AetherClock and GPS
Two tools help you know where you are and what time it is. AetherClock decodes the WWV/WWVH and WWVB time signals off the air and shows how far your computer's clock is from them. The GPS & Station Location window shows what a GPS-equipped radio knows: position, satellites, frequency reference and time.
Requirements
- AetherClock needs a receiver tuned to WWV, WWVH or WWVB. On a FlexRadio it listens through a DAX channel; on radios without DAX (Hermes-Lite 2 and others) it uses the slice's own audio.
- GPS & Station Location needs a radio that reports GPS hardware, for example a FlexRadio fitted with the GPSDO option, or an IC-705. A radio without GPS shows no GPS window, indicators or controls.
Setup
Setting up AetherClock
AetherClock is an applet (applet-tray button CLK, title AetherClock, Station category). It is off by default.
- Open the applet and its settings drawer.
- Pick a Station: preset: WWV 2.5 / 5 / 10 / 15 / 20 MHz or WWVB 60 kHz.
- Press Tune slice → preset to put the bound slice on the right frequency (USB, 1 kHz below the carrier). This works while the decoder is stopped.
- On a FlexRadio, choose a DAX channel in the applet's DAX chooser (DAX Off, DAX 1 …). On radios without DAX the chooser is hidden.
- Press Enable (it turns green while running).
On a FlexRadio with a DAX channel assigned, AetherClock decodes that slice alone, regardless of your speaker volume or mute.
Using AetherClock
| Item | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Lock LED | Green when locked |
| Decoded UTC | The time decoded from the signal |
| Offset | How far the computer's clock is from the decoded time |
| Station tag | WWV or WWVH, shown as "--" until it is sure |
| Quality · age | Decode confidence and how old the last good decode is |
| Alignment scope | The received signal against the expected pattern |
| Car, Tick, Frm, Dec, Vote | The five decoding stages, from carrier to a voted time; each turns green as it succeeds |
| Verdict line | A plain-language status, for example "Locked — all stages green", "No carrier — check antenna / band / preset dial" or "Syncing frame… (marker search, up to ~2 min)" |
A debug log in the settings drawer shows the decoder's internal steps, useful when reporting a problem.
Using the GPS dashboard
Open it from Tools → GPS Dashboard…, or click the GPS indicator in the status bar.
Header cards
GPS FIX, SATELLITES, 10 MHz REFERENCE and TELEMETRY (the age of the latest GPS report).
Current Location
Position source, Grid square, Latitude, Longitude, the coordinates in the radio's own format, Altitude, Speed and Course, plus the nearest mapped address (an online OpenStreetMap lookup). Buttons: Copy gridsquare, Copy address and Refresh address.
Station Map
A map of the radio's position. Use the arrow keys to pan, plus and minus to zoom, and Home to re-centre.
Satellite Reception and Frequency Reference
Satellites Tracked and Visible, the tracking ratio, the GPS Frequency error, the reference setting, actual source and lock, and how long GPS has been locked.
Satellite Time
UTC, local time and time zone, the radio's GPS UTC, and Clock agreement between the radio's GPS time and your computer. The radio's GPS supplies the time of day but not the date, so dates come from your computer. Use Clock agreement as a rough guide when looking at FT8 DT, and keep the computer synchronised with NTP for precise work.
Radio Clock Synchronization
On radios that support it, this group shows and changes clock settings stored in the radio itself: Enable NTP client, the NTP server (with Apply), Correct radio clock from GPS automatically, and Sync now. On a local FLEX-8000 the window also shows a tip for using the radio as an NTP server on a trusted network.
Where your position is used
The GPS page in Radio Setup holds the radio's GPS settings. Your position also feeds the PSK Reporter Map home location, the APRS beacon in AetherModem Packet Radio and the distance and bearing on Callsign Lookup cards.
Troubleshooting
AetherClock shows "Bound slice has no DAX channel — no audio"
On a FlexRadio, AetherClock listens through DAX, and the bound slice has no DAX channel.
- Choose a channel in the applet's DAX chooser (DAX 1 …) instead of DAX Off.
AetherClock says "No carrier — check antenna / band / preset dial"
The slice is not hearing the time station.
- Check the Station: preset matches a station you can receive.
- Press Tune slice → preset to put the slice on the right frequency.
- Check the antenna and try another WWV frequency.
AetherClock stays on "Syncing frame…"
The decoder is searching for the frame marker, which can take up to about two minutes.
- Wait for the marker search to finish before changing anything.
There is no GPS window or indicator
The connected radio does not report GPS hardware. The GPS window only appears for a radio that has GPS, such as a FlexRadio with the GPSDO option or an IC-705.