Tag Archives: VHF/UHF

Activities, Featured, General, Newsletter, On The Air

We Out Foxed Them Again (Updated)!

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More Fox Hunt fun this weekend – Bob, W1FDR shares his experiences.

I found both the foxes but I had to work really hard to do it. First I drove to the Home Depot area off of exit 6 and found the strongest signal in the parking area of mine falls park. It was very icy but it didn’t take me long to realize it wasn’t there so I went back across the bridge to the Nashua high school, the parking lots were full with activity and I did not know the area. So I drove to the Wiggins Park area and hiked over to where the foxes were. I was going to take a picture of the strongest fox but there were so many people walking by and I was so busy talking to them I forgot. I then went to find the weaker fox and I did take a picture or I had a picture taken by a passerby.

Then proceeded to help the economy in Nashua with Christmas shopping.

Bob
W1FDR

Bob Finds Our Foxes Again!
Bob Finds Our Foxes Again!

John, KB1MGI and his son Craig, KB1CGS also tracked down the large wily critter. Here is their story –

KB1CGS Craig my son and myself KB1MGI John both found the 146.565 Fox.

After circling the area around exit 6 we ended up at the parking area at Lincoln Park at the end of Coliseum Ave. Craig and I went over the icy Bridge and stayed on the left trail along the water.  Then we walked in circles for ever and we kept ending up at the base of a hill and still walking in circles over an over again.

When climbed up the steep hill to the main trail. At first we figured the fox was across the river behind the high school. Turning around and figured it was back down the hill. Then Craig said look at that stump I saw the tip of the antenna.

2 hours to find. Great job hiding the fox.

We did not look for the other one because it was getting dark soon.

Thanks

John kb1mgi
Craig kc1cgs

John KB1MGI and His Son Craig KB1CGS Track Down The Large Wiley Critter
John KB1MGI and His Son Craig KB1CGS Track Down The Large Wiley Critter
We all had fun chasing down the N1FD foxes again this weekend! Their dens were in a very picturesque area.
N1FD Large and Small Foxes
N1FD Large and Small Foxes

Jamey, KC1ENX continues to try to outfox the hunters but so far we have been able to track down the N1FD critters.

Fred, AB1OC

Digital, Featured, General, Newsletter, Space, Station Equipment

Receiving SSTV From The ISS

We’ve recently upgraded our Portable Satellite Station 2.0 to add digital and packet capabilities. The upgrade was pretty simple – we added a SignaLink USB Soundcard and a Windows Laptop PC. Most of the software for Packet and Digital Amateur Radio communications is written for the Windows OS so using a separate laptop running Windows 10 was the simplest way to go.

Portable Satellite Station With Additions For Digital and Packet
Portable Satellite Station With Additions For Digital and Packet

Another benefit of the second laptop was added screen space to use when doing packet communications via satellites and the International Space Station (ISS).

Receiving SSTV From The ISS

SSTV Image From The ISS
SSTV Image From The ISS

We recently learned that the ISS was going to be again transmitting SSTV images worldwide. This provided a perfect opportunity to work with the digital additions in our satellite setup. We downloaded and installed MMSSTV on our Windows laptop and set the audio levels on the Windows PC and our SignaLink Sound card to properly receive SSTV signals. The MMSSTV application can decode several different SSTV formats including the PD120 format used by the ISS. The ISS transmits SSTV on a 2m FM voice channel. We configured MacDoppler to track the ISS and perform doppler correction on the 2m ISS 2m downlink and began to listen.

The video above was made during the reception of an SSTV image from the ISS during a pass over the United States. The video gives a good idea of what its like to receive SSTV from the space station.

More ISS SSTV Images…

Another SSTV Image From The ISS
Another SSTV Image From The ISS

We were able to receive several different images from the ISS during the period that it was transmitting SSTV worldwide.

A Third SSTV Image From The ISS
A Third SSTV Image From The ISS

It was pretty easy to capture the SSTV transmissions from the ISS with our Portable Satellite Station 2.0 setup. The signals were strong and I would imagine that the SSTV transmission could have also been received with a simple portable satellite setup with a hand-held yagi antenna.

We hope that the ISS will send SSTV images again in the near future. It was fun receiving them.

Fred, AB1OC

Activities, Featured, General, Newsletter

A Winter’s Fox Hunt

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Jamey, KC1ENX let the N1FD foxes loose in Nashua, NH this past weekend to give all of us a chance to track them down. This is not the first time that our foxes have roamed to wilds on New Hampshire. We let them loose during our summer picnic this year. We always have fun and improve our radio direction finding skills while doing a Fox Hunt!

Fox News Alert - N1FD Foxes Roaming Nashua
Fox News Alert – N1FD Foxes Roaming Nashua

We woke this past Saturday to a Fox News Alert! Fox News contributor Jamey, KC1ENX reported –

“Two foxes have been spotted in the Nashua area! It has been reported that N1FD-fox1 was heard on Route 3 this morning on 146.565. It has also been reported that N1FD-fox2 could be heard from close to N1FD-fox2’s location on a frequency of 146.535.”

Hunting the Large Fox

I went down to our shack and turned on the 2m rig. Sure enough, there was the howl of the large fox (audio recording above) so I gathered my HT and Elk Yagi antenna and set off to track down the Wiley critters. I stopped just beyond my house near Rt. 122 in Hollis, NH to get an initial fix. Sure enough, I heard the large critter’s bark coming from the general direction of Nashua. A couple of fixes along Rt. 3 indicated that the fox was in a den in Mine Falls Park so I drove there and parked. By this time, the fox was clearly audible on the mobile rig in my truck. I switched my HT to the big fox’s third harmonic frequency and headed for a high spot on a bridge in the center of the park. Sure enough, there the Wiley critter was – just ahead on the trail.

Fox Hunt - The Large Fox in its Lair
The Large Fox in its Lair

I got very close to the large fox when I encountered Bob, W1FDR who had a very effective close in system which used an HT and a dish. Bob said:

“Lets team up and we’ll track the critter down”.

So we did team up and it did not take long to find the fox’s hideout. We both signed the fox log and turned our attention to finding the smaller fox.

Hunting the Small Fox

Fox Hunt - Bob W1FDR by the Small Fox's Den
Bob W1FDR by the Small Fox’s Den

The small fox was audible from the large fox’s den using my Yagi and HT. We tracked the small fox across the soccer fields at Mine Falls Park and over a small ridge. Once we got close, Bob used his dish system to track down the small fox in its den.

Fox Hunt - Fox Hunting Equipment
Fox Hunting Equipment

The combination of my Yagi and Bob’s dish system worked very well for hunting the foxes. The Yagi was surprisingly directional at longer range and this made it relatively easy to get close to both foxes. Bob’s dish was great for the final, close-in location of the foxes in their dens.

I had a great time hunting the foxes and I am looking forward to another hunt this coming Saturday after our breakfast get together at Parker’s Maple Barn in Mason, NH. I am looking for some folks to team with again for the hunt this coming Saturday. Talley-ho!

Fred, AB1OC

Radio Amateurs Developing Skills Worldwide