From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Oct  1 15:34:08 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri, 01 Oct 2010 12:34:08 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] ARLP039 Propagation de K7RA
Message-ID: <201010011935.o91JZ4PL027923@pop2.greatbasin.net>

SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP039
ARLP039 Propagation de K7RA

ZCZC AP39
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 39  ARLP039
 From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA  October 1, 2010
To all radio amateurs

SB PROP ARL ARLP039
ARLP039 Propagation de K7RA

HF radio conditions were good over this past week, with average
daily sunspot numbers up more than five points to 45.3, and average
solar flux rising 1.5 points to 84.4.  On Wednesday, September 29
solar flux was 90.7.  The last time flux values were nearly this
high was August 7 at 90.5, and it last topped this value at 91.8 on
March 13, 2010.

A coronal wind on September 24 provided the moderate geomagnetic
activity for the week, with the planetary A index rising to 13.

With the end of September comes the opportunity to examine some
average sunspot numbers based on calendar months.  These numbers
look good.  Every month since early 2007 we have taken a 3-month
moving average of sunspot numbers.  The hope in the beginning was to
help us spot the bottom of the sunspot cycle without resorting to
smoothed sunspot numbers, which average a year of sunspot data.  But
three months of data allows a lot of smoothing of short term
variation.

Now at the end of September we know the 3-month average centered on
August, taking all the data from July, August and September.  It is
a simple arithmetic average in which we add all the sunspot numbers
together, then divide the sum by the number of days in those 3
months the data was taken from.

The three-month moving averages of daily sunspot numbers for October
2008 through August 2010 were 4.5, 4.4, 3.6, 2.2, 2, 1.5, 2, 4.2,
5.2, 4, 4, 4.6, 7.1, 10.2, 15.2, 22.4, 25.7, 22.3, 18.5, 16.2, 20.4,
23.2 and 28.9.  This takes into account all of the daily sunspot
numbers from September 1, 2008 through September 30, 2010.  It is
clear that there was a minimum centered around April through July
2008, and that for the past few months numbers have risen steadily.
The monthly averages for August and September 2010 were 28.2 and
35.7.

For this week NOAA and USAF predict quiet geomagnetic conditions
with a planetary A index of 5 on October 1-2, 7 for October 3-5, and
5 again on October 6-10.  Geophysical Institute Prague sees quiet
conditions October 1-3, unsettled October 4-5, and quiet October
6-7.

Dave Fisher, KA2CYN of New City (Rockland County) New York says he
had a very active weekend in the CQ World Wide RTTY Contest last
weekend, September 25-26.  With a 4-band roof-mounted rotatable
dipole and low power on 40-10 meters he made 513 contacts overall,
with 6 contacts into South America on 10 meters, and 161 QSOs into
North America on 40 meters.  20 meters was the best band into
Europe, with 101 QSOs on that band.

Andy Gudas, N7TP of Amargosa Valley, Nevada wrote: "Since we have
now entered the 'Solar Cycle That Couldn't,' is there any way to
compare where we think we are in the new sunspot cycle with an
average cycle, or maybe a really poor cycle?  I think we're
something like two years into the new cycle and not much is
happening."

Check http://www.solen.info/solar/cyclcomp.html for a graphic
comparison of Cycles 21-23, with the beginning of Cycle 24 plotted.
The time axis is marked in months since the start of the cycle,
which could be somewhat subjective.  Note that smoothed sunspot
numbers are displayed here, and since that takes a year of data to
compute, the latest number always lags the current date by about six
months.  The latest update of this chart as of October 1 was
September 4.

You can see another comparison at
http://www.solen.info/solar/solcycle.html, and note that Cycle 24 is
just a little squiggly line to the right of Cycle 23.  This page
says the current forecast is for the current cycle to peak in 2013
with a smoothed sunspot number of 50-70.  If that turns out to be
true, it will be a much lower cycle than previous ones.

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

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service web page at,
http://arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals. For an explanation of the
numbers used in this bulletin see
http://arrl.org/the-sun-the-earth-the-ionosphere. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at
http://arrl.org/w1aw-bulletins-archive-propagation.  Find more good
information and tutorials on propagation at
http://mysite.ncnetwork.net/k9la/index.html.

Monthly propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve
overseas locations are at http://arrl.org/propagation.

Instructions for starting or ending email distribution of ARRL
bulletins are at http://arrl.org/bulletins.

Sunspot numbers for September 23 through 29 were 34, 34, 40, 57, 52,
49, and 51 with a mean of 45.3. 10.7 cm flux was 84.3, 82.6, 82.9,
83.9, 83, 83.2 and 90.7 with a mean of 84.4. Estimated planetary A
indices were 5, 13, 7, 6, 6, 7 and 5 with a mean of 7. Estimated
mid-latitude A indices were 6, 9, 5, 8, 5, 7 and 2 with a mean of 6.
NNNN
/EX

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Oct  7 22:13:49 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu, 07 Oct 2010 19:13:49 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] ARLD041 DX news
Message-ID: <201010080214.o982E3V5020859@pop2.greatbasin.net>

SB DX @ ARL $ARLD041
ARLD041 DX news

ZCZC AE41
QST de W1AW
DX Bulletin 41  ARLD041
 From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  October 7, 2010
To all radio amateurs

SB DX ARL ARLD041
ARLD041 DX news

This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by
NC1L, OH2BN, The Daily DX, the OPDX Bulletin, DXNL, Contest Corral
from QST and the ARRL Contest Calendar and WA7BNM web sites.  Thanks
to all.

KENYA, 5Z.  Sig, NV7E is QRV as 5Z4EE from Nairobi and is here for
the next four years.  Activity is on 160 to 10 meters.  He will be
active in the upcoming CQWW SSB contest.  QSL to home call.

BAHAMAS, C6.  Rick, NE8Z will be QRV as C6AEZ from Nassau, New
Providence Island, IOTA NA-001, from October 11 to 16.  Activity
will be on 80 to 10 meters using CW and SSB.  QSL to home call.

EASTER ISLAND, CE0.  Rolf, DK2ZF and Martin, DK7ZB are QRV as
CE0Y/home calls until November 6.  Activity is mainly on 6 and 2
meters, and 70 cm EME.  They have also been active on 30 meters.
QSL to home calls.

BOLIVIA, CP.  Don, KV7Q and Diana, KD7TO are QRV as CP4DR and CP4DL,
respectively, for the next year or two.  Activity is on 80 to 10
meters using CW and SSB.  QSL to home calls.

CANARY ISLANDS, EA8.  Operators DJ9DW, DK1EG, DL3FCG and DL8MG are
QRV as EA8/home calls from Tenerife until October 20.  Activity is
on 80 to 10 meters using CW, SSB, RTTY and PSK.  This includes
entries on the upcoming Worked All Germany contests.  QSL to home
calls.

FRENCH POLYNESIA, FO.  Saito, JI1JKW will be QRV as FO/home call
from Tuamotu Archipelago Tikehau Atoll, IOTA OC-066, from October 10
to 14.  Activity will be on 40 to 6 meters, except 15 meters, using
CW and SSB.  QSL to home call.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, HI.  Jose, EA3GUO will be QRV as HI3/home call
and HI9/home call from Hispaniola Island, IOTA NA-096, and Cayo
Levantao Island, IOTA NA-122, respectively, from October 9 to 23.
Activity will be mainly on 20 meters using SSB.  QSL to home call.

REPUBLIC OF KOREA, HL.  Special event station HL07CJF is QRV until
October 10 in celebration of the 7th 7080 Chung-Jang Recollection
Festival Korea.  QSL via HL4CEL.

ANTARCTICA.  Otani, JE5XYT is QRV as 8J1RL from the Syowa Antarctic
Station on Ongul Island, IOTA AN-015.  He is here until February
2011.  QSL via operator's instructions.

ALAND ISLANDS, OH0.  Martti, OH2BH will be QRV as OH0B in the SAC
SSB contest.  QSL to home call.

MARKET REEF, OJ0.  Operators OH2BO and OH2PM will be QRV as OJ0B in
the SAC SSB contest.  Before and after the contest they will be
active on all bands.  QSL via OH2BH.

CURACAO, PJ2.  During the Global Amateur Radio Emergency
Communications conference on October 11 an 12, look for PJ2A to be
QRV on most HF bands.  QSL via operators' instructions.

MARSHALL ISLANDS, V7.  Yuri, N3QQ will be QRV as V73QQ from Eniwetok
Island, IOTA OC-087, from October 12 to 15.  After this operation,
he will be active as V73RRC from Ujelang Island, IOTA OC-278, from
October 16 to 19.   Activity will be on 40 to 6 meters using CW and
SSB.  QSL via N7RO.

ASCENSION ISLAND, ZD8.  Tom, K7ZZ plans to be QRV as ZD8ZZ from
October 12 to 26.  Activity will be on 160 to 10 meters using CW and
SSB.  QSL to home call.

TRISTAN DA CUNHA AND GOUGH ISLANDS, ZD9.  Ulli, DL2AH will be QRV as
ZD9AH from Tristan de Cunha from around October 10 to December 6.
Activity will be on 40, 20, 17, 12 and 10 meters using mostly SSB
with some RTTY.  This includes being entries in the upcoming Worked
All Germany, CQ WW and Japan DX contests.  QSL to home call.

PRINCE EDWARD AND MARION ISLANDS, ZS8.  Pierre, ZS1HF continues to
be QRV as ZS8M from Marion Island, IOTA AF-021.  He is active on 40,
17 and 15 meters generally between 1000 and 1930z and then around
0300 to 0500z.  QSL via ZS1X.

OPERATIONS APPROVED FOR DXCC CREDIT.  The following operations are
approved for DXCC Credit:  Democratic Republic of Congo, 9Q50ON,
2010 operation, and all operations from club station 9Q50AR.

THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO.  The North American RTTY Sprint,
Scandinavian Activity SSB Contest, YLRL DX/NA YL Anniversary
Contest, Makrothen RTTY Contest, CQ South America SSB Contest,
Oceania CW DX Contest, WAB HF Phone Contest, Pennsylvania QSO Party,
Arizona QSO Party, EU Autumn CW Sprint, FISTS Fall CW Sprint, SKCC
Weekend CW Sprint, 10-10 International 10-10 Day Sprint and the UBA
ON CW Contest will certainly keep contesters busy this weekend.  The
NAQCC Straight Key/Bug CW Sprint and CWops Mini-CWT CW Test are
scheduled for October 13.  Please see October QST, page 84 and the
ARRL and WA7BNM contest web sites for details.
NNNN
/EX

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Oct  7 22:15:56 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu, 07 Oct 2010 19:15:56 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] The ARRL Letter for October 7, 2010
Message-ID: <201010080216.o982GA8F023876@pop2.greatbasin.net>


If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at:
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2010-10-07>http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2010-10-07

October 7, 2010
Editor: <mailto:k1sfa at arrl.org>S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA
<http://www.arrl.org/>ARRL Home 
Page<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>ARRL 
Letter<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/> 
Archive<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>Audio 
News<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&i=2010-10-07&t=t>


    * + International Spotlight : IARU 
Administrative Council Updates WRC-12 Plans
    * + Amateur Radio in the Classroom : ARRL 
Teachers Institute Expands to Include Space, Electronics in the Classroom
    * Amateur Radio in the Classroom : ARRL 
Executive Committee Approves Grant Funding for Seven Schools
    * + At the Workbench : Get Ready for the ARRL Homebrew Challenge III
    * ARRL in Action : What Have We Been Up to Lately?
    * DX News : PJ Pandemonium -- Opening October 10 on an HF Band Near You
    * + Public Service : Nominations Now Being 
Accepted for the 2010 ARRL International Humanitarian Award
    * + Solar Update
    * This Week on the Radio

+ Available on <http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news>ARRL Audio News
+ International Spotlight: IARU Administrative Council Updates WRC-12 Plans

The Administrative Council (AC) of the 
International Amateur Radio Union held its annual 
meeting on October 1-2 in Salinitas, El Salvador. 
The AC is responsible for the policy and 
management of the IARU and consists of the three 
IARU international officers and two 
representatives from each of the three IARU 
regional organizations. The IARU Region 2 General 
Assembly -- held October 4-8 -- also in 
Salinitas, immediately follows the AC meeting. 
Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/iaru-administrative-council-updates-wrc-12-plans>here.

+ Amateur Radio in the Classroom: ARRL Teachers 
Institute Expands to Include Space, Electronics in the Classroom

This summer, the ARRL offered two advanced ARRL 
Teachers Institutes on Wireless Technology (TI-2) 
sessions. One session focused on how to integrate 
space into the classroom, while the other 
concentrated on basic and more advanced 
electronics concepts and ham radio operations. 
"As we gain experience as to what content is need 
to help teachers to better integrate basic 
electronics, the science of radio, 
microcontrollers and robotics into their 
curriculum, the TI program continues to be 
refined and expanded," said ARRL Education and 
Technology Program Coordinator Mark Spencer, 
WA8SME. "The TI-2 program is an offshoot of that 
effort and provides a 'graduate level' 
opportunity for graduates of the regular Teachers 
Institute sessions." Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-teachers-institute-expands-to-include-space-electronics-in-the-classroom>here.
Amateur Radio in the Classroom: ARRL Executive 
Committee Approves Grant Funding for Seven Schools

In May 2010, the ARRL Executive Committee 
reviewed grant applications for the ARRL's 
Education & Technology Program, awarding nearly 
$6400 to seven schools. More than 475 schools 
across the country have received support from the 
ETP in the form of grants for equipment, 
curriculum and resources, as well as teacher 
in-service training through the Teachers 
Institute on Wireless Technology. The Executive 
Committee reviews applications for equipment and 
resource grants twice each year, in December and 
May. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-executive-committee-approves-grant-funding-for-seven-schools>here.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-07&p=0>
+ At the Workbench: Get Ready for the ARRL Homebrew Challenge III

QEX Editor Larry Wolfgang, WR1B -- one of the HBC 
judges -- evaluates transceivers from the first 
Homebrew Challenge on the air from ARRL club 
station, W1HQ. [S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA, Photo]

The ARRL has sponsored two Homebrew Challenges in 
the past, designed to test our members' design 
and construction skills by making useful amateur 
gear at low cost -- and sharing their results 
with our members. Our first ARRL Homebrew 
Challenge, announced in QST for August 2006, 
required the construction of a 40 meter, 5 W 
voice and CW transceiver built for less than $50 
of new parts. The Second Homebrew Challenge, 
announced in February 2009, resulted in a number 
of creative designs of low cost 50 W linear 
amplifiers to follow the transceiver -- two for 
about $30, as well as a multiband amplifier with 
many features for somewhat more.

This time, we announce a challenge to build a 
transceiver in celebration of the (slow) return 
of sunspots. This challenge will be in two parts 
and readers can enter into either or both:
    * A single band 25 W SSB and CW transceiver 
for 10 or 6 meters (Option 1), with a prize of $200.
    * A 25 W SSB and CW transceiver that can be 
switched between 10 and 6 meters, using one or 
two switches (Option 2), with a prize of $300. 
Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/get-ready-for-the-arrl-homebrew-challenge-iii>here.
ARRL in Action: What Have We Been Up to Lately?

Compiled by ARRL News Editor S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA

This feature is a concise monthly update of some 
of the things ARRL is doing on behalf of its 
members. This installment -- which covers the 
month of September -- includes seeking protection 
of amateur frequencies with the FCC, representing 
the ARRL at the local, regional and national 
level, training Field Organization leaders, 
administering ARRL awards programs and more. Read 
more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-in-action-what-have-we-been-up-to-lately-26>here.
Amateur Radio in Space: Sumbandila OSCAR 67 Satellite Active Over the Americas

The FM repeater aboard the South African 
Sumbandila OSCAR 67 
(<http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/satellites/satInfo.php?satID=71&retURL=/satellites/status.php>SO-67) 
satellite will be activated over North and South 
America until Sunday, October 10. According to 
the announcement from AMSAT-NA Vice President of 
Operations Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, the repeater 
will be available for 15 minutes beginning at the following times (UTC):
    * October 7: 11:55, 14:51 and 17:57
    * October 8: 13:04, 16:06, and 19:10
    * October 9: 11:18, 14:14 and 17:20
    * October 10: 10:58, 13:56 and 17:02

The SO-67 repeater receives at 145.875 MHz FM 
(233.6 CTCSS) and re-transmits at 435.345 MHz FM. 
Local pass predictions are available from 
<http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/tools/predict/>AMSAT-NA's 
online calculator. -- Activity periods calculated by Ed Clayo, N8BBQ
DX News: PJ Pandemonium -- Opening October 10 on an HF Band Near You

By H. Ward Silver, N0AX

Not since after World War II -- with new European 
entities -- and the break-up of the French 
colonies in Africa in the early 1960s, have so 
many new possible DXCC entities come into existence all at once.

No, it's not a colorized re-release of a 1960s 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B_movie>B-grade 
beach movie. On Sunday, October 10, five islands 
in the Caribbean are all changing their 
governmental status at the same time: Saba, St 
Eustatius, Bonaire, St Maarten and Curacao. Known 
collectively as the Netherlands Antilles, these 
islands have up to now been an autonomous part of 
the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Some will remain 
within the Netherlands as "special 
municipalities" and some will become independent 
nations within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, 
just as the island nation of Aruba did back in 
1986. What this means for the HF bands is a lot 
of interference as the new DXCC entities are 
born: Two DXCC entities (the island pair of 
Bonaire & Curacao and the three-island group of 
St Maarten, Saba and St Eustatius) will be 
deleted from the DXCC list of active entities and 
be replaced by up to five new entities! Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/pj-pandemonium-opening-october-10-on-an-hf-band-near-you>here.
+ Public Service: Nominations Now Being Accepted 
for the 2010 ARRL International Humanitarian Award

The ARRL International Humanitarian Award

Nominations are open for the 2010 ARRL 
International Humanitarian Award. The award is 
conferred upon an amateur or amateurs who 
demonstrate devotion to human welfare, peace and 
international understanding through Amateur 
Radio. The League established the annual prize to 
recognize Amateur Radio operators who have used 
ham radio to provide extraordinary service to 
others in times of crisis or disaster. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/nominations-now-being-accepted-for-2010-arrl-humanitarian-award>here.
+ On the Air: Amateurs Are On the Air in 
Celebration of National Wildlife Refuge Week

This colorful QSL card commemorated a previous NWR Week operation.

Amateur Radio operators will be on the air in 
observance of the 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/nwrweek-radio.info>2010 
National Wildlife Refuge Week, scheduled for 
October 9-17. This event will coincide with 
festivals and special events at refuges that help 
connect people with nature at the country's more 
than 500 National Wildlife Refuges. Combining 
Amateur Radio's communication capabilities with 
enjoyment of the outdoors to help others learn 
about the National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) 
is the goal of the amateur stations participating 
in the nine-day event. Hams begin operating from 
a number of wildlife refuges this week under 
guidelines established in cooperation with the US 
Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Only those 
stations that have authorized, responsible access 
to refuges are sanctioned by this event. For the 
first time, the US Senate has passed a resolution 
officially recognizing National Wildlife Refuge 
Week. The resolution "recognizes the importance 
of national wildlife refuges to wildlife 
conservation and the protection of imperiled 
species and ecosystems" and "reaffirms the 
support of the Senate for wildlife conservation 
and the National Wildlife Refuge System." Visit 
the <http://nwrweek-radio.info>National Wildlife 
Refuge Week Ham Radio Web site for more 
information and a list of participating ham radio 
stations.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-07&p=2>
+ Solar Update

The Sun, as seen on Thursday, October 7, 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.youtube.com/watch?v=tgLCGurproA>Here 
comes the Sun King; everybody's laughing, 
everbody's happy" Cook, K7RA, reports: Solar 
activity quieted over the past week. There were 
no sunspots on Wednesday, October 6, and the 
average daily sunspot number declined nearly 18 
points to 27.6, compared to the previous week. 
The average daily solar flux values were off more 
than 3 points to 81. The predicted solar flux for 
the next 10 days -- October 7-16 -- is 75, 76, 
78, 78, 80, 79, 80, 80, 82 and 81. Looking at the 
<http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/>STEREO image early 
Thursday morning shows an active region in our 
Sun's southern hemisphere, just over the eastern 
horizon. Perhaps this will bring more sunspots. 
Look for more information -- including an updated 
solar forecast and reports on 15 meter activity 
-- on the ARRL Web site on Friday, October 8. 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 
John Lennon's 
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgLCGurproA>Here comes the Sun King.
On the Web: How to Submit a News Story

Visit the <http://www.arrl.org/news-tips>News 
Tips page on the ARRL Web site to submit a news 
story to our Editorial team. Your Amateur 
Radio-related news tip could end up in QST, online or in The ARRL Letter.

Here are a few hints from QST Managing Editor Joel Kleinman, N1BKE:
    * Include contact information: If the person 
sending the tip isn't the main point of contact, 
be sure to include that person's contact information.
    * Photos: When a story has a photo or two 
included, attach it to an e-mail message 
addressed to <mailto:news at arrl.org>news at arrl.org 
and include caption information, as well as the 
name and call sign of the photographer.

For those submitting a complete item rather than 
just a tip, it's best to include the usual suspects:
    * Who? Who was involved?
    * What? What happened (what's the story)?
    * When? When did it take place?
    * Where? Where did it take place?
    * Why? Why did it happen?
    * How? How did it happen?
This Week on the Radio

This week:

With a little work, the Hamtronics R303-137 
weather satellite receiver board offers a great 
way to receive fascinating weather satellite 
images. Read a review about this product, as well 
as the ICOM IC-R6 portable wideband receiver and 
Wouxun's KG-UV2D and KG-UVD1P dual-band handheld 
transceivers in the November issue of QST. Click 
<http://www.arrl.org/multimedia>here to watch the video.
    * October 8-10 -- YLRL DX/NA YL Anniversary Contest
    * October 9 -- FISTS Fall Sprint; EU Autumn Sprint (CW)
    * October 9-10 -- Arizona QSO Party; 
Pennsylvania QSO Party; CQ SA SSB Contest; 
Makrothen RTTY Contest; Oceania DX Contest (CW); 
Scandinavian Activity Contest (SSB); WAB HF Phone Contest
    * October 10 -- SKCC Weekend Sprint; North 
American Sprint (RTTY); 10-10 International 10-10 
Day Sprint; UBA ON Contest (CW)
    * October 13 -- NAQCC Straight Key/Bug Sprint
    * October 13-14 -- CWops Mini-CWT Test

Next week:
    * October 16 -- Iowa QSO Party; Feld Hell 
Sprint; Microwave Fall Sprint (local time)
    * October 16-17 -- New York QSO Party; JARTS 
WW RTTY Contest; ARCI Fall QSO Party; Worked All 
Germany Contest; PODXS 070 Club 160 Meter Great Pumpkin Sprint (local time)
    * October 17 -- Asia-Pacific Fall Sprint (CW)
    * October 17-18 -- Illinois QSO Party; Run for the Bacon QRP Contest

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 ARRL Division Conventions and Events
    * October 15-17, 2010 -- 
<http://www.pacificon.org/>ARRL Pacific Division 
Convention, San Ramon, California
    * May 20-22, 2011 -- 
<http://www.hamvention.org/>Dayton Hamvention?? 
featuring ARRL EXPO, Trotwood, Ohio
    * June 10-11, 2011 -- ARRL National 
Convention and ARRL EXPO at the 
<http://www.hamcom.org/>ARRL West Gulf Division Convention, Plano, Texas

Click <mailto:ads at arrl.org>here to advertise in this newsletter.

ARRL -- Your One-Stop Resource for Amateur Radio News and Information
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Copyright ? 2010 American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Oct  8 13:48:55 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri, 08 Oct 2010 10:48:55 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] ARLP040 Propagation de K7RA
Message-ID: <201010081749.o98HnURg000635@pop2.greatbasin.net>

SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP040
ARLP040 Propagation de K7RA

ZCZC AP40
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 40  ARLP040
 From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA  October 8, 2010
To all radio amateurs

SB PROP ARL ARLP040
ARLP040 Propagation de K7RA

Solar activity quieted down over the past week.  There were no
sunspots on Wednesday and Thursday, October 6-7, and the average
daily sunspot number declined nearly 18 points to 27.6, compared to
the previous week.  Average daily solar flux values were off over
three points to 81.  Predicted solar flux for the next ten days,
October 8-17 is 76, 78, 78, 80, 80, 80, 80, 82, 81 and 83.

The same forecast predicts a planetary A index of 5 on October 8-10,
10 on October 11, 7 on October 12-14, and 5 on October 15-17.

Looking at the STEREO image (http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/) early
Friday morning shows an active region in our Sun's southern
hemisphere passing over the eastern horizon.  This has not yet
manifested any sunspot groups.  Currently the STEREO image covers
about 94.8% of the Sun's surface.  That coverage should reach 96% at
the end of October, 97.4% at the end of November, 98.7% at the end
of this year and 99.8% at the end of January 2011.  Finally on
February 7, 2011 STEREO should reach 100% coverage.

Jeff Hartley, N8II of Shepherdstown, West Virginia sent in a report
nearly a week ago concerning Wednesday, September 29:

"Wednesday was a very good day for propagation, lots of Asiatic
Russians with good signals were worked around 0100z (Thursday Z
time) on 20 meters. Also JAs were heard after 2300z on 20 for the
first time in quite a while; JT1BV was near S9 on SSB. Thursday, my
day off, was not as good with 15 opening around 1300z (late) to EU
with some good signals mostly from southern EU. I heard no signals
all morning on 12 meters except for beacons including ZS6DN; CQs
toward ZS yielded nothing. In the evening XW1B was heard very weak
on 17 meters CW (had worked him a few days prior with better signal)
and on 20 CW at 0030 he was about S7 and commanding a CW pile-up. I
had quite a struggle catching 9M6XRO/p or 9M6DXX/p on IOTA OC-235
due to a disturbance at first, then my 20 meters amp failed and
couldn't crack the EU jungle calling on Sunday. I also had no luck
Monday around sunrise on 40 (high QRN in 9M6?), then finally
succeeded on 17 CW around 2200z Monday and that QSO was easy."

Larry Godek, W0OGH of Gilbert, Arizona send in this report on
October 1:

"What a week it's been on 15.  Europeans galore, VP8, DU, 5R8, YY0,
5X1, 8R1, 4Z5, EA7, YU, A71, OE, YO and HZ.  Early AM for the
Europeans and Middle East, around noon for Africa and the South
Atlantic/South Americas.  On the 19th I worked 7V2, 9H1 and ER4 on
SSB.  Makes you want to jump up and shout!  Now for that TS7 that
everyone is working and I can't even hear him.

"Some of the SSB contacts have been rough because I only have 100W
but playing the propagation game has paid off.  Getting thru the
Atlantic and Midwest wall is a chore indeed.  Trouble is that you
can't hear much of the folks to the east when they are working east
and south and you're working the same directions.

"I put up a 5 element 15 meter beam at 25 feet this spring expecting
great results.  Well I think it's helping a bit. A kW or bit more
power would do wonders but I'm sticking to my guns and doing it with
100W and better antennas."

Gordon Curling, VE3KKL of Kars, Ontario asked why the solar flux
numbers presented at the end of this bulletin are not the same
numbers he hears on WWV.

The solar flux values are actually from the same source at Penticton
in British Columbia.  The difference here is we present them
resolved to one-tenth of a point, but WWV rounds them off to whole
numbers.  So for example, on March 13 Gordon recorded 92 from WWV,
and the observatory reported 91.8.  On February 8 Gordon recorded 94
from WWV, and the observatory reported 93.7.

The same numbers reported on WWV are on the web at
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/ftpdir/indices/DSD.txt, and you can go to
http://snipurl.com/1a1dfj to see the original numbers.  Just look at
the noon daily reading (there are readings in the morning and
afternoon, but the noon reading is the official daily number) and
look at the observed solar flux in the fluxobsflux column.

Bob Karpinski, WB8B of Clinton Township, Michigan reports, "With the
recent spike in solar flux into the high 80s, 12 meters produced a
quick but nice little opening for me into EU around 1630z on October
2 with a 5w/QRP CW QSO with S57DX. By being in the right spot at the
right time of the day, QRP DX is still achievable and should only
get better on the higher HF bands this Winter with the flux finally
perking upwards."

On Oct 5th at 1530z Joe, CT1HZE from Southern Portugal reports a 2
meter sporadic-E opening to France.  Although the opening was just 8
minutes long and only one QSO was made with a French station over a
distance of about 1800 km, Joe notes this event is quite remarkable
as it is the first time that 2 meter Es were reported in the month
of October in Europe.

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

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service web page at
http://arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals. For an explanation of the
numbers used in this bulletin, see
http://arrl.org/the-sun-the-earth-the-ionosphere. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at
http://arrl.org/w1aw-bulletins-archive-propagation.

Monthly propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve
overseas locations are at http://arrl.org/propagation.

Instructions for starting or ending email distribution of ARRL
bulletins are at http://arrl.org/bulletins.

Find more good information and tutorials on propagation at
http://mysite.ncnetwork.net/k9la/index.html.

Sunspot numbers for September 30 through October 6 were 45, 44, 42,
28, 23, 11, and 0, with a mean of 27.6. 10.7 cm flux was 89.9, 86.7,
85, 80, 76.1, 75.4 and 74.2 with a mean of 81. Estimated planetary A
indices were 1, 3, 2, 3, 3, 6 and 8 with a mean of 3.7. Estimated
mid-latitude A indices were 1, 0, 0, 1, 2, 6 and 5 with a mean of
2.1.
NNNN
/EX

From vhfplus at gmail.com  Mon Oct 11 23:44:27 2010
From: vhfplus at gmail.com (Jack/W6NF)
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 20:44:27 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] FS
Message-ID: <AANLkTimAJ-Yi44-bhhnbrSwTB49mb7mrC+P00tYECG=D@mail.gmail.com>

A few more items for sale:

1) I have at least 200 4-foot sticks of aluminum tubing...0.250" OD and
0.050" wall (according to my digital calipers). I do not know what type of
aluminum it is but a decidedly unscientific test shows that it is harder to
bend than the solid rod from which the Cushcraft 13B2 elements are
constructed. Given the price of tubing from various sources I think $1.00
per stick is not unreasonable. I've sold more than 200 sticks at this price
so far. Shipping for 50 sticks has been $11.50 to $15.50 depending on where
it is going,

2) M-Squared 2-meter HO Loop...good condition. $40.00 plus shipping.

3) Cushcraft 10-4CD 4-element 10-meter yagi in very nice condition. Needs 3
replacement u-clamps...two for the mast bracket and one for the elements.
The mast clamps were missing when I got the antenna and I discovered a badly
galled element clamp when I tried to assemble the antenna. Suitable clamps
are available from DX Engineering. $125.00...local pickup only!



-- 
Jack, W6NF
Silver Springs, NV
DM09ji

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Oct 14 16:27:54 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu, 14 Oct 2010 13:27:54 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] ARLD042 Dissolution of Netherlands Antilles Creates Four New
 DXCC Entities
Message-ID: <201010142028.o9EKSH5p023037@pop2.greatbasin.net>

SB DX @ ARL $ARLD042
ARLD042 Dissolution of Netherlands Antilles Creates Four New DXCC
Entities

ZCZC AE42
QST de W1AW
DX Bulletin 42  ARLD042
 From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  October 14, 2010
To all radio amateurs

SB DX ARL ARLD042
ARLD042 Dissolution of Netherlands Antilles Creates Four New DXCC
Entities

The dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles has caused changes to
the DXCC List. As per the DXCC rules, the two Netherlands Antilles
DXCC entities will be deleted and moved to the Deleted Entities
List.

Four new entities will be added to the DXCC List: (1) Curacao; (2)
Sint Maarten; (3) Saba and St Eustatius, and (4) Bonaire. The event
date and time for these changes was 0400 UTC, October 10, 2010.

Confirmations for these new entities will be accepted for credit
starting January 1, 2011. Other administrative changes and actions
will be announced as they are finalized.
NNNN
/EX

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Oct 14 18:11:55 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu, 14 Oct 2010 15:11:55 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] The ARRL Letter for October 14, 2010
Message-ID: <201010142212.o9EMCKjS010462@pop2.greatbasin.net>


If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at:
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2010-10-14>http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2010-10-14

October 14, 2010
Editor: <mailto:k1sfa at arrl.org>S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA
<http://www.arrl.org/>ARRL Home 
Page<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>ARRL 
Letter<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/> 
Archive<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>Audio 
News<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&i=2010-10-14&t=t>


    * + Public Service : Amateur Radio Operators 
Provide Communications Support During Chilean Mine Rescue
    * + DXCC News : Four New Entities Placed on DXCC List
    * + International Spotlight : ARRL Marks 27th 
Year of Hosting USTTI Amateur Radio Administration Course
    * International Spotlight : Dr Hamadoun 
Tour??, HB9EHT, Re-elected ITU Secretary-General
    * + ARRL VEC Links Up with South Pole to Administer Technician Exams
    * Fifth Annual ARRL On-Line Auction Begins Next Week
    * + On the Air : Jamboree on the Air
    * + On the Air : ARRL's Logbook of The World: 
300 Million QSOs -- And Counting!
    * + Club News : IRS Offers Tools for Small 
Organizations in Danger of Losing Tax Exempt Status
    * + Solar Update
    * This Week on the Radio

+ Available on <http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news>ARRL Audio News
+ Public Service: Amateur Radio Operators Provide 
Communications Support During Chilean Mine Rescue

Chilean president Sebastian Pi??era (right) hugs 
Luis Urzua, the last miner out of the rescue hole 
at the San Jose mine near Copiapo, Chile on 
October 13, 2010. [Photo courtesy of Hugo Infante/Government of Chile]

As the last of the 33 miners who were trapped 
2300 feet deep inside the San Jos?? Mine -- 
located about 27 miles from the Chilean town of 
Copiap?? in the Atacama Desert -- rose to the 
surface at 0055 UTC on October 14, the world 
cheered in unison. The miners, who were 
underground for 69 days -- the longest time ever 
for miners to be trapped and survive -- all 
emerged relatively healthy. Amateurs with the 
Radio Club Copiap??, CE1CPI, provided 
communication support between the authorities and 
emergency equipment operators inside the San Jose 
Mine complex, as well as with family of the 
trapped miners in the complex and authorities in 
Copiap??. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/amateur-radio-operators-provide-communications-support-during-chilean-mine-rescue>here.
+ DXCC News: Four New Entities Placed on DXCC List

With the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles 
on October 10, two now-deleted DXCC entities are 
now four new DXCC entities, effective October 10, 
2010. The island pair of Bonaire and Cura??ao 
(PJ2 and PJ4, the Leeward Islands) and the 
three-island group of Sint Maarten, Saba and St 
Eustatius (PJ5, PJ6 and PJ7, the Windward 
Islands) have been deleted from the DXCC list of 
active entities and replaced with four new 
entities. Not since the aftermath of World War II 
-- with so many new European entities -- and the 
break-up of the French colonies in Africa in the 
early 1960s -- have so many new DXCC entities come into existence all at once.

On October 10, the US Department of State 
recognized the dissolution of the Netherlands 
Antilles, placing the new entities on its 
Dependencies and Areas of Special Sovereignty 
List, saying that "Cura??ao and Sint Maarten (the 
Dutch two-fifths of the island of Saint Martin) 
became autonomous territories of the Kingdom of 
the Netherlands. Bonaire, Saba, and St Eustatius 
now fall under the direct administration of the Netherlands."

According to the 
<http://www.arrl.org/files/file/DXCC/DXCC%20Rules.pdf>DXCC 
rules, entities may be added or removed from the 
<http://www.arrl.org/country-lists-prefixes>DXCC 
List as a result of political or geographic 
change. These new entities qualified to be listed 
on the DXCC List under Section 2, Rule 1(b) of 
the DXCC rules: "The entity contains a permanent 
population, is administered by a local government 
and is located at least 800 km from its parent. 
To satisfy the 'permanent population' and 
'administered by a local government' criteria of 
this sub-section, an Entity must be listed on 
either (a) the US Department of State's list of 
'Dependencies and Areas of Special Sovereignty' 
as having a local 'Administrative Center,' or (b) 
the United Nations list of 'Non-Self-Governing Territories.'"

The PJ2T station, located at Signal Point, 
Cura??ao. [Photo courtesy of the PJ2T Team]

With so many DXCC entities all coming into being 
at the same time, many amateurs made their way to 
Cura??ao (PJ2T, PJ2/OH1VR, PJ2/PB2T, PJ2A and 
PJ2MI), Sint Maarten (PJ7E, PJ7MF), Bonaire 
(PJ4B, PJ4D, PJ4I, PJ4LS and PJ4W), Saba (PJ6A) 
and St Eustatius (PJ5/AA4NC, PJ5/AH6HY and 
PJ5/K1XM) to put these new ones on the air. 
Beginning at 0400 UTC on October 10, the airwaves 
were filled with those looking to snag these new 
entities; just days after the entities became 
"live," stations on the islands had made more than 15,000 QSOs on SSB and CW.

Per the ARRL DXCC Desk, no confirmations for 
these new entities will be accepted until after 
January 1, 2011; other administrative changes 
will be announced as they are finalized. Look for 
more information on the ARRL Web site, in 
upcoming editions of The ARRL Letter and in the December 2010 issue of QST.
+ International Spotlight: ARRL Marks 27th Year 
of Hosting USTTI Amateur Radio Administration Course

The USTTI ARAC course, led by ARRL Chief 
Technology Officer Brennan Price, N4QX (left), 
brought six international students made their way 
to ARRL HQ for the four-day course. Executive 
Officer and Meeting Planner Lisa Kustosik, KA1UFZ 
(far right), coordinated the ARRL's participation 
with USTTI. [S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA, Photo]

Students from the Philippines, Ethiopia, Ghana, 
Brazil and Nigeria attended the United States 
Telecommunications Training Institute (USTTI) 
Amateur Radio Administration Course at ARRL 
Headquarters September 27-October 1. ARRL Chief 
Technology Officer Brennan Price, N4QX, 
coordinated the session and led the course. ARRL 
Assistant to the Chief Executive Officer and 
Meeting Planner Lisa Kustosik, KA1UFZ, 
coordinated ARRL's participation with USTTI. Read 
more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-marks-27th-year-of-hosting-ustti-arac-course>here. 
<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-14&p=0>
International Spotlight: Dr Hamadoun Tour??, 
HB9EHT, Re-elected ITU Secretary-General

On October 7 during the morning session of the 
18th ITU Plenipotentiary Conference -- held in 
Guadalajara, Mexico -- Member States of the 
International Telecommunication Union (ITU) 
re-elected Dr Hamadoun Tour??, HB9EHT, of Mali, 
as ITU Secretary-General. This will be his second 
four-year term. Dr Tour??, who ran unopposed, won 
the position with 151 votes, with 157 countries present and voting.

The next day, 
<http://www.itu.int/plenipotentiary/2010/elections/results/index.html#br>Fran??ois 
Rancy of France was elected as Director of the 
ITU's Radiocommunication Bureau (BR), capturing 
90 of 157 votes. The BR plays a key role in 
global communications, managing the distribution 
of international frequency spectrum and the 
allocation of satellite orbits. According to the 
ITU, Rancy will face several challenges, 
including WRC-12. The conference will tackle 
issues that include a review of the international 
framework for radiocommunication (including 
Amateur Radio), the identification of appropriate 
mechanisms to address what the ITU called "the 
so-called digital dividend of radio spectrum" 
freed up by the switch to digital TV and the 
identification of spectrum resources for 
maritime, aeronautical, meteorological and 
climatology. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/itu-secretary-general-deputy-secretary-general-elected-today-by-plenipotentiary-conference>here.
+ ARRL VEC Links Up with South Pole to Administer Technician Exams

Six men and two women took and passed their 
Technician exam at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole 
Station in via video link with the ARRL VEC In 
Newington. [Ernie Gray, W1MRQ, Photo]

While much of the United States was enjoying a 
beautiful autumn day on October 8, those who 
winter over at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole 
Station were experiencing a typical day for their 
clime, a day in the -70s (yes, you read that 
right -- 70 below 0 degrees Fahrenheit). But 
though the day was indeed frigid, six men and two 
women at Amundsen-Scott didn't feel the cold as 
they were too excited (and maybe just a touch 
nervous), knowing they were going to be part of 
the first Amateur Radio license exam session ever 
held at the South Pole. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/the-weather-outside-was-frightful-during-first-antarctic-ve-session>here.
Fifth Annual ARRL On-Line Auction Begins Next Week

The Fifth Annual 
<http://www.arrl.org/auction>ARRL On-Line Auction 
will be open for preview beginning at 10:15 AM 
(EDT) on Friday, October 15, and will open for 
bidding at 10 AM (EDT) on Wednesday, October 20. 
According to Business Services Manager and 
Auction Coordinator Deb Jahnke, K1DAJ, there is a 
large assortment of ARRL Product Review items, 
donated new and vintage equipment, rare books, 
one-of-a-kind items and more. "If readers are 
interested in some great bargains and some great 
fun, you really need to check this out," she 
said. Jahnke also encouraged visitors to visit 
the site to preregister and scope out those 
"must-have" items. She expressed gratitude to the 
ARRL Business Partners and individual donors who 
have contributed items to this event. The 2010 
ARRL On-Line Auction runs through 11:59 PM (EDT) 
October 25, 2010.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-14&p=1>
+ On the Air: Jamboree on the Air

The 53rd Annual Jamboree on the Air (JOTA) will 
once agian provide an opportunity for Scouts to 
get on the air and get a taste of the fun and 
magic of radio. JOTA is an international scouting 
event organized by the World Scouting Bureau. 
While JOTA officially starts at 12 midnight local 
time Friday night/Saturday morning and goes until 
midnight Sunday local time, there will be plenty 
of stations on the air Friday evening. The 
official Scouting frequencies will be the center 
of operations. A listing of those frequencies, 
information about third party traffic 
restrictions and other details can be found on 
the ARRL Web site or on the World Scouting site. 
Each JOTA event provides an opportunity for a 
local club or Scout troop to get something 
started that can result in the beginning of a 
tradition of fun-filled activities. JOTA takes 
place starting Saturday at midnight local time, 
Saturday, October 16 and goes to 11.59 PM local 
time on Sunday, October 17. Some activity 
continues over from Friday to Monday to take 
advantage of long distance (DX) time differences 
Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/jamboree-on-the-air-coming-this-weekend-to-a-radio-near-you>here.
+ On the Air: ARRL's Logbook of The World: 300 Million QSOs -- And Counting!

Congratulations to Victor Morozov, RD3PQ, for 
submitting QSO number 300 million to the ARRL 
Logbook of The World (LoTW)! His QSO with Ivan 
Gombos, SV2/OM3CGN, on October 5, 2010 did the 
trick. To date, Morozov has submitted nearly 6300 
contacts to LoTW and will receive free DXCC and 
Worked All States awards for his well-placed log.

"We're very pleased with the high level of use 
and acceptance of LoTW from operators around the 
world," said ARRL Membership and Volunteer 
Programs Manager Dave Patton, NN1N. "January 2011 
marks the 10 year anniversary of the ARRL's 
announcement of the LoTW system. While it has 
taken longer than anyone expected to return to 
building-out the system, progress is being made. 
ARRL's programmers are working hard to improve 
usability and to add support for the VUCC award, 
and we have received valuable assistance from 
volunteers in the development of the system and 
software." Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/logbook-of-the-world-300-million-qsos-and-counting>here.
+ Club News: IRS Offers Tools for Small 
Organizations in Danger of Losing Tax Exempt Status

Back in May, we told you that 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/many-radio-clubs-could-lose-tax-exempt-status-in-2010>the 
IRS could revoke the non-profit status of small 
organizations -- including Amateur Radio clubs -- 
that have failed to file annual returns or 
reports for three years. According to ARRL 
Southwestern Division Director Marty Woll, N6VI, 
many clubs have, at some time in the past, 
applied for tax-exempt status as charitable 
organizations under 
<http://www.irs.gov/charities/charitable/article/0,,id=96099,00.html>Section 
501(c)(3), as civic leagues under 
<http://www.irs.gov/charities/nonprofits/article/0,,id=96178,00.html>Section 
501(c)(4) or as recreational clubs using 
<http://www.irs.gov/charities/nonprofits/article/0,,id=96189,00.html>Section 
501(c)(7): "Years ago, any club with gross 
receipts averaging less than $25,000 per year was 
not required to file annual returns with the IRS; 
however, after 2006, such clubs had to file a 
<http://www.irs.gov/charities/article/0,,id=169250,00.html>Form 
990-N, a simple 'electronic postcard' with 
minimal information, by the 15th day of the fifth 
month after the close of each fiscal year. Some 
clubs may not have been aware of this new 
requirement or didn't bother to comply. Even 
those that filed in a prior year may have 
neglected to keep up with the required filings as 
officers changed from year to year." Now the IRS 
is making several tools available to these 
organizations to help them maintain their 
tax-exempt status. Check out 
<http://www.irs.gov/charities/article/0,,id=227435,00.html>this 
page on the IRS Web site for links to a series of 
resources that clubs may find 
useful.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-14&p=2>
+ Solar Update

The Sun, as seen on Thursday, October 14, 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.youtube.com/watch?v=eq7DGPYzAvg>For 
tomorrow may rain, so I'll follow the Sun" Cook, 
K7RA, reports: Solar activity was down this week, 
although it is now gradually strengthening. The 
average daily sunspot numbers dropped nearly 16 
points to 11.7, and the average daily solar flux 
declined more than 5 points to 75.8. Over the 
next two weeks, the solar flux is expected to 
gradually increase to 80 on October 14-16, 82 on 
October 17-21, 80 on October 22-25 and 85 on 
October 26-29. The increase is expected from 
sunspot group 1112 -- emerging on October 9 -- 
and group 1113 that appeared on October 13, 
rotating over the Sun's eastern limb. The 
<http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/>STEREO mission 
shows a series of magnetically active areas on 
our Sun's far side, which should rotate into 
view. Geomagnetic activity is expected to be 
stable, with the planetary A index moving between 
5 and 8. The predicted planetary A index is 5 on 
October 14-15, 8 on October 16-17, 5 on October 
18-20, 8 on October 21-22, 5 on October 23, 8 on 
October 24-25 and 5 on October 26-29. Over the 
past week, the geomagnetically active day was 
Monday, October 11, when the planetary A index 
was 20 and the planetary K index went as high as 
5. Alaska's College A index was 49, based on a 
College K index as high as 7. This activity was 
pushed by a strong solar wind. Look for more 
information -- including a look at some methods 
for taking these numbers and predicting 
propagation for yourself from your location to 
any other worldwide location of interest, on any 
day or band -- on the ARRL Web site on Friday, 
October 15. 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 
Paul McCartney's 
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq7DGPYzAvg>I'll Follow the Sun.
This Week on the Radio

This week:
    * October 16 -- Iowa QSO Party; Feld Hell 
Sprint; Microwave Fall Sprint (local time)
    * October 16-17 -- New York QSO Party; JARTS 
WW RTTY Contest; ARCI Fall QSO Party; Worked All 
Germany Contest; PODXS 070 Club 160 Meter Great Pumpkin Sprint (local time)
    * October 17 -- Asia-Pacific Fall Sprint (CW)
    * October 17-18 -- Illinois QSO Party; Run for the Bacon QRP Contest

Next week:
    * October 23 -- FOC QSO Party
    * October 23-24 -- Stew Perry Topband 
Challenge; 10-10 International Fall Contest (CW); 
W/VE Islands QSO Party; Araucaria VHF Contest; SYLRA Contest
    * October 27 -- SKCC Sprint

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 ARRL Division Conventions and Events
    * October 15-17, 2010 -- 
<http://www.pacificon.org/>ARRL Pacific Division 
Convention, San Ramon, California
    * May 20-22, 2011 -- 
<http://www.hamvention.org/>Dayton Hamvention?? 
featuring ARRL EXPO, Trotwood, Ohio
    * June 10-11, 2011 -- ARRL National 
Convention and ARRL EXPO at the 
<http://www.hamcom.org/>ARRL West Gulf Division Convention, Plano, Texas

Click <mailto:ads at arrl.org>here to advertise in this newsletter.

ARRL -- Your One-Stop Resource for Amateur Radio News and Information
    * <http://www.arrl.org/join>Join or Renew 
Today! ARRL membership includes 
<http://www.arrl.org/qst>QST , Amateur Radio's 
most popular and informative journal, delivered to your mailbox each month.
    * Subscribe to 
<http://www.arrl.org/ncj>NCJ<http://www.arrl.org/ncj> 
-- the National Contest Journal . Published 
bimonthly, features articles by top contesters, 
letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprint and QSO Parties.
    * Subscribe to 
<http://www.arrl.org/qex>QEX<http://www.arrl.org/qex> 
-- A Forum for Communications Experimenters. 
Published bimonthly, features technical articles, 
construction projects, columns and other items of 
interest to radio amateurs and communications professionals.
    * Free of charge to ARRL members: 
<http://www.arrl.org/myarrl-account-management#%21/edit-info-email_subscriptions>Subscribe 
to the ARES E-Letter (monthly public service and 
emergency communications news), the ARRL Contest 
Update (bi-weekly contest newsletter), Division 
and Section news alerts -- and much more!
    * ARRL offers a wide array of 
<http://www.arrl.org/arrl-store>products to 
enhance your enjoyment of Amateur Radio
    * 
<https://www.arrl.org/files/file/donation-form.pdf>Donate 
to the fund of your choice -- support programs not funded by member dues!
<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&i=2010-10-14&t=r&p=0>





----------
The ARRL Letter is published Thursdays, 50 times 
each year. ARRL members and registered guests may 
subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing 
their <http://www.arrl.org/Users/edit#!/edit-info-email_subscriptions>profile.

Copyright ? 2010 American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Oct 15 11:08:24 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri, 15 Oct 2010 08:08:24 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] ARLP041 Propagation de K7RA
Message-ID: <201010151508.o9FF8kNB032296@pop2.greatbasin.net>

SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP041
ARLP041 Propagation de K7RA

ZCZC AP41
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 41  ARLP041
 From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA  October 15, 2010
To all radio amateurs

SB PROP ARL ARLP041
ARLP041 Propagation de K7RA

Solar activity dropped again this week, although it is now gradually
strengthening.  Average daily sunspot numbers declined nearly 16
points to 11.7, and average daily solar flux dropped over five
points to 75.8.  Over the next two weeks solar flux is expected to
gradually increase, from 80 on October 15-16, 82 on October 17, 84
on October 18-22, 80 on October 23-25, and 85 on October 26-29.

The reporting week (the data at the end of this bulletin) runs
through Wednesday, October 13, and on Thursday, October 14 the
sunspot number rose from 24 to 34, and solar flux increased from
78.1 to 80.4.

The increase is expected from sunspot group 1112, emerging on
October 9, and group 1113, which appeared on October 13 rotating
over the eastern limb.  On October 14 new sunspot group 1114
appeared.  The STEREO mission at http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov shows a
series of magnetically active areas on our Sun's far side, which
will gradually rotate into view.

A very rough estimate of the transit time involved can be made by
assuming that a full rotation of the Sun is about 27.5 days.  Each
of those 12 longitudinal divisions on the rotating solar globe at
the STEREO site therefore each represent approximately 55 hours, or
about 2.29 days.  This can be used as a rough guide to the time it
takes for any area of interest to move over the eastern horizon.

Geomagnetic activity is expected to be stable, with planetary A
index moving between five and eight.  Predicted planetary A index is
7 on October 15, 8 on October 16-17, 5 on October 18, 7 on October
19-20, 5 on October 21-23, 8 on October 24-25, and 5 on October
26-29.

The Geomagnetic Department of Geophysical Institute Prague predicts
quiet conditions on October 15, quiet to unsettled October 16, quiet
October 17-20, and quiet to unsettled again on October 21.

Note the solar flux and A index data in the first and fifth
paragraphs is updated from similar data in yesterday's ARRL Letter.
You can see daily updates of this predicted data at
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/ftpmenu/forecasts/45DF.html.

Over the past week the most active geomagnetic day was Monday,
October 11, when the planetary A index was 20 and the planetary K
index went as high as 5.  Alaska's College A index was 49, based on
a College K index as high as 7.  This activity was pushed by a
strong solar wind.

There is an interesting and educational web page devoted to
heliophysics from the University Corporation for Atmospheric
Research in Boulder, Colorado.  See it at
http://www.vsp.ucar.edu/Heliophysics.

Richard Dowty, W7EET of St. Paul, Oregon isn't sure what to do with
the data presented in this bulletin.  He would rather see reports
that predict the MUF for the next week, tell him which bands will be
good or bad, and information of a more practical nature.

One problem with this is that MUF (Maximum Usable Frequency) is
different for different paths and at different times.  Generally MUF
should be higher when there are more sunspots.  We could make very
general statements such as "West coast stations should be able to
hear Japan on 20 meters from 2000-0230z and again at 0400-0430z,
with best signals from 2030-0030z, and 17 meters at 2130-0130z," but
that projection was actually done for Seattle.

A similar prediction for San Diego (two extremes) should say 20
meters to Japan from 2030-0330z, with signals 5-10 dB lower than the
path from Seattle, and 17 meters from 2100-0300z.  One could pick a
mid-point, such as around Red Bluff or Garberville, California, but
this produces a third set of data that doesn't really apply to the
north and south west coast extremes.

Years ago this bulletin would pick some point somewhere in North
America, and make projections toward different continents.  An
example is in Propagation Forecast Bulletin ARLP016 from 1999, which
you can see in the archive of propagation bulletins at
http://www.arrl.org/w1aw-bulletins-archive/ARLP016/1999.  This sort
of information was very popular, but the bulletin wasn't big enough
to handle all of the permutations of predictions for many locations
to many other locations.

But now we have some good free tools for doing this, such as
W6ELprop, which you can download at http://www.qsl.net/w6elprop.
This way you can see what likely propagation might be from your
location to anywhere else, and this works better than reading a
generalization in this bulletin.  Another approach is to look at the
monthly propagation charts linked toward the end of this bulletin.

Propagation programs are designed to use the projected smoothed
sunspot number for the month, which you can find in about every
fourth issue of the Preliminary Report and Forecast at
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/weekly/index.html.  For example, if you
look in issue 1831, on page 10 it shows a predicted smoothed sunspot
number for October 2010 of 33.  The smoothed number is actually an
average of monthly sunspot numbers for one year, six months forward
and six months back, so half the data that goes into this average is
the predicted data for the next six months, while the rest is the
record of sunspot numbers for the last six months.

Propagation programs then make a prediction that basically says half
the time conditions will be better than this value, and half the
time worse.

W6ELprop can handle either sunspot numbers or solar flux, and for a
more recent set of data some have suggested just averaging the past
five days of solar flux from
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/ftpdir/indices/DSD.txt and using that
number.  W6ELprop also uses K index, and you can get the most recent
mid-latitude K index from
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/ftpdir/indices/DGD.txt.  But no propagation
program is designed to make predictions based on daily fluctuations
of either solar flux or sunspot number.

To find the latitude/longitude coordinates for you location, just go
to http://maps.google.com and enter an address.  In this example, I
will use 2832 SE Indiana Ave, Topeka, KS, and click "Search Maps."
Just above the upper right corner of the map click on Link and hit
Ctrl-C to copy the link displayed, then paste it into Notepad or
some other editor by hitting Ctrl-V.

Find the address in the link you've just pasted, and note that the
coordinates are just to the right, listing latitude first, longitude
second.  In this case it is 39.015909 and -95.660564, which can be
expressed as 39.02 or 39.016 degrees north latitude, and 95.66 or
95.661 degrees west longitude.  Note the convention is for longitude
to be expressed in degrees east, so west longitude appears as a
negative number.  W6ELprop uses the opposite convention, so west
longitude is a positive number.

You can use this method to find coordinates for any location of
interest, and enter it into the atlas portion of W6ELprop for future
reference.

For a good tutorial, check the link toward the end of this bulletin
for http://arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals and look for the title
"An Introductory Tutorial to W6ELprop."

In closing, check the November 2010 issue of QST on page 30 for an
article about using WSPR for studying propagation paths.

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

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service web page at
http://arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals. For an explanation of the
numbers used in this bulletin, see
http://arrl.org/the-sun-the-earth-the-ionosphere. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at
http://arrl.org/w1aw-bulletins-archive-propagation.  Find more good
information and tutorials on propagation at
http://mysite.ncnetwork.net/k9la/index.html.

Monthly propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve
overseas locations are at http://arrl.org/propagation.

Instructions for starting or ending email distribution of ARRL
bulletins are at http://arrl.org/bulletins.

Sunspot numbers for October 7 through 13 were 0, 11, 12, 13, 11, 11,
and 24, with a mean of 11.7. 10.7 cm flux was 75.1, 74.9, 76.4,
75.9, 75.3, 75.2 and 78.1 with a mean of 75.8. Estimated planetary A
indices were 4, 4, 4, 2, 20, 10 and 4 with a mean of 6.9. Estimated
mid-latitude A indices were 2, 3, 3, 1, 10, 7 and 3 with a mean of
4.1.
NNNN
/EX

From vhfplus at gmail.com  Sun Oct 17 22:08:44 2010
From: vhfplus at gmail.com (Jack/W6NF)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2010 19:08:44 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] Mast FS
Message-ID: <AANLkTi=usf4ESwqq69SvYK9Qvh28aLHXDCeTq8UWZ_0m@mail.gmail.com>

I have a 40-foot galvanized steel push-up mast available. It's in good
condition with locking screws and guy rings. $40.00...pick up in Silver
Springs.


-- 
Jack, W6NF
Silver Springs, NV
DM09ji

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Oct 21 16:56:39 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu, 21 Oct 2010 13:56:39 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] The ARRL Letter for October 21, 2010
Message-ID: <201010212057.o9LKvPmb032598@pop2.greatbasin.net>


If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at:
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2010-10-21>http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2010-10-21

October 21, 2010
Editor: <mailto:k1sfa at arrl.org>S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA
<http://www.arrl.org/>ARRL Home 
Page<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>ARRL 
Letter<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/> 
Archive<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>Audio 
News<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&i=2010-10-21&t=t>


    * + IARU News : Information Exchange and 
Camaraderie Highlight IARU Region 2 Conference
    * + ARRL Executive Committee to Meet this Weekend
    * + Amateur Radio in Space : ARISSat-1 Tops 
Agenda at AMSAT-NA's Annual Meeting
    * Support ARRL : ARRL Annual On-Line Auction Now Open for Bidding
    * + Defending the Amateur Radio Spectrum: Everyone's Responsibility
    * + ARRL HQ News : Dewey Rykard, KI4RGD, 
Joins ARRL Staff as Instruction and Resource Coordinator
    * + Solar Update
    * This Week on the Radio
    * Upcoming ARRL Division Conventions and Events

+ Available on <http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news>ARRL Audio News
+ IARU News: Information Exchange and Camaraderie 
Highlight IARU Region 2 Conference

The 58 delegates and observers who gathered in 
Salinitas, Sonsonate, El Salvador for the 17th 
General Assembly of IARU Region 2 experienced a 
busy and enjoyable week. The conference began on 
October 4 and concluded on October 8. Twelve IARU 
Member-Societies in the Americas were represented 
in person, with another seven represented by 
proxy. President Kay Craigie, N3KN, served as the 
voting delegate for the ARRL and was assisted by 
International Affairs Vice President Jay Bellows, 
K0QB, and Executive Vice President David Sumner, 
K1ZZ. Observers from IARU Regions 1 and 3 and the 
International Secretariat were present to assist 
and to learn from the conferees. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/information-exchange-and-camaraderie-highlight-iaru-region-2-conference>here.
+ ARRL Executive Committee to Meet this Weekend

At its January 2010 meeting, the ARRL Board of 
Directors decided to make the agendas of Board 
and Executive Committee meetings available on the 
ARRL Web site. The agenda for the October 23 
meeting of the Executive Committee is 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-executive-committee-to-meet-in-st-louis-this-weekend>now 
available.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-21&p=0>
+ Amateur Radio in Space: ARISSat-1 Tops Agenda at AMSAT-NA's Annual Meeting

This spaceframe and payload was one of several 
identical units produced by the ARISSat-1 
development team and was on display at the 2010 
AMSAT-NA Space Symposium and Annual Meeting in 
Elk Grove, Illinois, October 8-10. A twin unit is 
scheduled to be manually released from the 
International Space Station in early 2011. [Brennan Price, N4QX, Photo]

The development and next year's scheduled launch 
of ARISSat-1 were the main topics of discussion 
at the 2010 AMSAT-NA Space Symposium and Annual 
Meeting, held October 8-10, 2010, in Elk Grove, 
Illinois. ARISSat-1 has been delivered to NASA to 
undergo final preparations for delivery to the 
International Space Station. ARISSat-1 is 
scheduled to be manually released into orbit 
during an ISS spacewalk early next year. The 
ARISSat-1 project began when 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/suitsat-2-now-called-arissat-1>plans 
for SuitSat-2 had to be shelved for lack of a 
space suit. The development team undertook the 
task of housing the payload planned for SuitSat-2 
in a more traditional housing adapted for manual 
deployment. A few units were developed to have on 
standby for future launch opportunities; one of 
these units was on display at the Symposium. Read 
more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/arissat-1-tops-agenda-at-amsat-na-s-annual-meeting>here.
Support ARRL: ARRL Annual On-Line Auction Now Open for Bidding

The Fifth Annual 
<http://www.arrl.org/auction>ARRL On-Line Auction 
opened for bidding at 10 AM (EDT) on Wednesday, 
October 20. According to Business Services 
Manager and ARRL On-Line Auction Coordinator Deb 
Jahnke, K1DAJ, there is a large assortment of 
ARRL Product Review items, donated new and 
vintage equipment, rare books, one-of-a-kind 
items and more. "If readers are interested in 
some great bargains and some great fun, you 
really need to check this out," she said. She 
expressed gratitude to the ARRL Business Partners 
and individual donors who have contributed items 
to this event. The 2010 ARRL On-Line Auction runs 
through 11:59 PM (EDT) October 25, 
2010.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-21&p=1>
+ Defending the Amateur Radio Spectrum: Everyone's Responsibility

The second edition of Spectrum Defense Matters -- 
a newsletter aimed at keeping ARRL members 
updated on issues related to the protection of 
Amateur Radio frequencies -- has just been 
released on the ARRL Web site. This newsletter 
covers both domestic and international topics 
related to the Amateur Radio spectrum. Your 
financial support is vital to continue the ARRL's 
work to protect your operating privileges. You 
can do this by 
<http://www.arrl.org/arrl-donation-form>contributing 
generously to the ARRL Spectrum Defense Fund.

"We are facing very real and immediate challenges 
[to the amateur spectrum]," said ARRL Chief 
Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ. "Over the 
past couple of months, we have addressed FCC 
spectrum management issues affecting our 430 MHz 
and 2.3 GHz bands, as well as interference from 
unlicensed stations operating in the lower part 
of 10 meters." But Sumner said that opportunities 
lurk among the challenges: "A possible new 
amateur band just below the AM broadcast band is 
on the agenda of the 2012 World 
Radiocommunication Conference. We face 
significant hurdles in getting what would be at 
best a secondary allocation, but we're working 
hard to persuade the radio services in this part 
of the spectrum that an amateur allocation is 
compatible with their future requirements. We 
recently gained crucial support [for this allocation] in the United States."

Sumner said that it takes what he called "a 
concerted global effort to protect Amateur 
Radio's access to the radio spectrum and guard 
against interference that reduces our ability to 
communicate." You can take an important step 
right now to support ARRL's commitment to 
defending the Amateur Radio Spectrum. According 
to ARRL Chief Development Officer Mary Hobart, 
K1MMH, the ARRL is almost $194,000 shy of its 
Spectrum Defense Fund goal of raising $325,000 by the December 31 deadline.

"Please make a generous contribution to the 
Spectrum Defense Fund by mail, on the 
<http://www.arrl.org/arrl-donation-form>Web or by 
phone," she said. "Perhaps you'll consider a very 
easy way to contribute by pledging $10 or $20 or 
$100 a month. Your financial commitment, over and 
above your annual dues, will ensure that ARRL has 
the resources to represent you and protect your 
operating frequencies." To make a donation via 
mail, please send to Spectrum Defense Fund, ARRL, 
225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111. To make a 
contribution over the phone, or to discuss other 
giving options, please call 860-594-0397. Read 
more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/defending-the-amateur-radio-spectrum-everyone-s-responsibility>here.
+ ARRL HQ News: Dewey Rykard, KI4RGD, Joins ARRL 
Staff as Instruction and Resource Coordinator

ARRL Instruction and Resource Coordinator Dewey 
Rykard, KI4RGD [S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA, Photo]

The ARRL is pleased to welcome Instruction and 
Resource Coordinator Dewey Rykard II, KI4RGD, to 
the Headquarters staff in Newington. Rykard, who 
will be working in the League's Education 
Services Department, will focus on developing and 
identifying resources for ARRL instructors. He 
also will play an integral role in the annual 
series of Teachers Institutes in Wireless 
Technology, sponsored by the ARRL and held every 
spring and summer around the country.

In his position at ARRL HQ, Rykard will be 
assisting Education Services Manager Debra 
Johnson, K1DMJ. His responsibilities will include 
reviewing and organizing resources needed by 
instructors, teachers and Scout leaders, 
developing lesson plans to be utilized by ARRL 
Registered Instructors and for the ARRL's Education & Technology
Program (ETP), providing guidance in the 
development of ARRL license study manuals and 
coordinating the ARRL's educational award 
program. In addition, Rykard will provide support 
for the ETP, participate in the Teachers 
Institute trainings, help to provide ongoing 
resource support for teachers and assist with 
administration of the ETP. You may meet him at 
the ARRL booth at conventions where he will 
represent ARRL Education Services programs. Read 
more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/dewey-rykard-ki4rgd-joins-arrl-staff-as-instruction-and-resource-coordinator>here.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-21&p=2>
+ Solar Update

The Sun, as seen on Thursday, October 20, 2010 
from 
<http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/data/realtime/realtime-update.html>NASA's 
SOHO Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope. This 
<http://soi.stanford.edu/>MDI (Michelson Doppler 
Imager) image was taken in the continuum near the 
Ni I 6768 Angstrom line. The most prominent 
features are the sunspots. This is very much how 
the Sun looks in the visible range of the spectrum.

Tad 
"<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-2lMstw6qs>The 
Sun is up, the sky is blue; it's beautiful and so 
are you" Cook, K7RA, reports: The average sunspot 
numbers for the week were up nearly 44 points to 
55.6, but the average solar flux readings were 
unchanged, at 84.9. A few days ago, the solar 
flux values rose above 90, but currently the 
projection from USAF and NOAA for solar flux over 
October 21-31 is 84, 83, 82, 82, 82, 80, 78, 80, 
85, 80 and 80. Seven new sunspot groups arrived 
since October 9: group 1112 came on October 9; 
group 1113 on October 13; 1114 and 1115 on 
October 14; 1116 on October 17, and 1117 and 1118 
on October 19. While the average sunspot number 
for the past week was 55.6, the greatest sunspot 
activity was over the past few days, with the 
daily sunspot numbers on October 17-20 at 61, 69, 
65 and 61. Look for more information on the ARRL 
Web site on Friday, October 22. 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 
John Lennon's <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dear_Prudence>Dear Prudence.
This Week on the Radio

This week:
    * October 23 -- FOC QSO Party
    * October 23-24 -- Stew Perry Topband 
Challenge; 10-10 International Fall Contest (CW); 
W/VE Islands QSO Party; Araucaria VHF Contest; SYLRA Contest
    * October 27 -- SKCC Sprint

Next week:
    * October 30-31 -- 
<http://www.arrl.org/eme-contest>ARRL EME 
Contest; CQ Worldwide DX Contest (SSB); 10-10 
International Fall Contest (Digital); 50 MHz Fall Sprint
    * November 2 -- ARS Spartan Sprint

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 ARRL Division Conventions and Events
    * May 20-22, 2011 -- 
<http://www.hamvention.org/>Dayton Hamvention?? 
featuring ARRL EXPO, Trotwood, Ohio
    * June 10-11, 2011 -- ARRL National 
Convention and ARRL EXPO at the 
<http://www.hamcom.org/>ARRL West Gulf Division Convention, Plano, Texas

Click <mailto:ads at arrl.org>here to advertise in this newsletter.

ARRL -- Your One-Stop Resource for Amateur Radio News and Information
    * <http://www.arrl.org/join>Join or Renew 
Today! ARRL membership includes 
<http://www.arrl.org/qst>QST , Amateur Radio's 
most popular and informative journal, delivered to your mailbox each month.
    * Subscribe to 
<http://www.arrl.org/ncj>NCJ<http://www.arrl.org/ncj> 
-- the National Contest Journal . Published 
bimonthly, features articles by top contesters, 
letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprint and QSO Parties.
    * Subscribe to 
<http://www.arrl.org/qex>QEX<http://www.arrl.org/qex> 
-- A Forum for Communications Experimenters. 
Published bimonthly, features technical articles, 
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interest to radio amateurs and communications professionals.
    * Free of charge to ARRL members: 
<http://www.arrl.org/myarrl-account-management#%21/edit-info-email_subscriptions>Subscribe 
to the ARES E-Letter (monthly public service and 
emergency communications news), the ARRL Contest 
Update (bi-weekly contest newsletter), Division 
and Section news alerts -- and much more!
    * ARRL offers a wide array of 
<http://www.arrl.org/arrl-store>products to 
enhance your enjoyment of Amateur Radio
    * 
<https://www.arrl.org/files/file/donation-form.pdf>Donate 
to the fund of your choice -- support programs not funded by member dues!
<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&i=2010-10-21&t=r&p=0>





----------
The ARRL Letter is published Thursdays, 50 times 
each year. ARRL members and registered guests may 
subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing 
their <http://www.arrl.org/Users/edit#!/edit-info-email_subscriptions>profile.

Copyright ? 2010 American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Oct 21 20:19:33 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu, 21 Oct 2010 17:19:33 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] ARLD044 DX news
Message-ID: <201010220020.o9M0KOix026259@pop2.greatbasin.net>

SB DX @ ARL $ARLD044
ARLD044 DX news

ZCZC AE44
QST de W1AW
DX Bulletin 44  ARLD044
 From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  October 21, 2010
To all radio amateurs

SB DX ARL ARLD044
ARLD044 DX news

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

AZERBAIJAN, 4J.  A group of operators are QRV as 4J0WFF from Gey-Gel
Lake Natural Reserve until October 25.  Activity is on 40 to 12
meters.  QSL via 4J5T.

MADAGASCAR, 5R.  A group of operators will be QRV as 5R8X from
Antananarivo, IOTA AF-013, from October 26 to November 10.  Activity
is on the HF bands.  This includes being an entry in the upcoming CQ
WW DX contest.  QSL via operators' instructions.

MALDIVES, 8Q.  Jim, G3VDB will be QRV as 8Q7EJ from Bandos Island,
IOTA AS-013, beginning October 24 for two weeks.  Activity is
intermittent holiday style mostly on 20 meters using CW.  QSL to
home call.

RWANDA, 9X.  A group of operators will be QRV as 9X0SL from October
26 to November 2.  Activity will be on 160 to 10 meters using CW,
SSB and various digital modes.  QSL via DL7DF.

BOTSWANA, A2.  A group of operators are QRV as A25ZY, A25DF, A25CF,
A25MB, A25BI, A25ASL and A25AN until November 4.  Activity is on 160
to 6 meters with three stations active simultaneously.  This
includes an entry in the upcoming CQ WW DX contest as A25HQ.  QSL
contest call via K5LBU and all others to home calls.

THE GAMBIA, C5.  Filip, ON4TA is QRV as C56FR from Kerr Sering until
November 11.  He will be active holiday style on 20 and 17 meters,
and possibly 6 and 2 meters and 70 cm using SSB.  QSL to home call.

MOZAMBIQUE, C9.  Tony, G4LDL is QRV as C91DL from Bilene until
October 24.  Activity is on 160 meters.  QSL via GI4FUM.

SABLE ISLAND, CY0.  Operators N0TG, AI5P and VE1RGB are QRV as home
calls/CY0 until October 29.  Activity is on 160 to 6 meters using
CW, SSB and RTTY.  QSL all calls direct via N0TG.

ST. PIERRE AND MIQUELON, FP.  Eric, KV1J will be QRV as FP/home call
from Miquelon, IOTA NA-032, from October 25 to November 2.  Activity
will be on 160 to 6 meters, including 70 cm on Satellite AO-51,
using CW, SSB, RTTY and PSK31.  This includes an entry in the
upcoming CQ WW DX contest.  QSL to home call.

REPUBLIC OF KOREA, HL.  Members of the Busan DX Club will be QRV as
6M0V/5 from Suu-Do Island, IOTA AS-081, on October 23 and 24.  QSL
via DS5ACV.

MARIANA ISLANDS, KH0.  Operators JA6EGL, JA6JXN, JE6DND, JA6GLD and
JR6DRH are QRV as KK6WW/KH0, AC2BO/KH0, KH0R, WH0AA and KR1V/KH0,
respectively, from Saipan, IOTA OC-086, until October 25.  Activity
is on 160 to 10 meters using CW and SSB.  QSL to home calls.

HAWAII, KH6.  John, KL7JR and Claire, WL7MY will be QRV as either
N7I or KH6/KL7JR from Maui Island, USI HI-018S, from October 24 to
31.  Activity will be on 20 to 10 meters using SSB.  QSL via
operators' instructions.

PERU, OA.  Special event station OC80A is QRV until the end of 2010
in celebration of the 80th anniversary of the Radio Club Peruano.
QSL via OA4O.

BONAIRE, PJ4.  Peter, PJ4NX is active on 40 to 12 meters using SSB.
QSL to home call.

SEYCHELLES, S7.  Davide, IW0HLG will be QRV as S79AD from Mahe
Island, IOTA AF-024, from October 26 to November 4.  Activity will
be holiday style on the HF bands and 6 meters using SSB and various
digital modes.  QSL to home call.

DODECANESE, SV5.  Operators ON4PO and ON4MW will be QRV as J45PO and
J45MW, respectively, from Rhodes, IOTA EU-001, from October 26 to
November 2.  They will be QRV as SX5P in the upcoming CQ WW DX
contest.  QSL via operators' instructions.

ST. KITTS AND NEVIS, V4.  Operator W5JON is QRV as V47JA from
Calypso Bay on St. Kitts, IOTA NA-104, until November 10.  Activity
is on 160 to 10 meters holiday style.  This includes an entry in the
upcoming CQ WW DX contest.  QSL direct to home call.

OPERATIONS APPROVED FOR DXCC CREDIT.  The following operations are
approved for DXCC credit:  Burundi, 9U1KI, 9U1RSI, 9U1VO, 9U4T, 2010
operations; Bhutan, A51A, 2010 operation, and Afghanistan, T6MB,
2010 operation.

THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO.  The 10-10 International Fall CW Contest,
Stew Perry Topband CW Challenge, NCCC Sprint, FOC CW QSO Party,
Araucaria VHF Contest, SYLRA Contest and the W/VE Islands QSO Party
are all on tap for this weekend.  The SKCC CW Sprint and RSGB
80-Meter Club SSB Sprint are both scheduled for October 27.  Please
see October QST, page 84 and the ARRL and WA7BNM contest web sites
for details.
NNNN
/EX

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Oct 22 15:32:17 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri, 22 Oct 2010 12:32:17 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] ARLP042 Propagation de K7RA
Message-ID: <201010221933.o9MJXYpR027864@pop2.greatbasin.net>

SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP042
ARLP042 Propagation de K7RA

ZCZC AP42
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 42  ARLP042
 From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA  October 22, 2010
To all radio amateurs

SB PROP ARL ARLP042
ARLP042 Propagation de K7RA

Average sunspot numbers for the week were up nearly 44 points to
55.6.  Average solar flux readings were unchanged, at 84.9.  For a
few days solar flux values rose above 90, but currently the
projection from USAF and NOAA for solar flux over October 22-31 is
82, 82, 82, 82, 80, 80, 80, 80, 80 and 80.

The same forecast predicts planetary A index for the same period at
5, 10, 15, 12, 5, 5, 5, 5, 7 and 7.  Geophysical Institute Prague
predicts quiet conditions on October 22, quiet to unsettled October
23, unsettled October 24-25, and quiet October 26-28.

Seven new sunspot groups arrived this month, with group 1112
appearing October 9, group 1113 on October 13, 1114 and 1115 on
October 14, 1116 on October 17, 1117 and 1118 on October 19.  While
the average sunspot number for the past week was 55.6, the greatest
sunspot activity was over the past few days, with the daily sunspot
numbers on October 17-20 at 61, 69, 65 and 61. On October 21 the
sunspot number dropped to

Check the new November issue of "WorldRadio Online" for two articles
of interest concerning propagation.  The first is a piece beginning
on page 14 about gray line propagation, and on page 38 is Carl
Luetzelschwab's excellent monthly Propagation column.  This month
Carl addresses questions that arose when news articles appeared
describing a shrinking thermosphere.  Did this affect propagation?
Carl's data shows that it probably did not.  You can find a new
WorldRadio online on the twentieth of each month at
http://www.worldradiomagazine.com/.

Last week's Propagation Forecast Bulletin mentioned the WSPR program
and the article about it on page 30 in the November 2010 issue of
QST.  A useful tool generated by this network is the map at
http://wsprnet.org/drupal/wsprnet/map.  You can look at weak-signal
propagation over all bands for the past 24 hours, or look at any of
the dozen individual amateur bands from 2 to 160 meters, plus VLF.
You can limit your view down to 30 minutes, 1 hour, 3 hours, 6
hours, 12 hours or 24 hours.

WSPR is not a mode where you can converse with other stations, but
rather an automated network that picks up weak signals from other
stations in the network and displays the propagation paths.  Because
it is effective with such weak signals, it isn't clear how this
might be used to indicate a possible path for an SSB QSO, for
example.

Jim Muiter, N6TP of San Mateo, California says that on Thursday
morning he picked up the 10 meter NCDXF beacon ZS6DN in South Africa
around 1700z, and it disappeared a few hours later.  In the past,
this has been an indicator of improving conditions.

The Northern California DX Foundation operates beacons worldwide on
10, 12, 15, 17 and 20 meters.  These are very useful for determining
when the bands are open.  Check it out at
http://www.ncdxf.org/beacon/beaconschedule.html.

In response to W7EET's query in last week's bulletin, Dave Parslow,
VK3AIF of Melton, Victoria, Australia (about 25 miles WNW of
Melbourne) wrote to tell us about a web site that the Australian
government operates that uses real time ionosonde (ionospheric
sounder) data to predict propagation.  Unfortunately, we don't have
a system like that here, but it can be used to predict propagation
from North America back to the South Pacific.

Dave wrote, "I don't know if you have a similar service available in
North America, perhaps I should research that before putting pen to
paper so to speak but what I use here is the Hourly Hap Charts
published by the Australian Government Ionospheric Prediction
Service http://www.ips.gov.au.

"The IPS posts these charts hourly using near real time data
gathered from Ionograms, a list of their locations is also available
on the above site and overlay a map with colored contours
representing different frequencies in the HF spectrum.  They can be
read at a glance and the optimal frequency determined for your
particular path of interest.

"How I use them is to go to http://www.ips.gov.au/HF_Systems/1/1/1
in my java enabled browser and select my approximate location from
the drop down list and the map appears centered on my preferred
position.  There are many other useful tools on the site also with
many having the Amateur bands selectable from the options."

Thanks, Dave!

Stan Gubiotti, VE7IEF of Abbotsford, British Columbia asked what I
think is happening with solar Cycle 24, and when the peak might
occur.

I think Cycle 24 is weak!  Regarding the peak, I will refer to the
NOAA space weather Preliminary Report and Forecast, available from
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/weekly/index.html.

The latest issue with a cycle forecast is PRF-1831 from October 5.
On page 10 we see a table showing the smoothed sunspot number
predicted to peak at just 90 between February and July in 2013.
Unfortunately this table doesn't have the months labeled across the
top, but I can assure you that the left hand column is always
January, and the right hand column is December.

Stan also asked about the meaning of various terms used in this
bulletin, and for this question I refer him to the links toward the
bottom of this bulletin.

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

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service web page at
http://arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals. For an explanation of the
numbers used in this bulletin, see
http://arrl.org/the-sun-the-earth-the-ionosphere. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at
http://arrl.org/w1aw-bulletins-archive-propagation.  Find more good
information and tutorials on propagation at
http://mysite.ncnetwork.net/k9la/index.html.

Monthly propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve
overseas locations are at http://arrl.org/propagation.

Instructions for starting or ending email distribution of ARRL
bulletins are at http://arrl.org/bulletins.

Sunspot numbers for October 14 through 20 were 34, 51, 48, 61, 69,
65, and 61, with a mean of 55.6. 10.7 cm flux was 80.4, 82.2, 86.9,
83.6, 90.6, 86.6 and 83.9 with a mean of 84.9. Estimated planetary A
indices were 2, 5, 6, 11, 5, 5 and 4 with a mean of 5.4. Estimated
mid-latitude A indices were 0, 3, 3, 10, 3, 7 and 3 with a mean of
4.1.
NNNN
/EX

From dick at k7vc.com  Fri Oct 22 19:00:37 2010
From: dick at k7vc.com (Dick Flanagan)
Date: Fri, 22 Oct 2010 16:00:37 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] High Wind Watch for Carson City, NV
Message-ID: <201010222302.o9MN1xnl011477@pop2.greatbasin.net>

High Wind Watch
Statement as of 2:46 PM PDT on October 22, 2010

...High wind watch in effect from Sunday morning through Sunday
evening...

The National Weather Service in Reno has issued a high wind
watch...which is in effect from Sunday morning through Sunday
evening.

* Timing: strong winds may affect the Reno...Carson City...Minden
   area Sunday morning through Sunday evening.

* Winds: southwest to west winds of 20 to 35 mph with gusts 45 to
   60 mph are possible. Winds gusts over 60 mph may occur in wind
   prone areas.

* Impacts: strong winds will impact travel along Highway 395...and
   may damage trees and fences. Loose outdoor objects such as patio
   furniture should be secured or brought indoors.

Precautionary/preparedness actions...

A high wind watch means there is potential for strong damaging
winds to affect the area.  Continue to monitor the latest
forecasts at weather.Gov/Reno.

--
Dick Flanagan K7VC
dick at k7vc.com

From dick at k7vc.com  Sat Oct 23 15:19:22 2010
From: dick at k7vc.com (Dick Flanagan)
Date: Sat, 23 Oct 2010 12:19:22 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] High Wind WARNING for Carson City, NV
Message-ID: <201010231920.o9NJKI2t014976@pop2.greatbasin.net>

HIGH WIND WARNING
Statement as of 10:47 AM PDT on October 23, 2010

...High Wind WARNING in effect from 8 am to 11 PM PDT Sunday...

The National Weather Service in Reno has issued a High Wind
WARNING...which is in effect from 8 am to 11 PM PDT Sunday. The
high wind watch is no longer in effect.

* Timing: strong winds will affect the Reno...Carson City...
   Minden area Sunday morning through Sunday evening.

* Winds: southwest to west winds of 20 to 35 mph with gusts 50 to
   65 mph will occur. Winds gusts up to 80 mph may occur in wind
   prone areas.

* Impacts: strong winds will impact travel along Highway 395 and
   Interstate 80...and may damage trees and fences. Loose outdoor
   objects such as patio furniture should be secured or brought
   indoors.

Precautionary/preparedness actions...

Damage to trees...power lines and property is likely with winds
of this magnitude.  Driving will become hazardous for high
profile vehicles. Use extra caution and remain alert for sudden
gusts or cross winds.

--
Dick Flanagan K7VC
dick at k7vc.com

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Oct 28 18:34:38 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu, 28 Oct 2010 15:34:38 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] The ARRL Letter for October 28, 2010
Message-ID: <201010282235.o9SMZ6aK020655@pop1.greatbasin.net>


If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at:
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2010-10-28>http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2010-10-28

October 28, 2010
Editor: <mailto:k1sfa at arrl.org>S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA
<http://www.arrl.org/>ARRL Home 
Page<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>ARRL 
Letter<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/> 
Archive<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>Audio 
News<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&i=2010-10-28&t=t>


    * + Amateur Radio in Space : ARISSat-1 "Suits Up" for February 2011 Launch
    * + On the Air : No "Maybes" About It -- ARRL Sweepstakes is Fun!
    * + Public Service : The 2010 Global Amateur 
Radio Emergency Communications Conference
    * In the Shack : Two New ARRL Kits Coming Soon
    * + International Spotlight : ARRL Visits 
British Hams, RSGB at National Hamfest
    * Solar Update
    * + DX News : ARRL DXCC Desk Approves Six 2010 Operations
    * This Week on the Radio

+ Available on <http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news>ARRL Audio News
+ Amateur Radio in Space: ARISSat-1 "Suits Up" for February 2011 Launch

ARISSat-1/RadioSkaf-V is a six-sided, cube-shaped 
satellite with solar panels on all six sides. A 
70 cm quarter-wave whip will be mounted on the 
bottom and a 2 meter quarter wave whip on the 
top. All of the hardware and software will go 
inside, with the cameras on the outside. [Photo courtesy of the ARISSat Team]

Earlier this year, astronauts living on the 
International Space Station had to discard two 
surplus Orlan space suits. With the loss of the 
suits, those involved with AMSAT and Amateur 
Radio on the International Space Station were at 
a loss. One of these suits was to be used to 
house the electronics for the upcoming SuitSat-2 
mission: the batteries were to be mounted inside 
the suit, solar panels attached to the 
extremities with the electronics, with video 
cameras and an antenna mounted on the helmet. But 
even though the removal of the space suits took 
away the "Suit" component of the deployment, 
AMSAT and ARISS forged ahead, changing the 
configuration of the satellite and Amateur Radio 
experiment and giving it a new name: 
ARISSat-1/RadioSkaf-V. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/arissat-1-suits-up-for-february-2011-launch>here.
+ On the Air: No "Maybes" About It -- ARRL Sweepstakes is Fun!

Yvette Cendes, KB3HTS, single op'd the 2009 ARRL 
Phone Sweepstakes from Case Western Reserve 
University's club station W8EDU. In only 20 hours 
on the air, she made 780 QSOs -- and a Clean 
Sweep! She said it was great to hear a lot of 
femal ops on the air, as well as so many other 
school stations. [James Galm, W8WTS, Photo]

ARRL Sweepstakes has been part of Amateur Radio 
in the US and Canada for more than 75 years. In 
2010, the tradition continues with the 77th 
running of the best domestic contest in all of 
Amateur Radio: CW will be the weekend of November 
6, while the Phone portion of the contest runs 
the weekend of November 20. The 2010 ARRL 
November CW Sweepstakes runs from 2100 UTC 
Saturday, November 6 through 0300 UTC Monday, 
November 8. The SSB portion of Sweepstakes runs 
from 2100 UTC Saturday, November 20 through 0300 
UTC Monday, November 22. Why not make plans now 
to join thousands of other radio amateurs across 
the continent and get in on this year's fun in 
the ARRL November Sweepstakes! Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/no-maybes-about-it-arrl-sweepstakes-is-fun>here.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-28&p=0>
+ Public Service: The 2010 Global Amateur Radio 
Emergency Communications Conference

The 2010 Global Amateur Radio Emergency 
Communications (GAREC) Conference was held 
October 10-12 in Cura??ao (PJ2). At the time most 
conference attendees arrived in Cura??ao, it was 
a part of the Netherlands Antilles along with 
Bonaire, St Maarten, Saba, and St Eustatius. By 
the time the attendees headed home, independence 
had been declared and Cura??ao was its own nation 
within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/the-2010-global-amateur-radio-emergency-communications-conference>here.
In the Shack: Two New ARRL Kits Coming Soon
<http://www.arrl.org/shop/ARRL-Morse-Code-Oscillator-Kit/>
Two new ARRL kits are in the final throes of 
production. The first is a Morse code oscillator, 
produced for ARRL by MFJ Enterprises. The project 
is a good "beginners" electronics kit. We expect 
the kit will be popular with members, 
particularly newcomers, and with clubs, 
instructors and teachers seeking a classroom 
kit-building experience. A supplementary resource 
guide for students and educators will be made 
available by the ARRL Education and Technology 
Program. The guide helps cover the fundamentals 
of the working circuit and its components.

The 
<http://www.arrl.org/shop/ARRL-Morse-Code-Oscillator-Kit/>ARRL 
Morse code oscillator kit -- produced by MFJ -- 
is a great way to introduce kit building and CW skills to hams.

A second kit is a PIC programming lab and 
project, produced for ARRL by Cana Kit (Canada). 
This more substantial kit is intended to be used 
with 
<http://www.arrl.org/shop/ARRL-s-PIC-Programming-for-Beginners/>ARRL's 
PIC Programming for Beginners book (revised first 
edition). The kit includes all the necessary 
components, parts and boards, and follows the 
book's step-by-step exercises and tutorial. The 
kit also includes all the necessary parts to 
build a microprocessor-controlled CW keyer, which 
is the book's culminating project.

"We're excited about these new projects, which 
help emphasize kit construction, basic 
electronics, and the extraordinary potential of 
microcontrollers," said ARRL Marketing Manager 
Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R. "There's no better way to 
advance the radio art than by introducing more 
hams to project building and homebrewing." Order 
your 
<http://www.arrl.org/shop/ARRL-Morse-Code-Oscillator-Kit/>ARRL 
Morse Code Oscillator and 
<http://www.arrl.org/shop/ARRL-s-PIC-Programming-Kit/>ARRL 
PIC Programming Kit today in the 
<http://www.arrl.org/shop>ARRL Online 
Store.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-28&p=1>
+ International Spotlight: ARRL Visits British Hams, RSGB at National Hamfest

The organizers of the National Hamfest posted 
this world map, inviting international visitors 
to place a pushpin in their home QTH. ARRL 
Marketing Manager Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R -- who 
represented the ARRL at the event -- tagged ARRL Headquarters.

Earlier this month, ARRL Marketing Manager Bob 
Inderbitzen, NQ1R, represented the League at the 
National Hamfest in the United Kingdom. Billed as 
the biggest convention in the UK, the National 
Hamfest "kicked off" Ham Week UK, October 1-10. 
Now in its second year, the hamfest is sponsored 
by both the Lincoln Short Wave Club and the Radio 
Society of Great Britain. Ham Week concluded with 
the RSGB Convention -- formerly the HF Convention 
-- held October 8-10. According to Inderbitzen, 
the RSGB Convention is a smaller event than the 
National Hamfest, and includes lectures and 
presentations for HF and VHF interests, but no 
exhibits. Read more 
<http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-visits-british-hams-rsgb-at-national-hamfest>here.
Solar Update

The Sun, as seen on Thursday, October 28, 2010 
from 
<http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/data/realtime/realtime-update.html>NASA's 
SOHO Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope. This 
<http://soi.stanford.edu/>MDI (Michelson Doppler 
Imager) image was taken in the continuum near the 
Ni I 6768 Angstrom line. The most prominent 
features are the sunspots. This is very much how 
the Sun looks in the visible range of the spectrum.

Tad 
"<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oM6auGQ2VGo>The 
rain exploded with a mighty crash as we fell into 
the Sun" Cook, K7RA, reports: Although this week 
saw a high daily sunspot number of 74 on October 
26, the average sunspot number for the week 
dropped more than five points to 50.3. One new 
sunspot group, numbered 1119, emerged this week, 
but 1117 -- which has been visible since October 
19 -- has become huge. On Wednesday, October 27, 
it measured 450 millionths of a solar hemisphere, 
larger than any single sunspot group this year. 
Look for more information -- including some 
information from Stu Phillips, K6TU, on how to 
calculate signal strengths for SSB and CW signals 
over the same paths shown in WSPR data -- on the 
ARRL Web site on Friday, October 29. 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 
Paul McCartney's 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Band_on_the_Run_%28song%29>Band 
on the Run.<http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2010-10-28&p=2>
+ DX News: ARRL DXCC Desk Approves Six 2010 Operations

ARRL DXCC Manager Bill Moore, NC1L, reports that 
six 2010 operations -- Afghanistan (T6MB), Bhutan 
(A51A) and Burundi (9U1RSI, 9U4T, 9U1KI and 
9U1VO) have been approved for DXCC credit. "If 
you had cards that were recently rejected for 
this operation, please send an 
<mailto:dxcc at arrl.org>e-mail to the ARRL DXCC 
Desk," Moore said. "Results will appear in 
Logbook of The World 
(<https://p1k.arrl.org/lotwuser/default>LoTW) 
accounts, as well as online on the <http://www.arrl.org/dxcc>daily listings."
This Week on the Radio

This week:
    * October 30-31 -- 
<http://www.arrl.org/eme-contest>ARRL EME 
Contest; CQ Worldwide DX Contest (SSB); 10-10 
International Fall Contest (Digital); 50 MHz Fall Sprint
    * November 2 -- ARS Spartan Sprint

Next week:
    * November 5 -- QRP Fox Hunt
    * November 6-7 -- Ukrainian DX Contest
    * November 6-8 -- <http://www.arrl.org/sweepstakes>ARRL CW Sweepstakes
    * November 7 -- High Speed Club CW Contest
    * November 10 -- QRP Fox Hunt
    * November 10-11 -- CWops Mini-CWT 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.

Click <mailto:ads at arrl.org>here to advertise in this newsletter.

ARRL -- Your One-Stop Resource for Amateur Radio News and Information
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From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Thu Oct 28 18:53:41 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Thu, 28 Oct 2010 15:53:41 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] ARLD045 DX news
Message-ID: <201010282254.o9SMsAp3007519@pop1.greatbasin.net>

SB DX @ ARL $ARLD045
ARLD045 DX news

ZCZC AE45
QST de W1AW
DX Bulletin 45  ARLD045
 From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  October 28, 2010
To all radio amateurs

SB DX ARL ARLD045
ARLD045 DX news

This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by
KX9X, NC1L, QRZ DX, The Daily DX, the OPDX Bulletin, DXNL, Contest
Corral from QST and the ARRL Contest Calendar and WA7BNM web sites.
Thanks to all.

FIJI, 3D2.  Eddie, VK4AN will be QRV as 3D2A from Viti Levu, IOTA
OC-016, until November 14.  Activity is on 160, 80 and 40 meters.
This includes an entry in the CQ WW SSB DX contest.  QSL to home
call.

TUNISIA, 3V.  SWL Ash, 3V4-002 will be QRV as 3V8SS from Sousse in
the CQ WW SSB DX contest as a Single Op/All Band/Low Power entry.
QSL via IZ8CCW.

VIET NAM, 3W.  Michal, OM2DX will be QRV as 3W1M from Hanoi in the
CQ WW SSB DX contest as a Single Op/Single Band entry on 15 meters.
QSL via OM3JW.

MONTENEGRO, 4O.  Tonno, ES5TV will be QRV as 4O3A in the CQ WW SSB
DX contest as a Single Op/All Band entry.  QSL via AI4U.

BARBADOS, 8P.  Tom, W2SC will be QRV as 8P5A in the CQ WW SSB DX
contest as a Single Op/All Band/High Power entry.  QSL via NN1N.

ANDORRA, C3.  A group of operators will be QRV as C37N as a
Multi/Multi entry in the CQ WW SSB DX contest.  QSL via EA4URE.

MOROCCO, CN.  A group of operators will be QRV as CN3A in the CQ WW
SSB DX contest as a Multi Op entry.  QSL via I2WIJ.

THAILAND, HS.  Members of the Radio Amateur Society of Thailand will
be QRV as E2E in the CQ WW SSB DX contest as a Multi/Multi entry.
QSL via operators' instructions.

GUAM, KH2.  Members of the Guam Contest Club will be QRV as AH2R in
the CQ WW SB DX contest as a Multi/Single entry.  QSL via JH7QXJ.

ALAND ISLANDS, OH0.  Operator OH2YY will be QRV as OH0YY in the CQ
WW SSB DX contest as a Single Op/Single Band entry.  QSL to home
call.

SUDAN, ST.  Robert, S53R will be QRV as ST2AR from Khartoum in the
CQ WW SSB DX contest as a Single Op/All Band/Low Power entry.  QSL
to home call.

SAN MARINO, Y7.  Members of Tifariti Gang will be QRV as T70A in the
CQ WW SSB DX contest as a Multi-2 entry.  QSL via bureau.

PALAU, T8.  Nob, JA1FMZ is QRV as T88OM until November 1.  Activity
is holiday style on 20 to 10 meters using SSB.  This includes being
an entry in the CQ WW SSB DX contest.  QSL to home call.

TURKEY, TA.  A group of operators will be QRV as TA7KA from Trabzon
in the CQ WW SSB DX contest as a Multi/Single entry.  QSL via TA7KA.

KALININGRAD, UA2.  Members of the UA2 Contest Club will be QRV as
RW2F in both CQ WW DX contests.  QSL via DK4VW.

MICRONESIA, V6.  Miki, JJ2CJB will be QRV as V63CJB from Chuuk
Island, IOTA OC-011, from October 29 to November 2.  Activity is
holiday style on 80 to 10 meters using CW and SSB.  This includes
being an entry in the CQ WW SSB DX contest.  QSL to home call.

INDONESIA, YB.  Members of the ORARI Daerah Jawa Tengah Contesting
Team will be QRV as YE2R from Semarang, IOTA OC-021, in the CQ WW
SSB DX contest as a Multi 2 entry.  QSL via EB7DX.

VANUATU, YJ.  George, HA5UK and Pista, HA5AO will be QRV as YJ0HA
from Efate, IOTA OC-035, from November 1 to 15.  Activity will be on
160 to 10 meters using CW, SSB, RTTY, SSTV and PSK.  This includes a
possible side trip to Emae Island, IOTA OC-111.  QSL via bureau.

ALBANIA, ZA.  Miroljub, YT1CS will be QRV as ZA/YT1CS in the CQ WW
SSB DX contest as a Single Op/All Band entry.  QSL to home call.

NEW ZEALAND, ZL.  A group of operators will be QRV as ZM4T in the CQ
WW SSB DX contest as a Multi 2 entry.  QSL via ZL2AL.

THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO.  The CQ Worldwide SSB DX Contest, 10-10
International Digital Fall Contest, NCCC Sprint, ARRL EME Contest
and the 50 MHz Fall Sprint will certainly keep contesters busy this
upcoming weekend.  The ARS Spartan CW Sprint is scheduled for
November 2.  The QRP CW Fox Hunt is scheduled for November 3.
Please see October QST, page 84 and the ARRL and WA7BNM contest web
sites for details.
NNNN
/EX

From memberlist at www.arrl.org  Fri Oct 29 19:19:38 2010
From: memberlist at www.arrl.org (ARRL Web site)
Date: Fri, 29 Oct 2010 16:19:38 -0700
Subject: [CVRC] ARLP043 Propagation de K7RA
Message-ID: <201010292320.o9TNKe8N021030@pop1.greatbasin.net>

SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP043
ARLP043 Propagation de K7RA

ZCZC AP43
QST de W1AW
Propagation Forecast Bulletin 43  ARLP043
 From Tad Cook, K7RA
Seattle, WA  October 29, 2010
To all radio amateurs

SB PROP ARL ARLP043
ARLP043 Propagation de K7RA

The daily sunspot number went all the way to 74 this week (on
Tuesday, October 26), but the average sunspot number was down over
five points from the previous week, to 50.3.

Several sunspot groups contributed this week.  1113 first appeared
October 13, and was visible through October 26.  1115 emerged on
October 15, and ran through October 27, its last day.  1117 emerged
October 19, and was still growing yesterday, October 28.  But 1117
is now approaching the western horizon, and is less and less
geoeffective.

The latest prediction is for solar flux of 85 through October 31, 82
on November 1 and 78 on November 2-5, then 80 on November 6-11, and
rising after that.  Predicted planetary A index for October 29
through November 1 is 5, 8, 5 and 7, then back to 5 on November
2-17.  Geophysical Institute Prague sees quiet to unsettled
conditions October 29-30, quiet October 31 through November 1,
November 2-3 unsettled, and November 4 quiet to unsettled.

Conditions shouldn't be bad this weekend for the CQ World Wide SSB
DX Contest.  Geomagnetic conditions should be relatively quiet, and
we've had a little sunspot activity of late.  But with sunspot group
1117 disappearing, unless a new one emerges, the sunspot number
could drop back to zero.

A look at the STEREO mission at http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/ shows
some possible activity just over the eastern horizon.  There is also
a very bright area, indicating magnetic activity straddling the
unseen sector, which keeps getting smaller. Coverage should reach
96% around 1014 UTC on November 1, 97% at 0014 UTC on November 22,
98% coverage at 0014 UTC on December 14, and 99% at 1700 UTC on
January 7, 2011.

Check http://snipurl.com/1dauya for a dramatic Sun photo taken on
October 20 by amateur astronomer Alan Friedman with a small
telescope.  Thanks to "Phil Plait's Bad Astronomy Blog" at
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/ for this.

Rich Dowty, W7EET reminds us of the DX Sherlock maps for propagation
on 28 MHz and higher.  See http://www.vhfdx.info/spots/map.php and
dial in your favorite band and region.

Stu Phillips, K6TU had some comments regarding remarks I had in last
week's Propagation Forecast Bulletin ARLP042 regarding WSPR real
time data and how it might be used for evaluating propagation paths
for other modes, such as SSB and CW.

He writes, "For every WSPR spot (which you can see in the database
at the WSPRnet.org website), there is a power level in dBm and a
signal to noise ratio reported by the receiving station.

"Although the antenna used by the transmitting station isn't known,
you can get a pretty good idea of the path and what it would take in
terms of increased ERP to successfully conclude either a CW or a SSB
contact.  I've also found pretty good correlation between
propagation predictions using VOACAP that when adjusted for
bandwidth (WSPR calculates SNR assuming a 2.5 kHz effective
bandwidth) and power levels, correspond pretty closely with the SNR
levels reported by WSPR.

"So pick you reference point - for example, if you need 12 dB SNR in
a 200 Hz bandwidth to complete a CW contact, you can scale the WSPR
report by adding 10 dB for the bandwidth delta and then scale
appropriately for power/ERP delta.  Most WSPR transmissions on the
HF bands are 5 watts or less - so even a "standard" ham transmitter
at the 100 watt level is a further uplift of 13 dB even without ERP
boost from a decent antenna."

We'll have more information next week from K6TU regarding WSPR and
propagation.

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

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL
Technical Information Service web page at
http://arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals. For an explanation of the
numbers used in this bulletin, see
http://arrl.org/the-sun-the-earth-the-ionosphere. An archive of past
propagation bulletins is at
http://arrl.org/w1aw-bulletins-archive-propagation.  Find more good
information and tutorials on propagation at
http://mysite.ncnetwork.net/k9la/index.html.

Monthly propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve
overseas locations are at http://arrl.org/propagation.

Instructions for starting or ending email distribution of ARRL
bulletins are at http://arrl.org/bulletins.

Sunspot numbers for October 21 through 27 were 34, 34, 43, 57, 57,
74, and 53, with a mean of 50.3. 10.7 cm flux was 83.5, 82.2, 84.3,
82.1, 86.2, 86.1 and 87.6 with a mean of 84.6. Estimated planetary A
indices were 3, 6, 23, 14, 6, 8 and 4 with a mean of 9.1. Estimated
mid-latitude A indices were 1, 4, 16, 10, 4, 6 and 3 with a mean of
6.3.
NNNN
/EX

