Archive - July 2013

An impromtu mailing session over the weekend took place chez G3NUG!

Whilst attending the CDXC (Chiltern DX Club) Summer Social/AGM in Leominster I took the opportunity to get rid of a few Qsl cards to various people attending including Michael G7VJR (left) and Tim M0URX (right).

Just over 7Kilo of outgoing cards were left with Tim for onward mailing direct to World Bureaux (not via the RSGB) via our Royal Mail mailing contract and also a few incoming cards for Michael G7VJR were included in the mailing session. I have approx 1 Kilo to send to RSGB Bureau (all for ‘G’ stations) and 2 Kilo that need mailing to Japan which will go later this week once D44TWO cards are mailed (see previous blog entry).

Thanks to Nigel G3TXF for the Photo. There are several more on Nigel’s website if you would like to see them click here. Check out the link if you would like know more about the CDXC group and membership information.

The Qsl Cards for the D44TWO trip arrived yesterday and I will have them mailed on Friday 26th July.

My apologies to anyone for the slight delay but it took almost two weeks for the Photos to arrive from Harald as he had an unfortunate accident and was hospitalised for a short time.

If you need a Qsl Card for this trip then please use the link here at M0OXO OQRS. Your card is NOT required so please DO NOT SEND one, it is unnecessary!

Have you ever had trouble identifying different noises on the Bands? Maybe a usual one which we class as ‘Radar’, Digital Modes such as PSK or RTTY or maybe just something that arrives at short notice and you haven’t heard it before?

Check out a few of these noises on the links listed below. Its likely you will find the answer here;

– Plasma-TV on 3500 kHz (USB)
– Plasma-TV on 3500 kHz (AM)
– Plasma-TV (standby condition) on 3500 kHz
– TV switching power supply on 14000 kHz
– Small LCD-TV on 7000 kHz
– Large LCD-TV on 3515 kHz (USB)
– TFT Computer Monitor on 21377 kHz
– Computer monitor on 18100 kHz
– Broadband (DSL) modem on 21000 kHz

Failing that, click the link below to see a full list of the many soundfiles that should help you identify what you hear;

IARU Region 1 Monitoring System Soundfiles

Every year the IARU (International Amateur Radio Union) holds an international amateur radio contest organised by the ARRL.

The contest is usually held on the second full weekend of July, beginning 1200 UTC Saturday and ending 1200 UTC Sunday (July 13-14, 2013). Both Single and Multi operator stations may operate the entire 24-hour period.  Detailed information can be found on the ARRL IARU HF Championship website.

The objective of this contest is for radio amateurs to contact as many other radio amateurs, and especially IARU member society HQ stations, around the world using the 160, 80, 40, 20, 15 and 10 meter bands, by Morse (CW)  and Voice  (SSB).

GR2HQ is the callsign being used by the UK Headquarters Station. This the callsign of the team which represents the RSGB and UK amateurs.

This intention behind this website is to provide information specific to the GR2HQ entry, how and when to work the station, the awards available to those contacting the station,and of course QSL information.

2013 is the Centenary of the RSGB, an organisation that played a major part in the IARU and of course the early days of radio communications.

Click here to see more information about Awards and how to request your Qsl Card from GR2HQ!

Please remember, we DO NOT NEED YOUR QSL CARD, please DO NOT SEND IT !

Every QSO counts ! Including yours ! 

British Airways has released photos of the first Airbus A380, MSN95, painted in the airline’s red, white and blue livery this week. Here ius a little ‘useless’ information for you;

It took 24 painters at Airbus’ Hamburg hangar two weeks to complete using eight movable platforms up to 30 meters from the ground.

They applied five coats of red, white and blue gloss paint (2,300 litres of paint) covering an area of 3,500 square meters and with a total weight of the paint totalling 650kg.

Check out this great You Tube video of the handover to BA and also of the aircraft in flight (click here)

A drummer who had to be cut from a car by firefighters after a head-on collision became the 5,000th patient to be airlifted to hospital by Yorkshire Air Ambulance (YAA).

Chris Parr suffered broken ribs, a fractured breast bone and a fractured knee in the two-car smash at Marsden, near Huddersfield. The 48-year-old, a drummer with Huddersfield band State of Confusion, was airlifted to Leeds General Infirmary. He is now recovering at home and has been visited by YAA paramedics Sammy Willis and John Baxter.

 Chris said: ”I could not believe how quick the response was to the accident and all the emergency services were just fantastic. It is amazing to think I am the 5,000th patient they have helped. The air ambulance does such a vital job and I’m so grateful to them.”

YAA was set up 13 years ago and operates two air ambulances from bases in North and West Yorkshire providing a life saving emergency response service to five million people. To keep both helicopters in the air, the charity needs to raise £9,990 per day, equivalent to £3.6 million per year. The only support YAA receives is through the secondment of their paramedics from Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust.

But demand for the air emergency response service is increasing. Last year YAA attended 933 incidents, and transported 431 patients directly to hospital for treatment, up from 376 patients the previous year.

A YAA spokeswoman said: ”This is an amazing achievement, which couldn’t happen without the wonderful support we receive from Yorkshire people and businesses. So we would like to take this opportunity to say a massive thank you to everyone who helps us to keep saving lives in Yorkshire.”

One of the biggest sunspot groups of Solar Cycle 24 is emerging near the sun’s southeastern limb.

AR1785 has a “beta-gamma-delta” magnetic field that harbors energy for powerful X-class solar flares. Another active region trailing behind it, AR1787, is only slightly less potent, with a magnetic field capable of M-class eruptions. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory photographed the sprawling complex during the early hours on today (5th July).

These sunspots are a sign that the sun’s southern hemisphere is waking up. For most of the current solar cycle, the northern half of the sun has dominated sunspot counts and flare production. The south has been lagging behind–until now. June brought a surge in southern sunspots, and the trend is continuing in July. This “southern awakening” could herald a double-peaked Solar Maximum due in late 2013-early 2014.

The largest dark cores in sunspot complex AR1785-1787 are as wide as Earth, making the ensemble an easy target for backyard solar telescopes. Amateur astronomers are encouraged to monitor developments, as NOAA forecasters estimate a 40% chance of M-flares during the next 24 hours.

The Qsl Cards for the D44TWO trip are now at the Print Shop.

Cards for the latest trip by Harald DF2WO have been designed and were sent to Print Shop yesterday. I expect the cards will be here in 3 to 4 weeks.

I will Post on this Blog when they arrive and when they are mailed.

If you need a Qsl Card for this trip then please use the link here at M0OXO OQRS. Your card is NOT required so please DO NOT SEND one, it is unnecessary!