TechNet

On August 5th, I went to the M.A.A.R.C. Meeting and discussed to those in attendance about the club hosting a TechNet on the 146.940 repeater.

This is a sample of what I am thinking of in response from of those interested in being a part of the TechNet;

M.A.A.R.C. TechNet.

Topics include the latest news in the worlds manned and unmanned space programs, aeronautics, astronomy events and new discoveries. We will also cover Amateur Astronomy, Model, Mid and High Powered Rocketry, as well as Amateur Radio activities related to space such as monitoring meteor activity, contacting the International Space Station, using Amateur Radio Satellites, EME (Moonbounce) and how to use Orbital Plotting software.
Outside of Space topics we will also discuss;
How to use your radio, Radio Orienteering,Building mini transmitters for ROCA, Antenna Construction,Sound Card-to-Rig Interfaces, Cables and Connectors, DSP Manufacturers, Interfaces Manufacturers, Radio Manufacturers, Packet Radio, PSK31, Radio Programming Cables, RTTY, Ham Radio Software, Networking issues, Operating System issues and many other High Tech Radio-Computer related issues. This is just a few suggestions.

Tower Climb to 1768 Feet

This is being sent on twitter and e-mails. Seems like everyone is seeing it. I would climb this tower.

Earth's atmosphere/ Shrinking

THE upper reaches of Earth's atmosphere are unexpectedly shrinking and cooling due to lower ultraviolet radiation from the sun, US scientists say.

The sun's energy output dropped to unusually low levels from 2007 to 2009, a significantly long spell with virtually no sunspots or solar storms, according to scientists from the National Centre for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado.

During that period, the thermosphere, whose altitude ranges from about 90-500km, shrank and contracted from the sharp drop in ultraviolet radiation, said the study published in the American Geophysical Union's journal Geophysical Research Letters.

A narrower, less dense thermosphere is good news for satellites orbiting Earth, including the International Space Station, since reduced friction means they can remain aloft longer, said University of Colorado professor and study co-author Thomas Woods.

source

Tmate (what your SDR always wanted)

This is really cool, A friend sent this to me. We talked about this while on Echo-Link. Seems like the really cool stuff is going on in Europe.

Tmate is the most awaited accessory by many users of SDR radio that can not or will not stay without the VFO knob! With a classical tuning knob, the USB interface and the upgradable software, allows the control of main functions of the various SDR software. Intended mainly to allow the use of SDR software without the need to watch the screen of the PC, or when the screen of the PC is crowded by various programs such as LOG or software for DIGITAL operations or CONTEST.

Meteor Explosion

AUSTRALIA - Meteor explosion wows community. Many residents heard the loud rumble, and some were even lucky enough to see something in the sky, but simply everyone is talking about the supposed meteor that exploded over the Tombong area last Tuesday afternoon. A huge number of locals report having heard a loud unexplained “thundering” noise on Tuesday at around 2pm, while others tell of seeing a light falling through the sky at around the same time. No one got quite as close as a local Country Energy worker who was preparing to climb a power pole to make repairs. He suddenly noticed a light in the sky, which started traveling straight towards him in an east to west direction. He knew the bright object was traveling far too quickly to be an aircraft, and he watched in astonishment for over 20 seconds as it flew over the top of him, making a loud hissing or “swooshing” sound. He said the initially bright object dulled and broke up into four or five pieces, with a huge roar to be heard.
“Everything shook. I’ve never been in an earthquake, but it was that kind of a thing.”
Two reports had been registered on the Sydney Observatory ‘Lights in the Sky’ blog page that most likely related to the occurrence. The reports tell of sightings of a daytime meteor between 1.50pm and 2pm on the Tuesday. “A meteor bright enough to be seen during the day may well be sufficiently large to survive the journey through the atmosphere and become a meteorite on the ground. However, unless it was seen to land we are unlikely to ever find out.”

Dilbert - The Knack

Isotron Antennas

So here I am looking at different antennas. Anyone of my readers have any experience with the Isotron Antenna?
I'm looking to purchase the 75/80.
I did hear from a local ham that they are a good antenna.
I also heard from another local ham that they are not worth a dime.

Isotron Antenna Home Page

Working Amateur Radio Satellites

In recent weeks I have a several local hams ask me how to get started into being able to work Satellites.
It is not rocket science to be able to listen to the birds in outer space nor is it to transmit.
It dose however require some time, practice and research.

I always suggest obtaining some type of orbital plotting software; once you get it take some time to understand it.
Ounce you have achieved that then pick out a Satellite and listen to it for a few days. After you have done that then try and make your first contact. It may take you a day or a few weeks. The thing is never give up.

Equipment, that can be pricey it you want it to be. I have always been one for buying the best. I know not everyone is able to that. Heck, I fall into that boat currently.
My suggestion for equipment is a good duel band HT. I have a VX-7R; I’m hoping to get the new VX-8R soon.
Next, the Antenna, you can make one if you wish but I suggest you save the time and hassle and purchase on. Arrow makes a nice 3 element VHF, 7 element UHF with a 10 watt duplexer.
Here are a couple of videos and I hope these help those of you with questions.

How to work amateur radio satellites with your handheld (HT) radio from moleculo on Vimeo.

METEOR ECHOES

The Air Force Space Surveillance Radar is scanning the skies above Texas. When a meteor or satellite passes over the facility--ping!--there is an echo. Click on the button to listen to a live audio feed.

http://topaz.streamguys.tv/~spaceweather/

CME Missed Us.

Thank you to those of you who emailed me this;
The CME expected to hit Earth's magnetic field on Aug. 17th either missed or delivered such a feeble blow that no one noticed the resulting geomagnetic disturbance. The next opportunity for auroras is Aug. 24th when an incoming solar wind stream could provoke polar geomagnetic storms.
I also saw this on SpaceWeather.com

MFJ-1796

I have now owned this antenna for almost a year. What do I think about it?

It is awesome~

I bought this antenna from a local ham who was moving out of state and had no desire to take it with him. Best 65.00 dollars I ever spent.

I have made contacts to Central and South America, Virgin Islands, Azores, U.K., Spain, France and Germany. I have even made the trip to Alaska. What a great antenna the MFJ 1796 has been for me.

I have also contacted a majority of the lower 48. I would have to go through my log book but I am confident I have more than 50% of them logged. I guess not bad for a 10 month General.

The MFJ 1796 is a six band halfwave vertical antenna. Since it's a ground independent halfwave, no radials or ground plane are needed.

The antenna is very efficient because it is end loaded, sothe entire antenna radiates power. It uses no lossy traps, and achieves close 50 Ohm match on all bands, with no band switching. Easy to build and easy to tune!

band coverage; 40, 20, 15, 10, 6, 2m

height; 33 feet

power rating;1500 Watts, PEP

weight; 15 pounds

So lets get to the bottom line on this antenna – its a balanced dipole with loading coils (not traps) and capacity hats at each end. The length of the antenna is 12 feet as delivered from MFJ. Its as simple as that.

The MFJ-1796 as delivered by MFJ is expected to be used as a vertical and mounted on the ground, on a tripod on a roof, or attached to a chimney. Its a center-fed vertical dipole that is ground independent – that is, it does not require a counterpoise or grounding system.

http://www.mfjenterprises.com/man/pdf/MFJ-1796.pdf

IONOSPHERIC DISTURBANCE

The C4-class solar flare of Aug. 14th bathed Earth's upper atmosphere in X-rays and caused a wave of ionization to sweep over Europe. This improved the propagation of low-frequency radio signals which use the ionosphere as a reflector to skip over the horizon. A SID monitor operated by Jan Karlovsky of Hlohovec, Slovakia, recorded the effect:

"SID" stands for Sudden Ionospheric Disturbance, and a "SID monitor" is a radio receiver that monitors ~20 kHz signals from distant transmitters. "My system easily detected the effects of the solar flare," says Karlovsky. "I monitor two stations: DHO38 in Germany (23.4 kHz) and GQD in Great Britian (22.1 kHz). The German signal was most strongly boosted."

With solar activity on the rise, sudden ionospheric disturbances will become more common. Interested? Stanford University tells you how to build your own SID monitor.

source

CME/ Glancing Blow to Earth's Magnetic Field Aug. 17.

The sun has produced three bright coronal mass ejections (CMEs) this weekend. None is heading directly for Earth, although the CME of Aug. 14th might deliver a glancing blow to Earth's magnetic field on August 17th.
SOHO captured this video clip of a full halo coronal mass ejection (CME) that blasted a substantial cloud of particles away from the Sun (Aug, 7, 2010). The majority of the cloud went to the left with only a smaller portion heading to the right, suggesting that it would not likely have any strong impact on Earth. A “halo” cloud is one that appears to surround the Sun on all sides as it expands, meaning it is heading somewhat towards Earth or away from it. The still and movie are generated by processing the changes from one frame to the next to highlight those changes, thus, we call this a “difference movie.” Click Here

SUNSPOTS ERUPT IN TANDEM

Today at 1005 UT, magnetic fields connecting sunspot 1093 and 1099 erupted, producing a two-sunspot solar flare (C4-class) and hurling a huge blob of plasma into space. Click on the image to launch a Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) movie of the event:

The explosion lasted for more than two hours, giving many amateur astronomers time to catch the eruption in action. Other than photo-ops, however, this explosion will probably not affect Earth much. The cloud ejected by the blast is not heading our way.

KD8BIG Update

The last 4-5 weeks have been a struggle for me. After having an upper respiratory infection turn into Bacterial Pneumonia that lingered on for ever I ended up with other health issues this last Friday evening. So I have missed out on a lot since then.
I did however make it to the local amateur radio club meeting and talked to those present about my idea of having a tech net.
How about the activity on the Sun? Wow, very kewl~
I thought I would share this link, it has some really awesome pictures of the Auroras this week due to the activity going on the Sun.

Huge Solar Storm Triggers Unusual Auroras

Cosmic Tsunami on the way

A dream come true for the Amateur Radio Operator.
Tonight the bands are really active. I have made contacts on 2, 6, 10, 15, 20 and 40 meters. I tried to make a contact on 80 and 160, no joy.

Solar Tsunami to Strike Earth