs are older males. 
• These will get older and fewer rigs will get bought. 
• Some dealers will close. 
• Some manufacturers will leave the market as it will no longer make them profits. 
• Ads will disappear. 
• Magazines will close or get much smaller. 
• Amateur radio will become like CB with free bands for appliance operators.
• Those who want callsigns will be allocated these by national societies, not PTTs.
• Somehow those few who experiment will still experiment.

More 70cm FT8

 As mentioned yesterday, 70cm never fails a surprise me. It is like a switch being turned on when there is a contest with the band coming alive. 

With 10W SSB I consistently work over 100km despite just using my 2m big-wheel omni antenna and on 70cm FT8 RX the same antenna enables me to receive stations at great distances irrespective of conditions.

Last night in the FT8 UKAC stations right across Western Europe were copied on 70cm FT8 RX again. 

Stations spotted on 70cm FT8 last evening 

As mentioned before, it does not seem to depend on conditions and is almost like some kind of scatter mode. As it happens at almost any time, I do not think it is aircraft.

“Times they are a changing".  

Years ago people went on 70cm FM simplex just for a chat!! These days most people only come on for contests.

Sunspots - Thursday July 10th

 Solar flux is 120 and the SSN 83. A=8 and K=1.

70cm FT8 activity contest (UKAC) - Wednesday

Mostly I go on RX, maybe also on TX giving a few points away. 

It never fails to amaze me how far away I can copy stations with just my 144 MHz big-wheel omni antenna. The RSGB contest has not even started yet I have already spotted stations in the Netherlands and France out to 347km on 70cm. Also spotted the Isle of Man and DK1VC (503km) in Germany.

I have often wondered if I can receive that far by some kind of scatter.

End fed half-wave antennas?

These are multi-band antennas (K24) are end fed via a transformer so the high impedance is reduced to somewhere nearer 50 ohms. I see AliExpress is selling them for around £30 shipped to the UK. 

As a QRP operator, the limited power handling does not bother me. Usually I operate at about 5W. 

With high power some have reported RF feedback, often cured with a small counterpoise or choke on the coax. I am tempted to see how this works. I doubt I could make one for that price.

Banggood is selling similar ones for even less.

Swifts - NOT amateur radio

These are migratory birds that are supposed to be declining in numbers mainly as result of fewer nest sites. 

We certainly see far fewer swallows although I saw plenty in Devon last week.

This year, I seem to have spotted more swifts than last year. If I had not heard of the issue of falling numbers I would not have known. Maybe locally there are still plenty of swift nest sites or numbers are growing again? For example, there were about 20 screaming overhead earlier in a feeding party.

See https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/swift .

10m QRP WSPR (Wednesday)

 Plenty of Es about this morning with my 500mW WSPR beacon being widely spotted across Europe.

UPDATE 1620z: 43 stations have spotted me. Mainly Es. Map courtesy of M0XDK maps.

6m 5W FT8 (Wednesday)

My IC-705 at 5W has been on since mid-morning. Lots of Es about with me being copied widely around Europe.

UPDATE 1608z: So far spotted by 205 stations. 92 stations spotted here.

IC-705 remote

My main rig is an IC-705. I have never tried this using wi-fi or Bluetooth. 

Apparently there is an iOS version to remote the rig using Bluetooth and I hope there is one over wi-fi allowing the rig to be used from an iPhone. There is a video that show the Bluetooth version of this. I must try this.

Sunspots - Wednesday July 9th

 Solar flux is 115 and the SSN 88. A=13 and K=1.

10m 500mW WSPR (Tuesday)

 My beacon has been on since late morning.

UPDATE 1502z: Spotted by 58 stations today.

6m 5W FT8 (Tuesday)

My 6m QRP FT8 was turned on late morning.

UPDATE 1630z:  345 stations have spotted me today, mostly via Es.

VLF Sferics RX

 Listening to the natural emissions at VLF can be fascinating.  Not much is needed as this video shows. Of course, if the recorder does not provide DC power, you will need a source. In this case DC is provided by the recorder, so only 3 parts are needed.

I think this audio recorder is available on Amazon. On the DXexplorer site is another sferics receiver to drive headphones.

Sunspots - Tuesday July 8th

 Solar flux is 118 and the SSN 111. A=22 and K=3.

Wild blackberries - NOT amateur radio

We are lucky to have a wild blackberry bush within a few metres of our home. 

I usually pick a few to have with breakfast. 

They are nearly ready to pick.

UPDATE 1432z:  Picked first 6.

10m 500mW WSPR (Monday)

My W5OLF beacon was turned on just before breakfast.

UPDATE 1411z:  34 spots of me already, presumably by Es.

Fossil sponge - NOT amateur radio

About 12 years ago I found this fossilised sponge inside a piece of flint in Kent. 

Experts at Cambridge University confirmed it. 

It is many millions of years old. I had no idea you could get fossils inside flint.

6m 5W FT8 (Monday)

My 6m FT8 was turned on just before breakfast.

UPDATE 1707z:  233 stations have spotted me, most I think by Es. Furthest on RX is Kazakhstan.

Quantum theory and life - NOT amateur radio

One of the counter intuitive aspects of quantum mechanics is that things may be described as a wave function that exists in all space and all time. Things most probably exist in the here and now. Our usual interpretation is that we are here "now". 

Oddly tunnel diodes only work because of quantum mechanical tunnelling. There is a finite probability that some electrons exist where they would not with Newtonian mechanics.

It occurs to me that this also applies to life. We may exist in all space and all time. This is definitely counter-intuitive! We may be aware of us being here, now.   But perhaps we are everywhere, for ever.

Whatever, we really understand so very little.

Sunspots- Monday July 7th

 Solar flux is 118 and the SSN 81. A=26 and K=4..

10m QRP WSPR (Sunday)

My beacon was turned on at about 1635z.

UPDATE 1911z: 6 stations have spotted me.

6m QRP FT8 (Sunday)

As the storms seem far away I have turned on my IC-705 at 5W at about 1635z.

UPDATE 1910z:  178 spots of my QRP so far. 

Receiving SAQ CW on 17.2 kHz VLF

This is a video about receiving the 100th anniversary transmission message in eastern Europe from SAQ in Sweden.

I did this some years ago and have a QSL card from them (see photo).

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/vlf/vlf-converter .

Blog views - NOT amateur radio

According to Google I have had huge numbers of visits to this blog. The trouble is I am sure this is total piffle! 

If I got a tenth of these I would be amazed.  

Perhaps they have a new way of calculating. Maybe it is just an error, again.

Coastal train - NOT amateur radio

Last week I went by train to see my brother in Devon. For several miles, the track hugs the coast near Dawlish and Teignmouth and the views are spectacular. 

In the next 100 years this will probably be washed away. The line to Plymouth and Cornwall will probably have to go inland, north of Dartmoor at great expense.  Stations like Dawlish, Teignmouth, Newton Abbot and Totnes could well suffer.