The Quadrantis Meteor Shower characterizes these days. My mind runs at 5 years ago. Year 2007 was at the beginning of the bottom of the Solar Cycle and 10 meters were completely dead. I was alone to manage the station and the other team members were sleeping after a heavy activity on low bands. I decided to listen on 10 m. I plugged the RG213 without any special intuition but I immediately began to listen some strange noise, typical of meteor shower. I started to call and immediately I got a strong pile-up for 2-3 hours. I was able to hear lovely signals of several call-sing but complete the QSO was another story. I was able to listen the first part of the call-signs, after that silence, than call-signs again, sometime just some letters and nothing more…sometime I had the time to complete the QSO.
It was my best pileup ever, the rate was not high but was unforgettable, and I was really surprised to work all Europe with the band in silence for days and days till that moment. QSOs became faster and faster, and I realized a good rhythm. At noon, I collected around 400 contacts on 10 and 12 meters. When the others went back, I remember their surprise. Nobody was supposing to have fun on high bands in January 2007. For a couple of days the situation comes again, but with a different intensity. Today I can assure that it was the best pileup I ever managed: it was difficult, it was crazy (because it was hard complete the QSO), but I enjoyed a lot of adrenaline during that meteor shower session.

Now all the feed of my amaradio account of Google Reader are clean. I addedd brand new, I deleted the death one. I discovered that hamradio love to manage blogs. Anyway now all is in order and ready to be consulted from my Fliboard account. It’s a pleasure to read about hamradio everyday at breackfast time with the iPad!

During my short visit in Boston, I supposed to have no time for hamradio. But last day I was invited to visit MIT Media Lab, the research laboratory founded by Professor Nicholas Negroponte. Just in front of the building, when I was parking the car, I found a good set up waiting for me. It formerly was 1XM, the MIT Radio Society (W1MX). This station is America’s Oldest College Amateur Station and it is managed by the MIT Radio Society, a student run organization intended for MIT students, faculty, and staff.
The MIT Radio Society meets on the first Tuesday of each month at 7:30 PM on the Third Floor of Walker Memorial, next time I will work to meet them.
Noted. Next time I will try to meet them in person.

At the time of landline railroad telegraphy, the males were traditionally referred to each other as OM (“old man”). What about the women? Starting from 1920 “YL” identified the women on the air by the American Radio Relay League referring to young ladies of all ages. Of course “Young Ladies” was better than “Old Lady”, that would certainly be really unwelcome. Read the rest of this entry »

Another article article by Wired, an american magazine devoted to current and future trends in technology, and how they are shaping business, entertainment, communications, science and politics, is talking about swortwaves: Inside the Russian Short Wave Radio Enigma

In part this is good news: I received one new license to operate from a new Country of DXCC. The call sign is 5H1HOK, and I’m evaluating to use it for some interesting IOTA activities. I know, you will start to suffer of bruxism for this, because there is also a bad part and you will grind your teeth: I have not planned jet any activities.I have no plans to go there, any hotel booked, any flight sheduled. This year is a difficult year, I already have two interesting DXCC entity to activate till next summer and I don’t know if I will have enough free time to travel to Tanzania and arrange this activity. Anyway, stay tuned, stop teeth grinding, because there will be a great surprise for you in few days. Be patience, more details will follow.

Thanks to Franco Prete I1FQH, I got a new clicence from Togo. I don’t know if I will be able transimt from 5V in the next future, but if it will be, I will use 5V7KS to go on the air.

Since I stopped to press for the license, I was convinced to have lost the money of the fee payed in Duala one year ago. But friday the dispatch is arrived. The callsing is TJ3GM, and it was really unespected. Now I have no plans to go in Camerun, but who know the future?!

Fabrizio, IN3ZNR finished to set-up the station for the ARI Dx Contest 2011 in San Marino. He will be guest at the ARRMS radio club. It was the oportunity to have a dxdinner togheter with old friends. GL Fabrizio, it ‘s always a pleasure to listen T70A on the air.