The 8m Band

WL2XUP is an experimental station operated by NI4Y, approved for operation on 40MHz (8m), with up to 400W ERP. WSPR and FT8 modes are currently being used to test propagation. One interesting tidbit from the linked EI7GL website is that 40MHz is used by automated devices measuring the snow pack in the US. Those devices use meteor scatter to transmit their measurements.

While the majority of UK amateurs will be unaware of the 40MHz allocation, it is available to amateurs in Ireland, South Africa and Slovenia and there is also a beacon in Denmark. The band has a long history, being made available during 1925 to 1928 to amateurs in the UK and Ireland and later, at different periods, to amateurs in a number of countries.