From dick at twohams.com  Thu Mar  1 11:35:33 2007
From: dick at twohams.com (Dick Flanagan)
Date: Thu Mar  1 11:41:13 2007
Subject: [CVRC] AOL Posting Issues
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070301082809.00d76290@mail.greatbasin.net>

[Received this morning from QTH.net admin]

FYI..

Some AOL members are unable to post because their plain text messages are
being turned into HTML after they're sent by adds placed at the bottom of
their messages.  This has happened before and AOL does stop doing this
eventually and the problem goes away.  Perhaps complaining to AOL will speed
this process up?

So far, I've not been able to filter out all the HTML spam without catching
the AOL footers.  I will continue to work on this but the prognosis is not
good.

Work arounds include a Google mail account, etc.
--
Dick Flanagan K7VC NV SM
k7vc@arrl.org


From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Mar  1 17:30:31 2007
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu Mar  1 17:36:15 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARLD009 DX news
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070301143007.00d76290@mail.greatbasin.net>

SB DX @ ARL $ARLD009
ARLD009 DX news

ZCZC AE09
QST de W1AW
DX Bulletin 9  ARLD009
 From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  March 1, 2007
To all radio amateurs

SB DX ARL ARLD009
ARLD009 DX news

This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by
K1CC, NC1L, the OPDX Bulletin, DXNL, 425 DX News, The Daily DX,
Contest Corral from QST and the ARRL Contest Calendar and WA7BNM web
sites.  Thanks to all.

MADAGASCAR, 5R.  Vlad, UA4WHX is QRV as 5R8VB.  Activity is on all
HF bands using CW and SSB.  His length of stay is unknown.  QSL to
home call.

SAMOA, 5W.  Udo, DL9HCU is QRV as 5W1VE for a few weeks.  QSL to
home call.

ALGERIA, 7X.  Yves, F5MSR is QRV as 7X0MT from Algiers.  Activity is
on the HF bands using mostly CW and digital modes using QRP power.
His length of stay is unknown.  QSL to home call.

CHINA, BY.  Zhang, BD3APX will be QRV in the ARRL DX SSB contest as
a Single Op/Low Power entry.  QSL to home call.

AZORES, CU.  Pedro, CU2CR will be QRV in the ARRL DX SSB contest as
a Single Op/Low Power entry.  QSL to home call.  In addition, CU2CE,
CU2DX and OH2BH will be QRV as CU2A in the ARRL DX SSB contest as a
Multi/Single entry.  They are active before the contest generally on
the low bands.  QSL via OH2BH.

SOUTH COOK ISLANDS, E5.  Bob, G3PJT will be QRV as E51PJT from
Rarotonga Island, IOTA OC-013, from March 3 to 17.  Activity will be
on the HF bands using mainly CW.  QSL to home call.

FRENCH GUIANA, FY.  Oliver, F5MZN will be QRV as FY5KE in the ARRL
DX SSB contest as a Single Op/All Band/Low or High Power entry.  QSL
via FY5KE.

REPUBLIC OF KOREA, HL.  Operators HL1VAU, DS4NYE and DS2GOO are QRV
as homecalls/4 from Sonyu Island, IOTA AS-148, until March 4.
Activity is on 40 to 10 meters using CW, SSB, RTTY and PSK31.  They
will participate in the ARRL DX SSB contest as D70LW/4.  QSL to home
calls.  QSL contest call via DS4NYE.

HONDURAS, HR.  Dan, HR2DMR will be a Single Op/All Band entry in the
ARRL DX SSB contest.

HAWAII, KH6.  Bill, W8QZA will be QRV as AH7ZA as an All Band/QRP
Power entry in the ARRL DX SSB contest.  QSL to home call.

PUERTO RICO, KP4.  Alfredo, WP3C will be QRV in the ARRL DX SSB
contest as a Single Op/Single Band/Low Power entry on 15 meters.
QSL via W3HNK.

BULGARIA, LZ.  In commemoration of the 129th anniversary of the
liberation of Bulgaria from the Ottoman empire, members of the
Balkan Contest Club are QRV as LZ129LO until March 31.  QSL via
bureau.

AUSTRIA. OE.  Members of the OEVSV HQ Contest Team will be QRV as
OE4A in the ARRL DX SSB contest as a Multi/2 entry.  QSL direct via
OE1EMS.

FAROE ISLANDS, OY.  Ole, OY3QN has been QRV on 30 meters between
1600 and 1800z.  QSL via OZ1ACB.

BONAIRE, CURACAO, PJ2.  Operators WE9V, KA9FOX and K9NW are QRV as
PJ2/homecalls from Curacao, IOTA SA-006, until March 6.  They will
also participate in the ARRL DX SSB contest as PJ2T as a Multi/2
entry.  QSL PJ2T via N9AG and all others via home calls.

ST. MAARTEN, SABA, ST. EUSTATIUS, PJ5.  W8EB and W8DVC are QRV as
PJ7/homecalls until March 25 from St. Maarten.  W8EB will be QRV as
PJ7B in the ARRL DX SSB contest.  QSL all calls via W8EB.

POLAND, SP.  In celebration of the 40th anniversary of club station
SP6PAZ, Piastowski Klub Krotkofalowcow club members are QRV as
HF40PAZ until April 30.  QSL via SP6PAZ.

TURKEY, TA.  A group of Czech Republic operators will be QRV as
TC0DX and YM0DX from Gokceada, IOTA EU-186, and Bozcaada, IOTA
AS-099, from March 4 to 11.  QSL via OK2GZ.

MACEDONIA, Z3.  Ozren, Z32XA will be QRV as Z35T in the ARRL DX SSB
contest as a Single Op/Single Band entry.  QSL via Z35T.

CAYMAN ISLANDS, ZF.  Bob, K3UL is QRV as ZF2UL until March 7.
Activity is on 160, 80 and 30 meters using mainly CW.  QSL to home
call.

PARAGUAY, ZP.  Tomas, ZP5AZL will be QRV as ZP0R in the ARRL DX SSB
contest as a Single Op entry.  QSL via W3HNK.

THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO.  The ARRL International DX SSB Contest,
Wake-Up! QRP CW Sprint, Open Ukraine RTTY Championship, DARC
10-Meter Digital Contest, ARS Spartan CW Sprint and the AGCW YL-CW
Party will certainly keep contesters busy this weekend.  Please see
March QST, page 90 and the ARRL and WA7BNM contest websites for
details.
NNNN
/EX


From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Mar  2 11:37:53 2007
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri Mar  2 11:43:40 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARLP010 Propagation de K7RA
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070302083747.03793e18@mail.greatbasin.net>

SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP010
ARLP010 Propagation de K7RA

ZCZC AP10
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 10  ARLP010
 From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA  March 2, 2007
To all radio amateurs

SB PROP ARL ARLP010
ARLP010 Propagation de K7RA

Sunspot numbers and solar flux both increased this week, but just
barely. Average daily sunspot numbers rose five points to 19.6,
while average daily solar flux rose one point to 75.8. Values are
expected to stay about the same over the next week. In fact, the
U.S. Air Force predicts an even 75 for solar flux over the next 30
days. Geomagnetic activity should remain quiet. Geophysical
Institute Prague agrees with outlook, predicting quiet to unsettled
conditions for today, March 2, quiet conditions on March 3-5, and
unsettled on March 6-7. The Air Force predicts 5 for the planetary A
index from March 2-5, 10 for March 6, and back to 5 after that.

You'll note when there is geomagnetic activity (see
http://www.sec.noaa.gov/ftpdir/indices/DGD.txt) that often the
planetary A and K index will be higher than the mid-latitude
numbers. Since most of us live at middle latitudes, a quiet number
for the planetary A index means quiet conditions for us as well. On
the last day of February, a solar wind stream caused a rise in
geomagnetic activity. You can see on the above URL that the
planetary A index was 23, Alaska's College A index was 38, but the
mid-latitude A index was only 12.

In February we had low sunspot numbers, appropriate for the bottom
of the solar cycle. The average daily sunspot number for February
was just 17.3. The only months with lower average daily sunspot
numbers in the past year were October (14.7) and February 2006
(5.3). Monthly averages of daily sunspot numbers for February 2006
through February 2007 were 5.3, 21.3, 55.2, 39.6, 24.4, 22.6, 22.8,
25.2, 14.7, 31.5, 22.2, 28.2 and 17.3. Monthly averages of daily
solar flux for the same period were 76.5, 75.5, 88.9, 80.9, 76.5,
75.8, 79, 77.8, 74.3, 86.3, 84.4, 83.5 and 77.7.

This month just might be the bottom of the cycle. View the table at
http://sec.noaa.gov/ftpdir/weekly/Predict.txt, and you'll see that
the predicted smoothed sunspot number for March 2007 is 11.3, and it
rises after that through the end of the year.

This weekend is the ARRL International DX SSB Contest, and
conditions will probably not be bad, at least no big geomagnetic
storms should occur. While there isn't much sunspot activity, our
local star isn't devoid of spots. Currently sunspot 944 faces us
from the center of the visible solar disk.

Eric Owen, KD4MZM of Sarasota, Florida sent a URL for a web page
devoted to 10-meter beacons at, http://10mbeacons.com/. Here you can
check loggings for 10-meter beacons, and leave your own feedback as
well for any you hear. There is also a list of links to individual
beacon web sites, and a beacon-chat area. Eric runs a beacon on
28.277 MHz.

In case you thought HF radio is no fun at the bottom of the solar
cycle, Aki, JA2UOZ, Aki, of Nagoya, Japan writes that he operates with
only one-half watt transmitter power and dipole antennas. Currently
he is trying for DXCC on 17 meters and higher at the bottom of the
solar cycle. He outlines his personal challenge at,
http://www.k4.dion.ne.jp/~jq2uoz/sub1.html, and some of his recent
contest logs at, http://www.k4.dion.ne.jp/~jq2uoz/sub7.html.

If you would like to make a comment or have a tip for our readers,
email the author at, k7ra@arrl.net.

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service at,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html. For a detailed
explanation of the numbers used in this bulletin see,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/k9la-prop.html. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at, http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/prop/. Monthly
propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve overseas
locations are at, http://www.arrl.org/qst/propcharts/.

Sunspot numbers for February 22 through 28 were 25, 22, 11, 12, 22,
23 and 22 with a mean of 19.6. 10.7 cm flux was 75.5, 75.1, 75.5,
76.6, 75.4, 74.8, and 75.8, with a mean of 75.5. Estimated planetary
A indices were 2, 2, 1, 3, 4, 12 and 23 with a mean of 6.7.
Estimated mid-latitude A indices were 2, 2, 2, 4, 4, 7 and 12, with
a mean of 4.7.
NNNN
/EX


From letter-dlvy at arrl.org  Fri Mar  2 19:54:02 2007
From: letter-dlvy at arrl.org (ARRL Letter Mailing List)
Date: Fri Mar  2 19:59:50 2007
Subject: [CVRC] The ARRL Letter, Vol 26, No 09 (Mar 2, 2007)
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070302165320.04d05420@mail.greatbasin.net>

***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 26, No. 09
March 2, 2007
***************

IN THIS EDITION:

* +New FCC rules prompt application avalanche
* +ARRL wants documents relating to FCC's dismissal of BPL complaints
* +First space station ham contacts for India, Portugal a success
* +FCC turns down petition to require question pools in other languages
* +Ham radio volunteers help following severe weather
* +Past ARRL Central Division Director Ed Metzger, W9PRN, SK
* +World-class contester Phil Goetz, N6ZZ, SK
*  Solar Update
*  IN BRIEF:
      This weekend on the radio: the ARRL International DX Contest (SSB)
      ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration
     +ARRL Regulatory Information Branch issues reminders
      FCC denies "Hams For Action" Petition For Rule Making
      FCC Universal Licensing System announces new Hotline hours
      Summits on the Air comes to the US
      Lynn Hansen, KU7Q, wins February QST Cover Plaque Award
      We stand corrected!

+Available on ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>

===========================================================
==>Delivery problems: First see FAQ
<http://www.arrl.org/members-only/faq.html#nodelivery>, then e-mail
<letter-dlvy@arrl.org>
==>Editorial questions or comments only: Rick Lindquist, N1RL,
<n1rl@arrl.org>
===========================================================

==>APPLICATION AVALANCHE UNDER WAY AS NEW CODELESS TESTING REGIME RAMPS UP

The avalanche of Amateur Radio license and license upgrade applications
prompted by the FCC's elimination of Morse code as a licensing requirement
is well under way with no end in sight. ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, AB1FM,
reports that paperwork from upward of 450 Amateur Radio exam sessions, most
held since the new rules went into effect February 23, arrived this week,
more than her department sees in a month under "normal" circumstances. The
ARRL VEC has had to add personnel and schedule extended hours to keep up
with the workload.

"We've been seeing some of the largest brand-new Technician sessions ever,"
Somma said. "These examination sessions are huge, and a ton of new
Technician license applications has been coming in -- sometimes 60 or 70 at
a clip." Somma says license upgrade traffic also has been brisk, and, with
some 650 examination sessions already on the calendar for March and more
arriving daily, it doesn't look like the pace will slacken anytime soon.

New Amateur Radio rules are driving the demand for new licenses and
upgrades. Effective February 23, the FCC no longer requires Amateur Radio
applicants to pass a Morse code test to earn operating privileges below 30
MHz. As of the same date, Technician licensees who never passed a Morse code
test gained new CW privileges on 80, 40 and 15 meters and new CW, RTTY, data
and SSB privileges on 10 meters. Since the Technician ticket has not
required a Morse code test since 1991, most current Technician license
holders will face a learning curve to take advantage of their new CW
privileges. As of February 25, there were approximately 324,200 Technician
licensees in the US -- more than any other license class.

Technicians may begin using their new privileges without having to apply for
them. No other license class acquired new privileges as a result of the new
rules that went into effect February 23, however. All license upgraders must
first apply at an examination session, pay any application fee and either
successfully pass the appropriate written test or present valid exam element
credit.

ARRL VEC personnel must go through "every single piece of paper" that
arrives from an examination session, Somma explained. Before keying
application data directly to the FCC's licensee database, the staff must
make sure that session paperwork is in order, each application is filled out
correctly and signed and any element credit is attached. If an applicant
took an exam element, ARRL VEC must ensure that the test questions came from
the correct question pool and that the applicant indeed passed. She said it
typically takes up to 90 seconds for staff members to key in an application
for a new licensee, but only about 30 seconds in the case of a license
upgrade.

Among the growing stack of incoming paperwork February 28 was a package from
a session held in the Bahamas for 56 US citizens -- more than likely
retirees and members of the cruising and sailing communities in the
Caribbean. Somma said it included applications for 12 new Technician
licensees. The rest were upgrades.

Normally with a staff complement of six, ARRL VEC now has as many as eight
full-timers plus three part-timers to handle the rush. Somma says her team
by and large has been able to review each application and transmit license
and upgrade application data to the FCC within three or four days of
receipt. She also had words of praise for the Volunteer Examiner (VE) teams.

"I want to thank the VEs," Somma said. "Most of the paperwork is neat and
orderly, and this makes it easy for us to just key it to the FCC." She did
caution VEs to make sure they include any proof of prior element credit --
usually a Certificate of Successful Completion of Examination or CSCE --
when submitting applications.

Some VE teams have been sharing observations and photos from their
examination sessions. "We're enjoying those," Somma said. "Keep 'em coming."

==>ARRL SEEKS TO FORCE FCC TO PRODUCE DOCUMENTS ON BPL COMPLAINT DISMISSALS

The ARRL has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking to
compel the FCC to provide several documents related to its dismissal
<http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2006/12/22/100/> of several broadband over
power line (BPL) interference complaints from radio amateurs in Manassas,
Virginia. The FCC told five Manassas radio amateurs December 14 that it was
throwing out their complaints, asserting that its measurements last October
25 and 26 showed the Manassas BPL system to be in compliance. The ARRL has
disputed the FCC's findings and, on December 21, sought clarification in a
letter to several FCC officials, including Enforcement Bureau Chief Kris
Monteith and Spectrum Enforcement Division Chief Kathryn S. Berthot, who
authored the dismissal letter. ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ, says the FCC's
silence to date prompted the FOIA request.

"The reasons for the Commission's dismissal, after months of delay, of five
of the six Manassas complaints are inadequately documented, and no action
appears ever to have been taken on a sixth complaint," Sumner commented.
"The FOIA request was submitted only after the FCC failed, after more than
two months, to respond to a letter from the ARRL pointing out apparent
deficiencies in the Commission's investigation and requesting additional
information to supplement Kathryn Berthot's terse and uninformative letter
of December 14 dismissing the five complaints."

While Manassas-area amateurs indicate that new BPL equipment has somewhat
reduced interference, some severe interference exists, and the situation
remains "far from acceptable," Sumner said.

ARRL Chief Counsel Chris Imlay, W3KD, filed the FOIA request February 23,
seeking essentially the same information and documentation it had asked the
Commission last December to provide voluntarily. The League is looking for
any documents that:

* indicate whether or not the hams who filed interference complaints were
notified in advance of the FCC inspection and testing in late October, and,
if so, who;

* indicate if anyone other than FCC staff observed the Manassas BPL system
tests;

* indicate which FCC staffers were involved in the testing and if any were
from the Office of Engineering and Technology (OET);

* indicate which FCC staff members determined the test procedures used
during the October inspection;

* indicate whether or not representatives of BPL system operator COMTek and
equipment supplier Main.net had been notified in advance of the October
inspection and testing;

* identify the six areas of the BPL system where the FCC reported it
conducted tests, how it determined those areas, why two test sites were
segregated from the six identified earlier, whether test results on October
26 differed from those of the previous day and whether there were changes in
the BPL system prior to the October 26 testing, and that

* indicate specific test methodologies and equipment the FCC used during its
testing, specific frequencies checked, radiated emission levels recorded,
the distance from power lines and their height above ground, if any
underground lines were tested and if they were notched on any bands.

The League also wants copies of all correspondence regarding the October
25-26 tests "between or among" OET, the Enforcement Bureau, Main.net, COMTek
and/or the City of Manassas, including letters and e-mails.

In his December 21 response to the FCC, Imlay maintained that Berthot's
letter raised more questions than it answered. For starters, he said,
there's no independent means to evaluate the conclusions Berthot described.

One complainant, George Tarnovsky, K4GVT, said neither he nor the other five
complainants was alerted to the planned FCC testing. The others are Donald
"Butch" Blasdell, W4HJL; William South, N3OH; Arthur Whittum, W1CRO; Jack
Cochran, WC4J, and Dwight Agnew, AI4II. Berthot's December 14 letter
altogether overlooked Whittum's May 2006 complaint that BPL interference
precluded communication with the EastCARS and MidCARS nets on 40 meters. As
recently as February 26, Whittum reported experiencing harmful interference
on 40 meters from emissions that appeared to be well in excess of FCC
limits.

Last August, the ARRL had recommended that the FCC Enforcement Bureau and
the OET to take independent measurements in Manassas, rather than relying on
COMTek to provide the information. It further urged the Commission to permit
all concerned parties to witness the testing and be assured that the testing
was valid. "Had that been done," Imlay wrote December 21, "and had the
measurements been fairly and objectively made, and if the results were as
the Commission stated in its December 14 letter, this matter would have been
resolved. As it is, nothing is now resolved."

==>YOUNGSTERS IN INDIA, PORTUGAL SPEAK WITH ISS VIA AMATEUR RADIO

For the first time in the history of the Amateur Radio on the International
Space Station (ARISS) program, youngsters in India and Portugal got the
chance to learn about life in space firsthand via ham radio. At the controls
of NA1SS, ISS crew member Suni Williams, KD5PLB, fielded questions February
24 from youngsters at Vasant Valley School in New Delhi, India. A couple of
days later, she got on the air to speak with students at Camilo Castelo
Branco School in Carnaxide, Portugal. Williams assured one Vasant Valley
student that the ISS generates no appreciable pollution in space.

"We're just orbiting, so we're not giving off any pollution while we're up
here," Williams responded. "Sometimes, some things fall off the space
station, like little pieces of dust or little pieces of metal, but that's
all, really, the pollution we're putting out up here."

Among the 13 youngsters participating in the event were the niece and nephew
of US astronaut Kalpana "KC" Chawla, KD5ESI (SK), who died in the Columbia
space shuttle accident.

Williams also explained that the microgravity environment of space does have
an effect on the crew's health and fitness. "Of course, we don't have
gravity so we're not using our bones as much so we're not stimulating our
bones for bone growth, so we lose a little bone, and also with that, we lose
a little muscle mass," she said. "To overcome that, we have a nutrition
experiment that we're monitoring what we're eating as well as doing
exercises -- some on the bike, some on the treadmill and also some on the
resistive exercise device, which is like weights, to stimulate the bones and
muscles for growth."

Williams, who's of Indian heritage, told the students that she has some
Indian cuisine aboard the ISS.

The Vasant Valley ARISS event attracted news media attention from several
newspapers.

On February 26, Williams chatted with high schoolers in Portugal attending
Camilo Castelo Branco School as well as Manuel Vaz School and Jorge Mineiro
School. Responding to one question, she said those bound for space cannot
learn everything they need to know on Earth -- that there's a big difference
between training and the real thing.

"The training is great, particularly the spacewalking training and the
robotic training on Earth are just spectacular and really prepare you for
the tasks that you'll be doing up here," she said. "Now, living up in space,
that's a little bit different. I don't think we have an accurate simulator
to really understand how to eat up here, how to sleep, and how to, you know,
use the bathroom and those types of things."

One of the main missions of the space station crew is to help determine how
long humans can remain in space, she told another questioner. Williams also
said that ISS crew members consider each other friends and colleagues.

Brazilian astronaut Marcos Pontes, PY0AEB, had been scheduled to talk with
students at Camilo Castelo Branco School last April when he was aboard the
ISS during Expedition 12. The contact never took place, however, because of
Pontes' work schedule aboard the space station.

Nancy Rochelau, WH6PN, at Sacred Hearts Academy in Honolulu served as the
Earth station for the India contact, while Tony Hutchison, VK5ZAI, in
Australia handled Earth station duties for the Portugal QSO. A Verizon
Conferencing teleconference link provided two-way audio to the schools from
each station.

ARISS <http://www.rac.ca/ariss> is an international educational outreach,
with US participation from ARRL, AMSAT and NASA.

==>FCC SAYS "NO" TO PETITION CALLING FOR EXAMS IN LANGUAGES OTHER THAN
ENGLISH

The FCC has turned down a petition seeking a rule requiring question pools
be prepared for each examination element in languages other than English.
Filing on behalf of the Puerto Rico Amateur Radio League (PRARL), Victor
Madera, KP4PQ, sought the change to ?97.523 of the rules last year. Madera
is the PRARL's secretary and ARRL Puerto Rico Section Manager. The
organization cited a need to administer standardized ham radio license exams
in Spanish. In a letter February 23
<http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-07-814A1.pdf>, Scot
Stone, deputy chief of the FCC Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB)
Mobility Division suggested that the PRARL would be better off to approach
the National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (NCVEC) Question
Pool Committee (QPC) about establishing language criteria.

"The Commission's rules do not specify any particular language(s) in which
Amateur Radio Service written examinations must be administered," Stone
wrote. "Consequently, no rule change is required for the NCVEC QPC to
maintain Spanish-language question pools." Stone said that because Volunteer
Examiner Coordinators (VECs) cooperate in maintaining standard question
pools, the NCVEC QPC might be the more appropriate forum for the PRARL's
request.

The PRARL has developed Spanish-language question pools and has offered them
to the NCVEC QPC at no expense, Madera told ARRL. "We have been using [a
standard Spanish-language question pool] for close to 10 years with
excellent results, thanks to the ARRL/VEC," he said. Madera says he
presented the issue to the NCVEC without success before going to the FCC.
He's also proposed a standard Spanish-language question pool to the ARRL
VEC, and that issue is pending.

Stone noted that ?97.523 in part requires that VECs "must cooperate in
maintaining one question pool for each written examination element" and that
each question pool be made publicly available prior to its use in making a
question set. "Thus, the written examination questions are drawn from a
uniform national database of multiple-choice questions and answers" that the
NCVEC approves, he said.

The PRARL also publishes Amateur Radio study materials in Spanish. The
organization told the FCC that because there's no uniform Spanish-language
version of the Amateur Radio exam question pools, Volunteer Examiners (VEs)
prepare Spanish-language Amateur Radio license examination questions at
random.

"You are concerned that this method of preparing examination questions may
result in Spanish-language examinations being prepared without following a
standard pattern," Stone said, "thereby resulting in Spanish-speaking
examinees not being treated equally to English-speaking examinees."

The FCC suggested that PRARL's concern regarding disparate treatment of
Spanish speakers appeared to be based on speculation. "The petition presents
no evidence of an existing problem meriting a rule change," Stone concluded.

==>AMATEUR RADIO VOLUNTEERS ASSIST FOLLOWING SEVERE WEATHER

Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) members and individual radio amateurs
pitched in to assist after severe weather struck Arkansas and Louisiana
February 24. In Desha County, Arkansas, more than two dozen people were
injured when a tornado ripped through Dumas, causing widespread damage.
Dumas resident Roger Lunsford, KD5HMS, says the twister spared his
neighborhood.

"My family and I huddled in the bathroom with my radios in hand monitoring
public officials reporting a visual sighting of the funnel cloud . . .
heading straight for town," he recounted. The storm took out electrical
power. Once the storm passed, Lunsford grabbed his radio and went into town
to help search for victims; most escaped without life-threatening injuries.

No ARES teams deployed, but with telephone service out, Lunsford was able to
get out word of the damage via Amateur Radio. He and his family had to take
cover again as another tornado threatened.

In Louisiana, Caddo-Bossier Parish Emergency Coordinator Richard Lea, NZ5S,
reports Bossier Marshals Office Chief Rick Ware, K5VXT, requested ARES
activation after a tornado struck North Bossier Parish. An emergency net
convened for three hours on a VHF repeater, with 20 check-ins and others
monitoring.

SKYWARN volunteers relayed storm and weather data. Agencies responding to or
using the ARES net included the Bossier Office of Emergency Preparedness as
well as law enforcement.

"The affected area was thankfully small, and only minor injuries were
reported," Lea said. "ARES stations were prepared to deploy, but there was
not a need at the time of the activation." ARES terminated operations at
midnight, although Lea and Ware stood by overnight.

==>ARRL HONORARY VICE PRESIDENT, PAST DIRECTOR ED METZGER, W9PRN, SK

ARRL Honorary Vice President and Past Central Division Director Edmond A.
"Ed" Metzger, W9PRN, of Springfield, Illinois, died February 26. He was 93.
An ARRL Charter Life Member, Metzger spent more than half his life serving
the League in a variety of capacities.

Licensed in 1941, Metzger began his lengthy League service in 1957, when he
became Illinois Section Communications Manager (SCM -- now Section Manager),
a post he held until 1980. From 1965 until 1981, he also served as ARRL
Central Division Vice Director. He became Central Division Director in 1981.
That same year, the ARRL Board of Directors elected Metzger as an ARRL
Foundation Director, and he subsequently served as the Foundation's
president from 1993 until 2001, when Dick Isely, W9GIG, succeeded him as
Director. The ARRL Board of Directors named Metzger an ARRL Honorary Vice
President in 2001.

Metzger was a member of the Sangamon Valley Radio Club and the Quarter
Century Wireless Association. He regularly attended the annual W9DXCC
gathering in Chicago. A graduate of Springfield Junior College, Metzger, was
comptroller for Kerasotes Theatres for more than 50 years.

Survivors include two sons -- Ed, NL7LJ, and William, and three daughters --
Margaret, Molly and Lisa. A service was held March 1.

The family invites memorial contributions to the Edmond A. Metzger
Scholarship, c/o The ARRL Foundation, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT
06111.

==>NOTED CONTESTER PHIL GOETZ, N6ZZ, SK

World-class Amateur Radio contester Phil Goetz, N6ZZ, of Alto, New Mexico,
died unexpectedly February 27. He was 64. Goetz reportedly suffered a
cerebral hemorrhage while playing racquetball. Past ARRL Southwestern
Division Director Art Goddard, W6XD, called Goetz, who competed on phone and
CW, HF and VHF/UHF, "a consummate contester."

"The contest community has lost one of its most outstanding practitioners
and Amateur Radio has lost a fine gentleman," he said this week.

Goddard said, "Phil always kept his composure on the air, even when dealing
with unruly pileups after 40+ hours of nonstop contest operation. He was
most thoughtful of other members of his contest team and was ready to apply
his quick wit and sense of humor to any situation."

ARRL Southwestern Division Director Dick Norton, N6AA -- himself an active
contester and DXer -- said he and Goetz were best friends and had operated
contests together since 1965. Norton said he'd miss Goetz's assistance with
CQ World Wide DX Contest log checking and as a good friend.

An ARRL member, Goetz had the distinction of being one of only two radio
amateurs to operate the CQ World Wide DX Contest from all 40 CQ zones. ARRL
CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ, said Goetz operated Zone 5 -- saving the easiest
zone for last -- from his station in 2004.

"He did a great job, placing in the US top 10 from an unfamiliar station,
and he taught me a thing or two about SO2R [single operator/two radio] and
staying in the chair," Sumner recounted.

Goetz was a key member of the judging committee at the World Radiosport Team
Championship (WRTC 2006) in Brazil last July. He was a member of the Sierra
Blanca Amateur Radio Club and the A-1 Operator Club.

Arrangements are incomplete.

==>SOLAR UPDATE

Solar slacker Tad "Workin' in a Coal Mine" Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington,
reports: Sunspot numbers and solar flux both increased this week, but just
barely. Average daily sunspot numbers rose 5 points to 19.6, while average
daily solar flux rose 1 point to 75.8. Values are expected to stay about the
same over the next week. In fact, the US Air Force predicts an even 75.0 for
solar flux over the next 30 days.

Geomagnetic activity should remain quiet. Geophysical Institute Prague
agrees with outlook, predicting quiet to unsettled conditions for today,
March 2, quiet conditions on March 3-5, and unsettled on March 6-7. The Air
Force predicts 5 for the planetary A index from March 2-5, 10 for March 6,
and back to 5 after that.

Conditions should be fair for the ARRL International DX Contest (SSB) this
weekend, with no geomagnetic storms predicted.

Sunspot numbers for February 22 through 28 were 25, 22, 11, 12, 22, 23 and
22, with a mean of 19.6. The 10.7 cm flux was 75.5, 75.1, 75.5, 76.6, 75.4,
74.8, and 75.8, with a mean of 75.5. Estimated planetary A indices were 2,
2, 1, 3, 4, 12 and 23, with a mean of 6.7. Estimated mid-latitude A indices
were 2, 2, 2, 4, 4, 7 and 12, with a mean of 4.7.

For more information concerning radio propagation, visit the ARRL Technical
Information Service Propagation page
<http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html>.

__________________________________

==>IN BRIEF:

* This weekend on the radio: The ARRL International DX Contest (SSB), the
Wake-Up! QRP Sprint, the Open Ukraine RTTY Championship, and the DARC
10-Meter Digital Contest are the weekend of March 3-4. JUST AHEAD: The RSGB
80-Meter Club Championship (Data) is March 5. The ARS Spartan Sprint and the
AGCW YL-CW Party are March 6. See the ARRL Contest Branch page
<http://www.arrl.org/contests/> and the WA7BNM Contest Calendar
<http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for more info.

* ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration:
Registration remains open through Sunday, March 25, for these ARRL
Certification and Continuing Education (CCE) online courses beginning on
Friday, April 6: The ARRL Ham Radio License Course (EC-010), Amateur Radio
Emergency Communications Level 1 (EC-001), Radio Frequency Interference
(EC-006), Antenna Design and Construction (EC-009), Analog Electronics
(EC-012) and Digital Electronics (EC-013). These courses will also open for
registration Friday, March 23, for classes beginning Friday, May 4. To learn
more, visit the CCE Course Listing page
<http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html> or contact the CCE Department
<cce@arrl.org>.

* ARRL Regulatory Information Branch issues reminders: The ARRL Regulatory
Information Branch advises all Technician and Novice licensees that they may
*not* operate FM mode on 10 meters (or anywhere else below 30 MHz). Novices
and Technicians may operate CW and data on the segment 28.0 to 28.3 MHz, and
CW and SSB phone on the segment 28.3 to 28.5 MHz. Novices and Technicians
must limit their output power to 200 W PEP on these 10-meter segments and on
any HF bands where they have privileges (ie, CW on 80, 40 and 15 meters).
The RIB also notes that a valid Certificate of Successful Completion of
Examination (CSCE) for element credit issued prior to February 23, 2007,
does *not* automatically convey operating privileges under the new rules.
The holder must first redeem the CSCE by applying at an examination session
and paying any application fee. If the Volunteer Examiner (VE) team accepts
the CSCE for element credit, it will issue a CSCE for upgrade credit. Only
then may upgraders operate under their new privileges, identifying as /AG
(if upgrading to General) or /AE (if upgrading to Amateur Extra) until the
FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) <http://wireless.fcc.gov/uls/> database
reflects their new license class. A CSCE is valid for 365 days from the date
of issuance.

* FCC denies "Hams For Action" Petition For Rule Making: In a February 28
letter <http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-07-898A1.pdf>,
the FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) denied a petition for
rule making filed last July by Don Schellhardt, KI4PMG, on behalf of "Hams
for Action" (HFA). The petition requested that the FCC adopt rules, under
certain circumstances, to override private deed covenants, conditions and
restrictions (CC&Rs) preventing radio amateurs from installing antennas and
antenna support structures. HFA asked the FCC to preempt CC&Rs that fail to
provide reasonable accommodation for any ham certified as an "emergency
communications operator." Scot Stone, deputy chief of the WTB's Mobility
Division, said the FCC "has previously addressed the question of whether to
preempt CC&Rs in deeds and bylaws" that restrict the installation of Amateur
Radio antennas and support structures. Stone said the FCC's PRB-1 decision
<http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/regulations/local/prb-1.html> established
a policy of limited preemption of state and local regulations governing ham
radio facilities, including antennas and support structures, but expressly
decided not to extend the limited preemption policy to CC&Rs in home
ownership deeds and condominium bylaws because home buyers and tenants enter
into such agreements voluntarily. The HFA "has not presented grounds for the
Commission to revisit this policy," Stone concluded.

* FCC Universal Licensing System announces new Hotline hours: The FCC
Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) has announced new hours for
Universal Licensing System (ULS) Customer Support Hotline. Online customer
support remains available 24/7 on the FCC Web site
<http://esupport.fcc.gov/index.htm>. Effective March 5, customers will be
able to reach the FCC ULS Customer Support Hotline Monday through Friday
(excepting federal holidays) from 8 AM until 6 PM Eastern Time. Contact ULS
Customer Support at (877) 480-3201, option 2 (toll-free); (888) 225-5322,
option 2 (toll-free) or (717) 338-2888. TTY service is available at (717)
338-2824.

* Summits on the Air comes to the US: The "Summits on the Air" (SOTA)
<http://www.sota.org.uk/> mountain-topping radio operating award program
starts March 1 in New York and New Jersey. It's being launched with a
partial summit list under the leadership of Andrew Pepper, KC2EUS. He notes
that no summits have been listed to date in New Jersey. SOTA encourages
Amateur Radio activity from the summits of hills and mountains at least 150
meters above the surrounding terrain in countries around the world.
"Chasers" working SOTA stations also are eligible for award points. There's
more information on the SOTA US Region Web site
<http://www.kc2eus.org/sota/>. Originating in the UK, SOTA already has
gained a foothold in Ireland, Germany, Greece, Switzerland, South Africa,
Austria and Hungary.

* Lynn Hansen, KU7Q, wins February QST Cover Plaque Award: The winner of the
QST Cover Plaque Award for February is Lynn Hansen, KU7Q, for the article "A
Simple Bluetooth Radio Interface." Congratulations, Lynn! The winner of the
QST Cover Plaque award -- given to the author or authors of the best article
in each issue -- is determined by a vote of ARRL members on the QST Cover
Plaque Poll Web page <http://www.arrl.org/members-only/QSTvote.html>. Cast a
ballot for your favorite article in the March issue by March 31.

* We stand corrected! The story "Nor'easter Prompts Amateur Radio Activity
in Ohio, Northeast," in The ARRL Letter, Vol 26, No 08 (Feb 23, 2007),
incorrectly reported the frequency of the Ohio Single Sideband Net. The net
meets on 3972.5 MHz.-- submitted by Richard Webb, NF5B

===========================================================
The ARRL Letter is published Fridays, 50 times each year, by the American
Radio Relay League: ARRL--the National Association For Amateur Radio, 225
Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259;
<http://www.arrl.org>. Joel Harrison, W5ZN, President.

The ARRL Letter offers a weekly e-mail digest of essential and general news
of interest to active radio amateurs. Visit the ARRL Web site
<http://www.arrl.org> for the latest Amateur Radio news and news updates.
The ARRL Web site <http://www.arrl.org/> also offers informative features
and columns. ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> is a
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Material from The ARRL Letter may be republished or reproduced in whole or
in part in any form without additional permission. Credit must be given to
The ARRL Letter/American Radio Relay League.

==>Delivery problems (ARRL member direct delivery only!):
letter-dlvy@arrl.org
==>Editorial questions or comments: Rick Lindquist, N1RL, n1rl@arrl.org
==>ARRL News on the Web: <http://www.arrl.org>
==>ARRL Audio News: <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> or call
860-594-0384

==>How to Get The ARRL Letter

The ARRL Letter is available to ARRL members free of charge directly from
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cannot assist subscribers who receive The ARRL Letter via this listserver.)


From dick at twohams.com  Wed Mar  7 20:43:49 2007
From: dick at twohams.com (Dick Flanagan)
Date: Wed Mar  7 20:50:07 2007
Subject: [CVRC] General Ham Cram and VE Help Silver Springs Nevada
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070307174301.00b84110@mail.greatbasin.net>

There will be a General Ham Cram in Silver Springs, Lyon County Nevada
Saturday March 17 at the McAtee Building starting at 0800.

For further details, books and requested VE help contact Jack Ruckman
AC6FU E-mail: ac6fu@netscape.com  Telephone: 775-577-2639.


From dick at twohams.com  Wed Mar  7 20:56:22 2007
From: dick at twohams.com (Dick Flanagan)
Date: Wed Mar  7 21:02:42 2007
Subject: [CVRC] More Information Regarding the Silver Springs Ham Session 
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070307175554.00ba3630@mail.greatbasin.net>

Additional phone numbers for Jack Ruckman AC6FU 775-577-2637 and Harry
Bryant  KC7HVM at 775-577-3836, as contacts.  Ve's will be needed from
about 1 PM until we finish on Saturday, March 17th.  We will have a
General Class study session from 8 AM to noon, break for lunch, and begin
testing at 1 PM.
73 de Jack, AC6FU <ac6fu@netscape.com>


From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Mar  8 18:43:33 2007
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu Mar  8 18:49:55 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARLD010 DX news
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070308154323.00b9e270@mail.greatbasin.net>

SB DX @ ARL $ARLD010
ARLD010 DX news

ZCZC AE10
QST de W1AW
DX Bulletin 10  ARLD010
 From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  March 8, 2007
To all radio amateurs

SB DX ARL ARLD010
ARLD010 DX news

This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by
F6BUM, NC1L, the OPDX Bulletin, DXNL, 425 DX News, The Daily DX,
Contest Corral from QST and the ARRL Contest Calendar and WA7BNM web
sites.  Thanks to all.

SPRATLY ISLANDS.  Look for a large group of operators to be QRV as
9M4SDX from Layang Layang, IOTA AS-051, from March 10 to 19.  They
will be active on all bands with four stations on the air
simultaneously.  QSL via 9M2TO.

MAURITANIA, 5T.  Alex is QRV as 5T3TN and is generally active on 80
through 20 meters using CW.  QSL via RW3TN.

NEPAL, 9N.  Stig is QRV as 9N7JO and has been active on 30 meters
around 0100z.

GUYANA, 8R.  Esmond, 8R1AK/p has been active on 80 meters around
0530z.  QSL to home call.

GERMANY, DA.  Special event station DQ50SAAR is active until the end
of the year to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the DARC Distrikt
SAAR.  QSL via bureau.

FRANCE, F.  Look for TM5P to be QRV from the Pontusval Lighthouse,
ARLHS FRA-404, March 10 and 11.  QSL via F4ELJ.

NEW CALEDONIA, FK.  Tony, FO5RK is QRV as FK/FO5RK from Noumea until
the end of April.  Activity is mainly on 40 and 20 meters using CW
after 0600z and 0900z, respectively.  QSL to home call.

SOLOMON ISLANDS, H4.  Bernhard, DL2GAC is QRV as H44MS until April
25.  Activity is mainly on 80 and 40 meters.  QSL to home call.

GUINEA-BISSAU, J5.  Jack, F6BUM will be QRV as J5BI from Bubaque
Island, IOTA AF-020, from March 14 to 28.  Activity is on all HF
bands using CW, SSB and various digital modes.  QSL to home call.

ST. VINCENT, J8.  Gary, W0AW will be QRV as J8/W0AW from Bequia
Island, IOTA NA-025, from March 10 to 16.  Activity is on 80 to 10
meters, and possibly 160 meters, using CW, RTTY and some SSB.  QSL
to home call.

SVALBARD, JW.  Maria Teresa, IN3TCH and Mauro, IN3SAU are QRV as
JW/homecalls using RTTY and SSB, respectively.  They are also QRV as
JW5E from the club station in Longyearbyen until March 11.  Activity
is mainly on the low bands.  QSL to home calls.

EGYPT, SU.  SU8DLH has been QRV on 160 meters between 0145 and
0400z.  QSL via DK2CL.

BRUNEI, V8.  Kanzi, JA4ENL is QRV as V85NL until March 12.  He is
using mainly CW.  He may try to be active on 160 meters as well.
QSL direct to home call.

AUSTRALIA, VK.  Tim, VK4HFO is QRV from Lamb Island, IOTA OC-137,
and is active on 40 meters around 0600 and 1700z.

BERMUDA, VP9.  Mark, AA1AC will be QRV as AA1AC/VP9 from Hamilton
Parish from March 11 to 15.  QSL to home call.

TRISTAN DA CUNHA AND GOUGH ISLANDS, ZD9.  Brian is QRV as ZD9BCB and
has been active on 20 meters between 1800 and 2000z.  QSL via
SQ8AQD.

CHATHAM ISLAND, ZL7.  Station ZL7/KH0PR has been active on 80 meters
using CW between 1030 and 1430z.  The length of stay is unknown.
QSL via JJ8DEN.

THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO.  The North American RTTY Sprint, Pesky
Texan Armadillo Chase, RSGB Commonwealth Contest, Idaho QSO Party,
AGCW QRP CW Contest, Oklahoma QSO Party, EA PSK31 Contest, SOC
Marathon CW Sprint, UBA Spring CW Contest, NSARA Contest and the
Wisconsin QSO Party will certainly keep contesters busy this
weekend.  Please see March QST, page 90 and the ARRL and WA7BNM
contest websites for details.
NNNN
/EX


From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Mar  9 11:56:40 2007
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri Mar  9 12:03:08 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARLP011 Propagation de K7RA
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070309085629.00ba1ad0@mail.greatbasin.net>

SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP011
ARLP011 Propagation de K7RA

ZCZC AP11
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 11  ARLP011
 From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA  March 9, 2007
To all radio amateurs

SB PROP ARL ARLP011
ARLP011 Propagation de K7RA

On March 1 sunspot 944 was pointed straight at us. It was a small
sunspot, followed a few days later by another small spot, 945.
Sunspot 945 is visible in photos from March 5, just behind 944, but
both spots seemed to disappear a day or two later, before they would
have rotated off the visible solar disk. Now the Sun is blank, and
the sunspot number is zero.

The minimum non-zero sunspot number is 11, and lately sunspot
numbers move from 0 to 11 to 23 or 24, and back to 11. No solar
activity is expected for the next few days, so we will probably see
at least several days with a zero sunspot number. Geomagnetic
conditions are expected to remain quiet, at least until Monday or
Tuesday, March 12-13. The USAF predicts a Planetary A index for
March 9-15 of 5, 5, 7, 15, 20, 15 and 10. Geophysical Institute
Prague predicts quiet conditions for March 9-10, quiet to unsettled
March 11, active geomagnetic conditions for March 12, unsettled to
active March 13, unsettled March 14 and quiet to unsettled March 15.
A recurring solar wind stream is predicted for Monday, March 12, and
should produce the expected geomagnetic instability.

New predictions for the solar minimum are coming frequently of late.
The monthly smoothed sunspot number forecast for the rest of 2007
from the NOAA Space Environment Center in the weekly Preliminary
Report and Forecast has been adjusted again, the third time since
the first of the year. The revised tables are on page 9 of issue
1635, and page 10 of issues 1640 and 1644 at,
http://www.sec.noaa.gov/weekly/index.html (the table in 1640 is
mislabeled at the bottom of the page as 03 January when it is really
06 February). Currently they predict a solar minimum for right now,
with a smoothed sunspot number of 6 for March and April 2007, then
7, 8, 10, 11, 13, 16, 18 and 21 for the remaining eight months of
this year.

As mentioned in past bulletins, these are smoothed sunspot numbers,
averaged over a year. So the prediction of 6 for this month means
that if the prediction is accurate, at the end of September 2007 you
could take half the average of daily sunspot numbers for that month,
add it to half the average of daily sunspot numbers for September
2006, add the total to the monthly averages for each month in
between, divide by 12, and get 6 as the result.  Currently we're
seeing higher values, with an average daily sunspot number of 19 for
last week, 19.6 the week before, 14.6 for the week prior to that,
6.3 for the previous week, and 28.7 for the week prior to that,
which was February 1-7.

You can see an explanation of the method for determining the 12
month smoothed sunspot number at,
http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/stp/IONO/sunspot.html.

Jim Headrick, W3CP of Stanfield, Oregon sent in a different
prediction from the Australian government. It has the solar minimum
centered on September 2007, and you can see it at,
http://tinyurl.com/2ymk92. Note that the NOAA version mentioned
previously ends in December 2007, but the one Jim sent goes through
2008 and 2009 as well. By the way, I don't know how long Jim has
been a ham, but he was born early in sunspot cycle 15, and I'm sure
he hopes to see the new cycle 24 all the way through. See a page of
all the 20th century sunspot cycles at,
http://wm7d.net/hamradio/solar/historical.shtml.

We heard from another ham enjoying low power operations at the
bottom of the cycle. Bill Raiford, NI4Y of Fredericksburg, Virginia
says he operates 10 watts on 20 meters from his car. Bill says,
"Last week I worked VK2KM and this week I worked VK2GWK from my 10
watt mobile station. No, VK isn't rare DX, but just the thought of
10 watts propagating from my vehicle in VA to VK land is quite
amazing. I am at 194 countries from my mobile."

Dave Green, VE5TLY of Ottawa, Ontario sent an interesting link from
the BBC concerning the new STEREO (Solar Terrestrial Relations
Observatory) satellites which will soon be observing coronal mass
ejections traveling through space in 3D. Read the article at,
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6411349.stm.

If you would like to make a comment or have a tip for our readers,
email the author at, k7ra@arrl.net.

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service at,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html. For a detailed
explanation of the numbers used in this bulletin see,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/k9la-prop.html. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at, http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/prop/. Monthly
propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve overseas
locations are at, http://www.arrl.org/qst/propcharts/.

Sunspot numbers for March 1 through 7 were 11, 23, 11, 24, 27, 26
and 11 with a mean of 19. 10.7 cm flux was 74.8, 75.5, 73.3, 72.5,
71.9, 71.9, and 72.9, with a mean of 73.3. Estimated planetary A
indices were 11, 5, 2, 3, 8, 18 and 14 with a mean of 8.7. Estimated
mid-latitude A indices were 7, 4, 0, 4, 6, 14 and 12, with a mean of
6.7.
NNNN
/EX


From letter-dlvy at arrl.org  Fri Mar  9 19:07:33 2007
From: letter-dlvy at arrl.org (ARRL Letter Mailing List)
Date: Fri Mar  9 19:14:05 2007
Subject: [CVRC] The ARRL Letter, Vol 26, No 10 (Mar 9, 2007)
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070309160642.00b8f800@mail.greatbasin.net>

***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 26, No. 10
March 9, 2007
***************

IN THIS EDITION:

* +Diamond Terrace at ARRL a "rock-solid" opportunity to donate
* +ARRL President Emeritus Jim Haynie, W5JBP, is "Amateur of the Year"
* +Three states mull Amateur Radio antenna legislation
* +Astronauts enhance youngsters' ISS ham radio contact experience
* +Deadly storms prompt Amateur Radio volunteers to activate
* +FCC reduces fine, issues short-term renewal in interference case
* +Software pioneer to be next civilian space traveler
*  Solar Update
*  IN BRIEF:
      This weekend on the radio
      ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration
      ARRL releases statement on Red Cross background check policy
     +Advisory to Amateur Radio license/upgrade applicants: Use your FRN!
      ARRL 2006 Frequency Measuring Test results now available
      The SouthWest Ohio DX Association announces 22nd annual DX Dinner
      2007 ARRL/TAPR Digital Communications Conference issues call for papers
      Topbanders' DX Dinner set at Visalia
      Australia's WIA applies for 500 kHz amateur allocation

+Available on ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>

===========================================================
==>Delivery problems: First see FAQ
<http://www.arrl.org/members-only/faq.html#nodelivery>, then e-mail
<letter-dlvy@arrl.org>
==>Editorial questions or comments only: Rick Lindquist, N1RL,
<n1rl@arrl.org>
===========================================================

==>DIAMOND TERRACE INVITES MEMBERS TO ENGRAVE THEIR CALL SIGNS IN STONE

The ARRL Diamond Club is offering members the opportunity to make their call
signs a permanent part of ARRL Headquarters by contributing an engraved
brick to The Diamond Terrace at ARRL. A project of the ARRL Diamond Club,
The Diamond Terrace will be constructed of personalized, 4x8-inch
laser-engraved bricks. Gracing the soon-to-be renovated entrance to ARRL
Headquarters, The Diamond Terrace will recognize donors wishing to venerate
their own call signs or to honor or memorialize the call sign of a family
member, club or "Elmer" (mentor).

"We already had plans to refurbish the Headquarters entrance area, so this
was an ideal opportunity to invite our members to participate in the project
and supporting League programs at the same time," said ARRL Chief
Development Officer Mary Hobart, K1MMH. "We want to grow the Diamond Club,
which enables the ARRL to continue programs that require revenue above and
beyond what annual dues provide, ensuring their long-term health and
enabling the League to do more on behalf of Amateur Radio."

Diamond Club enrollment ($75-$249 per year for regular members; $50 annually
for Life Members) covers ARRL full-membership benefits, including QST.

ARRL President Joel Harrison, W5ZN, was the first in line to buy a Diamond
Terrace brick, and another 20 bricks already are spoken for. Others can join
them with a $250 annual Diamond Club membership contribution. The Diamond
Club now has more than 2000 members, and the unrestricted funds it takes in
support such ARRL activities as spectrum defense, educational initiatives,
field services, DXCC, publications, contesting and the ARRL Volunteer
Examiner Coordinator among others, Hobart points out.

Donors may request up to three lines of 16 characters (including spaces and
punctuation) per line. Legends may consist of a call sign or a name -- or
both -- or a club name and call sign and even a year. Diamond Club members
contributing $250 or more each year may add a new brick, or bricks, to the
terrace. Especially generous donors may wish to donate a garden bench to The
Diamond Terrace at ARRL for an initial donation of $10,000.

The Diamond Terrace project will get under way this spring, and new bricks
will be put into place 50 bricks at a time each year during May and June.
Bricks will be set in sand and treated to withstand harsh New England
winters.

Hobart says the terrace ultimately will consist of 5000 bricks. "We hope it
will be a catalyst for growth, and that many members will support this
effort," she said.

Contact Hobart 860-594-0397; <mhobart@arrl.org> or visit the Diamond Club
Web page
<https://www.arrl.org/forms/development/donations/diamondclub/index.html> to
learn more or to sign up for your Diamond Club membership and Diamond
Terrace brick.

Visit The Diamond Terrace at ARRL page for additional information
<https://www.arrl.org/forms/development/donations/diamondclub/terrace.html>.

==>ARRL PRESIDENT EMERITUS JIM HAYNIE, W5JBP, NAMED "AMATEUR OF THE YEAR"

Dayton Hamvention? <http://www.hamvention.org> has named ARRL President
Emeritus Jim Haynie, W5JBP, as its 2007 Amateur of the Year. Hamvention says
Haynie's League leadership "helped define Amateur Radio's role in emergency
communication." Hamvention also announced this week that ARRL Laboratory
Manager Ed Hare, W1RFI, will receive Hamvention's Special Achievement Award
to recognize his technical expertise in documenting the threat of
interference from broadband over power line (BPL) systems. Internet Radio
Linking Project (IRLP) <http://www.irlp.net> David Cameron, VE7LTD, was
named the recipient of the Technical Excellence Award.

"I was astonished, and I'm deeply honored," Haynie said after getting word
that he'd be receiving Hamvention's top award in May. "It's quite a
recognition -- and quite a surprise."

A ham for 34 years, Haynie, who lives in Dallas, was West Gulf Division
Director for eight years and an ARRL vice president for two years. He then
served three terms as the League's volunteer president, from 2000 until
2006, when he was succeeded by current ARRL President Joel Harrison, W5ZN.
Haynie's award nomination cited his "energy, tenacity and attention to
detail that has transformed the American Radio Relay League from the service
organization it was prior to 9/11 into the proactive, vital emergency
service clearing house and educational operation that it is today."

During his tenure as League president, Haynie's effort to define Amateur
Radio's role in homeland security was among his top initiatives. In 2003, he
signed a formal Statement of Affiliation between the Department of Homeland
Security and ARRL. He has an abiding interest in emergency communication and
has promoted Amateur Radio's emergency communication value and contributions
on Capitol Hill and elsewhere.

Haynie also championed "The Big Project" -- now the ARRL Education and
Technology Program (ETP) -- to bring ham radio and wireless technology into
schools.

Special Achievement Award: Ed Hare, W1RFI

Dayton Hamvention will honor Hare for his extensive work calling attention
to the potential threat of BPL interference to licensed radio communication
services and in documenting it. A member of the ARRL HQ staff for more than
20 years, Hare said he's honored but feels the award really is one for
Amateur Radio.

"What I did would have had no meaning without the work of hundreds of hams
across the country working on BPL issues locally," he said. "They have put
in countless hours as volunteers, making a difference when a difference was
really needed."

Hamvention said Hare's modeling of BPL interference "made a convincing
argument" about the threat. "Hare even outfitted his own automobile so he
could travel the Northeast and conclusively document BPL interference," the
announcement added.

Hare said the award would have a place in the ARRL Lab "to honor and thank
all of those who have given their time to protect Amateur Radio."

Technical Excellence Award: David Cameron, VE7LTD

In announcing the recipient of its Technical Excellence Award, Hamvention
cited Cameron's instrumental role in developing IRLP to permit worldwide
radio and repeater linking.

"His work literally transformed FM repeater communication from a local
entity into a worldwide communication network that has been of immense value
in emergencies and has helped unite the world's radio amateurs over the
Internet and radio," the announcement said. "IRLP and its derivatives have
opened up a whole new world of communications in VHF/UHF repeaters with the
power of the Internet."

Dayton Hamvention 2007 takes place Friday through Sunday, May 18-20, at Hara
Arena near Dayton, Ohio. The theme of the 56th Hamvention is "Local Clubs:
The Heart of Ham Radio."

==>HAM RADIO ANTENNA BILLS IN PLAY IN THREE STATES

Lawmakers in three states -- Arizona, Maryland and Oklahoma -- are
considering Amateur Radio antenna bills that would put the essence of the
limited federal pre-emption known as PRB-1
<http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/regulations/PRB-1_Pkg/prb-1.pdf> into each
state's statutes. The Arizona and Maryland bills go a step beyond most PRB-1
legislation. They not only would require that municipal land-use or zoning
regulations "reasonably accommodate" Amateur Radio communication per PRB-1,
spelled out in the FCC's Amateur Radio rules in ?97.15(b), they would extend
the same protections to certain private communities where deed covenants,
conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs) apply.

The Arizona amateur antenna bill, House Bill 2595
<http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/48leg/1r/bills/hb2595p.pdf> calls for
"reasonable heights and dimensions for accommodation of Amateur Radio
station emergency service communications antennae and structures." After
stripping a provision to exempt Amateur Radio licensees from the $25 vanity
license plate fee from the bill, the Arizona House Appropriations Committee
voted out the measure with a "do pass" recommendation. The bill already has
a Senate sponsor.

In Maryland, essentially identical bills are under consideration in both
legislative chambers: House Bill 941
<http://mlis.state.md.us/2007RS/bills/hb/hb0941f.pdf> and Senate Bill 68
<http://mlis.state.md.us/2007RS/bills/sb/sb0068f.pdf>. These measures would
require local zoning authorities to comply with the PRB-1 limited federal
pre-emption calling on municipalities to "reasonably accommodate Amateur
Radio communication." The bills' provisions also would apply to homeowners'
associations (HOAs) that have not already enacted antenna restrictions by
the time the bill becomes law.

Affected HOAs would not be permitted to "restrict or prohibit the design,
placement, screening, height or use of Amateur Radio equipment on the
property of lot owners." The measure would exempt HOAs having antenna
restrictions in place when the bill goes into effect, however.

Among other things, the Maryland bills' preambles cite the value of Amateur
Radio to the public welfare, pointing out its "invaluable emergency radio
communication services in the state and across the United States before,
during and after floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, forest fires, earthquakes,
blizzards, train accidents, chemical spills and other disasters."

In Oklahoma, House Bill 1037
<http://webserver1.lsb.state.ok.us/2007-08bills/HB/HB1037_HFLR.RTF> has been
voted out of committee with a "do pass" recommendation and onto House floor
for a vote. The measure provides that municipal ordinances shall comply with
?97.15(b) by permitting Amateur Radio antennas or antenna support structures
"at a height and dimension sufficient to accommodate Amateur Radio service
communications." The measure already has a sponsor in the Oklahoma Senate.

To date, 23 states have adopted PRB-1 legislation
<http://www.arrl.org/field/regulations/statutes.htm>. PRB-1 does not specify
a minimum height below which local governments may not regulate but does
require reasonable accommodation, but four states -- Alaska, Wyoming,
Virginia and Oregon -- enacted legislation that specifies heights below
which municipalities may not regulate.

==>FORMER ISS CREW MEMBERS ON HAND FOR HAM RADIO CONTACT WITH ISS

Technical problems failed to dampen the enthusiasm of youngsters at Virginia
Run Elementary School in Centreville, Virginia, who spoke March 2 via ham
radio with International Space Station flight engineer Suni Williams,
KD5PLB. The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program
arranged the direct VHF contact. For reasons still being looked into, the
space station's NA1SS and Earth station K4HTA failed to establish solid
communication until more than three minutes into the approximately
ten-minute pass. Nonetheless, not only did Williams answer all the students'
questions but had time to let the youngsters know how much she enjoyed the
opportunity.

"It's a great honor and privilege to be here and be talking to you guys,"
Williams said as the contact drew to a close. "I know you've done a lot of
work and a lot of research to get this contact done. I hope you've learned a
lot."

Food is a favorite topic for students when they speak with ISS crew members.
This contact was no exception. One youngster wanted to know how the ISS crew
members eat in space. Williams said it's not always easy.

"It is a little bit difficult to eat because everything flies around," she
responded. "But luckily it's stuff that's usually stuck together, like some
type of casserole, and we have it in a can so it doesn't get too far away.
Sometimes we have to catch it, though." Williams pointed out that the ISS
crew doesn't have to prepare its meals, just heat them up, if necessary.

Williams told another youngster that the biggest surprise she's had aboard
the ISS was discovering how difficult it is to relax in space and sleep
easily.

"I felt like I needed a bed or something to lay down on, but there's nothing
much to lay down on," Williams said. "We sleep in sleeping bags, and the
sleeping bags are tied to the wall so you don't go anywhere, but I had a
hard time relaxing my neck because I didn't have a pillow and didn't have
that sense of having a pillow or something I was laying down to."

Augmenting the ARISS experience for the Virginia Run pupils, ISS Expedition
4 crew member Carl Walz, KC5TIE, and Expedition 3 crew commander Frank
Culbertson, KD5OPQ, were on hand at the school, located some 20 miles west
of Washington, DC, to discuss their experiences and answer additional
questions. Both took part in ARISS school contacts while they were in space.

Members of the Vienna Wireless Society (VWS) set up the Earth station at the
school, and the club loaned its call sign for the occasion. Reporters from
two newspapers and a Washington, DC, TV station attended the event.

ARISS <http://www.rac.ca/ariss> is an international educational outreach,
with US participation by ARRL, AMSAT and NASA. -- ARRL Virginia PIC Randy
Sly, W4XJ, provided information for this report

==>SEVERE WEATHER PUTS AMATEUR RADIO VOLUNTEERS TO THE TEST

Severe weather that included tornadoes March 1 prompted activation by
Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and SKYWARN volunteers in Alabama,
Georgia and Missouri. Twenty people died in the three states, including
seven in Alabama. A tornado destroyed the high school in Enterprise, and
five students died when the roof collapsed as they took cover inside.
Tornadoes wreaked extensive property damage in the affected communities.

"It was a very busy day for Alabama ARES," said ARRL Alabama Section Manager
Greg Sarratt, W4OZK. "Amateur Radio operators all across the state were busy
March 1 tending to a massive severe weather outbreak in most of the state."
Sarratt says Alabama was under multiple tornado and severe thunderstorm
warnings for a large part of the day.

Amateurs stationed at National Weather Service (NWS) offices, emergency
operations centers (EOCs) and elsewhere used HF and VHF to relay critical
weather information to served agencies, he reported. "The Alabama amateurs
performed as professionals," Sarratt said. "Many hams took off from work to
staff stations."

At week's end, Sarratt told ARRL Headquarters that Enterprise/Coffee County
Emergency Coordinator Jim Garrison, KL0LN, and local amateurs were still at
the Enterprise EOC assisting the local emergency management agency and the
city with recovery efforts.

In Georgia, ARRL Section Traffic Manager Charles Pennington, K4GK, said the
Georgia ARES Net activated during the afternoon of March 1 and continued
into the wee hours of March 2, as a series of severe weather watches and
warnings were posted. "Several tornadoes were reported, scattered mostly
through central and southern Georgia," he said.

"We had 82 stations reported on the statewide HF net. In addition, the
SKYWARN nets were active from 1:45 PM until around midnight, with extensive
coverage in the affected areas." Pennington said several VHF/UHF nets also
were up and running during the event. Georgia ARES stood down March 2 but
remained on standby if needed during recovery operations.

Georgia authorities blamed the storms for at least two deaths after a
tornado struck a hospital in Americus. Another person died and four were
injured when a tornado touched down in Taylor County, near Albany.

In Missouri, Section Traffic Manager Dale Huffington, AE0S, cited "many
reports of activation" March 1 on the 75-meter phone net. "Amateurs in over
half of Missouri's ARES districts reported activations due to the storm," he
said. In Howell County, in south-central Missouri, a tornado was blamed for
the death of a seven-year-old girl. An ARES net activated in Howell County.

In Boone County, in central Missouri, ARES teams activated at the request of
the Joint Communications Information Center. Ten weather spotters -- among
them Missouri Section Emergency Coordinator Don Moore, KM0R -- provided
real-time, ground-level weather observations to supplement NWS radars in
Kansas City and St Louis.

==>FCC LOPS FINE, ADMONISHES AMATEUR RADIO LICENSEE

The FCC has reduced from $11,000 to $2500 the fine it imposed in 2004 on
Daniel Granda, KA6VHC, of Whittier, California. In a Memorandum Opinion and
Order (MO&O) released March 1, the FCC said Granda intentionally interfered
with Amateur Radio communications and failed to respond to FCC
correspondence. Granda petitioned for reconsideration of the $11,000 fine in
2004.

"In his petition, Mr Granda does not dispute our finding that he caused
deliberate interference to Amateur Radio communications nor does he deny his
failure to respond to official Commission correspondence," recounted
Assistant FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief George R. Dillon, who signed the
MO&O. "He does contend, however, that imposition of the full forfeiture
amount would impose a financial hardship on him and his spouse."

The FCC agreed to reduce the fine to $2500 after reviewing Granda's federal
tax returns. "The reduction of the forfeiture amount, however, does not
lessen the severity of the violations cited in this proceeding, specifically
Mr Granda's intentional interference to radio communications," Dillon
cautioned. "For that reason, we will further admonish Mr Granda for his
violations."

Granda's license renewal has been in limbo since 2003, when the FCC's
Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) set aside his renewal application.
As the MO&O noted, the Enforcement Bureau had asked the WTB to "consider
this violation in processing Mr Granda's pending license renewal application
for KA6VHC." Apparently it did. This week, the WTB renewed Granda's license
for just one year.

==>NEXT CIVILIAN SPACE TRAVELER IS AMATEUR RADIO-READY

The next civilian space traveler is Amateur Radio ready. Amateur Radio on
the International Space Station (ARISS) <http://www.rac.ca/ariss> reports
that software pioneer and aviator Charles Simonyi, KE7KDP, plans to talk
with students at three schools during his stay in space. He also may make
casual contacts. Simonyi, 58, is set to head into space April 7 on a Soyuz
"taxi mission" to the ISS. He'll accompany Expedition 15 Russian cosmonauts
Fyodor Yurchikhin, RN3FI, and Oleg Kotov. They'll join US astronaut Sunita
Williams, KD5PLB. As a client of Vienna, Virginia-based Space Adventures Ltd
<http://www.spaceadventures.com>, Simonyi will pay $25 million for the
privilege. He's been undergoing pre-flight training at Star City, Russia.
During his eight-day stay aboard the ISS, he will conduct experiments on
behalf of several international space agencies.

"I am fascinated by the technologies utilized by the American and Russian
space programs," Simonyi said. "As an engineer, I look forward to studying
the different engineering approaches." Simonyi obtained his Technician
ticket in December.

Space Adventures says Simonyi's mission goals are to advance civilian space
travel, assist with space station research and involve youth in the science
of space travel. He established his space flight Web site
<http://www.charlesinspace.com/> to chronicle his training experiences.

A native of Hungary, Simonyi earned a bachelor's degree in engineering and
mathematics from the University of California at Berkeley and a doctorate in
computer science from Stanford University. Over the years, he's been
associated with Xerox and with Microsoft, where he oversaw the teams that
developed the company's Excel, Multiplan, Word and other applications.

After leaving Microsoft in 2002, Simonyi founded Intentional Software
Corporation, a software engineering company. The following year, he founded
the Charles Simonyi Fund for Arts and Sciences to support arts
organizations, science programs and educational institutions.

Simonyi began his cosmonaut training in September. As part of his
multi-faceted training at Star City, he has learned how to use the ARISS
gear aboard the ISS.

Space Adventures organized the flights for the world's first private space
explorers, Dennis Tito, KG6FZX, Mark Shuttleworth, Greg Olsen, KC2ONX, and
Anousheh Ansari. "We wish Charles well and we look forward with great
anticipation to his launch," said Space Adventures President and CEO Eric
Anderson.

==>SOLAR UPDATE

Heliophile Tad "That Lucky Ol' Sun" Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington,
reports: On March 1 Sunspot 944 was pointed straight at Earth. This small
sunspot was followed a few days later by another small one, Sunspot 945.
Both spots seemed to disappear a day or two later, before they would have
rotated off the visible solar disk. Now the sun is blank, and the sunspot
number is zero.

No solar activity is expected for the next few days, so we will probably see
at least several days with a sunspot number of zero.

Geomagnetic conditions are expected to remain quiet, at least until Monday
or Tuesday, March 12-13. The US Air Force predicts a planetary A index for
March 9-15 of 5, 5, 7, 15, 20, 15 and 10. Geophysical Institute Prague
predicts quiet conditions for March 9-10, quiet to unsettled March 11,
active geomagnetic conditions for March 12, unsettled to active March 13,
unsettled March 14 and quiet to unsettled March 15. A recurring solar wind
stream is predicted for Monday, March 12, and it should produce the expected
geomagnetic instability.

Sunspot numbers for March 1 through 7 were 11, 23, 11, 24, 27, 26 and 11,
with a mean of 19. 10.7 cm flux was 74.8, 75.5, 73.3, 72.5, 71.9, 71.9, and
72.9, with a mean of 73.3. Estimated planetary A indices were 11, 5, 2, 3,
8, 18 and 14, with a mean of 8.7. Estimated mid-latitude A indices were 7,
4, 0, 4, 6, 14 and 12, with a mean of 6.7.

For more information concerning radio propagation, visit the ARRL Technical
Information Service Propagation page
<http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html>.

__________________________________

==>IN BRIEF:

* This weekend on the radio: The RSGB 80-Meter Club Championship (Data) is
March 5. The ARS Spartan Sprint and the AGCW YL-CW Party are March 6. JUST
AHEAD: The RSGB Commonwealth Contest, the AGCW QRP Contest, the Oklahoma and
Wisconsin QSO parties, the EA PSK31 Contest, the North American Sprint
(RTTY) and the UBA Spring Contest (CW) are the March 10-11 weekend. The RSGB
80-Meter Club Championship (CW) is March 14. See the ARRL Contest Branch
page <http://www.arrl.org/contests/> and the WA7BNM Contest Calendar
<http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for more info.

* ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration:
Registration remains open through Sunday, March 25, for these ARRL
Certification and Continuing Education (CCE) online courses beginning on
Friday, April 6: The ARRL Ham Radio License Course (EC-010), Amateur Radio
Emergency Communications Level 1 (EC-001), Radio Frequency Interference
(EC-006), Antenna Design and Construction (EC-009), Analog Electronics
(EC-012) and Digital Electronics (EC-013). These courses will also open for
registration Friday, March 23, for classes beginning Friday, May 4. To learn
more, visit the CCE Course Listing page
<http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html> or contact the CCE Department
<cce@arrl.org>.

* ARRL releases statement on Red Cross background check policy: ARRL -- the
National Association for Amateur Radio, has released a position statement
<http://www.arrl.org/announce/ARRL-ARC-bg-check.html>
<http://www.arrl.org/announce/ARRL-ARC-bg-check.html> regarding the
implementation of a background check procedure by the American Red Cross.
The statement was released to address ARRL members' concerns prior to a
March 31, 2007, compliance deadline the Red Cross has set. The application
of the background check policy to Amateur Radio operators providing
communication services to the Red Cross -- either as Red Cross volunteers or
as Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) members -- is the subject of
continuing discussions between the ARRL and the Red Cross. Therefore, the
position statement is subject to change. The ARRL will announce any such
revisions and updates on its Web site.

* Advisory to Amateur Radio license/upgrade applicants: Use your FRN! ARRL
Volunteer Examiner Coordinator (ARRL VEC) urges all Amateur Radio license
and upgrade applicants to use their FCC Registration Number (FRN)
<https://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/coresWeb/publicHome.do>, if they have one, when
completing Form 605, not their Social Security number. The FCC asks
applicants to register via the FCC's COmmission REgistration System (CORES),
to obtain an FRN, and it requires applicants to use their FRNs when filing
Form 605. The FRN uniquely identifies an applicant in all transactions with
the FCC and avoids the need to provide a Social Security number on the
application form. ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, AB1FM, says that if her
department submits license data to the FCC using a Social Security number
when the applicant already has an FRN, the FCC rejects the data because an
FRN already exists. Somma also reminds applicants and Volunteer Examiner
teams to attach any Certificate of Successful Completion of Examination
(CSCE) for element credit to upgrade applications. Using your FRN and
attaching any needed CSCE to your Amateur Radio application in Form 605 will
eliminate delays in obtaining your license or upgrade.

* ARRL 2006 Frequency Measuring Test results now available: The results of
the ARRL's November 15, 2006, Frequency Measuring Test (FMT) now are
available <http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/fmt/2006/2006-fmt-results.html>. Of the
195 participants, 51 determined the frequency of W1AW or WA6ZTY with an
accuracy of less than 1 Hz. Certificates to all participants will be mailed
this week. Thanks to all who took part!

* The SouthWest Ohio DX Association announces 22nd annual DX Dinner: The
SouthWest Ohio DX Association (SWODXA) has announced that tickets now are
available for the 22nd annual DX Dinner held in conjunction Dayton
Hamvention 2007. The dinner will be Friday, May 18, at the Crowne Plaza
Hotel in downtown Dayton. Tickets are $36 per person, payable in US funds to
SWODXA, (no PayPal or credit card payments), c/o Jay Slough, K4ZLE, 8183
Woodward Dr, West Chester, OH 45069. Seating is limited. Details are
available from the SWODXA Web site <http://www.swodxa.com/>.

* 2007 ARRL/TAPR Digital Communications Conference issues call for papers:
Technical papers are solicited for presentation at the 26th annual ARRL/TAPR
Digital Communications Conference (DCC), Friday-Sunday, September 28-30, in
Hartford, Connecticut. Papers will also be published in the Conference
Proceedings. Authors do not need to attend the conference to have their
papers included in the Proceedings. The submission deadline is July 31. The
ARRL/TAPR Digital Communications Conference is an international forum for
technically minded radio amateurs to meet and present new ideas and
techniques. Paper/presentation topic areas include -- but are not limited to
-- software defined radio (SDR), digital voice, digital satellite
communication, digital signal processing (DSP), HF digital modes, adapting
IEEE 802.11 systems for Amateur Radio, Global Positioning System (GPS),
Automatic Position Reporting System (APRS), Linux in Amateur Radio, AX.25
updates and Internet operability with Amateur Radio networks. Submit papers
to Maty Weinberg, KB1EIB, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111 or via
e-mail <maty@arrl.org>. Papers will be published exactly as submitted, and
authors will retain all rights. ARRL will provide additional information on
the 2007 DCC as it becomes available.

* Topbanders' DX Dinner set at Visalia: The Topbanders' DX Dinner held in
conjunction with the 58th annual International DX Convention in Visalia,
California, will take place Friday, April 27, at 6:30 PM in the banquet room
of the Sizzler Steak House, 2121 W Caldwell Ave, Visalia. Attendees will
order from the menu and pay individually, so there is no fee. Those planning
to attend should contact Earl Cunningham, K6SE <k6se@juno.com>, to ensure
adequate seating. The International DX Convention, sponsored by the Northern
California DX Club, will be held April 27-29 at the Holiday Inn Hotel &
Conference Center -- Visalia. There's more information on the convention Web
site <http://www.dxconvention.org/>.

* Australia's WIA applies for 500 kHz amateur allocation: The Wireless
Institute of Australia (WIA) <http://www.wia.org.au> has applied to the
Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) for experimental access
to a small band of frequencies near 500 kHz. Amateur Radio operators in the
United States, the UK, Sweden and Germany have recently been granted
experimental or provisional access to frequencies just above 500 kHz. The
New Zealand Amateur Radio Transmitters also has applied for access to the
band. The WIA requests a temporary/experimental amateur allocation of
505-515 kHz, in line with current medium-frequency allocations available to
radio amateurs and experimenters in Europe and the US.

===========================================================
The ARRL Letter is published Fridays, 50 times each year, by the American
Radio Relay League: ARRL--the National Association For Amateur Radio, 225
Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259;
<http://www.arrl.org>. Joel Harrison, W5ZN, President.

The ARRL Letter offers a weekly e-mail digest of essential and general news
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From dick at twohams.com  Fri Mar 16 15:54:15 2007
From: dick at twohams.com (Dick Flanagan)
Date: Fri Mar 16 15:56:22 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARLD011 DX news
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070316135349.03a668f8@mail.greatbasin.net>

SB DX @ ARL $ARLD011
ARLD011 DX news

ZCZC AE11
QST de W1AW
DX Bulletin 11  ARLD011
 From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  March 15, 2007
To all radio amateurs

SB DX ARL ARLD011
ARLD011 DX news

This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by
EI7CC, NC1L, SP9MRO, the OPDX Bulletin, DXNL, 425 DX News, The Daily
DX, Contest Corral from QST and the ARRL Contest Calendar and WA7BNM
web sites.  Thanks to all.

SWAZILAND, 3DA.  In celebration of the 75th Jubilee of the Irish
Radio Transmitters Society, a large group of operators are QRV as
3DA0PM, 3DA0PB, 3DA0AM, 3DA0DG, 3DA0RH, 3DA0GV and 3DA0GI until
March 25. Activity is on all bands, with particular attention to the
newer bands, digital modes and low bands.  Some 6 and 2 meter and
EME activity is possible.  QSL all calls via EI7CC.

AZERBAIJAN, 4K.  Axel, DL6KVA is QRV as 4K0CW until March 21.
Activity is on all bands using CW.  He will also be active in the
Russian DX contest.  QSL to home call.

TOGO, 5V.  Elvira is QRV as 5V7SE ands has been active on 20 meters
using RTTY around 2000 and 0000z.  QSL via IK3GES.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CON_GO, 9Q.  Philippe will be QRV as 9Q1TB
from Kinshasa beginning March 17.  QSL direct via SM5DQC.

CHINA, BY.  Operators BD1DRJ/7, BA4ALC/7, BD7KLO/7, BG6IQD/7 and
BG7JAC/7 are QRV from Weizhou Island, IOTA AS-139, until March 19.
Activity is on all bands using CW and SSB.  QSL to home calls.

SCOTLAND, GM.  Dennis, M0LSB is QRV as MM0LSB/p from the islands
Islay, Jura and Gigha, IOTA EU-008, until April 2.  Activity is on 8
to 10 meters using SSB.  QSL to home call.

GUERNSEY, GU.  Kevan, 2E0WMG will be QRV as 2U0WMG from March 19 to
23.  Activity will be on 80 metes to 70 cm, using mainly SSB.  QSL
to home call.

LIECHTENSTEIN, HB0.  Operators 9A2SX, 9A3AXX, 9A6XX and 9A8MM are
QRV as HB0/homecalls until March 19.  Activity is on 80 to 10 meters
using CW and SSB.  This includes an entry in the Russian DX contest
as HB0/9A8MM.  QSL via bureau.

HAITI, HH.  Jan, K4QD will be QRV as HH4/K4QD from the NW Haiti
Christian Mission from March 19 to 30.  Activity will be on 80 to 10
meters using CW and SSB.  QSL to home call.

VATICAN, HV.  HV0A has been QRV using CW and RTTY on 160 and 80
meters between 0300 to 0630z.  He has also been active on 20 meters
between 1400 to 1700z.  QSL via IK0FVC.

PERU, OA.  IZ7ATN is QRV as OA6/IZ7ATN/p from IOTA SA-098 from March
20 to 22.  Activity is mostly on 20 and 17 meters, and possibly 40,
15 and 10 meters, using SSB.  QSL to home call.

ALAND ISLANDS, OH0.  Toni, OH2UA and Martti, OH2BH will be QRV as
OH0B from Brando Island.  Activity will be on 30, 17 and 12 meters.
They will also participate in the Russian DX contest as well.  QSL
via OH2BH.

CENTRAL AFRICA, TL.  Christian, F5NRY is QRV as TL8QC until he end
of April.  He is usually active on 30 and 17 meters using CW around
1400 to 1600z.  QSL to home call.

ANTIGUA. V2.  W4OWY and W9OP will be QRV as V25WY and V25OP,
respectively, from March 19 to 25.  Activity will be on 160 to 10
meters using CW, SSB and RTTY.  QSL to home calls.

TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS, VP5.  Dave, W5CW will be QRV as VP5/W5CW
from March 20 to 28.  Activity will be on 160 to 6 meters using CW
and SSB.  This includes be active as VP75V in the upcoming CQ WPX
contest.  QSL to home call.

INDONESIA, YB.  Operators YB3MM/9 and YC3DXC/9 are QRV from
Menjangan Island, IOTA OC-022.  Activity is on 20 and 15 meters
using SSB.  Their length of stay is unknown.  QSL YB3MM/9 via IZ8CCW
and YC3DXC/9 via the bureau.

NEW ZEALAND, ZL.  In celebration of the 75th anniversary of the
NZART Branch 20 Manawatu Amateur Radio Society, special event
station ZL75KO is active until the end of May.  QSL via bureau.

THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO.  The 10-10 International Mobile Contest,
CLARA and Family HF Contest, NCCC CW Sprint Ladder, SARL VHF/UHF
Contest, BARTG Spring RTTY Contest, Russian DX Contest, AGCW VHF/UHF
Contest, Virginia QSO Party, UBA Spring 6-Meter Contest, Kuwait
15-Meter Contest and the ARCI HF Grid Square CW Sprint will
certainly keep contesters busy this weekend.  The Run for the Bacon
QRP Contest and Bucharest Contest are scheduled for March 19.
Please see March QST, pages 90 and 91, and the ARRL and WA7BNM
contest web sites for details.
NNNN
/EX 


From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Mar 16 16:15:54 2007
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri Mar 16 16:18:00 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARLP012 Propagation de K7RA
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070316141544.00374728@mail.greatbasin.net>

SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP012
ARLP012 Propagation de K7RA

ZCZC AP12
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 12  ARLP012
 From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA  March 16, 2007
To all radio amateurs

SB PROP ARL ARLP012
ARLP012 Propagation de K7RA

We just saw more 0-sunspot days, followed by the brief emergence of
small spots, then more days with no sunspots. The average daily
sunspot number for the past week was down nearly 70% from the
previous week, to 5.9.

A solar wind hit earth on Tuesday, March 13, and a rise in
geomagnetic indices was the result, with the planetary A index
rising to 26. The A index measured at Fairbanks, Alaska, the college
A index, rose to 50. The next period of higher geomagnetic activity
is predicted for March 27, then April 9 and April 23.

Last week's note about 11 being the smallest sunspot number greater
than 0 brought several puzzled responses, including one from Darrell
Bellerive, VA7TO of Grand Forks, British Columbia, who wondered if
there were other gaps in the range of possible sunspot numbers.

Barry Pfeil, K6RM of Mountain View, California wrote, "I thought the
sunspot number was LITERALLY the number of sunspots and could be
anything from 1 on up."

One might think so, but the number is actually somewhat subjective,
and factors in the number of groups of sunspots. The National
Geophysical Data Center has a link at,
http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/stp/SOLAR/SSN/ssn.html which explains the
method. The number of groups of spots is counted, and that number is
multiplied by 10, then added to the number of individual sunspots.
So if you saw 7 sunspots in 4 groups, the sunspot number would be
47. One spot would be 11, two spots in one group would be 12, etc.
By subjective, I mean that someone must look at the spots, decide
what constitutes a group, and count them.

Note that the Vernal Equinox is coming up in a few days. At 0007z on
March 21 (which is Tuesday, March 20 in North America) the sunlight
hitting the northern and southern hemispheres will be equal. All
over the world, the sun will rise in the morning, and then set 12
hours later. Sunrise in Seattle at 47.67 degrees north latitude will
be 1416z, sunset at 0216z. In Matto-Grosso Brazil at 15 degrees
south latitude, sunrise at 0943z, sunset at 2143z. In England at
52.2 degrees north latitude, 1 degree west longitude, sunrise at
0611z, sunset at 1811z. With an equal measure of sunlight striking
both hemispheres, the equinox is a good time for HF propagation,
with the possible exception that we have very low sunspot activity.

A correction from last week: Dave Green, VE3TLY was wrongly
identified as VE5TLY.

If you would like to make a comment or have a tip for our readers,
email the author at, k7ra@arrl.net.

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service at,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html. For a detailed
explanation of the numbers used in this bulletin see,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/k9la-prop.html. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at, http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/prop/. Monthly
propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve overseas
locations are at, http://www.arrl.org/qst/propcharts/.

Sunspot numbers for March 8 through 14 were 0, 0, 16, 14, 11, 0 and
0 with a mean of 5.9. 10.7 cm flux was 72.5, 71.6, 71.2, 71, 71.2,
71.4, and 70, with a mean of 71.3. Estimated planetary A indices
were 4, 2, 4, 8, 9, 26 and 8 with a mean of 8.7. Estimated
mid-latitude A indices were 3, 1, 2, 6, 7, 18 and 9, with a mean of
6.6.
NNNN
/EX


From kd7jmr at msn.com  Fri Mar 16 18:14:38 2007
From: kd7jmr at msn.com (Dick Young)
Date: Fri Mar 16 18:16:48 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARES/RACES
Message-ID: <BAY110-DAV5528C50A6A11CE243F02488710@phx.gbl>

The Douglas County ARES/RACES Team invites your participation and involvement.

DCART meets this coming Monday (the 19th) at Firestation #2, located at 1225 Douglas Avenue.

Emergency Communications.  It counts!  So do you....come join us.

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Mar 23 15:04:32 2007
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri Mar 23 15:07:21 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARLD012 DX news
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070323130422.0458bf00@mail.greatbasin.net>

SB DX @ ARL $ARLD012
ARLD012 DX news

ZCZC AE12
QST de W1AW
DX Bulletin 12  ARLD012
 From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  March 22, 2007
To all radio amateurs

SB DX ARL ARLD012
ARLD012 DX news

This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by
CN8NK, EI7CC, N1RL, NC1L, the OPDX Bulletin, DXNL, 425 DX News, The
Daily DX, Contest Corral from QST and the ARRL Contest Calendar and
WA7BNM web sites.  Thanks to all.

SWAZILAND, 3DA.  Members of the Irish Radio Transmitters Society
will be QRV as 3DA0EI in the CQ WPX SSB contest.  QSL all calls via
EI7CC.

GUINEA, 3X.  Serge, UA6JR will be QRV as 3XM6JR in the CQ WPX SSB
contest.  QSL to home call.

GEORGIA, 4L.  Mamuka, 4L2M and Gia, 4L4WW will be QRV in the CQ WPX
SSB contest as Single Op/Single band entries on 20 and 40 meters,
respectively.  QSL 4L2M direct and 4L4WW via EA7FTR.

BARBADOS, 8P.  Tom, W2SC will be QRV as 8P1A in the CQ WPX SSB
contest as a Single Op/All Band entry.  QSL via NN1N.

KUWAIT, 9K.  9K2HN, 9K2RR and 9K2YM will be QRV as 9K2HN in the CQ
WPX SSB contest as a Multi/Op entry.

EAST MALAYSIA, 9M6.  Peter, DJ8XW and Heinze, DL2QT are QRV as
9M6AAC until March 30.  This includes an entry in the CQ WPX SSB
contest.  QSL this operation via DL2QT.

THE GAMBIA, C5.  Darren, G0TSM is QRV as C52T until March 27.
Activity is on 160 to 6 meters using CW and SSB.  This includes an
entry in the CQ WPX SSB contest.  QSL to home call.

MOROCCO, CN.  M'hamed, CN8NK will be QRV as 5C8A in the CQ WPX SSB
contest.  QSL via EA5XX.  In addition, a group of operators will be
QRV as 5D5A in the CQ WPX SSB contest as either a Multi/Single or
Multi-2 entry.  QSL via I2WIJ.

COMOROS, D6.  Andy, UA9XC is QRV as D69XC.  His length of stay is
unknown.  QSL to home call.  In addition, Vlad, UA4WHX is QRV as
D60VB and has been active on 30 meters around 0015z.  His length of
stay is unknown.  QSL to home call.

PHILIPPINES, DU.  A group of Philippine operators will be QRV as
4E1P in the CQ WPX SSB contest as a Multi/Multi entry.  QSL via
bureau.

SPAIN, EA.  A group of operators will be QRV as AO1O in the CQ WPX
SSB contest as a Multi-type entry.  QSL via EA1EA.  In addition,
look for AO3A to be a Multi Op entry in the CQ WPX SSB contest.

CANARY ISLANDS, EA8.  Members of the "After Fifty Team" will be QRV
as AN8A in the CQ WPX SSB contest as a Multi-2 entry.  QSL via
EA8AH.

TAJIKISTAN, EY.  Nodir, EY8MM will be QRV as EY3M in the CQ WPX SSB
contest as a Single Op/Single Band entry on 20 meters.  QSL direct.

MARTINIQUE, FM.  Al, F5VHJ will be QRV as TO5A as a Single Op/All
Band/High Power entry in the CQ WPX SSB contest.  QSL to home call.

DOMINICA, J7.  WB2NVR and WA2VQW are QRV as J79RS and J79VQ,
respectively, until March 27.  They will be active as J75RZ in the
CQ WPX SSB contest.  QSL J75RZ via W2RZS.

JAPAN, JA.  In memory of Dr. Yagi, a group of operators are QRV
using special call 8J3YAGI until the end of March.  They will be a
Multi/Multi entry in the CQ WPX SSB contest.  QSL via JA3YKC.  In
addition, in celebration of 100 years of scouting, members of the
Nippon Boy Scout ARC will be QRV as 8J1S in the CQ WPX SSB contest
as a Multi/Multi entry.  QSL via bureau.

HAWAII, KH6,  Matsuda, JM3PIT is QRV as KH6/JM3PIT until March 25
from Oahu, IOTA OC-019.  This includes an entry in the CQ WPX SSB
contest.  QSL to home call.

LEBANON, OD.  Salvo, IV3YIM is QRV as OD5/IV3YIM until April 30.  He
is usually active on 40 meters SSB around 1900z.  QSL to home call.

ARUBA, P4.  John, W2GD will be QRV as P40W as a Single Op/All
Band/High Power entry in the CQ WPX SSB contest.  Before and after
the contest he will be active using CW.  QSL via N2MM

CHAD, TT.  Hans is QRV as TT8HA and has been active on 15 meters SSB
between 1230 and 1430z.

MEXICO, XE.  Ramon, XE1KK will be QRV with the FMRE's 75th
anniversary call 6F75A in the CQ WPX SSB contest as a Single Op/All
Band entry.  QSL this call direct via EA5KB.

INDONESIA, YB.  A group of Indonesian operators will be QRV as
YE1ZAT in the CQ WPX SSB contest as a Multi/Multi entry.

MONTENEGRO, YU.  Look for YT6A and 4O3B to be QRV on 20 meters and
80 meters, respectively, in the CQ WPX SSB contest.  QSL via
operators' instructions.  In addition, Dragan, YT6Y will be QRV in
the CQ WPX SSB contest as a Single Op/Single Band entry on 160
meters.  QSL to home call.

KERMADEC ISLANDS, ZL8.  Jacky, F2CW and Aki, JA4EKO are QRV as ZM8CW
and ZL8GO, respectively, from Raoul Island, IOTA OC-039, until March
27 while on work assignment here.  QSL both calls via ZL1AMO.

THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO.  The CQ World Wide WPX SSB Contest, NCCC
CW Sprint Ladder, SKCC Weekend Sprint and the UBA Spring 2-Meter
Contest will certainly keep contesters busy this weekend.  Please
see March QST, page 91, and the ARRL and WA7BNM contest web sites
for details.
NNNN
/EX


From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Mar 23 15:36:55 2007
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri Mar 23 15:39:44 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARLP013 Propagation de K7RA
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070323133643.0456d2d8@mail.greatbasin.net>

SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP013
ARLP013 Propagation de K7RA

ZCZC AP13
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 13  ARLP013
 From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA  March 23, 2007
To all radio amateurs

SB PROP ARL ARLP013
ARLP013 Propagation de K7RA

For the past ten days we've observed no sunspots at all. Periods
like this, or longer, are expected at the bottom of the sunspot
cycle. As mentioned in a recent bulletin, the latest projection for
smoothed sunspot numbers from NOAA Space Environment Center has the
solar minimum at February through April 2007, with a smoothed
sunspot number of 11. You can see the table on page 10 of the
Preliminary Report and Forecast at, http://tinyurl.com/yvw2ke.
Another way to look at it is that the minimum is projected between
December 2006 and July 2007, with a smoothed sunspot number of 12 or
lower.

Randy Crews, W7TJ notes that the graph at http://www.dxlc.com/solar
tells the story on recent trends.

But reports still arrive weekly of operators working long distance,
even at the bottom of the cycle. Mike Carter, K8CN of Durham, New
Hampshire says he runs 50 watts CW into a wire 60 feet long and 20
feet at its highest. He's worked a lot of South Pacific DX on 40
meters from 1100-1200z, and Europe, Africa and the Caribbean on 30
meters around 2100-2300z.

The lower part of the HF spectrum is a good place to operate at the
bottom of the sunspot cycle. Unlike 10 or 15 meters, 160 and 80
meters won't be bothered by a low MUF (Maximum Usable Frequency), a
consequence of the lack of sunspots. With less solar activity comes
less problems with geomagnetic disturbances, which can be frequent
toward the top of the cycle.

Wednesday night about an hour after local sunset I operated 60
meters from my car, using one of those inexpensive popular
single-band mobile whips mounted on the trunk. This antenna can't be
very efficient, as the length is only about .045 wavelength. 60
meters is an unusual channelized band, with just 5 channels, the top
at just above 5.4 MHz. Upper-sideband SSB is the only permitted
mode, with transmit power limited to 50 watts ERP. The atmospheric
noise was high, and the static crashes probably from far-away
thunderstorms.

I made contact with Frank Miller, K9HMB of Harvard, Illinois, nearly
1700 miles to the east of me, and was surprised to receive an S9
signal report. Later, a glance at his antennas at
http://www.k9ns.com told me what kind of station was receiving K7RA
so strongly. See if you can find the photo of a large commercial
crane "adding a third beam to the stack."

You can see more info on operating in the 60 meter band on the ARRL
web site at,
http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/regulations/faq-60.html.

Dramatic solar images from the Japanese Hinode spacecraft prompted
numerous emails this week. The messages referred to a NASA article
at http://tinyurl.com/2p5ksk and a New Scientist article at,
http://tinyurl.com/ypzhof. Spaceweather.com has a movie from the
spacecraft at http://tinyurl.com/ysjrl4 or for today you can see it
at, http://www.spaceweather.com. Clicking on the movie URL should
launch a media player on your personal computer. I found the movie
better on the second viewing, because all of the content had been
buffered and the motion was smooth.

This weekend is the CQ World Wide WPX SSB Contest. There probably
won't be any sunspots, although a few are on the way. The sunspot
number will probably be 0 or 11. The higher frequencies won't be
fantastic, but geomagnetic conditions are expected to be stable and
quiet. The U.S. Air Force predicts a planetary A index for March
23-29 at 5, 5, 10, 15, 20, 10 and 5. Geophysical Institute Prague
says that March 23 should be quiet to unsettled, March 24-25
unsettled, March 26-27 unsettled to active, March 28 unsettled, and
March 29 quiet.

If you would like to make a comment or have a tip for our readers,
email the author at, k7ra@arrl.net.

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service at,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html. For a detailed
explanation of the numbers used in this bulletin see,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/k9la-prop.html. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at, http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/prop/.
Monthly propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve
overseas locations are at, http://www.arrl.org/qst/propcharts/.

Sunspot numbers for March 15 through 21 were 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 and 0
with a mean of 0. 10.7 cm flux was 69.2, 68.7, 69.3, 70.5, 70.1,
72.6, and 72.8, with a mean of 70.5. Estimated planetary A indices
were 8, 10, 8, 3, 2, 2 and 2 with a mean of 5. Estimated
mid-latitude A indices were 5, 11, 8, 1, 1, 1 and 1, with a mean of
4.
NNNN
/EX


From letter-dlvy at arrl.org  Fri Mar 23 18:32:42 2007
From: letter-dlvy at arrl.org (ARRL Letter Mailing List)
Date: Fri Mar 23 18:35:46 2007
Subject: [CVRC] The ARRL Letter, Vol 26, No 12 (Mar 23, 2007)
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070323162646.0468ca30@mail.greatbasin.net>

***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 26, No. 12
March 23, 2007
***************

IN THIS EDITION:

* +League proposes alternate approach to "regulation by bandwidth"
* +Some Technician licensees remain unclear about new privileges
* +ARRL Education and Technology Program continues to grow
* +Donations urged to help expand ham radio's presence in space
* +500-kHz experiment offers early verification of band's EmComm value
*  Solar Update
*  IN BRIEF:
      This weekend on the radio
      ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration
     +Ham radio volunteers locate missing man
     +CubeSat launch scheduled
     +FCC fines shop for selling non-certified CBs as ham gear
      DXCC Honor Roll listings due!
      Visalia programs announced

+Available on ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>

===========================================================
==>Delivery problems: First see FAQ
<http://www.arrl.org/members-only/faq.html#nodelivery>, then e-mail
<letter-dlvy@arrl.org>
==>Editorial questions or comments only: Rick Lindquist, N1RL,
<n1rl@arrl.org>
===========================================================

==>ARRL OFFERS ALTERNATE APPROACH TO "REGULATION BY BANDWIDTH"

In the wake of recent changes in the Part 97 Amateur Radio rules, the ARRL
has revised its ?regulation by bandwidth? proposals to match the new
reality, avoid some unintended consequences and temper some of the
controversy the original petition had aroused. In a November 2005 Petition
for Rule Making (RM-11306
<http://www.arrl.org/announce/regulatory/rm-11306/RM-11306-asFiled.pdf> )
<http://www.arrl.org/announce/regulatory/rm-11306/RM-11306-asFiled.pdf>, the
League asked the FCC to establish a regulatory regime that would segment
bands by necessary bandwidths ranging from 200 Hz to 100 kHz rather than by
emission mode. The ARRL now is urging the FCC to adopt a "subset? of the
rules <http://www.arrl.org/announce/regulatory/rm-11306/appendixA.html>
<http://www.arrl.org/announce/regulatory/rm-11306/appendixA.html> contained
in its original petition that largely affects only the amateur bands at 28
MHz and above.

?Because the proposals affecting the bands above 28 MHz had not aroused much
controversy, they were retained in the shortened list,? ARRL CEO David
Sumner, K1ZZ, explained this week. ?Regulation by bandwidth rather than by
mode of emission remains controversial below 28 MHz because of its perceived
potential impact on established operating patterns, so these proposals were
removed from the list with one narrow exception.?

That exception addresses the fact that current rules impose no effective
bandwidth limit on HF digital operation. ?Digital emissions using multiple
carriers, such as OFDM [orthogonal frequency division multiplexing], can be
designed for any bandwidth while staying within the existing rules,? Sumner
points out, ?so, the subset of proposed rule changes includes a bandwidth
limit of 3 kHz on RTTY and data emissions below 28 MHz.?

The proposed 3 kHz RTTY/data bandwidth limit aims to avoid the possibility
existing under the present rules that a single digital station could
monopolize large MF and HF band segments. In an Erratum this week the ARRL
also asked the FCC to retain the existing 500 Hz bandwidth limit that
applies to certain automatically controlled RTTY/data stations under
?97.221.

The ARRL proposal would amend the definition of ?bandwidth? in ?97.3(a)(8)
to read: ?For a given class of emission, the width of the frequency band
which is sufficient to ensure the transmission of information at the rate
and with the quality required under specified conditions.? The rule
references the definition of ?necessary bandwidth? appearing in Parts 2 and
97 of the FCC rules.

If the FCC adopts the League?s revised proposals, the 10, 6 and 2 meter
amateur bands would be segmented into subbands allowing maximum emission
bandwidths of 200 Hz, 500 Hz, 3.0 kHz (with an exception for
double-sideband, full-carrier AM phone), 16 kHz or 100 kHz. Above 222 MHz,
the entire emission must be within the allocated Amateur Radio band to
comply with ?97.307(d).

Sumner concedes that the subset of proposed rule changes in RM-11306 would
provide less protection to CW, RTTY and other narrowband modes than the
League?s original proposals afforded, but not less than the existing rules
provide. ?In fact, protection against interference from wideband digital
modes would be increased, not decreased, even by adoption of the subset,? he
contended.

Some confusion arose because of an inadvertent omission in the initial
notice of a meeting on this subject between ARRL officials and FCC staff.
This week's Erratum addressed that issue.

Additional consternation followed in the wake of a widely circulated, but
erroneous, comment alleging "the complete absence of CW as a mode in the
table of HF modes" the ARRL submitted. The ARRL has proposed no change to
?97.305(a) of the rules, which authorizes CW on all amateur frequencies
except on 60 meters.

The League has petitioned the FCC to permit CW and other modes on 60 meters,
in addition to the presently permitted upper-sideband SSB.

After studying the topic several years, the ARRL Board of Directors
continues to support the principles of regulation by bandwidth contained in
the original RM-11306 petition.

?Regulation by bandwidth provides a better regulatory framework, not only
for the introduction of future digital emissions but for the protection of
traditional narrowband modes as well,? Sumner asserted this week. He
expressed the hope that the subset of RM-11306 modifications offers an
alternative that ?will make it easier for the FCC to move at least part of
the way in that direction.?

==>KNOW YOUR PRIVILEGES! MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUND REGARDING TECH HF PRIVILEGES

Some Technician licensees who gained new privileges February 23 remain
unaware or uninformed as to what they may and may not do on the HF bands,
says ARRL Regulatory Information Specialist Dan Henderson, N1ND. In addition
to all Amateur Radio operating privileges above 50 MHz, Technicians who
never passed a Morse code test now have CW privileges on certain segments of
80, 40 and 15 meters plus CW, RTTY, data and SSB privileges on certain
segments of 10 meters. And that's it. "Know your privileges
<http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/regulations/bands.html>," Henderson
advises all Amateur Radio licensees. He says some Technicians apparently
believe their new HF phone privileges go far beyond what they really have.

"Technicians have no phone privileges on any HF band other than 10 meters,
period!" Henderson emphasizes. "That's the bottom line. If you want to
operate phone on the other HF bands, you'll have to upgrade to General or
Amateur Extra class."

A lot of Technician licensees appear to have done just that, according to
statistics compiled by Joe Speroni, AH0A
<http://ah0a.org/FCC/Licenses.html>. So far in March, the number of General
class licensees is up by more than 2700 over the February figure to 134,173,
after hitting a 5-year low of just under 131,000 in January. The number of
Technicians dropped by 4655 in the same period to 318,838. Speroni notes,
however, that his mid-month figures tend to underestimate actual totals.

Most Technician license holders face a learning curve to take advantage of
their new CW privileges on HF, but they no longer have to pass a Morse code
examination. Technicians also may use their new HF privileges without having
to apply for them first. No other license class automatically acquired
additional privileges February 23. The "omnibus" rule changes effective last
December 15 did not give Technician licensees without Morse code credit any
additional privileges either.

Henderson further warns new Techs not to extrapolate additional phone
privileges by misconstruing the FCC Part 97 rules to mean something they
don't.

"Calls I've been getting lately indicate that some misinformed individuals
believe Technicians may operate 'digital voice' on 80, 40 and 15, where they
have only CW privileges," he says. "Not true. Digital voice is really
digitized voice, and it's not permitted in non-phone band segments."

Henderson reiterates that Technicians do not have FM voice privileges on 10
meters -- or on any other HF band, for that matter.

The HF privileges all Technicians now have are equivalent to those that
Novice licensees enjoy, Henderson notes. "This also means the 200 W maximum
power limit still applies, regardless of where you operate in the HF bands,"
he says. Technicians may operate at up to the legal limit on VHF and UHF,
however.

On 10 meters, Technician and Novice licensees have CW, RTTY and data
privileges from 28.000 to 28.300 MHz, and CW and SSB privileges from 28.300
to 28.500 MHz. "We're sorry that the sunspots aren't favoring 10 meters at
this point in the sunspot cycle, but they will in a few years," Henderson
allowed.

In addition, Technicians and Novices have CW -- and only CW -- privileges on
from 3.525 to 3.600 MHz on 80 meters, from 7.025 to 7.125 MHz on 40 meters
and 21.025 to 21.200 MHz on 15 meters.

Henderson believes at least some of the confusion may have originated with a
few brand-new or inexperienced Technician licensees who heard that the FCC
deleted the Morse code requirement to obtain an Amateur Radio license, but
paid little attention to the fine print.

"And we all know the devil's in the details," Henderson says. "Remember, the
FCC requires you to know where you may and may not operate and with what
modes. Stick to the privileges your license allows or risk hearing from the
FCC."

==>ARRL EDUCATION AND TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM EXPANDS ITS REACH

The ARRL Education and Technology Program (ETP) continues to expand and
evolve. Conceived and put into motion in 2000 as "The Big Project" by
then-ARRL President (now President Emeritus) Jim Haynie, W5JBP, the ETP
exposes youngsters to Amateur Radio and electronics in their schools. The
program is funded solely through donor dollars. It not only offers a
comprehensive curriculum on wireless technology, it sponsors free Teachers
Institutes (TIs) <http://www.arrl.org/FandES/tbp/ti.html> to get educators
up to speed. Some of the latest schools to come aboard only recently
received their ham radio stations and are putting their programs into gear.
ETP Coordinator Mark Spencer, WA8SME, says the program now boasts 224
participating schools and colleges, public and private.

"I expect that number to reach above 250 after the May round of schools and
this summer's TIs," Spencer said. "I am constantly reviewing the program and
making adjustments in an attempt to make the program more effective." He
says that's especially true in an era of standardized achievement tests to
address states' educational accountability requirements.

Spencer says the educational standards he's been studying not only have
validated what the program has been doing over the past few years, but have
given him some new vocabulary as well as ways to show educators how the
program's goals address the standards.

"This has resulted mainly in changes to the TI content," Spencer explains.
"In future TIs, I will increase emphasis on space and on radio
direction-finding -- fox hunting." While he's abandoned providing "activity
circuit boards" as kits to Teachers Institute attendees, he will be adding a
"Soldering 101" module, where educators will build one of the simpler boards
under his supervision. Teachers attending TIs now will get completed
activity boards instead of kits, plus 3 units of graduate-level credit
through Fresno Pacific University.

By inspiring enthusiasm in participating educators, the TIs have become one
route for schools to apply for ETP grants. Several lead teachers among the
recent round of ETP participants were TI attendees. Spencer explains that
more educators are looking in depth at space-related activities that can be
used over years of curriculum. "Consequently an increasing number of ETP
grant requests are related to Earth stations to support space
communication," he noted.

Students at many ETP-grant schools have been motivated to become radio
amateurs, and some ETP programs incorporate licensing classes. Becoming an
Amateur Radio operator is not a primary program goal, however. Several
teachers also have obtained their Amateur Radio licenses as a result of
their involvement in the program.

For a school to be considered an ETP participant, it must have received some
level of support from the program -- such as Teachers Institute
participation, activity board kits or equipment grants. Schools awarded ETP
grants may choose from a number of Amateur Radio station packages, each
adjusted to accommodate specific needs -- particularly antenna needs -- if
possible. Progress grants include curriculum and printed materials plus
ancillary components and pieces of equipment to enhance existing programs.
No cash is awarded.

Recent schools' proposals include one to integrate ham radio satellite
activity into the curriculum. A college in Mississippi is hoping to rebuild
its ham radio program after Hurricane Katrina destroyed its ham station. A
third school wants to emphasis emergency communication-related activities as
well as radio direction finding and balloon-borne radio payloads. Others are
looking to Amateur Radio and a school station to support extra-curricular
opportunities. Some progress grant recipients plan to implement "Space in
the Classroom" concepts like the one presented during a Teachers Institute.

For more information about the ARRL Education and Technology Program, visit
the ARRL ETP Web site <http://www.arrl.org/FandES/tbp/> or e-mail Mark
Spencer, WA8SME <mspencer@arrl.org>.

To support the ARRL Education and Technology Program, visit the secure donor
page
<https://www.arrl.org/forms/development/donations/education/education.html>.

==>DONATIONS URGENTLY NEEDED TO GET ISS COLUMBUS MODULE AMATEUR RADIO-READY

More money is needed -- and soon -- to help expand Amateur Radio's presence
in space. The International Space Station's Columbus module, set to launch
later this year, will house an additional Amateur Radio station. Equipment
will include the first digital Amateur Radio TV (DATV) station in space as
well as a ham radio transponder. But funding to finish and install ham radio
antennas on the European Space Agency (ESA)-built laboratory module remains
incomplete. The total project cost is 80,000 Euros (approximately $106,500).
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Vice Chairman
Gaston Bertels, ON4WF, says a payment of 9000 Euros (approximately $12,000)
is due this month. ARISS-Europe remains 4000 Euros (approximately $5330) shy
of that goal, however, and time is short to have it in place.

"The ARISS antennas for Columbus will be finally manufactured in March and
delivered to Kennedy Space Center for integration into the Columbus module,"
Bertels said in a recent appeal to International Amateur Radio Union (IARU)
and AMSAT member-societies and radio amateurs around the globe. "It would be
a pity to stop the process because of a lack of funding, now that we are so
close to the goal." Another 9000 Euros will come due in October.

Donations already have come in from the ARRL Foundation, AMSAT-NA and
AMSAT-UK, among other organizations, as well as from many individual donors.
ARISS Europe contracted with the Institute of Telecommunications and
Acoustics at Poland's Wroclaw University of Technology to fabricate the L
and S-band antennas with financial support from AMSAT-Belgium and the Royal
Belgium Amateur Radio Society (UBA), Belgium's IARU member-society.

ARISS International Secretary-Treasurer Rosalie White, K1STO, says European
hams have devoted several years toward outfitting Columbus for Amateur
Radio. "ESA has supported the project with quite a lot of money and
people-time," she says. Installation of the microwave panel antennas on
Columbus' meteorite debris panels would take place this May at Kennedy Space
Center.

The yet-to-be-built Columbus amateur gear will facilitate operation on new
frequencies that will make it possible for ARISS to establish wideband and
video operations for the first time and allow continuous transponder
operation. At the ARISS International conference last October in San
Francisco, Graham Shirville, G3VZV, speaking on behalf of ARISS-Europe,
outlined plans for a mode L/S ham radio transponder as well as a DATV
downlink on S1 band (2.4 GHz).

"So, future ARISS contacts could have pictures as well as sound," Shirville
told the delegates. ARISS-Europe is looking at a 10 W transmitter and a
signal bandwidth of from 4 to 8 MHz. Since the Columbus module will be some
distance from the other two ARISS stations, parallel operation will be
possible.

Antennas were to have been installed before Columbus came to the US, but
Shirville told last fall's ARISS gathering that ARISS-Europe had "some
fairly major problems" developing the antennas due to extreme launch load
requirements.

AMSAT-Belgium has set up a bank account to receive donations toward
equipping the module with the necessary ham radio antennas. Bertels says
donors within the European Union will not have to pay any additional banking
costs -- beyond the cost of a national money transfer -- if they use the
international banking number (IBAN) and mention the international
identification code (BIC). Reference transfers as "Donation Columbus" to:

AMSAT-Belgium
001-2306592-08
IBAN -- BE63 0012 3065 9208
BIC -- GEBABEBB

PayPal account holders can make a donation
<http://www.ariss-eu.org/columbus.htm> by clicking on the "Donate" button in
the left column. Credit card donations for the Columbus project are also
accepted.

==>ARRL 500 KHZ EXPERIMENT LOGS THOUSANDS OF ACTIVITY HOURS

ARRL 500 kHz Experiment <http://www.500kc.com> Coordinator Fritz Raab, W1FR,
reports that a total of 16 participating stations have been active on the
air since the experiment got under way in late 2006. The FCC Office of
Engineering and Technology granted the WD2XSH experimental license to the
ARRL last September. Raab says the low-frequency investigation has
demonstrated ground-wave communication at distances of 100 miles in New
England, in the Gulf Coast states and in Colorado.

"This might not sound very dramatic, but it is very important, as no current
amateur band has the capability for beyond-line-of-sight communication that
does not depend upon the whims of the ionosphere," Raab told ARRL
Headquarters. In his second quarterly Project Status Report
<http://www.500kc.com/#report2>, Raab noted that during the past three
months, WD2XSH participants have racked up another 2250 hours of operation,
bringing the total to 4629. As of the end of February, the project had
recorded 75 two-way contacts and more than 3100 reception reports via its
Web site.

Raab says most of the records for QSO and reception distances set in the
experiment's first three months have not been broken. "The longest distance
over which a QSO has been maintained is 884 miles -- from New Hampshire to
Tennessee," he notes. WD4XSH/10 (W4DEX operator) completed a crossband (500
kHz/137 kHz) QSO with WD2XNS (W1VD operator ) in Connecticut. Stations have
been using CW or very slow-speed CW (QRSs).

Even daylight contacts have been completed via ground wave. These include a
127-mile path between Massachusetts and Connecticut and an 87-mile path
between Mississippi and Louisiana. "The Mississippi-Louisiana link has
proven reliable multiple times at all times of the day or night," he
commented. Daytime ground wave reception also has been reported over paths
of 25 miles and 150 miles.

"These QSOs and reception reports provide preliminary verification of the
capability for amateurs to use this band for regional emergency
communication that does not depend upon the ionosphere," Raab said.

SM6BHZ in Sweden has been authorized to operate from 505.0 to 505.2 kHz. Two
German experimental stations that had been operating in the vicinity of 400
kHz have shifted to 500 kHz too. "We moved our operations up 200 Hz to
create a 'DX Window' for them," Raab said. "The UK is now issuing special
permits for 501-504 kHz."

Raab says the WD2XSH participants plan to continue their current operating
pattern through the end of May. "We are trying designated QSO nights to
increase the number of contacts," he pointed out. "Given successful
completion of the third quarter, we would like to begin use of
PSK/FSK/MSK31. Since these signals fit within the spectrum of the currently
authorized CW signal, we should be able to use these digital modes by simply
filing notice under Section 5.77 of the FCC rules."

Because a few of the original WD2XSH stations no longer are able to
participate, Raab says he's looking into adding other stations to the list
of those authorized to operate under the experimental license. "At present,
nearly two dozen amateurs have submitted information forms with the hope of
being added to the license," he notes. Criteria for additional participants
include expansion of geographic coverage, expansion of ground wave tests,
narrowband digital-mode capability and an on-going ability to contribute to
the experiment.

The two-year WD2XSH authorization permits experimentation and research
between 505 and 510 kHz using narrowband modes at power levels of up to 20 W
effective radiated power (ERP).

Important WD2XSH Frequencies: CW beacons: 505.300-506.300 kHz; QRSs
operation: 505.250-505.255 kHz, and calling frequency: 507.5 kHz (band
center).

==>SOLAR UPDATE

Sunspot seeker Tad "Who Let the Spots Out?" Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington,
reports: For the past 10 days we've observed no sunspots at all! Periods
like this -- or longer -- are expected at the bottom of the sunspot cycle.
As mentioned in a recent "Solar Update," the latest projection for smoothed
sunspot numbers from the NOAA Space Environment Center puts the solar
minimum at February through April 2007, with a smoothed sunspot number of
11. Another way to look at it is that the minimum is projected between
December 2006 and July 2007, with a smoothed sunspot number of 12 or lower.

The lower part of the HF spectrum is a good place to operate at the bottom
of the sunspot cycle. Unlike 10 or 15 meters, 160 and 80 meters won't be
bothered by a low MUF (Maximum Usable Frequency) -- a consequence of the
lack of sunspots. With less solar activity comes fewer problems with
geomagnetic disturbances, which can be frequent toward the top of the cycle.


For the CQ World Wide WPX Contest (SSB) this weekend, there probably won't
be any sunspots. The higher frequencies won't be fantastic, but geomagnetic
conditions are expected to be stable and quiet. The US Air Force predicts
planetary A index for March 23-29 at 5, 5, 10, 15, 20, 10 and 5. Geophysical
Institute Prague says that March 23 should be quiet to unsettled, March
24-25 unsettled, March 26-27 unsettled to active, March 28 unsettled, and
March 29 quiet.

Sunspot numbers for March 15 through 21 were 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 and 0, with a
mean of 0. The 10.7 cm flux was 69.2, 68.7, 69.3, 70.5, 70.1, 72.6, and
72.8, with a mean of 70.5. Estimated planetary A indices were 8, 10, 8, 3,
2, 2 and 2, with a mean of 5. Estimated mid-latitude A indices were 5, 11,
8, 1, 1, 1 and 1, with a mean of 4.

For more information concerning radio propagation, visit the ARRL Technical
Information Service Propagation page
<http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html>.

__________________________________

==>IN BRIEF:

* This weekend on the radio: The CQ World Wide WPX Contest (SSB), and the
SKCC Weekend Sprint are the weekend of March 24-25. JUST AHEAD: The QCWA
Spring QSO Party is the weekend of March 31-April 1. The RSGB RoPoCo 1 is
April 1. The RSGB 80-Meter Club Championship (CW) is April 2. The ARS
Spartan Sprint is April 3. The YLRL DX-YL to NA-YL Contest (CW) is April
3-5. The SARL 80-Meter QSO Party is April 5. See the ARRL Contest Branch
page <http://www.arrl.org/contests/> and the WA7BNM Contest Calendar
<http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for more info.

* ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration:
Registration remains open through Sunday, April 1, for these for these ARRL
Certification and Continuing Education (CCE) online courses beginning Friday
April 20: Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Level 2 (EC-002), Amateur
Radio Emergency Communications Level 3 (EC-003R2), Antenna Modeling
(EC-004), HF Digital Communications (EC-005), VHF/UHF -- Life Beyond the
Repeater (EC-008), and Radio Frequency Propagation (EC-011). These courses
will also open for registration Friday, March 30, for classes beginning
Friday, May 18. To learn more, visit the CCE Course Listing page
<http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html> or contact the CCE Department
<cce@arrl.org>.

* Ham radio volunteers locate missing man: Amateur Radio Emergency Service
(ARES) volunteers in Stanislaus County, California, were able to locate an
82-year-old man suffering from senile dementia who walked away from a
residential care facility March 14. Police in Modesto organized a search for
the elderly man, and members of the Stanislaus Amateur Radio Association
(SARA) -- an ARRL Special Service Club -- volunteered to help (the club
meets at the Modesto Police Department's Northeast Area Substation). One
volunteer who had helped locate victims of Hurricane Katrina brought along
her search dog. The searchers found the missing man sitting in the driver's
seat of a pick-up truck. Modesto police say that while he appeared
disoriented, he was in good spirits and shook hands with the volunteers who
found him. "We are very thankful for the help our local volunteers provide
us in times like these," said Modesto Police Lt Gary Watts, who headed the
search. "They are all very dedicated, and we couldn't do it without them."
-- Modesto Police Department

* CubeSat launch scheduled: Four CubeSats operating on Amateur Radio
frequencies will be among seven CubeSats set to head into space on a Dnepr
launcher Tuesday, March 27, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
CubeSats carrying Amateur Radio payloads are CalPoly's PolySats CP3 and CP4,
which will transmit 1200 bps FM AFSK (AX.25) on 436.845 MHz and 437.325 MHz,
respectively, under an FCC Part 5 experimental license; University of
Louisiana's CAPE-1, which will transmit 9600 bps FM FSK (AX.25) and CW
telemetry during opposite 30-second intervals on 435.245 MHz using the call
sign K5USL (forward telemetry reports via e-mail <jd.harrist@gmail.com>),
and the Universidad Sergio Arboleda's Libertad-1, which will transmit 1200
bps FM AFSK (AX.25) on 437.405 MHz. CubeSat separation is scheduled to occur
March 27 at 0702 UTC with first acquisition of signal over South Africa at
0708 UTC.

* FCC fines shop for selling non-certified CBs as ham gear: In a Forfeiture
Order <http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-07-881A1.pdf>
released March 2, the FCC has affirmed a $7000 fine it levied on Ben Metzger
of Titusville, Florida, doing business as 1 Stop Communications / 1 Stop CB
Shop, for marketing non-certified Citizens Band transceivers. The FCC's
Tampa Office issued Metzger a Citation in March 2006 for marketing certain
Galaxy and Connex transceivers. Metzger has asserted that the units are
Amateur Radio transceivers, which do not require FCC certification, not CB
transceivers, which do. The FCC says the units are intended for use on CB as
well as on amateur frequencies through a simple modification, and it has
determined that such dual-use transceivers are CB transceivers under its
rules. Metzger told the Commission last May that he'd removed the radios
mentioned in the Citation from his store. In June 2006, the FCC declined to
withdraw the citation on the basis that the transceivers were marketed as
ham gear. Agents from the Tampa FCC office later revisited the shop and were
able to buy a Connex CX 3300HP, which they say Metzger modified to operate
on part of 10 meters as well as on CB and other frequencies (25.615 to
28.305 MHz). Metzger still maintains that the Connex CX 3300HP is a ham
transceiver and that he did not violate any FCC rules, the FCC said.

* DXCC Honor Roll listings due! The deadline for the next ARRL DXCC Honor
Roll listing is looming. All submissions must be postmarked by March 31. The
Honor Roll list will appear in August QST. There are 337 current entities on
the DXCC list, so you must be at 337 for Top of the Honor Roll or within the
numerical top 10 to qualify for the Honor Roll (minimum of 328 entities;
deleted entities do not count toward Honor Roll). Top of Honor Roll and
Honor Roll plaques and lapel pins are available to all past and current
Honor Roll members. Visit the ARRL DXCC Web page for details
<http://www.arrl.org/awards/dxcc/>.

* Visalia programs announced: The 2007 International DX Convention program
will include presentations on the KH8SI, VU7RG, XF4DL, YI9MD and ZL8R
DXpeditions. Other programs on the schedule are: "Audio Reinforcement in
Contesting" by Bob Heil, K9EID, and Chip Margelli, K7JA; "DXing from a City
Lot," by Dean Straw, N6BV; "Ionospheric Propagation Simplified," by Dave
Gomberg, NE5EE; "Why Do We DX?" by Bob Locher, W9KNI; and "Working Your
First 100 Countries," by Rich Moseson, W2VU. The Saturday night banquet will
feature the 4O3T operation from Montenegro. The Sunday breakfast will
include a presentation on the 5A7A DXpedition to Libya. The 58th annual
International DX Convention <http://www.dxconvention.org/> takes place April
27-29 in Visalia, California.

===========================================================
The ARRL Letter is published Fridays, 50 times each year, by the American
Radio Relay League: ARRL--the National Association For Amateur Radio, 225
Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259;
<http://www.arrl.org>. Joel Harrison, W5ZN, President.

The ARRL Letter offers a weekly e-mail digest of essential and general news
of interest to active radio amateurs. Visit the ARRL Web site
<http://www.arrl.org> for the latest Amateur Radio news and news updates.
The ARRL Web site <http://www.arrl.org/> also offers informative features
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Material from The ARRL Letter may be republished or reproduced in whole or
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From dick at twohams.com  Fri Mar 23 20:48:17 2007
From: dick at twohams.com (Dick Flanagan)
Date: Fri Mar 23 20:51:08 2007
Subject: [CVRC] Bob Vallio's Great Adventure!
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070323183002.04527478@mail.greatbasin.net>

Our own ARRL Pacific Division Director Bob Vallio W6RGG will be leading a 
multi-national team to one of the rarest DXCC entities, Scarborough Reef 
(BS7H).  Look for this extraordinary effort to be on the air sometime 
inlate April.

http://www.scarboroughreef.com/

Here is a picture from the 1995 effort to give you an idea just how 
isolated this location is, which is basically a bunch of rocks sticking up 
in the middle of the China Sea.  http://www.iglou.com/n4gn/sr95/sr17.html

As you can imagine, this is a very costly effort.  Check the 
http://www.scarboroughreef.com/ web site for information on how you can help.

Dick
--
Dick Flanagan K7VC NV SM
k7vc@arrl.org


From ai6l at sbcglobal.net  Sat Mar 24 16:14:27 2007
From: ai6l at sbcglobal.net (Jerry T. Dowell)
Date: Sat Mar 24 20:40:43 2007
Subject: [CVRC] For Sale
Message-ID: <000301c76e59$687a51e0$220110ac@DOWELLFAMILY>


FOR SALE:  

Drake L-4B KW amplifier. Excellent condition. This is a nice one!

$550

Pictures available by e-mail.

Respond by e-mail to  ai6l@sbcglobal.net  or phone (775) 841-6284

Jerry  AI6L
Carson City


From kd7jmr at msn.com  Sat Mar 24 21:46:44 2007
From: kd7jmr at msn.com (Dick Young)
Date: Sat Mar 24 20:49:53 2007
Subject: [CVRC] DCART net
Message-ID: <BAY110-DAV315A7201D9B06A94F45DC88680@phx.gbl>

You're invited to join the group on Douglas County ARES net....Monday evening at 6:30PM.

147.24+(PL123).  A half hour of learning, traffic handling and a bit of fun.

Be there!

"Serving the public interest"

From kd7jmr at msn.com  Sun Mar 25 10:35:57 2007
From: kd7jmr at msn.com (Dick Young)
Date: Sun Mar 25 09:39:08 2007
Subject: [CVRC] Douglas County ARES
Message-ID: <BAY110-DAV5EDB116807304C9A39F3188680@phx.gbl>

Error !!

The DCART net Monday night at 6:30PM will be on the 147.270 repeater.

Many thanks to the hundreds of ARES members, associates, interested parties and conscientious fans that caught the error.  Strength is in numbers!

"Serving the public interest"

----------
From dick at twohams.com  Sun Mar 25 14:54:43 2007
From: dick at twohams.com (Dick Flanagan)
Date: Sun Mar 25 14:57:46 2007
Subject: [CVRC] New DXCC Field Card Checker
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070325124217.04563e30@mail.greatbasin.net>

I am pleased to announce that Bruce Wade N7ZA has just qualified as a DXCC 
Field Card Checker.

Bruce can be reached by e-mail at n7za@arrl.net or by telephone at (775) 
972-3387.  Bruce has also offered to check cards for a few hours during 
EMCOMMWEST this year.  Please check the EMCOMMWEST Program or web site at 
http://emcommwest.org for more detailed information when it becomes available.

Information on the DXCC Field Card Checking program can be found at
http://www.arrl.org/awards/dxcc/rules.html#siv

73, Dick
--
Dick Flanagan K7VC NV SM
k7vc@arrl.org


From dick at twohams.com  Sun Mar 25 18:18:08 2007
From: dick at twohams.com (Dick Flanagan)
Date: Sun Mar 25 18:21:14 2007
Subject: [CVRC] High Wind Advisory for Carson City, NV
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070325161734.0456cfc0@mail.greatbasin.net>

High Wind Advisory
340 PM PDT sun Mar 25 2007

...Wind Advisory in effect from 10 am to 8 PM PDT Monday...

The National Weather Service in Reno has issued a Wind Advisory...
which is in effect from 10 am to 8 PM PDT Monday.

Southwest winds will increase Monday morning with windy
conditions throughout the afternoon. Widespread winds of 15 to 25
mph with gusts up to 50 mph are expected with local gusts up to
55 mph in wind prone areas such as Washoe Valley. Winds will
switch to the west and decrease Monday evening behind the cold
front.

A Wind Advisory means that wind gusts of 45 mph are expected.
Winds this strong can make driving difficult...especially for
high profile vehicles. Use extra caution...especially along
Highway 395.

Expires:261200 gmt
VTEC:/O.NEW.KREV.WI.Y.0006.070326T1700Z-070327T0300Z/
--
Dick Flanagan K7VC NV SM
k7vc@arrl.org


From dick at twohams.com  Mon Mar 26 12:04:30 2007
From: dick at twohams.com (Dick Flanagan)
Date: Mon Mar 26 18:53:54 2007
Subject: [CVRC] High Wind Advisory for Carson City, NV
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070326100357.0382a950@mail.greatbasin.net>

High Wind Advisory
316 am PDT Mon Mar 26 2007

...Wind Advisory now in effect from 10 am this morning to 7 PM
PDT this evening...

The Wind Advisory is now in effect from 10 am this morning to
7 PM PDT this evening.

Southwest winds will increase this morning with windy conditions
expected through the afternoon. Widespread winds of 15 to 30 mph
and gusts up to 50 mph are expected. Local gusts up to 60 mph are
possible in the more wind prone areas such as Washoe Valley and
foothills. Local areas of blowing dust will develop east of Reno
which will restrict visibility and make driving hazardous. Winds
will switch to the west and decrease this evening behind the cold
front.

A Wind Advisory means that wind gusts of 45 mph are expected.
Winds this strong can make driving difficult...especially for
high profile vehicles. Use extra caution...especially along
Highway 395.

Expires:270015 gmt
VTEC:/O.EXT.KREV.WI.Y.0006.070326T1700Z-070327T0200Z/
--
Dick Flanagan K7VC NV SM
k7vc@arrl.org


From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Mar 29 18:06:10 2007
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu Mar 29 18:09:23 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARLD013 DX news
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070329160601.037eafa0@mail.greatbasin.net>

SB DX @ ARL $ARLD013
ARLD013 DX news

ZCZC AE13
QST de W1AW
DX Bulletin 13  ARLD013
 From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  March 29, 2007
To all radio amateurs

SB DX ARL ARLD013
ARLD013 DX news

This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by
DL6UAA, NC1L, the OPDX Bulletin, DXNL, 425 DX News, The Daily DX,
Contest Corral from QST and the ARRL Contest Calendar and WA7BNM web
sites.  Thanks to all.

MAURITIUS, 3B8.  Mart, DL6UAA will be QRV as 3B8MM beginning April 5
for a few weeks.  Activity will primarily be on 40, 30 and 20 meters
using mostly CW with some SSTV.  QSL to home call.

TANZANIA, 5H.  Sigfrido is QRV as 5H/7Q7RS for one year while on
work assignment.  He has applied for a 5H callsign.  QSL via IT9YVO.

JAMAICA, 6Y.  Frank, K3TRM will be QRV as K3TRM/6Y5 from Lucea, IOTA
NA-097, from March 31 to April 9 while on holiday here.  Activity
will be on 80 to 10 meters using SSB, RTTY, PSK31 and some CW.  He
will try to get permission to operate on 60 meters.  QSL to home
call.

LESOTHO, 7P.  A group of South African operators will be QRV as
7P8DX from the north border escarpment of the Drakensburg Range from
April 5 to 12.  Activity will be on 80 to 15 meters with three
stations active simultaneously.  QSL via operators' instructions.

BHUTAN, A5.  Kunio, JA8VE is QRV as A52VE from the capital city of
Thimphu while on a two-year work assignment.  Activity will be on
all HF bands, including 6 meters, using SSB, various digital modes
and some CW.  QSL via JF1OCQ.

ANTARCTICA.  Mirko, DG9BHQ is QRV as DP0GVN from Neumayer 2 Station
until February 2008.  QSL via DL5EBE.

MOLDOVA, ER.  Andy, RW3AH is QRV as ER/RW3AH until April 12.
Activity is on 160, 80 and 20 meters using CW and SSB.  QSL direct
to home call.

FRANCE, F.  In celebration of the International Polar Year,
Francois, F8DVD will be QRV using special event callsign TM4IPY from
April 1 to 14.  Activity will be on all HF bands using CW and SSB.
QSL to home call.

ST. LUCIA, J6.  Bill, WB5ZAM will be QRV as J68WI from April 1 to
13.  Activity is on the HF bands using CW and SSB.  QSL to home
call.

SWAINS ISLAND, KH8.  A large group of operators will be QRV as N8S
from April 3 to 15.  They will be active with up to six stations on
160 to 2 meters using CW, SSB, RTTY, SSTV and PSK31.  QSL via
operators' instructions.

ARGENTINA, LU.  Members of the Radio Club Ushuaia will be QRV as
AY7X from Redonda Island, IOTA SA-049, from March 30 to April 2.
Activity will be on 80 to 10 meters using CW, SSB, RTTY and PSK.
QSL via WD9EWK.

BELGIUM, ON.  Special event station ON50EU is active until December
31 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome.  QSL via
ON7YX.

GREENLAND, OX.  Special event station OX60AD is active during the
month of April on 80 to 6 meters using CW, SSB and digital modes.
QSL direct via OX3UR.

NETHERLANDS, PA.  Members of the VERON-Leiden are QRV as PA50EU
until April 9 to celebrate the Treaty of Rome.  Activity is on 80
meters through 70 cm.  QSL via bureau.

COSTA RICA, TI.  A group of operators will be QRV as TI1DX from
Cerro de Meurte, the highest mountain in Costa Rica, from April 2 to
7.  Activity will be on 80 to 6 meters, including 60 meters on
5403.5 KHz.  QSL via TI8AA.

MALI, TZ.  ON4LN, ON5CD, ON4FG and ON3VK will be QRV as TZ2T, TZ1T,
TZ4T, respectively, from the capital city Bamako from April 2 to 7.
ON3VK will soon have his own TZ-call.  They plan to be active with
two stations simultaneously on 160 to 10 meters using CW, SSB and
various digital modes.  QSL all calls direct via ON4LN or via home
calls.

MICRONESIA, V6.  Nando, IT9YRE, Claudio, I1SNW and Mike, K9AJ will
be QRV as V63RE, V63WN and V63J, respectively, from April 2 to 19.
Activity will be from Ngulu Atoll, IOTA OC-180, Sorol Atoll, IOTA
OC-277 and Woleai Atoll, IOTA OC-132.  Activity will be on all HF
bands using CW and SSB.  QSL to home calls.

OPERATIONS APPROVED FOR DXCC CREDIT.  The following operations are
approved for DXCC credit:  Spratly Islands, DX0JP, 2007 operation;
Spratly Islands, 9M4SDX, 2007 operation; Burundi, 9U9Z, 2007
operation; Aves Island, YW0DX, 2007 operation; and Sovereign
Military Order of Malta, 1A4A, 2007 operation.

THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO.  The NCCC CW Sprint Ladder, QCWA Spring
QSO Party, RSGB RoPoCo 1, ARS Spartan Sprint and the YLRL DX-YL to
NA-YL CW Contest are all scheduled for this weekend.  Please see
April QST, page 97 and the ARRL and WA7BNM contest web sites for
details.
NNNN
/EX


From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Mar 30 10:15:34 2007
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri Mar 30 10:18:50 2007
Subject: [CVRC] ARLP014 Propagation de K7RA
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070330081517.037709e0@mail.greatbasin.net>

SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP014
ARLP014 Propagation de K7RA

ZCZC AP14
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 14  ARLP014
 From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA  March 30, 2007
To all radio amateurs

SB PROP ARL ARLP014
ARLP014 Propagation de K7RA

The daily sunspot number ended the stretch of zeroes on March 23,
after 10 days of totally blank sun. Since then the daily sunspot
number has ranged from 11 to 23. Note that as mentioned in recent
bulletins, the daily sunspot number is not the same as the number of
sunspots, but represents the number of spots and individual groups
of spots. The minimum non-zero sunspot number is 11, when there is
one spot visible.

Geomagnetic activity came a little earlier than predicted, with the
active day on Saturday, March 24. The latest forecast shows the next
period of higher geomagnetic activity on Monday, April 2. The
sunspot numbers and solar flux should remain about the same, with no
more than one or two spots visible.

Geophysical Institute Prague predicts quiet geomagnetic conditions
for March 30 and 31, unsettled activity on April 1 and 2, quiet to
unsettled on April 3, and quiet again on April 4 and 5.

Keith O'Brien, N4ZQ of Clearwater, Florida wrote in reminiscing
about solar activity from long ago:

"I had just turned 11 years old in February 11, 1958. I was about a
year and half away from getting my first, one year -- non renewable
-- 5 WPM, Novice License. My family lived on the south shore of Long
Island in the town of Merrick. But what I remember about that
particular date was a night sky that was as bright an orange as any
noon day. I recall climbing the center stairs to the second floor of
my Colonial style house to watch the fantastic sight out the north-
facing window.

"Little did I understand what I was witnessing, but probably one of
the largest auroras of modern time. I recall reading the New York
papers the next day where they talked about a large radio blackout
due to the storm.

"The light from the auroras was visible all the way south to Mexico.
It was a sight to behold and has stuck with me all these years.

"But what I would like to find, if possible, is what the surface of
the sun looked like at that time. How many sun spots were there and
how large they were?"

I found a drawing for Keith done on that day in Japan. You can see
it on the web at,
http://solarwww.mtk.nao.ac.jp/solar/wl-fulldisk/drawing/1958/580211s.jpg.
You can see other drawings from
http://solarwww.mtk.nao.ac.jp/database.html by clicking on Sunspot
Drawings in the Index, then under Drawings click on the year you
want, then you will see filenames which are the dates of the
drawings.

Don Smith, N6NAX of Phoenix, Arizona writes that he is working the
world on 20 meter PSK with only three watts. He observes "KH6CW
working stations non-stop in Europe and USA" on 20 meter PSK. Even
with 0 or nearly no sunspots, he is still seeing many signals from
all over and 20 and 40 meters. He reports using a home built
vertical antenna "like the one described in October 1995 edition of
QST magazine."

If you would like to make a comment or have a tip for our readers,
email the author at, k7ra@arrl.net.

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service at,
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html. For a detailed
explanation of the numbers used in this bulletin, see
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/k9la-prop.html. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at, http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/prop/. Monthly
propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve overseas
locations are at, http://www.arrl.org/qst/propcharts/.

Sunspot numbers for March 22 through 28 were 0, 14, 11, 11, 17, 11
and 23 with a mean of 12.4. 10.7 cm flux was 72.5, 72.5, 72.8, 73.7,
73.8, 73.3, and 74.6, with a mean of 73.3. Estimated planetary A
indices were 2, 10, 21, 10, 11, 12 and 7 with a mean of 10.4.
Estimated mid-latitude A indices were 1, 7, 16, 8, 7, 9 and 6, with
a mean of 7.7.
NNNN
/EX


From letter-dlvy at arrl.org  Fri Mar 30 20:50:10 2007
From: letter-dlvy at arrl.org (ARRL Letter Mailing List)
Date: Fri Mar 30 21:05:12 2007
Subject: [CVRC] The ARRL Letter, Vol 26, No 13 (Mar 30, 2007)
Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20070330184438.0494fe38@mail.greatbasin.net>

***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 26, No. 13
March 30, 2007
***************

IN THIS EDITION:

* +Ham radio volunteers ready for tornado
* +League, NPSTC sign Memorandum of Agreement
* +ARRL EXPO 2007 to feature visit by ham-astronaut
* +Suni Williams, KD5PLB, delights Ohio, New York students
* +Amateur Radio exhibition in Europe a hit
* +Astronaut will Run Boston Marathon in space
*  Solar Update
*  IN BRIEF:
      This weekend on the radio
      ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration
     +Do not follow instructions in bogus e-mails
      ARRL announces card checking program changes
     +ARRL, ham radio to be represented at NAB convention
      South African radio amateurs ready to monitor distress calls
      Maine ham radio EmComm volunteer credentialing bill dead
      Swains Island DXpedition set to go
      DXCC Desk approves operations for DXCC credit

+Available on ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>

===========================================================
==>Delivery problems: First see FAQ
<http://www.arrl.org/members-only/faq.html#nodelivery>, then e-mail
<letter-dlvy@arrl.org>
==>Editorial questions or comments only: Rick Lindquist, N1RL,
<n1rl@arrl.org>
===========================================================
NOTE: ARRL Headquarters will be closed, Friday, April 6. The ARRL Letter and
ARRL Audio News for April 6 will distribute one day early. ARRL Headquarters
will reopen Monday, April 9, at 8 AM Eastern Daylight Time. Have a safe and
enjoyable holiday!
===========================================================

==>HAM RADIO READINESS PROVIDES SAFETY MARGIN IN NEW MEXICO TORNADO OUTBREAK

Dozens of Amateur Radio volunteers in New Mexico did what they do best
Friday, March 23, when nasty weather threatening eastern New Mexico
eventually spawned 13 tornados, from Tatum to Logan. A day before the
storms, SKYWARN Coordinator and National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologist
Keith Hayes, KC5KH, at the Albuquerque NWS office (WX5ABQ) warned New
Mexico's Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) district emergency
coordinators and county emergency managers of the potential for severe
weather. ARES teams and SKYWARN weather spotters consequently were already
in the field and ready for action when the string of tornados struck. The
early warning, aided by trained spotters' accurate minute-by-minute reports
to the NWS and local authorities, provided an additional margin of safety
for residents.

"The teamwork by the ARES teams, support from the surrounding county
emergency managers, the NWS forecasts and real-time radar support, WA5IHL's
Mega-Link [repeater system] and numerous SKYWARN observations saved lives,"
Jay Miller, WA5WHN, observed. During the weather emergency, Amateur Radio
volunteers relayed real-time weather information to NWS offices in
Albuquerque and in Midland, Texas.

After Chaves County District Emergency Coordinator Alf Lindsey, W5ALL, took
note of darkening skies early Friday afternoon, he opened a SKYWARN net.
More than 30 hams in southeastern New Mexico and West Texas relayed their
weather observations through the net to the Albuquerque NWS office. Robert
Tice, W5TIC, reported in with a tornado spotting west of Tatum at about 5
PM. Jim Morrison, KM5BS, observed a large tornado on the ground just south
of Roosevelt County at about 5:45 PM. That prompted the first of many
tornado warnings for the counties along the Texas-New Mexico state line.

The city of Clovis was especially hard hit. "We have always trained for a
single tornado, but not eight of them at the same time," Blaine Smith,
KB5UOT, in Clovis commented afterward. The NWS issued the first tornado
warning for Clovis at about 7:30 PM, and a tornado struck the city about 15
minutes later. Saundra Creiglow, KC5EGP, handled net control duties in
Clovis as the storms approached. The Eastern New Mexico Amateur Radio Club
had three teams operating in and around Clovis before and after the
twisters.

Using the KK5OV EchoLink node, hams in Clovis established a backup
connection with Jory McIntosh, KJ5RM, at the Fort Worth National Weather
Service Office. McIntosh was able to pinpoint the exact course destructive
tornados that hit the city.

The New Mexico State Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and the Bernalillo
County EOC activated. During the tornados, however, the state EOC lost
contact with Clovis, Logan, Texico, Carlsbad, and Portales. Sandoval County
DEC Mike Scales, K5SCA, was able to relay information from hams in
tornado-stricken areas to the state EOC via the state-wide Mega-Link
repeater system. Scales also kept the state EOC up to speed on localized
flooding in Carlsbad.

The American Red Cross requested Amateur Radio assistance to staff shelters
in Logan and Clovis. John English, WB6QKF, was on the air from the
Albuquerque Red Cross office to assist in setting up those shelters.

The tornados carved a 4.5 mile swath across Clovis. Thirty-five residents
were injured badly enough to need hospitalization. In Logan, two-dozen
mobile homes were destroyed. Tatum experienced four tornados in the span of
a half-hour. Electrical power and telephone outages were reported.
Interstate 70 was shut down between Portales and Clovis.

More severe weather popped across eastern New Mexico and western Texas over
the weekend. Spotters were active early March 25 near Lubbock, Texas, as
possible tornados were reported. Showers and thunderstorms were in this
week's forecast for West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. -- New Mexico
PIO Charlie Christman, K5CEC, and other reports

==>ARRL, NATIONAL PUBLIC SAFETY TELECOMMUNICATIONS COUNCIL INK PACT

ARRL and the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC)
<http://www.npstc.org/> have signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA). The
League is an NPSTC member organization, and the MoA culminates efforts begun
in 2003 to formalize the relationship between the two organizations.

"This agreement promotes the concept of strength in unity," the MoA says.
"Speaking with one unified voice provides a clear and strong message from
the public safety community." The MoA also aims "to promote a consensus
input decision-making process." The NPSTC has been among the organizations
that have asked the FCC to thoroughly explore the potential of broadband
over power line (BPL) technology to interfere with public safety and other
licensed radio systems.

A federation of public safety organizations, NPSTC serves as a forum for the
exchange of ideas and information for effective public safety
telecommunications in the US and abroad.

Under the ARRL-NPSTC pact the ARRL designated Chief Technology Officer Paul
Rinaldo, W4RI, to be its primary representative to the Council (ARRL
Atlantic Division Vice Director Tom Abernethy, W3TOM, is the alternate
representative). Rinaldo will participate in NPSTC meetings and serve on
committees and working groups. The League also has agreed to provide "other
expertise, advice and resources" to further the goals of the MoA and in
support of the NPSTC Charter and to promote NPSTC as "the collective voice
of public safety telecommunications."

NPSTC agrees to provide a National Support Office that will, among other
things, coordinate its outreach activities and provide "national level
technical assistance to the public safety telecommunications community."

In addition to the ARRL, the Council's 13 member organizations include the
American Red Cross, the Association of Public-Safety Communications
Officials -- International (APCO), the International Association of Chiefs
of Police and the National Association of State Telecommunications
Directors.

NPSTC celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. The Council will mark "10
Years of Progress" during its Committee & Governing Board Meetings June
11-13 in Denver, Colorado.

==>HAM-ASTRONAUT TO BE LEAGUE'S HONORED GUEST AT ARRL EXPO 2007 IN DAYTON

NASA Space shuttle veteran and International Space Station Expedition 12
commander Bill McArthur, KC5ACR, will be the League's guest at Dayton
Hamvention <http://www.hamvention.org> 2007 in May. Hamvention takes place
this year Friday through Sunday, May 18-20, at Hara Arena near Dayton, Ohio.
The first astronaut to work all states from space, McArthur has been
applauded for inspiring others through his ham radio activities from NA1SS.
He'll be featured speaker during a closed ARRL reception Thursday, May 17,
and will be on hand all day Friday, May 18, to greet and talk with visitors
to ARRL EXPO 2007 at Hamvention <http://www.arrl.org/announce/nc/2007/>.

ARRL also anticipates that McArthur will be able to lead an Amateur Radio on
the International Space Station (ARISS) forum at Dayton Hamvention for
first-day visitors.

A showcase of exhibits and activities aimed at enhancing your ham radio and
Dayton Hamvention experience, ARRL EXPO will take place in the Ballarena of
Hara Arena. Open to members and nonmembers, ARRL EXPO will display a
sampling of what the League has to offer, including mini-forums on various
topics and a Youth Lounge. The ARRL retail counter will be stocked with
popular publications and products, and visitors can join or renew ARRL while
there.

A graduate of the US Military Academy at West Point, McArthur, 55, holds a
master's degree in aerospace engineering from Georgia Tech. As the keynote
speaker at the 2006 AMSAT Space Symposium banquet and participant in the
ARISS International conference last October in the San Francisco Bay area,
McArthur enjoyed the opportunity to meet many radio amateurs during his
stay, including some he'd worked from NA1SS.

During his six months aboard the ISS -- from October 2005 until April 2006
-- McArthur became the most active ham-astronaut ever to serve in space,
logging more than 1800 QSOs and picking up several honorary operating
awards, including Worked All States (WAS) and Worked All Continents (WAC).
He told his AMSAT audience last fall that the tremendous enthusiasm of the
radio amateurs and students he talked with via ham radio helped him to focus
on why he was aboard the ISS.

Over the course of his ISS duty tour, McArthur, a veteran of four
spaceflights and spacewalks, also established an impressive new milestone of
37 ARISS school contacts. In addition, he put 130 DXCC entities into the
NA1SS log and is continuing to collect the necessary QSL cards to qualify
for an honorary DXCC.

While in space, McArthur managed to contact all continents, including
Antarctica, on both VHF and UHF. He and Expedition 12 Flight Engineer Valery
Tokarev also released SuitSat-1 into orbit. An astronaut since 1990,
McArthur now serves as safety and mission assurance manager for the shuttle
program at Johnson Space Center.

==>SUNI WILLIAMS, KD5PLB, A BRIGHT, CHEERY VOICE FROM SPACE

An upbeat Suni Williams, KD5PLB, continues to delight students with her
unfailingly enthusiastic responses to their questions about life aboard the
International Space Station. The Expedition 14 Flight Engineer doesn't even
seem to mind when the question is one she's already heard several times
already from other youngsters. ISS crew members, many of whom hold Amateur
Radio licenses, take time out of their off-work hours to speak with students
as part of the educational outreach. During a contact March 16 with students
at University School in Shaker Heights, Ohio, Williams talked about some of
the things she's missing in space.

"Of course, I miss my dog, and I've talked about that already," Williams
told students at the private boys' school near Cleveland, "but secondly, I
just miss having a cup of whatever -- milk or coffee or something you can
take an Oreo and dunk it into. Just drinking out of a normal cup, rather
than drinking out of a bag and a straw, is something that I really miss."

What Williams enjoys, among other activities, is being able to float in
microgravity. "It's better than it looks," she told one questioner.
Scheduled to remain aboard the ISS until this summer, Williams said there's
always something to do aboard the ISS. "It's hard to get bored up here," she
allowed. She said she's enjoying taking photos of Earth, enjoying the view
from space and keeping in touch with her family and friends via e-mail.

Bob Morgan, K8RBV, loaned his call sign and served as control operator for
the direct VHF contact with NA1SS. The Shaker Heights school has a full-size
space shuttle simulator that includes the flight and mid-decks of the
transporter, as well as a mission control area and a module of the ISS.

On March 19, she chatted about life aboard the space outpost with grade 6-8
students at East Aurora (NY) Middle School. Youngsters there were interested
in any precautions the ISS crew took in the event of a solar storm.

"If there are solar storms that are going to have a big effect on us, we
will go to a part of the space station that's a little bit more protected --
some of the node areas that have different modules on different sides that
would be a little more protected," Williams explained. "And that's tracked
on the ground and predictions are made, and they will give us enough time so
we'll be able to take cover as needed." Responding to another question,
Williams noted that a "solar wind" can actually change the attitude of the
ISS.

George "Buff" Hoffman, a retired US Air Force officer whom Williams knows,
addressed the students prior to the event. Hoffman's son, Sam, attends the
school and took part in the contact. "It was great to hear her voice, and
the connection was superb," LTC  Hoffman said afterward. "Kudos to ARISS."

Gerald Klatzko, ZS6BTD, in South Africa, served as the Earth station for the
East Aurora contact. A Verizon Conferencing teleconferencing link provided
two-way audio between ZS6BTD and the school. The event attracted media
attention from three TV stations and one newspaper.

ARISS is an international educational outreach with US participation by
ARRL, AMSAT and NASA.

==>EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT HOSTS AMATEUR RADIO EXHIBITION

Amateur Radio went on display in Brussels, Belgium, earlier this month,
thanks to the European Parliament, the International Amateur Radio Union
(IARU) and several Amateur Radio societies and organizations. IARU Region 1
EUROCOM Working Group Chairman Gaston Bertels, ON4WF, and his committee
prepared the "Amateur Radio -- a European Resource" exhibition at the
European Parliament. IARU Region 1 President Ole Garpestad, LA2RR, formally
opened the exhibit March 5 as more than 100 visitors looked on. In
introductory remarks, Bertels said the weeklong exhibition was designed to
present the many facets of Amateur Radio.

"Amateur Radio is the ideal preparation for a future career in a wide range
of science, technology and engineering roles," Bertels told the opening-day
audience. "Many young people who qualify as radio amateurs continue to
pursue higher education in science, technology and engineering disciplines.
Radio amateurs provide a valuable reservoir of skills for communications,
information and high-tech industries, and many amateurs are employed in
these areas."

Bertels singled out the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB), the Deutscher
Amateur Radio Club (DARC) and the R?seau des Emetteurs Fran?ais (REF-Union)
-- respectively the IARU member-societies of Germany and France -- for their
delegates' help in making the exhibition possible. He also cited the Amateur
Radio satellite (AMSAT) organizations of Italy, Germany, Great Britain and
France for providing "valuable input" to the event.

In her opening remarks, Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Mechtild
Rothe of Germany stressed the vital role Amateur Radio has played in
education and emergencies. National Institute of Amateur Radio (NIAR)
Chairman Shri Suri, VU2MY, presented a gold medal to Spanish MEP Fernando
Martin, EA8AK, for his support of Amateur Radio in India, and a silver medal
to Bertels. The NIAR sponsored the 2004 Andaman Islands DXpedition, which
turned into an emergency communication effort after the Southeast Asia
tsunami.

Exhibits and posters stressed emergency communication, space communication,
well-known radio amateurs, training young people, and careers directly
influenced by Amateur Radio. Displays included one on electromagnetic
compatibility that demonstrated HF interference from several sources,
including broadband over power line (BPL). Others touched on Morse code,
PSK31, and space communication. On exhibit were engineering models of
Sputnik 40 and the L/S-band antenna for the Columbus ISS module. Bertels,
who is also Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) vice
chairman, outlined the ham radio activities on the space station and noted
the fundraising effort now under way to provide and install the Columbus
Amateur Radio antennas.

All members of the European Parliament received exhibition flyers in
English, French and German. RSGB representatives also handed out brochures
to MEPs that explained the benefits of Amateur Radio. "The aim was to raise
the profile of Amateur Radio among Europe's politicians, and highlight the
important contribution the hobby has to offer in many areas of society,"
Bertels said.

The exhibition attracted "significant interest" from MEPs and visitors to
the European Parliament and proved to be a "huge success," Bertels said.
"One Polish MEP was so impressed that he pledged to become a radio amateur."

==>HAM-ASTRONAUT TO COMPETE IN MARATHON FROM SPACE

International Space Station Expedition 14 Flight Engineer Suni Williams,
KD5PLB, will go faster than anyone has ever gone when she "runs" the Boston
Marathon April 16. A native of the Boston suburb of Needham, she'll compete
as an official entrant in the annual Patriots Day event from 210 miles above
Earth. Williams will run on an ISS exercise treadmill, circling Earth at
least twice in the process and going as fast as 8 MPH while flying more than
5 miles per second. Williams hopes her unique run will be an inspiration.

"I encourage kids to start making physical fitness part of their daily
lives," she said. "I think a big goal like a marathon will help get this
message out there."

NASA says this will mark the first time an astronaut in space will be an
official marathon participant. An accomplished marathoner, Williams has been
aboard the space station since last December.

She won't be alone in her adventure. Her sister Dina Pandya and fellow
astronaut Karen Nyberg will run the race in Boston. Williams and Nyberg
qualified for the Boston race by finishing among the top 100 females in the
2006 Houston Marathon.

ISS crew members must exercise daily to counteract the effects of
long-duration weightlessness on their health. Williams adheres to a rigorous
workout routine on the treadmill, a stationary bike and a resistive exercise
machine to counter loss of bone density and muscle mass.

"In microgravity, both of these things start to go away because we don't use
our legs to walk around and don't need the bones and muscles to hold us up
under the force of gravity," Williams said.

Due to the crew's sleep schedule, Williams' run may not coincide precisely
with the earthbound race, but mission control is working to sync the events
as closely as possible.

NASA will have an exhibit in Boston during the marathon. Nyberg and ISS
Expedition 13 crew member Jeff Williams, KD5TVQ -- no relation to Suni
Williams -- will be available for interviews. -- NASA

==>SOLAR UPDATE

Solar swami Tad "I Got my Mojo Workin'" Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington,
reports: The daily sunspot number ended its stretch of zeroes Friday, March
23, after 10 days of totally blank sun. Since then the daily sunspot number
has ranged from 11 to 23. The daily sunspot number is not the same as the
number of sunspots but represents the number of spots and individual groups
of spots. The minimum non-zero sunspot number is 11, when one sunspot is
visible.

Geomagnetic activity came a little earlier than predicted, with the active
day on Saturday, March 24. The latest forecast puts the next period of
higher geomagnetic activity on Monday, April 2. The sunspot numbers and
solar flux should remain about the same, with no more than one or two spots
visible.

Geophysical Institute Prague predicts quiet geomagnetic conditions for March
30 and 31, unsettled activity on April 1 and 2, quiet to unsettled on April
3, and quiet again on April 4 and 5.

Sunspot numbers for March 22 through 28 were 0, 14, 11, 11, 17, 11 and 23,
with a mean of 12.4. The 10.7 cm flux was 72.5, 72.5, 72.8, 73.7 , 73.8,
73.3, and 74.6, with a mean of 73.3. Estimated planetary A indices were 2,
10, 21, 10, 11, 12 and 7, with a mean of 10.4. Estimated mid-latitude A
indices were 1, 7, 16, 8, 7, 9 and 6, with a mean of 7.7.

For more information concerning radio propagation, visit the ARRL Technical
Information Service Propagation page
<http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html>.

__________________________________

==>IN BRIEF:

* This weekend on the radio: The QCWA Spring QSO Party is the weekend of
March 31-April 1. The RSGB RoPoCo 1 is April 1. The RSGB 80-Meter Club
Championship (CW) is April 2. The ARS Spartan Sprint is April 3. The YLRL
DX-YL to NA-YL Contest (CW) is April 3-5. The SARL 80-Meter QSO Party is
April 5. JUST AHEAD:
The ARLHS Annual Spring Lites QSO Party runs April 7-15. The ARCI Spring QSO
Party, the SP DX Contest, the EA RTTY Contest, the Missouri QSO Party, the
FeldHell Spring Sprint, the UBA Spring Contest (SSB), the SARL Hamnet
40-Meter Simulated Emergency Contest are the weekend of April 7-18. The Low
Power Spring Sprint and the 144 MHz Spring Sprint are April 9. The YLRL
DX-YL to NA-YL Contest (SSB) runs April 10-12. The NAQCC Straight Key/Bug
Sprint and the RSGB 80-Meter Club Championship (SSB) are April 11. See the
ARRL Contest Branch page <http://www.arrl.org/contests/> and the WA7BNM
Contest Calendar <http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for more
info.

* ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration:
Registration remains open through Sunday, April 22, for these ARRL
Certification and Continuing Education (CEC) program
<http://www.arrl.org/cce/> online courses beginning on Friday, May 4: The
ARRL Ham Radio License Course (EC-010), Amateur Radio Emergency
Communications Level 1 (EC-001), Radio Frequency Interference (EC-006),
Antenna Design and Construction (EC-009), Analog Electronics (EC-012) and
Digital Electronics (EC-013). These courses will also open for registration
Friday, April 20, for classes beginning Friday, June 1. To learn more, visit
the CCE Course Listing page <http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html> or
contact the CCE Department <cce@arrl.org>.

* Do not follow instructions in bogus e-mails: The ARRL is alerting members
-- and especially users of the ARRL E-Mail Forwarding Service
<http://www.arrl.org/members-only/emailfwd.html> -- about bogus e-mails that
claim to be from the "arrl.net user support team." There is no such entity,
and the messages do not originate with ARRL but appear to be coming from
outside the US. Recipients should not follow the instructions in the e-mail,
which reads, "We have received reports that your e-mail account has been
used to send a large amount of unsolicited commercial email messages during
this week. We suspect that your computer had been infected by a recent virus
and now contains a hidden proxy server. We recommend you to follow our
instructions in order to keep your computer safe." Following the
instructions will have the opposite effect, however, infecting your computer
with the MyDoom Trojan worm and making it part of a spamming network. The
League urges all members to invest in and use anti-virus software.

* ARRL announces card checking program changes: The ARRL has announced some
changes in the DXCC, WAS and VUCC card checking program rules. Effective
immediately, the 10-year rule has been dropped for DXCC
<http://www.arrl.org/awards/dxcc> card checking. ARRL DXCC card checkers now
have been authorized to check cards *for current entities only*, dating back
to November 15, 1945. Card checkers still may not verify cards for 160-meter
contacts nor cards confirming contacts with deleted entities. In addition,
DXCC card checkers now may check applications for Worked All States Award
(WAS) <http://www.arrl.org/awards/was> and The VHF/UHF Century Club Award
(VUCC) <http://www.arrl.org/awards/vucc>, if they agree to do so. For more
information, contact DXCC Manager Bill Moore, NC1L, <dxcc@arrl.org>.

* ARRL, ham radio to be represented at NAB convention: ARRL will again
sponsor a display at this year's National Association of Broadcasters (NAB)
Convention, April 14-19 in Las Vegas <http://www.nabshow.com/>. The
gathering annually attracts more than 100,000 broadcasting and electronic
media industry representatives. Las Vegas volunteer Stan Perkins, W7SLP,
ARRL Pacific Division Director Bob Vallio, W6RGG, and other volunteers from
near and far will staff the League's exhibit and inform attendees about
Amateur Radio's service to the public. "We received offers from ham
attendees living in other areas to help with the booth," Perkins says. "The
distance record this year is held by John Goran, K1JJS, attending the NAB
from Maine." On Wednesday, April 18, Heil Sound Ltd
<http://www.heilsound.com/> will host the Amateur Radio reception at the NAB
Convention -- a standing-room-only event with door prizes and refreshments
that Perkins calls "the highlight of the week" for radio amateurs. Kent
Johnson, W7AOR, will sponsor the annual IRLP voice over Internet protocol
(VoIP) conference April 13-15. Perkins suggests hams attending the NAB
Convention bring a handheld transceiver. Several clubs operate repeaters in
the area.

* South African radio amateurs ready to monitor distress calls: Hamnet
<http://www.sarl.org.za/public/hamnet/hamnet.asp> Amateur Radio emergency
communication volunteers in South Africa have offered take over the
monitoring of maritime emergency calls should workers at Milnerton Maritime
Radio in Cape Town, a subsidiary of telephone service provider Telkom, go on
strike. "The strike was called off, so Hamnet stood down," Hans van de
Groenendaal, ZS6AKV, told ARRL. "They, however, remain on high alert and
would be ready to take action when and if required." He speculates the
company and the union are still talking. Hamnet members regularly monitor
Amateur Radio frequencies used by the cruising community in South African
waters, van de Groenendaal has explained, and listening for emergency calls
from ships would be an extension of that activity. Telkom says it's made
contingency plans in the event of a strike by the Solidarity trade union but
also may attempt to get a court injunction. The company has a contract with
the South African government to monitor maritime distress calls. The labor
dispute involves work scheduling.

* Maine ham radio EmComm volunteer credentialing bill dead: A bill in the
Maine Legislature that would have required credentials for Amateur Radio
emergency communications volunteers is dead. Sponsored by State Rep Stanley
Gerzofsky of Brunswick, LD 696 received an "ought not to pass"
recommendation March 14 from the Maine Senate Committee on Criminal Justice
and Public Safety. The committee's action followed a March 7 public hearing.
On March 21, the measure was placed in the legislative files, effectively
killing it. The bill would have included registered and credentialed
emergency communications volunteers among individuals the Maine Emergency
Management Agency (MEMA) could call upon to help in an emergency or
disaster. Before they could be issued a valid MEMA identification card,
Amateur Radio EmComm volunteers would have had to meet certain training
criteria and other requirements, including certifications from the ARRL and
the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The measure also would have
required EmComm volunteers to undergo criminal history and driving record
background checks. Maine Gov John E. Baldacci is KB1NXP.

* Swains Island DXpedition set to go: The Swains Island DXpedition
<http://www.yt1ad.info/n8s/index.html> will be on the air as N8S from April
3 until April 15 on all HF bands (including 60 meters -- 5403.5 kHz) as well
as moonbounce on 6 and 2 meters. The international team includes YT1AD,
K3LP, K1LZ, N6TQS, K6SRZ, RK3AD, RA3AUU, SV2BFN, UR0MC, YZ7AA, YZ1BX,
UA4HOX, YU7NU, RU4SU, YU1AU, JT1CO and Z32ZM. The same team plans to operate
from Samoa as 5W5AA from April 17 to April 24. YT1AD will handle cards for
N8S; YZ7AA will handle QSLs for 5W5AA. Swain's Island is among the
most-wanted DXCC entities. -- The Daily DX

* DXCC Desk approves operations for DXCC credit: The ARRL DXCC Desk has
approved these operations for DXCC credit: DX0JP (Spratly Islands, 2007
operation), 9M4SDX (Spratly Islands, 2007 operation), 9U9Z (Burundi, 2007
operation), YW0DX (Aves Island, 2007 operation) and 1A4A (Sovereign Military
Order Of Malta, 2007 operation). For more information, visit the DXCC Web
page <http://www.arrl.org/awards/dxcc>.

===========================================================
The ARRL Letter is published Fridays, 50 times each year, by the American
Radio Relay League: ARRL--the National Association For Amateur Radio, 225
Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259;
<http://www.arrl.org>. Joel Harrison, W5ZN, President.

The ARRL Letter offers a weekly e-mail digest of essential and general news
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