[CVRC] The ARRL Letter for November 21, 2012

Wed Nov 21 13:02:39 EST 2012

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            The  ARRL Letter

Published by the American Radio Relay League
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November 21, 2012

Editor: S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA <k1sfa at arrl.org>

ARRL Home Page <http://www.arrl.org/>ARRL Letter Archive
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>Audio News
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> IN THIS ISSUE

- ARRL Members in Hudson Division Elect New Director; Northwestern
Division Re-elects Director
- FCC Seeks to Assign Entire Amateur Portion of 160 Meter Band to
Primary Status to Amateur Radio Service, Proposes New LF Amateur Band
at 135.7-137.8 kHz
- Amateur Radio in Space: Three Hams Return to Earth from ISS
- On the Air: Top Off the Year on Top Band in the ARRL 160 Meter
Contest
- Silent Key: Former "How's DX?" Conductor Rod Newkirk, W9BRD (SK)
- Section Manager News: Monte Simpson, K2MLS, Appointed ARRL Western
Washington Section Manager
- Solar Update
- Be a Star! Enter the Third Annual ARRL Video Contest
- This Week in Radiosport
- Upcoming ARRL Section, State and Division Conventions and Events

ARRL Headquarters will be closed November 22 and 23 in observance of
Thanksgiving. There will be no W1AW bulletins or code practice
transmissions <http://www.arrl.org/w1aw-operating-schedule> those days.
The ARRL Letter <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/> will be published a
day early on Wednesday, November 21, but there will be no ARRL Audio
News <http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news> on Thursday, November 22.
ARRL Headquarters will reopen Monday, November 26 at 8 AM Eastern
Standard Time. We wish everyone a safe and bountiful Thanksgiving
holiday.

==> ARRL MEMBERS IN HUDSON DIVISION ELECT NEW DIRECTOR; NORTHWESTERN
DIVISION RE-ELECTS DIRECTOR

   On November 16, ballots were counted in the races for Director in
the Hudson Division and for Director and Vice Director in the
Northwestern Division. This year, there were only three contested races
for Director or Vice Director in the five Divisions holding elections.
In the Hudson Division, Mike Lisenco, N2YBB, defeated incumbent Joyce
Birmingham, KA2ANF, for the top slot in that Division. In the
Northwestern Division, Jim Fenstermaker, K9JF, defeated William
Balzarini, KL7BB, for Director, while James Pace, K7CEX, was elected
Vice Director in a three-way race. Terms for Directors and Vice
Directors begin at noon on January 1, 2013 and run for three years.
Read more here
<http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-members-in-hudson-division-elect-new-director-northwestern-division-gets-new-vice-director>.

==> FCC SEEKS TO ASSIGN ENTIRE AMATEUR PORTION OF 160 METER BAND TO
PRIMARY STATUS TO AMATEUR RADIO SERVICE, PROPOSES NEW LF AMATEUR BAND
AT 135.7-137.8 KHZ

   On Tuesday, November 20, the FCC released a Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking (ET Docket No. 12-338) that proposes to amend Parts 1, 2,
74, 78, 87, 90 and 97 of the Commission's rules. Part 97 governs the
Amateur Radio Service. These changes will implement allocation
decisions from the 2007 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-07)
that concern those portions of the radio frequency spectrum between 108
MHz and 20.2 GHz and make certain updates to the rules in this
frequency range. Most of the NPRM does not concern the Amateur Radio
Service, but the FCC is requesting comments on the three parts that do:
changing the allocation to the amateur portion of the 160 meter band,
allocating a new Amateur Service band at 135.7-137.8 kHz and cleaning
up the rules for the 10.0-10.5 GHz band. Read more here
<http://www.arrl.org/news/fcc-seeks-to-assign-entire-amateur-portion-of-160-meter-band-to-primary-status-to-amateur-radio-serv>.

==> AMATEUR RADIO IN SPACE: THREE HAMS RETURN TO EARTH FROM ISS

   Shortly before 9 PM EST on Sunday, November 18 (0200 UTC Monday,
November 19), a Soyuz spacecraft carrying Expedition 33 Commander
Sunita Williams, KD5PLB, and Flight Engineers Yuri Malenchenko, RK3DUP,
and Aki Hoshide, KE5DNI, landed in the steppes of Kazakhstan, returning
them safely to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS) after
127 days in space.

While aboard the ISS, Williams, Malenchenko and Hashide completed 39
contacts with schools via the Amateur Radio on the International Space
Station (ARISS) project. According to NASA ISS Ham Radio Project
Engineer Kenneth Ransom, N5VHO, this ties with Expedition 15 for the
fourth highest number of contacts. In 2011, Expedition 26 -- led by
Scott Kelly -- set the record for having the most ARISS contacts at 73.
Read more here
<http://www.arrl.org/news/three-hams-return-to-earth-from-iss>.

==> ON THE AIR: TOP OFF THE YEAR ON TOP BAND IN THE ARRL 160 METER
CONTEST

While Solar Cycle 24 is making the high bands the focal point for HF
operators, 160 meters -- Top Band -- is still chock full of DX. There's
no better time to get on 160 meters than the ARRL 160 Meter Contest
<http://www.arrl.org/160-meter>, November 30-December 2.

The ARRL 160 Meter Contest is an all-CW event, with ARRL/RAC Sections
and DXCC entities used as multipliers. If you live in a rare Section --
such as North Dakota, Nebraska or any of the rare Sections from the
November Sweepstakes contests -- everyone will be seeking you. Hams in
Ontario (VE3) will have a new role in this year's contest: The split of
Ontario into four new sections -- Ontario East (ONE), Ontario North
(ONN), Ontario South (ONS) and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) -- will
give everybody a few new multipliers to hunt for on Top Band.

   In this contest, Alaska (KL7) and Hawaii (KH6) can be worked by both
DX and US/Canadian stations, as can the Caribbean US possessions
(KP1-KP5) and all of the Pacific Ocean territories (KH0-KH9). No
antennas for 160? Don't be discouraged! According to ARRL Contest
Branch Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X, if you don't have an antenna for 160,
put up a temporary length of wire or try to load up whatever you have
through an antenna tuner; even a 40 meter dipole through a tuner will
make some QSOs.

Since ARRL and RAC Sections are worth 2 points each and count as
multipliers, the ARRL 160 Meter Contest is a good way to begin working
-- or finishing up! -- your Worked All States Award (WAS
<http://www.arrl.org/was>). But don't forget about those DX stations --
each DXCC entity is a multiplier and is worth 5 points.

The 2012 ARRL 160 Meter Contest <http://www.arrl.org/160-meter> runs
from 2200 UTC Friday, November 30 through 1559 UTC Sunday, December 2.
Complete rules and entry forms may be found here
<http://www.arrl.org/contests>. Logs must be e-mailed
<160meter at arrl.org> or postmarked no later than 1600 UTC Tuesday,
January 1, 2013. Paper logs should be sent to ARRL 160 Meter Contest,
225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111.

==> SILENT KEY: FORMER "HOW'S DX?" CONDUCTOR ROD NEWKIRK, W9BRD (SK)

   Rod Newkirk, W9BRD/VA3ZBB, of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada -- who penned
the QST column "How's DX?" from 1947-1978 -- passed away on Monday,
November 19 after a long illness. Newkirk was credited with coining the
term "Elmer," as well as for his humorous take on DX in his column,
especially with limericks in his DX Hoggery and Poetry Depreciation
Society and the accompanying cartoons of Jeeves by Phil "Gil"
Gildersleeve, W1CJD (SK).

The term "Elmer" -- meaning someone who provides personal guidance and
assistance to would-be hams -- first appeared in QST in Newkirk's March
1971 "How's DX?" column, where he wrote that "[t]oo frequently one
hears a sad story in this little nutshell: 'Oh, I almost got a ticket,
too, but Elmer, W9XYZ, moved away and I kind of lost interest.' Sure,
the guy could have burned through on his own, maybe, but he, like
others, wound up an almost-ham. No more Elmer. We need those Elmers.
All the Elmers, including the ham who took the most time and trouble to
give you a push toward your license, are the birds who keep this great
game young and fresh." Newkirk was probably not trying to coin a term
at the time, but the name stuck, becoming a general term for the
mentors Newkirk called "the unsung fathers of ham radio." Read more
here
<http://www.arrl.org/news/former-how-s-dx-conductor-rod-newkirk-w9brd-sk>.

==> SECTION MANAGER NEWS: MONTE SIMPSON, K2MLS, APPOINTED ARRL WESTERN
WASHINGTON SECTION MANAGER

   Monte Simpson, K2MLS, of Bremerton, has been appointed ARRL Western
Washington Section Manager, effective December 31, 2012. Membership and
Volunteer Programs Manager Dave Patton, NN1N, made the appointment
after current Western Washington Section Manager Jim Pace, K7CEX, was
elected as ARRL Northwestern Division Vice Director on November 16.
Pace has served as Western Washington Section Manager since October
2007. Read more here
<http://www.arrl.org/news/monte-simpson-k2mls-appointed-arrl-western-washington-section-manager>.

==> SOLAR UPDATE

   Tad Cook, K7RA, reports: The strong solar activity continued this
week. In last week's bulletin, the average daily sunspot number on
November 8-14 was 104.9, but in the six days since then -- November
15-20 -- the average was 135.5, making for a nice increase. With the
solar flux, the average over the previous period was 129.5, and in the
six days since then, it increased to 138.6. The latest prediction from
NOAA/USAF on Tuesday, November 20, has the solar flux at 140 on
November 21, 135 on November 22-23, 130 on November 24-25, 125 on
November 26-27, 120 on November 28, and back down to 110 on November
29-December 1. The planetary A index is predicted to be 5 on November
21-22, 10 on November 23-24, 7 on November 25-26, and down to 5 on
November 27-December 4. On November 19, Jon Jones, N0JK, in Wichita,
Kansas reported fun on 6 and 10 meters: "I heard the W4CHA/b in grid
square EL88 on 50.079 MHz via E skip around 1740 UTC. No live ops
around. About 10 minutes earlier, I worked the PT0S DXpedition while on
fixed mobile on 10 meters SSB. I was running 100 W and a mag mount whip
antenna on the car. PT0S peaked up to 10 over S-9. I was on a high
ridge with a clear shot to PT0S across the Wakarusa River Valley, which
helped." Look for more on the ARRL website on Monday, November 26. For
more information concerning radio propagation, visit the ARRL Technical
Information Service Propagation page
<http://www.arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals>.

==> BE A STAR! ENTER THE THIRD ANNUAL ARRL VIDEO CONTEST

   If you've ever wanted a way to show the world how exciting Amateur
Radio can be, here's your chance: The ARRL is sponsoring its Third
Annual Video Contest! Here's a chance to put that video camera to use:
Shoot a ham radio-related video and send it our way. If your video
takes first, second or third place, we'll post it on the ARRL website
for everyone to see. We're looking for a few good videos (but only one
per ARRL member, please) on any tasteful subject relating to Amateur
Radio. Videos will be judged on overall quality and composition, and
prizes will be awarded for first, second and third place. Read more
here
<http://www.arrl.org/news/be-a-star-enter-the-third-annual-arrl-video-contest>.

==> THIS WEEK IN RADIOSPORT

This week:

- November 23 -- NCCC Sprint
- November 24-25 -- CQ WW DX Contest (CW)
- November 28 -- SKCC Sprint
- November 28-29 -- CWops Mini-CWT Test
- November 29 -- QRP ARCI Top Band Sprint

Next week:

- November 30 -- NCCC Sprint
- November 30-December 2 -- ARRL 160 Meter Contest
<http://www.arrl.org/160-meter>
- December 1 -- TARA RTTY Melee; Wake-Up! QRP Sprint; TOPS Activity
Contest
- December 1-2 -- ARRL EME Contest <http://www.arrl.org/eme-contest>
- December 2 -- 10 Meter RTTY Contest; SARL Digital Contest
- December 4 -- ARS Spartan Sprint

All dates, unless otherwise stated, are UTC. See the ARRL Contest
Branch page <http://www.arrl.org/contests>, the ARRL Contest Update
<http://www.arrl.org/The-ARRL-Contest-Update> and the WA7BNM Contest
Calendar <http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for more
information. Looking for a Special Event station? Be sure to check out
the ARRL Special Event Stations web page
<http://www.arrl.org/special-event-stations>.

==> UPCOMING ARRL SECTION, STATE AND DIVISION CONVENTIONS AND EVENTS

- December 1-2 -- ARRL West Central Florida Section Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/west-central-florida-section-convention-tampa-bay-hamfest-2>,
Palmetto, Florida
- January 18-19 -- ARRL North Texas Section Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/north-texas-section-convention-cowtown-hamfest-1>,
Fort Worth, Texas
- January 19 -- ARRL Southern Florida Section Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/southern-florida-section-convention-3>,
Fort Myers, Florida
- January 25-26 -- ARRL Mississippi State Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/mississippi-state-convention-capital-city-hamfest>,
Jackson, Mississippi
- January 26-27 -- ARRL Puerto Rico State Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/puerto-rico-state-convention>, Hatillo,
Puerto Rico
- February 2 -- ARRL South Carolina State Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/south-carolina-state-convention-2>, North
Charleston, South Carolina
- February 8-10 -- ARRL Southeastern Division Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/southeastern-division-convention-orlando-hamcation-1>,
Orlando, Florida
- February 15-16 -- ARRL Arizona State Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/arizona-state-convention-yuma-hamfest-1>,
Yuma, Arizona
- March 8-9 -- ARRL Oklahoma Section Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/oklahoma-section-convention-green-country-hamfest-1>,
Claremore, Oklahoma
- March 30 -- ARRL North Carolina State Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/north-carolina-state-convention-raleigh-hamfest-2>,
Raleigh, North Carolina
- April 20 -- ARRL Louisiana State Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/louisiana-state-convention-northeast-louisiana-regional-ham-radiofest>,
Monroe, Louisiana
- April 26-28 -- ARRL Idaho State Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/idaho-state-convention-3>, Boise, Idaho

To find a convention or hamfest near you, click here
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests>.

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