Stationary Drone/SWTL/WSPR tests

[Glenn Elmore]

I would like to begin a series of tests to take place over the next few months. These tests would use a GPS controlled quadcopter tethered by a surface wave transmission line (SWTL) to support a launcher (SWTL to coax adapter) and 2m or 70cm antenna to measure S/N over our paths using WSPR. Hopefully the antenna would be at around '200 AGL.  I see this taking place over many weeks' time and there being several phases to this:

1. trial flights to improve methods for reeling #28 gauge SWTL feedline and test antenna the attachment
2. trial flights to measure and optimize match (SWR) of system during flight
3. (receive) 2m test, everyone transmit 100% for ~10 minutes while N6GN spots using supported antenna at ~200'
4. (receive) 70cm test, everyone transmit 100% for ~10 minutes while N6GN spots using supported antenna at ~200'
5. (transmit) 2m test, N6GN transmits 100% several consecutive WSPR intervals while all others receive
6. (transmit) 70cm test, N6GN transmits 100% several consecutive WSPR intervals while all others receive
7. longer  2m & 70cm tests,  N6GN transmits/receives 20% transmit WSPR, quadcopter powered from ground DC
   
8. longer tests,  N6GN transmits/receives 20% transmit WSPR, quadcopter powered from ground by high power RF rectified and conditioned within drone electronics. Only launch/return battery powered.
   

I've already performed preliminary (1) tests but hopefully will do more in the coming days, including (2). This will hopefully put us in position to do (3).   I'm thinking that a weekend morning might be pretty optimum for this, but I'd like to hear back if there is a better time.  An AM might get us a little tropo enhancement and combined with the antenna height, could conceivably enhance DX somewhat. It's not clear to me how much this will be for longer DX, say beyond 300 km, where ACS is likely to play a role.  Probably the antenna elevation will increase signal strength at low angles where the aircraft that involved appear but it may be that the presence of flights on suitable (low 'drift') vectors is still mandatory. Not sure what to expect.

(4) - (8) tests will depend upon learnings and results of these first tests.

I think almost anyone on the West Coast might be in range of at least some of these. Does anyone have a strong preference or aversion to, say, a Saturday morning PDT, perhaps around 8-9 AM? All that would be required for (3) is to set transmit duty cycle to 100% so we can see what spots N6GN reports of the activity and S/N on WSPR during the very few 2 minute WSPR periods that the system can stay aloft while running on only battery power.

Glenn n6gn

[Pamela J. Filicky]

de n6kog - what ever time you decide on is fine with me, I will participate if I'm in the area. Steve

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[n3...@aol.com]

I'm down for what ever. My schedule changes hourly some times but should be able to participate as a RX station.

[Glenn Elmore]

Doug, WW6D, just brought to my attention a post by Joe, K1JT, on WSPRnet.

http://wsprnet.org/drupal/node/5563


It appears that WSJT-X has progressed to the point that they are adding
WSPR functionality into it on an alpha-test basis. WSPR is one of the
modes that may be selected. Additionally, Joe has made an installer for
the Windows environment available for v1.6.0-devel and is looking for
feedback.

I've installed it on the PC that has been running my 2m and 70cm WSPR
station and everything appears to work. It no longer shows the 2 Hz
transmit error that WSPR-X did. It does have the real-time waterfall
display too.

No reason that everyone has to jump to it but Joe indicates that the
decoder is the best one yet and perhaps will be something some of us
will want to consider. Versions for Linux and Mac can be built but I've
seen no installer/binaries announced. for these OSes so presumably one
would have to compile in order to get one.

Glenn n6gn

[Line Printer]

On Tue, 2 Jun 2015, Glenn Elmore wrote:

> No reason that everyone has to jump to it but Joe indicates that the decoder
> is the best one yet and perhaps will be something some of us will want to
> consider. Versions for Linux and Mac can be built but I've seen no
> installer/binaries announced. for these OSes so presumably one would have to
> compile in order to get one.

I've been building the linux (for opensuse) wsjtx 1.6.x app for for
several weeks for testing. The wspr functionality is included and -if I
could only get this wsjtx version anything to transmit with my equipment,
it would appear to be a functional tool. At least for the receiving
funtionality, I know several of you have been spotted by the WSJTX v1.6.x
(#define SVNVERSION 5521 today) even on 70 cm Wednesdays.

The developers have been changing the user interface selector for band
hopping on a almost daily basis. Today, the band hopping has a "Rx Only"
selector for each of hopping bands. However, the choice of the bands
only shows up to 10 meters selectors. Although the application is aware
of WSPR frequencies up to 1296 MHz, perhaps VHF/UHF band hopping has not
been considered as a place popular for WSPR'ing amphibians to hop to.

BTW, the band hopping "tune" feature has a select box for each of the
listed bands. Although I can verify that wsjtx 1.6.x does indeed hop
among the HF bands, I can't get the tune antenna tuner "tune" feature to
function as it does in WSPR 4.0 band hopping. Perhaps related to the
same thing that prevents me from transmitting using a Signalink + IC-7000
+ wsjtx?

73,
Kevin Martinez
KI6STW



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[Glenn Elmore]

Neat that you've been trying it for a while now! I didn't know that. I
too have had some problem getting it to transmit as desired. It does
seem to run the SignaLink hooked to the 2m/70cm radio OK. However,
though it puts out tones, keys the transmitter etc, I haven't yet got
that to drive the SDR on transmit. Thus I am spotting but not being
spotted with it on HF with the OpenHPSDR radio/WSJTX combination. My
problem may not relate to WSJTX but to the particular virtual audio
cable that interconnects it and the SDR.

I haven't been able to decide if the decode (deep) is working better or
the same. It seems to be fine though. I like the real time waterfall,
like the DX column in the spots that shows km between stations and
generally have gotten used to the frequency control and other UI changes
vis-a-vis early WSPR versions. As I mentioned before, the TX frequency
error seems to be gone and I'm being spotted where I think I should be.

I think the band-hop regime is pretty HF-centric. Not many were thinking
about VHF when it was composed and there are only a fixed number of
time/frequency slots. Perhaps we should figure out a substitution plan
for VHF/UHF though. That is, which 2 minute segment of 20 minutes is
hijacked, which HF band, and replaced with which VHF+ band? We ought to
all do it the same way to maximize hits.

I haven't tried tune function with it. But since WSJTX works with my
SignaLink/IC706, I'd think that maybe your experience with 'tune' is a
separate issue.

Glenn

[Steven Hess]

Glen
Can you point me to the Windows build of the WJST-X you are using.
I did not navigate my way to it. I ended up with the wrong version. No
WSPR in the Mode drop down.

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Apply appropriate technology. Use what works without prejudice.
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Owner Flex-1500 and Flex-3000 Flex-6300, FT-857D, FT-817ND
openSUSE Linux 13.1 KDE
Known as FlameBait and The Sock Puppet of Doom.

[Glenn Elmore]

Here's Joe's blog entry:

WSPR Mode in WSJT-X

As you may have heard, a number of us have been WSPRing from within program WSJT-X in recent weeks. Up to now you could do this only if you built the program yourself, from source code. Many people have been asking when a version of WSJT-X including WSPR might be made more widely available, so here's an update.

WSPR mode has been a functional part of WSJT-X for less than a month. The program is in a state of active development: it changes in some way nearly every day. Other recent development work is centered on flexible rig control and applications at VHF and above, for EME and the like.

If you are interested in testing an alpha release of WSJT-X that supports WSPR, and providing us with feedback on your experiences, I have posted a downloadable installation file at http://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/K1JT/wsjtx-1.6.0-r5499.exe. Please note that the program runs equally well on Linux and Macintosh machines, but this package is for Windows only.

The online WSJT-X User Guide is reasonably complete and up-to-date for JT9 and JT65 -- the original modes included in WSJT-X -- but as yet includes very little about WSPR or JT4. However, most users have found the program easy to set up and use for WSPRing. I expect that other successful users will be quick to respond to setup questions posted here.

WSPR mode in WSJT-X v1.6 (r5499) is already highly capable. It does automatic band hopping with full rig control, and its decoder is the fastest and most sensitive one available. We (the WSJT Development Group) look forward to learning of your experiences with it!

A screen shot of WSJT-X running in WSPR mode at K1JT is posted here:
http://www.physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/K1JT/WSJT-X_WSPR_4.png

Set up your WSPR band-hopping as shown here:
http://www.physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/K1JT/WSPR_Band_Hopping.png
For bands listed in the "Tune" entry field, WSJT-X executes a user-defined script to activate an automatic antenna tuner, as in earlier versions of WSPR.

-- 73, Joe, K1JT

Glenn n6gn

[Steven Hess]

Thanks Glen. I've got it set up and working on my FLex 6300 now. On 20
meters but not seeing much on my waterfall right now.

[Line Printer]

Hello,

Going through the images I take of the WSPR 4 app running, I found an
interesting looking image (attached) that was taken on June 6 at 12:07
UTC. Although not on 2 meters, there is a small display in many of the
WSPR trasnmission periods that looks like a stack of short dashes.

I didn't hear or notice this occuring at the time and only notice it later
watching a WSPR app "video" of sequencing the images.

Any ideas what may cause the display of the dashes?

[Glenn Elmore]

I'm not sure from the image that they are in any way correlated with
WSPR protocol or the WPSR 4 application.
Spectra like that can get created by wideband angular modulation, FM or
PM, which might be coming in the antenna.
It looks like something with very sharp edges and about a 6 Hz rep rate
is modulating a carrier somewhere, in a bursty manner.

I haven't seen that exact spectra before, though I don't watch 30m in my
neighborhood much.

Maybe someone else has seen it and can make a good guess at an ID of the
source.

Glenn n6gn

[n6gn]

An update.

John K6PZB and I spent a little time yesterday trying to get a 2m Halo, launcher and ~200' of small gauge wire supported by a quadcopter in order to prepare for WSPR tests I hope to perform soon.  The results were a bit mixed.  While it looks like the quad can lift the arrangement, the present halo is a bit heavy, together with the launcher the total weight is around 130g, managing the feedline as the quad goes up is a problem.  We ended up breaking it when the line which had been laid out beforehand in the driveway, caught a snag.
The video is pretty short but you can at least see the arrangement, I hope.

I'm now working on building an even lighter halo and John is working on a low mass reel to manage the line.  More to come soon I hope.

[n6gn]

Here
 https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1If5Msr9nq0d0Fmd2JsVnNfU1k/view?usp=sharing
is a short video showing my quadcopter supporting a new, modified SWTL launcher and 2m Halo antenna.  The launcher is about half the length of previous ones because I've reduced the length of the high impedance, TM00, section by half and folded the lower impedance, TEM00, section back onto it.  This launcher is fabricated from Depron foam plastic and aluminum foil.  The Halo is mounted on bamboo shishkabob skewers down near the mouth of the launcher.  In the video you should be able to see the SWTL exiting the bottom of the launcher.  The line itself is a bit slack because the small weight I had on it to hold it straight fell off just prior to the video.
 
The entire launcher/antenna assembly weighs about 50 g (1.75 Ounces) and the antenna shows 30 dB return loss at 144.000 and about 20 dB return loss (SWR 1.2:1) at 144.490 MHz when measured  through a few feet of SWTL and a second  tripod-mounted launcher.  I've since made a different ground-end launcher such that the #28 SWTL can slide through and be taken up on a spinning reel mounted below it.  I'll include a picture of this in another posting. This allows operating at various heights rather than requiring full extension before the system can be tested.

My current plan is to perform an initial WSPR test on 2m this weekend, perhaps Saturday if wind permits.  Wind is particularly an issue for this first test since I plan to use a balloon rather than the quadcopter as support for the antenna.  I'm still learning how to fly all of this and between launchers, small gauge wire, antennas and aerostats there is a lot to go wrong. Reducing the risk of quadcopter crash at this point will make it a little easier, I hope.  But helium balloon aerostats have their own problems. One of the big ones is wind. Without the GPS and power of a quadcopter to hold position, it is very easy for a little wind to blow things sideways.  For this reason, I'm expecting to limit this first attempt to no more than 150' AGL.  That's not terribly high and higher tests should be possible in the future but even at only this height I think we may see a few dB improvement in WSPR S/N spots.

ERP will likely be about 10 watts. The SWTL is very low loss but the launchers are compromises and have some loss.  We'll be comparing this elevated halo, roughly 2 dBi,  with my normal 4 element Yagi which is at about 22' AGL and 10 dBi.  Rule of thumb would give an estimate of 20 dB height gain for the halo  but subtracting 7 dB for the lesser gain of the omni antenna and another 3 dB for launcher loss means that the end result may be no more than 10 dB improvement in WSPR spots. I may be able to hear other stations with slightly more improvement than this.

If I do manage to get and keep all the pieces in the air long enough to actually operate 2m WSPR over it, I'll shift my transmit frequency from my normal 144.490500 up 30 Hz to 144.490530 for any transmissions by the elevated halo. That way, by looking at the database and times you can correlate any spots that I report with the appropriate system.

It's by no means certain that this will be successful but here's a heads-up anyway!


Glenn n6gn

[n6gn]

Slight change of plans. Due to schedule conflicts it looks as though we may try to fly Sunday around 8 AM rather than tomorrow.  Since the last post I have measured the end-end loss from the radio to the launcher/halo and found it to be less than 4 dB for ~10' of SWTL.  From previous measurements and calculations I expect this will mean a total of about 6 dB from the IC706mkIIg to the halo at 150' altitude. Thus I think a station setting of +40 will be accurate.

If any in CA or OR are able to listen and have the disk space, if/when the WSPRnet.org database shows me QSY'ed to  144.590530 MHz, turn on "record all" and capture any signals you see. If we do gather some, we can do a later analysis on them to see what we might learn besides the spot data itself.

I'll try to post here just before the attempt. If it goes badly, I'll post again describing that too.

Glenn n6gn

[Pamela J. Filicky]

DE N6KOG rgr will be monitoring on Sunday morning at 08:00PDT ar

[Bob W7PUA]

Glenn, I'm following your activity with much interest!  I will try tomorrow 8AM to see what we can find.  Unfortunately, I promised the family we could head to Portland at 8:30 and I won't be able to hang around.  I can, and will plan to leave the receiver running WSPR on 2-m.  73, Bob  W7PUA CN84io

[Glenn Elmore]

Bob,
Nice to hear from you. Don't worry too much about tomorrow. This is
just a first try with hopefully more and bigger to follow.
If it works out, leave "save all" turned on so that you have some .wav
files to look at later. I don't really expect there to be too much up
your way even given the increased elevation. As I estimated aloud
before, we're probably only talking 10-20 dB increment best case which
only puts my 10 watts into the same camp as the kW was with a lower
antenna. I'd actually be pleasantly surprised if you spotted it at this
low level at all. You might, take-off angle improves, but I'm not
counting on it.

But I am very interested in having you be here for the long haul. I
think with another 10+ dB more elevation, a little more antenna gain
afloat up there and a little more power into the line (I doubt that I'll
run a kW today, though I think the system can probably take it) there's
a chance for more interesting discoveries.

Always nice to have you around and involved!

Best,

Glenn n6gn

[KP4MD]

Listening now on 2m WSPR.  Will record about 15-20 minutes.

Carol KP4MD

[Glenn Elmore]

Will transmit until 836 PDT, then listen for anyone who wants to transmit a few segments.    Everyon GA and tx at 836 if you see this in time.

Maybe try SSB if signals seem to be enough better to warrant with anyone If so, same dial, just key and talk in a mike....

Glenn

--

[Pamela J. Filicky]

Just noticed this e-mail will Tx at 42 SECS & did hear two voice xmsns at 1532:20Z & agn at 1533:29Z  in FM.. Steve/N6KOG

[Glenn Elmore]

OK, will ontinue to listen and spot auntil 50 then will try SSB.
Looks like signals not nearly so loud as expected though.  Very strong at K6PZB but not elsewhere.  SWR very low and every reason to think power is being radiated (omnidirectionally) but not particularly amazing  yet. 
Wind excellent, wish we had loaded the spinning reel for 400' AGL now, could have flown that high easily.  Maybe next time.

Transmit at me until 50 then will try SSB.

ge

[KP4MD]

Quadcopter antenna was copied here in Citrus Heights at the same signal strength as previous transmissions.

I sent WSPR transmissions at 1542 and 1548.

Carol, KP4MD

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[KP4MD]

My 2 meter transmissions at 1542 and 1548 were at 100 watts (50 dBm)

[Pamela J. Filicky]

de n6kog  Glenn I think you got your predicted 10dB & some from looking at the reports from out lying stations.. I could hear SSB voice XMSNS from

unknown stations to weak to understand...Regards Steve/N6KOG

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[Glenn Elmore]

Thanks Carol,
It turns out that Win10 took this opportunity not to talk to WSPRnet properly so I'm not sure the uploads all got there, I'll check later.

If anyone who has been only listening can force a few transmissions, N6GN is back to the 4 element Yagi pointed north. I'd like to get some more spots as a baseline for comparison.
No guarantee that windows will upload them but I should at least get data here...

Glenn n6gn

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[Glenn Elmore]

It might have been me. I did also hear weak SSB but nothing as loud as I hoped.  Let's get a few more WSPR spots now that I am back on 500 and listening on the Yagi. this will help the comparison.

N6GN is now off the balloon supported halo at 160' and back to 'normal' with the 4 element yagi at 22'.

Glenn

[Glenn Elmore]

Well that was an interesting test but I don't yet understand the results completely.  To the best of my measurements and calculations N6GN should have been transmitting an omnidirectional, horizontally polarized signal from about 160' AGL - 140' higher than the normal 4 element ~10 dBi Yagi that is at roof level. Here's a picture from in front of the QTH attempting to show scale.  The tallest trees are to the right of the central foreground tree, very close to the bottom SWTL launcher located on the back patio and are about 70' tall.




The balloon is supporting the foreshortened SWTL launcher, the AWG #28 SWTL itself and the single 2m Halo:

In this picture you can see the safety tether coming away slightly to the left of center line. The #28 SWTL is not visible even in this full-telephoto capture.


Comparing the results of this antenna with the normal Yagi (note +30 Hz for the Halo)

N6RCD who had the Yagi pointed straight at him

09/06/15 02:44 PM

N6GN

144.490531

-3

0

CM88ok

10

N6RCD

CM89je

91

337

Compared to the halo

09/06/15 03:20 PM

N6GN

144.490560

-6

-1

CM88ok

10

N6RCD

CM89je

91

337

N6KOG

09/06/15 02:44 PM

N6GN

144.490500

-25

0

CM88ok

10

N6KOG

CM97gs

138

122

09/06/15 03:22 PM

N6GN

144.490530

-3

0

CM88ok

10

N6KOG

CM97gs

138

122

KP4MD

09/06/15 01:48 PM

N6GN

144.490500

-26

0

CM88ok

10

KP4MD

CM98iq

133

78

09/06/15 03:28 PM

N6GN

144.490530

-25

0

CM88ok

10

KP4MD

CM98iq

133

78

KI6STW

09/06/15 02:26 PM

N6GN

144.490500

-23

0

CM88ok

10

KI6STW/2

CM97bk

137

144

09/06/15 03:22 PM

N6GN

144.490530

0

0

CM88ok

10

KI6STW

CM97bk

137

144

K6PZB and WW6D received both antennas well into ALC so numbers are  not meaningful...

It looks to me like the radiation pattern was indeed omni. Signals to South were much better from the halo than the yagi but that the altitude gain of the halo did not make up for the normal gain of the Yagi to the North.  I had thought it might.  I intend to make some more measurements with the halo near the ground to see if I can verify ERP for a more meaningful comparison.  Previous measurements of end-end attenuation on 100' of similar SWTL would put the two antennas about 10 dB apart in this respect.  I would have thought that 160' vs 22' height gain would reduce path loss enough to over-ride this.  Rule of thumb from RF Path models usually shows about 7 dB for a factor of two in height.  This should have given about 20 dB - (difference in antenna gains) - (difference in feedline loss) or around 7 dB net improvement for the halo.
It's interesting that there was little change toward KP4MD.  This might be understandable if our propagation was ACS or via scattering of the mountain ranges, as we have long suspected.  For both antennas, the Eastern horizon would have been about the same.

It's possible that the Path to N6RCD has a significant amount of tropo enhancement, up the Santa Rosa to Ukiah valley, and that this tilted things toward the Yagi. 

Clearly more experiments and pondering are in order.  Perhaps next time we will fly higher and maybe QRO slightly.

In any case an interesting and fun activity and thanks to those of you who took time to help. I'll  leave you with a photo of K6PZB operating the safety tether and 2m WSPR :-)




Glenn n6gn

[Glenn Elmore]

One addendum.  I just  turned the Yagi South and directly toward KI6STW and received this spot:

2015-09-06 17:26

N6GN

144.490500

-9

0

CM88ok

20

KI6STW/2

CM97bk

137

144

Conditions may have changed since the last halo transmission but this spot is  10 dB lower than the  KI6STW/2 halo so perhaps  this is evidence of height gain.

Glenn

[Glenn Elmore]

In watching spots today since the test using the normal ground-mounted Yagi , it's clear that for some stations the halo at altitude was quite a lot stronger. It was the strongest signal for the day and probably provided at least the 10+ dB improvement that I was hoping for. It also seems that for other stations we did not see a significant S/N improvement. Since the halo has lower gain and was probably being driven nearer 5 watts than the 10 watts I originally estimated, the elevation did make a difference everywhere, all else equal, just not as much as I thought.

I hope to perhaps do one more balloon-supported test in the coming weeks with the antenna nearer the 400' maximum. After that, I think the goal will be to make operative the power supply for the quadcopter; this is the electronics that is aloft to rectify and convert 2m QRO to 12V@15A needed to fly the aircraft. This should allow me to fly without worrying so much about wind and the cost of helium. I have prototype hardware working now but it's all still just a bit too heavy so there's more engineering to do.

I've put some more photos of today's test Here.

Glenn n6gn

[Line Printer]

On Sun, 6 Sep 2015, Glenn Elmore wrote:

> [..] This should allow me to fly without worrying so much about wind and
> the cost of helium.

Hydrogen!! Because hydrogen and helium are lighter than the
normal mix of air by volume, they are useful gases for bouyancy. While
people occasionally think that since each helium atom is (mostly) 4x
heavier that each hydrogen atom, hydrogen would be a much better gas for
lifting things - all else being equal. Except they aren't..... hydrogen
is diatomic which increases the density of the gas. But there are other
variables. I haven't bought bottled gases in a long time but I recall a
factor four times increase to get industrial helium compared to hydrogen
bottles. I wouldn't be surprised if the cost difference is much greater
now because of the local helium shortage discussions.

Of course, hydrogen does burns extremely quickly but good
planning and preparations could minimize risks... I.e., a golden brown
grass field in the summer of a multiyear drought may not be the right
place for hydrogen balloons and/or bottle rockets.

Looking at halo antenna and swtl seemed like a natural
application for hydrogen to lift it.



Looking through the images of the hardware used for the weekend
test showed me that I am not the only person using using fishing gear as
antenna system components! ^-^

I am awaiting the new San Jose Bass Pro store in the Almaden Plaza. From
the marketing literature I have seen, it should open in the Q1 quarter
of 2015!


I am wondering if any of the people reading this have had a chance to try
out some of the "fast-modes" in the development versions of WSJTX...
Specifically, JT9G or JTMSK. I've read about them in the wsjt-devel
mailing list and I started trying to understand the "Ping Jockey Central"
found at http://www.pingjockey.net/cgi-bin/pingtalk

It appears that the frequencies are often used with these two modes:

28.148 MHz JT9G Fast 15 sec
50.280 MHz 15sec JTMSK
144.142 MHz 15sec JTMSK

I have not actually heard these signals despite spending some time looking
for them.

Joe Taylor has been informative regarding the fast modes and how they
integrate into WSJTX. Here are several links where he goes over some of
the fundamentals.

Chronological order from August 7-28:

Fast modes in WSJT(-X)
https://www.mail-archive.com/wsjt-...@lists.sourceforge.net/msg03709.html


Some fundamentals of the WSJT modes
https://www.mail-archive.com/wsjt-...@lists.sourceforge.net/msg03732.html
http://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/K1JT/wsjt_modes.pdf


JT9 fast modes for scatter on 6 and 10m
https://www.mail-archive.com/wsjt-...@lists.sourceforge.net/msg03733.html
http://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/K1JT/Fast_Modes.txt

Quoting JT: "My email suggests that others want to know more about the
fun some of us have been having with the new "fast JT9" submodes for
scatter communication on 6 and 10 meters. Some details, instructions, and
a brief development history are outlined here.."


Auto-Sequencing with fast JT9 modes
https://www.mail-archive.com/wsjt-...@lists.sourceforge.net/msg03744.html


New mode JTMSK
https://www.mail-archive.com/wsjt-devel%40lists.sourceforge.net/msg03797.html

Quoting JT: "Many VHF users of WSJT-X are now playing with the new mode
JTMSK. I view this mode as a candidate replacement for FSK441 and JTMS,
for all meteor scatter work."


Bonus link:
http://reast.asn.au/2015/WSJT_Digital_Modes_Note_VK7MO.pdf

[Glenn Elmore]

I've had some of the same thoughts about using hydrogen. We were
talking about this a couple of weeks ago at coffee. Apparently, with
care to purge lines, remove the balloon from the tank, proper check
valves etc it is viable and safe. You're right about it being only
incrementally better at lifting than helium but the price is a lot
better and we're not running out of it.
Though my goal is to have a GPSed quadcopter, powered from the ground,
on duty to hold position, it may be that it remains worthwhile to bias
the weight of larger (any?) payloads with an extra balloon lifter. I
suppose this makes the arrangement a quad-dirigible or something.

Thanks for the links to the other interesting modes. Maybe we should
consider trying them out among the WSPR group some time, like we did
with JT65 once. I'm not sure how much new propagation information that
provides but it might make the whole environment interesting to others
who thus far have stayed out of WSPR.

Glenn

[n6gn]

I've posted a new video and linked to it from my web site which demonstrates power transmission over a single  0.32mm (#28 AWG .0128") diameter copper wire. This video was taken in my back yard using an 80W Toshiba linear 'brick' on 146 MHz.  These power modules might be useful for anyone wanting to take some of the burden off a 2m WSPR station's transceiver.  The module is only $65 and W6PQL has a blank board to go with them so it's easy to build your own PA.

Glenn n6gn

[Pamela J. Filicky]

de n6kog GM all, yes I built that 80W 2-MTR amplifier, hardest part was making the chassis, now it just sets here collecting dust. Had every intention of

using that & FT-857 as a dedicated 2-MTR WSPR station as you know that hasn't happened. But I do like Carol's/KP4MD/R antenna. haha. CUL Steve

On Wednesday, February 10, 2016 9:46 AM, n6gn <n6...@sonic.net> wrote:

I've posted a new video and linked to it from my web site which demonstrates power transmission over a single  0.32mm (#28 AWG .0128") diameter copper wire. This video was taken in my back yard using an 80W Toshiba linear 'brick' on 146 MHz.  These power modules might be useful for anyone wanting to take some of the burden off a 2m WSPR station's transceiver.  The module is only $65 and W6PQL has a blank board to go with them so it's easy to build your own PA.

Glenn n6gn

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