HAMIOS
v5.8.3
HAMIOS
v5.8.3
Real-time solar conditions, ionosphere, DX cluster and world map — everything in one application for the radio amateur.
HAMIOS combines dozens of data sources into one dark, customisable dashboard. Whether you want to chase DX, track a solar storm or just know which band is open right now — everything is right in front of you.
HF radio propagation depends on the state of the ionosphere — a layer of the atmosphere ionised by solar radiation. Solar flares, geomagnetic storms, and the day/night cycle all influence which frequencies travel where, and how far. To get a complete picture, an operator traditionally had to visit a dozen different websites: one for solar indices, another for Kp forecasts, a third for live DX spots, yet another for lightning conditions. HAMIOS brings all of that together in a single, always-on window.
The application pulls live data from authoritative sources — NOAA SWPC for solar and geomagnetic data, DXWatch.com for DX cluster spots, Blitzortung.org for real-time lightning positions, and SatNOGS DB and AMSAT for satellite TLE orbital elements. It processes and correlates these streams continuously, then presents everything through a set of colour-coded panels arranged around a high-resolution world map.
At the heart of HAMIOS is a band reliability engine. Using the current Solar Flux Index (SFI), Sunspot Number (SSN), Kp index, and time of day, it calculates a reliability percentage for each amateur band from 160 metres down to 6 metres — separately for day and night paths. The results are shown as colour-coded bars (red → yellow → green) so you can see at a glance which bands are worth trying.
The 4096 × 2048 world map draws the day/night terminator in real time, overlays the aurora oval derived from the current Kp index, and plots live lightning strikes as they are detected by the Blitzortung sensor network. Satellite positions and ground footprints are computed from fresh TLE data and updated every few seconds. DX cluster spots appear as labelled markers on the map, making it immediately obvious where activity is concentrated.
If your radio supports CAT control (Yaesu, Kenwood/Elecraft or Icom), HAMIOS can connect via the serial port and tune directly to a clicked DX spot — no manual frequency entry needed. An automatic alert system watches for approaching thunderstorms and deteriorating geomagnetic conditions, and posts timestamped warnings in the notifications panel the moment a threshold is crossed.
Live DX spots, band reliability scores and a world map with active regions pinpointed — everything needed to decide in seconds whether a rare entity is workable from your QTH.
90-day interactive charts for SFI, SSN, Kp and Bz, plus GOES X-ray flux graphs, let you study solar cycles and their effect on the bands over time.
Open HAMIOS alongside your logging software and keep a constant eye on propagation without leaving your operating position. Storms and openings are flagged automatically.
Real-time satellite footprints, the built-in EIBI shortwave schedule and the SpyStations numbers-station database make HAMIOS equally useful for SWL and satellite work.
Real-time SFI, SSN, A-index, Kp index, X-ray class and solar wind data. Band probabilities (160m–6m) now and for day and night, calibrated on the nearest ionosonde.
4096×2048 map with day/night terminator, grayline, NOAA OVATION aurora, propagation map from your QTH, D-RAP HF absorption, satellite positions, Maidenhead grid overlay and lightning detection via Blitzortung.org WebSocket.
Live spots from DXWatch.com. Filter by band, mode or continent. Click a spot to tune your radio instantly via CAT control.
Live digital propagation paths from PSKReporter.info. FT8, FT4 and other digital mode contacts visualised as lines on the world map, updated every 5 minutes.
TLE data from SatNOGS DB and AMSAT across four groups: amateur, ISS, weather and CubeSat, with built-in protection against download blocks. Position and footprint updated in real time, pass predictions for the next 24 hours and an alert 5 minutes before each pass.
Live lightning detection via Blitzortung.org. Automatic QRN alerts when a storm approaches your threshold distance.
Support for Yaesu, Kenwood/Elecraft and Icom via serial port. Click a DX spot and the radio tunes immediately.
90 days of interactive charts covering band openings, SFI, Kp and Bz. Spot patterns and predict conditions.
Built-in EIBI shortwave schedule browser and FT8/digital mode reference tables. SpyStations (numbers stations) database included.
Tiled layout: panels always fit together around the map. Drag to rearrange, pick one of three ready-made layouts, lock it when you are happy.
Save and load complete workspaces: configuration, panel layout, and window geometry. Switch between setups instantly.
Rolling 24-hour band heatmap with MUF/LUF curve on the same time axis. Plan band openings for the coming day.
Real WSPR spots around your QTH via wspr.live: who hears your region and what your region hears. Also feeds the propagation advice.
9-category connectivity check on splash screen. Verify all data sources are reachable before starting.
Propagation overview is back
Faster map, clearer HF absorption
Themes
New HAM Antenna Designer
Measured propagation, smart advice & tiled layout
Reliable satellite data, faster map & mouse-over info
HAM Antenna Designer, TLE caching fix & faster startup
Enhanced satellite tracking & improved map performance
Profile management, MUF/LUF forecast & WSPR live
EIBI improvements, satellite path width & live settings
QTH-dependent local timezone in header clock
Complete rewrite to PySide6 / Qt6
Panels always fit together; pick one of four layouts in the Panels menu or arrange your own. Click an image for full size.
Layout “Map centre”
Daily use: bands on the left, map in the middle, advice on the right.
Layout “Operating”
Map as large as possible, everything else in tabs.
Layout “Analysis”
Charts and history large, map smaller.
Examples of map layers, cut from the map panel at original size.
Propagation map (20 m)
Probability that the band carries the path from your QTH to every point on Earth — same calibrated model as the advice, including the skip zone near home.
Satellites
Positions, orbit tracks and radio footprints (here ISS, NOAA and METEOR), from SatNOGS and AMSAT TLE data.
Maidenhead grid
Fields and squares on the map; hover shows the sub-squares and the 6-character locator under the mouse.
Callsign country codes
DXCC prefixes on the map; hover a country for all its prefixes and coordinates.
Aurora (NOAA OVATION)
Measured aurora probability instead of a model oval — important for polar paths and VHF aurora.
Lightning
Live discharges from Blitzortung with QRN warning and beep radius around your QTH.
PSKReporter paths
Digital-mode reception reports drawn as paths, coloured per band.
DX spots
Cluster spots on the map: see at a glance where the activity is.
Great-circle path
Click a recommendation (or the map) for the short path from your QTH with distance.
Overlays
Switch map layers on and off; the window stays open while you try them.
Panels & layouts
Show or hide panels and pick one of three ready-made layouts, or lock your own.
Theme designer
Build your own theme: backgrounds, text, accent and status colours and text size, with a live preview and a contrast check. Next to it: Night, Day and High readability.
Ready to use. No Python or additional installation needed. Extract to an empty folder and run.
For advanced users. Requires Python 3.10+ and PySide6.
pip install PySide6 requestsC:\HAMIOS\) and place the .exe file inside.HAMIOS (HF Atmosphere Monitor for Ionosphere Observation and Statistics) was developed by Frank van Dijke , a radio amateur from the Netherlands. The project started as a personal tool to quickly assess band conditions without having to consult dozens of websites.
The software is fully open source and actively maintained. Contributions, bug reports and suggestions are welcome via GitHub.
Developed in collaboration with Claude AI (Anthropic) as coding assistant.
A fair question, with a very simple answer: because it can.
During the development of Hamios, the need — and challenge — arose to connect Hamios to my transceiver, a Yaesu FT-950. Since I own a U5 Link interface, it had to be possible to make both communicate with each other. After feeding Claude with the FT-950 CAT manual, development progressed surprisingly fast… and so did my imagination. What could I do with these new possibilities?
The first step was importing the EIBI list into Hamios, simply to see if I could control the radio directly from the list. To my surprise, it worked immediately. The EIBI list contains a huge collection of interesting frequencies, and I quickly started to see a clear connection between Hamios and this source of information.
Spy stations have always captured my imagination — and probably that of many others as well. So it was only a small step to integrate those lists into Hamios too. And since convenience matters, the FT8 and Digi frequency lists eventually followed as well.
At the moment, Hamios does not yet do much with those FT8/Digi lists, but they are definitely high on my wishlist for future development.
So if you ever wondered why all those lists are included in Hamios, this is the answer:
Because it can.
| Framework | PySide6 / Qt6 |
|---|---|
| Language | Python 3.10+ |
| Platform | Windows 10/11 |
| Licence | Open source (GitHub) |
| DX data | DXWatch.com |
| Lightning | Blitzortung.org |
| Satellite TLE | SatNOGS DB / AMSAT |
| Storm data | NOAA SWPC |
| Downloads | — |