Transcript 20 Plus Years of Ontario SHF Activity

20+ Years of
Ontario SHF Activity
Steve Kavanagh, VE3SMA
and
Roger Sanderson, VE3RKS
Topics to be Covered
• History of activity above 3 GHz in Ontario
• Some accomplishments and observations
• Current activity
• Where do we go from here ?
In the beginning…
• Dana, VE3DSS/VE3KU, found an
annotated photo of Toronto area VHFers in
the 1950’s that hints that at least one may
have been active on 10 GHz at that time
• Hans, VE3CRU (SK), had Gunnplexers ca.
1980
• Things really got started in the mid-80s
with wideband FM on 10 GHz
VE2DUB
• Prime mover behind 10 GHz
•
•
WBFM activity in Montreal
area, using Gunnplexers
Wrote microwave column in
“The Canadian Amateur”
When I moved from
Montreal to Ontario I
brought some of his
enthusiasm (and some Xband alarm modules) with
me
VE3LPP & VE3EZP
• My 1st 10 GHz QSO in Ontario was with
Bruce, VE3LPP, in 1986
– His was the only callsign in my 1986 10 GHz
Contest log !
– Now VE6LPP
• John, VE3EZP, joined the activity in 1987
VE3EZP and VE3LPP
More Activity
• Activity snowballed after that
• Equipment was a mix of M/A-COM Gunnplexers, Burglar
•
Alarm Gunn Modules and other surplus Gunn oscillators
(with 30 or 90 MHz IF), and
Kevin, VE3KDH (now VE3KH) distributed a lot of surplus
Tellurometers to amateurs
– 50 mW Klystron, 10” dish, 10.050-10.450 GHz, IF ~ 33 MHz
– Description at
http://www.wcarc.on.ca/ve3cvg_tellurometer/Tellurometer_files/frame.htm
• One year there were 20 callsigns active in southern
•
Ontario in the 10 GHz Contest
VE3ONT multi-op (at VE3ASO) in June ’92 contest had
33 QSOs on 10 GHz
Tellurometer 10 GHz WBFM Rig
10 GHz at Rattlesnake Point
VE3MWM
The advent of 24 GHz WBFM
• VE3ONT multi-op (at VE3ASO) made a single
•
QSO on 24 GHz in June 1992 contest.
My first 24 GHz rigs (ca. 1996) were converted
Kustom speed radars (still in use in VHF
contests!)
– Gunn oscillator, about 150 mW, 2 inch circular horn
• Others used low power Gunn modules available
from SHF Microwave
– VE3OIK, VE3FHM, VE3VXO
• or converted point-to-point Gunn radio
– VE3EZP
VE3VXO with 10/24 GHz WBFM Rig
VE3SMA 24 GHz WBFM Loaner
VE3OIK & VE3SMA WBFM Gear
The “Middle” Bands
• Activity on 3.4 and 5.7 GHz came later
– Skipped the WBFM stage
• 1st Claimed 3.4 GHz QSO in Canada
– VE3PFC – VE3SMA 1991
• VE3ONT multi-op (at VE3ASO) had 5
QSOs on 3456 MHz in June ’92 contest
• 1st Claimed 5.7 GHz QSO in Canada
– VE3DJ – VE3OIK/VE3SMA 1994
The “Behemoth” 3456 Tx/Rx
VE3DJ 5760 MHz Gear
• DEMI (?) Transverter & IC-1271
VE3OIK/VE3SMA 5760 MHz Gear
• Tx: PLL Brick
•
using FSK
Rx: PLL Brick,
surplus W/G
mixer, FT-290R
1st 5.7 GHz QSO team
Above 30 GHz
• Only activity except lasers has been by
RVHFG members’ expeditions
The Modern Era
• Dennis Mungham, VE3ASO (SK), and Don Jarvis,
•
•
•
VE2DWG, were the first in Canada on 10 GHz
SSB (SSB Electronics transverter, I think)
Next was Stu Beal, VE3MWM, with SSB
Electronics transverter – not sure if he ever
made a QSO with it.
Then Bob Golden, VE3OIK, built a homebrew
transverter and started working unheard of
distances on 10 GHz – the rest of us followed
WBFM on 10 & 24 GHz has almost completely
disappeared, replaced with CW/SSB
VE3NPB & VE3RKS With VE3OIK’s
WBFM and NB Rigs in Port Stanley
Arthur VE3ZV (SK)
VE4MA and VE3KRP
Long Point
More Long Point
Some Accomplishments
• DX Records and Firsts
• Algonquin Radio Observatory EME
• Contest Activity
• VUCC
• Propagation Observations
DX Records and Firsts
• Ontario amateurs have been the first in Canada
•
to make QSOs on several microwave bands
Current Canadian DX records held by Ontario
operators:
– 10 GHz VE-W VE3ZV-AF1T/W1MKY 801 km (tropo)
• previous record VE3KRP-KM0T 791 km (rain scatter)
– 24 GHz VE-VE VE3ZV-VE3SMA 210 km (tropo)
– 24 GHz VE-W VE3FN/2-N1JEZ 232 km (tropo)
10 GHz EME from Algonquin Park
10 GHz EME from Algonquin Park
• 46 m dish (150 ft) in FN05, 100 watt TWT
• Team of VE3ASO, VA3LK, W9IP, VA3MW,
VE3LMK, VE3UXZ, VE3/SM0DFP, K2UYH
• Worked 14 stations in 10 DXCC countries
on 10 GHz EME (all on CW) in 1995
• http://www.arocanada.com/
Contest Activity
• VHF Contests – regular activity > 3 GHz
– VE3NPB/R, VE3OIL/R, VE3SMA/R, VE3ZV,
VE3WCC (June)
– Sometimes others: VE3RKS/R, VE3KH/R
– UHF Contest activity spotty due to holiday
weekend
• 10 GHz & Up Contest – has had entrants
from Ontario every year since 1987
– normally some stations active all 4 days about
8 AM-8 PM
VUCC
• Several VUCC awards have been issued (quite a
•
•
•
•
•
few more have been earned but not applied for)
3.4 GHz: VE3SMA
5.7 GHz: (none)
10 GHz: VE3SMA, VE3TFU
24 GHz: VE3SMA
As far as I know nobody has achieved the 10
grid level on any of these bands yet
Propagation Observations
• Low Level 10 & 24 GHz Paths over the
Great Lakes
• Blocked and Bounce Paths on 10 GHz
10 & 24 GHz on the Beach
• Ontario has no real mountains…so we
have to make do
• We’ve made a lot of QSOs between
beaches on Lake Erie
• Just started to try the same on Lake
Ontario
Wheatley – Long Point Path
210 km on 24 GHz & 269 km on
10 GHz Between Beaches
Best Beach-to-Beach on
Lake Ontario
• 300 km
FN03cg to
shore nr.
Watertown
Lake Erie Sites
Blocked Paths
• Fonthill…view towards Orono (~120 km)
Bounce Paths
A Tantalizing One that Got Away
• Also had
some
QSOs on
Lake Erie
where sigs
peaked
pointing
out into
lake – over
the horizon
ships ?
Beacons
• So far only one above 3 GHz
• VE3ZV/B
• EN92vw
• 10.320 GHz (or so !)
• 100 mW to small horn – can be pointed in
different directions on request from Steve,
VE3TFU/VE3ZV
• Has been heard many times at >100 km
and on rain scatter
Currently Active – VE3FHM
• 10 GHz only
Currently Active – VE3FN
• 10 & 24 GHz
• Photo at MtTremblant,
QC – FN26rf
Currently Active – VE3KH
• 10 GHz only
Currently Active – VE3NPB
• 10 & 24 GHz (and 3.4/5.7 GHz/laser in June
contest with VE3OIL equipment)
Currently Active – VE3OIL
• 3.4 – 5.7 – 10 – 24
GHz - Laser
Currently Active – VE3RKS
• 10 GHz only
Currently Active – VE3SMA
• 3.4 - 5.7 – 10 - 24 GHz - Laser
Currently Active – VE3TFU/ZV
• 3.4 – 5.7 – 10 – 24 GHz - Laser
Currently Active – VE3WCC
• June Contests
•
•
•
from FN04xa
West Carleton
ARC (Ottawa
area)
10 GHz (38
QSOs in 2009)
5.8 GHz coming
What Do We Do Now ?
• VUCC ?
• Greater Distances ?
• Higher Bands ?
• Practical Laser Gear ?
• More Home Stations ?
• Grid Expeditions ?
• Increasing Activity ?
VUCC Targets
• 10 Grids on 10 GHz – some of us have 6-8
from various sites
• 10 & 24 GHz VUCC for newer operators
• 5.7 GHz VUCC
Grid Expeditions ?
• Is anyone in Rochester area interested in
upping grid count ?
• Possible grids without too much trouble
that are not always easy from WNY:
– EN82, EN93, EN94
– FN05
– FN15, FN25, FN26
Greater Distances ?
• It’s tough to beat the 600-800 km
distances on 3.4 - 10 GHz between
southern Ontario and WNY !
• Possibility to extend low level over water
distance to > 300 km
• There’s still room for 24 GHz VE-W record
to be extended
Higher Bands ?
• Not much evidence of interest in Ontario
for 47 GHz and up at present
• Several of us would like to try….but hard
to justify effort compared to other projects
VE3SMA Laser Transceiver
VE3SMA Laser Xcvr – RX Side
VE3SMA Breadboard Laser Transmitter
More Home Stations ?
• VE3TFU/ZV (EN92vw) has 3.4 GHz (40
watts to good antenna) at home
• And had 10 GHz (2W to horn) on tower
for September VHF Contest
• VE3KH (FN03aj) is considering towermounted 10 GHz gear
Increasing Activity ?
•
•
•
•
Too many “SK” shown in these slides !
Not enough young hams
Experienced microwavers have done the easy stuff
Since WBFM-to-NB switch at 10 GHz rigs are too
expensive for most hams !
– VE3OIL 5.8 GHz Phones with external antenna on base unit can
just reach 1 km
– VE3XK has acquired phones for VE3WCC contest operation
which give 2 km range unmodified
• Progress report on www.wcarc.on.ca
– Low-cost rig design for other bands ?
• Bring a friend
• SBMS 2 GHz & Up Contest ?