Welcome to the Lothians Radio Society
10 June 2015 - LRS Annual General Meeting
- Details
- Written by Alan GM3PSP
After the AGM, members adjourned to the new hotel deck to enjoy refreshments in the nice sunny evening.
The Annual General Meeting of the Lothians Radio Society was held on 10th June 2015 at the Braid Hills Hotel. LRS President Andy Sinclair MM0FMF reported (via Skype from Germany) on another very successful year. Treasurer Peter Dick GM4DTH reported that the finances were in good order. The following committee was elected:
President - Andy Sinclair MM0FMF
Secretary - Mike Burgess MM0MLB
Treasurer - Peter Dick GM4DTH
Committee - Alan Masson GM3PSP
- Malcolm Hamilton GM3TAL
- Brian Flynn GM8BJF
- John Cooke GM8OTI
50th Anniversary of Death of Sir Edward Appleton
- Details
- Written by Alan GM3PSP
Photo courtesy of Edinburgh University
The University of Edinburgh has commemorated the 50th anniversary this year of the death of Sir Edward Appleton, discoverer of the ionosphere, by laying a wreath at his gravestone in Morningside cemetery, Edinburgh, just a short walk from the meeting place of the Lothians Radio Society. It is easily found near the west end of the cemetery, facing east. Appleton was Principal & Vice-Chancellor of the University during your scribe's time as a student, who remembers hearing him speak several times.
Click for University News Item.
This item has been submitted to RSGB RadCom for publication, and acknowledged.
11 April 2015 - LRS Members Win RSGB Awards
- Details
- Written by Alan GM3PSP
Chris Grierson GM4YLN & John Gould G3WKL.
At the GMDX Convention at Bannockburn on 11th April 2015, RSGB President Dr. John Gould G3WKL presented trophies to two LRS members and one close friend of the LRS. Congratulations to them all.
Chris Grierson GM4YLN received the RSGB Jack Wylie Trophy as the outstanding Scottish station in 2014, working over 300 countries with only 3 watts of QRP Tx power.
LRS Programme Organizer Malcolm Hamilton GM3TAL received the Scottish VHF NFD Trophy on behalf of the Loch Fyne Kippers group with whom he has operated for many years.
Terry Robinson GM3WUX won the Scottish Homecoming 2014 Quaich for making the largest number of contacts as a single operator (GA3WUX). Terry operates 4m & 6m with the LRS in VHF NFD every year now.
Click for more photos.
All photos by GM4ZNC, courtesy of GMDX.
27 May 2015 - D/F Hunt with fox Peter Dick GM4DTH
- Details
- Written by Alan GM3PSP
L-R: GM8KCS, GM4HYR, GM3TAL, GM4DTH, GM8OTI, GM3PSP, GM4WZG.
The annual LRS Direction-Finding Contest (D/F Hunt) was held on 27th May 2015 with a new start point on Braid Hills Road, next to the entrance to the Braids Golf Course to avoid the high level of noise experienced last year outside the Braid Hills Hotel. Peter GM4DTH was the fox station on 1.875MHz using the callsign GM3HAM/P.
There were seven stations taking part: Malcolm GM3TAL, Bernie GM4WZG, John GM8OTI (with Alan GM3PSP), Melvyn GM4HYR, Mike GM8KCS, Mike Jr MM0MLB, Jack GM1CQC and Brian GM4DIJ.
Peter was hiding, well concealed, in woods near the Stable Bar at Mortonhall (pure coincidence, of course) and was found by three participants:
Time Callsign
1h 27m GM4HYR
1h 42m GM8KCS
2h 01m GM4DIJ
After the event we adjourned to ... the Stable Bar ... for light refreshments.
12 May 2015 - Brian Flynn GM8BJF Article in RadCom.plus Opening Issue
- Details
- Written by Alan GM3PSP
Congratulations to LRS member Brian Flynn whose article "A Versatile PLL PC Board Design - for Applications from HF to Microwaves" is published in the opening issue of the new RSGB publication RadCom.plus. This is available online only, and only to RSGB members. (There's a moral there somewhere)!
Brian's circuit provides accurate, stable frequency sources in the frequency range from a few MHz to 4GHz, depending on programming and components used, with a power output of around +10dBm.
Illustrations courtesy of RSGB.
The other articles in issue #1 are:
The DG8 2m Masthead Preamp, by Ian White GM3SEK
Building a Dual Z-Match, by Bob Burns G3OOU
Examining Sporadic-E, by Dr. Chris Barnes GW4BZD
High-Performance Common-Mode Chokes, by Steve Hunt G3TXQ
Screening, by Peter Chadwick G3RZP
8 May 2015 - 10GHz GM8FFX/B Beacon Built & Installed by Brian Flynn GM8BJF
- Details
- Written by Alan GM3PSP
The GM8FFX/B hardware.
LRS member Brian Flynn GM8BJF has built and installed a second personal beacon on 10GHz in less than a year. The first was GM3WOJ/B on 10368.400MHz at the QTH of Chris Tran GM3WOJ at Lamington near Invergordon at IO77ws, installed in June 2014 and described in an earlier article. This beacon is almost continuously audible in Edinburgh by scattering propagation over the top of the Cairngorm Mountains.
The new beacon is GM8FFX/B on 10368.450MHz at the QTH of Graham Knight GM8FFX at Portlethan, south of Aberdeen at IO87wb with a very clear sea path to the south. It can be heard in Edinburgh from locations with a clear take-off to the north. The best DX spot so far has been from G4KUX at Bishop Auckland in County Durham, at 271km. Full report.
2/3 May 2015 - GM3HAM/P in Microwave Trophy at Gatehouse of Fleet
- Details
- Written by Alan GM3PSP
Brian GM8BJF and Alan GM0USI
A "compact" team of Brian GM8BJF (operator of GM3HAM/P) and Alan GM3PSP (chief cook / genny operator / photographer) were joined by Alan Dimmick GM0USI (operator) from Glasgow at our site near Gatehouse of Fleet for the Microwave Trophy on 2nd May 2015. Seven QSOs were made on 10GHz on the Saturday afternoon with the best DX being 366km. It then rained all night, continuing into the morning, and so the event was terminated at that point.
Brian GM8BJF with farmer Robert Graham
(who kindly provided an electric fence to keep out the coos).
13 May 2015 - Film Soundtrack Technologies - Alan Masson GM3PSP
- Details
- Written by Alan GM3PSP
Photo by Melvyn GM4HYR.
At the meeting of the LRS on 13th May 2015, Alan Masson GM3PSP traced the history of film sound tracks from the first sound-on-disc systems such as Vitaphone, used for The Jazz Singer in 1927, through analog sound-on-film systems including dye-only tracks, to the digital systems used latterly on film release prints.
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