2m Es 3.6. 2024 (remote from SV2 holiday)

Yesterday, as part of our holiday in Greece, we visited the ruins of the ancient city of Olynthus. This monument reveals the remains of a city more than 3,000 years old. It's unbelievable that even back then they were able to build a 13km long water pipe to feed the fountain :) Today it would not be possible without the supermarket - development of society :) And it is also the development that can't be stopped - in a few moments I could see the remote desktop of my PC on my remote QTH. Something told me to connect and have a look and I couldn't stop wondering - CQ OD5VB. Beautiful signal, QSOs would be possible on SSB, but I'm not equipped for that. So at least FT8. The contact is made in a minute. Ant OD5VB disappears again in the noise. The distance is a nice 2450 km. Interestingly, after a while Pavel OK1ADT from the nearby QTH in Pardubice makes contact, but there is complete silence on the band for me.

After a while 4X/OM2IB and 4X1GA appear. Both only in one period.

First 2m Es in 2024 2.6. (remote from SV2 holiday)

After long months, the long awaited Es on 144MHz arrived. We are spending our holidays in Thessaloniki SV2 at the QTH of Ondra OK1CDJ, where I am active with little HF equipment. In the morning of the 2.6. 2024 I was in QSO with Pavel OK1ADT and we were discussing sadly about bad CONDX, when suddenly I saw CQ UA1ASA KO48 on 2m. Contact was made in a minute. In the meantime I watched 4m and the band opened up nicely to the north.

There is hope for Es on 2m as well. In the afternoon we drive to the centre of Thessaloniki and I forget to charge my mobile phone. I try the remote desktop to my OL7M remote site and the band is full of EA stations! I try to call one and it works. But the phone is dead, so I only manage to call a couple of stations - I'm not using AUTO! I still manage a couple of EAs and IS0. The Es took a surprisingly long time. I still hear some stations even after returning from the city. 

I also managed to find a lot of new stations on 4m. 

144MHz RIG: Adalm Pluto + 2m front-end + 70W PA + 12el G0KSC @ 15m

QTH: OL7M JO80CF

2m QSO 3.6. 2024

2m PSK reporter 2.6. 2024

4m PSK reporter 2.6. 2024

4m QSO 3.6. 2024

 Aurora Borealis May 2024

Something you don't see every day. Or every year... The Aurora Borealis is visible across most of the sky. This was the evening of Friday 10th May 2024.

With the eye you could only see flickering "clouds". My mobile phone didn't see anything, but Lucky's phone caught it in the preview. I alternated between taking pictures and listening to the band. I had the remote on OL7M. The 6m band was full of CW stations, the FT8 signals could not be decoded, they were "spreaded" over a wide area. The view of the 2m band was amazing, lots of stations and on the waterfall you could see beautifully which signals were spread out by the aurora. I gradually tuned in and heard stations from G to EW in beautiful strength. Mila OK1FPR appeared on the band, so I listened for a few moments and even tried 6m. 

The next day I have to help my parents in the cottage and so I quickly pack the IC-9700, CW key, power supply and paper and pencil. I have a small yagi 3m above the ground in the cottage. I set up the radio quite late, tune the band and the first QSO on the IC-9700 is DK3BU.

Then I find G4PIQ, weak signal, but I get 59A on the first try. Then another G, but the conditions disappear for me, the stations get lost and I only hear classic tropo signals. Then the band starts to fizzle and the DX stations are gone. I pack up the TRX and drive home.

Still a nice experience and my first QSO over the aurora. I have to finish the antennas at work, then it will be possible to be QRV faster - not counting the FT8 QSOs...

2m and 6m bands

I have never seen such a high number :)

My small hamshack in cottage, IC-9700, abt 80W and 10el Yagi between cottages

RX AUDITE VHF - version for 6 and 4m

This is new version of RX Audite. Redesigned for 50 and 70MHz, including filters, LNA with PGA-103+ and rest protections and switching as in the classic one.

You can find more at our web: https://hamparts.shop/rx-audite-vhf.html

This is the ideal solution for monitoring both 6 and 4m bands using one dual band Yagi antenna. However, you can also use it on one band and monitor, for example, both FT8 bands (50,313 and 50,323), or monitor the analog segment (beacons) and the FT8 one at the same time. This allows better monitoring of propagation conditions. RX AUDITE VHF also includes LNA and bandpass filters to limit signals from HF and FM BC transmitters.

Application:

- 6 and/or 4m RX splitter

- Monitoring both FT8 segments at 6m

- Dual band antenna splitter to 6 and 4m

- Web SDR and skimmer

- RX protections

- Low Noise Preamp and filters

REMOTE controllers by QRO.cz and DM5XX

Let us introduce new products for remote control of your HAM RADIO device.

We have prepared two articles:

- the first, which introduces three of our IP controllers

- the second with examples of connection to our RX antennas

More articles will follow :)

 Tropo ducting week at 2m 09/2023

As usual... Tropo Ducting started just after the VHF contest. The conditions were above average and all week I was wondering where to turn the antenna earlier. Thanks to FT8, I can be QRV in the company even while working - for me, that's the main advantage right after being able to make nice QSOs with low power and also monitor conditions that would be impossible to monitor while operating CW or SSB...

Cool conditions lasted all week. Many nights I found myself missing new stations - I only saw the ones I already had in the log. It was also strange how slightly after midnight the stations disappeared - time to go to bed? :)

I heard a lot of stations over 1500km, but I didn't get many calls or only a few pings - a combination of Tropo and MS?

My RIG: 12 el G0KSC, 70 W, Adalm Pluto with TCXO and front-end, LNA 2x BF998. 

QTH: OL7M contest QTH, JO80CF, antena in 15m, REMOTE operation

Worked stations during the Tropo ducting

LoRa APRS OK2ZAW-17 (link) received stations

A few print screens from days...

4.9. 2023

6.9. 2023

7.9. 2023

8.9.2023