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!

10m WSPR so far today

Just G stations spotting me and being spotted here.  

G4WSZ (11km) has copied me several times and G8VDQ (93km) has been spotted once, presumably with the aid of aircraft reflection.

Mount Athos (Greece)

Southgate News reports that there is now a second amateur operating from Mount Athos.

See https://www.qrz.com/db/sv2rsg .

Sunspots and 10m - Tues April 26th 2016

Solar flux is 81 today. This is gradually declining as we slide down the solar cycle. Sunspot number is 38 (K=1) and the forecast for 10m propagation  remains "poor". As if to prove a point FR1GZ (9724km) in the south Indian Ocean was spotted yesterday on 10m WSPR. Yes, the band does open up on N-S paths briefly. Regular WSPR use proves it. We are also seeing the start of the Es season.

I have been on 10m WSPR (TX and RX) since before breakfast.

April 70cm UKAC results

In the AL section, I'm ranked 107th out of 122 entries this year even though I only submitted results for April alone.  Seeing how little time I was active (because of my poor voice), 5W QRP and a 2m halo antenna, I am quite pleased. If you look at just April I am ranked even higher. A far from a serious contester, I do like these VHF/UHF contests on Tuesday evenings as they do encourage SSB activity.

10m Short Skip

At last there was some short skip on 10m today with EA5CYA (1376km) copied here on 10m WSPR. I presume this was Es at teatime.

Alibris UK (what a surprise, NOT) - NOT amateur radio

Well, this must be a bargain! Yet again, they are offering "up to £20 off".

I must get at least 3 a week. Never, ever pay the full price as there is always a "never to be repeated" special deal. What a shower! They surely can't expect the world to be taken in?

See http://www.alibris.co.uk/ .

10m WSPR only from 1325z

At 1325z I switched from my 500mW W0LF TX only WSPR beacon to the FT817ND so I can run 2W and listen for 80% of the time.

So far today, no spots at all on 10m or 6m WSPR. There was no evidence here of short-skip on 10m.

At the moment I am only active on 10m WSPR. I shall return to 630m (472kHz) WSPR tonight.

UPDATE 1336z:   FR1GZ (9724km) has already been spotted here on 10m. This is F2 propagation.

Police and Crime Commissioner - NOT amateur radio

On May 5th we have elections locally for a new Police and Crime Commissioner. I have received no postal correspondence, haven't a clue who holds the post currently, and frankly don't care. I shall not vote as I feel I have no data on which to base my choice. What a shambles! The sad thing is this probably cost us all millions which could have been better spent.

Sunspots and 10m - Mon April 25th 2016

Solar flux is just 82 today although the sunspot number has risen to 46 (K=2). The forecast for 10m propagation (F2) remains "poor", although Es might bring some life to the band.

We can already see the progression down the solar cycle. Next year will be much tougher by F2 on 10m. Luckily Es tends to be good in spring and summer whatever the state of the solar cycle, so we can depend on this mode on 10m, 6m and 4m. Es openings on Band II (VHF FM radio) and 2m are much rarer. They do occur but catching an Es opening on the higher bands is far less common than on 10m and 6m. May, June, July and August will see 10m and 6m open by Es almost daily.

UPDATE 1012z:  No spots given or received yet on 6m or 10m WSPR.

Return to 10m and 6m WSPR

After another night on 5MHz (60m) WSPR where the best TX DX was again KK1D (5409km), I have returned to WSPR on 10m (100% TX, 500mW, randomised TX frequency) and 6m WSPR (1W ERP TX 20%, RX 80%). Later I may switch to the FT817ND on 10m so I can listen 80% of the time as well.

QRP Club

From Oleg:

Dear Club 72 members and friends,
See weekly QRP Rendez-Vous reportand comments here - http://qrp-club72.blogspot.ru/
Visitors  of week: UA1CEX, RV3GM, SP5AGU, UR0ET, UR5EFD, DK3JU, RA1M, SM7RYR,  RU3NJC, DK3WX, IZ6FCK, LZ2NV, OH6NPV, UA1ADF, RV9WMZ, RV3UF,RW9RN,  PC2D,  RD7K,  UA4NU,  RN4NAA,  UA1CEG, UR5IFM, OM6TC, UA1ASB,RX3DIT, DL6UHA/p, RX6DL/8/p
Welcome all QRP stations on the next week "rendezvous", schedule - www.club72.su
Also  remind  about  last week of the April QRP Marathon "Look In the
Horizon".  Before  May 1'st you have enough time to take apart in the
Marathon. Visit Club 72 web page anf click Marathon in the menu.
72! Oleg RV3GM / KH6OB "Mr. 72"

Dyson hand driers - NOT amateur radio

In recent days, these have had a bad press. These are the blade driers found in loos. The bad press claims they circulate germs in the air far more than paper towels. I am surprised by this as I thought most air was contained and they are very efficient and fast.

Staying on 5MHz WSPR

In the end, the "London" grandchildren have only just left for home, so I have decided it is too late in the day to QSY to 10m. Instead, I'll remain on 5MHz (60m) WSPR until tomorrow, hoping for some DX tonight.

5MHz WSPR overnight

Well, I stayed on 5MHz (60m) WSPR overnight. Best DX on TX was KK1D (5409km). In all, 40 different stations in 12 countries have copied me on 5MHz WSPR.  I think others are copying me better than I am copying them as my noise floor is quite high here. So far I have heard just 7 unique stations, all in the UK.  If I am going to use 5MHz (60m) in future years I need to reduce my noise floor on RX.

Later today, I shall probably go back on 10m WSPR.
 
We have our "London" grandchildren staying here this weekend with their mum and dad. They take priority.

Sunspots and 10m - Sun April 24th 2016

Solar flux is 79 and sunspot number just 11 (K=2). The forecast for 10m remains "poor".

5MHz WSPR overnight

WSPRnet sprang back to life this afternoon (I think). It disappeared sometime overnight after 0250z I believe. This eventually allowed me to see the best 5MHz DX last night on WSPR TX. This turned out to be a spot from AB4DF (6436km). There may have been others, but WSPRnet fell over, so I shall never know. I hope to be on 5MHz overnight, so let us hope WSPRnet works! My antenna is very poor and very low for 5MHz. I am amazed how far I got last night with 2W and this low, inefficient antenna.

UPDATE 2135z:  37 unique stations have spotted my 5MHz WSPR in just over a day. Probably more as WSPRnet was not working for much of the time. 5MHz is proving to be a very useful band.

New portable SDR transceiver

Amateur Radio Weekly reports on a new portable SDR transceiver due out in August this year. Price is expected to be less than $500.

See http://www.qrpblog.com/2016/04/esdr-new-portable-sdr-hf-transceiver.html?utm_source=amateur-radio-weekly&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter

Chernobyl pollution map - NOT amateur radio

See http://www.lemonde.fr/planete/video/2016/04/20/la-progression-du-nuage-de-tchernobyl-en-une-minute_4905544_3244.html

A very interesting map showing the extent of radio active pollution in Europe after the Chernobyl nuclear accident in the 1980s.

5MHz WSPR - am I wasting my time?

With WSPRnet still not working I have no idea if last night's efforts were worthwhile or not on 5MHz. The chances are that no spots are/were reaching WSPRnet, so the last 12 hours or so were probably all in vain. If this continues I shall be forced to abandon WSPR, which would be a great shame as we enter the Es season, which benefits the higher HF bands, 6m, 4m and 2m.

Obama in the UK - NOT amateur radio

In the UK referendum I am likely to vote "IN" to remain in the EU but I get saddened by all the negativity and "spin" on both sides in this debate. The intervention by the current US president Obama does little good. We have not had a trade deal with the US before and who is likely to benefit? Well, the USA of course. Mr Obama, your intervention, although possibly well meant, is probably going to encourage people to vote "OUT".  It is fine to have an opinion (like I am amazed by the support in the USA for Trump) but if you were in the EU you would not want the centralism in Brussels.

The EU needs to change and the UK is better in there shaping it in my view. Your intervention is likely to backfire Mr Obama and is not helpful I am afraid.

Miracle Whip Yahoo Group

It is some while since I last used my Miracle Whip antenna, although I still moderate the Miracle Whip Yahoo Group which has nearly 1500 members.

Some of the SPAM I intercept is amusing.   More often than not these are to the group owner and promise me all sorts of sexual favours. I think they think the group is another sort!  How wrong they are. Most messages are filtered so it is rare for these to get to the group. As soon as seen, they are deleted. The group has a low tolerance of SPAM.

For those who don't know the Miracle Whip and its derivatives is a small, self contained QRP antenna. On the higher HF bands with a counterpoise it works quite well. My best DX using it indoors was with the FT817 to Argentina over 11000kms on QRP SSB. This was on 10m. It works as well as a 56 inch whip will do if well matched. Do not expect miracles!

See https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/miraclewhip/info .

See http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/hamantht/miracle.jpg. The image is theirs and is linked here. The image is not on this site.

Sunspots and 10m - Sat April 23rd 2016

Solar flux is 77 today and sunspot number 22 (K=2). The forecast for 10m propagation remains "poor".

WSPRnet - down again

In the last few hours I have tried (in vain) to visit WSPRnet to see where my 5MHz WSPR reached. It was down yet again. Many many times regular WSPR users have offered to pay for a reliable service. When WSPRnet is down WSPR is far less useful. I am still waiting!

At the moment the WSPRnet service goes for weeks working fine, then it collapses in a heap. Sometimes it is a long time before service is restored. I am unsure where the problem is but I hope it is soon repaired.

UPDATE 0912z:  WSPRnet is still down, after very many hours.

UPDATE 1236z:  WSPRnet is still down!  This is bad. I do wish the server owners and maintainers would get help.

5MHz through the night

Through the night I shall stay on 5MHz WSPR to see what happens. I am not familiar with the band so have no real idea what I should expect. I was quite surprised that my Par matched so well with the ATU.  So far the Icelandic spot remains my best DX on TX. I should try 10MHz sometime.

5MHz to Iceland and Finland

TF3HZ (1837km) and OH3TAM (1737km) have spotted my 5MHz WSPR. At the moment the former is my best DX on the 60m band. My antenna is still my 40/20/10m end-fed Par antenna via an ATU.  It is far from ideal on 60m.

UPDATE  2200z:   21 unique 5MHz stations spotting me on 5MHz WSPR in 8 different countries so far.  Don't you just love WSPR?

Britain and the EU - NOT amateur radio

Just watched the second Nick Robinson BBC2 programme about Britain and the EU. Some decent information in this series. If you are looking for real information,and NOT spin, I suggest you watch this on iPlayer or Catch-up if you can.

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b078cwf7/europe-them-or-us-2-voice-of-the-people .

Pure commercialism - NOT amateur radio

Alibris UK makes me sick. Their latest "offer" is yet again offering a discount.

Oh yes. Pull the other one.

5MHz WSPR

Later today I may give 5MHz WSPR a go, although I need to check what frequency to use. I see that Romania has been granted access to a narrow part of the band. I hope CEPT (including OFCOM) allocate a contiguous 100kHz band at 5MHz rather than just the 15kHz worldwide allocation allocated at WRC-15. This band will be important in the quiet years to come. 15kHz is very narrow.

UPDATE 1020z:  I have just switched to 5MHz WSPR (both TX and RX).  I have had to go QRT on 10m WSPR and 6m WSPR because of rigs and antenna.

UPDATE 1100z:  These are the initial spots on 60m. 

UPDATE 1310z:  G8VDQ (93km) has been spotted on 5MHz. He must be active on many bands. My best DX on 5MHz WSPR TX remains 448km to Germany and The Netherlands.

Sunspots and 10m - Fri April 22nd 2016

Solar flux has reached a new low at 76 today. Sunspot number is 35 (K=2) and the forecast for 10m propagation remains "poor".

UPDATE 1000z:  Although I have been active on 10m WSPR TX for several hours, no spots as yet. I am also on 6m WSP where G8VDQ (93km) is regularly being spotted here.

Cambridge rally

Sunday 24 APRIL : CAMBRIDGE REPEATER GROUP RALLY
 
Foxton Village Hall, Hardman Road, Foxton, Cambridge, Cambs, CB22 6RN.

Car parking is free at the venue, which also has disabled facilities. The doors open at 9.30am with traders gaining access from 7am. Admission is £2. A talk-in station will be on air to assist visitors. There will be trade stands, a car boot area, a Bring & Buy and an RSGB bookstall. Catering will be available on site and this year sees new caterers booked.

Contact Lawrence, M0LCM on 0794 197 2724 for more information or email rally2016@cambridgerepeaters.net.
www.cambridgerepeaters.net.

Railway Talk - NOT amateur radio

Just been to an excellent talk at Burwell Museum on "Railways in Burwell" by Steve Crane. It was well attended.

More talks - see the Museum's website at http://www.burwellmuseum.org.uk/ .

RSGB AGM - in Glasgow

Saturday 23 APRIL : RSGB AGM

Glasgow City Hotel, 36 Cambridge St, Glasgow G2 3HN.

A number of Board and Regional positions will be voted and announced. Various trophies and awards will be presented. www.rsgb.org.

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

10m and 6m WSPR overnight

Yours truly remained active on these bands overnight for a change. OK, I admit it - I forgot to turn them off and did not QSY to MF! There were no spots on 10m, but on 6m WSPR G8VDQ (93km) was spotted lots of times through the evening and night.

UPDATE 1024z: Still no spots on 10m WSPR.

Sunspots and 10m - Thurs April 21st 2016

Solar flux has fallen further to 82 today. Sunspot number is 24 (K=2) and the 10m propagation forecast again is "poor". We are now entering the Es season so short-skip may liven up 10m and 6m fro time to time. Es tends to peak around lunchtime and teatime, but can occur at any time and in any month.

Talk today - NOT amateur radio

A final reminder for a talk at our local museum today....

Thursday 21 April 2.00 Steve Crane, Burwell Museum’s Collection Manager "Railways in Burwell", near Cambridge.

Talks are followed by tea and biscuits. Free with museum admission. No admission charge for season ticket holders, Friends and museum volunteers.

See http://www.burwellmuseum.org.uk/ .

2m UKAC results so far

Out of 125 entrants in the AL section of the 2m UKAC I see I am 83rd so far. This is not bad considering my 5W, omni antenna and very limited operating time in each session. I shall enter most months if I am around.

RadCom arrived today

The May 2016 RadCom arrived in the post today.

On the outside rear cover was an advert by MLS showing a £223000 Rolls Royce and a Yaesu FTdx9000NP for £8399. Do people really need their egos stroking so badly that they fork out this sort of money on what is supposed to be a hobby? Each to their own, but I could never spend this sort of money. Add a linear, HF beam and a big rotator and you are talking really serious silly money.

All I can say is I think this is very very sad. It is not for me to say how others spend their money, but I think this is about egos and not about amateur radio. I don't recognise this "cheque book radio" as being my hobby any more.

Swallows - NOT amateur radio

Only yesterday I was that I'd seen no swallows (birds) in East Anglia. Today I saw two! I still think they are less numerous but at least I have now seen some this season.