lml@lancaironline.net Mailing List Archive

Attached are some pics of my WX500 antenna location. Since it is the only possible location for me, skin mapping was out of the question. The processor is mounted vertically on a bulkhead behind the copilot seat. It's not seen in these pictures, but the antenna back plate connects directly to the copper plate which is bonded to the floor. The entire floor area is covered with copper foil adhesive backed tape making a groundplane area of about 18" sq. and is wired directly to ground. Just sitting on the bench with a half ass'd ground plane and fired up, it has no trouble picking up cells and strikes out to 250 miles as advertised. Remains to be seen how well it functions in flight... Seems to me that one of the significant benefits of this system is its ability to display all lightning events including cloud to cloud. Typically, cloud to cloud strikes occur in the earlier developing stages of a thunderstorm. Cloud to ground strikes occur in the mature and perhaps most violent storm stage. It is my understanding that lightning data uplinked from the ground can be some minutes old by the time you get it and...uplinked lightning data does not display cloud to cloud strikes. I could be wrong but this is my understanding. Angier Ames N4ZQ N3ZQ

Yikes! another hole!.jpeg

WX500-3.jpeg

WX500-2.jpeg

WX500 -1.jpeg