[FPARC] The ARRL Letter Vol. 25, No. 07

[W4kkw at aol.com]

***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 25, No. 07
February 17,  2006
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***THIS  WEEKEND: THE ARRL INTERNATIONAL DX CONTEST  (CW)!***
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IN  THIS EDITION:

* +No news on fate of the Morse code requirement
*  +SuitSat-1 heads into third week of operation
* +Oklahoma, Texas schools work  ISS on consecutive orbits
* +ARRL cites BPL database irregularities in  complaint
* +NA1SS, RS0ISS log Peter I QSOs from space
*  W1AW  Endowment Fund kicks off 2006 campaign
* +DXer Charles Mellen, W1FH,  SK
*  Solar Update
*  IN BRIEF: 
This  weekend on the radio: THE ARRL INTERNATIONAL DX CONTEST (CW)!
ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course  registration
+Utility steps back from North Idaho BPL test  deployment
Direct FAX number now available for  DXCC
Stu Cohen, N1SC, wins January QST Cover Plaque  Award
Correction

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

===========================================================
NOTE:  ARRL Headquarters is closed Monday, February 20, for Presidents' Day.
It will  reopen Tuesday, February 21, at 8 AM EST. Have a safe and enjoyable
holiday  weekend.
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==>Delivery  problems (ARRL member direct delivery  only!):
letter-dlvy at arrl.org
==>Editorial questions or comments: Rick  Lindquist, N1RL,  n1rl at arrl.org
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==>FCC  NONCOMMITTAL ON "MORSE CODE" PROCEEDING ACTION

Just when the FCC will act  on the "Morse code" proceeding, WT Docket 05-235,
remains hazy. The  Commission released a Notice of Proposed Rule Making and
Order (NPRM&O)  last July proposing to eliminate the Element 1 (5 WPM) Morse
code requirement  for all license classes. The Amateur Radio community has
filed more than 3800  comments on the proceeding, and additional comments
continue to show up, even  though the formal comment deadline was last
October 31 (with reply comments  by November 14). The next--and
most-anticipated--step for the Commission is  to formally adopt any revisions
to its rules and conclude the proceeding with  a Report and Order (R&O) that
spells out the changes and specifies their  effective date.

"There really is no news," an FCC Wireless  Telecommunications Bureau staffer
told ARRL this week on background. "We  certainly hope to release WT Docket
05-235 sometime this year, but we're not  making any predictions at this
time. We certainly are not saving up any big  announcements for Dayton
Hamvention."

Beyond eliminating the Morse  requirement, the FCC declined proposing any
other suggested changes to the  Amateur Service.

The proceeding began with 18 petitions for rule  making--many just calling
for the elimination of the Morse requirement but  some asking for more
far-reaching changes in the Amateur Service rules. The  various petitions
attracted a total of some 6200 comments. The FCC  subsequently consolidated
the petitions--including one from the ARRL asking  the FCC to establish a new
entry-level license class and to retain the Morse  requirement only for
Amateur Extra class applicants--into a single proceeding  designated WT
05-235.

The FCC has not proposed extending HF privileges  to current Technician
licensees who have not passed a Morse code examination.  In its NPRM&O the
FCC suggested that in a no-Morse-requirement regime,  "codeless Techs" could
gain HF access by taking the Element 3 General class  written examination.

Any FCC decision to eliminate the 5 WPM Morse code  requirement for HF access
would have *no* impact on either the current HF  CW-only subbands or on the
CW privileges of Amateur Radio  licensees.

Before it releases an R&O on the Morse code proceeding,  however, the WTB
wants to wrap up action in another Amateur Radio-related  docket--the "Phone
Band Expansion" (or "Omnibus") NPRM in WT Docket 04-140,  released April 15,
2004. A dozen petitions for rulemaking, some dating back  to 2001, were
consolidated in the Omnibus proceeding. 

In that NPRM,  the Commission proposed to go along with the ARRL's Novice
refarming plan  aimed at reallocating the current Novice/Tech Plus subbands
and expanding  portions of the 80, 40 and 15 meter phone bands. The FCC also
agreed with an  ARRL proposal to extend privileges in the current General
CW-only HF subbands  to present Novice and Tech Plus licensees (or
Technicians with Element 1  credit). WT 04-140 further proposed to
essentially do away with FCC rules  prohibiting the manufacture and marketing
to Amateur Radio operators of  amplifiers capable of operation on 12 and 10
meters.

==>SUITSAT-1  BATTERY VOLTAGE MAY BE ON DOWNWARD SLIDE

Heading into its third week of  operation, SuitSat-1
<http://www.suitsat.org/> continued to put out a  faint signal on 145.990
MHz. While hearing the spacesuit-satellite's  telemetry and voice messages
can be difficult even for the best-equipped  stations, recent
as-yet-unconfirmed reports suggest that SuitSat-1's battery  voltage could be
entering a death spiral. ARRL Member Richard Crow, N2SPI,  has been tracking
the satellite's battery voltage, nominally 28 V. While it's  been dropping
incrementally, Crow noticed a "noticeable acceleration" at  week's end. While
conceding that he's "going out on a limb" because  SuitSat-1's signal was
noisy on its last pass over his QTH, Crow believes he  heard the voice
telemetry announce 18.3 V, a precipitous drop from earlier  orbits.

"If this is so, the battery voltage may have dropped another 6.9  volts in
only 8 hours," he commented. "If so, the battery voltage is dropping  like a
rock." ARRL member AJ Farmer, AJ3U, has posted the reports on his Web  site
<http://www.aj3u.com/blog> and invites others. Crow says he won't  add the
still-questionable reading to his table until the battery voltage  is
verified or corroborated.

Not taking any chances, however,  SuitSat-1's sponsor--the Amateur Radio on
the International Space Station  (ARISS) program--issued an urgent call for
appropriately equipped Earth  stations to make every effort to copy
SuitSat-1's voice telemetry reports.  ARISS US Hardware Manager Lou McFadin,
W5DID, who was directly involved in  the construction of the SuitSat-1
package, says he and others on his team  have been following the voltage
reports with great interest.

"Your  efforts to gather the telemetry data are very much appreciated and
will  contribute to further success should we get the opportunity to build a
second  SuitSat," McFadin said today. "The power system is designed to
squeeze every  drop of power out of the batteries that is possible." Post
telemetry reports  or recordings to <suitsat at comcast.net>.

Deployed from the  International Space Station on February 3, SuitSat-1
already has outlasted  its initially predicted one-week active life.

McFadin explained that  SuitSat-1's battery current will rise as its battery
voltage drops. "That is  the power system's attempt to keep the transmitter
voltage at 12 V," he  noted. "As the battery voltage nears 12 V, the
regulator will no longer be  able to maintain 12 V output. At a battery
voltage below 9 V all  transmissions will cease."

He says that while SuitSat-1's computer will  continue to operate down to 3
V, the transmitter will shut down and SuitSat-1  will appear dead. "I expect
this drop-off to occur very rapidly," McFadin  added, expressing appreciation
for the dedication of those who have helped  monitor SuitSat-1.

Extremely low transmitter output power has been one  explanation for
SuitSat-1's faint signal. AMSAT-NA calculations last weekend  suggested that
SuitSat-1's transmitter is likely putting out between 1 and 10  mW instead of
the 500 mW it was supposed to produce.

Its puny signal  aside, the novel SuitSat-1 Amateur Radio transmit-only
spacesuit turned  satellite has been heard around the globe since its launch
by the  International Space Station crew. ARRL ARISS Program Manager Rosalie
White,  K1STO, said the past week has brought reports from teachers who've
integrated  SuitSat-1 monitoring into their classroom lessons.

"Thank you to the  SuitSat team for the opportunity to have students involved
in such an  exciting space project," teacher Neil Carleton, VE3NCE, at R.
Tait McKenzie  Public School in Almonte, Ontario, said. "It's been a week of
adventure, and  I'm happy to report on the involvement of my class as part of
our grade 6  science studies of space."

SuitSat-1's transmission order is: DTMF tone,  CW ID, SSTV image, 30 seconds
of silence, voice identification, mission time,  temperature and battery
voltage. The voice messages, telemetry and SSTV image  are being sent on a
nine-minute repeating cycle. ARISS International Chairman  Frank Bauer,
KA3HDO, said the SuitSat team plans to provide special  recognition to the
person who copies the last SuitSat telemetry, and in  particular the mission
time and battery voltage.

AMSAT-NA has  designated SuitSat-1 as AMSAT-OSCAR 54 (AO-54). By week's end,
SuitSat-1 had  completed more than 200 orbits of Earth. Since its deployment,
SuitSat-1 has  shed a piece of debris. Speculation is that it could be a
glove or another  piece of the spacesuit.

More information on the SuitSat-1 project,  including QSL information, is
available on the AMSAT Web site  <http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/index.php>
and on the SuitSat Web site  <http://www.suitsat.org>.

==>BACK-TO-BACK ARISS SCHOOL QSOS  ATTEST TO AMBITIOUS CONTACT SCHEDULE

Some schools have waited years for a  chance to speak via ham radio with the
crew of the International Space  Station. In part to catch up on the backlog,
the Amateur Radio on the  International Space Station (ARISS) program has
adopted a more ambitious  roster of ARISS school group contacts, working
around the crew's work  schedule to arrange as many as two or three such QSOs
per week. On February  7, ARISS managed to squeeze in two school contacts in
the same day on  consecutive ISS orbits. Both Dale High School in Dale,
Oklahoma, and DeGolyer  Elementary School in Dallas, Texas, had submitted
contact applications to  ARISS some five years earlier.

"We got the first pass," said Dale High  School control op Ron Cochrane,
KD5GEZ, whose grandson Justin, now a high  school freshman, inspired the
application to ARISS while in elementary  school.

"When we knew that they were going to be coming back around in  another hour
and a half, every one of the same kids who had asked questions  before came
back and were sitting around the radio listening to Dallas and  all their
questions," Cochrane continued. He said the activity attracted  attention
from other students who slipped into the room to listen in on the  DeGolyer
contact too.

Dale School Counselor Karren Cantrell said the  opportunity for students in
the community to talk to McArthur "was huge for a  little country school" in
Oklahoma. "The students in grades 3 through 12 were  very wide-eyed and alert
during this event," she said. "For a period of about  10 minutes, our kids
were in another world--literally." Cochrane says perhaps  as many as 1000
students, parents, visitors and members of the news media  gathered for the
school system-wide assembly. So intense was the interest,  "you could have
heard a pin drop," Cochrane said. "Everybody was just locked  in."

Those taking part in the contact, all ninth grade  science
students--including Justin Cochrane, wanted to know about an  astronaut's
training, food aboard the ISS, and whether it's scary to travel  to and work
in space. Keith Pugh, W5IU--the ARISS mentor for both the Dale  and DeGolyer
events--said McArthur answered 15 of the students' questions  during the
20-degree pass before the ISS went out of range.

ARRL  Oklahoma Section Manager John Thomason, WB5SYT, says efforts are under
way to  use the successful Dale High School ARISS contact as a springboard to
have  Amateur Radio licensing become a part of the school's curriculum.
Thomason  and ARRL West Gulf Director Coy Day, N5OK, represented the League
at the  event.

At DeGolyer Elementary, current and former students gathered to  take part in
the ARISS school group contact on the subsequent ISS orbit.  DeGolyer, the
first Amateur Radio Education and Technology Program (aka "The  Big Project")
pilot school, boasts its own club station, K5DES, and many ham  radio
licensees. Bob Landrum, W5FKN, was at the controls for the contact, and  all
of the youngsters participating in the contact were Amateur Radio  operators
who had been encouraged and "Elmered" by art teacher Sanlyn Kent,  KD5LXO,
and teaching assistant Richard Aguilar, K5LXM.

The DeGolyer  pupils also asked about space food, the effects of microgravity
and what jobs  onboard the ISS they enjoy or don't enjoy. "The DeGolyer
contact went off  without a hitch before a crowd that filled the auditorium
plus closed-circuit  TV to the rest of the school," Pugh reported, adding
that the youngsters  asked 17 questions during the 35-degree pass. The event
also got good news  media coverage. "The DeGolyer crew was able to listen to
the Dale contact  prior to their event," he noted.

Stopping by for the occasion were ARRL  President Emeritus Jim Haynie, W5JBP,
and ARRL North Texas Section Manager  Tom Blackwell, N5GAR.

Owing largely to the accelerated ARISS school group  contact schedule, ISS
Expedition 12 Commander Bill McArthur, KC5ACR, recently  topped the previous
record for the most such QSOs in a single mission, and  Expedition 12 still
has some six weeks to go. As of February 15, McArthur and  crewmate Valeri
Tokarev had logged a total of 25 school contacts from NA1SS  and RS0ISS--all
but one by McArthur. This past week, McArthur also topped 100  entities in
his effort to complete DXCC from space. Since DXCC rules make no  provisions
for contacts from space, he'll have to settle for an honorary  DXCC
certificate.

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

==>LEAGUE COMPLAINS TO FCC ABOUT BPL DATABASE  IRREGULARITIES

Describing the FCC-mandated BPL Interference Resolution  Web site
<http://www.bpldatabase.org/> as "woefully incomplete and  improperly
managed," the ARRL has called on the FCC to order database manager  United
Telecomm Council (UTC) to fix it immediately or appoint "a  competent
database manager" to repair the problems.

"The database  management is either shamefully incompetent on the part of UTC
or simply  nonexistent," the ARRL said in a complaint this week to the FCC's
Office of  Engineering and Technology (OET). "The database is merely 'garbage
in,  garbage out,' and in its present form cannot serve any useful purpose at
all,  much less a 'sufficient' means of addressing BPL interference."

In a  related development, UTC has terminated the ARRL's access to the  BPL
Interference Resolution Web site, and the League plans to file a  separate
complaint to the FCC on that issue. League efforts to access the  database
yielded this error message: "The system has determined that this  line of
searching constitues [sic] unauthorized use of the database.  Cease
operations immediately."

The BPL database should be accessible  from other ISPs, however, and the ARRL
wants to hear from anyone else  spotting discrepancies as well as from those
whose database access has been  curtailed or cut off.

The ARRL already has complained about the UTC  database's use of ZIP codes as
a sole database access key. To simplify  searches, the League has requested
that the FCC require UTC to provide a list  of ZIP codes where BPL systems
are on line or pending.

The FCC ordered  creation of the BPL Interference Resolution database to
provide licensed  spectrum users a central, public information source on
local BPL operations  to help resolve incidents of harmful interference.
Commission rules require  BPL operators to provide the name of the BPL
provider, frequencies of  operation, postal ZIP codes served, manufacturer
and type of BPL equipment, a  point-of-contact telephone number and e-mail
address for interference  inquiries and resolution, and the proposed or
actual date the system will  start operation.

Having correct and up-to-date information in the BPL  Interference Resolution
Database benefits both BPL providers and licensed  services, the League has
pointed out. For example, a radio amateur suspecting  BPL interference might
be able to rule out the possibility by consulting the  database.

ARRL Laboratory Manager Ed Hare, W1RFI--the League's point man  on BPL
technical issues--says that while the BPL database has its  shortcomings,
ARRL staff have until now made extensive use of it to help  radio amateurs
deal appropriately with interference issues.

"In the  past, when amateurs have reported BPL interference, one industry
response has  been to claim that the amateur station is hearing some other
noise and  thinking that it's BPL," Hare said. The BPL database makes it
possible to  baseline noise levels in advance of a BPL deployment and can
even help to  prevent erroneous interference reports, he pointed out.

"The UTC's  escalating restrictions on access to the database will serve
little other  purpose than to make it harder for amateurs to identify BPL
interference  correctly," Hare remarked.

The ARRL complaint said the FCC should require  UTC "to revisit every entry
in the database and verify independently the  information provided."
Alternatively, the League requested that the FCC  relieve UTC as database
manager and appoint a new one that will supervise it  properly. 

"The fox, therefore, should be withdrawn from the henhouse,"  the League
said.

Attached to the League's letter of complaint was a  compilation of BPL
database errors and omissions the ARRL discovered between  January 27 and
February 14, 2006. "There may be others," the ARRL noted. The  League said
the FCC is obliged under Part 15 to apply sanctions on BPL  providers not
complying with the database requirements.

Most  noteworthy among the alleged violators are the Briarcliff Manor, New
York,  and Allentown, Pennsylvania-area BPL systems that have been the cause
of  substantial interference to Amateur Radio stations. The League recently
asked  the FCC to shut down the Briarcliff Manor system because of
longstanding  interference complaints. Such BPL operators have no incentive
to comply with  the database requirements because "their scofflaw attitudes"
toward the few  BPL regulations in place have been rewarded by FCC inaction,
the ARRL  complaint said.

A copy of the League's complaint is on the ARRL Web  site
<http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/HTML/plc/filings/BPL-Database-Content-Complain
t.pdf>.

==>3Y0X  AND NA1SS LOG HISTORIC QSO

Completing an overhaul of the International  Space Station's exercise
treadmill cut into Expedition 12 Commander Bill  McArthur's ham radio time
from NA1SS. But when he did get on the radio  February 13, he made excellent
use of the time remaining.

"Only one  contact," McArthur reported. "3Y0X! Thanks!" The 2-meter contact
between the  space station and the Peter I Island  DXpedition
<http://www.peterone.com/main.htm> near Antarctica occurred  during a barely
viable 2-degree pass. The 3Y0X QSO pushed McArthur's count of  DXCC entities
worked from space to 104. McArthur already has worked all  states and all
continents during his duty tour aboard the ISS.

On the  Peter I Island end of the contact was 3Y0X DXpedition team member
Gordon  Hardman, W0RUN. McArthur, who's KC5ACR, reports he and Hardman
enjoyed "a  brief, but nice chat." 

Because the Amateur Radio on the International  Space Station (ARISS) Phase 2
gear is in crossband repeater mode for  SuitSat-1, McArthur used the
lower-power Phase 1 Ericsson 2-meter gear for  the contact. He reported good
copy on 3Y0X, which was using its moonbounce  equipment and array for the
event. The 3Y0X team already was celebrating the  nine moonbounce contacts it
had made over the previous  weekend.

Operating as RS0ISS, McArthur's crewmate Valeri Tokarev also got  in a QSO
this week with a Russian member of the 3Y0X DXpedition  team.

Topping the Peter I Web site I is the comment, "More people have  flown in
outer space than have set foot on Peter I Island!" ARISS Ham Radio  Project
Engineer Kenneth Ransom, N5VHO, notes that the 3Y0X DXpedition is the  first
to work someone in space from that location. 

McArthur earlier  worked the 3Y0X DXpedition team while it was still en route
and operating as  XR9A/mm. Previous tries at a 3Y0X-NA1SS contact were
unsuccessful, but Ransom  thinks a recent change in the space station's
orientation may have  contributed to this week's success. 

==>HELP SUPPORT W1AW . . . MORE  THAN AN AMATEUR RADIO TRADITION! 

Since its dedication in 1938, ARRL  Maxim Memorial Station W1AW has served as
a beacon for the Amateur Radio  community in the US and around the world.
While a symbol of the past, W1AW  continues to play an active role in Amateur
Radio's present and in helping to  forge its future. Now you can take part in
helping to preserve and advance  W1AW as a tradition and a trendsetter. ARRL
is working to build a permanent  fund to cover W1AW's annual operations and
capital needs. 

"Your  support will help keep W1AW at the cutting edge of technology," said
ARRL CEO  David Sumner, K1ZZ. "I know you share with me a strong sense of
history and a  desire for W1AW to continue as an active and vibrant station,
contributing to  the Amateur Radio community for years to come." 

Experiments at W1AW  include work with cutting-edge digital technologies and
satellite reception  techniques. Continuing traditions are code practice and
bulletin  transmissions. 

The stop at the historic little brick building in front  of ARRL Headquarters
also is the highlight of any visit to the League. Radio  amateurs thrill at
having the opportunity to operate from W1AW, often  generating pileups of
stations equally excited about making a contact with  what may be the world's
best-known ham radio call sign. 

The League  invites contributions in any amount--or a pledge spread out over
time to the  W1AW Endowment Fund <http://www.arrl.org/endoww1aw.html>. Help
to  ensure that W1AW will remain the flagship station of the ARRL!  For
information on other giving options, contact ARRL Chief Development  Officer
Mary Hobart, K1MMH, <mhobart at arrl.org>;  860-594-0397.

==>LEGENDARY DXer CHARLES MELLEN, W1FH, SK

DXing  icon Charles Mellen, W1FH, of W Roxbury, Massachusetts, died January
21. He  was 91. In 1947, the ARRL awarded Mellen with the first mixed-mode
and phone  DXCC certificates ever issued. Mellen's friend (and ARRL Rhode
Island Section  Manager) Bob Beaudet, W1YRC, says that if Mellen's declining
health hadn't  intervened in the early 1990s, he would have become the only
DXer left to  have worked and confirmed all 393 post-World War II  DXCC
entities.

"The great world of DX is a bit smaller today," said  Beaudet, calling Mellen
"one of the finest role models our DX fraternity has  ever produced."

Licensed in 1930, Mellen was inducted into the CQ DX Hall  of Fame in 1994.
In addition to being an ARRL member, he also belonged to the  First Class CW
Operators Club (FOC).

Beaudet says Mellen was able to  achieve world-class DXer status despite his
"relatively modest setup." Bruce  Marshall, K1AJ, says that during the 1940s,
50s and 60s, Mellen was one of  the best-known DXers in the US, and he and
the renowned and  far-better-equipped Don Wallace, W6AM "were constantly
battling for the top  of the Honor Roll list."

According to those who knew him, Beaudet said,  Mellen's secret was something
he never bragged about but taught by example:  Operator skill, and especially
knowing how to listen  carefully.

Survivors include Mellen's wife, Mary, and a daughter. The  family invites
memorial contributions to the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of New  England, 514
Parker St, Boston, MA 02120, or to the MSPCA Development Office,  350 S
Huntington Ave, Boston, MA 02130.--some information from The Daily  DX
<http://www.dailydx.com> and the Boston Globe

==>SOLAR  UPDATE

Sun Watcher Tad "Black Hole Sun" Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington,  reports:
Average daily sunspot numbers this week rose by more than 7 points  to 9.
Expect to see even longer stretches with no sunspots over the next  year.

THE ARRL INTERNATIONAL DX CONTEST (CW) is this weekend. Sunspot 854  is
pointing straight at us, but it is tiny. Look for sunspot numbers and  solar
flux to rise only slightly, if at all, and for quiet geomagnetic  conditions.

Based on the previous solar rotation, Wednesday, February 22  looks like it
may show some fairly active geomagnetic conditions. Geophysical  Institute
Prague predicts slightly different conditions, with February 19  unsettled to
active, and February 21 and 22 just unsettled. The prediction is  for quiet
geomagnetic conditions Friday and Saturday, February 17 and 18,  only
slightly unsettled geomagnetic conditions on Sunday, February 19, and  quiet
to unsettled geomagnetic conditions February 20 and 23.

Sunspot  numbers for February 9 through 15 were 24, 13, 11, 0, 0, 0 and 15,
with a  mean of 9. The 10.7 cm flux was 74.8, 75.2, 76, 76, 76.3, 77.3, and
78.5,  with a mean of 76.3. Estimated planetary A indices were 2, 2, 6, 3, 2,
1 and  12, with a mean of 4. Estimated mid-latitude A indices were 2, 2, 4,
2, 2, 1  and 7, with a mean of 2.9.

==>IN BRIEF:

* This weekend on the  radio: THE ARRL INTERNATIONAL DX CONTEST (CW) is the
weekend of February  18-19. The Run for the Bacon QRP Contest is February 20.
JUST AHEAD: The  North American QSO Party (RTTY), the CQ 160-Meter Contest
(SSB), the Russian  PSK Worldwide Contest, the REF Contest (SSB), the UBA DX
Contest (CW), the  Mississippi and North Carolina QSO parties, the CZEBRIS
Contest, the High  Speed Club CW Contest and the CQC Winter QSO Party are the
weekend of  February 25-26. See the ARRL Contest Branch  page
<http://www.arrl.org/contests/> and the WA7BNM Contest  Calendar
<http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for more  info.

* ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course  registration:
Registration remains open through Sunday, February 19, for  these ARRL
Certification and Continuing Education (CCE) Program on-line  courses:
Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Level 1 (EC-001), Radio  Frequency
Interference (EC-006), Antenna Design and Construction (EC-009),  Technician
License Course (EC-010), Analog Electronics (EC-012) and Digital  Electronics
(EC-013). Classes begin Friday, March 3. To learn more, visit the  CCE Course
Listing page <http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html> or  contact the CCE
Department <cce at arrl.org>.

* Utility steps back  from North Idaho BPL test deployment: Avista Utilities
announced recently  that it's re-evaluating its plans to deploy a broadband
over power line (BPL)  project in North Idaho. The company, which serves some
330,000 electrical  power customers in three western states, said it and a
BPL vendor had  "mutually agreed" to end contract negotiations for a test
deployment in Post  Falls. "We want to step back and look at how the industry
is evolving in  terms of technology and the business model," Avista Market
Solutions Manager  Dave Heyamoto said in a company news release February 9.
While Avista did not  name the BPL vendor, a February 3 article in Spokane,
Washington's,  Spokesman-Review newspaper identified the company as
Communication  Technologies (COMTek) of Chantilly, Virginia. COMTek operates
the Manassas,  Virginia, BPL rollout that's been the subject of Amateur Radio
interference  complaints. In mid-January, the ARRL again called on the FCC to
order the  Manassas BPL system shut down until it resolves the interference
complaints.  Avista says it has not set a timeline for any future BPL
projects, which  reportedly could involve power-grid monitoring.

* Direct FAX number now  available for DXCC: The ARRL DXCC Desk now has a
direct FAX number to improve  and expedite the receipt and handling of
DXCC-related communications. The  number is 860-594-0346. There has been no
change in policy, and DXCC does not  accept DXCC submissions via FAX. The
former FAX number, 860-594-0259, remains  active for several other ARRL
Headquarters departments, but that FAX machine  is not in the immediate DXCC
area.

* Stu Cohen, N1SC, wins January QST  Cover Plaque Award: The winner of the
QST Cover Plaque Award for January is  Stu Cohen, N1SC, for his article
"Vintage Product Review--The Collins 75A-4  Receiver." Congratulations, Stu!
The winner of the QST Cover Plaque  award--given to the author or authors of
the best article in each issue--is  determined by a vote of ARRL members on
the QST Cover Plaque Poll Web  page
<http://www.arrl.org/members-only/QSTvote.html>. Cast a ballot for  your
favorite article in the February issue by Tuesday, February 28.

*  Correction: The article "Phil Salas, AD5X, Named 2005 Orr Award Winner"  in
The ARRL Letter, Vol 25, No 06, contained some incorrect and  incomplete
information regarding the award ceremony. Phil Salas, AD5X, will  receive the
Bill Orr Award plaque during a presentation attended by ARRL  President Joel
Harrison, W5ZN, and West Gulf Division Director Coy Day, N5OK,  at Ham-Com
2006, June 9-10, at the Plano Centre in Plano,  Texas.
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The  ARRL Letter is published Fridays, 50 times each year, by the American
Radio  Relay League--The National Association For Amateur Radio--225 Main  St,
Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax  860-594-0259;
<http://www.arrl.org>. Joel Harrison, W5ZN,  President.