Amateur Radio Weekly – Issue 288
MM0UKI adventurers reach Rockall
After defying rough seas, team leader Cam Cameron aims to beat 45-day record for staying on isolated rock.
The Guardian
Museum Ships Weekend
All stations that work at least 15 different ships will receive a certificate.
Battleship New Jersey Amateur Radio Station
International Women in Engineering Day
Celebrate its 10th year in 2023 on June 23rd.
Women’s Engineering Society
Decentralized Amateur Paging Network
DAPNET consists of a decentralized server cluster feeding paging data to distributed transmitters.
DAPNET
Cornbread Road
An audio format short story about a secret society of Hams.
KE9V
HF summertime propagation
Illumination of the ionosphere with UV varies greatly with time of day and the seasons.
OnAllBands
Long-delayed echo
The delay was 1.272 seconds.
AE5X
The joy of a low-slung wire
Something between 4 and 10 feet off the ground and horizontal in orientation.
QRPer
Video
Super cheap single pole beam for 21 MHz
Beams can be heavy and bulky so are rarely used by HF portable operators. But not this one!
VK3YE
High power shortwave high in the Andes
HCJB, The Voice of The Andes, was the first radio station with daily programming in Ecuador.
Antique Wireless Museum
[Throwback] Morse Code vs. SMS speed contest on the Tonight Show
K7JA faces off against world text-messaging champ. RIP K7JA.
DailyMotion
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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.
A nice surprise in the mail today.
I wanted to thank the Dutch PACC contest committee for a nice participation ribbon that arrived today. It was the first time I took part in this contest and it was well-attended and fun. When I looked up my log results I was not able to find them at first. I later clued in that I entered as SOAB low-power MIXED! I have to pay closer attention as I was and always am CW and not mixed.
Mike Weir, VE9KK, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Brunswick, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].
Butt in chair theory
This past weekend we had record-setting temperatures and amazing weather! Unfortunately, I heard the call of the wild and not what contesters call "Butt in chair" My name was being called from many directions..the BBQ, the deck chairs, sunny skies and later in the day a cold beer. This was a small still voice of the CQ WPX contest but at times was silenced by the fair day voice. I chose to mostly enjoy the day as there will be more contests and over the summer I will get tired of the very warm weather.
The contest conditions when I was taking part were filled with QSB and many repeats of progressive serial numbers. For the time I spent in the contest I was happy with my results and I could tell that my consistent contest practice is paying off. I can copy much faster and more accurately. In all CW contests that involve numbers in the exchange, many stations will send what is called cut numbers. These are letters in place of the actual number. The most common are 9 (N), 1 (A) and 0 (T) there are some others but these are the most common. Why am I telling you this.....well for the first time I heard a station ID his call with a cut number. As an example, my call VE9KK would be sent as VENKK. Most contest rules if not all do not allow this as well I would think the telecommunications governing body of the country they are from would not be pleased. As always I entered the contest as Low power (100 watts or less), unassisted (did not use spotting assistance) single operator and single transmitter. I used my Icom 7610 and Hustler 4BTV vertical antenna.
Mike Weir, VE9KK, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Brunswick, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].
AmateurLogic 181: George & Mike’s Excellent Adventure
AmateurLogic.TV Episode 181 is now available for download.
George & Mike cover the premiere Hamfest of the season, Hamvention 2023. Visits with friends and vendors. Plus some great new finds you may not be aware of. Hamvention is always a fun, entertaining event and this year was no different.
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 287
HamClock: Keep track of much more than the time
HamClock is a kiosk-style application that provides real time space weather, radio propagation models, operating events and other information particularly useful to the Radio Amateur.
WBØOEW
Open Headset Interconnect Standard
We have no such standards for the interface between the user and the radio. Is the microphone a dynamic, or electret? Is it balanced, pseudo balanced, or unbalanced?
OHIS
$100k offered for solutions to deliberate QRM
The Northern California DX Foundation recognizes the negative aspect deliberate QRMers are having on our hobby.
KB6NU
Titanic: Amateur Radio heard SOS 3,000 miles away
Among the first to respond was an amateur radio operator some 3,000 miles away in south Wales.
BBC
Photos of 2023 Hamvention
Mike (VE3MKX) shares photos from the 2023 Hamvention.
SWLing Post
FT8 Telegram bot
Maybe you do not want to spend time waiting for the magic red line to appear.
Notizbl0g
Video
Arctic Circle Off Grid
An off-grid data communications field test above the Arctic Circle.
OH8STN
Fastest no tune 80 10 EFHW NVIS antenna
Chalk Line based Ham Radio Antenna.
Bucktail Outdoor Research
Receiving and decoding GreenCube CubeSat
Here we take a look at how to receive and decode GreenCube using an SDR receiver.
Tech Minds
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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.
CLE 292 Seek List
List candidate AP-378 Mayne Island, BC...Can you hear it? |
Here is the remaining information needed for this weekend's CLE 292. Please give it a try, especially if you have not entered before. MF conditions have been very good this week.
Hello all
Our 292nd CLE starts at 12:00 UTC this Friday (probably ‘today’ as you read this) and it ends at 12:00 UTC on Monday.
Big thanks to those of us who each chose 1, 2 or 3 ‘special’ NDBs for us all to try and log during the event. Several of you also gave interesting reasons why they are special – something for the Coordinators’ Comments afterwards!
That’s not a lot, so, for THIS CLE ONLY, everyone is invited, wherever they are, to make ONE OR TWO SEPARATE LOGS – one log made in the ‘normal’ way (e.g. listening from home) PLUS, if you wish, a separate log made vIa any kind of remote receiver (WebSDR, KIWI, etc.).
The Radio Countries are in Alphabetical sequence, with the European ones flagged in yellow:
RADIO | NDB | |||
COUNTRY | ID | kHz | Chosen by | |
ALG(?) | ESR | 290 | Jorge G | |
ALS AK | PEE | 305 | Noel W | |
AUT | RTT | 303 | Andrea D | |
BEL | ONO | 399.5 | Roelof B | |
BRU | BR | 318 | Ken A | |
CAN BC | AP | 378 | Steve M | |
DEU | BRU | 427 | Hartmut W | |
DEU | FR | 297 | Hartmut W | |
DEU | HC | 330 | Hartmut W | |
DEU | LYE | 394 | Joachim R | |
DEU | NOR | 372 | Joachim R | |
DEU | WSN | 378 | Joachim R | |
ENG | BBA | 401 | Noel W | |
ENG | BPL | 318 | Alan G | |
ENG | BZ | 386 | Brian K | |
ENG | CAM | 332.5 | John M | |
ENG | CUL | 370 | Peter G | |
ENG | CWL | 423 | Noel W | |
ENG | EME | 353.5 | Peter G | |
ENG | EMW | 393 | Andrew P | |
ENG | EPM | 316 | Brian K | |
ENG | EX | 337 | Paul N | |
ENG | LBA | 402.5 | Alan G | |
ENG | LCY | 322 | John M | |
ENG | LPL | 349.5 | Alan G | |
ENG | SBL | 323 | Peter G | |
ENG | SND | 362.5 | John M | |
ENG | STM | 321 | Brian K | |
ENG | TNL | 327 | Andrew P | |
ENG | WL | 385 | Paul N | |
ENG | WTN | 337 | Dave R | |
ESP | SA | 416 | Jorge G | |
FRA | TLN | 322 | Giorgio C | |
FRO | MY | 337 | Roelof B | |
HOL | NW | 373 | Roelof B | |
HRV | RI | 289 | Andrea D | |
HWA HI | HN | 242 | Mike T | |
HWA HI | POA | 332 | Mike T | |
ITA | VIC | 417 | Andrea D | |
MDW | MDY | 400 | Mike T | |
MN USA | AA | 365 | Steve M | |
POR | STR | 371 | Jorge G | |
SAR | CAL | 316 | Giorgio C | |
SAR | DEC | 331 | Giorgio C | |
SCT | BRR | 316 | David A | |
SCT | OBN | 404 | David A | |
SCT | PIK | 355 | David A | |
SCT | SAY | 431 | Paul N | |
THA | NP | 383 | Ken A | |
THA | SN | 365 | Ken A | |
USA AZ | IP | 201 | Steve R | |
USA AZ | RBJ | 220 | Steve R | |
USA AZ | RYN | 338 | Frank O | |
USA CA | MOG | 404 | Frank O | |
USA CA | SB | 397 | Frank O | |
USA CO | ITR | 209 | Tony C | |
USA MO | FZ | 227 | Dick P | |
USA MO | JE | 397 | Dick P | |
USA MO | SU | 326 | Dick P | |
USA NE | CD | 362 | Tony C | |
USA NH | LAH | 276 | Stephen H | |
USA NH | LC | 328 | Charles D | |
USA NY | GF | 209 | Stephen H | |
USA OR | PND | 356 | Steven O | |
USA TX | DNI | 341 | Douglas S | |
USA TX | GG | 410 | Douglas S | |
USA TX | MA | 326 | Charles D | |
USA TX | ROB | 400 | Douglas S | |
USA VT | BT | 382 | Stephen H | |
USA WA | AW | 383 | Steven O | |
USA WA | BVS | 240 | Steven O | |
USA WA | MW | 408 | Steve M | |
USA WY | GYZ | 280 | Tony C | |
XOE | EKO | 375 | Dave R | |
There might be some discussion on the List about good remote receivers to choose.
(If you have kept the Results from previous CLEs, you might be able to see where users have made good results with their chosen remotes.)
Here are the Final Details again, sent before we had the finished seeklist:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hello all,
This coming weekend's Coordinated Listening Event is a very special one!
For the first time, the NDBs that we shall be listening for have all been selected by NDB List members during this last week.
Nearly all the replies had the suggested maximum of three NDB choices, mostly fairly local ones that have a special significance for that listener.
There will be about 75 different NDBs in all for everyone to listen for (not just those who chose them!)
YES – that sounds difficult for many of us, with most of the chosen NDBs in Western Europe and Western USA/Canada.
BUT recognising that, Joachim and I have been busy in the last few days finding a way to increase the number of available NDBs for each of us to listen for.
So, for THIS CLE ONLY, we can invite listeners, wherever they are, to make one OR TWO SEPARATE LOGS – one log made in the ‘normal’ way (e.g. listening from home) PLUS, if you wish, a separate log made via any kind of remote receiver (WebSDR, KIWI, etc.).
e.g. North American listeners could make a log as usual, PLUS a second listening via the Enschede WebSDR (University of Twente) in Holland.
(That supports hundreds of simultaneous listeners and is good on the NDB frequencies).
Times: Start and end at midday local time at the receiver.
Targets: The Nominated NDBs ONLY The seeklist is to follow.
(the NDB nominations finish today at 16:00 UTC*)
(QRG: ALL NDB frequencies, 190 – 1740 kHz)
Send your final one CLE log, or 2 separate logs, to NDB List, preferably as plain text emails, not in an attachment, with CLE292 and FINAL at the start of their title.
Please show on EVERY LINE of your log(s):
# The full Date (or Day no.) e.g. '2023-05-26' (or just '26') and UTC (the day changes at 00:00 UTC)
# kHz (the beacon's nominal published frequency)
# 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 the receiver’s location, its 6-character Locator if you know it, and brief details of the receiver and aerial(s).
We will send an 'Any More Logs?' email at about 20:00 UTC on Tuesday evening so you can check that your log(s) have been found OK.
To be included in the combined results, all logs must arrive on NDB List by 09:00 UTC on Wednesday 31st May at the very latest.
We hope to complete making the Combined Results within a few days.
Good listening
Brian and Joachim
ndbcle'at'ndblist.info
Steve McDonald, VE7SL, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from British Columbia, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].
CQ WW WPX CW contest!
This coming weekend is a long weekend for our American friends as well as it is the yearly running of the CQ WW WPX CW contest weekend. If you are into CW contesting this is one of the big ones to get involved in. As for me, I am hoping for a nice rainy weekend as this will keep me in the operating chair longer. Last year I used my EndFed antenna for this contest as I had the Hustler 4BTV but it was not as of yet installed.
Now I am curious to see how I do with the Hustler 4BTV compared to my EndFed antenna. I try to keep my CW contesting pencil sharp by taking part in the weekly 1-hour medium speed contests which max's out at 25 wpm and the CWops weekly CWT's which plain and simply just max's out! I also have daily practice with 2 contest simulation programs G4FON and Morse Runner.
CW is my thing and contesting is my thing, so for me this coming weekend I will be doing my thing.
Mike Weir, VE9KK, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Brunswick, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].