EME Project Overview
FOR SALE !
you need to transmit the strongest signal possible to have any chance of anyone detecting your Moon echos. That requires an antenna with as much gain as possible, and a powerful amplifier. ..
This SSPA is the most powerful Solid State Power Amplifier (SSPA) that I have ever attempted to build, and at the heart of my EME station. This whole undertaking was a huge challenge, and as usual I learned a lot…
This SSPA is written up in detail in a separate slideshow. It’s mounted in a weatherproof enclosure on the back of my dish to keep the transmission line as short as possible to minimize losses…
I created this Graphical User Interface (GUI) to monitor all the critical parameters of my SSPA and power supply. It’s enclosed in a small box that sits directly in front of me at my operating position.
When I started this particular part of my project I knew absolutely nothing about LCD displays or how to program them, This little project was also a huge challenge and I’m extremely pleased with the result!
I love my little GUI, but it’s only as good as the sensors that drive it, and at its heart is my homebrew high-power directional coupler – a design by Paul Wade, W1GHZ. It’s performance was exceptional and made these power meters possible.
These items are also written up as separate slideshows.
Most stations use a digital mode called JT-65C on EME. It allows reliable communications when you can’t even see or hear the other station. It’s part of a suit of sophisticated modes bundled into an application called WSJT-X. This shows my activity over a 19-minute period in which I worked stations in Estonia, the Canary Islands, and France.
EME communications using JT65c is sort of like a combination of fly fishing and stamp collecting. We don’t actually have a conversation – we just pass basic information. To log a “legal” contact that satisfies all the various ham radio organizations, we need to exchange our call signs, our grid locations, and signal strengths, and then say goodbye. We use standard abbreviations for many common terms. Goodbye is “73”.
