Embedded Files
Jef's latest notes below for November 2025 including FT8 on 2m
Jef's latest notes below for November 2025 including FT8 on 2m
Our club officer ON8NT produces a regular blog of his activities and interests.
His notes have become a regular column in CQ-QSO ( the equivalent of RadCom in Belgium) and translated in Dutch and French, from his national society UBA. They contain some super ideas and links - something of interest for all here !
This is how Jef describes himself !
My name is Jef and my location is in JO11RC
All my antennas are on the balcony:
Diamond V2000 vertical tribander on short mast in a solar umbrella feet,
5 element LPDA from WIMO (Germany) for 2m & 70cm on a tripod, can be used in vertical or horizontal polarisation,
dipole for 2m & 70cm from WIMO (Germany) on the same tripod can be used vertical or horizontal polarisation, replacing the 5 element LPDA in windy conditions...
Different AMPRO hamsticks for different bands using the railing as a counterpoise, for HF.
Although i'm also active on HF, those reports are mainly VHF, UHF & SHF.
Wanted to start digital modes (FT8, FT4, JS8call, RTTY, SSTV, WINLINK...) on VHF & up (and HF!)
Wanted to learn how to connect your PC to your transceiver, and what settings you need?
The YOUTUBE videos from KW3KW - Ham radio made simple - can be found here:
https://www.youtube.com/@hamradiomadesimple/videos
You can e-mail KW3KW and ask for the written documentation that he provides with most videos (information on how to get the document given at the end of the video). Excellent stuff, I think the best you can find on YT about digital modes!
VHF propagation video from Rohde & Schwarz: good introduction to VHF & up propagation, debunking some myths...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTXJ3bS2UcE
ON8NT Notes for
NOVEMBER 2025
News
Troposcatter Meteorscatter Ionoscatter by OZ1RH (an old one, but a good one...)
The (Android, probably also IOS) App MeshCore does not require a MeshCore node being connected. Without a node you can still reach the menu "..." and then under "tools" you find the menus "antenna coverage" and "line of sight". The usage is very intuitive and I found out, that you can change the height of the antenna (important for antennas on houses or towers) and even the frequency (default is probably 868 Mhz).
(TNX Frank, dg6oay)
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.liamcottle.meshcore.android
https://github.com/ripplebiz/MeshCore
Different articles on D-STAR (in German)
https://www.a23-wertheim.de/downloads/d-star/anleitungen-d-star
D-STAR Quick-Start Guide by Rob Locher W7GH
https://www.roblocher.com/whitepapers/dstar.html
EvoHam.com Is Live - Welcome to the Future of Digital Voice in Amateur Radio
EvoHam.com is designed to be a comprehensive, easy-to-navigate resource for all major digital modes: Beginner-Friendly Guides, Independent Gear Reviews, Tutorials & How-To Articles, Tools & Resources, Digital Voice News & Insights...
https://evoham.com/evoham-is-live/
New Packet Radio (NPR)
n 2019, Guillaume F4HDK unveiled his New Packet Radio (NPR) system (Reference 1, Reference 2). F4HDK developed NPR as a “clean sheet of paper” design and despite including “Packet Radio” it had no backwards compatibility with legacy Amateur Radio Packet Radio, other than “packets” were used, over “radio”. No AX.25, no narrow bandwidths, no TNCs, no legacy FM (or other) radios, etc. NPR used TCP/IP, Ethernet as a radio interface, reasonable data speeds (100 kbps - 1 Mbps), on the 420-450 MHz / 70cm band. NPR even had a built-in networking capability for making efficient use of high profile nodes.
But the biggest innovation of New Packet Radio that F4HDK used was that he released NPR as open source, hardware, software, and well-designed protocol. His good designs that could be replicated, and then improved upon, the growing need for such a higher speed data radio for use on VHF / UHF, and his decision to use the open source model, has now resulted, in 2025, of a version of NPR for the 2m band (currently, 146-148 MHz). That one radio could conceivably be the “magic bullet” that helps recreate Amateur Radio data networks suitable for use (and NewTechHams) of the 21st century.
Source: Zero Retries 0229 https://www.zeroretries.org/p/zero-retries-0229
New Packet Radio NPR-H 3.0 (2m) €149
https://localino.net/shop/public/New-Packet-Radio-NPR-H-3.0-2m/H10008
New Packet Radio NPR-H 3.0 (70cm) €149
https://localino.net/shop/public/New-Packet-Radio-NPR-H-3.0-70cm/H10007
There will be a third radio unit - New Packet Radio NPR-H 3.0 (23cm) but that won’t be available until mid-December 2025 at the earliest.
LinHT – a complete M17 transceiver (finally!)
We’ve just got LinHT to work as a complete M17 transceiver – able to transmit and receive RF signals without the need to use SSH to issue any commands. This was not as easy as we expected, due to ALSA-related problems (Linux users probably know what I mean).
... see more at:
https://m17project.org/2025/11/20/linht-complete-m17-transceiver/
LinHT – a GNU Radio configurable handheld transceiver – Wojciech Kaczmarski (SP5WWP)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecn54XRD5Oo
VGC Has released their new Bluetooth speaker mic. The BHM-88 is available in black and tan and works with all of the “N” series radios (VR-N76, VR-N7600, ...).
In addition to the VGC radios, this microphone will pair with the Icom IC-705. It does not give a frequency display, but it does work as a speaker mic.
https://www.verotelecom.com/Bluetooth-Speaker-Micrphone-For-N-Series-Two-Way-Radios-p2681834.html
https://www.hamradio.co.uk/vgc-bhm-88
A usefull "USB stick RTL-SDR" software list for different platforms:
https://www.passion-radio.com/store/sdr-software-10
SatTrackCam Leiden (b)log
THE SECRET SPIES IN THE SKY - Imagery, Data Analysis, and Discussions relating to Military Space.
SatTrackCam Leiden (Cospar 4353) is a satellite tracking station located at Leiden, the Netherlands. The tracking focus is on classified objects - i.e. "spy satellites". With a camera, accurate positional measurements on satellites of interest are obtained in order to determine their orbits. Orbital behaviour is analysed. This blog analyses Missile tests too.
https://sattrackcam.blogspot.com/
BOTAN SAT APRS See schedule of transmission CW/GMSK UHF, APRS VHF:
https://sites.google.com/p.chibakoudai.jp/gardens-04/operation/operation-schedule
APRSdroid (NA7Q)
NA7Q APRSdroid is a powerful, extensively enhanced Android application developed by NA7Q based on the original APRSdroid. This version adds numerous professional-grade features while maintaining seamless integration with the APRS (Automatic Packet Reporting System) network. This build is a work in progress, and some features may be incomplete or broken at the time of download as development actively continues.
https://na7q.com/aprsdroid-osm/
https://github.com/na7q/aprsdroid
The Secret Side of APRS YT video by KM4ACK
In this video, Jason (KM4ACK) demonstrate real APRS bot interactions — showing live examples of popular Automatic Packet Reporting System (APRS) services and how they respond to user commands. Whether you're a ham radio operator, APRS beginner, or packet radio enthusiast, this deep dive will help you understand how each APRS bot enhances communication, tracking, and information sharing over the air.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPElQT_i7sI
In the links of this video some more deepdives into other aspects from APRS
APRSD Webchat!
https://github.com/hemna/aprsd-webchat-extension
APRS POTA SPOTS
You can use APRS to spot yourself on a Parks On The Air POTA activation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONyNH0n45AQ
Using JT Skimmer (by Alex VE3NEA) for 6-meter DXCC by K9IMM Ted
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JquRnRI1G0I
Its main purpose is to monitor the band for digital signals and decode multiple WSJT-X modes, on multiple frequencies, 24 hours a day - and help the operator catch band openings and activity from the rare entities. This is especially useful on 6m because of its unpredictable propagation, but the program may be used on any band.
https://ve3nea.github.io/JTSkimmer/
Understanding 6 Meter Sporadic E Propagation by W3LPL, Frank Donovan (The Madison DX Club)
Six Meter Long Distance Propagation Including Es and TEP
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOYrPPvthEU
VA7ZEB Line of Sight (LOS) Web App
29MHz DATV (Digital amateur TV, also on 50, 70, 144, 434... Mhz)
https://wiki.batc.org.uk/29_MHz
DATV for QO-100
https://www.sdr-radio.com/datv
M17 web client
Give the web client for M17 a try at: https://m17web.kc1awv.net
KA1GT VHF/UHF/Microwave/EME Pages
https://www.bobatkins.com/radio/index.html
The idea of the solar cooker is that the camper adjusts its elevation and points it at the sun so
that the parabolic surface reflects the sun’s rays to the focal point of the dish. The intense
concentration of light is used to heat water or cook food in a pan at the focal point.
https://www.bobatkins.com/radio/150cm_EME_dish.html
the cooker looked like a good approximation to a parabolic antenna. It is 1.50 metres in diameter.
FT8TW (+FT4): Run FT8/FT4 on Android
https://github.com/danleetw/FT8TW
BETA
https://github.com/danleetw/FT8TW/releases/tag/Beta
STABLE
https://github.com/danleetw/FT8TW/releases
Packet Commander - The Terminal App for AX.25 Packet Radio on iOS
SDR-Hub: A New RTL-SDR Scanner and Audio Recorder with Web Interface
https://www.rtl-sdr.com/sdr-hub-a-new-rtl-sdr-scanner-and-audio-recorder-with-web-interface/
Things I tried or done this month:
FreeDV RADE
I have been playing with RADE in digital voice on HF, and been amazed...
On FreeDV reporter (= the dashboard of where you find activity) I discovered that some people are testing RADE on 144.280Mhz and on the QO-100:
The RADE-audio on HF is like listening to a 2 meter FM signal: no noise, qrm, fading... And it still decoded at -4 -5 db...
See also 2 interesting articles in the December 2025 issue of 'Practical Wireless' by Eric GW8LJJ "Digital voice for HF" (page22) and Daimon G4USI "The RADE QRP transceiver" (page 38).
In my local club TLS-ARCDP we have now a D-star repeater (ON0TLS) and the club decided to organise a information meeting on D-star (by Patrick ON4PN), attended by +40 hams of which 25% was less than 30 years, including some XYL's... It is decided to organise different workshops, for different TRX models, to learn how to configure, program, set-up and operate D-star. An excellent idea!
Here are some reports for November 2025:
144Mhz ICOM IC-9700 (25W) + 5 el LPDA *** +400km & special stations ****
05/11/25 FT8: g8eem (io93 437km), g0jcc (io82 455km)
ISS ARISS ICOM IC-9700 + 5 el LPDA
19/11/25 I heard the ARISS radio contact between OR4ISS and IK1SLD on November 19, 2025 with
Astronaut Zena Cardman (KJ5CMN), answering questions from students in Mexico (Escuela Jose Marti, Mexico City), via the ARISS telebridge ground station IK1SLD at 15:34 UTC on145.800 MHz.
RS-44 sat ICOM IC-9700 + 5 el LPDA
07/11/25: FT4 f5rrs (in36 600km), f6hro (in88 547km), n1naz (fn42 5504km), kb1hy (fn31 5675km)
08/11/25: FT4 sm/ua1cbx (???), pd1b (jo32 321km), k0lb (fm18 6182km)
13/11/25: FT4 oz3aev (jo55 722km), sm/ua1cbx (???), f5rrs (jn36 600km), f6hro (in88 547km), ea3dme (jn01 1119km), k0lb (fm18 6182km)
21/11/25: FT4 dl3ngn (jn59 569km), dl3sde (jn48 506km), w2gdj (fn32 5644km)
OCTOBER 2025
News
Map with VHF and up beacons (Tnx Ken G4VZV)
https://mmmonvhf.de/bcn_map.php
Exponentially Improving Radio Technology in Ukraine
I have no idea what video I watched on YouTube. Mostly the video explained the circuitous route a group of Ukraine drones had taken to attack a target deep inside Russia. As background, the video explained how advanced and robust Ukraine’s drone communications systems had become to overcome Russia’s communications jamming capabilities. Ukraine is now using very advanced, very capable frequency hopping technology to sidestep aggressive, powerful broad spectrum jamming by Russia. Ukraine drones are able to switch modes, frequencies, and interleave video, telemetry, and coordination with the other drones in the group.
What I found most remarkable is that the communications packages on the latest Ukraine drones are developed by Ukraine, and the drone radio hardware is low-cost, mostly off the shelf (Ukraine customizes the firmware), lightweight, and power efficient. Some of the Ukraine drone radios are optimized for specific roles. Some drones were designated to be “video observers” and loiter while the attack drones, well, attack. Other Ukraine drones are communications relays at that loiter at designated intermediate points - essentially acting as repeaters that miles-high. Other Ukraine drone roles include more sophisticated Global Navigation Satellite Systems receivers that have extra hardware to receive GNSS signals despite Russian jamming of GNSS and can then relay reliable GNSS data to the Ukraine attack drones.
Another remarkable radio-related development in Ukraine is the personal two way radio communications units. Instead of cellular with fixed base stations, or use of satellites, Ukraine’s battlefield radio communications is now peer to peer mesh networked as well as encrypted, and can easily interleave data and voice on a single handheld (or belt worn) radio unit.
Source https://www.zeroretries.org/i/176444689/exponentially-improving-radio-technology-in-ukraine
You can now comminicate in VARA-FM on the VERO VR-N76 (BTECH UV-Pro or Radioddity GA-5WB) HT And this article explains how to do it:
An Update on FreeDV’s Baseband FM (BBFM) Technology
This technology provides unprecedented speech quality and robustness for VHF/UHF land mobile radio (LMR) applications, with experimentally verified 10 dB performance gains over current analog FM and digital systems.
Use cases for LMR include VHF/UHF walkie talkies, and two-way radios in vehicles for applications such as amateur radio, public safety, mining, and recreational vehicles.
https://www.ardc.net/an-update-on-freedvs-baseband-fm-bbfm-technology/
ARDF offset attenuator
Unlock the full potential of your fox‑hunting toolkit with a specialized KC9ON offset attenuator! In this video a dive deep into how an offset attenuator enhances your setup during a hidden‑transmitter hunt (AKA “fox hunt”) using ham radio gear. Explore why attenuation matters, how injecting a small offset signal improves direction finding in strong signal environments, and best practices for integrating the unit into your antenna and receiver chain.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vUbHtlUBwI&t=262s
RadioMsg
Android app for a group to exchange situational awareness messages containing text, pictures and GPS locations.
Also provides bi-directional messages exchanges with SMS cellular and email recipients over radio. Now includes "secured" IOT data reads and commands from/to Home Assistant.
https://github.com/VK2ETA/RadioMsg
TV garden
TV Garden, a browser-based site that casually lets you stream live channels from around the world without spending a dime.
Radio garden
Although it offers a mobile app for both Android and iOS, you can also use this service with just a web browser on a PC or mobile device and listen to radio broadcasts around the world.
OPEN SPACE An open-source communications hardware & software initiative empowering the public to connect across the world by bouncing signals off the Moon—and more!
Bouncing signals off the Moon—known as Earth-Moon-Earth (EME) communication—has long been the ultimate challenge for radio amateurs. It required large antennas, expensive equipment, and accurate manual pointing and tracking. We try to bring this down to Earth, providing all the tools needed to experience the thrill of space communication, with an open source software-defined phased array.
Hush (Ham Unified Signal Handshake)
much faster data rates than VARA or ARDOP free and in development
https://forums.qrz.com/index.php?threads/hush-an-open-source-alternative-to-vara-hf.968360/
MeshCore Presentation by Liam Cottle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwmkVkZQTf4
Things I tried or done this month:
During the ARISS SSTV event 03 -> 09 October 2025), I received 41 SSTV pictures in total of which 20 were pictures of good quality...
On 13 October 2025 I received several SSTV pictures from MB7TV on 144.500 Mhz FM, in JO01mt from the Martello Tower at Point Clear, Essex. MB7TV is a SSTV parrot: it receives the pictures and then retransmits them on the same frequency. It also transmits the 4 last received pictures in one screen at certain times.
https://martellotowergroup.com/slow-scan-and-fast-scan-tv/
I got the RTL-SDR Blog Model V4 working on my 5 years old Android tablet.
This RTL-SDR receives from 500khz to 1.7ghz.
SDR++ Android APK now supports the RTL-SDR Blog V4
https://www.rtl-sdr.com/sdr-android-apk-now-supports-the-rtl-sdr-blog-v4/
You need 2 apps:
SDR driver
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=marto.rtl_tcp_andro
SDR++ Nightly Build (currently 1.2.1)
https://github.com/AlexandreRouma/SDRPlusPlus/releases/tag/nightly
This is really a fun learning process in thinkering with the apps and get the right settings.
The result is amazing for a device at around 40€/£. Could be an excelent present for New Year, or something which could be used with young people in schools during STE(A)M courses or in youthclubs/-groups... or in your local radioclub :)
I will further experiment with the following apps:
Spectrum SDR: New Android App for RTL-SDR FM/AM Decoding and Spectrum Viewing
Decoding Amateur Radio Digital Voice with an RTL-SDR and the QRadioLink Android App
This page is a guide aimed at helping anyone set up a cheap radio scanner based on the RTL-SDR software defined radio as fast as possible on a Windows system.
https://www.rtl-sdr.com/rtl-sdr-quick-start-guide/
SDR-Radio.com It's All About The Software
Here are some reports for October 2025:
50Mhz Icom IC-7300 (10W) + Diamond V2000 vertical tribander
30/10/25: FT8: c5r (il13 4560km), oh6ktl (kp02), sm5cui (jo89 1331km)
144Mhz ICOM IC-9700 (25W) + 5 el LPDA *** +400km & special stations ****
07/10/25 SSB: g0ltg/p (io81 418km
11/02/25: FT8: mw0axa (io81 490km), mi0ihh (io74 724km), m0dsr (io82 430km), ei3kd (io51 811km), oz9ky ( jo57 ), ei4acb (io62 681km), g7rau (in79 624km)
12/10/25: FT8: dg8nco (jo50 593km), hi6atz (io74 731km), g0hvq (io81 409km), hb9efk (jn46 570km), ea2xr (in83 993km), gw7smv (io81 454km)
432Mhz ICOM IC-9700 (25W) + 5 el LPDA *** +400km & special stations ****
08/10/25: FT8: gw4hdf (io81 466km)
11/10/25: FT8: ei3kd (io51 811km), gw4hdf (io81 466km), gi6atz (io74 731km)
12/10/25: FT8: df4iae (jn49 416km), dj6ag jo51 484km)
14/10/25: SSB: g1ybb/p (io82 461km), mw0lkx (io82 477km), gi4sna (io64 742km), g0cnn/p (io94 513km), gw8asd (io83 494km)
ISS ARISS ICOM IC-9700 + 5 el LPDA
03 to 09/10/25
During the ARISS SSTV event, I received 41 SSTV pictures in total of which 20 were pictures of good quality...
09/10/25
Astronaut Mike Fincke, call sign KE5AIT, operated the amateur radio equipment aboard the International Space Station.
Mike answered questions from students in Namibia during this live amateur radio contact.
The ARISS telebridge ground station ON4ISS in Belgium was conducting this radio contact for Namibia Scientific Society.
This live radio amateur contact took place on Thursday, October 9, 2025 at 10:37:18 UTC.
Astronaut Mike Fincke operated the amateur radio station call sign OR4ISS aboard the ISS and called the ARISS telebridge ground station call sign ON4ISS in Belgium. This was an ARISS telebridge contact with Namibia Scientific Society, Windhoek, Namibia. I heard astronaut Mike Fincke on board the ISS at 145.800 MHz (plus/minus 3kHz Doppler shift).
RS-44 ICOM IC-9700 + 5 el LPDA
05/10/25: FT4 f5rrs (jn36 600km)
Off topic (but usefull from time to time for us hams...)
PAIRDROP
It’s the simplest, fastest, and most elegant solution I have found for true, peer-to-peer file transfer between any two devices (whatever operating system) on the same (WIFI)network.
https://www.xda-developers.com/finally-started-using-pairdrop/
GETSCREEN ME: gives you all the control you need, without installing another piece of client software. Whether you are running support or simply reaching your PC, it handles all use cases with minimal fuss.
free version for individuals
SWISSTRANSFER Send large files – Free & secure
https://www.swisstransfer.com/en-gb
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.infomaniak.swisstransfer&hl=nl
On October 10, 2025, the following 3 CubeSats will be deployed from the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) “Kibo”:
https://humans-in-space.jaxa.jp/en/biz-lab/news/detail/004982.html
QRVmaps (TNX Henry M0ZAE)
Who is active during the major VHF and up contests?
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