Episode 529 - Jake Groenhof - N0LX
 | Jake Groenhof, N0LX, discovered amateur radio in the 1960s thanks to his uncle’s impressive home station and his father’s interest in CB radio.. Over the years, Jake turned his curiosity into a lifetime of experiments — from pedestrian-mobile DX with just 5 watts and an endfed antenna tethered to a balloon, to building saltwater antennas in PVC pipes, to flying pico balloons that circled the Earth six times. Along the way, he’s set records, designed clever portable gear, and inspired others to push the limits of what amateur radio can do. N0LX is my QSO Today. |
| Hometown: Des Plains, Ill First License: 1987, KB0APA, Technician Class Uncle Hank, W9IUO Terms CB Radio QSL Cards CB Radios Bensenville, Ohare International Airport, jets over head every 60 seconds Bensenville Hush - the brief period where everyone stops talking due to the roaring aircraft take-off noise Ball Corporation, Golden, CO General Radio Operators License with Radar Endorsement Yaesu FT-817 Transceiver HF Pack Group Pedestrian Mobile Bonnie, KQ6XA Pikes Peak Amateur Radio Association Oct 2003 QST Magazine, How to shorten a dipole using loading coils Loading Coil Calculator End Fed Halfwave Antenna 20Ft Crappy Pole Fuchs Antenna Matching Unit Ionic Liquid Antenna, David N9ZRT US Islands Awards Lake Dillon Islands Amateur Radio Pico Balloons Ted N0THA partner in pico balloons Boulder Amateur Radio Club Kodak Carousel Projector Bobtail Curtain Antenna Loop on the Ground Antenna 630 Meter Band EME Moon Bounce Traquito Balloon Tracker   Here is a shot of the top and bottom of my typical payload showing the solar panels on top, and the Raspberry Pi and RF boards on the bottom. Overall dimensions are 7” x 2.5”. The main support is a hamburger meat tray from the grocery store. The 36-ga enamel antenna wires are temporarily wound on paper tube rolls for transport. The tracker/WSPR software is called Traquito and was written by Doug Malnati, KD2KDD, and the RF boards are built from files by a company that assembles them for us. The final construction and assembly of the solar panels, both boards, wiring and testing of the payload is done by N0LX. https://traquito.github.io/tracker/ The RSS Feed for all audio content from QSO today is available from here. Please join our QSO Today community by pressing the button below. It is the best way to suggest guests and topics, and provide feedback to Eric, 4Z1UG. |  N0LX Maritime Mobile at 13,800 feet  Large Ionic Liquid "Salt Water" Antenna https://n0lx.com/ila_large1.html  Working Japan from Colorado Summit  N0LX "Tall Pack" |
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