I continually monitor BLITZORTUNG.ORG because lightning in Utah can pop up very strong and very quickly in the summer. My question is: are there any hams that are involved with this system to receive and report lightning strikes, anywhere in the world. Is the board difficult to populate, and does it require any surface mount components? What about the receiving antenna...I see a lot of variations and wonder which type has shown the best success. My QTH is only two miles west of the Wasatch Front...part of the Rocky Mountains. I'm at 4400 feet and the mountains go to about 7500 feet, so there is the possibility that I might not be able to "see" lightning to the east of me. Thanks for any advice or ideas.
What makes me wonder is your time spent online: 2:17 minutes. This is quite less for someone who continually monitors blitzortung.org.
If you are serious, you may want to read this:
https://www.blitzortung.org/en/cover_your_area.php and this:
https://docs.lightningmaps.org/hardware/...tors/blue/
There is a new board on the way, the System Mini (PCB 22.2). I asume it is as it was with the System Blue as well: SMD parts are assembled, wired parts are to be soldered by the station owner. The Mini is smaller and has less parts than the Blue shown in the second link.
Regarding antennas there are basically two options for the Mini:
- ferrite rod; most buy them ready made
- loop antenna; imho very simple and better in the performance. But you will read other optinions as well.
My Mini has two poor mans loops. Just a standard home electric wire bent to a circle and the ends connected with a screw terminal. This copper ring passes through a small ring ferrite as a transformer. The transformer is connected to the pre-amplifier. The orientation of one loop is N/S, the other E/W.
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There is a related group that listens for VLF static from clouds, called Spherics.org or something. They also offer a globe map. I discovered an audio recording of one individual saying, "Here is what the world sounds like." Very scary. It truly is the sound of the ground.