AmateurRadio.com

A few weeks ago, I enjoyed tracking two high altitude balloons launched from near Cambridge, across the channel across Belgium, Germany and then finally into Austria. On that occasion, I didn’t have the time to set up the software to attempt to receive the data from the balloons and upload them.

Earlier in the week, I noticed Dave Akerman M6RPI mention that there would be two balloon launches this Saturday. Both quite interesting – one was a fund raising venture for Purley Infants’ School and the second one was even more fun – an attempt to release Kingsley, the Reading FC mascot from a balloon at exactly 18.71 miles above the earth and have him drift down to earth on a parachute.

As ever, I didn’t really plan it, but at least I was downloading the DL-FLDIGI software as the balloons were being launched! Data about launches together with a plot about where the balloons currently launched are, is shown on the SpaceNear website

As the balloons were being launched from about 20 miles from me, I was reasonably confident I would hear them. I turned the 432MHz yagi (10 ele) towards the launch site. I picked the Purley balloon and tuned the FT847 to the appropriate frequency on 434MHz SSB. The balloons transmit a RTTY signal. Very soon, I could hear a weak signal.

I fired up DL-FLDIGI and filled in the station configuration details. After a bit of fiddling, I settled on setting the mode to RTTYR (the FT847 was on USB) and I was able to decode some data. Although I was receiving data and could see that it was being uploaded to the Spacenear site, I was getting a lot of bad checksums. Initially, I thought this was something I was doing wrong. However, I think it was because the Purley balloon must have been running quite low power. I will ask Dave about this.

However, when I tuned to the KINGSLEY balloon, signals were very much stronger and I was able to track it well as it rose to the target height, burst and then gently descended to a landing spot not too far from Basingstoke. It was fun tracking it very close to the horizon. Actually during part of the descent, the balloon’s transmit frequency was drifting fast – almost too fast for DL-FLDIGI’s AFC! However, I was able to persuade it to play after a bit more fiddling and a restart of the software!

Now, has anyone in Basingstoke seen a toy lion on a parachute? (actually, the good news is that Dave, M6RPI has recovered both payloads successfully, so Kingsley hasn’t had to sleep out rough..)

Tim Kirby, G4VXE, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Oxfordshire, England. Contact him at [email protected].

Series Six Episode Thirteen of the ICQ Podcast has been released. News Stories include :-

• RSGB Centenary
• New GB3WGI 144MHz transatlantic beacon goes live with G2FKZ legacy funding
• Dot, dash, full stop: Telegram service ends
• Moon bounce from Antarctica
• Duhallow Repeater Group
• 70MHz DXpedition to EU-013 Jersey
• 3rd UK High Altitude Society Conference
• California Radio Hams claim 77 GHz world record
• Band allocation at 5 MHz for Samoa
• 5 GHz Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications
• Google Project Loon using 2400 and 5800 MHz

Your feedback and  Martin Butler (M1MRB & W9ICQ) discusses Radio Safety.

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

Series Six Episode Thirteen of the ICQ Podcast has been released. News Stories include :-

• RSGB Centenary
• New GB3WGI 144MHz transatlantic beacon goes live with G2FKZ legacy funding
• Dot, dash, full stop: Telegram service ends
• Moon bounce from Antarctica
• Duhallow Repeater Group
• 70MHz DXpedition to EU-013 Jersey
• 3rd UK High Altitude Society Conference
• California Radio Hams claim 77 GHz world record
• Band allocation at 5 MHz for Samoa
• 5 GHz Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications
• Google Project Loon using 2400 and 5800 MHz

Your feedback and  Martin Butler (M1MRB & W9ICQ) discusses Radio Safety.

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

Even with SSB there is a possibility to make DX QSO's. This video is a nice example. Today I worked IW2NOH and SQ9JXB with 1 watt JT9-1 on 20 meter this morning. I was calling LA3LJA but he did not come back for me, so I walked away from the rig to get a cup of coffee, and then I saw he was returning for me. So I missed the QSO here. Sorry.

Paul Stam, PC4T, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from the Netherlands. Contact him at [email protected].

Series Six Episode Thirteen of the ICQ Amateur / Ham Radio Podcast has been released. The latest news, your feedback and  Martin Butler (M1MRB & W9ICQ) discusses Radio Safety.

• RSGB Centenary
• New GB3WGI 144MHz transatlantic beacon goes live with G2FKZ legacy funding
• Dot, dash, full stop: Telegram service ends
• Moon bounce from Antarctica
• Duhallow Repeater Group
• 70MHz DXpedition to EU-013 Jersey
• 3rd UK High Altitude Society Conference
• California Radio Hams claim 77 GHz world record
• Band allocation at 5 MHz for Samoa
• 5 GHz Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications
• Google Project Loon using 2400 and 5800 MHz 

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

For now at least!  😉

After mowing the lawn early this afternoon, I finished the job that I had started the other evening. I finished getting my new set of radial wires down for my Butternut vertical.

My first set, put down so many years ago, consisted of a set of 25 foot  (8 Meter) long wires, fanned out from the base of the Butternut. If memory serves me correctly, I originally put 25 radials down. They have long since disappeared under the lawn, but I know for a fact that two were damaged over the course of the years. One by me, and one by our dog.

Today, I put another dozen wires down, but these were not 25 footers. Today, I laid down wires as long as I could to the opposite end of the back lawn. In all, I put down approximately 650 feet (198 Meters) worth of wire. I used up what I had leftover from last time and entirely used up a brand new 500 foot spool of 14 gauge wire.

I still need to buy another bag of landscaping pins, so that I can secure the wires to the ground s little more securely in several areas. There are a few spots where I believe the lawn mower wheels might push the wire around, unless it’s secured a little better.

So that makes a total of 37 radials down around my Butternut. Someday, I’d like to get that total closer to 60. I have read in several articles that 60 is the magic number, where adding more than that causes no significant increase in benefit.

73 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

Larry Makoski, W2LJ, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Jersey, USA. Contact him at [email protected].

It is always interesting to me what motivates people. Usually it's the simplest things. Challenge a man to task, for the sake of the task and you get few takers, but offer him a patch or plaque and you get stampeded. Such is life and I'm no exception to the rule.

So, I was very pleased to come home yesterday and my SOTA Sloth award was in the mail box. As I have written, I am having a lot of fun with the Summits on the Air (SOTA) program both chasing summits and activating them as well. The SOTA Sloth award is for getting 1,000 chaser points. Summits are assigned a point value from 1 to 10,so for each summit contact made, the chaser gets credit for the points assigned to the summit..

The awards are very nice and each is a little unique. They are made of glass are called Ice Blocks. The certificate if authenticity that comes with the award reads:


Mike Crownover, AD5A, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Texas, USA. Contact him at [email protected].