In my Radio User Decode column I’ve been describing a receiving station for the NOAA polar orbiting weather satellites and in this post I’m including a few examples so you can see the station’s capabilities. All the images are taken directly from WXtoImg with no other enhancements.
The station here comprises the following:
- QFH Antenna as described by Bill Sykes and Bob Cobey HERE. This is mounted at about 3m above ground but with a reasonably clear view to the horizon.
- Uputronics 137.5MHz filtered preamp mounted immediately below the antenna and 4.7V DC powered via a Bias-Tee. This is an excellent value preamp you can get from HERE
- RG58 cable back to the shack (about 10m long)
- Receivers are SDRPlay RSP-2 and AirSpy-1
- Software is WXtoImg from HERE
Here are a few sample images:
Below: NOAA 15 near overhead pass
Below: Another NOAA 15 low angle pass
Below: A NOAA-19 image from 21st Feb. The horizontal band near the top of the image was my fault as I knocked the receiver off tune!
I made Steven Hanglands version of the Double Cross Dipole Antenna and I am retting some good images like yours.
Hi John,
Glad to hear it. The cross dipole antenna has been a favourite for some time. Mike – G4WNC
Where do i find your full article on receiving and decoding wxsat images on the pi.
Hi Alan,
Sorry, I haven’t written an article about decoding Wxsat with the Pi, The Radio User article was windows based. However, the following link will take you to a solution:
Weather Sat with the Pi
Regards,
Mike