Mario Natali: TotalPower : a program for RF measures by using the low-cost RTL-SDR dongle

SARA 2022 Eastern Conference
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Kudos to the noise !
TotalPower : a program for RF measures by using the low-cost RTL-SDR dongle
Mario Natali
SARA: www.radio-astronomy.org
I0NAA Website: i0naa.altervist...
TotalPower is a multipurpose program that elaborates the RF signal captured via the low cost RTL-SDR dongle.
The main function is the representation of the RF signal both on a graph and on an analog meter. This function is very helpful in antenna pointing.
Another interesting function is the so called “Band explorer” mode that provides tools to analyze very low-level RF Noise. A dedicated configuration of this mode allows easy capture of H-Line.
The program, working in conjunction with the tracking program, PstRotator, can move directly antennas and generate automatically noise maps of an arbitrary sky area. The RF noise data collected are passed to a very powerful 3D engine that allows several analyses including a contour plot.
All the functions will be illustrated, and a live recording will be shown
Keywords: radio astronomy, ham radio, antenna, SNR, noise, calibration