EME 432 MHz

432 MHz Earth – Moon – Earth Communication

WAC – Award with 432 MHz Sticker issued October 25, 1983

 

When I heard the first cw-signals off the moon on 2 m with a single 16 element Yagi back in 1980, I was fascinated and hooked up. At that time first personal computers came up and there were no digital modes at all, just cw. So how to get into business? Minimum to play the game were 4 long yagis and a pair of 4CX250B or one 4CX1500. But there was no room for a group with 4 antennas in my parents garden. So decided to put up a system for 70 cm due to smaller dimensions. After several month of hard work 8 x 26 el Yagi were on the mast and an amplifier with sufficient power in the shack. I successfully completed my first EME-QSO on 432 MHz on May 29, 1982 with Drago, YU1AW. The direct distance only about 1.000 km, but our radiowaves travelled some 400.000 km to the moon and back – fascinating!

The picture shows my old 70cm EME antenna array consisting of 8 x 26 element modified FT yagi´s stacked 1.5 x 1.5m atop a 9m homemade tower. Phasing lines were made of 3/8″ Heliax cable and feeded by 10m of 7/8″ Heliax cable, powered by a homemade 7650 cavity amplifier with abt. 750 Watts output.

With this array I worked some 140 different stations from 33 US-States, all 6 continents and completed WAC (Worked All Continents) – Award in 1983.

By the way: When I talk about EME I mean REAL EME, using modes like CW or, for a few contacts with the “big guns” also SSB. NO WSJT was used at any time!

70_VK5MCVK5MC – 15.838 km via Earth-Moon-Earth on 432 MHz

Stations worked on 432 MHz via CW – EME (1982-1990):

DL: DF3RU, DF7VX, DJ6MB, DJ9BV, DJ9DL, DK1PZ, DK3BU, DK0NA, DL6WU, DL7APV, DL7YC, DL7ZL, DL9KR, Y22ME, Y23BD

EU: C30BVA, F1ELL, F6CGJ, F6KSX/p, F8ZW, F9FT, FD1FHI, G3HUL, G3LQR, G3LTF, G3SEK, G4EZN, GW3XYW, HB9CRQ, HB9G, HB9SV, I2COR, I5MSH, IN3HER, IW4ADT, LA8AE, LX1DB, LZ2AR, OE5JFL, OE9XXI, OH2DG, OH6NM, OH6NU, OK1KIR, OZ7UHF, PA3AEF, PA3CSG, PA3DZL, RA3YCR, RB5LGX, SM2CEW, SM3AKW, SM4DHN, SM4IVE, SM6CKU, SM6EUP, SM7GEP, SM0DJW, SM0PYP, UA1ZCL, UA3LBO, UA6LGH, YU1AW, YU1IQ, YU2RGC

DX: JA1JRK, JA2JRJ, JA2XQR, JA3IAF, JA4BLC, JA6CZD, JA8QQ, JA9BOH, JF3HUC, JH0YSI, JR4AEP, K1FO, K1MNS, K2OS, K2UYH, K3NSS, K3QCQ, K4PKV, K4QIF, K5AZU, K5JL, K5WXN, K8HUH, K8WW, K9HMB, K9UIF, K0ALL, KA0Y, KB3PD, KB8RQ, KL7WE, KU4F, N2CB, N4GJV, N6AMG, N7ART, N9AB, NC1I, NP4B, UA9FAD, VE3CRU, VE4MA, VE7BBG, VK3UM, VK5MC, W1JR, W1ZX/3, W5FF, W5RCI, W6ABN, W7FN, W7FU, W7GBI, W7HAH, W8IDU, W9IP/2, W0KJY, W0RAP, W0SD, WA3FFC, WA4NJP, WA4OFS, WA4ZTK, WA9FWD, WB5LUA, WB0DRL, WB0QMN, WB0TEM, XE1XA, YV5ZZ, Z25JJ, ZS6JT

Stations worked on 432 MHz via SSB – EME (1982-1990):

DF3RU, K8HUH, NP4B, SM4IVE

EME-Ant

 

8 x 28 Element Yagi Array for 432 MHz

USA (31 States worked):

Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin.