Antennas for System BLUE - Mini Guide

[RichoAnd]

Is there a maxi guide? :-)

Or a youtube version where all steps are shown to make each individual antenna?

No!
I have made room for you to think for yourself 
I wrote this explanation over 10 years ago, and nothing has changed
I have not touched my antenna for many years.
REMEMBER!
A long E-Field antenna gives you lots of signal, but also more noise.
The most important thing here is to keep this antenna as far away as possible from power lines, electric fences, lawn mowers with buried control cables, etc..
With a very long antenna you can get signals around the globe, but that is NOT what we want. We want a clean signal.
H-Field Antenna.
I have experimented a lot over the years, and have, among other things, very large loops in the attic. They are now used for ULF and VLF signals instead.
5-6 years ago (maybe more) I did an experiment with loop and E-field connected together. I got busy with other things, and the experiment just went on. Once the plastic bucket fell down, and I put it back up. It still works fine.
H-Antennas are for electromagnetic signals, and by their nature not so sensitive to E-fields. They don't have to be placed high, as long as they are far away from electric motors and old lawnmowers etc.
Ferrite antennas are best when they are shielded - There are some pictures somewhere with ribbon cable or brass or copper foil or any metal tube (slotted)
.... so just do some experiments to see what's best in your case.

/Richo

Thank you! I love your clarity!

So it is basically a case of “figure it out yourself.” :-)

I find that unfortunate, because I am not an antenna expert and genuinely had no idea what I was doing. Experimenting felt risky because I was afraid of damaging the equipment. I prefer to build things correctly and according to the manual—but apparently there is no such manual.

I now understand that there is no one-size-fits-all solution, but some practical instructions would still be very helpful.

Anyway, I took the plunge and, with some help from ChatGPT, built an antenna.

And it works! :-) Wow, my first antenna ever!

For other newbies, here is my little project:

1. I bought 11 m of 2×0.75 mm² copper speaker wire.
2. I separated it into two individual wires.
3. I made a frame from three 80 cm wooden battens, crossing at the centre at 90°—like a Czech hedgehog or “anti-tank cross.”
4. I wound each wire three times around the frame, creating two loops at 90° to each other.
5. I connected one loop to H1+/H1− and the other to H2+/H2− on preamplifier PCB 23.1.
6. I left both solder jumpers open.
7. I connected the preamplifier to my System Blue Mini and left the controller on its automatic settings.

Both channels are working, with an almost identical noise floor of approximately 13–14 mVpp.

It may not be the most elegant antenna ever built, but it was cheap, simple, and it works!

I’m happy to be on board! In the future, I hope to create some practical how-to guides on this subject, because I feel there is a real gap in the available documentation.

I didn't know you were "new"
I was responding to a 10 year old post.
The "Mini Guide" was made to give an introduction to antennas for our use.
I just read it again, and I think it answers most questions.
In the beginning there was a lot of "snake oil", and my purpose was to dispel the myths that arose.
There was a "FIGHT" to show the "perfect antenna".
BUT there is NO "perfect antenna", and that is why I am not making "The perfect recipe".
Thousands of books and articles have been written about antennas, BUT, and there is a very important BUT.....while antennas for radio, TV, Wi-Fi etc. must be tuned to the frequencies they are to transmit, ours is the OPPOSITE.
Our antennas MUST be broadband, meaning they receive all signals from approx. 3kHz to approx. 80kHz with equal weight. - I SHOULD HAVE SPECIFIED THAT in the "Mini Guide" - sorry!
Now you know :-)
The antenna you have made is often the starting point for our use, AND IT WORKS PERFECTLY.
The mechanical design can be discussed, as it is not so weatherproof if necessary.
You have made progress using ChatGPT, and very well.
ChatGPT has found one or more of the articles/posts that users have written over the years, so you were fortunately helped.
YES! There is a gap in the documentation, and since you now suggest filling it yourself, I think you should do so.
We who developed it understand the project, but are not necessarily the best communicators for beginners- obviously not.
Many videos show "the absolute truth", I would be careful of that. There are things that are absolute, like polarity of power connection, but not necessarily in antenna connection. As long as you keep "suggestions" and "must be like this" separate, you should be successful with the project.
Good luck
/Richo

[Alidigitaly]

Thanks, Richo. 

I appreciate the honest answer.
A little background on how I ended up here.
I bought the station assuming that an antenna would be included. That was my own mistake. I simply did not pay enough attention when ordering.
My local electronics shop did not have any suitable ferrite-rod antennas, and I wanted to get the station working this weekend. 
So I decided to build something myself.
At first I planned to make the coax version. 
Then I found the ordinary wire-loop version, which looked even easier for a first attempt. 
That is how I ended up building the wooden “anti-tank cross”.

I really am a complete beginner when it comes to antennas. 
The available documentation had me confused fairly quickly, so I went to YouTube. 
Surely someone must have made a complete Blitzortung antenna tutorial?
Apparently not.

There is plenty of general antenna theory and highly technical material, but I could not find anything showing the complete process specifically for Blitzortung.
I then searched through the forum. There are many discussions and photographs of finished antennas, but very little that simply says: buy this, use this amount of wire, build the frame like this, connect these wires here and use these settings.
A photograph of a finished antenna may be enough when you already know what you are looking at. For a beginner, it still leaves many questions unanswered.
With help from ChatGPT, the official documentation and fragments from old forum posts, I eventually got my antenna working.
I understand your point that there is no perfect antenna. 
I am not trying to write a guide claiming that one design is the only correct solution. 
Different locations and different sources of interference will always require some experimentation.
But I do think it is possible to give beginners a few complete working examples. 
The important thing is to clearly separate what is required from what is merely a suggestion.

Maxi Guide Draft
(Made with chatgpt)

It covers my wire-loop antenna, the coax version, ready-made ferrite antennas, classic and compact loops, Möbius and transformer designs, and the E-field probe. It also includes estimated costs, placement, testing and troubleshooting.
Where the available information is incomplete, I have said so instead of pretending there is one exact recipe.
It is still very much a draft and I fully expect corrections. Feedback from experienced participants is therefore welcome.
If it eventually helps the next beginner get a station running without first having to become an antenna expert, I think it will have been worth the effort.
Thanks again for the honest response and the encouragement.

/Alex
Station 3304

[cutty]

Richo gave you a hint in his post. "...think for yourself "

First of all, you're reinventing the wheel in a matter of speaking, letting an AI do what YOU should be doing in order to become competent in this hobby. You can't do that with thumbs on a smartphone. Put your thumbs etc on the components and build them, watch what happens or doesn't happen... or buy some ready built thingys and move on down whatever path you choose ... this is not about detecting a lightning bolt. An AM radio will do that.. so will a cow in a field. This is about locating them... of course, a cow is also a pretty good locator, but once he's done his job, he's beyond reporting. Like the cow, it is detected instantly, but location depended on a whole different set of parameters in the cow detected case. I'd suggest exploring more about lightning physics, how receivers work, TOA, TOGA, more esoteric systems, that kind of thing... etc ... rather than rely on a chatbot to tell me how to build hundreds of antenna types... and I wouldn't rely on a chatbot for honest, accurate summaries either... go read some REAL articles and papers... maybe use AI for REAL reference sources... and goodness knows there are enough bad ones.

Knowledge and competence, understanding, is NOT delivered in an Amazon box overnight... or in a chatbot response box, which just got off an hallucination episode and sudden logic loops caused by conflicting 'facts' from wikipedia and reddit etc...

Now that you have internal access, suggest do a thorough exploration, because much of what we do /have done is NOT on the public boards...

Here's a good place to start, outside of Blitzortung...
https://www.wxforum.net/index.php?board=115.0
we went through it all, and wxforum was convenient, because at the time the concept was new in America, and we were all sort of in it at the same time... Europe was the main concentration at the time, most of the systems were GREEN, and we were bringing in the first REDS. and if you don't understand that sentence, all the more reason to 'backup' and do personal research... not let a bot do it.

note many images aren't visible because the external source is no longer online.
many of the contributors have moved on to the great thunderhead in the sky.
I think you'd have to be logged in to see some /any of any attached images.

This is NOT a plug and play hobby.

[Alidigitaly]

Richo gave you a hint in his post. "...think for yourself "

First of all, you're reinventing the wheel in a matter of speaking, letting an AI do what YOU should be doing in order to become competent in this hobby. You can't do that with thumbs on a smartphone. Put your thumbs etc on the components and build them, watch what happens or doesn't happen... or buy some ready built thingys and move on down whatever path you choose ... this is not about detecting a lightning bolt. An AM radio will do that.. so will a cow in a field.  This is about locating them... of course, a cow is also a pretty good locator, but once he's done his job, he's beyond reporting. Like the cow, it is detected instantly, but location depended on a whole different set of parameters in the cow detected case.  I'd suggest exploring more about lightning physics, how receivers work, TOA, TOGA, more esoteric systems, that kind of thing... etc ... rather than rely on a chatbot to tell me how to build hundreds of antenna types... and I wouldn't rely on a chatbot for honest, accurate summaries either... go read some REAL articles and papers... maybe use AI for REAL reference sources... and goodness knows there are enough bad ones.

Knowledge and competence, understanding, is NOT delivered in an Amazon box overnight... or in a chatbot response box, which just got off an hallucination episode  and sudden logic loops caused by conflicting 'facts' from  wikipedia and reddit etc... 

Now that you have internal access, suggest do a thorough exploration, because much of what we do /have done is NOT on the public boards...

Here's a good place to start, outside of Blitzortung...
https://www.wxforum.net/index.php?board=115.0
we went through it all, and wxforum was convenient, because at the time the concept was new in America, and we were all sort of in it at the same time... Europe was the main concentration at the time, most of the systems were GREEN, and we were bringing in the first REDS. and if you don't understand that sentence, all the more reason to 'backup' and do personal research... not let a bot do it.

note many images aren't visible because the external source is no longer online.
many of the contributors have moved on to the great thunderhead in the sky.
I think you'd have to be logged in to see some /any of any attached images.

This is NOT a plug and play hobby.

Thanks for the link and the advice. I agree with one important point: AI should not be treated as an authority. Information must be checked against documentation, reliable sources and practical results.
I may have given the wrong impression, though. I am not asking a chatbot to do the hobby for me. I built the crossed-loop antenna, connected it to PCB 23.1, studied the signals and noise levels, and moved much of the electronic equipment in my attic to see whether that reduces interference. I am learning by actually building, testing and observing what happens.
I also understand that receiving a lightning impulse is not the same as locating the discharge. My station records accurately timed signals, while the location is calculated from timing information supplied by multiple stations.
I use AI as a search and writing aid. It helped me find and organise information scattered across manuals, old forum posts and other sources. It can certainly be wrong, which is exactly why I posted the draft for review by people who have practical experience with Blitzortung.
The guide is not intended to describe hundreds of antenna types or present a “perfect antenna.” Its purpose is much simpler: to give a complete beginner a few practical and reproducible starting points for System Blue and PCB 23.1, while clearly separating requirements from suggestions.
Thank you for the WXForum link. I now also have access to the internal Blitzortung material, so I will study both and verify anything useful against the current hardware and documentation.
I understand that this is not a plug-and-play hobby. In my opinion, that is precisely why a clear beginner’s guide could be useful. If you find a specific technical error in the attached draft, I would genuinely appreciate the correction and, if possible, a reference. That is the kind of feedback I am looking for.

[RichoAnd]

Thanks, Richo. 

I appreciate the honest answer.
A little background on how I ended up here.
I bought the station assuming that an antenna would be included. That was my own mistake. I simply did not pay enough attention when ordering.
My local electronics shop did not have any suitable ferrite-rod antennas, and I wanted to get the station working this weekend. 
So I decided to build something myself.
At first I planned to make the coax version. 
Then I found the ordinary wire-loop version, which looked even easier for a first attempt. 
That is how I ended up building the wooden “anti-tank cross”.

I really am a complete beginner when it comes to antennas. 
The available documentation had me confused fairly quickly, so I went to YouTube. 
Surely someone must have made a complete Blitzortung antenna tutorial?
Apparently not.

There is plenty of general antenna theory and highly technical material, but I could not find anything showing the complete process specifically for Blitzortung.
I then searched through the forum. There are many discussions and photographs of finished antennas, but very little that simply says: buy this, use this amount of wire, build the frame like this, connect these wires here and use these settings.
A photograph of a finished antenna may be enough when you already know what you are looking at. For a beginner, it still leaves many questions unanswered.
With help from ChatGPT, the official documentation and fragments from old forum posts, I eventually got my antenna working.
I understand your point that there is no perfect antenna. 
I am not trying to write a guide claiming that one design is the only correct solution. 
Different locations and different sources of interference will always require some experimentation.
But I do think it is possible to give beginners a few complete working examples. 
The important thing is to clearly separate what is required from what is merely a suggestion.

Maxi Guide Draft
(Made with chatgpt)

It covers my wire-loop antenna, the coax version, ready-made ferrite antennas, classic and compact loops, Möbius and transformer designs, and the E-field probe. It also includes estimated costs, placement, testing and troubleshooting.
Where the available information is incomplete, I have said so instead of pretending there is one exact recipe.
It is still very much a draft and I fully expect corrections. Feedback from experienced participants is therefore welcome.
If it eventually helps the next beginner get a station running without first having to become an antenna expert, I think it will have been worth the effort.
Thanks again for the honest response and the encouragement.

/Alex
Station 3304

Hi Alex,
I've skimmed a bit, and have some comments.
When you've gotten a little further, I'd like to read through it, but I don't have time right now.
I'm currently working on my "state of the art" weather station. I need to have the equipment that will be installed at a height of 10m ready before winter. I haven't made it easy for myself, and that's why it's taking up a lot of my time. I need to have a scaffolding set up, and that's why I need to be absolutely sure that it works as it should, as it's probably the last time I'll climb up there, I'm 78 and I get dizzy easily.

"The exact compass orientation is not critical."
--- Right, it doesn't matter, as it's not a direction finding system.(There are situations where it may be appropriate to rotate it so that one of the antennas has zero signal to a "noise transmitter")

"It The important relationship is the approximately 90-degree angle between the two loop planes."
--- It's not important at all! But it looks nicer! - Even if the angle is 45°, the signal is still about 71% (COS to the angle)

MOBIÜS: Mobius antennas are a curiosity - a way to exploit the stiffness of coax - It is not shielded.

IMPORTANT; Remember to mention it...The antennas must NOT be tuned, i.e. no capacitor in parallel with the input.
Ferrite antennas are close to resonance in the frequency range we use, and therefore Q* is reduced with a resistor (solder point)
The same applies to antennas with many turns, or with a transformer.
Q*- Q of an antenna is a measure of the bandwidth of an antenna relative to the center frequency of the bandwidth.

For your information: If we look at the frequency content (spectrum) of a strike, after some 1000 km it will have the highest content around 10-11kHz. If you tune an antenna to 10.5kHz you will receive signals that are delayed by the physical conditions in the atmosphere, and therefore are time-delayed - completely useless for OUR purposes, but interesting in systems that try to cover the whole earth. (Maybe another day, but I can reveal that receivers are very far from habitations)
/Richo