Hosts Needed for Grape Personal Space Weather Stations (PSWS)

[Gary Mikitin]

Greetings, space weather enthusiasts - 

What

Host locations are needed for both the Grape 1 and Grape 2 PSWS.  Grapes are low-cost scientific instruments (HF receivers) designed to monitor standard time and frequency stations such as WWV/H and CHU. ( HamSCI.org/grape ).  Being receive-only instruments, they are perfect for both licensed and unlicensed individuals, club stations, at a home, school or remote site.

When

While there is a major focus on monitoring around the Oct, 2023 and Apr 2024 solar eclipses, reception data has scientific value at all times.  Grapes are useful for monitoring all sorts of space weather phenomena, now and in the future, as Solar Cycle 25 builds towards its anticipated maximum in 2025.  

Who

Volunteers are need to build and/or obtain Grape hardware, erect a simple antenna, connect to the Internet, and simply let the Grape monitor the airwaves and upload its data (~ 1 Gb) daily.  Hosts are asked to complete their installations well before the Oct, 2023 eclipse, and ideally, to leave them on the air for the next 2 to 3 years.

How

hamSCI.org/grape2 has a Grape Interest Survey at the bottom.  Please fill out the survey if you are interested in hosting a Grape 2*. (If you are currently hosting a Grape 1, please consider hosting a Grape 2 as well.  There is value in having both receivers at many sites.)

More Details

Grape hosts can view their own data and graphs of received information (signal strength and Doppler frequency shift).  Viewing software is being written which will allow public access and analysis of all Grape data - stay tuned for more information.

Available now is the build-it-yourself Grape 1 PSWS ( hamSCI.org/grape1 ).

Available later in 2023 will be the Grape 2 PSWS ( hamSCI.org/grape2 ).  Note:  This page has a Grape Interest Survey at the bottom.  Please fill out the survey if you are interested in hosting a Grape 2*

A limited number of Grape 2 stations will be provided by HamSCI, based on geographic dispersion and scientific sampling needs (most locations are in or near the continental US).  Grape 2s will also be available for purchase.

HamSCI is fully committed to both short- and long-term investigations of ionospheric dynamics.  Deployment of Grape PSWS is key to meeting those commitments.  Questions can be addressed to hamsci <at> hamsci.org.

73 de Gary, AF8A

HamSCI  Amateur Radio Community Coordinator

*P.S. The following names and amateur callsigns have expressed interest in the Grape 2 and are already on the survey list:

AB1XB (FL)

AB1XB (MA)

AD0AE

AD0CY

AD0RR

AF8A

Blackwood

K1VX

K4BSE

K4LED

KA4RXP

KB1HFT

KB3CS

KB8OIS

KC2JAV

KC2TXO

KD8ABX

KE0NRE

KE9SA

KF7ZN

KM4YMI

KN4GSM

KN4QXS

KR4K

N0AX

N1HAC

N4TVC

N7FWL

VA6PW

VE3HBH

VE3OOI

W2NAF

W3VN

W4JKL

W7LUX

W9DJG

W9QF

WB8SBI

WB9YIG

WD8CIV

[Gerald Creager]

I have a couple of GRAPE 1 boards. After 1 JUL, I'll start building them out, and get one online. I'm also interested in the GRAPE 2 at some point. I'm located in northern Colorado Springs at 7300 ft, if that matters.

73

Gerry N5JXS

Maj Gerry Creager
National Health Services Advisory Team
Civil Air Patrol, U.S. Air Force Auxiliary
(M) 979.229.5301
GoCivilAirPatrol.com
Volunteers serving America's communities, saving lives, and shaping futures.

--
Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/394B2CD3-F0AE-4861-8B4F-79BCC06C198F%40gmail.com.

[Pete Smith N4ZR]

I wonder if there is any way that the Reverse Beacon Network could contribute to this effort.  We are something over 200 volunteers, mostly in the US and Europe, who use software-defined receivers and software that identifies stations heard, when and where (QRG and geographical), and signal strength as received.   Results for the entire network are sent to DX clusters worldwide, and are also archived daily on the RBN website.  Perhaps you're already planning to use our data - if so, great!

73, Pete N4ZR

[Kevin Parmenter]

I would be interested in helping I am in Navajo County arizona

KG5Q 

Kevin parmenter 

[Gary Mikitin, AF8A]

Hello Pete - The Grape project requires receivers with a very high degree of frequency accuracy and stability (GPS locked).   Frequency measurements are in the sub-Hz range, which, I suspect, is not achievable with most RBN spot contributors. Also, given that we are monitoring WWV, WWVH and CHU (because of their extreme frequency accuracy and stability, out to something like 10^13 decimal places), I'm not sure that the Grape project aligns with RBN activities.

But - you never know what someone might come up with.  There are a lot of smart cookies on this list!

Of course, HamSCI makes extensive use of the RBN database for the SEQPs - there's no question about the value the research community obtains from the RBN, PSKReporter and the like.  HamSCI truly appreciated the efforts of everyone on the RBN team.

73 de Gary, AF8A

CWops #2092

On Saturday, June 10, 2023 at 11:27:41 AM UTC-4 pete.n4zr wrote:

I wonder if there is any way that the Reverse Beacon Network could contribute to this effort.  We are something over 200 volunteers, mostly in the US and Europe, who use software-defined receivers and software that identifies stations heard, when and where (QRG and geographical), and signal strength as received.   Results for the entire network are sent to DX clusters worldwide, and are also archived daily on the RBN website.  Perhaps you're already planning to use our data - if so, great!

73, Pete N4ZR

[Pete Smith N4ZR]

Interesting, Gary.  I didn't know that the Grape project put such emphasis on frequency stability and accuracy - the RBN has a number of nodes that are GPS-locked, but most are not - we try to police accuracy to ensure no worse than 5 ppm for relatively prolific nodes, which is far short of what you want. Clearly, I need to understand Grape more clearly.

73, Pete N4ZR

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/26edc957-539a-46ca-bea0-f171049a35f5n%40googlegroups.com.

[Nabin Poudel]

Gary, thank you for this opportunity, I have applied for hosting both versions of Grape PSWS. I am from Kathmandu, Nepal, during summer in the morning and evening we sometimes receive WWVH signals. I hope I can provide interesting reports if I can host the Grape station.

Regards,

Nabin 9N

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/5430dff2-d914-a4d2-c587-a6216b393c43%40gmail.com.

--

Create your own email signature

‌

[Mark Adler]

10^13 decimal places!! Wow!

Perhaps you meant 13 decimal places.

[Gary Mikitin]

I’ll bet I did…thanks for the chuckle!  (Or I could have planted that on purpose, to see if anyone was paying attention!)

73 de Gary, AF8A

On Jun 11, 2023, at 12:14 PM, Mark Adler <goo...@madler.net> wrote:

10^13 decimal places!! Wow!

You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.
To unsubscribe from this topic, visit https://groups.google.com/d/topic/hamsci/jNWkVvI5qt8/unsubscribe.
To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/6d85fd97-741a-4179-b229-084b1c91f078n%40googlegroups.com.

[Phil Biehl]

Gary,

Looking forward to hearing from you all on this project when the hardware becomes available.

Thanks,

Phil, N7FWL

[Pierre Fogal]

Hello Gary,

We would be interested in hosting a Grape at VY0ERC.  However, 1 Gb daily would be a significant portion of our southbound satellite link, and I don't think I can commit to that. Is there any possibility for transmitting a subset of data south in real time and sending the bulk of it via other means?

73,

Pierre VE3KTB

co-founder  VY0ERC

--

Pierre F. Fogal, Ph.D.

Site Manager

Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory (PEARL)

Canadian Network for Detection of Atmospheric Change (CANDAC)

http://www.candac.ca

Senior Research Associate

Department of Physics, University of Toronto

60 Saint George St.

Toronto ON Canada M5S 1A7

(416) 978 8991 -- office

(519) 993 5736 -- cell

email: pierre...@utoronto.ca

---

From: ham...@googlegroups.com <ham...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Gary Mikitin <gmikit...@gmail.com>
Sent: Saturday, June 10, 2023 10:42 AM
To: ham...@googlegroups.com <ham...@googlegroups.com>; hamsci-...@googlegroups.com <hamsci-...@googlegroups.com>; eclipse-...@googlegroups.com <eclipse-...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: [HamSCI] Hosts Needed for Grape Personal Space Weather Stations (PSWS)

 

[Tom Azlin W7SUA]

Hi Gary.

I filled out the survey and can host both a Grape 1 and Grape 2. Happy
to purchase completed receivers and have several Pi 4 and 3 computers as
well as a dual out GPSDO controlled sig gen. Will have July and August
to assemble this all before a trip in Sept/Oct. Harder for me will be
to get the bare boards and order parts.

Upload volume is OK here.

73, tom w7sua
Chino Valley AZ
DM34rs

> --
> Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at
> http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines

> <http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines>.

> ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
> Groups "HamSCI" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send
> an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com

> <mailto:hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com>.

> To view this discussion on the web visit

> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/394B2CD3-F0AE-4861-8B4F-79BCC06C198F%40gmail.com <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/394B2CD3-F0AE-4861-8B4F-79BCC06C198F%40gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer>.

[Dave New]

What about those of us on small city lots who cannot host the magnetic field sensor (not enough room to stay away from metal objects)?

Can you still use the WWV doppler data without the mag sensor data?

I have a reservation at the Dayton, OH KOA for next April during the total eclipse.  I'm planning on operating in the festival, but I also have a GPSDO and a couple of rigs (Elecraft K3s and K4D) that can be synced to it.

What can I do to help?  My home QTH is Ann Arbor, MI.

73,

-- Dave, N8SBE

--
Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.

---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.

To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/394B2CD3-F0AE-4861-8B4F-79BCC06C198F%40gmail.com.

[David Hostetler]

I filled out the form, but just now, triggered by a few recent comments, went back to look at the original email and see a 1 Gb/ day data upload estimate.  That was written with a lower case "b" for bit, but is the actual actual amount 1 GB/day (upper case "B" for Byte)? And is that estimate for a basic Grape 1? 

And, with further digging, I see on the hamsci.org/grape2 page a note that the Grape 2 "will (likely) generate files in the Digital RF format". How does this change the data upload requirements?

Also on the Grape 2 page there is a note that if you have both a 1 and a 2, two antennas will be required. I hope something can be worked out or an available device located that can split one antenna, since getting even one antenna installed is going to be the major part of the overall effort in establishing a Grape receiving location. If you can only manage one antenna, would a Grape 1 or 2 be preferred for maximum utility to the HamSci  community research?

In a perfect world, sharing one antenna between two Grapes AND a 100 W Ham station AND/OR WSPR TX would be the dream. A simple version might have the Ham TX blocking (but not damaging) the Grapes when transmitting, but a Ham station at the same location with a separate antenna is likely to so the same.

Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.

---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.

To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/8037e6a7-57b1-103d-56e4-c43fb02aeef7%40w7sua.org.

[Gary Mikitin, AF8A]

Dave - A magnetometer is definitely NOT a requirement for participating in the Grape WWV/H/CHU Doppler experiment.   Operating both instruments would be a 'nice to have' situation, but not a 'must have'.

A GPS-locked receiver can be substituted for the Grape 1.   Details are here:  hamsci.org/grape111-acrchive.  Look for AC0G's article on a 'Seedless Grape'.  Note that the remainder of the system - audio interface, RPi single board computer - do not change.  Note that type of radio and type of GPS are required entries during the initial configuration process for the RPi image and software.

Looking forward to working you in the SEQP,

73 de Gary, AF8A

[Gary Mikitin, AF8A]

Pierre and the Group - Good news for all.  The daily data upload requirements are moving in the right direction.  The developers now estimate they will be 21 MB (megabytes) per day for a Grape 2 + magnetometer.  A Grape 2-only station would be less.

73 de Gary, AF8A

[Pierre Fogal]

That I can live with!

73,

Pierre VE3KTB

--

Pierre F. Fogal, Ph.D.

Site Manager

Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory (PEARL)

Canadian Network for Detection of Atmospheric Change (CANDAC)

http://www.candac.ca

Senior Research Associate

Department of Physics, University of Toronto

60 Saint George St.

Toronto ON Canada M5S 1A7

(416) 978 8991 -- office

(519) 993 5736 -- cell

email: pierre...@utoronto.ca

---

From: ham...@googlegroups.com <ham...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Gary Mikitin, AF8A <gmikit...@gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, June 16, 2023 4:11 PM
To: HamSCI <ham...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Re: [HamSCI] Hosts Needed for Grape Personal Space Weather Stations (PSWS)

 

--
Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/d4f811af-2242-4a18-9021-37d5abbc9b71n%40googlegroups.com.

[Tom Talley]

I would like to be considered for a grape psws.  I have reliable internet and live in a rural area so locating the equipment is not a problem.

Thanks for considering me.

W5XTT

Tom Talley.

--
Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/d4f811af-2242-4a18-9021-37d5abbc9b71n%40googlegroups.com.

[Jonathan]

With the Grape 2, are the carriers of each time station downmixed with a multiplicative mixer in GNU radio, leaving a small bandwidth baseband signal of the carrier? Like 10Hz bandwidth for each carrier? This would allow you to see the carrier information and mode splitting quite easily while reducing file size.

Grape 1’s that output Digital RF downmix the carrier to 10 Hz. The audio is downmixed to a 10 Hz baseband signal showing only carrier information. 

Jonathan

KC3EEY 

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/CAKshcQZJQQDraYrVds6fFB3BKm5A7VZoCgSv6DVjXrjHQAqezw%40mail.gmail.com.

[Dr. Nathaniel A. Frissell Ph.D.]

Hi Jonathan,

Yes, that is essentially correct. We do want to capture more than 10 Hz, though, to help disambiguate between WWV and WWVH. There are multiple ways to do this, including voice, 1200 Hz/1000 Hz Tones, and 600 Hz/500 Hz tones. I think the gold standard will be to capture 8 kHz of BW around the carrier, but we can also define lower bandwidth modes that still capture some disambiguating information while substantially reducing the bandwidth requirements.

https://www.nist.gov/time-distribution/radio-station-wwv/wwv-and-wwvh-digital-time-code-and-broadcast-format

I have students working with Bill Engelke and the Grape team to lock down these formats now.

73 Nathaniel W2NAF

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/CAOY0kB07PmqcxFE7-gmonuPKKKNBHtXSUDXYguv4Ny2dsZPs_w%40mail.gmail.com.

[Jonathan]

Hi Nathaniel,

I actually forgot about WWVH, but yes, I think 8 kHz of bandwidth around the carrier would definitely do it, which you can easily get that from a ka9q-radio slice. Then, you can use GNU Radio/ka9q-radio to do further processing, including further downmixing to just acquire carrier mode splitting and those data products would be even smaller.

In the EbNaut digital mode at VLF, messages take a few hours to transmit with symbol periods of around 30s, so that involves a lot of spectrum recording. To keep the file size and processing time down, I bandpass the spectrum at the carrier frequency with 3 kHz around it, then run it through a multiplicative mixer to downmix the carrier to baseband, then I further downsample that to either 10 Hz or 1 Hz. Since the decoder is only interested in phase information, that bandwidth and sample rate is perfectly adequate. For hours-long spectrum recordings, the downmixed and downsampled carrier streams are often hundreds of kB in size, which can be archived very easily.

Jonathan

KC3EEY

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/C801287B-267E-4B93-AB59-C452C6D0B710%40scranton.edu.

[Michael Fene]

This is KI6HEF located in San Diego.  I am interested in becoming a host site.

Kind Regards...Michael Fene'

--
Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/394B2CD3-F0AE-4861-8B4F-79BCC06C198F%40gmail.com.

[David Voit]

I would be interested in hosting a station.  The location would be  near Arnold CA. in the Sierra Nevada mountains.    Dave  WB6TOU

[Matthew - NB0X]

I would be glad to host a Grapes station in DM73dj northwest of Alamogordo, NM in the Sacramento Mountains.

Matthew, NB0X

[Kerry Case]

I would love to have a grape 2 unit or the new grape 1 in Maine

 

Kerry T Case

N1URT

 

Sent from Mail for Windows

 

From: Matthew - NB0X
Sent: Wednesday, August 23, 2023 2:30 PM
To: HamSCI
Subject: Re: [HamSCI] Hosts Needed for Grape Personal Space Weather Stations (PSWS)

 

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/6aed9ead-3431-4e38-ad23-d775c0ecc723n%40googlegroups.com.

 

[Gary Mikitin, AF8A]

I would like to offer a hearty 'thank you' to all who have read and replied to the original posting some months ago.  I am pleased to announce that we have met our goal of siting ~26 new Grape 1 receivers around the continental US.  Note in the screenshot below that we have a good geographic distribution of stations located on the 'far side' of the Oct 2023 and Apr 2024 solar eclipse paths, relative to the primary transmitter of interest, WWV.  (Please forgive the crudely drawn eclipse path - it's an approximation, that's all.)

Finding locations was only part of the battle.  An industrious group of HamSCI volunteers has been hard at work building hardware, writing software and testing systems in anticipation of getting the new Grapes 'on the air'.  The HamSCI.com Grape pages will be improved and enhanced over the next few months - including a history of the Grape project and information on the teams and individuals who are making it happen.   Stay tuned!

Note that there were ~35 active Grape stations before this effort was initiated.  Some have been generating data for a year or more.  Kudos to all!

Keep in mind that more Grape 1 stations are certainly welcome and their reception data would be added to the grand data set that will undergo future analysis by HamSCI researchers (and perhaps others - the dataset will follow the FAIR Guiding Principles for Scientific Data Management and Stewardship).  Recall that we are interested in much more than  the solar eclipse dates - reception data every day of the year is needed, from now through all of 2024.  If you have thoughts of building a Grape 1 station, there's no time like the present! 

P.S.  Map legend:  Green represents a registered station, actively uploading data.  Red means registered, but offline.  Most of the red should become green in the month of September.  PSWS CCS Website:  https://pswsnetwork.caps.ua.edu

[Dr. Nathaniel A. Frissell Ph.D.]

Thanks, Gary and all participating! This is great!

73 Nathaniel W2NAF 

Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
Get Outlook for Android

---

From: ham...@googlegroups.com <ham...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Gary Mikitin, AF8A <gmikit...@gmail.com>

Sent: Saturday, August 26, 2023 1:53:28 PM
To: HamSCI <ham...@googlegroups.com>

Subject: Re: [HamSCI] Hosts Needed for Grape Personal Space Weather Stations (PSWS)

--
Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/3e149a87-ae65-4378-be03-e9b6b99c60a9n%40googlegroups.com.

[Dr. Rich Russel]

All,

Here is the link to the YouTube playlist for our 2023 Eastern Conference we just held this week at Green Bank.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCEbOD5_znsn_v4n10KtSTweVDbOT5b6o

Rich

Dr. Rich Russel

SARA President

[Graham c]

Gary,

thank for you posting that information.

I went to that website and registered my station  ( VE3GTC ). My station is online and I indicated so when registering but the map displays my station as offline.

And, a more general question rather than one directed at you, is about how these stations are all interconnected, how it all works.

A user put a GRAPE online and is uploading data every night after midnight GMT to somewhere.  Where is somewhere ?  I thought, perhaps mistakenly so, that this "Central Control Station" was that somewhere. 

I know I read somewhere something about the data repository but can't put my finger on it at the moment.  I will have do dig through the HamSci / PSWS web pages some more.

That is a long and round about way to ask - How does it all work? How are all the various PSWS nodes interconnected to the data repository? How does an interested user access this data repository?  In what way is the data repository related to the https://pswsnetwork.caps.ua.edu/home  "Central Control Station" ?

My node "seems" to be uploading data but there does not appear to be a way for me to easily verify that.  I think I am but now having looked at https://pswsnetwork.caps.ua.edu/home I am not sure anymore.

cheers, Graham ve3gtc

--

Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/3e149a87-ae65-4378-be03-e9b6b99c60a9n%40googlegroups.com.

[Gary Mikitin, AF8A]

Graham - I should have explained further:  There are actually two 'varieties' of Grape systems:

1) Legacy systems, running fldigi, creating CSV files and interesting plot files.  These systems have been uploading data quietly, in the background, to a server hosted by the WWV ARC.  Unfortunately, here is no 'user feedback' from this server.  The data is quite useful, these systems should remain as they are.

2) Going forward systems, running GNURadio and creating data in the DRF format.  These are noted on the PSWC CCS map. This is something new and different, we are still working out the bugs.  In the next 6-12 months, we hope to have visualization tools for the data uploaded to this server.  There are people actively working on that task.

I appreciate your questions - they will help us craft the HamSCI.com/grape website to better answer questions from our many volunteers.  It may take a few months (perhaps, after the October eclipse, as we still have a lot to do in preparation for that event).

Hope this helps,

73 de Gary, AF8A

[Graham c]

Gary,

Thank you for the explanation, it is very helpful in visualizing the big picture.

cheers, Graham ve3gtc

 

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/94a0bfc3-1a2b-4bcf-acd2-8c2174fa09e0n%40googlegroups.com.

[Roger Spinner]

Hello Gary,

 

Here are two more potential stations from Switzerland.

If you are interested, we would like to set up two grape1.

 

Do you still need stations?

 

Best regards,

Roger

--

Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/394B2CD3-F0AE-4861-8B4F-79BCC06C198F%40gmail.com.

[Kevin Parmenter]

Gary I would be interested in participating.  I'm located in show low Arizona 85901 is the zip code.  73. KG5Q Kevin parmenter 

[Gary Mikitin, AF8A]

Hello Roger - I believe that the scientists in HamSCI would welcome additional data, regardless of geographic location.

From a granting/funding point of view, we are meeting our objectives.  The near-term focus is, of course, the Western Hemisphere, due to the upcoming North American solar eclipses.  

That said, the scientists are asking all participants to keep their stations active for long after the 2023/2024 eclipses, because the sun is always full of surprises, often affecting the ionosphere with global effects.

We do have at last one station in Europe (Netherlands).  Additional EU Grape receivers would be welcome, as well as participation from anyone interested in the data analysis portion of the project.

I hope this helps,

Gary Mikitin, AF8A

[Gary Mikitin, AF8A]

Hello Kevin - More stations are always welcome:  Grape 1 stations if you are interested in building yourself a system very soon, before the Oct 14 2023 eclipse.   Even if you missed the October eclipse, the Grape 1 is a good 'do it yourself' project and it's data collection capabilities will have value well into the future.

The Grape 2 will be available for purchase, some time in early 2024, if you would prefer that route.  The Grape 2 would be an excellent choice for monitoring three frequencies before, during and after the April, 2024 solar eclipse.

More details are available at hamsci.org/grape.

73 de Gary, AF8A

[Stephen Peterson]

How do I go about building a Grape 1 system. 

73

Steve, Ki7L

--
Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/7bba3bcc-eb29-4566-9f45-ce561a1ddc99n%40googlegroups.com.

[Khan Tran]

Hello Gary,

What are your thoughts on mobile host? I can’t participate for the October eclipse (currently in Vietnam) but can collect data as I drive across the country late November. I’ll be driving from Ohio to California and will settle in the San Francisco Bay Area. Then drive back to Ohio a few months later. I can make pit stops at any area in between for a few days and collect data. Not sure about the usefulness of a mobile host but just throwing it out there if you want it.

73 KE8QWB Khan

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/962816ed-0ac4-438c-a3b7-3212f2f19ccan%40googlegroups.com.

[Dr. Nathaniel A. Frissell Ph.D.]

Hi Steve,

 

You can find Grape 1 build instructions here: https://hamsci.org/grape1

 

73 Nathaniel W2NAF

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/CAGdsaPVVWded2KD6Jo1Z-aUFZ6QEybceUVX2_pYjKXq3DQUJTg%40mail.gmail.com.

[Mike S]

Is it only the Grape hardware which is acceptable to join the network?

I have some DC receivers built for multiband FT8 monitoring:

https://oshwlab.com/3ym3ym/sdr1

Currently they use simple Si5351A+Arduino fixed frequency LOs. Would need to add GPS frequency lock to them.

As for the computing. I "standardized" on used Chromebooks from local Craigslist running Linux, because they can be obtained for less money compared to Raspberry Pi's and have good enough performance.

I understand that repeatability and uniformity of the instruments is a concern, but want to reduce my cost of joining the experiment, especially since I would like to monitor all 7 frequencies at once and have most of the monitoring hardware already.

The QTH for the station would be Flagstaff,AZ in DM45.

73, Mike AF7KR

[Dr. Nathaniel A. Frissell Ph.D.]

Hi Mike,

 

No, Grape hardware is not an absolute requirement. As you mention, it is important to use GPS-disciplined oscillators or some similar extremely precise frequency reference.

 

Michael Hauan AC0G wrote a very nice article in last year’s TAPR PSR about how to make a Grapeless Grape. See Page 7 of the attached file. Note that this method produces the older style FLDIGI data that we are trying to move away from. The FLDIGI-style data only captures the amplitude of the single strongest frequency bin as a function of time; the new approach gives us a spectrum. Still, the old style data is being used in research projects and will be useful.

 

It is also possible to go the DigitalRF route, especially since DigitalRF is compatible with GNU Radio that has wide radio support. We are currently working on making a version of the DRF Grape Software that works with KA9Q-Radio and the RX-888, but this is still in development.

 

73 Nathaniel W2NAF

--

Please follow the HamSCI Community Participation Guidelines at http://hamsci.org/hamsci-community-participation-guidelines.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HamSCI" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to hamsci+un...@googlegroups.com.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/8aebcd0b-f190-45c2-92e4-fc5aa1fd7b0bn%40googlegroups.com.

[Jonathan]

Hi Mike,

You can order Pi's on backorder from electronics distributors and get them at original cost. Pi 4's seem to ship much sooner than Pi 3's. The delay is often a month to many months, but less than a year. I ordered some Pi 3's from Digi-Key a little over a month ago and just received them. The version of FLdigi used on the Pi is custom and not open source, so I'm not sure if the binary would run on the Chromebook, plus there are other things to set up, like automatic uploading of data, which you'll have to look at the Pi image to replicate it on another system. 

Jonathan

KC3EEY

[Mike Naruta]

Another question on the "Non-grape Grape".

I do not have a Grape or Grape 2.

I do have three TAPR Open HPSDR Mercury-Atlas-Alex-Excalibur that could be used for the eclipse project.  Plus an original TAPR Hermes.  Plus a Trimble Thunderbolt GPSDO.

These are quite decent receivers and I would love to use them. I looked around GNURadio.org, but did not see support for the HPSDR.

Has anyone gotten the HPSDR working with the Grape project?


Michael - AA8K

[pomkomakyx]

I am still in the process of moving in, move is half done and have to wait for the floors to be finished before we can start bringing the furniture in. Oh Boy!

However, I am located about 60 miles north of Orlando, on over an Acre. I would be able to place one here. Have no clue what's needed though, joined a few months back and between the move and my wife's cancer, haven't gotten fully up to speed.

Roman N2UCK

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/12a2f6fe-cfbb-4abc-a50f-85bb4d390f12n%40googlegroups.com.

[Dr. Nathaniel A. Frissell Ph.D.]

Hi Mike,

 

I don’t think anyone has explicitly tried making HPSDR with the Grape. However, if there were GNURadio support for HPSDR, it should not be that hard to make it work as a Grape.

 

Before I read your e-mail, I would have thought that there was a GNU Radio source for HPSDR. But maybe there isn’t. I imagine Tom N5EG would know.

 

73 Nathaniel W2NAF

 

From: ham...@googlegroups.com <ham...@googlegroups.com> On Behalf Of Mike Naruta
Sent: Thursday, September 14, 2023 10:02 PM
To: HamSCI <ham...@googlegroups.com>

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/12a2f6fe-cfbb-4abc-a50f-85bb4d390f12n%40googlegroups.com.

[Tom McDermott]

Hi Mike - there is support for the OpenHPSDR protocol.  It works with Hermes and Red Pitaya.

About 10 years ago John Petrich W7FU brought his Mercury / Atlas system down from Seattle and we got it working on version 

3.6 of Gnuradio and the correspondingOpenHPSDR module using the Ethernet interface.  It took some fiddling with the clock switches.

There have been 4 subsequent versions of gnuradio (3.7, 3.8, 3.9, 3.10) which all required updates to the OpenHPSDR gnuradio module.

Without access to the old HPSDR hardware for the last 10 years, version 3.7 and later are untested on that hardware.

For gnuradio version 3.10 (latest) there is a recipe for Conda installation as well as the traditional installation.

    https://github.com/Tom-McDermott/gr-hpsdr

-- Tom, N5EG

[Michael Hauan]

Using John Gibbon's RPi image for Grape, one could follow the TAPR paper example that uses RSPdx/CubicSDR and substitute OpenHPSDR/LINHPSDR.  Piping the audio to FLDIGI via pulseaudio would stay the same. I didn't do it that way only because I had not yet added the Excalibur card which enables external clicking discipline.  I've since done that and it works fine.

mjh

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/hamsci/MW5PR03MB7005260BB62181FD4D2EE7C7F2F6A%40MW5PR03MB7005.namprd03.prod.outlook.com.

[Mike Naruta]

(HPSDR)

Thanks Nathaniel, Tom, and Michael for the information!