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G4TNU > NEWS 02.07.23 04:01l 256 Lines 12252 Bytes #999 (0) @ EU
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Subj: RSGB Main News - 02 Jul 2023
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GB2RS Main News for Sunday the 2nd of July 2023
The news headlines:
* RSGB Tonight@8 webinar
* High-altitude balloon launch
* Alexanderson Day
Don't forget that the RSGB's next Tonight<at>8 webinar is this Monday
the 3rd of July, when Eric P. Nichols, KL7AJ will be presenting
"Receiving antennas are different". The Tonight@8 webinars are
livestreamed for free on the RSGB's YouTube channel and special
BATC channel, allowing you to watch the presentations and ask
questions online. You can find out more at rsgb.org/webinars
The team from hi-impact, based on the Wirral, is planning another
high-altitude balloon launch. This time, working alongside staff and
pupils from West Kirby School and College, they will launch a
high-altitude balloon at 11am, on the 11th of July 2023, from their
usual location in Cilcewydd [KIL-KOW-WITH], near Welshpool in Wales.
They will be running a HABduino and encourage all amateurs and
short-wave listeners to upload telemetry to SondeHub. The frequency
will be 434.650MHz USB, transmitting 50 Baud RTTY, 425Hz Shift and
using 8N1 data format. The callsign is WKRS_HAB [note: _ is
pronounced ‘underscore']. More information can be found on
hi-impact's Facebook page and on Twitter via <at>hiimpactconsult
Today, Sunday the 2nd of July, is Alexanderson Day and the Alexander
Association plans to activate the Grimeton [GREE-ME-TON] VLF
transmitter. The transmitter is located in Sweden and is the only
remaining example of an early radio transmitter known as
an ‘Alexanderson Alternator'. To read more about the Alexander
Association visit tinyurl.com/ALEXDAY23
Marcus, G0IJZ has recently carried out antenna modelling of the
Grimeton VLF antenna using NEC-5 software. You can read more about
this on a blog that Marcus has contributed to via tinyurl.com/MWALDEN
Amateurs are reminded that special callsign GB23C, used to celebrate
the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla, stopped being
available for use on Friday the 30th of June. The availability of
special callsigns GB23BAA to GB23BZZ, used for Beaconnect events,
also ended at the same time. The optional ‘R' Coronation regional
secondary locator prefix is also no longer available for use.
The RSGB's National Radio Centre at Bletchley Park will be closed on
the morning of Monday the 3rd of July. This is to allow time for work
to install a new amateur TV display. Following the work, the Centre
plans to re-open around lunchtime.
This year the popular British Inland Waterways on the Air event will
take place between the 26th and 28th of August. The event is open to
amateurs who use canals, towpaths, rivers, lakes or reservoirs for
work or recreation. Registration for the event is now open. To sign
up, visit Nunsfield House Amateur Radio Group's website,
nharg.org.uk, and follow the ‘BIWOTA 2023' link.
And now for details of rallies and events
The Barford Norfolk Radio Rally is taking place today, Sunday the 2nd
of July. The venue is Barford Village Hall and Green, Barford,
Norwich, NR9 4AB. The doors open at 9am for visitors and 8am for
traders. The event will feature trade stands, car boot sales, bring
and buy, a raffle, repeater groups, catering and free car parking.
Entry costs GBP 2.50 per person. Under 16s will be admitted free of
charge. For more information contact radio<at>dcpmicro.com and visit
norfolkamateurradio.org
The Cornish Radio Amateur Club Rally will take place on Sunday the
9th of July at Penair School, Truro, Cornwall, TR1 1TN. Doors open at
10.30am and admission is GBP 3. There will be traders, bring and buy
and club stalls. Car parking and catering are available on site.
Contact Ken, G0FIC on 01209 821073 for more information.
The McMichael Radio and Electronics Rally and Car Boot Sale will take
place on Sunday the 16th of July. The venue will be Reading Rugby
Club which offers a bar and catering facilities and has ample free
parking. Admission will be GBP 3 per person and GBP 10 per table for
traders. Berkshire Lowland Search and Rescue will be in attendance to
provide a First Response service. Visit mcmichaelrally.org.uk for
more information and contact details.
Now the Special Event News
Today is the last chance to work F1IEH who is active as TM100GPF in
celebration of the ‘24 Hours of Le Mans' event. The special
callsign's suffix stands for ‘Grand Prix de France', the motor race
held in June 1906 that has become known as the first Grand Prix. QSL
via F1IEH's home call.
As part of the ‘Crank It Up!' STEM Event at Beamish Museum today,
the 2nd of July, The Bishop Auckland Radio Amateur Club is operating
special event station GB4BM from the 1950s Welfare Hall. They will be
operating a range of amateur radio equipment covering HF Voice, HF
Data, VHF FM, SSB, DMR and internet-assisted modes. The digital and
internet-assisted stations are being run by the Extended Freedom
Network team and will allow the special event station to be contacted
by a very diverse range of connection types from across the world.
For further details visit extendedfreedom.network
Commemorating the role that radio, and radio amateurs, had in
rescuing the survivors of the airship 'Italia' disaster, special
callsigns RT95NS, RT95MS and RT95KG are active until the 12th of
July. The suffixes memorialise the radio amateurs who first picked up
the SOS call on the 3rd of June 1928, and radio operators on board
two of the ships that participated in the search and rescue
operations. R1LK will also be active onboard the amateur radio
station of the 'Krasin', the icebreaker that reached the castaways on
12th of July 1928. Certificates will be available on hamlog.online
for contacts made with these stations.
Now the DX news
Don, K6ZO will be active as 7Q6M from northern Malawi until,
possibly, the end of July. He expects to put special emphasis on the
6m band during his visit. He is joined by Jerry, W1IE and Bill, KC4D
today, the 2nd of July. Their operations will likely be restricted to
the evening hours of 1800 to 0000UTC and occasionally the early
morning hours of 0300 to 0500UTC. See QRZ.com for QSL information.
Roland, F8EN is active as TR8CR from Gabon until the 12th of August.
He operates CW only, usually on the 30 to 10m bands. QSL via F6AJA.
Now the contest news
The VHF National Field Day Contest ends its 24-hour run at 1400UTC
today, the 2nd of July. Using all modes on the 6m, 4m, 2m and 70cm
bands, and 1.3GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial
number and locator.
Also today, the 2nd of July, the 3rd 144MHz Backpackers Contest runs
from 1100 to 1500UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is
signal report, serial number and locator.
On Monday the 3rd of July, the 80m Club Championship CW Contest runs
from 1900 to 2030UTC. Using CW on the 80m band, the exchange is
signal report and serial number.
On Tuesday the 4th of July, the 144MHz FM Activity Contest runs from
1800 to 1855UTC. Using FM on the 2m band, the exchange is signal
report, serial number and locator.
Also on Tuesday the 4th of July, the 144MHz UK Activity Contest runs
from 1900 to 2130UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is
signal report, serial number and locator.
On Wednesday the 5th of July, the 144MHz FT8 Activity four-hour
Contest runs from 1700 to 2100UTC. Using FT8 on the 2m band, the
exchange is report and four-character locator. Also on Wednesday the
5th of July, the 144MHz FT8 Activity two-hour Contest runs from 1900
to 2100UTC. Using FT8 on the 2m band, the exchange is report and
four-character locator. Stations entering the four-hour contest may
also enter the two-hour contest.
On Sunday the 9th of July, the UK Microwave Group 24, 47 and 76GHz
Contest runs from 0900 to 1700UTC. Using all modes on 24, 47 and
76GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and
locator.
The IARU HF Championship starts its 24-hour run at 1200UTC on
Saturday the 8th of July. Using CW and SSB on the 160 to 10m bands,
where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and ITU
zone. The UK is in zone 27.
Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA, and G4BAO
on Thursday the 29th of June 2023
The solar flux index stayed in the 150s and 160s last week, which is
good news for HF propagation. From a flare and CME perspective, we
have been lucky in that we have only had a few solar flares, all of
which have been C- or M-class.
As a result, the Kp index has remained fairly low, being in the range
of one to three after the rise to a Kp of five on the 25th due to the
solar wind's magnetic field, or Bz, tipping south.
We are, however, still in the summer doldrums, so daytime DX is
limited thanks to D-layer absorption. We still recommend checking the
bands at night as the MUF over 3,000km is still exceeding 14MHz and
often reaching 18MHz at times. During the day Sporadic-E may still
keep you entertained on the higher HF bands.
Daytime critical frequencies are around 5.2 to 6.7MHz according to
the Dourbes ionosonde, which means you may find close-in contacts
tricky on the 40m band at times, whereas more DX distances are still
fine. Near vertical incidence skywave, or NVIS, 40m signals may not
be returned to Earth with that critical frequency.
Looking ahead, active sunspot region 3354 was pointing directly at
the Earth on Thursday, but has so far been behaving itself with
mostly C-class flare events. It is still the most likely candidate
for a coronal mass ejection, or CME, over the weekend.
Next week the Space Weather Prediction Centre has the Solar Flux
Index declining to 130 before picking up later in the week to perhaps
145. The Kp index should remain around two, unless we have a CME
which could see it rising to five with the attendant lowering of the
MUF.
Meanwhile, you can get an idea of the best times to work various
parts of the world by using the free Proppy software at
soundbytes.asia/proppy or via VOACAP.com
And now the VHF and up propagation news
The next week or so looks likely to continue in a very unsettled
theme with low pressure residing over Scandinavia for much of the
time and producing a west or north-westerly pattern over the UK.
This will mean that tropo propagation will not be a large part of our
operations during the period ahead. On the other hand, the frequent
spells of fronts with prolonged rain or heavy summer showers will
make rain-scatter modes a good use of time on the GHz bands.
Talking of scatter modes, we are not in a major meteor shower at
present, so random meteors are a good fail-safe although it can
entail spending a lot of time in the process.
The solar conditions, as previously mentioned, can be unsettled at
the moment, and thus there is a potential for radio aurora if the Kp
index goes above seven or so, even though daylight makes visible
events unlikely at this time of the year.
Lastly, the Sporadic-E situation is still our primary focus as we
move into July. Days with good jet stream activity over Europe are
good signs, whereas a high Kp index or solar flares are generally not
so good.
Of course, there are many other parameters involved and one of the
critical components is likely to be the random meteor count which
shows how much meteor debris might be available to make the
Sporadic-E patches. In a roundabout way, if you monitor the meteor
pings you might get a feel for how the Sporadic-E prospects are
stacking up.
The Moon declination is negative all week so there will be short Moon
windows. Tuesday's perigee means that path losses are at their lowest
for the month. 144MHz sky noise is high this weekend but falling back
to low levels by the end of the week.
And that's all from the propagation team this week.
And that's the end of the main news for this week prepared by the
Radio Society of Great Britain. Items for inclusion in subsequent
bulletins can be emailed to radcom<at>rsgb.org.uk to arrive by
10:00 on the Thursday before transmission.
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