Sunspots and 10m - Wed April 29th 2015

Sunspot number has fallen yet again to just 36 (K=0) and 10m daytime propagation is expected to be "poor".  With quiet conditions, I am not ruling out a late, short USA 10m opening. Yesterday 10m did open to the USA but only a single station spotted my 500mW 10m WSPR beacon and that was late in the evening.

UPDATE 1038z:   On 10m WSPR EA8BVP (2986km) was spotting me early again and IZ6QZB (1475km) has spotted me once.  I think this is a mix of single hop F2 (EA8) and Es (IZ6).

USA on 10m WSPR after all

Well I'll be damned! AC2EG (5610km) has spotted me several times on 10m WSPR in the last half an hour.   So, despite my dire expectations, 10m WSPR has opened to the USA for the fourth day running! This despite forecasts for 10m being "poor" today. Amazing.

6m WSPR - spots by G3ZJO

So far this afternoon, G3ZJO (79km) has spotted me lots of times on 6m WSPR this afternoon. No great DX but this looks like pure tropo. So far, I have not seen any Es on 6m.

No USA (yet) on 10m but some good N-S DX

As yet (1525z) no sign of spots from the USA but FR1GZ (9724km) has spotted my 500mW 10m WSPR several times this afternoon. If this is another "poor" day, then I am happy.

UPDATE 1934z:  Still no sign of any USA 10m WSPR spots of my 500mW WSPR beacon today. Plenty of spots from EA8BVP and FR1GZ but absolutely nothing from the USA. I think we were lucky having propagation across the North Atlantic for the last 3 days. I guess the band could still open to the USA but  this is pretty unlikely now.

EA8BVP early

EA8BVP (2986km) has already spotted my 10m WSPR many times starting at 0640z. This is very early.

UPDATE 1527z:  As yet, no USA spots but FR1GZ has spotted me several times.

Sunspots and 10m - April 28th 2015

Sunspot number has fallen again to 42 (K=1) and the forecast for 10m is "poor".

At last - a 6m WSPR spot!

The last few days have been very quiet on 6m, but this evening, at last, I was spotted by a relatively local station M0MVB (30km) at a decent -10dB S/N.   Still no Es reports on 6m as yet.

UPDATE 1842z:  3 further reports received from M0MVB. All suggest some influence from aircraft reflections as there was Doppler shift on all reports or it could be M0MVB's rig drift? On one spot (later than those shown) the drift was 4Hz, which definitely looks like a plane.

6m WSPR spots this evening from M0MVB

A bad NEVADA warranty day

Sometimes major dealers do themselves no good at all. I feel compelled to blog this as this dealer should know better.  I have been very patient but after waiting so long my patience is running thin.

Today I had to chase NEVADA as they had neither answered my email or first class mail.  All I was doing was following instructions in the box that said I needed the dealer to add his stamp for the warranty to be valid. No email reply yet received. I am patiently waiting after about 6 weeks.

"Lincoln President Mk 2 - Warranty
(bought from Nevada on Feb 25th 2015 on invoice 275xxx)
Since posting this (copied my original email here) in early March by email and first class post I have heard ABSOLUTELY NOTHING at all. I need confirmation this rig is covered by warranty. Frankly I am appalled - you could forgive me for thinking Nevada is only interested in the initial sale and not the warranty.

Please do me a favour and contact me!  No excuses please - just action. All I am asking for is decent customer support. This is not too much to ask of a major UK dealer, is it?"

I hope they will reply tomorrow.

I have also had very poor customer service from a local carpets supplier, Glasswells, having been waiting about 6 months to have a stained carpet replaced free under warranty. It took a month (last October) to wake them up from their slumber (2 emails before any action) and here I am in April 2015 still waiting! Apparently the carpet is now to be replaced on Friday this week.

This is not my day!

10m Es?

SA5SDR (1358km) has spotted me several times today. I suspect, at this distance, this is Es propagation. Although I have been spotted in the USA today on 10m WSPR, conditions seem "on the edge" - this is not the best of days, although I am grateful the band opened at all.

10m USA WSPR spots - yet again

For the 3rd day in row,10m has opened to the USA with N4ZQ (7125km) spotting my 10m 500mW WSPR at 1420z. This despite a relatively low sunspot number and a forecast of "poor" 10m propagation. I think I can expect further USA 10m WSPR spots later.

10m WSPR - quiet so far

It is currently 1250z.  So far today, 10m WSPR has been very quiet with G4IKZ (18km) and EA8BVP (2986km) being the only stations to spot me so far today. It certainly feels much quieter than the previous 2 days.

Sunspots and 10m - Mon April 27th 2015

With a sunspot number of 55 (K=1) and a 10m propagation forecast of "poor" I guess we cannot expect great things on 10m today?  It is surprising though how often I am proved wrong and a "dead" 10m band just springs into life. So far this morning, just local G4IKZ (18km) has spotted me on 10m WSPR, but it is still very early.

Of course, a SN of 55 will be considered "high" in a few years' time. We should be grateful. With the Es season now here there is an increasing chance of Europeans (and further) by this mode too. Es is there at all times of the year but it is best late April- September in northern latitudes, the reverse in Australia/NZ.

North and South America on 10m WSPR

Around teatime 10m opened to the USA with K9AN (6505km) spotting me several times from 1624z. Not only that but  LU8WAG (12283km) was also spotting my 10m 500mW WSPR beacon (WSPR-AXE-CW by W5OLF) at 1646z.

Despite the "fair" 10m forecast, my 500mW WSPR beacon has been spotted in 5 continents today. In all, a very good day on 10m WSPR.

Unique station spots today - 500mW 10m WSPR

Big antennas? Lots of power? Don't need them thank you!

UPDATE 1704z: WD4ELG (6211km) has just spotted me at an INCREDIBLE +2dB S/N.  VP8ALJ (12724km) has just spotted me in the Falkland Is.

UPDATE 1711z:  This must count as a pretty incredible 10m day.  Despite falling sunspots and an only "fair" 10m propagation forecast my TINY WSPR-AXE-CW beacon is reaching all over the planet. If there were stations on Mars I could almost imagine being copied there too!

UPDATE 1713z:    6m is still very very quiet, with not even a G to liven things up.

UPDATE 1925z:  VP8ALJ  (Falkland Is) has spotted my 10m 500mW WSPR 33 times so far this evening.

Reunion Island but no USA yet on 10m WSPR

FR1GZ (9724km) on Reunion Island in the south Indian Ocean has spotted me many times this afternoon, but not a single spot, well not yet, by a station in the USA.  By this time yesterday a lot of USA stations had spotted me. This is the magic of 10m - you can never be quite sure. Although FR1GZ was probably just F2 , it is possible this was a combination of Es and F2?

MLS video

Fellow amateur G1KQH has pointed me to the YouTube video by Martin Lynch at their new premises:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zD-_AcGnq7I

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

10m WSPR - a good start this Sunday

There seems to be both Es and F2 propagation on 10m this morning. VK2KRR (16789km) is the best DX spot, so far, at 1004z. By Es I have been spotted by IZ6QZB (I assume this is not F2 backscatter, but it could be?) and by EA8BVP (2986km) by F2.  Of course, I am also being spotted by the locals.

Sunspots and 10m - Sun April 26th 2015

Sunspot number has dropped to 77 (K=1) and 10m propagation is expected to be "fair". Yesterday was excellent with some Europeans reporting long path 10m propagation to Australia. I had loads of USA stations spotting my 500mW 10m WSPR beacon (WSPR-AXE-CW by W5OLF - excellent). Today so far I have just had 10m WSPR spots from local G4IKZ (18km) - much quieter, so far at least.

UPDATE 1935z:   See later post. Today has turned out to be one of my best ever days on 10m WSPR.

10m WSPR - an excellent day

Well, 10m is full of surprises! Today was an excellent day, with loads of unique 10m USA WSPR stations spotting me. There were actually more reporters as W5OLF spotted me but was reporting the wrong band.

Unique 10m WSPR spots of my 500mW WSPR-AXE-CW beacon today

USA already today on 10m WSPR

KK4LNS (6724km) was spotting my 500mW 10m WSPR as early as 1256z today. I assume this is F2 but it could be a mix of F2, F2 backscatter and Es. He has copied me 3 times already and it is only 1310z. Reports are not too bad either at up to -20dB S/N.

UPDATE 1330z:   Several other USA stations now spotting my 10m 500mW WSPR beacon.  This is early and it was unexpected.

Unique 10m WSPR spots today

UPDATE 1335z:   Still no spots at all today on 6m WSPR.

Spanning the Atlantic on 160m - with 10mW!

K3KQV has been copied in France when running just 10mW on Top Band WSPR. OK signals were weak at -29dB S/N, but he made it. Distance was 6214km to F59706 in the early morning.  Not sure of their antennas. I'd be pleased with this on 10m, let alone on Top Band! Here, the main RX limitation is man-made noise. F59706 must have a quiet RX set up or a quiet rural location.

Yet again it shows how good WSPR can be.

Definite Es on 10m WSPR

Withe the reception of OK2RO (1282km) several times so far today, I can be pretty confident we are now in the 10m European Es season. Several spots in the last few days might have been Es, but I was not totally sure. It means we can be pretty confident of Es most days until September. Just occasionally this may give us paths further afield than Europe, but these will be much rarer.

So far, no Es yet seen on 6m WSPR.

UPDATE 1233z:  With the weekend and better 10m prospects I see there are more people active on 10m WSPR today.  Last time I looked there were 70 users on 10m WSPR according to WSPRnet.  By contrast there are only 19 WSPR users worldwide on 6m WSPR.

PCs at bargain prices

Steve G1KQH has done it yet again! This time he has found some bargain price PCs.

I think we should get one for a spare Roger, £169 after cash back..

http://www.ebuyer.com/669147-hp-255-g3-quad-core-laptop-k7h92es-abu

 

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

Good start on 10m today

As well as locals G4IKZ and G4KPX, I see that my 500mW 10m WSPR beacon was being spotted by EA8BVP (2986km) yet again, and by SA5, SM and CT1 stations today. This is probably F2 propagation, and some Es I guess.

UPDATE 1005z:  No Es on 6m, so far.

Sunspots and 10m - Sat April 25th 2015

Sunspot number has dropped back to 79 (K=0) and 10m propagation is expected to remain "fair".

UPDATE 0630z:  I notice that KZ8C also spotted my 10m 500mW WSPR beacon last evening. So there were actually 2 USA 10m WSPR stations who spotted me, not 1 as I had previously thought.

10m USA WSPR spots - horrah!

K9AN (6505km) was the first 10m USA station to spot my 500mW WSPR beacon today at 1504z.  I guess the undisturbed conditions today really helped.
z
UPDATE 1850z:    Certainly up to now, the 2 spots this afternoon by K9AN appear to be "it", with no further USA spots since then.

UPDATE 1906z:   EA8BVP (2986km) has spotted me several times again today.

UPDATE 2030z:   Late opening to Italy suggests Es.

UPDATE 2120z:    As late as 2116z K9AN (6505km) was still spotting my 500mW 10m WSPR beacon. K9AN must have a very good station (low angle antenna?) but I am surprised only K9AN was copying me in the USA. I would have expected other spots from other USA stations once the band opened. I shall leave the gear running to see how late this opening lasts.

UPDATE 2204z:  Tbe last USA spot seems to have been by K9AN about 30 minutes ago. Only the one USA station spotting me lots of times - odd.

East Anglian Churches blog updated - NOT amateur radio

Today we visited Sutton, near Ely and I have updated the East Anglian Churches Blog.

See http://eachurches.blogspot.co.uk/ .

6m WSPR and aircraft

M0YOU (116km) has been spotted on 6m again this morning. He has also spotted me. On his signals are very clear signs of aircraft reflections with multiple traces visible. I think much of the GDX I am seeing on 10m upwards is due to aircraft. This mode seems good for at least 200km, but is transitory. Sometimes a badly Doppler shifted signal can be very strong but not decode. There are software programs to predict when aircraft will help. Many microwave DXers use such software.

Sunspots and 10m propagation - Fri April 24th 2015

Sunspot number has dropped back to 110 (K=1) and 10m propagation is forecast to be "fair". With undisturbed conditions even "fair" 10m conditions could result in some decent 10m DX.

UPDATE 1105z:  So far on 10m WSPR, my 500mW has only been spotted by local G4IKZ (18km)  and G4CUI (172km) , the latter presumably by tropo and aircraft reflections. No DX yet, but it is still early in the day.

Inter-G DX (GDX)

When there are stations active both 6m and 10m seem to support GDX by a combination of tropo and aircraft reflection out to about 200km. It needs planes in the right places but today's results bear testimony to this. This evening G4CUI (172km) has spotted me many times on 10m. I am using just 500mW on 10m WSPR and 1W on 6m. Sometimes the RX traces show multiple paths and Doppler suggesting that aircraft reflection is involved.

Looking at new PCs

No, I don't really need one! This was me killing time waiting for the XYL in our local Cambridge branch of John Lewis. It is a very nice store and they always have long guarantees on TVs and PCs.

Concert reminder (Saturday evening) - NOT amateur radio

A reminder that the concert shown on the attached poster will be held this Saturday evening (April 25th) starting at 7.30pm.  Tickets may be bought on the door.  It is excellent music in a great venue (West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge).

Click image to enlarge.

6m WSPR yesterday (and today)

It seems I was only using an ERP of around 250mW on 6m WSPR yesterday as I had forgotten to reset the power on my FT817. I wonder if this is why I had so few spots? Today it is set correctly.

6m WSPR spots so far this morning

UPDATE 0922z:   Being spotted quite well by G8XWR (150km) this morning on 6m WSPR and also spotting him.  Not sure if this is pure tropo or there is some help from aircraft reflections. Probably the latter.

UPDATE 1202z:   Still plenty of spots from G8XWR (I have spotted him twice too) but no spots of anyone else on 6m.  Maybe, just maybe, things will live up with some 6m Es, although there has been no sign as yet of this on 10m. Normally Es is seen first on 10m, then 6m.

UPDATE 1504z:  No sign, so far, of any other stations on 6m.

Sunspots and 10m - Thurs April 23rd 2015

Sunspot number has dropped back to 134 (K=4) and 10m propagation is expected to be "fair". I am not expecting great things on 10m WSPR today although I have often been surprised.

UPDATE 0916z:   Local G4IKZ (18km) is the only station spotting my 500mW so far this morning on 10m WSPR.

UPDATE 1053z:   Still just the spots from local G4IKZ on 10m, with nothing resembling DX spotting me. Ho hum. I hope the band livens up later.

UPDATE 1434z:   EA8BVP (2986km) has spotted me several times in the last hour but nothing further afield, so far, today.

UPDATE 1730z:  We may have had some 10m Es propagation as CT1 and EA1 stations have been spotting me over teatime.  It is possible that Es in this direction can link up with higher MUFs further south.

No USA on 10m WSPR yet again

EA8BVP (2986km) has been regularly spotting me, but again a day with no spots from the USA on 10m, despite good conditions. I guess conditions have changed with the season.

Falkland Is spot on 10m WSPR

Although there have, so far, been no 10m WSPR USA spots, I was spotted by VP8ALJ (12724km) at 1612z at -25dB S/N. This is my best DX spot for several days. This station is in GD18 square which is the Falkland Is. At this time of the year N-S paths tend to be better on 10m than E-W. I am still using 500mW from my WSPR-AXE-CW WSPR beacon to my Par end fed antenna.

UPDATE 2152z:  Time to go QRT on 6m and 10m. A better day on 6m (all G's), but again no USA spots on 10m.

6m spots - M0YOU and 2E0BMG

At 0952z this morning I was able to spot M0YOU (116km) at a massive -8dB S/N on 6m WSPR. At this distance I suspect there must have been some aircraft reflections involved as the signals look too strong for pure tropo.

UPDATE 1750z:   I noticed that I spotted 2E0BMG (62km) oon 6m WSPR mid afternoon. At -23dB S/N not too strong but copied. This was probably tropo.

UPDATE 2100z:   M0MVB (30km) has been exchanging 6m WSPR spots with me for hours this evening.

Others - NOT amateur radio

Time and again I have to remind myself that we have very little idea what really goes on in the lives of other people.  On the outside all may appear fine, but inside they are living a real hell.

One of our neighbours, we found out only last week, has breast cancer and her daughter had post natal depression badly.  Both are so worrying.   We sometimes have to pinch ourselves and remind ourselves not to judge other people as we really cannot know all their inner worries. We must never, ever judge anyone. Accept them as humans like us with weaknesses and worries, as well as joy.

I so wish that everyone could be happy, but the human condition is we have joy and sadness. Overall, we have to love everyone as ourselves and be kind to everyone.  Everyone is a mixture of happiness and sadness: they are all vulnerable, just like us.

Sunspots and 10m - April 22nd 2015

Things look promising with a sunspot number of 153 (K=2) and 10m propagation expected to be "good". So far just G4IKZ (18km) but it is very early.

UPDATE 0912z:  Still just G4IKZ (18km) spotting my 500mW 10m WSPR. No DX yet but I am hopeful.

UPDATE 1100z:  Still just Nick G4IKZ spotting me on 10m WSPR.  Another disappointing day so far.  Maybe there will be some Es to liven thing up?  I now have grave doubts there will be any USA spots later.

Optical testing - too easy?

Before dark, I tried TXing from one side of the house to the other reflecting my 481THz optical beacon off the windmill. Even by ear in 600 ohm phones the signal was very clear and very easy to find. This was only about 100m path length, but I wanted to check the gear still worked as it is a long time since I used it. Not sure what to try next as I still feel very wobbly on my feet and tire easily. At least I know my homebrew optical gear all works still.

10m USA - none today again?

Although I have again had plenty of reports from G4IKZ and EA8BVP (2986km) to my 500mW 10m WSPR beacon, it looks like there will be no DX reports and no USA reports again today on 10m WSPR. We seem to be moving more towards summertime 10m conditions.

UPDATE 1734z:  So far EA8BVP (2986km) has spotted me 25 times today since 1400z but a total absence of spots from stations in the USA.

UPDATE 1852z:  So far EA8BVP (2986km) has spotted me 31 times this afternoon, but still no spots from across the Atlantic.

UPDATE 1906z:  WSPRnet is currently showing 51 stations active on 10m WSPR.  There are probably more who have not spotted or been spotted in the last 10 minutes.   I guess it is just propagation that is against us.

UPDATE 1914z:   I see 10m propagation has been downgraded from "good" to "fair". Well, here it has been poor!