Sunspots and 10m - Mon Jan 25th 2016

Solar flux is 103 today.  Sunspot number is 47 (K=1) yet 10m propagation is again forecast to remain "poor".

You will recall that yesterday, despite the poor forecast, 10m was actually quite good. Never quite believe all you read!

10m is a band of surprises - often you find CB activity just below 10m when 10m seems dead. Get on 10m and use it!

UPDATE 0956z:  No spots yet on 10m WSPR.

QSYed to 472kHz WSPR

At 1905z I moved down to MF for the evening and night.  My best DX with 5mW ERP from the earth-electrode "antenna" this season is 995km. Last year, with the same kit, I managed 1047km. As yet, no spots given or received, but the night is young.

UPDATE 1940z:  Just had a spot from M0LMH (223km)  but I received PA3ABK/2 earlier which did not make it to WSPRnet.  I wonder if WSPRnet was not accessible at the time?

UPDATE 1955z:  These are the spots so far:

10m WSPR so far today

It has been a mixed bag with what is probably wintertime Es with a spot by DK6UG (633km) earlier as well as several spots inter-G both given and received.

UPDATE 1525z:  Both North and South America spotted on 10m WSPR, so plenty of  F2 propagation.  W1VR  (6965km) was spotted at 1428z and  CX5BBF (11123km) was spotted at 1324z. Both stations were using 5W. So far, this looks quite a good day on 10m WSPR. Earlier there was also an ON by tropo too.

UPDATE 1818z:  Several further spots of W1VR this afternoon, with the latest at 1612z. I shall shortly be going QRT on 10m WSPR as I think we've had all the real excitement today. In the end, 10m was pretty good today.

QRP

A further note from Oleg:

Dear Club 72 members and friends,
see the weekly "QRP Rendez-Vous" report here -
http://qrp-club72.blogspot.ru/
It's included some comments and pictures.

This week "rendezvous" visitors: ON4MB, OM6TC, RN4NAA, SM5MEK, RV3GM, UR5EFD, OH6NPV, UR7VT, RN4NAA,  OE1ARS,  OK1DNZ, UA1CEG, UA1ADF, R1OA, UN7EG, YO3BOQ, UA4NU, RV9WMZ, UA1CEX, DL6UNF, UA1ASB, IK1ZNS, OK2BJR, IT9IFI, LZ1HM, UR5IFM, DF2IC,  PA3DEU,  PA5XM,  RW3AA,  DL6LD,  DH0DK, RU3NJC, UR0ET, OH5LP, RA1AEI, UN8PT, UA0SBQ
Congrats! PA3DEU became Honor Frequenters of QRP Rendez-Vous!
See full Visitors and Frequenters lists on the Club 72 web-page.
Welcome  all  QRP  operators  on  the next week "QRP Rendez-Vous, see
schedule here - www.club72.su

Note: usually I add all new visitors e-mails into the "72 Newsletter"
mail list.

72! Oleg RV3GM / KH6OB "Mr. 72"

What happens after death? - NOT amateur radio

As one gets older - I am now 67 - I suppose thoughts naturally turn to the end of life. It comes to us all, but we prefer not to think about it.

I honestly have no idea and the most likely is we'll not be aware, as we were before we were born, so it may not matter.  MAN has a real problem with finality, and nearly every religion has talk of life after death. It bothers me that some are so certain about this. At the moment I have an open mind. Like so much in this universe, or even multiverses, we really have no idea.

Sunspots and 10m - Sun Jan 24th 2016

Solar flux today is 99 and the sunspot number 54 (K=2).  The forecast for 10m propagation remains "poor".  I have been on 10m WSPR (2W TX 20%, RX 80%) for nearly 1 hour.

More wintertime Es on 10m WSPR?

Late this morning my 500mW 10m WSPR was spotted by DK6UG (633km). This was probably wintertime Es. Only the one spot, and this just popped up and then was gone. The only other 10m spot was by G4KPX, who is local.

Wisbech - NOT amateur radio

As the weather was good today (I never believe the weather forecasts these days) we drove up to Wisbech and visited the gardens at Peckover House (NT). We also ate there.

Afterwards we went to the market and bought some sprouts. At one time this must have been a fine town with merchant's houses lining the river.  These days it looks a bit drab and run-down. It is a hub for immigrants from Eastern Europe who work in the agricultural  business. Good luck to them.

By the way, these sprouts cost us £1.  Pheasants were £2.99.

Sunspots and 10m - Sat Jan 23rd 2016

Solar flux is 100 and sunspot number 50 (K=4). 10m propagation is expected to be "poor" again today.

472kHz WSPR - a new DX record for this season

Last night I was spotted by DH5RAE (995km). This beats by 2km (!!) my previous best on 472kHz TX record this season.  Not bad for 5mW ERP and an earth-electrode "antenna" in the ground. So who says you must have lots of power and big antennas on 472kHz?  I am sure with a larger antenna and ERP I'd get much further, but it shows you don't need this to get useful results. My grounds are about 12m (if that) apart. I need to work out how many stations have spotted my 472kHz WSPR this season. There have been 17 unique station spots of my 5mW ERP in the last 2 weeks.

472kHz WSPR - a new reporter (I think)

At 2034z I returned to 472kHz WSPR and had 3 spots on my first transmission at 5mW ERP from the earth-electrode "antenna" including a spot by G0NNF (93km) who I am pretty sure is a new reporter.  M0LMH (223km) has spotted me a couple of times so far tonight. On RX DK7FC (669km) is a good signal as always without the preamp.

FT817 - a great radio

Because of my poor voice still, I tend to severely restrict the time I spend on speech modes. I can manage about 1 hour or less on SSB or FM as long as don't say too much.  Modes like WSPR , JT65 and JT9-1 suit me better currently. As you know, I much prefer QRP (2-2.5W) and for this the FT817 is ideal. So much so that my Lincoln President Mk II (mint) has virtually been unused. It has not been used for a QSO for almost a year! I may pack the Lincoln away.

FTSE recovery? - NOT amateur radio

At the moment the FTSE 100 share index has recovered about 2%, although some think a fall to 5200-5300 could happen. It certainly feels "wobbly".  If I was a betting man, I would expect heavy falls, but I am not a betting man. The markets don't like the slowdown in China, the general gloom around prospects in the world economy, and the rapidly falling oil price.

At some point, not too far away, the whole economy of the world has to change with a realisation that fairness is important and that resources are limited. Growth as a mantra for years will no longer be the watchword. Unabated growth and consumerism cannot be the way. We have finite resources and a finite world. Numerous surveys have shown that more money does not make us happier, in fact the opposite.

QSYed to 10m WSPR

As of a few minutes ago, I have now moved to 10m WSPR (TX 2W 20%, RX 80%) probably for the rest of the day. We have visitors due for lunch, so it is unlikely I can be in the shack for JT65 and JT9-1 2-way QSOs. I can monitor WSPR elsewhere in the house and pop into the shack if anything is amiss.

UPDATE 1156z:   So far this morning only G8VDQ (93km) has been spotted on 10m WSPR.

Sunspots and 10m - Fri Jan 22nd 2016

Solar flux is 103 and the sunspot number is 56 (K=3). The forecast for 10m propagation remains "poor" today.

40m WSPR overnight

Although I spotted and was spotted in South America overnight, there were no USA stations logged on 40m WSPR overnight. Plenty of Europeans though. At the moment, I am still on 40m WSPR, but will soon QSY to 10m WSPR.

QSYed to 40m WSPR

I have gone QRT on 10m WSPR and am now on 40m WSPR 2W TX 20%, RX 80%. It may take a few minutes for things to settle.

UPDATE 2010z:   I see I am being spotted on 40m in middle Europe.

10m open to the USA again

W1VR (6965km) was spotted this afternoon on 10m WSPR. This is the third time this month I have found 10m open to the USA. This time next year will be much harder as the sunspots fall.

UPDATE 1948z:  The intercontinental DX seems to have ended, but G4CUI (172km) is coming through again on 10m WSPR. I think it will soon be time to QSY probably to 40m WSPR.

Brazil (again) on 10m WSPR

Despite the forecast of "poor" 10m conditions, I see that I was spotted in Brazil again on 10m. KD0VWO (7412km) who is monitoring in N.E.Brazil spotted me at 1334z. He is located in GI95rg square.

472kHz WSPR last night

Yesterday evening and night I was again on 472kHz (630m) WSPR. There were no surprises with the same stations spotted and spotting me.

This evening, I may go on 40m WSPR again.

Until I get a better antenna I think no new stations are going to spot me, or be spotted, on MF.

Sepura shares (SEPU) - NOT amateur radio

Shares in my old company have fallen  a bit yesterday and this morning. They design and make TETRA and DMR radios, mainly where security is important.

Now may be a good time to buy? These days I have no connections with the company having long ago retired. In uncertain market conditions shares in a company involved in public safety may be a good bet?

Sunspots and 10m - Thurs Jan 21st 2016

Solar flux is 101 and sunspot number 59 (K=5). The forecast for 10m propagation remains "poor". These were the early spots:

DF1KZ still has problems knowing where he is! It should be EA8/DF1KZ or DF1KZ with a corrected QTH locator!!

QSYed to 472kHz WSPR

For the last 15 minutes or so, I have been on 472kHz WSPR with 5mW ERP, looking for others 80% of the time. DK7FC (669km) and G8HUH (250km) have been spotted and G0VQH (15km) has spotted me. The night is young still. I intend to stay on overnight.

RA3APW on 10m WSPR

Among the stations copied on 10m WSPR today was the 100mW beacon of old work colleague RA3APW who lives in Moscow.  Karen is really "into" amateur radio.

His homepage is at http://www.qsl.net/ra3apw/ra3apw/ .

Decent results on 10m WSPR

As I write this it is 1400z and results so far on 10m have exceeded expectations. This is the log so far today on 10m WSPR:

DF1KZ is either in the Canaries using the wrong callsign again or he is in Germany using the wrong QTH  locator. Either way, something is in need of attention! I am also puzzled by the large drift seen on most 10m WSPR stations today. I don't think the drift is at my end. Could it be moving clouds of Es or F2 layers?

Despite the "poor" forecast for 10m today, it is yet again saying, "Keep at it. I am a band that will always surprise you".

UPDATE 1518z:  Although no international DX seen since lunchtime, G4CUI (172km) has recently been spotted on 10m WSPR.

UPDATE 1730z:  G4CUI (172km), running 5W, has now been spotted 4 times so far today.  This suggests that 10-20W of JT9-1 would span this GDX at almost any time.

Overnight on 40m WSPR

It was quite a surprise to be spotted in South America so often, and even more so the various 40m WSPR spots by stations in the USA. My best DX on 40m was a spot by KD6RF (7575km).  I have now moved to 10m WSPR for the day.

Sunspots and 10m - Wed Jan 20th 2016

Solar flux is 97 today and sunspot number 55 (K=4). 10m propagation is expected to be "poor" again. I am not expecting conditions on 10m to be much good today, but in the past I have had a surprise.

UPDATE 1020z:  Although I am still on 40m WSPR, I shall be moving to 10m WSPR shortly.

Safari - NOT amateur radio

For no apparent reason, the Safari browser on my iPod Touch 4g has stopped displaying the graph of visitors to the various blogs I do. They appear fine in Firefox on the laptop. This has only recently happened. I used to check visits to the blogs when in bed, but am unable to do so now. I tried a complete reboot, but still the same. It is as if blogger.com has changed something. Anyone else had a similar issue?

QSY to 40m

In a few minutes I am going to QSY to 40m WSPR for a change from 10m WSPR. On this band, the antenna is very low, but I may leave the rig running overnight to find out what is possible. I shall be TXing at 2W for 20% of the time and on RX looking for others for 80% of the time. It may be a little while before things stabilise.

I shall be monitoring WSPRnet on a different PC in the lounge, with periodic visits to the shack to check all is well.

UPDATE 1924z:   I had to install Windows Updates on the shack PC, but I've been on 40m WSPR for a little while and have been spotted in Germany and Holland so far at 2W.   Even though the antenna is low on 40m, it gets out.
UPDATE 1938z:  These were the results in the first 30 minutes on 40m WSPR.

UPDATE 2135z:  So far this evening my best DX is FY5KE (7117km) in South America who has spotted my 2W on 40m WSPR 4 times. This is despite my antenna being very low for 40m. The reports were very good too. I have also spotted him on 40m WSPR this evening.

UPDATE 2300z:   Now W4MO (7272km) is spotting me on 40m WSPR.  Despite my antenna being very low for 40m, it has already reached 3 continents this evening.

UPDATE 2315z:   FY5KE (7117km) has spotted my 2W to a very low antenna on 40m WSPR 14 times so far this evening on 40m WSPR.

Good advice - NOT amateur radio

I found this on Facebook earlier.  Personally, I think it is good advice. I think it originated in the USA judging by the style.

Following Graham's link below, here is an earlier version (added 1918z):

RSPB Garden Bird Count - NOT amateur radio

The annual UK RSPB bird count is any hour in the last weekend of January. I have been doing this for years. You just choose a spot and count the maximum number of each species seen in the hour. It can be surprising. When done, I submit results to the RSPB online. It is always a great pleasure and you do not need to be an expert birder to do this. Each year, the RSPB get a great deal of data.  Some years I see very little. Some years I have seen up to 11 different species.

Most times you will see quite common birds, but occasionally you may see something unusual. It is the number of the ordinary birds seen that tells the real story.  If you can, grab a coffee and sit down, look out the window, and count the birds in your garden or park.  I am sure, like me, you will enjoy it.

See https://ww2.rspb.org.uk/discoverandenjoynature/discoverandlearn/birdwatch .

Back on 10m WSPR

Just a few minutes ago I QSYed from 630m to 10m WSPR and re-synced the clock. Currently I am running 2W TX 20% and on RX looking for others 80% of the time.

UPDATE 1150z:  Overnight and this morning on 630m there were no surprises with the same stations spotting me and being spotted. Tonight, I might give another band a try for a change. LA3JJ (993km) did spot me on 472kHz (630m) overnight though. I was still using just 5mW ERP and the earth-electrode "antenna". He must have a quiet location!

UPDATE 1200z:  No spots on 10m as yet.

UPDATE 1240z:  Some evidence of wintertime Es on 10m with DK6UG (633km) spotting me. There is also some F2 around with 10m spots from the Canary Is.

UPDATE 1830z:   EA1KV (1304km) spotted several times, presumably wintertime Es again.

New record number of visits to blog

Yesterday saw a new high in daily visits to this blog. I have no idea why!

As you know, I try to reflect what interests me, what I am doing in our hobby and a few things which are unrelated to amateur radio. I intend to continue in much the same way, hoping you all find something of interest here. Please let me know if you think the blog is missing anything important.

Clearly there is a QRP bias, but my stroke has made me concentrate on what I can do. This year, I want more 2-way QSOs but as I find speech hard (for too long) I will be looking for JT65 and JT9-1 QSOs in the main.  Of course, these will be with just a few watts.  When not in the shack I shall be on WSPR monitoring elsewhere in the house.

As I am slower at spotting errors than I was, please let me know if you see any. I try to correct any I notice but I must miss some.

Sunspots and 10m - Tues Jan 19th 2016

Solar flux is 99 today and sunspot number 48 (K=3) and the forecast for 10m propagation continues to be "poor".   I am not expecting great things on 10m today, but I am often surprised.

QSYed to 472kHz WSPR

After most of the day on 10m WSPR, I have now QSYed to 472kHz WSPR for the evening and night.  For some time I have had problems accessing WSPRnet. Again I am TXing with 5mW ERP and on RX for 80% of the time using the earth-electrode "antenna" with no preamp on RX.

10m USA yet again

As well as G8VDQ (93km) earlier by tropo and aircraft this morning, WA4ZZW (6873km) was spotted on 10m mid-afternoon. Both stations were using 5W. I have been on 10m TX (randomised TX frequency) continuously until the last few days since when I've been on RX for 80% of the time.

Yaesu

As a proud owner of Yaesu gear going right back to an FT7 in 1979, I wish them well.  In  recent times, life has been very hard for them, and they seemed to lose their way. Today, they still face a threat from China and many of their radios are struggling to compete on price. I was totally amazed at their stupidity at not bringing an FT817 successor to market as we approached the solar peak.

It is rumoured that an FT817 successor will be announced at Dayton in May this year. Like many around the world, I hope they do. There is (was?) a vast market for this product as the original FT817 is now very very old. To do a successor would be so easy.  Yaesu - get real and release this product before you lose the market. To not put too fine a point on this, I think if you do not, then you risk bankruptcy within 5 years.

My recommendations to Yaesu are:

1. Design in Japan but make in China (but with excellent quality control in place from the start).
2. Launch a successor to the FT817 soon.
3. Look at your product range and rationalise it.

You must survive. This is the real world.

QRP Kits

The kits that were Hendricks are now Pacific Antenna. I have no idea how long ago this change happened. They market a fine range of QRP kits.

See http://www.qrpkits.com/ .

QRP and low sunspot activity

There is some debate over QRP and declining solar activity. Certainly more power helps when conditions are marginal although often if a path is open then a few watts are fine for a QSO. At present, I use 5W maximum and most times 2W yet still seem to get spotted around the world on WSPR and JT 2-way modes. As I have mentioned before, even at the rock bottom of earlier solar cycles I have still worked LU (over 11000km) on QRP SSB on 10m with very modest wire antennas. No, more power may help with a pile-up but even QRP is fine if the band is open. Of course, summertime Es generally needs only QRP. I have worked Es DX on 6m with QRP and a helical whip on the FT817. Es can be great fun.

Sunspots and 10m - Mon Jan 18th 2016

Solar flux is 101 today. Sunspot number is 48 (K=0) and the forecast for 10m propagation is "poor" still.  I QSYed to 10m early and am already TXing for 20% of the time at 2W and looking for others on 10m for 80% of the time. Overnight I was on 472kHz (630m) RX with the preamp, but nothing new copied on that band.

UPDATE 0910z:  Not surprisingly, no spots given or received yet on 10m WSPR.  It is still very early.