[FPARC] The ARRL Letter Vol. 25, No. 39 September 29, 2006
W4kkw at aol.com
W4kkw at aol.com
Fri Sep 29 20:41:10 EDT 2006
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The ARRL Letter
Vol. 25, No. 39
September 29, 2006
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IN THIS EDITION:
* +500 kHz experiment reports first QSO
* +Kentucky ARES fills communication gap following flooding
* +Ham radio in space triple-header sets new ARISS benchmark
* +K0CA appointed ARRL Midwest Division Vice Director
* +FCC opens new Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau
* +Digital modes part of communication mix for Georgia drill
* Solar Update
* IN BRIEF:
This weekend on the radio
ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration
+New member of ARRL family arrives
Past Georgia SCM/SM Eddy Kosobucki, K4JNL, SK
ISS Expedition 3 Commander Ken Bowersox, KD5JBP, leaving NASA
Broadcaster-radio amateur receives national radio award
Post-2001 IRCs bear expiration dates
WRTC 2006 QSL cards ready to roll
We stand corrected!
+Available on ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>
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==>ARRL 500 kHz EXPERIMENT IN ORGANIZATIONAL PHASE
The project manager for the ARRL 500-kHz experiment, Fritz Raab, W1FR, says
The 500 KC Experimental Group for Amateur Radio is still in the
organizational stages but has already recorded its first two-way contact.
The FCC's Office of Engineering and Technology on September 13 granted Part
5 experimental license WD2XSH to the ARRL on behalf of a group of radio
amateurs interested in investigating the LF spectrum. The two-year
authorization permits experimentation and research between 505 and 510 kHz
(600 meters) using narrowband modes at power levels of up to 20 W effective
radiated power (ERP).
"It will probably be a free for all through October as guys get their
stations on the air," Raab told ARRL Headquarters. "The Midwest stations
will be limited to 505 to 508 kHz for the time being, and the rest can use
505 to 510 kHz." He said a couple of the WD2XSH participants got on the air
the day after the license was issued, and several others activated the first
week, generating a number of reception reports.
"Many are for distances of about 300 miles, of course, but some are much
longer," Raab told ARRL Headquarters. He reports that W0RPK in Iowa copied
the WD2XSH/20 station in Oregon early on September 26 - a distance of 1500
miles.
The first QSO took place September 21 between the stations in Tennessee and
North Carolina - a distance of some 300 miles.
Raab eventually would like to see at least a secondary 600-meter Amateur
Radio allocation from 495 to 510 kHz. He envisions eventual use of the
spectrum to provide Amateur Radio emergency communication via groundwave.
Announcement of the license grant earlier this month brought a few requests
from radio amateurs interested in joining the experimental group. Raab says
there are no plans to expand the group's membership, however. He does invite
reception reports of transmissions made by group members
<http://w5jgv.com/500kcreportform.htm>.
For the time being, the WD2XSH group is only using CW. The ARRL Part 5
application had requested permission to use both CW and PSK31, but the
license grant omitted the latter mode. Raab says he's working to secure
permission to add PSK31 to the grant.
During October, the 21-station experimental group will develop a band plan
that assigns frequencies for QRSS -- very slow speed CW -- as well as for CW
beacons and for two-way communication, Raab said. WD2XSH participant Conrad
Murray, WS4S (WD2XSH/11) reports he's transmitting a QRSS beacon on an
irregular basis on 505.505 kHz from his Tennessee QTH.
News of the WD2XSH license grant opened another line of communication for
Raab. "The announcement brought me a bunch of e-mails, and contact with
someone I knew from college and hadn't seen since the 1970s," he said.
More information is on the 500 kc Experimental Group for Amateur Radio Web
site <http://www.500kc.com/>.
==>AMATEUR RADIO FILLS COMMUNICATION GAP DURING WEEKEND FLOODING
When telephone and Internet service in Kentucky fell victim to flooding over
the September 22-24 weekend, Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) teams
took over to bridge the communication gap. Kentucky ARRL Section Emergency
Coordinator Ron Dodson, KA4MAP, says the deluge, the product of up to nearly
10 inches of rain in Kentucky and Southern Indiana, resulted in states of
emergency in 19 Kentucky counties and 12 cities, including Frankfort, the
capital. Dodson says the high water, which evoked memories of severe
flooding in March 1997, left at least 10 dead and many others homeless.
"All phone communications to the state emergency operations center (EOC)
went down as early as 2 AM Saturday, returned and then went out a second
time around 5 AM," Dodson reports. Emergency managers contacted Dodson to
activate the Kentucky Emergency Net on 3.993.5 MHz to provide support
communication between the EOC and Kentucky's 120 counties.
Dodson says telephone service in the EOC came back around mid-morning on
September 23, although the Kentucky Emergency Net remained in operation as
heavy rainfall began in western Kentucky.
"Within minutes, Shelby Ennis, W8WN, in Hardin County reported via the K4ULW
146.625 repeater that all telephone service, including the Hardin County
E-911 facility, had gone down," Dodson said. "Cell phones soon overloaded
and also shut down, basically stranding the whole county without outside
contact except via Amateur Radio." He explained that conventional telephone
systems failed in Hardin County because the provider had installed all its
systems in a basement area that flooded.
For the next several hours, Dodson said, communication between the state EOC
and Hardin County took place via the Bullitt Amateur Radio Society's KY4KY
146.700 repeater in Brooks. "The American Red Cross headquarters in
Louisville also used this machine to communicate with their shelter and
Hardin County emergency management," Dodson said. While the KY4KY repeater
supported command-and-control communication, other operations took place via
the W4BEJ 146.98 repeater in Elizabethtown and the neighboring K4ULW 146.625
repeater in Meade County.
Communications Supervisor Bob Stephens, WA4CMO, of the Kentucky Department
of Military Affairs said the Kentucky Emergency Management command vehicle
was positioned adjacent to the state EOC to provide communication on both
Amateur Radio and MARS frequencies. Pat Compton, KF4FMZ, and Bull Uschan,
K4MIS, staffed the Amateur Radio side, while Richard Howe, KB5WCH,
represented the Civil Air Patrol during the Saturday operation, which
continued for several hours.
"We operated all systems during the afternoon and provided critical
communication between the EOC and Hardin and Meade counties," Stephens
reported.
The American Red Cross summoned members of ARES District 6 -- the
Louisville/Jefferson County Metro area -- to assist with damage assessments
and to maintain communication with the Hardin County shelter operation.
According to Jefferson County Emergency Coordinator John Hesse, KF4IZS,
those operations continued on Sunday as additional damage assessment details
deployed in Louisville and in Fisherville in Spencer County.
The Franklin County Chapter of the American Red Cross also contacted
Woodford County EC Jerry Mueller, KC4WZO, Sunday morning seeking Amateur
Radio volunteers to support communication in the flooded Millville area.
"The Red Cross had three disaster relief teams in the Millville area, and
cell phone communication was not reliable," Dodson said.
Paul Harrington, KB4ENQ, Rob Hutchinson, KI4ODT, and Mueller responded,
joined by Compton from the Capitol Amateur Radio Society. Hutchinson and
Compton went to Millville for several hours to provide communication for the
Red Cross and to help deliver meals, drinks, ice and supplies. Harrington
and Mueller remained at the Red Cross Chapter to handle net duties in case
communication assistance was needed in another area.
Dodson said Stephens told him afterward that Kentucky Adjutant General Lt
Gen Donald Storm and Kentucky Division of Emergency Management Director Maj
Gen Maxwell Bailey "were pleased with the way Amateur Radio functioned in
providing communication when all else failed. They extend their thanks to
those amateurs who gave of themselves in this effort."
==>CIVILIAN SPACE TRAVELER, ASTRONAUTS PULL OFF ARISS HAM RADIO TRIPLE
HEADER
Students at three schools participated in a bit of ham radio history Friday,
September 22, when they spoke with the International Space Station's first
female civilian space visitor and two astronauts. The Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station (ARISS) program sponsored the separate, direct
VHF contacts with US civilian space traveler Anousheh Ansari, European Space
Agency (ESA) astronaut Thomas Reiter, DF4TR, and US astronaut Jeff Williams,
KD5TVQ. Ansari told students gathered at George Washington University, her
alma mater, that everything looks "so beautiful" from the ISS.
"It's great up here," Ansari told the students, "The weightlessness feels
fantastic. It's like floating like a feather."
Youngsters from Washington, DC-area elementary and middle and high schools
joined GWU students in interviewing Ansari, who spoke via NA1SS with
Williams as the control operator. Ansari, who returned to Earth September 28
with Williams and ISS Expedition 13 Commander Pavel Vinogradov, RV3BS, said
she misses her family on Earth, but "otherwise, I think I'm just going to
stay up here," she quipped.
Goddard Amateur Radio Club (GARC) members set up and operated the necessary
station equipment for the contact between NA1SS and GWU Earth station
KE4GDU.
In addition to the GWU event, Ansari, using the Russian RS0ISS call sign,
made random Amateur Radio contacts during her ISS stay with a number of hams
around the world. At one point she was seeking stations in her native Iran.
Space Adventures Ltd arranged with the Russian Space Agency for Ansari to
join the Expedition 14 team of Commander Michael Lopez-Alegria, KE5GTK, and
cosmonaut Mikhail Tyurin, RZ3FT, on the Soyuz "taxi flight" to the ISS last
week.
Earlier on that same orbit, during a contact arranged by the ESA in
cooperation with ARISS, Reiter chatted via HB4FR with students at the
Gymnase Intercantonal de la Broye, in Payerne, Switzerland, using the German
DP0ISS call sign. The contact was conducted in English.
Reiter answered eight questions from the 15 to 17 year olds - 22 in all - as
50 onlookers gathered around the radio and another 350 witnessed the contact
via an Amateur TV link. The contact attracted media coverage from several TV
outlets and newspapers.
The school set up for the contact in the museum Clin d'Ailes at the Payerne
Swiss Air Force Base, the home of HB4FR. First to greet Thomas on the air
was his friend and Museum Foundation President Claude Nicollier, HB9CN, the
first Swiss astronaut. The event was part of "Swiss Space Days" activities
organized by the Swiss Astronautics Association.
During the five-minute radio contact, eight students got to ask questions.
Responding to one of them, Reiter said the ISS crew has been trying to spot
the Great Wall of China from space but has not been successful. He said he'd
make another attempt and see if he could get a photo. Reiter this week
officially became part of the ISS Expedition 14 crew.
On the following ISS orbit, Williams answered questions put to him by
students at Crete-Monee Middle School in Crete, Illinois. The contact was
Williams's 15th and final school QSO of his ISS duty tour before he headed
home September 28. Williams told the youngsters that while he was looking
forward to returning to Earth and reuniting with his family, his time in
space has been both exhilarating and very rewarding "for all the obvious
reasons."
As Williams put it: "Getting here is very exciting, being here is very
exciting with all the unique things you can do in weightlessness and the
unique things you can see from here, and, of course, going home's going to
be pretty exciting too."
Williams said eating in space can be difficult "if you don't manage your
food" in the microgravity environment where meals won't simply sit on a
plate. "It's a lot of fun to play with your food," he added.
As the approximately nine-minute contact between NA1SS and AJ9N drew to a
close, Williams urged the students to set their goals high and "go for
them!" An audience of 800 - mostly other students - was on hand, and
representatives from two TV stations and a local newspaper showed up to
report the event. Members of the Lake County Amateur Radio Club (LARC) and
the Kankakee Amateur Radio Society (KARS) set up the station at the school
for the ARISS contact, and audio was streamed onto the KARS W9AZ repeater.
The Expedition 13 of Vinogradov and Williams returned to Earth September 29
(UTC) in the steppes of Kazakhstan. The Soyuz TMA-8 spacecraft landed some
50 miles northeast of Arkalyk, and Russian recovery forces and NASA
officials arrived at the site shortly after touchdown.
ARISS <http://www.rac.ca/ariss> is an international educational outreach
with US participation by ARRL, AMSAT and NASA.
==>CLIFF AHRENS, K0CA, APPOINTED ARRL MIDWEST DIVISION VICE DIRECTOR
Cliff Ahrens, K0CA, of Hannibal, Missouri, is the new ARRL Midwest Division
Vice Director. ARRL President Joel Harrison, W5ZN, announced the appointment
September 26. Ahrens, an appellate court judge, succeeds Bruce Frahm, K0BJ,
who became Midwest Division Director following the death August 31 of
Director Wade Walstrom, W0EJ.
"I'm pleased to have the opportunity," Ahrens commented, "and I look forward
to working with Director Frahm, President Harrison and the members of the
Board of Directors to promote, protect and strengthen our great Amateur
Radio fraternity."
An ARRL Life and Diamond Club Member, Ahrens has been a radio amateur since
1979 and previously held the call signs KI0W, N0BQN, and KA0EZR. He's also a
Life Member of the Quarter Century Wireless Association.
Ahrens already has served the League in various other capacities. He's an
Midwest Division Assistant Director. Since 1997, he's been the Midwest
Division representative on the DX Advisory Committee and chaired the panel
from August 2000 until March 2003. He's currently DXAC vice chair. He's
served in the past as an ARRL Volunteer Counsel.
An active DXer, Ahrens enjoys No 1 DXCC Honor Roll status with all 337
current entities confirmed. He's also earned CW and Phone Honor Roll and
stands at 2445 band entities in the ARRL DXCC Challenge.
Ahrens is a member of the Mississippi Valley DX/Contest Club, the Eastern
Iowa DX Association, the Kansas City DX Club, the Hannibal Amateur Radio
Club and the Western Illinois Amateur Radio Club. He's a past president of
the Hannibal ARC, and is trustee for that club's call signs.
Professionally, Ahrens is an appellate judge on the Missouri Court of
Appeals, Eastern District in St Louis. Ahrens also has been active in
various public, civic and charitable organizations.
He and his wife Kim have three grown children -- sons Todd, W0CTA, and Joe,
K4CJA, and daughter Ann. Besides ham radio, Ahrens also enjoys photography,
reading and computers, and spending time with his family.
==>FCC LAUNCHES NEW PUBLIC SAFETY AND HOMELAND SECURITY BUREAU
The FCC has formally launched its new Public Safety and Homeland Security
Bureau (PSHSB) <http://www.fcc.gov/pshs/>. The PSHSB will assume some
functions that had been under the umbrella of the Wireless
Telecommunications Bureau (WTB), where the Amateur Radio Service will
remain. WTB Public Safety and Critical Infrastructure Division Chief Michael
J. Wilhelm, WS6BR, has assumed a role within the new bureau, however.
"The events of September 11, 2001, and last year's hurricane season
underscored America's dependence on an effective national telecommunications
infrastructure," the Commission said. "The new bureau will build on the
Commission's longstanding commitment to meet the needs of public safety by
promoting robust, reliable and resilient communications services in times of
emergency." Addressing interoperability issues will be a part of that
process, Acting Bureau Chief Ken Moran told the Commission September 26.
The PSHSB is responsible for the combined public safety-related functions
previously spread among other bureaus and offices. It will include Policy,
Public Communications Outreach and Operations and Communications Systems
Analysis divisions. Wilhelm will serve as deputy chief of the PSHSB's Policy
Division. The Public Communications Outreach and Operations Division will
operate the FCC's Communications Center and the High Frequency Direction
Finding Center.
Some observers had speculated that Amateur Radio would be shifted to the
PSHSB, thus removing it from the WTB's market-based approach to regulation.
Moving some of the WTB's current responsibilities to the new bureau could
nonetheless speed up the process of moving Amateur Radio-related proceedings
through the Commission.
The FCC Order setting up the new bureau is on the FCC Web site
<http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-06-35A1.pdf>.
==>JAPANESE UNIVERSITY LAUNCHES AMATEUR RADIO CUBESAT
Hokkaido Institute of Technology's HIT-SAT satellite has joined several
other CubeSats carrying Amateur Radio payloads in space. The tiny satellite
launched successfully September 23 (Japan Standard Time) from the Uchinoura
Space Center in Japan, and its CW telemetry was copied around the world on
the satellite's initial orbits. Over the weekend, HIT-SAT's CW telemetry was
halted as a power-saving measure during attitude control procedures, and it
remained silent after attitude control should have ended. But on September
27, ground controllers were able to restore the CW telemetry.
"Although the cause was still unknown, we hope the transmission of CW
continues normally," the HIT-SAT team said on its Web site. "We appreciate
the cooperation and help of radio amateurs all over the world. Please hear
the beat of our satellite's heart." HIT-SAT's FM packet transmitter has been
operating normally from the time the spacecraft reached orbit, and ground
controllers have been able to obtain telemetry data from it.
Like other university-built CubeSats, HIT-SAT was constructed using mostly
off-the-shelf parts. The 1200 bps FM packet downlink is on 437.425 MHz,
while the CW telemetry downlink is on 437.275 with a transmitter power of
100 mW. The CubeSat uses a VHF uplink. The HIT-SAT team is seeking reception
reports, including audio files. The satellite's call sign is JR8YJT.
Once it's fully operational, HIT-SAT will permit Earth station operators to
request certain parameters by transmitting DTMF commands on the 145.980 MHz
uplink. The satellite can report back time/date, temperature and power
supply voltages and thank the Earth station by call sign. Only HIT-SAT
ground station controllers can access the satellite at this point, however.
The diminutive satellite is a project of the Hokkaido Institute of
Technology's ham radio club. HIT-SAT hitchhiked on the M-V-7 vehicle that
carried the Solar-B satellite into orbit. The satellite is in a sun
synchronous orbit with an orbital altitude of 250 km at perigee and 600 km
at apogee and an inclination of 97.79 degrees. A 12-cm square cube, HIT-SAT
weighs 2.2 kg.
AMSAT has not yet assigned HIT-SAT an OSCAR designation.
==>GEORGIA ARESMAT EMPLOYS DIGITAL, VOICE MODES FOR DRILL
The Georgia Amateur Radio Emergency Service Mutual Assistance Team (ARESMAT)
made use of both digital modes -- in the form of Winlink 2000 -- and voice
modes during a drill conducted with the Air National Guard earlier this
month. Georgia ARESMAT District Emergency Coordinator Scott Royle, KK4Z,
says the September 20 exercise simulated a large Category 3 hurricane
hitting the Georgia coast at Savannah.
"The drill included evacuation of civilians via C-130 aircraft," he
explained. ARESMAT was responsible for providing "reach-back" communication
between Savannah, Tift Henry Airport in Tift County and Dobbins Air Reserve
Base in Marietta. Royle said Georgia ARESMAT deployed five Winlink stations
and six team members to handle digital and voice nets for the exercise. The
Winlink net accepted checkins from stations outside those directly involved
in the operation.
Savannah and Chatham and Tift counties also established local nets to test
emergency circuits in those areas, and communication was established between
Dobbins Joint Operations Center and Georgia Emergency Management's State
Operations Center.
Royle says Georgia ARESMAT used various antennas including an inverted V
dipole, a Buddipole, a J-pole and a whip.
"The training ARESMAT gained from this exercise will be invaluable as the
team continues to prepare to operate under these conditions," Royle said,
expressing his appreciation for all who participated.
A complement to the normal ARES function, the ARESMAT concept recognizes
that a neighboring section's ARES resources can be quickly overwhelmed in a
large-scale disaster, necessitating communication support from ARES
personnel outside the affected area.
==>SOLAR UPDATE
Solar swami Tad "Sunny" Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington, reports: Average
daily sunspot numbers were down this week by less than one point to 12.7.
The average daily solar flux was down by five points from the previous week
to 72. Geomagnetic indices were down a bit as well.
The Air Force projects that September 29 geomagnetic conditions will be
quiet, with a planetary A index of 8, rising to 15, then 20 on Sunday, and
dropping back to 8 on Monday, October 2. Currently the interplanetary
magnetic field is pointed south, signaling that Earth is vulnerable to solar
flares or solar wind from coronal holes. Sunspots 913 and 914 are rotating
into view, and sunspot number and solar flux should rise slightly by Monday.
Geophysical Institute Prague projects unsettled conditions for September 29,
quiet conditions on September 30, unsettled to active conditions on October
1, unsettled October 2, quiet to unsettled for October 3, then quiet
conditions on October 4-5.
For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL Technical
Information Service Propagation page
<http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html>.
Sunspot numbers for September 21 through 27 were 11, 17, 13, 13, 11, 13 and
11, with a mean of 12.7. 10.7 cm flux was 71.4, 72.3, 70.4, 69.8, 70.2,
70.7, and 72, with a mean of 71. Estimated planetary A indices were 4, 3, 9,
23, 6, 6 and 4, with a mean of 7.9.
__________________________________
==>IN BRIEF:
* This weekend on the radio: The CIS DX Contest, the Arkansas QSO Party, and
the F.I.S.T.S. Coast to Coast Contest are the weekend of September
30-October 1. The UBA ON Contest and the RSGB 21/28 MHz Contest are October
1. The ARS Spartan Sprint and the German Telegraphy Contest are October 3.
The YLRL Anniversary Party (CW) is October 3-5. The 432 MHz Fall Sprint is
October 4. The SARL 80-Meter QSO Party is October 5. The TARA PSK Rumble
Contest is October 6. JUST AHEAD: The California QSO Party (CQP), the
Oceania DX Contest (SSB), the International HELL-Contest, the EU Autumn
Sprint (SSB), the PRO CW Contest and the UBA ON Contest (SSB) are the
weekend of October 7-8. 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, October 8, for these ARRL
Certification and Continuing Education on-line courses: Amateur Radio
Emergency Communications Level 2 (EC-002), Amateur Radio Emergency
Communications Level 3 (EC-003R2), Antenna Modeling (EC-004), HF Digital
Communications (EC-005), VHF/UHF -- Life Beyond the Repeater (EC-008), and
Radio Frequency Propagation (EC-011). Classes begin Friday, October 20.
These courses will also open for registration Friday, October 6, for classes
beginning Friday, November 17. 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>.
* New member of ARRL family arrives: ARRL Rocky Mountain Division Vice
Director Brian Mileshosky, N5ZGT, and his wife Katelyn, KA5TLN, have
announced the birth of their first child, a daughter - Audrey Meredith -
this week. Audrey was born September 25, weighing in at just shy of 6
pounds, 2 ounces (and 19 inches long). At 26, Mileshosky is the
youngest-ever ARRL vice director and was the 1999 winner of the ARRL Hiram
Percy Maxim Memorial Award. For several years, he edited the
"Youth at HamRadio.Fun" column on the ARRL Web site
<http://www.arrl.org/news/youth/>. He's been in office since January 2005.
The Mileshoskys live in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
* Past Georgia SCM/SM Eddy Kosobucki, K4JNL, SK: Edmund J. "Eddy" Kosobucki,
K4JNL, of Columbus, Georgia, died September 11. He was 81. An ARRL member,
Kosobucki served for 12 years as Georgia Section Communications
Manager/Section Manager -- from 1979 until 1991. "Eddy was a vibrant part of
Amateur Radio here in Georgia for many years and served as mentor for more
people than just about anyone I know," said Georgia SM Susan Swiderski,
AF4FO. Kosobucki was a longstanding member of the Georgia Single Sideband
Net, the Quarter Century Wireless Association and the Columbus Amateur Radio
Club. He also served as the Georgia Section's Official Bulletin Station and
as a net control station for the Georgia Traffic and Emergency Net. A
service was set for September 22 in Columbus. An on-line guest book is
available
<http://www.legacy.com/Ledger-Enquirer/GB/GuestbookView.aspx?PersonId=192094
06>. The family invites contributions to the Columbus Alliance for Battered
Women, PO Box 4182, Columbus, GA 31904, The Knights of Columbus Wheelchair
Fund, PO Box 12517, Columbus, GA 31907 or Visticare Hospice, 850 Brookstone
Centre Pkwy, Columbus, GA 31906.
* ISS Expedition 3 Commander Ken Bowersox, KD5JBP, leaving NASA: NASA has
announced that International Space Station Expedition 6 Commander Ken
Bowersox, KD5JBP, will be departing the space agency. Bowersox will leave
his position as director of flight crew operations this month. Pending his
retirement from the US Navy, where he holds the rank of captain, he'll move
into a support position in the office of Johnson Space Center Director
Michael Coats. An astronaut since 1987, Bowersox, who will turn 50 in
November, moved into NASA management in February 2004 following four shuttle
flights and his six-month ISS mission. Astronaut Ellen Ochoa, KB5TZZ -- a
veteran of four spaceflights -- will succeed Bowersox as director of flight
crew operations, which oversees the Astronaut Office and Aircraft
Operations. She's served as deputy director since 2003.
* Broadcaster-radio amateur receives national radio award: The National
Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has announced that David E. Kennedy,
WA8WAL -- most recently president and CEO of Susquehanna Media Co --
received the NAB National Radio Award September 20 during the NAB Radio Show
luncheon in Dallas. "Throughout his career, David has exemplified a
tremendous commitment to the business of radio," NAB President and CEO David
K. Rehr said in a statement. "NAB salutes David Kennedy for his many
contributions to radio, and we are proud to include him in this prestigious
group of radio broadcast icons." Kennedy has served in numerous leadership
positions throughout his 35-year radio career, including stints as NAB Radio
Board chairman and NAB Joint Board chairman. The NAB Radio Show is the
largest annual convention for radio broadcasters.--NAB
* Post-2001 IRCs bear expiration dates: Many DXers still use International
Reply Coupons (IRCs) <http://www.upu.int/irc/en/> issued by the Universal
Postal Union (UPU) to cover return postage for QSL cards. As of January 1,
2002, UPU-issued IRCs bear expiration dates, after which the coupon has no
value. The so-called "Beijing model 1" IRC expires December 31, 2006. The
newest IRC, the "Beijing model 2," expires December 31, 2009. Check any IRCs
you've got on hand for an expiration date! Curiously, the United States
Postal Service International Mail Manual states that the period of exchange
for IRCs issued by the UPU on or after January 1, 1975, is unlimited. The
UPU says IRCs are exchangeable in all member countries for the minimum
postage of a priority item or an unregistered air mail letter sent to a
foreign country. An IRC costs $1.85 in the US. Although US post offices are
not obliged to sell IRCs, it is mandatory for post offices in UPU member
countries to exchange the coupons.
* WRTC 2006 QSL cards ready to roll: World Radiosport Team Championship 2006
(WRTC 2006) Chairman Atilano de Oms, PY5EG, has announced that QSL cards for
WRTC 2006 stations have been printed and are ready for mailing
<http://www.wrtc2006.com/release70.html>. "We are ready to confirm all QSOs
via air mail or bureau," Oms said. "If you want the QSL via air mail, please
send your card with SASE and IRCs to our QSL manager, Vantuil Barbosa Dias,
PP5VB, PO Box 13, IMBITUBA - SC - CEP 88780-000 BRAZIL." Oms added that
stations may QSL via the bureau using PP5VB as the manager.
* We stand corrected! We misspelled Allan Severson's name in the news brief
that appeared in The ARRL Letter, Vol 25, No 39 (Sep 22, 2006) reporting
N8IO as the 2006 Allan Severson, AB8P, Memorial Award winner.
===========================================================
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==>How to Get The ARRL Letter
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