Amateur Radio Weekly – Issue 282

Amateur Radio Weekly

Meteor scatter propagation: How it works & getting on the air
Harnessing meteors for your VHF QSOs.
K5ND

Your radio’s filters may be wider than you think
AM bandwidth confusion: IF filters today vs. yesterday.
SWLing Post

GNU Radio Tutorials
GNU Radio can be used with readily-available low-cost external RF hardware to create software-defined radios.
GNU Radio

FCC warns Portland church to shut down pirate FM station
Because Eastside Free Methodist Church owns the building, it is potentially on the hook for enforcement action.
Inside Radio

MicroHams Digital Conference
This conference is presented each year to inspire, inform, and educate about the leading edge of digital communications.
MicroHams

A beautiful day for SOTA
I woke up that morning, drank a cup of coffee, looked outside, and knew what would be in store the day: a SOTA activation!
QRPer

It’s time for some Pi
Raspberry Pi is all new to me.
VE9KK

Wearable Morse Code trainer
WristMorse communicator can also act as a Bluetooth keyboard.
Hackaday

A surprise new field portable antenna
Some ideas worked, others failed, but now I believe I have found the ideal candidate.
Ham Radio Outside the Box

Video

Radio communication for overlanding
Considerations when traveling to remote locations.
VK3FUR

Ham and Quackers: Episode 1
Building a way for people to connect within the Ham Radio community.
Ham and Quackers

Easy to build vertical no-radial HF antenna
Multiband HF antenna for 20 through 10 meters.
K4OGO

2 meter FM via airplane
Flight from Tacoma Narrows Airport over Olympic National Park.
SOG Pilot

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Amateur Radio Weekly is curated by Cale Mooth K4HCK. Sign up free to receive ham radio's most relevant news, projects, technology and events by e-mail each week at http://www.hamweekly.com.

It’s time for some Pi

 

HamClock

A number of years ago I purchased a Raspberry Pi intending to do something with it. Well, it sat for many years with me now and then taking a look at it and thinking someday I will explore the Pi. A few weeks ago for some reason, I Googled Raspberry Pi regarding weather programs. 

My thought at the time was to get live local weather reports via the Pi. Also, it had been about 3 years since I had seen my Raspberry Pi and was not sure if I had thrown it out during one of my spur-of-the-moment clean-up binges. I eventually came across it after searching everywhere. "I put it where for sure I would know where it was". That did not work so well BUT I have learned that once I do find something I always place it back in the spot where I first looked for it. I degrees.....

My Pi


The box the Pi was in was complete with a power supply, protective case, HDMI cable, micro SD card and a cooling fan. I plugged in the Pi and powered it up with the micro SD card in place, a monitor, mouse and keyboard. Well a red LED light came on but that was it the monitor was blank, and well actually had a floating message "No device connected". I was sure I had downloaded a Pi OS onto the SD card years ago. I did a fast Google search and found out if you have only a red light and no green light (besides the red light) then most likely your SD is either blank, not in properly or defective. 


It was off to the Raspberry Pi site to download the latest and greatest OS and in my case that was bullseye. I did check the SD card and it was blank so I was hoping after the OS was installed and put back into the Pi things would come to life...and they did. I also found out that my Pi was a Pi3 (not Pi3B) the latest and greatest is the Pi4 B. The Pi3 will do me just fine and I am finally going to be using it. 


As stated I wanted to use it for local weather and I ended up finding something better! Local weather, space weather, UTC clock, contest calendar, VOCAP, a world map that has a host of configurations and more. The software is called HamClock by WB0OEW. This package runs very smoothly on my Pi3 and will auto-update, which I have experienced once already. 

And so it begins


Now Raspberry Pi is all new to me and I am learning about Sudo, the command line and what to enter into the command line. At this point, in time I have just cut and pasted commands from websites (such as HamClock) to install the program. The installation process for HamClock can be found under the "Desktop" tab on the HamClock site.
I am just starting my Pi learning curve and would appreciate any advice and program suggestions to run.


Mike Weir, VE9KK, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Brunswick, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].

Hunting For NDBs In CLE291

ZSJ-258 Sandy Lake, ON (ve3gop.com)

This coming weekend brings CLE 291. This is a challenge for all NDB hunters, both new and old and the ultimate test of your medium frequency receiving capabilities. Can you meet the challenge?

'CLE's are 'Co-ordinated  Listening Events, and NDB DXers around the world focus their listening time on one small slice of  the NDB spectrum.
 
With the number of targets slowly being decommissioned, the hunting grounds have been widened...this month the frequency range is for the NDBs whose published frequencies are between 240.0 - 259.9 kHz and 420.0 - 439.9 kHz. 

A good target for all NA listeners is powerhouse ZSJ on 258 kHz, located at Sandy Lake, Ontario. Listen for its upper sideband CW identifier on 258.406 kHz.

When tuning for NDBs, put your receiver in the CW mode and listen for the NDB's CW identifier, repeated every few seconds. Listen for U.S. NDB identifiers approximately 1 kHz higher or lower than the published transmitted frequency since these beacons are modulated with a 1020 Hz tone approximately.

For example, 'AA' near Fargo, ND, transmitted on 365 kHz and its upper sideband CW identifier was tuned at 366.025 kHz while its lower sideband CW ident could be tuned at 363.946 kHz. Its USB tone was actually 1025 Hz while its LSB tone was 1054 Hz.

Often, one sideband will be much stronger than the other so if you don't hear the first one, try listening on the other sideband.

Canadian NDBs normally have an USB tone only, usually very close to 400 Hz. They also have a long dash (keydown) following the CW identifier.

All NDBs heard in North America will be listed in the RNA database (updated daily) while those heard in Europe may be found in the REU database. Beacons heard outside of these regions will be found in the RWW database.

From CLE organizers comes the following info:

Hello all,

 

This coming weekend we have another chance to enjoy a Coordinated Listening Event. All CLE logs will be very welcome, short or long.

 

Days:                   Friday, 21st April – Monday, 24th April

Times:                 Start and end at midday, local time at the receiver

Searching for:    NDBs in the ranges

240.0 - 259.9 kHz   and   420.0 - 439.9 kHz

BOTH frequency ranges are for ALL listeners.

REU and RNA show that the number of NDBs, each

of them heard by at least 10 or more listeners in the

last 12 months, was:

 

240-259.9 kHz   420-439.9 kHz

REU                      30                         116

RNA                      54                         54

 

Please log the NDBs you can identify that are listed in the ranges, plus any UNIDs that you come across there.

You can find details, lists and maps of the beacons in those ranges, if you go to  https://rxx.classaxe.com/cle.

 

Send your final CLE log to  ndblist'at'groups.io  with “CLE291” and

“FINAL” in the email Subject.

Please show on EVERY LINE of your log:

 

  #   The full Date (or Day no.)  e.g. ‘2023-04-21’ (or just ‘21’)

         and UTC (the day changes at 00:00 UTC)

  #   kHz (the beacon's nominal published frequency if you know it)

  #   The Call Ident.

 

Other optional details - Location, Distance, etc. - go LATER in the same line (or in footnotes).  Please make your log useful to old and new members alike by ALWAYS including your own location (and 6-character Locator if you know it) and brief details of the equipment and aerial(s) that you were using.   

 

We will send an 'Any More Logs?' email at about 20:00 UTC on Tuesday evening so you can check that your log has been found OK.

To be included in the combined results  your log must have arrived by 09:00 UTC on Wednesday 26th April at the very latest.

We hope to complete making the Combined Results within a day or two.

 Good listening

Joachim and Brian

(CLE coordinators)

If you would like to try some remote listening - you could use any one remote receiver for your loggings, stating its location (and with the owner’s permission if required).

A remote listener may NOT also use another receiver, whether local or remote, to make more loggings for the same CLE.

 

CLE's provide several purposes. They:


• determine, worldwide, which beacons are actually in service and on-the-air so the newly-re-vamped Rxx online database can be kept up-to-date

• determine, worldwide, which beacons are out-of-service or have gone silent since the last CLE covering this range


• will indicate the state of propagation conditions at the various participant locations


• will give you an indication of how well your LF/MF receiving system is working


• give participants a fun yet challenging activity to keep their listening skills honed


Final details can be found at the NDB List website, and worldwide results, for every participant, will be posted there a few days after the event.


The NDB List Group is a great place to learn more about the 'Art of NDB DXing' or to meet other DXers in your region. There is a lot of good information available there and new members are always very welcome. As well, you can follow the results of other CLE participants from night to night as propagation is always an active topic of discussion.

You need not be an NDB List member to participate in the CLEs and all reports, no matter how small, are of much value to the organizers.

Remember - 'First-time' logs are always VERY welcome!

Reports may be sent to the NDB List Group or e-mailed to CLE co-ordinator, Brian Keyte (G3SIA), whose address appears above. If you are a member of the group, all final results will also be e-mailed and posted there.

Please ... give the CLE a try ... then let us know what NDB's can be heard from your location! Your report can then be added to the worldwide database to help keep it up-to-date.

Have fun and good hunting!

Steve McDonald, VE7SL, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from British Columbia, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].

Portable Ops in Comfort

Towable Shack

Working my rolling shack portable station from air-con comfort


We've had a few RV's over the years, but for some reason I've never thought to operate from inside the RV.  I have always tossed a wire over a tree and operated from a picnic table or from my camp chair, as here...




But I thought, "Hey, I have a 12v power supply built-into the RV and the built-in ladder makes a nice solid mount for an antenna mast."

Early try with a military fiberglass pole mast

Now I use a Flagpole Buddy with a 30 foot telescoping mast


Here's a link to the flagpole buddy... link

Our RV has a Converter / Inverter with a spare 25 amp 12v circuit.  I tapped into that and ran a power pole wire to the dinette table.  

The camper had a coax outlet to watch a TV outside the camper... that's obnoxious.  So I cut the cable TV coax and crimped on a UHF connector, and ran that to the dinette table.  I simply attach my coax from outside the camper to cable TV coax adapter to get the antenna connection inside the camper.  Wallah, coax through the wall with no drilling. The cable TV coax run from the dinette to the wall outlet is only a couple feet so it's not really impacting the impedance of the coax run to the antenna.

I've tried a couple of antenna's and have settled on my end-fed 44 foot wire fed with a 9:1 balun and some clip on radials.   I pull the antenna wire through top end of the telescoping mast with kite string, counter-weighted with a heavy sinker.  That keeps the wire taught from the end-fed point up to the top of the mast and out at an angle.

Gone RF fishing with a 30 foot pole and a big sinker.


The Elecraft KX3 and Ten-Tec Eagle will both match a bent spoon with their auto-tuners and have no trouble with the end-fed on 40m and above. 

For a portable key I use my Palm Radio Single paddle.  Either magnetically attached to the steel side of the Eagle or just held with one hand while operating with the KX3.

Palm Radio Single Paddle

On the Eagle the Palm Radio Single magnetically attaches to the side

One thing I find interesting about operating while "camping" (if you call towing a small house to a campground camping) is that I seem to also work a suprising number of other stations that are operating from a campground.

Note the power and antenna connections under the table


The KX3 can stay on the dinette and doesn't take much room.  Keeping the footprint small and the earbuds in, keeps the XYL happy when operating during an outing.

I worked a number of stations on 40m, 30m, 20m and 10m this weekend.  It's always fun to tell a station that you are portable, even if you are essentially operating in your home away from home.


Thats all for now.

Lower your power and raise your expectations

Rich AA4OO HamRadioQRP.com

Richard Carpenter, AA4OO, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from North Carolina, USA. Contact him at [email protected].

AmateurLogic 180: Cheap Old Geaux Baux


AmateurLogic.TV Episode 180 is now available for download.

Emile builds a Geaux Baux. Software for NanoVNA analyzers. Dual Band Satellite Yagi, The Sequel.

Download
YouTube


George Thomas, W5JDX, is co-host of AmateurLogic.TV, an original amateur radio video program hosted by George Thomas (W5JDX), Tommy Martin (N5ZNO), Peter Berrett (VK3PB), and Emile Diodene (KE5QKR). Contact him at [email protected].

Amateur Radio Weekly – Issue 281

Amateur Radio Weekly

The RFNM: A next generation SDR
10 MHz to 7200 MHz tuning range, 12-Bit ADCs and up to 612 MHz bandwidth.
RTL-SDR.com

DIY portable ops truck desk
The desk is comfortable to use and the truck can be driven when the desk is installed.
KK4Z

GridTracker receives 2023 Amateur Radio Software Award
The award recognizes software projects that enhance Amateur Radio.
ARSA

NTIA identifying spectrum to be repurposed
Agency is seeking public input on identifying new spectrum bands for potential repurposing.
CQ Newsroom

Ofcom hints at license changes
“We will consult on proposals to simplify our licensing framework for amateur radio licensing.”
Essex Ham

Tuning a Mag Loop via smartphone
You normally have an adjustment capacitor to tune the antenna to different frequencies.
Hackaday

Voice of America Museum of Broadcasting open additional hours for Hamvention
New exhibits include a dedicated room for Amateur Radio.
VOA Museum

Get in shape for Hamvention
Start walking a little each day and be in better shape for walking Hamvention.
KB6NU

Video

How to wind a toroid inductor
The real trick is often how to hold the toroid core.
W2AEW

How I’m logging my Parks on the Air (POTA) contacts
Getting back to basics by looking at key parts of a Parks on the Air activation.
KB9VBR Antennas

Build a DIY Dipole Antenna
A 10m dipole without a balun or commercial center insulator.
RADIO STATION AD0IM

5G to 6G cellular technology
The evolution of cellular technology in relation to First Net & ARES.
WB7OML

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Amateur Radio Weekly is curated by Cale Mooth K4HCK. Sign up free to receive ham radio's most relevant news, projects, technology and events by e-mail each week at http://www.hamweekly.com.

ICQ Podcast Episode 400- Show 400 Celebration

In this episode, we join Martin Butler M1MRB, Chris Howard (M0TCH), Martin Rothwell (M0SGL), Frank Howell (K4FMH), Bill Barnes (WC3B) and Leslie Butterfields (G0CIB)  to discuss the latest Amateur / Ham Radio news. Colin Butler (M6BOY) rounds up the news in brief and in the episode's feature is Our Recollections of 400 Shows.

We would like to thank ICQPodcast 400 Club Member Winston Lawrence, KD2WLL, Neil Connor (M6CUE), Malcolm Heath (KS0T), Ed Efchak (WX2R), one-off donors Michael Rosenberg (N9YB), Gary Bridges (WA0VMV) and our monthly and annual subscription donors for keeping the podcast advert free. To donate, please visit - http://www.icqpodcast.com/donate

  • New Australian Ham Licences Delayed
  • ISS Time Traveller
  • Broadcaster Shuts Longwave Radio Transmitter in Iceland
  • American Clubs Grow with Collaboration
  • Ofcom Plan of Work

Colin Butler, M6BOY, is the host of the ICQ Podcast, a weekly radio show about Amateur Radio. Contact him at [email protected].

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