[CVRC] The ARRL Letter for August 26, 2010
ARRL Web site
memberlist at www.arrl.org
Thu Aug 26 19:28:52 EDT 2010
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August 26, 2010
Editor: <mailto:k1sfa at arrl.org>S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA
<http://www.arrl.org/>ARRL Home
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* + Public Service : Pakistani Amateurs Team
Up to Provide Communications, Relief Support for Flood Victims
* ARRL Web Site : Using the "Your Favorites"
Feature and Retrieving Forgotten Passwords
* + ARRL Elections : Summer Section Manager Election Results
* + The Doctor Is IN : SWR
* + ARRL VEC Volunteer Examiner Session Participation Web Page Returns
* + Solar Update
* + On the Air : ARRL EME Contest Coming September 4-5
* This Week on the Radio
+ Available on <http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news>ARRL Audio News
+ Public Service: Pakistani Amateurs Team Up to
Provide Communications, Relief Support for Flood Victims
According to the Pakistan Amateur Radio Society
(PARS) -- that country's IARU Member-Society --
radio amateurs in Pakistan have teamed up with
the Islamabad Jeep Club and Pakistan Academy of
Family Physicians to provide relief activities in
those areas of Pakistan devastated by floods. The
groups will supply food, tents and medical
support to the northern flood affected areas of
Nowshera, Charsadda and central Sargodha districts.
PARS members, in partnership with Islamabad Jeep
Club has initiated a relief mission to help the
Pakistani population that has been devastated by
massive flooding. PARS members and IJC are
raising funds through their efforts and will
provide essential relief supplies to the families
affected by these floods. [Photo courtesy of PARS]
"The cellular services are down and so is the
landline," the PARS Web site reports. "Last week,
the joint team carried out a survey in the north
and the center of the country, and to its dismay,
the situation isn't promising. Restoration of
cellular services and landlines could take months."
On August 21, hams reached the town of
Dharkhanawala, looking to set up communications,
but had to turn back because the equipment had
not arrived; however, teams were able to
distribute food in Dharkhanawala and Chauki
Darab. Read more
<http://www.arrl.org/news/pakistani-amateurs-team-up-to-provide-communications-relief-support-for-flood-victims>here.
ARRL Web Site: Using the "Your Favorites" Feature
and Retrieving Forgotten Passwords
By ARRL News Editor S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA
Since we introduced the new ARRL Web site this
past April, we have received inquiries on how to
retrieve forgotten passwords, as well as how to
use the "Favorites" function -- a "bookmark" feature -- on the new site.
Have you forgotten your password? When you click
on "Forgot Password?", you will be directed to a
page that, upon verification, will grant you a
temporary password. You can then change your
password in the "Edit your Profile" section.
Have you forgotten your password? You can easily
retrieve it by clicking on the
"<http://www.arrl.org/forgot-password>Forgot
Password?" link, located directly under the
log-in box at the top of the page
(<http://www.arrl.org/images/view/News/ForgotPassword.JPG>see
photo). You can either request to receive a
temporary password via e-mail (you must use the
e-mail you originally used to register for the
previous ARRL Web site), or you may retrieve a
temporary password immediately by providing your
user name (for hams, this is usually your call
sign) and your ARRL member ID number (you can
find this on your QST mailing label). You must
also provide either your call sign or your last
name. Click
<http://www.arrl.org/forgot-password>here to
receive a temporary password. First time Web
users can get an online user name and password by
clicking in the "Register" link, located next to the "Forgot Password?" link.
The "Your Favorites" feature is a "bookmark" system for the ARRL Web site.
Once you have successfully logged in to the Web
site, you will see a drop-down box that says
"Your Favorites" right underneath your name
(<http://www.arrl.org/images/view/News/YourFavorites.JPG>see
photo). Now navigate to any page on the ARRL Web
site. Would you like to find it in just one step
the next time you need it? The "Your Favorites"
feature will do just that! When you are on the
desired page, just click on the "Your Favorites" drop-down
You can easily add pages from the ARRL Web site
to "Your Favorites." Just go to the desired page,
click the "Your Favorites" drop-down menu, the
click "Add To Favorites" and then click on the "Go" button.
menu, click "Add to Favorites" then click the
"Go" button. Now you have stored that Web page as
one of your favorites; each time you wish to go
to that page, you can just access it through the
"Your Favorites" drop-down menu
(<http://www.arrl.org/images/view/News/YourFaveSignIn.JPG>see photo).
If you have any questions or concerns about the
new ARRL Web site, please direct them to Katie
Glass, our Digital Content Manager. You can send
them via <mailto:kglass at arrl.org>e-mail or call
Katie directly at (860)
594-0250.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-08-26&p=0>
+ ARRL Elections: Summer Section Manager Election Results
Southern Florida and Oklahoma will have new
Section Managers starting in October, and the
incumbent Section Manager of Ohio was re-elected
in the summer Section Manager election cycle that
concluded on Tuesday, August 24; election ballots
were counted August 24 at ARRL Headquarters.
Terms for new Section Managers will begin on
October 1, 2010. Read more
<http://www.arrl.org/news/summer-section-manager-election-results>here.
+ The Doctor Is IN: SWR
Bil Paul, KD6JUI, of Dixon, California, wrote to
the ARRL's Doctor, noting that he noticed when he
was tuning for optimal background noise while in
receive mode, it came close to -- but didn't
match -- the dial positions for minimal SWR while
transmitting. He asked which of the two antenna
tuner dial settings would result in the most
transmitted energy while in transmit mode. He
also wants to know if minimal SWR always
indicates the most transmitted energy going to the antenna system.
Here's what the Doctor had to say:
In answer to the first question, by setting the
antenna tuner to an SWR of 1:1, you have
transformed the impedance at the bottom of your
antenna feed line to 50 ohms, just what your
transceiver is designed to deliver its rated
power into. If your receiver input impedance were
exactly 50 ohms, then that setting would likely
also be the position that would yield maximum
receiver noise. As it happens, there is no such
guarantee that the input impedance of the
receiver will be exactly 50 ohms. Although it
should be pretty close, a slight change may yield
a stronger signal into the receiver.
Regarding the second question, the transceiver is
rated to provide its design output power into 50
ohms, usually within a specified SWR range. As
was pointed out by Eric Nichols, KL7AJ, in a QST
article last year ["Keeping Current with Antenna
Performance," Feb 2009, pages 34-36], an SWR of
1:1 does not generally result in the maximum
power output. By building a transmission line
current meter, such as described by Eric, or
later by Paul Danzer, N1II ["A Simple Transformer
to Measure Your Antenna Current," Sep 2009, page
35], you can actually tune the antenna tuner to
get the highest output. This corresponds to the
maximum current into the antenna, which may occur
at some setting different from either of the above.
Be careful, though: If you exceed the maximum
rated SWR, the resulting voltages or currents in
the final amplifier or output filter of the
transceiver will exceed design specs and damage
may result. The likely small increase in
transmitted power is likely neither worth the
trouble nor the risk, in my opinion.
Thanks Doctor! Do you have a question or a
problem? Send your questions via
<mailto:doctor at arrl.org>e-mail or to The Doctor,
ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111 (no phone
calls, please). Look for "The Doctor Is IN" every
month in <http://www.arrl.org/qst>QST, the official journal of the ARRL.
Support ARRL: ARRL Encourages Monthly Giving
The ARRL Development Office is dedicated to
raising funds for those programs not funded
entirely by member dues. Whether your interest is
focused on protecting Amateur Radio operating
frequencies, expanding ARRL's national initiative
promoting science and math education, or securing
the future of the W1AW, The Hiram Percy Maxim
Memorial Station, your financial support is vital.
"Now it's easier than ever to make a commitment
to ARRL," said ARRL Chief Development Officer
Mary Hobart, K1MMH. "By contributing as little as
$10, $20 or $100 per month, you can be part of a
strong financial forecast for those programs that
are at the heart of our service." More and more
ARRL members are taking advantage of this option
to contribute to the Diamond Club, the Spectrum
Defense Fund, the Education & Technology
Fund and the W1AW Endowment Fund. Read more
<http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-encourages-monthly-giving>here.
+ ARRL VEC Volunteer Examiner Session Participation Web Page Returns
If you're an ARRL Volunteer Examiner
(<http://www.arrl.org/become-an-arrl-ve>VE) who
is interested in seeing how many ARRL exam
sessions you've taken part in, you can find the
answer on the
<http://www.arrl.org/ve-session-counts>VE Session
counts Web page. On this page, you'll be able to
access a list that shows the total number of exam
sessions that each ARRL VE has conducted. The
listings are listed first by state and then in
alpha-numeric call sign order (call area number,
then suffix letters). The state where an
individual VE record is located is based on the
VE's official address on file with the ARRL
Volunteer Examiner Coordinator. Only currently
accredited ARRL VEs will be displayed on the Web
page. ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, AB1FM, said
she is "thrilled" that the enhanced page now
includes the VEs name, as well as the call sign
and session participation total: "Incorporating
the name field in the lists added a higher level
of authentication when determining a VE's
accreditation status and participation. We
applaud the volunteers whose dedication and
service make the VE program successful. Your hard
work and contribution of countless hours of your
time helps ensure the future of Amateur Radio.
Your efforts matter and we thank you. Our VEs
should be very proud of their
accomplishments."<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-08-26&p=2>
+ Solar Update
The Sun, as seen on Thursday, August 26, 2010
from
<http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/data/realtime/realtime-update.html>NASA's
SOHO Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope. This
image was taken at 304 Angstrom; the bright
material is at 60,000 to 80,000 Kelvin.
Tad
"<http://poems.com/poem.php?date=14818>Shadows
stalled against the pitiless scope of the Sun"
Cook, K7RA, reports: This week saw three days --
August 21-23 -- with no sunspots, and the average
daily sunspot numbers for the week -- August
19-25 -- declined more than 28 points to 8,
compared to the previous week. The average daily
solar flux was down five points to 75.3. The last
period of three days or more of no sunspots ended
on May 20, 2010, around 100 days ago. Sunspot
group 1100 disappeared on August 21, only to
return August 25. In this case, the sunspot group
didn't transit the non Earth-facing side of the
Sun, but it just faded from view, returning just
as it is about to rotate off of the Sun's western
limb. Sunspot group 1101 appeared on August 24,
and on August 25, it had grown to three times its
initial size. Daily sunspot numbers for August
24-25 were 11 and 23. Remember: the sunspot
number is not the same as the number of sunspots.
The smallest non-0 sunspot number is 11. Each
spot gets 10 points for being a sunspot group and
one point for containing one sunspot. The sunspot
number of 23 on August 25 represents two sunspot
groups, at 10 points each, one containing one
sunspot (1 point) and the other containing two
sunspots (2 points). On August 25, it appears
that a new smaller sunspot may be emerging
between the eastern horizon and sunspot group
1101. A stiff solar wind from a coronal hole
increased geomagnetic activity. The planetary A
index for August 21-25 was 3, 4, 7, 18 and 20.
Thursday's projection shows this decreasing, with
the planetary A index on August 26-28 at 15, 10
and 8, followed by a quiet reading of 5 for the
next three weeks. Solar flux for the same period
is expected to be 75 for August 26-31, then 76
and 80 for September 1-2, and 85 on September
3-5. Several weeks from now is the fall equinox,
which is a good time for HF propagation. The
autumnal equinox will be at 0309 UTC on September
23, 2010. Look for more information on the ARRL
Web site on Friday, August 27. For more
information concerning radio propagation, visit
the
<http://www.arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals>ARRL
Technical Information Service Propagation page.
This week's "Tad Cookism" is brought to you by
Melissa Green's <http://poems.com/poem.php?date=14818>August.
+ On the Air: ARRL EME Contest Coming September 4-5
The 2.3 GHz+ version of the
<http://www.arrl.org/eme-contest>ARRL EME Contest
will be 0000 UTC September 4 through 2359 UTC
September 5. The objective is to work as many
stations in as many different 2 degrees × 1
degree grid squares as possible via the
Earth-Moon-Earth path on any authorized amateur
frequency above 2.3 GHz. Two other EME contests
are scheduled for October: the 50-1296 MHz
version will be October 2-3 and October 30-31.
See the <http://www.arrl.org/contests>ARRL Contests page for more information.
+ Silent Key: Ornithologist Arlo Raim, KB9LLF (SK)
Arlo Raim, KB9LLF (SK)
Arlo Raim, KB9LLF, of Danville, Illinois, was
killed by a southbound Canadian National freight
train on the morning of Friday, August 20. He was
67. Raim had been in Pratt's Wayne Woods Forest
Preserve -- part of the Forest Preserve District
of DuPage (Illinois) County -- to monitor the
effect of increased train traffic on cardinals.
"He was one of, if not the best, bird tracker in
the world," said Dr Mike Ward, Coordinator of the
Critical Trends Assessment Program at the
Illinois Natural History Survey and one of Raim's
supervisors. "He used radio telemetry to track
animals as varied as peregrine falcons, coyotes,
turtles and northern cardinals." According to
Ward, Raim's most noteworthy research may have
been the 2002 tracking that showed crows changed
roosts every two days, a discovery that shed
light on why West Nile virus is able to spread so
rapidly. Read more
<http://www.arrl.org/news/ornithologist-arlo-raim-kb9llf-sk>here.
This Week on the Radio
This week:
* August 27 -- NCCC Sprint Ladder
* August 28-29 -- Hawaii QSO Party; Kansas
QSO Party; Ohio QSO Party; YO DX HF Contest; SCC RTTY Championship
* September 1 -- QRP Fox Hunt
Next week:
* September 4 -- Russian RTTY WW Contest;
Wake-Up! QRP Sprint; AGCW Straight Key Party
* September 4-5 --
<http://www.arrl.org/eme-contest>ARRL EME
Contest; All Asian DX Contest (Phone); Colorado
QSO Party; Brazil Independence Day BPSK31 CDX Contest
* September 5 -- WAB 144 MHz QRP Contest (Phone)
* September 5-6 -- Tennessee QSO Party
* September 6-7 -- Michigan QRP Labor Day CW Sprint
* September 7 -- ARS Spartan Sprint
* September 8 -- QRP Fox Hunt
* September 8-9 -- CWops Mini-CW Test
All dates, unless otherwise stated, are UTC. See
the <http://www.arrl.org/contests>ARRL Contest
Branch page, the
<http://www.arrl.org/The-ARRL-Contest-Update>ARRL
Contest Update and the
<http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html>WA7BNM
Contest Calendar for more info. Looking for a
Special Event station? Be sure to check out the
<http://www.arrl.org/special-events>ARRL Special Events Station Web page.
Upcoming Events
* August 27-29 --
<http://www.boxboro.org/>ARRL New England
Division Convention, Boxboro, Massachusetts
* September 17-19 --
<http://www.sandarc.net/Convention2010/index.html>ARRL
Southwestern Division Convention, San Diego, California
* October 15-17 --
<http://www.pacificon.org/>ARRL Pacific Division
Convention, San Ramon, California
<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&i=2010-08-26&t=r&p=0>
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