Copper beech tree

 

This fine tree is in Soham which is about 8km by road. I walk past it most weeks.

Big VHF/UHF signal

When I first came to Cambridge in the early 1970s G8BBB (later G4BEL) was a massive signal from about 10km away. 

He had an excellent takeoff to the south and was very well known. He was the first station I ever copied on 23cm using my tiny indoor 4el yagi smaller than my hand!!

We miss you Roger.

QRP? Life's too short?

This "tongue in cheek" video pokes fun at people who don't believe QRP really works! Certainly with POTA operations a few watts seem plenty. Another later video does it will SSB. 

Sunspots - Monday April 20th

 Solar flux is 105 and the SSN 35. A=23 and K=0.

10m 2W FT8 (Sunday)

My gear was turned at about 1100z.

UPDATE  1118z:  2 English stations have spotted me and 3 stations spotted here on RX.

Running QRP

Some say life is too short for QRP. 

There is no doubt that running high power to a beam will be copied more often than QRP. It will also break pile-ups more easily. 

However, running QRP is often much better than you might think as this video shows. 

The difference by ear between high power and QRP is often much smaller than you think. Try it! In another video he tries it with SSB.

Iran war - Joe Blogs video

 The situation in the Middle East seems very much in a state of flux.

Sunspots - Sunday April 19th

Solar flux is 106 and the SSN 44. A=33 and K=3. 

The nature of time

Our brains have limited size and to most people time is a mystery. Certainly my experience is that time passes faster as we get older. Some believe in some sort of life carrying on after we die. I remain agnostic. 

It would be great to be able to experience again some of the good things in our lives. This brings to mind the famous poem called "A Shropshire Lad" by A.E. Housman.

Into my heart an air that kills
From yon far country blows;
What are those blue remembered hills,
What spires, what farms are those?
That is the land of lost content,
I see it shining plain,
The happy highways where I went 

And cannot come again.

I think this was written overseas, knowing the beloved country of his birth would not be seen again, except in memory.

10m 2.5W FT8 (Saturday)

After a brire period on TX around breakfast (2 English stations spotted me), I am RX only. 

UPDATE 0736z: Just I UK stations spotted in G0FWX (135km).

UPDATE 2000z: 23 stations spotted here today. Now QRT.