Approaching Ely - NOT amateur radio

Yesterday we got the train back to Ely. This was the view through the train window showing the cathedral and boats. 

Ely is a surprisingly busy station where many lines meet. It is rare to not see something going on there.

Fredbox in Eire

Recently, I was asked permission to reproduce the Fredbox in a PDF magazine in Eire. It was nice to be asked and, of course, I said yes. It is now available.

See https://www.docdroid.net/SgtShtb/crnews1022-pdf .

Geosynchronous Oscar 100

It is some weeks since I last peeked at the narrowband transponder of this satellite. Activity remains very low when I last looked on a Friday afternoon in Europe. Overall, my recommendation is still "don't bother".

See https://eshail.batc.org.uk/nb/ .

Gloucester cathedral glass - NOT amateur radio

Earlier this week, we stayed in Gloucester and visited the cathedral. It has some of the finest medieval glass in the UK, and probably the world. Some examples are here. 

The bottom right is from the great east window which was erected in 1350 whilst the others are in the cloisters.
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OFCOM updates

As usual, OFCOM has revised the figures it holds about licences etc.. Check the OFCOM website for details.

10m FT8 RX (Friday)

At the moment, I am on 10m FT8 RX. So far, after 10 minutes, at 0856z, 5 stations spotted with the furthermost D2UY (6525km) in Angola.

UPDATE 1527z:  816 stations spotted today on 10m FT8 RX.

UPDATE 1803z: 1103 stations spotted on 10m FT8 RX (see map).

UPDATE 2045z:  1202 stations spotted on 10m FT8 RX today.

Sunspots - Friday September 30th 2022

 Solar flux is 137 and the SSN 56.  A=7 and K=4.

Rally

I have been notified of the following rally on Sunday. As always, make contact with the organisers before travelling any distance.

Sunday October 2nd - Welsh Radio Rally, Newport,  NP18 2YE . See gw6gw.co.uk .

How simple can you make a transceiver?

Many years ago, I built the XBM80-2 80m CW transceiver. It never got cased, but shows how simple a transceiver can be! Somewhere recently I was told that it is a good idea to keep DC from hitting the crystal earpiece. If this is the case, it is probably worth adding a DC blocking capacitor between the audio transistor and earpiece. I have no idea if this is an old wive's tale or fact.

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/hf-mf-and-lf/homebrew/80m-xbm80-2 .

Shetland - NOT amateur radio

This was on 365project a few days ago. It shows a Shetland scene.