For most of the day I have been on 17m FT8 with 2.5W and the tiny indoor loop. So far (it is now 1510z), just 1 station has spotted me on TX and I have spotted 267 stations on RX with the furthermost YB3EDD (12235km).
27 Mar 2021
Village cottages - NOT amateur radio
Burwell (our village) has a total mix of old and new homes. These cottages are on the main High Street. I am not sure how old these are, but I guess most date from the 1800s.
Oscar 100 geosynchronous satellite
Every few weeks, I give my impression of activity on the narrowband transponder of this satellite as seen by looking at the webSDR at Goonhilly.
As said many times before, this is not a scientific look. It is more of a "quick peek" impression, in this case looking mid-afternoon on a Friday in Europe.
My impression is activity is very slightly up on the last time I looked. There is still plenty of room.
26 Mar 2021
Spring colours - NOT amateur radio
/P and contests
According to Southgate News, the RSGB is to accept /P entries in contests from March 29th. They state you have to obey local Covid rules, but the "stay at home" message is to be replaced (we hope) by "stay local" in England. This would mean /P operations would be legal if local.
OFCOM plan of work
I am definitely a grumpy old man!
OFCOM has just posted its plan of work for the next financial year on its website. If I was still working and not retired I would have been told the statement is full of "motherhoods" !
Personally, I would prefer if they concentrated on real enforcement and less on such statements.
It is very easy to criticise, but the impression this gives me is a total lack of RF knowledge and a bunch of children, trying to be "grown ups". Your views may well differ, and these are my impressions only.
As I was always told "don't judge a book by its cover".
See the OFCOM website and make up your own minds.
17m FT8 QRP (Friday)
At 1217z, I turned on the FT8 QRP with 2.5W and the windowsill tiny loop. It is now 1222z and, so far, 20 stations have been spotted on RX but no spots of me on TX.
UPDATE 1435z: 127 stations spotted on RX with the furthermost YB8ADX (12413km). On QRP TX 2 stations have spotted me so far today.
UPDATE 2212z: Now QRT. Altogether, 204 stations spotted on RX and 2 stations spotted my QRP on TX.
Rainbow - NOT amateur radio
25 Mar 2021
Perspectives on old age - NOT amateur radio
Next birthday I shall be 73. Both my dad and granddad died in their sixties. I could die tomorrow or live for many years.
On the balance of probabilities I probably have not got many years left. Certainly I am more aware than ever that the years are passing by.
Some of the things I could so easily do are now impossible. I am giddy all the time and driving is no longer a pleasure.
Someone once advised me to enjoy things before it is too late. Maybe they are right. One thing is certain: the future is unknown.
Angry sky - NOT amateur radio
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| Angry sky |
We have just got back from a walk around Anglesey Abbey. It tried to rain!
Rally cancelled
The Callington Rally in Cornwall has been cancelled. Many years ago I went to this when I lived in Devon. It should have been March 28th, which is this Sunday. Hopefully it will be on again in 2022.
Probably many more rallies will be postponed or cancelled this spring and summer.
2m FT8 QRP (Thursday)
Since before breakfast I have been on 2m FT8 with 2.5W and the big-wheel omni antenna. So far, at 0947z, I have been spotted by 13 stations in 2 countries with the furthermost G7RAU (461km) in Cornwall. On 2m FT8 RX 20 stations in 4 countries spotted with the furthermost DJ9ON (489km).
UPDATE 1025z: One QSO with a station in IO70. 15 spots of my QRP.
UPDATE 1648z: 3 QSOs today. My 2.5W FT8 to the big-wheel has been spotted by 25 stations and I have spotted 55 stations in 6 countries.
UPDATE 1830z: 29 stations in 3 countries have spotted my 2m FT8 QRP today on TX. 65 stations spotted on RX in 7 countries.
OFCOM spectrum negotiations
OFCOM has announced that its next stage of auctioning 700MHz and 3.6GHz spectrum has moved to the negotiating stage where bidders can trade spectrum between each other. See the OFCOM website for more details. It makes sense for bidders to have contiguous chunks.
472kHz WSPR last evening
Continued monitoring overnight has not been that productive on previous occasions , so I went QRT in the late evening having spotted 4 unique stations. As usual, using the FT817ND and the earth-electrode "antenna" in the ground.
Earning a cup of tea - NOT amateur radio
It looks much better now after a coat of preservative used for sheds and fences. I shall ask him to do the garden benches soon.
24 Mar 2021
472kHz WSPR RX
At 1844z, I QSYed to 472kHz (630m) WSPR RX. Once again, I am using the FT817ND and the earth-electrode "antenna" in the ground.
UPDATE 2211z: G0MRF has been a huge signal this evening. Furthermost is LA8AV (1012km).
UPDATE 2300z: QRT
17m FT8 QRP (Wednesday)
A few moments ago, I QSYed to 17m FT8 QRP with 2.5W and the tiny indoor loop. It is now 1111z. So far 6 stations have been spotted on RX with nobody yet spotting my QRP on TX.
UPDATE 1127z: So far today, 15 stations spotted here on RX, and still nobody has spotted my QRP FT8 on TX.
UPDATE 1421z: 105 stations in 5 continents spotted on 17m FT8 RX today and nobody has spotted my QRP TX.
UPDATE 1806z: 139 stations spotted on RX. Nobody spotted me on TX.
EMF calculator (revised)
Southgate News reports that a new EMF calculator is now available from the RSGB. If your EIRP is greater than 10W, you may have to use this.
See http://www.southgatearc.org/news/2021/march/new-rsgb-emf-calculator-available.htm#.YFsX-yuTLrc .
Suez Canal blocked - NOT amateur radio
The BBC reports that a large container ship has run aground in strong winds and blocked the Suez Canal. This is vital artery for world trade. It is already caused major tailbacks. Imagine being in charge of steering this ship!
Spring - NOT amateur radio
Daffodils are looking good in our village.
The clocks change to British Summer Time (BST) this weekend. Next week it is lighter in the evenings and not dark until about 7.45pm local time. We change from "indoor mode" to "outdoor mode". Sadly, this means cutting the grass!
Overnight on 160m FT8
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| Stations spotted last night on 160m FT8 RX |
272 stations spotted in 5 continents as the map shows.
I was spotted by 47 stations across
Europe on QRP FT8 160m TX as the map shows.
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| Stations spotting my 2.5W FT8 QRP last night |
I remain amazed just how well this "antenna" works. Considering nobody knows it is there, I cannot fault it.
UPDATE 1005z: Back to daytime conditions! Nobody spotted in the last few hours.
23 Mar 2021
Dad's seat - NOT amateur radio
When my dad first retired he got a job with the National Trust and was in charge of a team working on repairs to the coastal footpaths in South Devon. When he died they erected 2 seats on Bolberry Down in his memory. In the photo I am sitting on one of them some years ago.
160m FT8 QRP (Tuesday)
At about 1330z I turned on my 160m FT8 QRP with 2.5W and the earth-electrode antenna in the ground. No spots yet.
UPDATE 1708z: Just 1 G - G3NSM (123km) has spotted my QRP TX and European DX is starting to come through on RX. So far, 7 stations spotted on RX.
More - NOT amateur radio
The photo shows what I think are storage batteries being erected near our electricity substation.
Overnight on 160m FT8 QRP
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| Stations spotting my 160m FT8 2.5W |
One QSO on 160m FT8 QRP with a German shortly before midnight.
Just 268 stations spotted on 160m FT8 RX overnight in 5 continents. I do not use 160m often enough to know if this is conditions changing or just a bad night. 2 North Americans and 1 South American spotted.
UPDATE 1009z: Back to daytime and just 1 G spotted!
22 Mar 2021
Scam bating - NOT amateur radio
If you are like me, you are getting more scam calls that originate abroad, but use UK numbers to actually fool punters. TPS, which we have, cannot stop these I think.
We have tunes on our phones so we know when genuine people are calling: different friends and family members have unique tunes. Everyone else is asked to leave an answerphone message. Most scammers just hang up. We work on the assumption that if it was really urgent they would leave a message or call again.
I have asked for a package on Virgin Media that may help. It is free for 30 days. We will see.
Apparently someone is working on software to waste scammers time. Great!
160m FT8 QRP (Monday)
About 15 minutes ago, I turned on my 2.5W to the earth-electrode "antenna" in the ground on 160m FT8 TX. No spots yet.
UPDATE 1605z: Still no spots on RX or TX. The Europeans should start appearing soon.
UPDATE 1625z: The first DX from Europe came through at 1614z on 160m FT8 RX. There are others starting to be spotted. Still nobody spotting me on QRP TX.
Photobooks - NOT amateur radio
It is amazing to see how much the grandchildren have changed over the years.
Shack sunset
In the foreground is the shack PC with WSJT-X monitoring 160m FT8 RX.
As you can see, there were plenty of European (later transatlantic) stations being spotted on the earth-electrode antenna at about 1845z.
Overnight on 160m FT8 RX
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| Stations spotted on 160m FT8 RX overnight |
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| Stations spotting me last evening on 160m QRP FT8 |
Spring flowers - NOT amateur radio
We are now officially in spring by any measure. The UK Met Office counts March 1st as the first day of spring whereas the traditional start is the spring equinox.
In the weeks ahead we will see migrant birds like swallows returning.
The UK clocks change to British Summer Time (BST) next weekend.
21 Mar 2021
Walk - NOT amateur radio
Covid-19 Vaccines - NOT amateur radio
Some countries seem further ahead with vaccines than others. This puts in doubt the ability of our daughters-in-law to visit their parents in France and Australia this year. This is such a pity.
Moxon antennas
See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/antennas/70cm_moxon .
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