As far as I know - yes, the NOAA headquaters for Maine is in Gray but they transmit western Maine and Eastern NH from Sugarloaf. But your up high enough you may also be hearing one of the other repeaters. Just have to note the Frequency and compare it to the list.
The Ham Radio (and Related topics) Discussion and Question Thread
- Thread starter KGIII
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May be worth a look at.
hackaday.com
A Linux Distro For All Your Ham Needs
For anyone new to the world of ham radio, one of the things that takes a little getting used to is visiting the websites of authoritative experts in various fields and feeling like you’ve tra…
hackaday.com
OP
May be worth a look at.
A Linux Distro For All Your Ham Needs
For anyone new to the world of ham radio, one of the things that takes a little getting used to is visiting the websites of authoritative experts in various fields and feeling like you’ve tra…
Heh! I've seen that. I don't think I'll use it, 'cause I can just add the tools I need to the distro I currently use.
Thanks!
It's based on an official Ubuntu flavor, so anything that works in AHRL is going to work in Lubuntu with relative ease.
Though, I should spin up a VM and see what he's got installed.
There's also DragonOS, which is/was (I'm not sure of the current development state) all about the SDR tools.
I have to give the credit to @kc1di for the above link which he had previously posted in the link below.May be worth a look at.
A Linux Distro For All Your Ham Needs
For anyone new to the world of ham radio, one of the things that takes a little getting used to is visiting the websites of authoritative experts in various fields and feeling like you’ve tra…
OP
I think that's why I'd previously seen the distro mentioned before.
As an aside, I did dig out a page with Morse Code on it and I can still basically remember all the letters.
I was better at remembering them than I thought I'd be. So, I have that going for me. I previously mentioned getting a laminated piece of paper with that information on it. I suspect that's why I can remember them.
Also, you can listen to some online SDRs fairly easily. I didn't find much that was interesting when I played with it, but I had a good time poking buttons.
OP
Okay...
So, I'm picking up NOAA on 162.500 - and they just identified themselves as Mt. Washington.
That was helpful. I knew stations were supposed to identify themselves every so often. I found the channel again. I think they must have some power behind their transmissions because I didn't even have to tune all that accurately. I get the signal as 'far away' (on the frequencies) as 162.475 and 162.525 (though it's got more static on the higher frequencies than it has on the frequencies below it).
The tower in Sugarloaf has a different frequency. Springfield shares the same frequency but you can be 100% certain that I'm not getting signals from there with my little HT with a cheap antenna. Well, that and the station clearly identifies itself as Mt. Washington.
As I've mentioned elsewhere, that's really not all that far away. If the skies are clear, I can see Mt. Washington from my house. My view is pretty good to the east, south, and west. (I have a mountain kinda N/NNE from my house - another 300' or so of elevation.
(And, yes, it's the same on .475 - still the Mt. Washington broadcast. It's not one of the other stations on that frequency.)
So, I'm picking up NOAA on 162.500 - and they just identified themselves as Mt. Washington.
That was helpful. I knew stations were supposed to identify themselves every so often. I found the channel again. I think they must have some power behind their transmissions because I didn't even have to tune all that accurately. I get the signal as 'far away' (on the frequencies) as 162.475 and 162.525 (though it's got more static on the higher frequencies than it has on the frequencies below it).
The tower in Sugarloaf has a different frequency. Springfield shares the same frequency but you can be 100% certain that I'm not getting signals from there with my little HT with a cheap antenna. Well, that and the station clearly identifies itself as Mt. Washington.
As I've mentioned elsewhere, that's really not all that far away. If the skies are clear, I can see Mt. Washington from my house. My view is pretty good to the east, south, and west. (I have a mountain kinda N/NNE from my house - another 300' or so of elevation.
(And, yes, it's the same on .475 - still the Mt. Washington broadcast. It's not one of the other stations on that frequency.)
OP
They say 300 on their site, but I'm more curious as to why I can't hear Sugarloaf.
(Wattage mentioned here:https://www.weather.gov/gyx/mtw_nwr_map.htm at that link.)
From their documentation, Sugarloaf is also at 300 W. If I am in my windows, I can see Sugarloaf as well. Sugarloaf is much, much closer. In the NOAA maps, I'm supposed to be well within range of the Sugarloaf channel - but I don't even get static on that channel.
Given the location, I don't see NOAA just shutting the station off. Also, there are all sorts of towers on the mountain. With a decent telescope, I could probably see them from my front windows.
If I had to guess, and I am guessing, there's a bit of a mountain between us. While I can see Sugarloaf, I can't quite make all of it out. It's partially obscured.
Mt. Washington isn't really obscured at all.
OP
Not nearly as much as I'd have liked. I have migrated to the cheap radio and sometimes take it with me when I go for my daily drive. At home, it sits there acting more or less as a scanner where I listen to local emergency broadcasts. Outside of the house, I can pick up more stuff. I need an external antenna, I think.
I find that I'm not all that interested in communicating. Listening is okay by me.
If I'm headed in a particular location, I might set it to scan a repeater and a local emergency broadcast. Sometimes I'll let it scan through a bunch of channels, but this cheap radio is worse than a scanner for that type of activity - meaning it's pretty slow at scanning through the channels. I do have a portable Uniden somewhere around the house and, while older, did a much better job of that.
Radio reception is only as good as the antenna its connected to.
I always liked listening to the public service frequencies so I could know what's happening in my area and other places.
I can no longer do that since most public service in my state uses EDACS (Enhanced Digital Access Communications System).
Radio has its days some days it's got a lot of activity and some days it's just boring.
I always liked listening to the public service frequencies so I could know what's happening in my area and other places.
I can no longer do that since most public service in my state uses EDACS (Enhanced Digital Access Communications System).
Radio has its days some days it's got a lot of activity and some days it's just boring.
I'm still active on CW. de KS4JI
Hi @ks4ji,
The thread is not very active, I too am still on CW mostly 20 Meters but haven't been on lately.
I'm now living in Senior housing and no outside antennas possible. Using a small transmitting loop on 20 and make a few contact from time to time, QRP only. Been CW for many years first licensed in 1966 as a novice. Held the following calls over the years
WN1BVE, WA1POZ, KA8RO, KA6RO ( US Military in Japan) and my current call KC1DI. So there are a few Hams about here but mostly the topics are computers and Linux
73, Dave kc1di
The thread is not very active, I too am still on CW mostly 20 Meters but haven't been on lately.
I'm now living in Senior housing and no outside antennas possible. Using a small transmitting loop on 20 and make a few contact from time to time, QRP only. Been CW for many years first licensed in 1966 as a novice. Held the following calls over the years
WN1BVE, WA1POZ, KA8RO, KA6RO ( US Military in Japan) and my current call KC1DI. So there are a few Hams about here but mostly the topics are computers and Linux
73, Dave kc1di
OP
I'm probably going to go with a j-pole on the roof, one tuned to the same frequencies I listen to now.
I probably should have acted on that sooner. Winter is approaching fast.
OP
It's a bit confusing, but I don't really have an attic. There's space where I could put stuff, I suppose.
My house is pretty much an envelope house. It's stupidly large but you get used to it. Air flows around and provides a great insulator. It's like a house within a house. It's easier to think of it as that.
Hey hey!
I know I mentioned this a while back, but I too am a ham. lol I saw this post in the "new posts" page and thought I would jump in and then found 7 pages of posts lol.
I'm not too active as a ham, but have been licensed for almost ten years. I didn't get around to getting licensed until 2014, but a buddy and I used to mess around with CBs when we were in our teens and 20s, but we moved to different parts of the country and didn't even end up reaching licensed ham status until 2014. He ended up getting his too and we occasionally hop on hf. Though his wire in a tree got snapped and he is waiting till the leaves come down to get a new one up. (about now I would say)
I have several radios, though I think I'm going to sell all my "extra" radios and just keep my HTs my main base station radios. The ones that aren't plugged in have been just collecting dust in the closet.
I know I mentioned this a while back, but I too am a ham. lol I saw this post in the "new posts" page and thought I would jump in and then found 7 pages of posts lol.
I'm not too active as a ham, but have been licensed for almost ten years. I didn't get around to getting licensed until 2014, but a buddy and I used to mess around with CBs when we were in our teens and 20s, but we moved to different parts of the country and didn't even end up reaching licensed ham status until 2014. He ended up getting his too and we occasionally hop on hf. Though his wire in a tree got snapped and he is waiting till the leaves come down to get a new one up. (about now I would say)
I have several radios, though I think I'm going to sell all my "extra" radios and just keep my HTs my main base station radios. The ones that aren't plugged in have been just collecting dust in the closet.
Me either these days kind of lost interest.
Amazing high well a piece of wire high up in the air between two points works.
Yep us hams seem to accumulate radios that wind up as dust collectors.
I'm not a real "social" guy. So, I'm not really the ragchew type. I'm a habitual hobbyist you could say lol. Ham radio is just one of them. It's mostly about the science and of course. I love tinkering with electronics. So it applies to ham radio, but it also applies trying to electronics repair and of course my guitar and amp building hobby also lol.
