Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Amateur Radio Weekly – Issue 413
March 21st, 2026 | 
Author: 
OOTA: Out On The Air
Any location. Any antenna. Any power.
OOTA
What’s new at DLARC
We have lots of new documents and movies from Milwaukee (Wisconsin) Radio Amateurs’ Club. The club has been diligent about documenting its history: they recently sent dozens of documents, images, and films.
Zero Retries
A visit to Italy’s Begali Keys factory
We accepted the offer and started our trip to Italy with a visit to Brescia, where the company has been producing keys for more than 60 years.
OnAllBands
AetherSDR
A Linux-native client for FlexRadio Systems transceivers.
ten9876
KJ4WLC Ham Dashboard
Real-time Amateur Radio data.
KJ4WLC
A short and maybe not-so-sweet HF antenna
A lot of information has been posted online recently about very short portable vertical antennas.
Ham Radio Outside the Box
My time with Pat…So far
My love for pat has only grown over the past couple of years that I’ve been using it. Why? Because it’s simple and incredibly versatile.
KC8JC
Hush
An Open Source alternative to VARA-HF.
Hush
Ham Clock CYD
A stand-alone device that could operate even if the internet is not available.
KC1ENS
ARRL is hiring
We are currently hiring for several impactful positions.
ARRL
ARDC is hiring
ARDC seeks a mid-to-senior-level Software Developer and Technical Writer.
ARDC
Video
Talking across the continent through the International Space Station
I tried a couple new antennas for dual-band satellite operations.
saveitforparts
Otis NP4G: Dayton Hamvention 2026 Amateur of the Year
A Puerto Rican orthodontist, DXpeditioner, and president of INDEXA who has spent years turning big radio dreams into real-world action.
Q5
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If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.
 |
| My clone drives |
Flea Power
Making QSOs with a Tiny Solar Panel
Last year I bought a 5 watt solar panel and a little rechargeable battery for $14. This week I made two QSOs a day for 8 days powered only by the solar panel in the window. I wanted to find out if I could really make QSOs with minimal power. I worked 9 states and 3 countries.
I used the (tr) uSDX at 4 watts. The antenna was a 136 ft OCF dipole. In the foreground is the little battery. It’s only 2500 mAh. To convert the 5 volts from the battery to 12 volts for the rig, I used a Baofeng charging dongle. Everyday after making a couple of QSOs, I’d put the panel in a window and charge up the battery.
Of course using QRP is essential. The rig draws 66 mAh on receive
and 570 mAh on transmit.
Here’s my log for the 8 days I conducted the experiment:
11 Mar-26 1507 14.060 W0ANM CW 569 559 MN
12 Mar-26 1405 7056 VE3KZE CW 579 579 ON
12 Mar-26 1407 7053 K0DOG CW 579 579 PA
13 Mar-26 1511 14.060 KA5TXN CW 339 559 TX
13 Mar-26 1921 14.027 DL8DYL CW 599 599 Germany
13 Mar-26 1923 14.0 HA3MAR CW 599 599 Hungary
14 Mar-26 1405 7054 KB3NSK CW 559 599 PA
14 Mar-26 1407 7052 K3EW CW 559 599 MD
15 Mar-26 1359 7052 K4TNE CW 449 579 NC
15 Mar-26 1406 7057 K3OP CW 529 559 PA
16 Mar-26 1611 14.044 K5OHY CW 539 559 TX
16 Mar-26 1614 14.057 AF8T CW 599 599 OH
17 Mar-26 1541 7051 WA1TOM CW 339 559 MA
17 Mar-26 1549 14.044 N4DH CW 339 549 NC
18 Mar-26 1550 14.058 KF8FCC CW 599 599 MI
18 Mar-26 1555 14.047 NS1C CW 449 559 FL
For many months, I’d been using the panel and the battery to power
my WSPR transmitter at 200 mw. I’d send out a beacon every morning
on 20 meters. I was heard all over the world. So I thought I’d try CW
with a little more power.
Amateur Radio Weekly – Issue 412
2026 Hamvention Award Winners announced
Please join us in congratulating these very deserving winners.
Hamvention
FT0 digital mode
The next evolution in digital modes — featuring a 0-second sequence time.
FT0
LinHT hardware documentation
LinHT is an open-source handheld software-defined radio (SDR) transceiver built around a modern Linux System-on-Module and a true IQ RF front-end.
M17 Foundation
HamDash
Free and Open Source Ham Radio dashboard.
HamDash
Ten watts to Spain. Ten watts to Germany. Ten watts to Austria
The EFHW at 35 feet made all the difference.
David Saylors
Alliance Amateur Radio Network
Radio for those left out.
AARN
Is the CIA using radio to instruct Iran agents? Listen for yourself
An amateur sleuth thinks ghostly broadcasts are a revival of Cold War ‘numbers stations.’
The Times
DXtra FCC radio database explorer
We have computed Longley-Rice coverage maps for the entire US, Canada, UK and European fleets of FM stations. Also we have computed VOACAP coverage maps for most of the world’s HF.
DXtra
Installing an M17 Reflector on a cloud server
I document what worked for me after more than half a dozen attempts to build a working system.
EtherHam
Be gone pesky radials!
One of the biggest bugbears of portable operations in a public space when using a vertical antenna is having to lay out radials.
Ham Radio Outside the Box
MyHamStudyHub
The complete study platform for FCC Technician, General, and Extra class amateur radio licenses. No cost.
MyHamStudyHub
868MHz DX
This is 139m above sea level, with a clear line of sight across the Irish Sea to Cumbria, the Isle of Man, and the Mourne Mountains in Northern Ireland.
Real-World Amateur Radio
Video
2026 Hamvention Award Winners announcement video
Tim Duffy, K3LR, and Hamvention spokesperson Michael Kalter, W8CI announce the 2026 Hamvention Award Winners.
DX Engineering
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Amateur Radio Weekly – Issue 411
Indiana Bill prohibits HOAs from restricting Ham antennas
A homeowners association may not adopt or enforce a regulation, rule, or other policy that has the effect of prohibiting a person from maintaining an Amateur Radio antenna on a property that the person owns, rents, or leases.
US7IGN
MFJ Documentary
Martin F. Jue: Life and Legacy. A documentary about MFJ Enterprises, ingenuity, legacy, and community.
Preston Booth Cinematography
Big numbers for POTA
Activity has grown substantially since 2023—roughly 40% overall.
POTA News & Reviews
ARISS beyond the ISS
ARISS is plotting a course to continue our mission in the government and commercial space realm beyond the targeted decommissioning of the ISS in the 2030 timeframe.
ARISS
Simple D-STAR transceiver uses inexpensive hardware
D-StarBeacon makes beacon-type functions possible on inexpensive hardware, instead of requiring a full-blown radio.
Hackaday
Mini-FT8
Mini FT8 on M5 Cardputer for portable operations.
AG6AQ
Satellite status and online tracker
This is a list of all amateur satellites and other sats of interest. It is also a simple online tracker.
AMSAT-SM
The ISS returns to S-Band
HamTV now transmitting color bars on 13 cm.
AMSAT-CA
New Farsi numbers station reported on 7910 kHz
According to the report, this new signal first appeared around the time of recent military strikes involving Iran.
SWLing Post
Rydberg atoms detect clear signals from a handheld radio
Scientists recover audio encoded in multiple public radio channels.
Phys.org
Canada to shut down its VHF weather radio service
Environment and Climate Change Canada cited increased costs and “more viable alternatives.”
RadioWorld
Video
K5ACP BNC antenna clip is just what I’ve been looking for
This is a sturdy MOLLE clip that we purchase and then add our custom designed BNC bracket.
Ham Radio Tube
Five Two Simplex Challenge
Call out on 146.52 MHz FM for 52 days and work together to generate more 2m simplex activity.
N2MAK
(Hobbies) Ham Radio
It’s become easier than ever to communicate with each other. Yet, there’s a beauty in understanding the simple forms of electronic messaging.
Not Just a Hobby
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Amateur Radio Weekly – Issue 410
Inovato and N0LSR Design support and promote the OHB project
OHB public server keeps your HamClock running indefinitely.
N0LSR Design
Useful knots and applications for Radio Amateurs (PDF)
253 pages discussing ropes, knots, and their application within the Radio Amateur community.
PA3DJS
Fifty things you can do with a software defined radio
This project attempts to create GNU Radio flowgraphs for each of those items.
Onno VK6FLAB
Ham Radio Manifesto: From utility to creativity
The current approach to Amateur Radio, focused on communication and disaster relief, is no longer sufficient to attract today’s technical profiles.
F4JXQ
TPRFN launches live network views
Your real-time pulse on system performance.
TPRFN
KX2 battery capacity when charged from different voltage sources
I was curious to see how a lower charging voltage would correspond to capacity.
AE5X
Online museum tours and talks
You don’t need to travel the world to visit and enjoy many of the most impressive museums related to Ham Radio and radio communications.
Amateur Radio Events
Ham Radio Dashboard
Displays solar weather, band conditions, the 11 closest Ham Radio satellites, and data from PSK Reporter.
Andreas Peters
United States Bunkers on the Air
USBOTA joined the Worldwide Bunkers on the Air (WWBOTA).
USBOTA
The Last of the hybrids: Kenwood TS-830s
These transceivers aren’t “all-tube” in the boatanchor sense, nor are they fully solid-state like modern SDRs
Ham Radio QRP
Video
AMSAT discusses futureGEO
President Glasbrenner talks feasibility of a geostationary Ham sat.
AMSAT
The story of the Hams that founded Zenith
What happened to the factory that put a television in every American living room?
The Last Shift
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Amateur Radio Weekly – Issue 409
FT2: The fastest digital mode ever created
3.8-second cycles — Complete QSO in 11 seconds. 4x faster than FT8.
FT2
Parks on the Air’s explosive growth and the next chapter
POTA is usually described in simple terms: It’s growing quickly.
Q5
BAOFENG UV-5R Mini: First impressions
These things are small. They are about the size of an FRS radio but feel a little more solid in the hand.
Random Wire
Anytone AT-D890UV full duplex satellite HT
This new HT should have real full duplex capability – it can transmit on VHF and receive on UHF without any desense.
AMSAT-SM
Zero Retries Digital Conference 2026 announced
ZRDC 2026 will be held on Friday 2026-10-16 at the Roundhouse Conference Center in San Ramon, California, USA.
Zero Retries Digital Conference
Worldwide Bunkers on the Air
WWBOTA is an exciting mix of Amateur Radio and history enabling radio amateurs to ‘activate’ with portable and mobile operations from historic bunker locations.
WWBOTA
SWR Magazine Waves Weekend
An on-air special event taking place on February 21, 2026. We will be activating KP3SWR from Puerto Rico.
SWR Magazine
RSGB: A year in numbers 2025
Amateur Radio continues to evolve and the RSGB, in turn, develops how it supports current radio amateurs and reaches out to new audiences.
Radio Society of Great Britain
WQ2XDM – New US experimental callsign for radio propagation tests
K9JMS recently received permission from the FCC to carry out propagation tests at 40 MHz (8m) and 70 MHz (4m).
EI7GL
Video
You should try Linux for Ham Radio today
It’s never been easier running Linux on a cheap laptop for Ham Radio.
Ham Radio Crash Course
The ultimate emergency comms trailer
A detailed tour of the brand-new Duval County ARES trailer.
KM4ACK
FT2 is the fastest digital mode ever created
With 3.8 seconds per tx/rx, this has been claimed to be the fastest digital mode to date.
Tech Minds
