First of all, thank you to the 2,015 people from all over the world who entered the giveaway. That’s a record number of entries for us!

Now for the moment you’ve been waiting for… the winners!  OK, here they are:

We will contact the winners by e-mail with further instructions today. If you are one of the 41 winners, please reply quickly so that we can get your prize on the way to you! If you don’t receive your e-mail today, please double-check your spam folder to make sure it didn’t end up there.

Here are the prizes:

One (1)
HackRF One SDR transceiver bundle
Estimated retail value $500 each
Contains everything you need to listen to, and transmit, HF, VHF & UHF (1 MHz to 6 GHz) with the HackRF One from Great Scott Gadgets, down to 100kHz or lower! Standard bundle includes HackRF, Ham It Up, Antenna Balun, 2 SMA interconnect cables and an SMA to BNC adapter. Pre-installed in a black aluminum enclosure and with the RF shield.

Three (3)
NESDR XTR+ HF bundles
Estimated retail value $140 each
Each kit will contain an SDR, an upconverter to enable HF reception, and a cable to connect the two units.

Two (2)
NESDR Mini 2+ HF bundles
Estimated retail value $125 each
Each kit will contain an NESDR Mini 2+ SDR with 0.5PPM TCXO, MCX-connected antenna for VHF, an upconverter to enable HF reception, and a cable to connect the two units.
 Ten (10)
NESDR XTR+ sets
Estimated retail value $60 each
NooElec NESDR XTR+ SDR & DVB-T USB set, including GPS-rated +/- 0.5PPM TCXO, quality telescopic antenna and remote control. Genuine Elonics E4000 tuner is guaranteed.

Ten (10)
NESDR Nano 2+ sets
Estimated retail value $30 each
Same form factor as the Nano 2 but with a TCXO!

Fifteen (15)
NESDR Nano 2 sets
Estimated retail value $25 each
The NESDR Nano 2 is based on the R820T2 tuner IC made by Rafael Micro, which means an approximate tuning range of 25MHz-1700MHz and improved selectivity and sensitivity in most frequency ranges versus R820T-based SDRs. There is also an RTL2832 (RTL2832U) IC on board of course, to provide basic demodulation and USB interface functionality

Stories you’ll find in our February, 2016 issue:

​D​iscovering Vintage Transistor Radios
By Michael Jack

Although today’s chips may house billions of transistors, the average consumer is not familiar with the term ‘transistor’ any longer. And, while all of our devices depend on transistors to this day, the pocket transistor radio was the first ubiquitous device to introduce the world to solid-state technology. Michael Jack takes us on a visual tour of the history of the transistor radio through beautiful examples of the art of transistor radio production. He also tells us how to spot potential finds and restore these solid-state gems.

Monitoring Joint Warrior 15/2 and Russian Air and Sea Activity
By Tony Roper

In October 2015 there was the second of the large-scale exercises that take place every year off the north and west coasts of Scotland under the exercise “Joint Warrior” name, as well as exercises involving ballistic missile defense ships that took part in Joint Warrior and which took place in the danger areas at sea, off the west coast of Scotland. Tony shows how to monitor these twice-yearly exercises as well as how to keep track of Russian air and sea activity involved in their activities in Syria, much of which is found on HF frequencies in SSB and CW.

RTL-SDR Dongle: Your Eye to the Wireless World
By Mario Filippi N2HUN

The RTL-SDR dongle has garnered much popularity over the last several years as an inexpensive and effective broadband receiver for the radio enthusiast. Now Mario shows us how the RTL-SDR can be pressed into serving in other ways: as a rudimentary piece of test equipment to explore those countless wireless devices that power our world and make life convenient. You can use it when restoring vintage radios, doing frequency analysis, antenna analysis and a host of troubleshooting activities you may never have thought of.

ATSC Off-Air Local TV: Doing it Right
By Mike Kohl

Part of his continuing series on cord-cutting, Mike shows us how to use online tools to find out what’s available in your area for Over-the-Air (OTA) TV reception; what antennas work best; when to use and not use antenna amplifiers and how to configure your OTA-TV system without needing to use an antenna rotator. What are the TV reception limits in the area in which you live? You can learn how to get the most out of OTA signals wherever you live without having to spend a fortune on equipment or for cable and satellite-TV subscriptions.

VHF and Above: Aurora Propagation
By Joe Lynch N6CL

If you have spent any time on HF you are somewhat familiar with the effects of aurora, particularly on 10 meters. Those watery sounding signals you may have heard are signals affected by aurora. However, those funny-sounding signals are only one small aspect of auroral propagation. This month Joe shows us how to anticipate aurora propagation by monitoring WWV broadcasts. He also takes a look at the interesting world of High Altitude Ballooning. Joe says, “There is nothing more exhilarating than watching a helium-filled balloon take off and then chasing it using the signals being transmitted from its payload!”

Scanning America
By Dan Veenaman
Fulton County, Georgia, and Riverside, California

Federal Wavelengths
By Chris Parris
The Challenges of Federal Monitoring

Utility Planet
By Hugh Stegman NV6H
New Life for Operation SECURE?

Digital HF: Intercept and Analyze
By Mike Chace-Ortiz AB1TZ/G6DHU
The Russian Navy T600 “Bee” Modem

HF Utility Logs
By Mike Chace-Ortiz and Hugh Stegman

Digitally Speaking
By Cory Sickles WA3UVV
Avoiding Mixed-Mode Mix-Ups

Amateur Radio Insights
By Kirk Kleinschmidt NT0Z
Forgotten Antenna Fundamentals and Other Curious Tidbits—Part 2

Radio 101
By Ken Reitz KS4ZR
The Case for Satellite Radio

Radio Propagation
By Tomas Hood NW7US
The Ionosonde

The World of Shortwave Listening
By Andrew Yoder
HF Pirates Roam 41 and 90-meter Bands

The Shortwave Listener
By Fred Waterer
RCI’s Broadcast Legacy and You Too can be a Shortwave Radio Broadcaster!

Amateur Radio Astronomy
By Stan Nelson KB5VL
WWVB and other Fun Stuff

The Longwave Zone
By Kevin O’Hern Carey WB2QMY
Up and Running with SDR!

Adventures in Radio Restoration
By Rich Post KB8TAD
The Saga of the Philips BX490A: Beauty and the Geek

Antenna Connections
By Dan Farber AC0LW
Single File, Please: Understanding SWR

Radio Horizons
The Worldwide Listening Guide 7th Edition by John Figliozz​i

The Spectrum Monitor is available in PDF format which can be read on any desktop, laptop, iPad®, Kindle® Fire, or other device capable of opening a PDF file. Annual subscription is $24. Individual monthly issues are available for $3 each.

An engineer turned UFO researcher is hoping to launch a low-earth orbit CubeSat to search for evidence of extraterrestrial life. Canadian Dave Cote has assembled a seven-person team to design, fund, build and launch the project that he hopes will provide some answers about the origins of recent unidentified object sightings across the globe.

“We have had astronauts, military personnel, police officers and the former Defence Minister of Canada come forward stating that extraterrestrial UFOs are real, and that we are being visited,” says Cote. “How can this be ignored and brushed off as nonsense?” Concerned that the public isn’t getting straight answers, the group has turned to crowdsourcing the project on Kickstarter.

Measuring roughly the size of a shoebox, CubeSats can pack a lot of science equipment into a small space. They have also made satellite deployment much more affordable, in some cases costing less than the price of a lower-end automobile. Sites like CubeSatShop.com have taken much of the complexity out of ordering needed components.

Cote says they’re a “go for launch” already but are looking for more funding so they can pack it with as much science equipment as possible. They aim to include image, infrared, electromagnetic, and radiation sensors. This would give them the capability of not only verifying visual data, but also correlating it with other events such as electromagnetic and radioactive fluctuations.

The team plans to measure ionized radiation with a scintillation counter and two cameras will capture a near 360-degree view around the CubeSat. They plan to remove the infrared filters on the cameras to cover more of the visual range.

Cote hopes to use amateur radio frequencies to transmit the data back to earth and a worldwide network of ham volunteers to receive it.

“We are planning to use the ham frequencies to send data down from the CubeSat to earth in hex or datafax protocol,” says Cote. “From what we understand, we should be able to send a 100kB packet every few minutes and this will enable us to send image thumbnails from space, along with some basic EM data.”

While the details of the transmissions have yet to be determined, Cote hopes to assemble a worldwide team of hams willing to receive and log whatever data the satellite captures.

“We need help from the ham community, in capturing the data and relaying it to our site,” he says. “There will be a 15-minute window for download from the CubeSat, and then another volunteer would be needed for the next 15-minute time window.”

Cote is cautiously optimistic that the satellite will provide corroboration of UFO reports from eyewitnesses on Earth. But even if the satellite doesn’t capture evidence of faraway visitors, he’s hopeful that it will record interesting natural phenomenon like meteors and solar flares.

“We can only hope that those who would like to know the truth will step forward and help,” he says.

To learn more about the project or to volunteer, visit their KickStarter page.

Winner Announcement:
http://www.amateurradio.com/winner-announcement-2016-nooelec-giveaway/

It’s our biggest giveaway ever!

NooElec and AmateurRadio.com have teamed up to give away a
HackRF One SDR (Software Defined Radio) transceiver
to a lucky ham PLUS we’re giving away
40 SDR receivers to radio enthusiasts (non-hams, too!) worldwide.

Almost $2,500 in free prizes — and they’ll even pay the shipping!
The deadline to enter is 31 January 2016 20:00 UTC.

Prize Packages

We’re giving away FORTY-ONE (41!) prizes including:One (1)
HackRF One SDR transceiver bundle
Estimated retail value $500 each
Contains everything you need to listen to, and transmit, HF, VHF & UHF (1 MHz to 6 GHz) with the HackRF One from Great Scott Gadgets, down to 100kHz or lower! Standard bundle includes HackRF, Ham It Up, Antenna Balun, 2 SMA interconnect cables and an SMA to BNC adapter. Pre-installed in a black aluminum enclosure and with the RF shield.

Three (3)
NESDR XTR+ HF bundles
Estimated retail value $140 each
Each kit will contain an SDR, an upconverter to enable HF reception, and a cable to connect the two units.

Two (2)
NESDR Mini 2+ HF bundles
Estimated retail value $125 each
Each kit will contain an NESDR Mini 2+ SDR with 0.5PPM TCXO, MCX-connected antenna for VHF, an upconverter to enable HF reception, and a cable to connect the two units.
 Ten (10)
NESDR XTR+ sets
Estimated retail value $60 each
NooElec NESDR XTR+ SDR & DVB-T USB set, including GPS-rated +/- 0.5PPM TCXO, quality telescopic antenna and remote control. Genuine Elonics E4000 tuner is guaranteed.

Ten (10)
NESDR Nano 2+ sets
Estimated retail value $30 each
Same form factor as the Nano 2 but with a TCXO!

Fifteen (15)
NESDR Nano 2 sets
Estimated retail value $25 each
The NESDR Nano 2 is based on the R820T2 tuner IC made by Rafael Micro, which means an approximate tuning range of 25MHz-1700MHz and improved selectivity and sensitivity in most frequency ranges versus R820T-based SDRs. There is also an RTL2832 (RTL2832U) IC on board of course, to provide basic demodulation and USB interface functionality

Eligibility

All tech geeks, nerds, and radio enthusiasts worldwide!
(Free worldwide shipping is included!)

How to Enter

It’s very simple!
Leave a comment to this post.
(e-mail address will not be shared)

Entry Duration

Only 1 week!

You may enter only once from
24 January 2016 20:00 UTC
to
31 January 2016 20:00 UTC

(multiple entries from the same entrant will be discarded)

Winner Announcement

31 January 2016

You can get the winner announcement by
subscribing to our free Amateur Radio Newsletter (subscribe below),
following our posts via RSS feed, via Twitter (@amatradio),
or via Facebook (facebook.com/amatradio).

Sign up so you won’t miss our next prize drawing!

Please tell your friends about this giveaway!

Thank you to NooElec for offering these fantastic prizes!

Visit their website at NooElec.com / eBay store / Amazon store

Don’t forget to enter! Just leave a comment to this post.

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.