[CVRC] The ARRL Letter for May 27, 2010

ARRL Web site memberlist at www.arrl.org
Thu May 27 16:13:15 EDT 2010 

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May 27, 2010
Editor: <mailto:k1sfa at arrl.org>S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA
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    * + FCC News : Bill Cross, W3TN, Presents FCC 
Forum at 2010 Dayton Hamvention®
    * + FCC News : FCC Upholds Decision to Revoke 
Amateur License of Convicted Indiana Ham
    * + ARRL Audio News Returns This Week
    * + NCVEC Question Pool Committee Withdraws Four Questions
    * + Regulatory : New Zealand's Radio Spectrum 
Management Cites Ham for Transmitting 3100 W
    * + International Perspective : Order Your IRCs Online at USPS Web Site
    * + International Perspective : Ham Visitors 
to South Africa Able to Operate, Use Special Call Sign Prefix During World Cup
    * There's Still Time to Enter the 2010 ARRL Photo Contest!
    * ARRL Field Day Merchandise Now Available
    * + Solar Update
    * + Silent Key : Robert Brown PhD, NM7M (SK)
    * This Week on the Radio

+ Available on <http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news>ARRL Audio News
+ FCC News: Bill Cross, W3TN, Presents FCC Forum at 2010 Dayton Hamvention®

Bill Cross, W3TN, spoke at the FCC forum at the 
2010 Dayton Hamvention [S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA, Photo]

Bill Cross, W3TN, a staff member in the FCC's 
Mobility Division -- part of the 
<http://wireless.fcc.gov/>Wireless 
Telecommunications Bureau -- spoke at the FCC 
Forum on Saturday morning at the 
<http://www.hamvention.org/>2010 Dayton 
Hamvention®. Billed by the Hamvention's Forum 
Committee as more of an emergency communications 
discussion, Cross discussed this and other 
matters -- such as FCC proceedings regarding 
vanity and club call signs, 60 meters and power 
limits for spread-spectrum users, -- as well as 
the FCC's National Broadband Plan 
(<http://download.broadband.gov/plan/national-broadband-plan.pdf>NBP). 
The FCC's Mobility Division handles the 
day-to-day administration of the Amateur Service, 
along with some of the rulemaking activities that 
affect Amateur Radio. The Division has staff 
members in Washington, DC and Gettysburg, 
Pennsylvania. The Gettysburg staff deals with 
most of the Amateur Radio applications and 
licensing matters, as well as the Universal 
Licensing System 
(<http://wireless.fcc.gov/uls/index.htm?job=home>ULS). 
Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/bill-cross-w3tn-presents-fcc-forum-at-2010-dayton-hamvention>here.
+ FCC News: FCC Upholds Decision to Revoke 
Amateur License of Convicted Indiana Ham

Lonnie L. Keeney, KB9RFO, of Greencastle, 
Indiana, filed a 
<http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/view?id=7020382453>Petition 
for Reconsideration in March 2010, asking that 
the FCC re-evaluate the 
<http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-09-456A1.pdf>revocation 
of his Amateur Radio license. Keeney -- who in 
2002 was convicted of child molestation, a Class 
C felony -- was found by the FCC in February 2010 
to be "lack[ing] the requisite character 
qualifications to be and remain a Commission 
licensee." Keeney appealed the decision, and on 
May 24, the FCC denied his Petition 
<http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-10-916A1.pdf>via 
an 
<http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-10-916A1.pdf>Order 
on Reconsideration, affirming the revocation of 
his Amateur Radio license. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/fcc-upholds-decision-to-revoke-amateur-license-of-convicted-indiana-ham>here.
+ ARRL Audio News Returns This Week

After a hiatus of nearly four months, the ARRL 
Audio News is scheduled to return this week on 
Thursday, May 27. With the advent of the new ARRL 
Web site, we have had to make some changes in the 
way the Audio News is presented. For the time 
being, it will only be available as one mp3 file. 
Beginning this week, you can find the ARRL Audio 
News <http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news>here 
most Thursdays on the ARRL Web 
site.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-05-27&p=0>
+ NCVEC Question Pool Committee Withdraws Four Questions

The Question Pool Committee (QPC) of the National 
Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators 
(NCVEC) announced the withdrawal of two questions 
from the Technician class pool and two questions 
from the Extra class pool. Volunteer Examiner 
Coordinators (VECs) and Volunteer Examiners (VEs) 
must take action to remove these questions from 
use by July 1, 2010. Due to a rules change and 
pending action by the FCC, questions T2C02 and 
T2C03 from the July 2010 Technician Pool and 
questions E1C04 and E1C05 from the July 2008 
Extra Pool may not be used in examinations after 
June 30. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/ncvec-question-pool-committee-withdraws-four-questions>here.
+ Regulatory: New Zealand's Radio Spectrum 
Management Cites Ham for Transmitting 3100 W

Last month, New Zealand's Radio Spectrum 
Management (RSM) -- that country's equivalent of 
the FCC -- charged and fined Alan Potter, ZL3II, 
of Christchurch, for transmitting outside the 
terms and conditions of the General User Radio 
License for Amateur Radio Operators. Potter was 
charged in the Christchurch District Court on 
April 14 and found guilty of breaching Section 
113 of the Radiocommunications Act 1989. Section 
113 deals with those who "commit an offence under 
this Act who transmit radio waves."

Potter was found in possession of radio 
transmitting equipment that was capable of 
operating at a significantly higher power than 
the Amateur Radio Operators General License 
allows. He was fined $1750 ($1164 USD) and $130 
($86 USD) for costs. Potter was also required to 
forfeit his radio equipment. Section 114 of the 
Radiocommunications Act of 1989 references 
Section 113 and presumes that "any person who 
erects, constructs, establishes, maintains, or is 
in possession of any radio transmitter is 
presumed to have used the radio transmitter." 
According to news reports, RSM was alerted to a 
video that Potter posted on YouTube (the video 
has since been removed), showing showed his 
transmitter operating at 3100 W. Operating at 
such high transmitting power is likely to cause 
interference to, and disruption of, a range of 
other licensed radio services in the local area. 
New Zealand amateurs are restricted to no more 
than 500 W PEP. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/new-zealand-s-radio-spectrum-management-cites-ham-for-transmitting-3100-w>here.
Amateur Radio in Space: Amateur Community Needed 
to Assist Japanese Amateur Interplanetary Satellite

An artist's rendition of the UNITEC-1 CubeSat.

An informal network of ham radio experimenters, 
scientists and CW enthusiasts called FlyVenusCom 
-- a nonprofit, cross-cultural effort -- has been 
created to support communication efforts by 
Japanese scientists with its CubeSat Venus probe, 
UNITEC-1. This CubeSat was developed by 20 
universities of the University Space Engineering 
Consortium (UNISEC), the Japanese community 
developing nano-satellites. The Japanese UNITEC-1 
team has called for ham radio assistance 
worldwide in improving and testing two areas of 
the CubeSat's mission. What makes this mission of 
particular interest to amateurs is the fact that 
the UNITEC engineers have added a 5 GHz Amateur 
Radio beacon to the spacecraft and they are 
encouraging hams to attempt to receive it. On May 
21, Japanese ground stations reported receiving 
the CW and FSK beacons (call sign JQ1ZUN) at a 
distance of about 30,000 km. They measured the 
beacon frequency at 5839.91 MHz. Even though the 
latest reports say that the signal has been lost, 
the UNITEC team is trying to re-establish contact 
with the satellite. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/amateur-community-needed-to-assist-japanese-amateur-interplanetary-satellite>here<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-05-27&p=1>.
ARRL Publications: Two New Books Available from ARRL

Just as many vendors release new products at the 
Dayton Hamvention, the ARRL will debut 
much-anticipated publications. This year was no 
exception. Two new books -- Remote Operating for 
Amateur Radio and the third edition of The ARRL 
RFI 
Book<http://www.arrl.org/shop/Remote-Operating-for-Amateur-Radio/> 
-- were introduced.

Remote Operating for Amateur 
Radio<http://www.arrl.org/shop/The-ARRL-RFI-Book-3rd-Edition/> 
shows amateurs how to assemble their own 
Internet-controlled stations. As many hams are 
discovering, it has become increasingly difficult 
to enjoy Amateur Radio at home. Some have been 
driven off the air altogether by antenna 
restrictions, local interference and other 
limiting factors. But the widespread availability 
of high-speed Internet offers a powerful 
solution: Amateurs can now setup a complete 
station at a remote location and operate via the 
Internet, just as though they are actually 
sitting in front of the radio. That radio could 
be just across town or 2000 miles away.

ARRL's team of experts has compiled the best 
advice available on every type of radio frequency 
interference (RFI) in this brand new edition of 
The ARRL RFI Book. From automotive to television, 
from computers to DVD players, from audio 
equipment to telephones, amateurs will find a 
step-by-step process for eliminating problematic 
interference in one convenient book. The third 
edition of The ARRL RFI Book also includes 
resources for addressing new realities of digital 
cable TV and satellite systems, over-the-air TV 
signals and troubleshooting, as well as hybrid 
and all-electric automobiles. For more 
information on these two new exciting 
publications, including how to get your own copy, 
click <http://www.arrl.org/news/two-new-books-available-from-arrl>here.
+ International Perspective: Order Your IRCs Online at USPS Web Site

Many hams have long complained about difficulties 
they have encountered when purchasing 
International Reply Coupons 
(<http://www.upu.int/news_centre/2008/2008-08-08_irc.jpg>IRCs) 
from their local post offices. Now the US Postal 
Service (<http://www.usps.com/>USPS) has made it 
easier to get those IRCs to send with your direct 
QSL cards -- 
<https://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10052&productId=10006688&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10000002&top_category=10000002&categoryId=10000034&top=&currentPage=0&sort=&viewAll=N&rn=CategoriesDisplay&WT.ac=10>order 
them online from the USPS Web site. The USPS 
ships all in-stock domestic orders for stamps and 
retail items within 1 business day via Priority 
Mail with Delivery Confirmation or First Class 
Mail. Shipments should arrive within 3-5 business 
days. All stamp orders are charged a $1 handling 
fee, regardless of the order amount. IRCs 
purchased from the USPS, whether online or in 
person at a post office, cost $2.10 each. Read 
more <http://www.arrl.org/news/order-your-ircs-online-at-usps-web-site>here.
+ International Perspective: Ham Visitors to 
South Africa Able to Operate, Use Special Call Sign Prefix During World Cup

Hams who will be attending the FIFA World Cup in 
South Africa this summer will be able to attach a 
special prefix to their call signs.

Through an agreement between the South African 
Radio League (<http://www.sarl.org.za/>SARL) and 
the Independent Communications Authority of South 
Africa, those radio amateurs who will be 
attending the <http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/>FIFA 
World Cup in South Africa may use 
<http://www.amateurradio.org.za/worldcup.htm>a 
special ZS call sign during the event. SARL is 
South Africa's IARU Member-Society. After 
registering with SARL prior to arrival in South 
Africa, hams may attach ZS10 to the front of 
their own call sign (i.e. ZS10/K1SFA) from June 
11-July 11. Hams interested in obtaining 
permission to use ZS10/ must complete the form 
and <mailto:worldcup at sarl.org.za>e-mail it to 
SARL, along with a copy of their passport page 
showing the ham's photograph and a copy of their 
current Amateur Radio license. Hams will need to 
keep a both a copy of the form and their license 
while in South Africa. In anticipation of the 
World Cup, SARL and its affiliated clubs have 
been using a special event call sign -- ZS10WCS 
-- since September 2009. SARL will provide a 
commemorative QSL card for those amateurs who 
work ZS10WCS. Direct QSLs must include a 
self-addressed envelope and one IRC or US $1. 
Amateurs may also <mailto:wcs at sarl.org.za>QSL via 
e-mail, but those hams sending an e-mail QSL will 
only receive an e-mail QSL in return, and not the 
commemorative printed QSL 
card.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-05-27&p=2>
There's Still Time to Enter the 2010 ARRL Photo Contest!

Have you ever wanted to see a photo of yours in 
QST, the annual ARRL Amateur Radio Calendar or 
another ARRL publication? Well, here's your 
chance! If you're among the winners, not only 
will your photographic skill be propagated far 
and wide, but we're offering $100 as the First 
Prize. The winning photo and three runners-up 
will be published in QST. All submitted photos 
will also be considered for the 2011 ARRL 
Calendar. Hurry -- the entry deadline is June 1! 
For more information, including rules and 
requirements, click 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/there-s-still-time-to-enter-the-2010-arrl-photo-contest>here.
ARRL Field Day Merchandise Now Available

How can you be the best-dressed ham at your Field 
Day site this year? When you wear the official 
2010 ARRL Field Day shirt -- accompanied by the 
2010 ARRL Field Day hat -- of course! Field Day 
-- Amateur Radio's largest on-the-air operating 
event -- is just a little more than five weeks 
away, so be sure to get your shirts, hats and 
pins, as well as the new ARRL Field Day Handbook 
for Radio Amateurs and coffee mugs before they 
run out. Field Day shirts are offered in sizes 
Small-4XL and are royal blue with the 2010 Field 
Day logo on the left chest; the back of the shirt 
says "Amateur Radio -- Goodwill • Service • Fun!" 
with h www.arrl.org underneath. Fulfill all your 
Field Day apparel needs at the 
<http://www.arrl.org/shop/Field-Day-Supplies/>Field 
Day Supplies section of the ARRL Web site.
+ Solar Update

The Sun, as seen on Thursday, May 27, 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://www.opensourceshakespeare.org/views/plays/playmenu.php?WorkID=hamlet>So 
many journeys may the Sun and moon make us again 
count o'er, ere love be done" Cook, K7RA, 
reports: Sunspots returned this week in the form 
of group 1072; the average daily sunspot number 
for May 20-26 was 16.3, and the average daily 
solar flux rose nearly three points to 72.1. This 
was a very quiet week for geomagnetic indicators, 
with the mid-latitude A index at 0 on Sunday and 
Monday (May 23-24). The high latitude Alaska 
college A index was 0; the K index was also 0 
over all of both days, actually extending from 
1500 on May 22 through 0000 on May 25, a total of 
57 hours. The quiet will probably end, due to a 
coronal mass ejection thrusting particles toward 
Earth. Australia's IPS Radio and Space Services 
issued a warning of a minor geomagnetic storm at 
2346 on May 26. The prediction from NOAA/USAF 
calls for a planetary A index of 15, 22, 20, 22 
and 12 from May 27 through the end of the month. 
In addition to sunspot group 1072 -- which is 
currently fading and a few days away from our 
Sun's western horizon -- a new spot appears to be 
forming just above the center of the solar disk. 
You can see it on the continuously updated (every 
few minutes) image from the 
<http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/>STEREO spacecrafts. 
On Wednesday evening, it was right on the center 
0 degree meridian, north of the solar equator. By 
this Friday night, the STEREO image should cover 
about 89.5 percent of the Sun's body. Look for 
more information on the ARRL Web site on Friday, 
May 28. 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" brought to you by 
William Shakespeare's 
<http://www.opensourceshakespeare.org/views/plays/playmenu.php?WorkID=hamlet>Hamlet 
(<http://www.opensourceshakespeare.org/views/plays/play_view.php?WorkID=hamlet&Act=3&Scene=2&Scope=scene>Act 
III, Scene 2).
+ Silent Key: Robert Brown PhD, NM7M (SK)

Bob Brown, NM7M (SK)

Bob Brown, NM7M, of Anacortes, Washington, 
<http://www.webfh.com/fh/obituaries/obituary.cfm?o_id=309624&fh_id=10428&ck=1>passed 
away Sunday, May 23, from cardiac arrest. He was 
87. Brown, the husband of former ARRL 
Northwestern Division Director Mary Lou Brown, 
NM7N (SK), was known worldwide for his 
contributions to the propagation studies on 160 
meters. Brown wrote 12 articles for the ARRL from 
1998-2001 that appeared in QST, QEX and NCJ, most 
of them -- such as this 
<http://p1k.arrl.org/pubs_archive/97434>December 
1999 QST<http://p1k.arrl.org/pubs_archive/97434> 
article -- dealing with propagation and 
contesting on the low bands. He also authored an 
HF propagation tutorial that is 
<http://www.astrosurf.com/luxorion/qsl-hf-tutorial-nm7m.htm>available 
online. Brown was retired from the University of 
California where he was a physics professor at 
the Space Sciences Lab 
(<http://www.ssl.berkeley.edu/>SSL) in Berkeley; 
he also served as interim dean of UC's graduate 
school. A memorial service is planned in 
Anacortes for Wednesday, May 26. A private burial 
service is planned for a later date.
This Week on the Radio

This week, the CQWW WPX Contest (CW) is May 
29-30. The Michigan QRP Memorial Day CW Sprint is 
May 30-31. Next week, the Ten-Ten International 
Open Season Contest and the Alabama QSO Party are 
June 5-6. The CWOps Mini-CWT Test is June 9-10. 
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 Event Station Web page.
ARRL Continuing Education Course Registration

Registration remains open through Sunday, June 
20, 2010, for these 
<http://www.arrl.org/online-course-registration>online 
course sessions beginning on Friday, July 2, 
2010: Amateur Radio Emergency Communications 
Level 1; Antenna Design and Construction; 
Propagation; Analog Electronics, and Digital 
Electronics. To learn more, visit the 
<http://www.arrl.org/online-courses>CEP Course 
Listing page or contact the 
<mailto:cce at arrl.org>Continuing Education Program 
Coordinator<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&i=2010-05-27&t=r&p=0>.




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