Sunspots and 10m - Sat March 28th 2015

Sunspot number is still good at 109, although 10m propagation is expected to remain "fair". In a years time when the SN will have really fallen, we'll think these are really high numbers!

So far today on 10m, EA8BVP (2986km) has been spotting my 10m 500mW WSPR beacon multiple times as has local G4IKZ (18km). Otherwise very quiet so far.

If there is a USA opening at all on 10m, I suspect it will come late in the day.

UPDATE 1206z:   EA8BVP has spotted me 21 times so far today.

SPAM comments - deleted again

This evening another SPAM comment was removed. As soon as SPAM comments are found (usually very quickly) they will be removed. Don't bother - just play your silly games somewhere else.

East Anglian Churches blog - NOT amateur radio

See http://eachurches.blogspot.co.uk/.
This has been updated today to include St Edward King and Martyr in Cambridge. This little church has a famous place in the English Reformation as the place where Robert Barnes gave one of the very first Reformation sermons. Hugh Latimer also preached here. The very same pulpit is still in use to this day.

Our 7 year old grandson's day was made earlier this week when he was shown the bells and rang some of them.

472kHz DX spots

At 0022z F1AFJ (607km) spotted my 5mW ERP WSPR signal. This evening PA0RDT (243km) is the best DX spotter so far.

10m USA WSPR spots

10m conditions appear to be poor to the USA today with just KT5W (6314km) spotting my 10m 500mW WSPR beacon once at 1654z. There may be more spots later.

UPDATE 2225z:   It looks like KT5W was again the last USA station to spot me, at 2126z. It looks like he was the only transatlantic station to spot me all day.

Sunspots and 10m - Friday March 27th 2015

Sunspot number is still high today at 103. 10m propagation is again expected to be "fair" and so far my 10m 500mW WSPR beacon has only been spotted by G4IKZ (18km) and EA8BVP (2986km). Conditions so far on 10m seem "muted", although it is still very early.

472kHz WSPR this afternoon

No great DX so far with G4AYT (114km) being the most distant station to spot my 5mW ERP so far. In the other direction, it is a similar story with no great DX as yet. I am always hoping that my little signal will be spotted by some totally new reporters.

USA 10m WSPR spots today

KT5W (6314km) first spotted me at 1338z, quite early nowadays.  As I write this at 1905z there are still plenty of USA stations spotting my 10m 500mW WSPR beacon.

UPDATE 2235z:   KT5W was also the last spot on 10m from the USA at 2118z tonight.

East Anglia churches blog updated - NOT amateur radio

See http://eachurches.blogspot.co.uk/ .

This blog has been added to with a note and some photos of Isleham Priory which dates back to 1090AD. I have also updated the entry for Isleham church which we first visited in February.

OFCOM plans for the year ahead

See http://www.ofcom.org.uk/content/about/annual-reports-plans/ann-plans/Annual_Plan_Statement.pdf .

Sorry, but this CRAP shows what OFCOM plans are for the year ahead. In an executive executive summary (mine) I would summarise this as,"continue to be a bureaucratic quango".

It looks like it was written by a young, overpaid, headless chicken. Lots of "informed choice" and similar buzz words. Rubbish in my view. No-one there seems to be able to make decisions based on the use of a brain and common sense.

Give OFCOM some real power and let them make common sense decisions. My recent discussions on VLF/LF experiments are just an example of their total inability to think "out of the box". Sorry, but as an OFCOM "customer" I am left very unimpressed.

Opinionated, me?