From bmarx at bellsouth.net Sun Feb 1 15:35:15 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Sun, 01 Feb 2015 15:35:15 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] K1N 1 February 2015 update In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <54CE8E03.2020809@bellsouth.net> THEY MIGHT HAVE A STATION ON THE AIR BEFORE SUPER BOWL PER TWEET. sent 1920 UTC 1 Feb 2015 Tony N2MFT _1 February 2015_ _FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE_ >From The KP1-5 project RE: K1N Navassa Island DXpedition Navassa: Progress being made The first helicopter flight of the day (the second overall) took off at sunrise this morning. It contained only cargo, health and welfare supplies and no operators. The second flight today has Team MembersGregg W6IZT ,John W2GD andRalph K?IR along with gear. It landed on Navassa at 1800z. The next (and probably last) flight of the day_will include radios_and two Team MembersCraig K9CT andLou N2TU . *There is a strong possibility that we will have two or three stations on the air tonight -- smack in the middle of Super Bowl XLIX!* The team on the island reports strong winds, very hot temperature, rats as large as cats, scorpions, Black Widow spiders, and some Haitians. Despite all that, progress is being made building the camp infrastructure. After the last flight today, there will be eight Team Members on the island leaving six still in Jamaica. Our last Team MemberGeorge AA7JV and "Electra" remain in port in Jamaica awaiting improving weather. From bmarx at bellsouth.net Tue Feb 3 13:58:39 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Tue, 03 Feb 2015 13:58:39 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] A Message from Jeff In-Reply-To: <20150203143914.C9FCB20BCA57@bmail.arrl.org> References: <20150203143914.C9FCB20BCA57@bmail.arrl.org> Message-ID: <54D11A5F.4040306@bellsouth.net> Greetings to all, The New Year sure has started with a ?bang? here in the SFL Section. In addition to club meetings, I attended the annual Festivus club picnic sponsored by the Gold Coast ARA , the Winter FD picnic sponsored by the Palms West ARC, the Southwest Florida Hamfest sponsored by the Ft. Myers ARC at their spacious new venue and the Tropical Hamboree sponsored by the Dade RC of Miami. A great time was had by all at these events as well as record attendance at both hamfests. My thanks to all these clubs for their dedication and hard work. Later this month, the ARRL Southeastern Division Convention held at the Orlando Hamcation will take place on Feb.13-15. Many ARRL officials will be on hand to meet you including ARRL COO Harold Kramer, WJ1B from HQ. Looking forward to seeing many of you at Hamcation this year. Mark your calendars for the upcoming Palm Beach County Hamfest on March 14th and the Southern Florida Section Convention to be held at the Stuart Hamfest on March 21st. More info here next month or visit http://www.palmbeachradiofest.com/ and http://www.stuarthamfest.com During the ARRL forum at the Ft. Myers hamfest, I was pleased to present a special ARRL award to former Section Manager Phyllisan West, KA4FZI for her many years of service to the SFL Section as SM, Section Traffic Manager , Net Manager and NTS traffic representative. Congratulations, Miss Phil ! After a couple of postponements by NASA , the Everglades ARC of Homestead completed a successful ARISS contact on Jan. 15 at the Richmond Heights Middle School in South Miami. Assisted by members of the Dade RC of Miami, the group completed their tasks to make the contact and the kids were just thrilled to speak to the astronauts on the ISS. Kudos to all that participated in this teamwork effort. School Club Roundup is February 9-13! School clubs are busily prepping their stations for The ?Winter/Spring Term? School Club Roundup, which gets under way Monday, February 9 at 1300 UTC, and continues through Friday, February 13, at 2359 UTC. The twice-yearly event is an opportunity for school club stations ? from elementary school to college ? to get on the air for a friendly radio activity. Sponsored by the ARRL, the ARRL Hudson Division Education Task Force, and the Long Island Mobile Amateur Radio Club (LIMARC), the contest aims to foster contacts with and among school radio clubs. Participation in the School Club Roundup is easy, and there?s a club category for everyone: Elementary/Primary, Middle/Intermediate/Junior High School, Senior High School, College/University Club, and Non-School Club. There is also an Individual category. Stations exchange signal reports, class (?Individual?, ?Club,? or ?School?), and US state, Canadian province/territory, or DXCC entity. Stations may operate on all amateur bands except 60, 30, 17 and 12 meters (no repeater contacts and VHF/UHF contacts must be on recognized simplex frequencies, except calling frequencies). Stations may operate phone, CW, and digital modes, or a combination. The most popular time for younger students is during the after-school hours, but older students may be on the air anytime. All groups are limited to one transmitter on the air. Stations may operate no more than 6 hours in any 24-hour period (up to a maximum of 24 hours). If you just want to get on the air and hand out contacts, enter in the Individual category. Tune around in any mode and listen for SCR stations calling CQ, or call CQ yourself and see who answers. Call ?CQ School Clubs? or ?CQ SCR? on CW, if you aren?t a club station. After the contest is over, submit your log online (preferred) or by paper. Logs are due no more than 15 days after the operating period end and can be submitted online via the WA7BNM website. Claimed scores are displayed and the logs are reviewed by LIMARC before final results are posted. The top three entries in each category ? Elementary, Middle/Intermediate/Junior High School, Senior High School College/University ? will receive an Award Certificate. Non-school clubs or multiop groups and individuals are also eligible for certificates. See ?Getting Organized for School Club Roundup? for some helpful tips! Stay up to date on SCR by subscribing to the School Club Roundup reflector. FCC ?Paperless? Amateur Radio License Policy Goes into Effect on February 17 Starting February 17, the FCC no longer will routinely issue paper license documents to Amateur Radio applicants and licensees. The Commission has maintained for some time now that the official Amateur Radio license authorization is the electronic record that exists in its Universal Licensing System (ULS), although the FCC has continued to print and mail hard copy licenses. In mid-December the FCC adopted final procedures to provide access to official electronic authorizations, as proposed in WT Docket 14-161 as part of its ?process reform? initiatives. Under the new procedures, licensees will access their current official authorization (?Active? status only) via the ULS License Manager. The FCC will continue to provide paper license documents to all licensees who notify the Commission that they prefer to receive one. Licensees also will be able to print out an official authorization ? as well as an unofficial ?reference copy? ? from the ULS License Manager. ?We find this electronic process will improve efficiency by simplifying access to official authorizations in ULS, shortening the time period between grant of an application and access to the official authorization, and reducing regulatory costs,? the FCC Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) said. According to the WTB, the new procedures will save at least $304,000 a year, including the cost of staff resources. In comments filed November 5, the ARRL had strongly recommended that the FCC ?give serious consideration to continuing a default provision for sending an initial paper license document to new licensees in the Amateur Radio Service, along with detailed, simple instructions for how to make the elections set forth in the notice relative to future modified or renewed licenses.? Under the new procedures, a new license applicant who already has an FCC Registration Number (FRN) and provides a valid e-mail address under ?Applicant Information? in the ULS will receive an official ULS-generated electronic authorization via e-mail. New license applicants lacking an FRN will receive in the mail an FRN and a temporary password to access the Commission Registration System (CORES). New applicants will no longer automatically receive a license document and must request one by changing their "Paper Authorization Preference" in the ULS License Manager. The ARRL and other Amateur Radio commenters also worried that unless a license document is printed on distinctive paper stock, its authenticity could be questioned in such situations as obtaining vanity call sign license plates. To address this, the FCC said the watermark ?Official Copy? will be printed on each page of an official authorization that a licensee prints out from the ULS. The WTB recently stopped using distinctive paper stock to produce hard copy licenses and has been printing these on ?standard, white recycled paper.? The Bureau noted that the distinctive paper stock it had used was six times more expensive than the plain recycled paper it now uses. The ULS License Manager now includes settings that allow licensees to notify the WTB that they prefer to receive official authorizations on paper. Once the final procedures go into effect designating electronic access as the default, licensees can change the ULS License Manager setting so that the Bureau will print and mail a license document. Licensees also may contact FCC Support via the web, telephone or mail to request paper licenses. The FCC rejected as ?outside the scope of this proceeding? an ARRL argument that Section 97.23 of the Amateur Service rules be amended to replace ?licensee mailing address? with other alternatives, including e-mail, for use in Commission correspondence. The rule, which requires that any licensee mailing address be in an area where the licensee has US Postal Service access, has precluded FCC issuance of location-specific call signs in such areas as Navassa Island (KP1) and some Pacific islands. SEC Report for December from Larry, W4LWZ Total number of ARES members: 221 Change since last month (+, -, same): Same Number of DECs/ECs reporting this month: 6 Number of ARES nets active: 6 Number of nets with NTS liaison: 2. Number of drills, tests and training sessions this month: 18 Person hours: 132 Number of public service events this month: 1 Person hours: 1 Number of emergency operations this month: 0 Person Hours: 0 Total number of ARES operations this month: 19 Total Person hours: 133 STM Report for December from Mike, KM2V SAR - DECEMBER 2014 CALL TOTAL WA4BAM 214, KA4FZI 052, KM2V 039, W4ZE 016 PSHR - DECEMBER 2014 Callsign Total WA4BAM 100, KA4FZI 110, KM2V 129 NETS - DECEMBER 2014 NET ABB. QNI QTC QND SESS MGR All Florida CW Traffic Net QFN 365 116 617 31 WA4BAM Florida Medium Speed Net FMSN 383 114 615 31 AG4RJ/AB4XK Southeast Florida Traffic Net SEFTN 695 67 1097 31 KM2V Jupiter-Tequesta Repeater Group W4JUP 15 0 50 5 K4VMS Jupiter Farms CERT JFCERT 10 0 50 5 AG4BV Palm Beach District ARES North PBDAN 36 0 90 6 KB2BX Silent Keys- It is with deep regret that we report the passing of the following SFL members: Norman W. ?Norm? Cherry, NC3F of Cape Coral. A member of the Ft. Myers ARC and a very active traffic handler, Norm held the Official Relay Station appointment and will be missed by the entire NTS community. Gordon C. Groves, K3GG of Lighthouse Point. Gordon was a member of the Gold Coast ARA, the club's ARRL VE team and a member of the QCWA Palm Beach Chapter 111. Well, I guess that?s about it for now. My thanks for all that you do for Amateur Radio. Get on the air, Elmer a new ham, support your local club and ARES group but most of all, have fun with ham radio. Vy 73, Jeff, WA4AW -------------------------------------------------------------------- ARRL Southern Florida Section Section Manager: Jeff Beals, WA4AW wa4aw at arrl.org -------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from messages, go to: http://p1k.arrl.org/oo/fd2b52f789c44a1cb495beba2759e56e From bmarx at bellsouth.net Wed Feb 4 16:05:43 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Wed, 04 Feb 2015 16:05:43 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] For Sale: Henry 2k Classic Amp Console In-Reply-To: <54D2885E.7030908@bellsouth.net> References: <54D2885E.7030908@bellsouth.net> Message-ID: <54D289A7.50100@bellsouth.net> From: Miguel Garate KJ4YVN 305-590-8523 homeplus at bellsouth.net DRC Has For Sale Henry 2K Classic Amp. See photo attached $550.00 OBO Can be picked up at Miami Dade EOC Amateur Radio Room Pictures on request. Thanks, For all you do for ham radio. 73 Miguel Garate KJ4YVN Past President/Director Dade Radio Club Of Miami ARRL Volunteer Examiner RACES/ARES Emergency Coordinator Miami-Dade County 305-590-8523 From bmarx at bellsouth.net Thu Feb 5 07:57:12 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Thu, 05 Feb 2015 07:57:12 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] BASIC/Advanced SKYWARN Storm Spotters training class Saturday February In-Reply-To: <005601d03202$45522880$cff67980$@comcast.net> References: <005601d03202$45522880$cff67980$@comcast.net> Message-ID: <54D368A8.6010206@bellsouth.net> https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQi_rLkDBkbh2p2BZYMSipx6bu2fk3hNSekLNjeoaRYR3A5vbek **** *_What is SKYWARN???_*__ *The effects of severe weather are felt every year by many Americans. To obtain critical weather information, NOAA's National Weather Service (NWS), part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, established SKYWARN?? with partner organizations. SKYWARN?? is a volunteer program with nearly 290,000 trained severe weather spotters. These volunteers help keep their local communities safe by providing timely and accurate reports of severe weather to the National Weather Service.*** *Although SKYWARN?? spotters provide essential information for all types of weather hazards, the main responsibility of a SKYWARN?? spotter is to identify and describe severe local storms. In the average year, 10,000 severe thunderstorms, 5,000 floods and more than 1,000 tornadoes occur across the United States. These events threatened lives and property.*** *Since the program started in the 1970s, the information provided by SKYWARN?? spotters, coupled with Doppler radar technology, improved satellite and other data has enabled NWS to issue more timely and accurate warnings for tornadoes, severe thunderstorms and flash floods.*** *SKYWARN?? storm spotters are part of the ranks of citizens who form the Nation's first line of defense against severe weather. There can b**e no finer reward than to know that their efforts have given communities the precious gift of time--seconds and minutes that can help save lives.* *_What will I learn as a Skywarn Storm Spotter?_* *_Training covers_**:* ??*Basics of thunderstorm development* ??*Fundamentals of storm structure identifying potential severe weather /features/* ??*/Information to report/* ??*How to report information* ??*Basic severe weather safety* *_Where can I get more information about becoming a Skywarn Storm Spotter_**?* *Go to: **http://www.stormready.noaa.gov/contact.htm** and click on your state. When your state comes up, click on the name of your Weather Forecast Office (WFO). Once at your local WFO home page, in the blue bar on the left, look for the SKYWARN link to find a schedule of classes and other local information. * *This four hour BASIC/Advanced SKYWARN Storm Spotters training class will be on Saturday February 21^st . 2015* *_Note that you must preregister for this class, and there is no charge for this class or materials. _**_ _** _Please bring a picture ID to gain admittance to this class _ The class is intended for those interested in becoming a Skywarn Storm Spotter. Interested persons* *must be at least 14 years old, accompanied by an adult and preregister by Monday, February 16^th , by emailing Robin Terrill, the Broward County Skywarn Coordinator. Email: **n4hhp at comcast.net* *.* * When registering for the class, please include your name, home address, cell phone number and your callsign if you are a ham so I can preregister you prior to the class. You can bring a bag lunch and drink with you and you can even eat it during the class or during numerous 15 minute breaks.* * Training is required in order to become a recognized Storm Spotter. SKYWARN classes are ideal for amateur radio operators, CERT members. Red Cross volunteers, firefighters, nurses, doctors, students or anyone who is interested and wants to serve. Classes will be taught by a meteorologist with the National Weather Service from Miami-Dade County.* * SKYWARN Storm Spotters is a nationwide network of volunteers who report observations of significant weather and damage resulting from severe weather to the National Weather Service. The National Weather Service then sends alerts to the public via television, radio, marine and NOAA weather radios, public safety agencies and other information sources that severe weather is approaching or has been sighted.* ** https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQw9WVYOurS1dUkee_PDUlVkOFI4crlE2UjDLrlch-_JksSkoSU*The address and directions to the class: * *201 NW 84^th Avenue Plantation Fl.*** ** From bmarx at bellsouth.net Thu Feb 5 09:25:49 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Thu, 05 Feb 2015 09:25:49 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] Remote Station Investors... Message-ID: <54D37D6D.4050201@bellsouth.net> Mark V. Wohlschlegel WC3W, is putting a small group of investors together to build a Remote Station of High Quality. Please contact him if you have an interest in participating as an Investor. Tel: 610-613-5825 markw at toshibatic-pa.com From bmarx at bellsouth.net Thu Feb 5 12:04:21 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Thu, 05 Feb 2015 12:04:21 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] 2015 Winter Classic Exchange phone In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <54D3A295.8010306@bellsouth.net> The CX is a no-pressure contest celebrating the older commercial and homebrew equipment that was the pride and joy of ham shacks many decades ago. The object is to encourage restoration, operation and enjoyment of this older Classic equipment. However, you need not operate a Classic rig to participate in the CX. *YOU MAY USE ANY RIG* in the contest although _new gear is a distinct scoring disadvantage. _ The phone CX will run from 1400 UTC February 8 to 0800 UTC February 9, 2015. (9 AM Eastern Time on Sunday to 3 AM Eastern Time Monday) Call: "CQ Classic Exchange" Suggested Frequencies -- plus/minus QRM Listen up and down 5 to 10 Kc for crystal controlled stations AM 1.890 mc. 3.860 mc. 7.270 mc. 14.280 mc. 21.400 mc. 29.000 mc. 50.300 144.300 mc. SSB 1.920 mc. 3.840 mc. 7.250 mc. 14.260 mc. 21.380 mc. 28.600 mc. 50.125 mc. 144.200 mc. For full CX details, visit: http://classicexchange.org/jan15ann.html Any questions, contact me! WB2AWQ at arrl.net 73, see you this weekend! Howie WB2AWQ/7 From bmarx at bellsouth.net Thu Feb 5 12:06:41 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Thu, 05 Feb 2015 12:06:41 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] K1N Navassa Log Bulletin: Message-ID: <54D3A321.2030208@bellsouth.net> _Am I in the Log?_ *NOTE: *Because of reported errors in the uploaded log, we've taken it down while we fix those errors in band in mode. The log on the island is accurate and safe. We'll reactivate ClubLog soon. We appreciate your patience; your QSOs are secure! http://www.navassadx.com/ From bmarx at bellsouth.net Thu Feb 5 16:05:02 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Thu, 05 Feb 2015 16:05:02 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] The ARRL Letter for February 5, 2015 In-Reply-To: <20150205202048.7EBF920DB116@bmail.arrl.org> References: <20150205202048.7EBF920DB116@bmail.arrl.org> Message-ID: <54D3DAFE.9090402@bellsouth.net> Preview If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at: http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2015-02-05 The ARRL Letter February 5, 2015 Editor: Rick Lindquist, WW1ME ARRL Home Page /ARRL Letter/ Archive Audio News Ad * Participation in ARRL Centennial On-the-Air Events Exceeds All Expectations <#toc01> * Eric Nichols, KL7AJ, Selected as 2014 Bill Orr, W6SAI, Technical Writing Award Winner <#toc02> * ARISS Selects 15 Possible ISS Amateur Radio Contact Hosts for 2015 Events <#toc03> * K1N Navassa Island DXpedition Dominates HF Bands <#toc04> * RadioShack's Long, Slow Downward Slide Nears the End <#toc05> * Amateur Radio Payloads Share Ride into Space with Soil Moisture Monitoring Satellite <#toc06> * Ham Among Devil's Brigade Members to Receive Medal <#toc07> * Past ARRL Dakota Division Director Howard Mark, K3HM, SK <#toc08> * Nevada Section Manager Gary Grant, K7VY, SK <#toc09> * Long-time ARRL Kansas Section Manager Robert M. "Bob" Summers, K0BXF, SK <#toc10> * In Brief... <#toc11> * Getting It Right... <#toc12> * The K7RA Solar Update <#toc13> * Just Ahead in Radiosport <#toc14> * Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events <#toc15> Participation in ARRL Centennial On-the-Air Events Exceeds All Expectations Attendance at the ARRL's on-the-air Centennial celebration in 2014 was through the roof! Approximately 3.5 million contacts were recorded for W1AW portable operations and the Centennial Points Challenge during the Centennial QSO Party last year. "The Centennial QSO Party was a huge success, and participation was way greater than anyone anticipated it would be when we were in the planning stages," said Norm Fusaro, W3IZ, Assistant Manager, Field Services and Radiosport Department. As a result, the window for operators to apply and pay fees for awards they earned in the Centennial QSO Party is not expected to open until mid-March. Fusaro said that while award certificates have been printed, the task of checking and double-checking the electronic logs and resolving any anomalies has put an unexpected burden on staff resources. To compete in the Centennial Points Challenge, logs must have been submitted through Logbook of The World (LoTW ). The system will automatically look for points-qualifying QSOs from submitted logs and apply them to each participant's Centennial QSO Points total. ARRL Headquarters has been recalculating all submitted scores to come up with final tallies. "Recalculating will allow operators to earn points for contacts they made with stations that were not yet in the database when the logs went into LoTW," Fusaro explained. "Accuracy in fulfilling awards is important, and we need to get this right the first time. It's been a very time and staff-intensive process, researching busted call signs and running down claimed contacts and mode discrepancies for operators." Enhancements to LoTW -- which served as the repository for Centennial QSO Party contacts -- also contributed to the delay. And a few operators logged on paper; those logs were keyed into the system manually. The deadline to submit logs for 2014 via LoTW was January 22, but participants may apply for Centennial awards indefinitely, once the application process is up and running. Operators do not have to use LoTW to apply for Points Challenge certificates or W1AW WAS awards. Qualifying for the Top Level Award requires 15,000 points. The Level 3 Award requires 7500 points, while the Level 2 and Level 1 awards require 3000 and 1000 points, respectively. Point totals will be printed on certificates. QSL cards for W1AW portable and W100AW operations are not yet back from the printer. "We did not plan to have as many W1AW/p operators, which contributed to the bonanza of Centennial QSO Party contacts," Fusaro said. US stations that worked W1AW/p and W100AW during the Centennial may use the Centennial QSO Party web page to request QSL cards via the domestic Incoming QSL Service . Fusaro explained that this is a one-time only use of the QSL Bureau for this purpose, and those who want to receive cards via the Bureau should ensure that their accounts are sufficiently funded, because cards will not be held. Cards destined for stations outside the US will be sent via the QSL Bureau. Participants may also request cards directly, providing one SASE for up to six cards per envelope. W1AW/p and W100AW will not confirm every contact with traditional paper QSL cards, but will verify QSOs for each mode and on most bands on a single card for each weekly operation. Eric Nichols, KL7AJ, Selected as 2014 Bill Orr, W6SAI, Technical Writing Award Winner Eric Nichols, KL7AJ, of North Pole, Alaska, has been named as the winner of the Bill Orr, W6SAI, Technical Writing Award for 2014. Nichols was recognized for his article "Using Your Grid Dip Meter Oscillator ," which appeared in the February 2014 issue of /QST/. The Orr Award is bestowed each year to the /QST/ author who writes an outstanding article or series on new or existing technologies or on methods or means of amateur communication. Articles must be written *Eric Nichols, KL7AJ, at home in North Pole, Alaska.* in an easy-to-understand style worthy of the Bill Orr "stamp of approval," and they should encourage interest and expand the knowledge and understanding of amateurs who may lack a strong technical background. "Eric's article was chosen, because it did an outstanding job of explaining how to use a device -- the grid dip oscillator -- that has been somewhat forgotten by many amateurs," said Steve Ford, WB8IMY, /QST/ Editor in Chief and ARRL Publications Manager. "Eric did an excellent job of explaining why this device is still useful and how to put it to use." Licensed in 1972 as WN6TEE in California, Nichols is a former broadcast engineer who now works at Eielson Air Force Base. He has written many articles for various Amateur Radio publications over the past 30 years and describes himself as "a fanatic homebrewer and CW freak." Nichols also works as a consultant to the High Power Auroral Stimulation (HIPAS) Observatory, operated by UCLA, and at the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) facility. He is the author of /Radio Science for the Radio Amateur/ (available from ARRL), /Plasma Dreams/, and /The Opus of Amateur Radio Knowledge and Lore/. "It's certainly an honor to receive the William Orr Technical Writing Award!" Nichols said. "Thanks for your vote of confidence!" The /QST/ editorial staff serves as the selection panel and recommends the winner from a review of the year's /QST/ articles to the ARRL Foundation Board for final approval at its Annual Meeting. The award comprises an engraved plaque and $250, to be presented at an ARRL convention. Established in 1973 by the ARRL, the ARRL Foundation is a separate IRS 501(c)(3) organization that administers programs to support the Amateur Radio community. The Foundation is funded entirely through the generosity of radio amateurs and friends. ARRL Foundation programs for Amateur Radio award scholarships for higher education, grants for Amateur Radio projects, and special Amateur Radio program grants for The Victor C. Clark Youth Incentive Program and The Jesse A. Bieberman Meritorious Membership Program. ARISS Selects 15 Possible ISS Amateur Radio Contact Hosts for 2015 Events Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS ) has selected 15 semifinalists to host ham radio contacts with ISS crew members during 2015. ARISS anticipates that NASA will provide 12 scheduling opportunities for US hosts between May and December. The 15 semifinalists, representing schools and educational organizations as well as one event, now must submit acceptable equipment plans that demonstrate their ability to carry out the Amateur Radio event. Once the ARISS technical team approves an equipment plan, ARISS will attempt to schedule schools or organizations as their availability and flexibility match up with the opportunities offered by NASA. ARISS does not expect to be able to schedule all 15 schools on the list of semifinalists. "This is a significant step in ARISS's continuing effort to engage young people in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math activities and raise their awareness of human spaceflight," an ARISS media release said. "ARISS was encouraged by the high level of interest in the education community, evidenced by the significant number of submitted proposals and the quality of the submissions." The 15 finalists are Bay View Elementary School, Burlington, Washington; Corpus Christi Catholic School, Chambersburg, Pennsylvania; Daggett Montessori School K-8, Fort Worth, Texas; Dearborn Public Schools, Dearborn, Michigan; Grady High School Robotics Team, Atlanta, Georgia; Kopernik Observatory & Science Center, Vestal, New York; Maconaquah School Corporation, Bunker Hill, Indiana; Moon Day/Frontiers of Flight Museum, Dallas, Texas; New Mexico Military Institute, Roswell, New Mexico; Pima County 4H/Vail Vaqueros 4-H Club, Tucson, Arizona; Space Jam 9, Rantoul, Illinois; Ste Genevieve du Bois Catholic Elementary School, Warson Woods, Missouri; Tulsa Community College-NE Campus, Tulsa, Oklahoma; United Space School, Seabrook, Texas, and West Michigan Aviation Academy, Grand Rapids, Michigan. /2016 ARISS Contact Proposal Window Opens February 15/ The next US ARISS contact proposal window will be open between February 15 and April 15. ARISS is seeking formal and informal educational institutions and organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur Radio contact with an ISS crew member between January 1 and June 30, 2016. Crew scheduling and ISS orbits determine the exact contact dates. ARISS is looking for organizations that have the potential to draw large numbers of participants and can integrate the contact into a well-developed educational plan. *Students at Mill Springs Academy in Alpharetta, Georgia, queue up in September 2013 to speak via Amateur Radio with astronaut Chris Cassidy, KF5KDR, onboard the ISS. * FM voice contacts with ISS crew members last about 10 minutes -- the typical length of an orbital pass -- and allow students and educators to interact with the astronauts in a question-and-answer format. ARISS contacts afford an opportunity to learn firsthand from astronauts and cosmonauts what it is like to live and work in space and about ISS research. Students will also have an opportunity to learn about satellite communication, wireless technology, and radio science. Because of the nature of human spaceflight and scheduling complexity, schools and organizations must demonstrate flexibility to accommodate changes in contact dates and times. Amateur Radio organizations around the world, NASA, and space agencies in Russia, Canada, Japan, and Europe sponsor this educational opportunity by providing the equipment and operational support to enable communication between ISS crew and students around the world via Amateur Radio. In the US, ARISS is managed by the ARRL and AMSAT, in partnership with NASA. Details on expectations, audience, proposal guidelines, and proposal form, and dates and times of information sessions are on the ARRL website. E-mail ARISS with any questions. K1N Navassa Island DXpedition Dominates HF Bands The antennas are up, the gear deployed, and all 15 operators are on site and in their chairs. The K1N Navassa Island operation, which came up on 40 and 80 meter CW in the middle of the Super Bowl on February 2, is now a full-blown DXpedition, with stations on the air on as many bands and modes as the team can muster. K1N hopes to remain on the air until February 12. As might be expected with a major DXpedition to the #2 (all modes) most-wanted *This pileup for K1N extended some 15 kHz or more up the band. The blue represents the overall pileup, while the green shows the stations calling at the time the photo was taken. The red vertical line indicates K1N's transmit frequency. * DXCC entity, the pileups have been spectacular. While there has been some undesirable behavior and poor operating practice -- such as not paying attention to the operator's instructions -- things have gone fairly smoothly. For many US operators, it's been a matter of "so close, yet so far away," as they plea to be heard from within the din. "It has been /very windy/ and very hot...and very dirty," team member Glenn Johnson, W0GJ, said in a post this week. "We have heavy rains every evening, collected for washing, as we all feel very grubby." Johnson said inclement weather plagued and delayed deployment, and daytime temperatures have been in the 110? to 120? range. Upon arrival the team reported seeing "rats as large as cats, scorpions, and black widow spiders." Initial log uploads to ClubLog have been completed, and the log page on the K1N website activated. The first uploads contain more than 22,000 contacts. *The old Navassa Island Iighthouse is serving as a convenient antenna support structure.* Johnson said that everyone is in good spirits and healthy. "We have been very pleased with pileup cooperation when working the difficult JA/Asia/Oceania windows," he added. "We can hear a din of pileup activity, and, at times, difficult-to-pull-out individual calls on these long hauls." The K1N RTTY operator has asked callers not to include any information beyond a signal report when working the DXpedition on that mode. Including anything more can slow down their QSO rate. Team member Bob Allphin, K4UEE, said deliberate QRM was "at expected levels," and he encouraged operators to fill out a Deliberate QRM (DQRM) report to help isolate the locations of offenders. "There's a DQRM button on every page of our website," he said. "In addition, you can go directly to www.dqrmreport.com and file there." ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ad Find ARRL on Facebook . Follow us on Twitter ! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ RadioShack's Long, Slow Downward Slide Nears the End The end is near for RadioShack . It seems inevitable that the once seemingly ubiquitous electronics and cell phone retailer will liquidate its assets, after which RadioShack would cease to exist. A number of legal steps would have to come first, including a bankruptcy filing. The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) de-listed RadioShack on February 2, after the company failed to maintain a required minimum value. BloombergBusiness has reported that behind-the-scenes talks are under way to sell approximately half of RadioShack's owned-and-operated stores to Sprint and shutter the remaining outlets, although other scenarios involving other entities are possible. The nearly century-old Fort Worth, Texas, based retailer -- once a go-to shop for electronic components and, at one point, even Amateur Radio and shortwave receivers -- has lost 90 percent of its value over the past year, despite efforts to refinance and modernize its stores. Before being de-listed on February 2, RadioShack's stock was selling for just 24 cents a share. The hedge fund Standard General LP loaned the retailer $535 million last fall and would be the lead bidder in a bankruptcy filing and debtor-in-possession financing, BloombergBusiness said. RadioShack once offered entry-level short-wave receivers, Citizens Band gear, a wide array of discrete components -- including transistors, resistors, and capacitors -- and, for a time, a fairly popular 2 meter hand-held transceiver and two different models of 10 meter single-band transceivers, although it failed in its effort to develop and market a VHF/UHF hand-held radio. Over the years, RadioShack has offered fewer discrete components in its brick-and-mortar stores, moving that stock and other products to its online outlet, as it shifted its marketing focus to cell phones, consumer electronics, and various battery-operated gadgets. A year ago, after a dismal holiday showing, RadioShack announced plans to close 1100 stores, including 900 company-owned outlets. Due to the high costs involved with closing the stores, liquidating merchandise, lease penalties, and severances, however, the company has been able to shut down fewer than 200 outlets. RadioShack was reported to have about $60 million in cash heading into the 2014 holiday season. RadioShack has made no comment on the reports. Amateur Radio Payloads Share Ride into Space with Soil Moisture Monitoring Satellite Four NASA Educational Launch of Nanosatellites (ELaNA-X ) CubeSats carrying Amateur Radio payloads launched successfully January 31 from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base. The primary *A Delta 2 launcher lifts of on January 31 from Vandenberg AFB carrying the SMAP satellite and four CubeSats with Amateur Radio payloads into space. [NASA photo by Bob Ingalls]* payload for the Delta II launcher was the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP ) satellite. The SMAP on-board radar will share Amateur Radio spectrum at 1.26 GHz. Amateur Radio is secondary on the 23 centimeter band, which covers 1240 to 1300 MHz. "This is a good example of a compatible sharing partner," ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ, observed. "Any interference to amateur communication in the band will be brief as the satellite passes overhead." SMAP and the four CubeSats all deployed successfully. The research CubeSats, launched on behalf of universities, will downlink their telemetry on the 70 centimeter band. The CubeSats and their downlink frequencies (modes) are: Firebird II FU3 437.405 MHz (19k2 FSK) Firebird I FU4 437.230 MHz (19k2 FSK) GRIFEX 437.485 MHz (9k6 FSK) ExoCube (CP-10) 437.270 MHz (9k6 FSK) The GRIFEX satellite is a University of Michigan project, in cooperation with JPL, while ExoCube (CP-10) is a space weather satellite developed by the California Polytechnic State University-San Luis *The ExoCube (CP10) CubeSat. [University of California-San Luis Obispo photo]* Obispo and the University of Wisconsin in partnership with NASA, and sponsored by the National Science Foundation. The FIREBIRD program is a collaborative CubeSat space weather mission of two CubeSats designed and developed by Montana State University, the University of New Hampshire, The Aerospace Corporation, and Los Alamos National Laboratories -- the FIREBIRD consortium. The FIREBIRD mission is also funded by the NSF. SMAP carries a "synthetic aperture radar." The L band (1.26 GHz) radar is designed to measure backscatter off the Earth's surface. The amount of backscatter returned to the radar changes with the amount of moisture in the soil. RF pulses at this frequency are less affected by weather or by a moderate vegetation cover. The satellite is approximately 425 miles up in a near-polar, sun-synchronous orbit. SMAP also includes a radiometer operating at 1.41 GHz to measure naturally occurring RF energy given off by Earth's surface. Ham Among Devil's Brigade Members to Receive Medal A 90-year-old California radio amateur -- Stan McEtchin, WB6KDZ, of Paradise -- was among the surviving members of the First Special Operations Force (FSSF), known as "The Devil's Brigade," to receive the Congressional Gold Medal on February 3. The medal recognizes the unit's extraordinary heroism and service during World War II. *Stan McEtchin, WB6KDZ, is interviewed by KHSL ActionNewsNow. [KHSL ActionNewsNow video image]* "We used to go behind the lines at night and sit out there, and we could hear the Germans talking," McEtchin told /The Paradise Post/. "Our guy would write it down, so we would find out where their guns were and that kind of thing." Montana US Senators Jon Tester and Max Baucus worked for 5 years to honor the unit. "The Devil's Brigade represented the very best of our Greatest Generation that defeated tyranny around the world," Tester said. "The Medal is the highest honor Congress can bestow, and yet, while a small token of this nation's gratitude, it is an everlasting reminder of the sacrifices these men made for all of us." Remarked Baucus, "Without these brave volunteers, there would be no Special Forces today." Based at Fort Harrison in Helena, Montana, the Devil's Brigade was a top-secret combat unit comprising 1800 volunteers from 49 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, and Australia. Their training was the first of its kind, specializing in high alpine combat, covert amphibious landings, parachuting, mountain climbing, among other tactics. By the time the war ended, the Force had suffered 2314 casualties, equating to an astounding 134 percent of its original combat strength. It had captured more than 30,000 prisoners, won five US campaign stars and eight Canadian battle honors. The Force never failed a mission. "The people in this group were not ordinary people," McEtchin told /The Paradise Post/. "That is the kind of people that they were, they would just succeed at everything they did." *Not ordinary people: Some members of "The Devil's Brigade" take a break near Anzio, Italy, in 1943. [US Army Archive photo]* The unit was instrumental in the liberation of Rome, surprising and defeating massive German artillery units located on treacherous mountain peaks and rocky islands, and in freeing communities in southern France and Italy despite bitter resistance and extreme conditions. The Force also engaged in large-scale raids against the infamous German Hermann Goering First Panzer Paratroop Division. The unit paved the way for the nation's modern elite Special Forces, of such highly trained units as the Green Berets and the Navy SEALs. About 75 members of The Devil's Brigade are believed to be still alive. The Congressional Gold Medal is the nation's highest award for distinguished achievement. Past recipients have included members of the Tuskegee Airmen , Gen. Douglas MacArthur, and Jimmy Doolittle's Tokyo Raiders. The Canadian government recognized members of the Force in 2012.//The presentation ceremony at Expedition Hall in Washington, DC, was televised on C-SPAN and remains available on the C-SPAN website. Also visit "Suicide Missions: The Black Devils " on YouTube. McEtchin also recalled his World War II experiences in an interview on KHSL's ActionNewsNow. /-- Thanks to the Golden Empire Amateur Radio Society (//GEARS/ /) /Radiator/, media accounts/// Ad Past ARRL Dakota Division Director Howard Mark, K3HM, SK Past ARRL Dakota Division Director Howard Mark, K3HM (ex-W0OZC), of Burnsville, Minnesota, died on January 24. He was 81. An ARRL member, Mark was licensed in 1957. He was appointed as ARRL Dakota Vice Director in 1982 to fill a vacancy. He served in that post until 1986, when he succeeded Tod Olson, K0TO, as Director after Olson was elected as ARRL International Affairs Vice President. Mark stepped down as Director in 1993, when he moved out of the Division to Las Vegas, Nevada. Howard Mark, K3HM. "Howard had been failing the last week or two, and his passing still comes with great sorrow to everyone," said Mike Sigelman, K0BUD, a good friend. "Howard Mark was a highly intelligent person who set a fine example of a great husband and family man and one very devoted to his friends and to our hobby! I know he will be missed by all of us." During his 17 years in Las Vegas, Mark was an active member of the Las Vegas Radio Amateur Club (LVRAC) and held various club leadership roles. Within the club he became known as "The Voice of Summerlin," after the community where he lived. Mark served as the club's net control operator for many years, and he regularly organized LVRAC's participation in such public service activities as the Las Vegas Marathon, the Baker to Vegas Challenge Cup Relay, and the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure. Survivors include his wife, Margi. The family will hold a private memorial observance. Nevada Section Manager Gary Grant, K7VY, SK ARRL Nevada Section Manager Gary Grant, K7VY, of Reno, died February 1, after a period of ill health. He was 78. Grant was a native of Glendale, California, and was licensed in 1956. During his more than 50 years of ARRL membership, Grant served in several Field Organization positions, including Official Observer and OO Coordinator, Volunteer Examiner, and Assistant Section Manager. Grant was appointed Section Manager last year to complete the remaining term of SM Joe Giraudo, N7JEH, who stepped down because of increased business travel and who recommended Grant to succeed him. That term ends June 30. *Gary Grant, K7VY. [Gino Calestini, KB7POU, video image]* Grant had enjoyed an extensive career in broadcast engineering and previously worked for Collins Radio in Iowa and California. In 1962, he began work as a TV engineer for KCRL and KRNV in Reno, a job he continued for 30 years before taking a position with the University of Nevada-Reno. He retired from UNR in 2000, after 23 years of service. Grant also once owned Sierra Electronics, a two-way radio company. Grant had a reputation as a consummate Elmer. A new licensee, Gino Calestini, KG7POU, said Grant was his Elmer. "Gary helped me in so many ways," Calestini said, "I had this dream burning inside me to become a ham and to help others. [Gary] handed me his card and he never stopped being there for me." Calestini started his Amateur Radio Club website and did his first live video interview with Grant during the Reno hamfest last September, posting it on YouTube. Calestini said Grant was "the definition of Elmer" who "deserves to be honored in so many ways." In addition to the ARRL, Grant was a member of the Quarter Century Wireless Association and the University of Nevada-Reno Radio Pack. Survivors include his wife, Elizabeth, and their two children. The position of Nevada Section Manager will be filled by appointment. /-- Thanks to John Bigley, K7UR/ Long-time ARRL Kansas Section Manager Robert M. "Bob" Summers, K0BXF, SK Former ARRL Kansas Section Manager Bob Summers, K0BXF, of Kansas City, Kansas, died on January 10. He was 86. Summers served as the Kansas Section Manager for more than 30 years -- from *Bob Summers, K0BXF.* 1965 until 1996. He subsequently served as the Kansas Section Emergency Coordinator from 2003 to 2012, and he held Field Organization appointments as an Official Relay Station and Official Bulletin Station. A surveyor, Summers was the city street inspector for Kansas City, Kansas, during his working years. In addition to his ARRL activities, Summers volunteered as a Boy Scouts of America leader and with the American Red Cross. Summers also was involved in the Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) program, enjoyed HF mobile operation and CW. In addition to the ARRL and the QCWA, Summers was a member of the Jayhawk Amateur Radio Society. Survivors include his wife, and a son and daughter. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ In Brief... *School Club Roundup is February 9-13!* A reminder: The "Winter/Spring Term" School Club Roundup gets under way on Monday, February 9, at 1300 UTC, and continues through Friday, February 13, at 2359 UTC. Stations may operate no more than 6 hours in any 24 hour period (up to a maximum of 24 hours). The twice-yearly event is an opportunity for school club stations -- from elementary school to college -- to get on the air for a friendly radio activity. Non-school clubs and individuals are encouraged to participate too. In the photo Deavana takes part in the 2012 School Club Roundup from KF5CRF, the Viking Radio Club, at Eisenhower Middle School in Lawton, Oklahoma. *EP6T Team Hopes DXpedition will Boost Ham Radio in Iran*: Some 68,000 contacts later, the EP6T DXpedition operators are back home after dealing with "extremely difficult circumstances" on Kish Island in Iran. The sponsoring Rockall DX Group in Belgium said it achieved its goal of promoting Amateur Radio in Iran and opening the door for future operations from the rare DXCC entity by local amateurs and DXpeditions. A top government telecommunications official has assured the group that his agency will continue to support Amateur Radio in Iran by creating license exams and establishing new clubs. The Rockall DX Group provided an Amateur Radio training guide to Iran, which is being translated into Farsi. QSL cards and a DXpedition video are in process. /-- Thanks to /The Daily DX *Hurricane Watch Net Stalwart Bob Botik, K5SIV, SK*: Hurricane Watch Net (HWN ) veteran Bob Botik, K5SIV, of Austin, Texas, died January 31, after a period of ill health. "Those who knew Bob remember his commanding presence on air from his station in Austin, as it was unique," said HWN Manager Bobby Graves, KB5HAV. "His voice was both calming and reassuring to anyone caught in an emergency situation." Botik was among the key players in the aftermath of Hurricane Mitch in 1998, which hit Honduras. "He was there to assist bush pilots in getting to and from their destinations," Graves recounted. Botik also was active with the Maritime Mobile Service Net and was involved with several at-sea rescues. *AMSAT-NA 2015 Space Symposium and Annual Meeting Set for October in Dayton:* The 2015 AMSAT Space Symposium and Annual Meeting will take place October 16-18, at the Crowne Plaza in downtown Dayton, Ohio. The Space Symposium will include presentations on amateur satellite operating techniques and news from the amateur satellite world. The AMSAT-NA Board of Directors will convene, and the meeting will be open to AMSAT members. Additional information will be announced as it becomes available. /-- Thanks to AMSAT News Service / *Deadline for Boston Marathon Ham Volunteers is February 10*: Volunteer registration is open until February 10 for radio amateurs seeking to volunteer during the Boston Marathon on Monday, April 20, and the Boston Athletic Association 5K (BAA 5K ) race that occurs April 18. The early deadline is due both to the scale of the events and to security concerns. Last year, more than 300 radio amateurs participated in Boston Marathon support. Volunteers for both races should first register on the BAA website. Once you have a confirmation number, register and/or log into the Marathon Amateur Radio Communications (Minuteman Repeater Association) website and complete the registration form to get a specific assignment. For more information contact BAA Public Service Coordinator Brett Smith , AB1RL. Ad Getting It Right... Several subscribers have reported that occasional photographs appearing in /The ARRL Letter/ have displayed incorrectly oriented. Others -- most often Gmail users -- have reported that headlines appear in the same typeface as the articles, making it difficult to tell where articles begin. These issues are related to the software used to view /The ARRL Letter/. It appears that some software recognizes that a photo has been rotated or that headlines are formatted in large red typeface, and some does not, but other factors may be in play, and we are looking into this problem further. The edition of /The ARRL Letter/ that appears on the ARRL website should display photos and headlines correctly. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The K7RA Solar Update Solar activity rose over the past week, with average daily sunspot numbers rising from 89.1 to 139 in the 7 days ending February 4. Average daily solar flux rose from 136.8 to 151.1. This is the second week in a row in which we saw higher sunspot numbers and solar flux than in the previous 7 days. Twice over the past week the daily solar flux numbers had to be adjusted downward, due to overloading of the receiver at Penticton, the Canadian observatory which provides those readings. On January 29 the reading was 171.8. This was revised downward to an estimated 165, and again on February 4, when 154.4 was lowered to 145. A new sunspot appeared on January 29, two more showed up on February 2, and another one on February 4. The average daily sunspot number for January was 101.3. This weekly "Solar Update" in /The ARRL Letter/ is a preview of the "Propagation Bulletin" issued each Friday. The latest bulletin and an archive of past propagation bulletins is on the ARRL website. For Friday's bulletin, expect an updated forecast for the near term and reports from readers, plus an updated moving average of daily sunspot numbers. Send me /your/ reports and observations. /-- Tad Cook, K7RA/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Just Ahead in Radiosport * February 6 -- NS Weekly Sprint (CW) * February 6 -- YL-OM Contest (SSB, CW, Digital) * February 6-8 -- Triathlon DX Contest (SSB, CW, Digital) * February 7 -- Straight Key Weekend Sprintathon * February 7 -- FYBO Winter QRP Field Day (SSB, CW) * February 7 -- Minnesota QSO Party (SSB, CW, Digital) * February 7 -- Straight Key Party * February 7-8 -- Vermont QSO Party (SSB, CW, Digital) * February 7-8 -- YLISSB QSO Party * February 7-8 -- Ten-Ten Winter Phone QSO Party * February 7-8 -- Black Sea Cup International (SSB, CW) * February 7-8 -- British Columbia QSO Party (SSB, CW, Digital) * February 7-8 -- XE International RTTY Contest * February 7-8 -- AM QSO Party * *February 8 -- **North American Sprint (CW)* * February 8-9 -- Classic Exchange (Phone) * February 8 -- Milwaukee FM Simplex Contest * *February 9-13 -- **School Club Roundup* *(SSB, FM, CW)* * February 11 -- NAQCC Monthly QRP Sprint (CW) See the ARRL Contest Calendar for more information. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events * February 7 -- Virginia State Convention , Richmond, Virginia * February 7 -- South Carolina State Convention , North Charleston, South Carolina * February 13-15 -- Southeastern Division Convention , Orlando, Florida * February 20-21 -- Arizona Section Convention , Yuma, Arizona * February 28 -- New Mexico Techfest Convention , Albuquerque, New Mexico * February 28 -- Vermont State Convention , S Burlington, Vermont * March 7 -- Santa Clara Valley Section Convention , Del Rey Oaks, California * March 13-14 -- North Carolina Section Convention , Concord, North Carolina * March 14 -- West Texas Section Convention , Midland, Texas * March 20-21 -- Louisiana State Convention , Rayne, Louisiana * March 21 -- MicroHAMS Digital Conference , Redmond, Washington * March 21 -- Nebraska State Convention , Lincoln, Nebraska * March 21 -- Southern Florida Section Convention , Stuart, Florida * March 28 -- Texas State Convention , Rosenberg, Texas * April 4 -- West Central Florida Technical Conference , Sebring, Florida * April 4 -- North Carolina State Convention , Raleigh, North Carolina * April 11-12 -- Communications Academy , Seattle, Washington * April 17-19 -- International DX Convention , Visalia, California * April 25 -- Aurora Conference , White Bear Lake, Minnesota Find conventions and hamfests in your area .* * ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ** *ARRL *-- *Your One-Stop Resource for * *Amateur Radio News and Information * ** ** ** ** ** * Join or Renew Today! ARRL membership includes /QST/ , Amateur Radio's most popular and informative journal, delivered to your mailbox each month. * Listen to /ARRL Audio News/ , available every Friday. Subscribe to... * /NCJ / /-- National Contest Journal/ . Published bi-monthly, features articles by top contesters, letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprint and QSO Parties. * /QEX/ *//*/-- A Forum for Communications Experimenters/ . Published bi-monthly, features technical articles, construction projects, columns, and other items of interest to radio amateurs and communications professionals. Free of charge to ARRL members... * 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! Find ARRL on Facebook ! Follow us on Twitter ! Ad Ad Ad Ad Ad ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The ARRL Letter is published Thursdays, 48 times each year. ARRL members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their Member Data Page as described at http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/. Copyright ? 2015 American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved www.arrl.org From n8pr at bellsouth.net Mon Feb 9 19:57:08 2015 From: n8pr at bellsouth.net (Pete Rimmel N8PR) Date: Mon, 9 Feb 2015 19:57:08 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] Live Radio Interview with K1N op Message-ID: For those who have not heard this, earlier today the following LIVE interview with an op on Navassa was posted on the internet. Pretty cool ! http://www.dokufunk.org/upload/navassa_2_final.MP3 From bmarx at bellsouth.net Wed Feb 11 09:55:04 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Wed, 11 Feb 2015 09:55:04 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] The ARRL Contest Update for February 11, 2015 In-Reply-To: <20150211053641.1960320DBE85@bmail.arrl.org> References: <20150211053641.1960320DBE85@bmail.arrl.org> Message-ID: <54DB6D48.30700@bellsouth.net> Preview If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at: http://www.arrl.org/contests/update/?issue=2015-02-11 The ARRL Contest Update February 11, 2015 Editor: Ward Silver, N?AX /Contest Update/ Archive Contest Calendar ARRL Home Page Ad IN THIS ISSUE * Fill Your DX Logbook - ARRL DX CW <#Contests> * The Shift Is On - CQ WW RTTY WPX <#Contests> * Certificates - Be Gone! <#News> * Fire Under the Sea <#Newsweek> * Solar Weather Report <#Sights> * ARRL Awards Are Flying <#Results> * Keep It Up There <#Tech> * Impedance Measurements from the Masters <#Techweek> * Spring Is On the Air <#Conversation> NEW HF OPERATORS - THINGS TO DO The joys of working CW DX are rarely more available to HF newcomers in the US and Canada than in the ARRL's International DX CW Contest. You don't have to fight through layers of DX stations - the DX is calling you! And the CQ WW RTTY WPX contest is a great way to get your fingers wet on the digital modes, too. BULLETINS There are no bulletins in this issue. BUSTED QSOS Here is the correct link for N4ZR's front-end protector article . Some spurious characters were added to the link in the previous issue. (Thanks, Larry W6NWS) And the correct link to the ARRL Contest Results page is www.arrl.org/contest-results-articles (Thanks, Mike VE3GFN) CONTEST SUMMARY Complete information <#Contests> for all contests follows the Conversation <#Conversation> section *February 14-15* * NAQCC Monthly QRP Sprint--CW (Feb 11) * PODXS 070 Club Valentine Sprint--Digital * CQ WW RTTY WPX--Digital * Asia-Pacific Sprint--CW * Dutch PACC Contest, * OMISS QSO Party--Phone * New Hampshire QSO Party * FISTS CW Winter Sprint * RSGB - First 1.8 MHz Contest * Maine 2m FM Simplex Challenge--Phone * Run For the Bacon--CW (Feb 16) *February 21-22* * */ARRL Int'l CW DX Contest /* * Semi-Automatic Key Evening (Feb 18) * Russian WW PSK Contest (Feb 20) * REF Contest--Phone * SARL Youth Day Sprint--Phone * Feld-Hell Bingo Sprint * CQC Winter QSO Party NEWS, PRESS RELEASES, AND GENERAL INTEREST CQ World Wide has added a Cabrillo Opt-Out tag for certificates. After the CERTIFICATE: tag, simply add YES (the default) or NO. Since one of the biggest expenses of running a contest is the printing and mailing of paper certificates, this will help the contest make better use of available resources. Not all sponsors support this tag as yet. Downloadable electronic format certificates are not expected to be affected by this tag. (Thanks, Randy K5ZD, CQ Worldwide Contest Director) This is where the big Arecibo EME signal gets its start. By the time it hits the feed line, peak power is 2.5 MW and steady-state power is 150 kW. Yes, I'll bet you /can/ hear them! (Photo by N?AX) IEEE members should take a look at the February 2015 issue of/IEEE Microwave Magazine/ for the article "RF and Microwave Links: The MTT Society and the Amateur Radio Community". Authored primarily by IEEE Fellow Robert Caverly WB4PWZ, he was joined by your editor, Al Katz K2UYH, Rick Campbell KK7B, and Marc Franco, N2UO/LU6DW. The Microwave Theory and Techniques (MTT) Society's MTT-17 committee was very helpful in promoting and contributing to this article. Top Gun among RTTY ops, Ed W?YK was recognized both for his contesting and vineyard achievements in this story by the San Jose Mercury News . The well-written article captures the general sense of contesting quite well, especially the convergence between vineyard and ham station siting. While the article notes the need for younger hams, it is balanced with a mention of new technology available and being used by hams. (Thanks, Bob N6TV) What's a SkyPi-40 ? Turns out it's a Raspberry Pi-based SDR transceiver which supports RTTY, CW, WSPR, and other FSK modes with 1 watt of output power! Read all about it in the latest issue of the DKARS Magazine . Point-and-click could become point-and-log with this new smart ring that allows you to write messages just by waving your finger around! A new release of the Super Check Partial database files is available from Stu K6TU. The number of calls in the file has grown to 45,949! You can send your log to Stu when you submit it to the contest sponsor. Dave G4BUO writes with the news that he is cancelling the EU Sprint contests. "It was a great idea of Paolo's (I2UIY - SK), but even while he was alive we struggled to get anything like the level of interest from European operators (enjoyed) in the NA events." Perhaps someone or some group will step up to re-animate this contest - if so, you'll read about it here in the /Contest Update/. *Web Site of the Week* - How did all this "electrical engineering" stuff get started? Some claim it was Tesla's multi-phase ac machines, others the telephone system, but there is a good story in a fried undersea cable and the race to understand and fix the problem. WORD TO THE WISE As log checking reports start appearing from the fall contests, the term */Unique+1/* sometimes comes up. A unique+1 is a call that is (a) "one off" from a unique call and (b) is a call of someone who was active in the contest. If you claimed contact with N9RU, and no one else in the contest worked N9RU, it is a unique. If N9RV was active in the contest, that is a unique+1. N9RD could also be considered a U+1 if active. (From the Contest University Glossary by Pat N9RV) Ad SIGHTS AND SOUNDS I know we've all watched the nightly news weather report and thought, "How about a weather report for the ionosphere?" Thanks to Dr. Tamitha Mulligan Skov and Spaceweather TV , our wishes have been granted! (Thanks, Tim K3LR) Two fine training courses have been made available by Tech Online. A 40-minute video on the "Fundamentals of Circuit Protection " is available from Arrow Electronics and Littlefuse. The PDF course "Introduction to RF Design " from Rohde & Schwarz is available for downloading, as well. More familiar calls were spotted at the KP4 State Convention. Of this pair of Carlos', at left is WP4U, host of the NP3U contest station, accompanied by WP4N. (Photo by N?AX) This YouTube video by Mike WB6DJI shows how a noise-canceling system can make a big improvement when properly configured and used. He uses the NCC-1 Noise Canceling Controller with a TS-990S transceiver. The main antenna is a Hex Beam and the noise sensing antenna is a short piece of wire. The waterfall display adds a strong visual element to the presentation. He uses the system to knock down power-line noise and RFI from a nearby plasma TV. Climbing a woodpecker? In a way. This 20-minute video captures the view as the climber summits the famous Chernobyl antenna of the Over-The-Horizon "woodpecker" radar. (Thanks, Kirk K4RO) Dave WA8AXF reports a smartphone discovery on his Samsung Galaxy. "The settings menu slows the user to customize the vibration pattern for the ring tone when the phone is set to vibrate. You customize the pattern by tapping on the screen and immediately I thought, "Morse code!" and my vibrate ring tone is now "CQ CQ CQ"!" RESULTS AND RECORDS From the ARRL Contest Branch comes news of awards flying out the door! Envelopes with the 2014 January VHF Contest certificates and 2013 EME Contest certificates along with boxes containing the Club Gavels through the 2014 August UHF Contest have all left the building. ARRL DX Participation pins for 2015 are also available again this year. Three more calls you'll want in your log - taking in a Contest University presentation are (L-R), Luis NP4KB, Mauricio KP4LE, and Rode WP3EF. (Photo by N?AX) The ARRL DX Contests are upon us and there are plaques available for sponsoring - check out the lists for the ARRL DX CW and ARRL DX Phone competitions. If you are interested, drop an email to Contest Branch Manager, Matt Wilhelm W1MSW . Chris N6WM, chairman of the California QSO Party , announces the posting of results for the 2014 contest. Many new records were set with participation at near-record levels. Special thanks are extended to John K6MM and Tom NS6T for a fantastic results page and to the entire NCCC/CQP scoring team for their hard work producing results behind the scenes! The next running of CQP will be a special 50^th anniversary edition! The list of logs received for the 2014 RAC Canada Winter Contest has now been posted. (Thanks, RAC Canada Winter Contest Chairman, Sam VE5SF) OPERATING TIP The ARRL's Contest Advisory Committee has been asked to evaluate HF mobile operation in ARRL HF Contests. Specifically, should ARRL's Contest Program add a category(ies) for mobile operations and, if yes, which ARRL HF contest(s) would be the most appropriate for a mobile category? Contact your CAC rep and weigh in! Ad TECHNICAL TOPICS AND INFORMATION The business end of K4RO's halyard-and-pulley system showing the spring between the pulley and the tree attachment point. (Photo by K4RO) Kirk K4RO has learned some rope tricks when it comes to keeping his 40 meter wire Yagi in the air. "Several years ago I started using the rope anchoring method pictured in these photos . There is a continuous loop to a pulley at the top of each tree. The antenna rope is attached to the loop via a third pulley, which provides even more flexibility. The springs are strong enough to hold the antenna in shape, but have enough stretch to survive wind storms. The ropes ride effortlessly along the pulleys. No repairs have been necessary since using this system. The expense was well worth it to me, as it's has eliminated many hours of frustrating repair work every season." Why is it always the one-of-a-kind mechanical component which breaks? Plastic gears can be quite a problem to repair but this Instructables project shows how to replace the missing section with a little epoxy and the mating gear. As long as you're on the site, check out how to salvage electronic components from a CFL light bulb! An effective mobile station can't afford to waste a single volt of battery power so as this /EDN Magazine/ blog entry points out, don't neglect the humble battery connector! Also on the /EDN/ website, this article mulls the effects of laundry detergent and cat litter on the propagation of WiFi signals. If you want some serious reading on the Beverage low-band receiving antenna, there is a great list of references at the bottom of the antenna's Wikipedia page . This reference has also provided a number of measurements. (Thanks, David K1TTT) Oscar KP4RF (L) was discussing his university's rocket launch capabilities to folks at the KP4 convention's ARRL booth when Juan WP3DN brought over his 20 meter SSB conversion of a Uniden CB SSB transceiver. Digitally tuned, inexpensive, and easy to modify - nice work! (Photo by N?AX) Manfred XQ6FOD takes some of the bright edge off the LED replacements for his pilot lights with a little sandpaper. "I sand (the LED lenses) using coarse sandpaper, creating a surface that scatters the light broadly in the desired direction. If I want omnidirectional radiation, I sand the LED body into a conical shape. If I want the light mostly coming out one side of the LED, I sand a flat 45-degree surface onto it. Leaving the surface very rough...helps in obtaining excellent light distribution. Super low-power sensors are now available which can glean their power from ambient RF energy . No word about whether they can handle be supplied by the near field of a big multi-multi station! Myron WV?H found a concentrated tutorial on impedance matching showing that you can reduce your antenna system to an impedance which can then be matched using basic design tools. Self-repairing, reconfigurable electronic circuits take a step closer to reality as described in this Gizmag article . But what will we do on our workbenches? (Thanks, Dennis N6KI) *Technical Web Site of the Week* - If you want to make precise and accurate measurements of resistance, inductance, and capacitance, you'll want to read this /Impedance Measurement Handbook/ from Agilent. (Thanks, Clemens DL4RAJ) CONVERSATION Spring Is On the Air I am sure I just lost my New England readership with that title! Les N1LF posted an evocative musing on how being a VHF+ operator is a lot like being a baseball fan called "The Boys of Summer." That got me thinking and today I notice that the 2015 ARRL Field Day packet is available for downloading - could the coming of the new season be any clearer? I can still hear the muttering of W1s shoveling another load of picturesque out of the driveway. On the observing end of the Arecibo radio telescope, you need some sophisticated receivers which are shown in these racks along with the temporary experimental setup in the foreground. Can you hear the world turning now? Yes! (Photo by N?AX) Well, anyway, pitchers and catchers are packing and heading south to Arizona, Florida, Texas - wherever the crack of the bat and the smack of brand-new horsehide into a newly-oiled mitt resounds. We are already seeing longer daytime openings on the high bands as we move farther from the winter solstice. Along with baseball on the MF bands, come the first inklings of summertime VHF operating fun. Every day, I can turn on the radio and listen to our old orb spinning under the warming glow of our not-too-distant Sun. Bands open, bands close, and I chase the DX across them like the proverbial pot of gold at rainbow's end. Sometimes, I catch it! And while I'm busy every day, I also notice the slower shifts with the seasons. Twenty meters starts to edge a little closer to those nighttime over-the-pole openings. The southern hemisphere low-banders come in stronger and hear us better as the noise levels and absorption balance out. Not to be left out, the VHF bands join the fun on 6 meters. From not so cold and snowy Alabama, Les relates, "For me, [the coming spring] means the confident voice of August, K5HCT. Nothing heralds the arrival of the season like those first faint signals and the familiar refrain..."Here Comes Texas!" (His) is nearly always the first call I hear in the season and the last remaining on the band at its end." Icom Amateur Sales Manager, Ray N9JA spotted one of the Icom receivers in the rack at left above. Proud poppa! (Photo by N?AX) Back in Washington state, the violet-green swallows would always return around my birthday and so it is on the radio. Regardless of where the sunspot count may be - up, down, or sideways - those of us who have been through a cycle or two can almost smell propagation changing at this time of year. True, on the radio leaves don't fall and the geese don't cruise overhead in honking vees, but we experience a unique changing of the seasons unknown to non-hams. Take a little time this week: Before jumping right in to those DXpedition pileups or cranking out a contest exchange, look over your log and savor what the signals sound like - feel like - as if raising your finger to the winds and looking at the clouds to sense a coming change. Spring is, indeed, on the air. 73, Ward N?AX Ad CONTESTS *11 February through 24 February* An expanded, downloadable version of QST's Contest Corral in PDF format is available. Check the sponsor's Web site for information on operating time restrictions and other instructions. *HF CONTESTS* /*ARRL Int'l CW DX Contest*/--CW, from Feb 21, 0000Z to Feb 22, 2359Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: RST, state/province or power. Logs due: Mar 24.Rules NAQCC Monthly QRP Sprint--CW, from Feb 11, 0130Z to Feb 11, 0330Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-14. Monthly on 2nd Tuesday or 3rd Wednesday local time (alternating). Exchange: RST, S/P/C, and NAQCC mbr nr or power. Logs due: 4 days.Rules PODXS 070 Club Valentine Sprint--Digital, from Feb 14, 8 PM to Feb 15, 2 AM. Bands (MHz): 1.8-7. 1.807,3.580,7.070/7.035 EU/7.028 JA (MHz). Exchange: Name, OM or YL, S/P/C. Logs due: Feb 28.Rules CQ WW RTTY WPX--Digital, from Feb 14, 0000Z to Feb 15, 2400Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Exchange: RST and serial. Logs due: 5 days.Rules Asia-Pacific Sprint--CW, from Feb 14, 1100Z to Feb 14, 1300Z. Bands (MHz): 7,14. Exchange: RST and serial. Logs due: 7 days.Rules Dutch PACC Contest--Phone,CW, from Feb 14, 1200Z to Feb 15, 1200Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: RS(T) and Dutch province or serial. Logs due: Mar 15.Rules OMISS QSO Party--Phone, from Feb 14, 1500Z to Feb 15, 1500Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Exchange: RS, S/P/C and OMISS nr or "DX". Logs due: Mar 30.Rules New Hampshire QSO Party--Phone,CW,Digital, from Feb 14, 1600Z to Feb 15, 0400Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. CW - 1.815 and band edge + 45kHz; Phone - 1.875, 3.935, 3.950, 7.235, 14.280, 21.380, 28.390 MHz. Exchange: RS(T) and NH county or S/P or "DX". Logs due: Mar 31.Rules FISTS CW Winter Sprint--CW, from Feb 14, 1700Z to Feb 14, 2100Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Exchange: RST, S/P/C, first name, FISTS nr or power. Logs due: 30 days.Rules RSGB - First 1.8 MHz Contest--Phone,CW, from Feb 14, 2100Z to Feb 15, 0100Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8. Exchange: RST, serial, UK district. Logs due: 16 days.Rules Run For the Bacon--CW, from Feb 16, 0200Z to Feb 16, 0400Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Monthly on 3rd Sunday night (local). Exchange: RST, S/P/C, Flying Pig nr or power.Rules Semi-Automatic Key Evening--CW, from Feb 18, 1900Z to Feb 18, 2030Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5. Exchange: RST, serial, first year of bug use. Logs due: Mar 15.Rules Russian WW PSK Contest--Digital, from Feb 20, 2100Z to Feb 21, 2100Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: RST and oblast code or serial. Logs due: 15 days.Rules REF Contest--Phone, from Feb 21, 0600Z to Feb 22, 1800Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Exchange: RS and French dept or serial. Logs due: 15 days.Rules SARL Youth Day Sprint--Phone, from Feb 21, 0800Z to Feb 21, 1000Z. Bands (MHz): 7. Exchange: RS and age. Logs due: 7 days.Rules Feld-Hell Bingo Sprint--Digital, from Feb 21, 2000Z to Feb 21, 2200Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50, Monthly on 3rd Saturday. Exchange: RST, S/P/C, Feld-Hell member nr. Logs due: 7 days.Rules CQC Winter QSO Party--Phone,CW, from Feb 22, 0100Z to Feb 22, 0259Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-14. 3.560, 7.040, 14.060 MHz. Exchange: RS(T), S/P/C, name, CQC nr or power. Logs due: 30 days.Rules *VHF+ CONTESTS* Maine 2m FM Simplex Challenge--Phone, from Feb 15, 12 PM to Feb 15, 4 PM. Bands (MHz): 144, FM simplex frequencies only. Exchange: Call sign, power, city name. Logs due: 15 days.Rules Feld-Hell Bingo Sprint--Digital, from Feb 21, 2000Z to Feb 21, 2200Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50, Monthly on 3rd Saturday. Exchange: RST, S/P/C, Feld-Hell member nr. Logs due: 7 days.Rules LOG DUE DATES *11 February through 24 February* * February 12 - QRP Fox Hunt * February 14 - WAB 1.8 MHz Phone * February 14 - QRP Fox Hunt * February 14 - CWops Mini-CWT Test * February 14 - NAQCC CW Sprint * February 15 - NCCC Sprint Ladder * February 15 - AWA Linc Cundall Memorial CW Contest * February 15 - SKCC Weekend Sprintathon * February 15 - NCCC RTTY Sprint * February 15 - North American Sprint, CW * February 15 - UBA DX Contest, SSB * February 17 - Hungarian DX Contest * February 18 - RSGB 80m Club Championship, Data * February 19 - NRAU 10m Activity Contest * February 20 - CQ WW RTTY WPX Contest * February 21 - Asia-Pacific Spring Sprint, CW * February 22 - Run for the Bacon QRP Contest * February 22 - SARL Field Day Contest * February 23 - 10-10 Int. Winter Contest, SSB * February 24 - BARTG RTTY Sprint ARRL Information Click here to advertise in this newsletter, space subject to availability. Your One-Stop Resource for Amateur Radio News and Information *Join or Renew Today!* ** ARRL membership includes /QST/ , Amateur Radio's most popular and informative journal, delivered to your mailbox each month. Subscribe to /NCJ/ - the National Contest Journal . Published bimonthly, features articles by top contesters, letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprint and QSO Parties. Subscribe to /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:/ Subscribe to The ARRL Letter (weekly digest of news and information), the ARES E-Letter (monthly public service and emergency communications news), Division and Section news -- and much more! /ARRL offers a wide array of //products/ //to enhance your enjoyment of Amateur Radio. Visit the site often for new publications, specials and sales. Donate to the fund of your choice -- /support programs not funded by member dues!/ Reprint permission can be obtained by sending email to permission at arrl.org with a description of the material and the reprint publication. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ARRL Contest Update wishes to acknowledge information from WA7BNM's Contest Calendar and SM3CER's Contest Calendar . Ad Ad Ad Ad Ad ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The ARRL Contest Update is published every other Wednesday (26 times each year). ARRL members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their Member Data Page as described at http://www.arrl.org/contests/update/. Copyright ? 2015 American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved www.arrl.org From bmarx at bellsouth.net Thu Feb 12 12:29:45 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Thu, 12 Feb 2015 12:29:45 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] NRR - Last Day Is Tomorrow!! In-Reply-To: <54DCC05F.18991.6733DD@bcarling.cfl.rr.com> References: <54DCC05F.18991.6733DD@bcarling.cfl.rr.com> Message-ID: <54DCE309.6010703@bellsouth.net> Folks - NOVICE RIG ROUNDUP! A reminder that tomorrow is the last full day for the Novice Rig Roundup. Please dust off your old tube rigs or use any rig to contact the hundreds of stations on the air this week with their ancient novice era radios! It is happening all week until 7 PM Friday EST. Stations will be heard on 80, 40, 15 and 10 m. Many of these guys are getting their introduction to the SKCC for the first time this week and we would be wise to welcome them with a brief contact to help in this event. Listen for stations calling CQ NRR. Just to give them the normal exchange plus your rig, power and see for VFO. Unless you are using a crystal rig. Full details: http://novicerigroundup.com Best regards - Brian Carling AF4K #1879S From bmarx at bellsouth.net Fri Feb 13 08:37:32 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Fri, 13 Feb 2015 08:37:32 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] The ARRL Letter for February 12, 2015 In-Reply-To: <20150212224207.03B1B20DDAFE@bmail.arrl.org> References: <20150212224207.03B1B20DDAFE@bmail.arrl.org> Message-ID: <54DDFE1C.7050208@bellsouth.net> Preview If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at: http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2015-02-12 The ARRL Letter February 12, 2015 Editor: Rick Lindquist, WW1ME ARRL Home Page /ARRL Letter/ Archive Audio News Ad * FCC Seeks Comment on Radar Sharing Schemes that Could Displace Amateur Radio at 76-81 GHz <#toc01> * Word From Navassa: Turn Off Those Speech Processors! K1N Tops 100,000 Contacts <#toc02> * John Bigley, N7UR, Appointed as Nevada Section Manager <#toc03> * ARRL Field Day 2015 Field Day Packet Now Online <#toc04> * ARRL International DX Contest 2015 CW Event is February 21-22 <#toc05> * Another Round of International Space Station SSTV Activity Set for Late February <#toc06> * Polish Radio Amateurs Receive 3D-Printed ARTSAT2: DESPATCH QSL Card <#toc07> * Denying Permission for FCC Station Inspection Nets Florida CBer a $3000 Fine <#toc08> * RadioShack Enters Chapter 11 "Debtor-in-Possession" Bankruptcy <#toc09> * "Gray Radio Gang" Reactivates Vintage Battleship /Iowa/ HF Transmitter <#toc10> * Hamvention Week AuxComm Course Registration Now Open <#toc11> * In Brief... <#toc12> * The K7RA Solar Update <#toc13> * Just Ahead in Radiosport <#toc14> * Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events <#toc15> FCC Seeks Comment on Radar Sharing Schemes that Could Displace Amateur Radio at 76-81 GHz The FCC is seeking comment on issues involving expanded use of various radar applications in the 76-81 GHz band, which Amateur Radio shares with other services. The band 77.5-78 GHz is allocated to the Amateur and Amateur Satellite services on a primary basis, and to the Radio Astronomy and Space Research services on a secondary basis. "We undertake this proceeding to expand the available spectrum for radar operations in the 76-81 GHz band," the FCC said in a detailed /Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Reconsideration Order /(/NPRM&RO/ ), released February 5 in ET Docket 15-26. The Commission said the proposals include allocation changes as well as provisions "to ensure that new and incumbent operations can share the available frequencies in the band." The FCC /NPRM&RO/ is in response to a /Petition for Rulemaking/ (RM-11666) filed in 2012 by Robert Bosch LLC and to two petitions for reconsideration of the Commission's 2012 /Report and Order/ (/R&O/ ) addressing vehicular radar systems in the 76-77 GHz band. ET 15-26 incorporates earlier proceedings. Among many issues, the FCC seeks comment on the possibility of reallocating the Amateur Radio and Amateur Satellite services from 76-81 GHz, and it asks for suggestions on "alternative spectrum that we might make available in this general region." Bosch's 2012 /Petition /sought to modify the FCC's Part 15 rules to expand the operation of unlicensed vehicular radar systems from 76-77 GHz to the 76-81 GHz band to develop short-range radar (SRR) applications. The Bosch petition received "general support from the automotive industry," the Commission said. In its petition, Bosch said that it anticipated no interference issues between Amateur Radio operations and vehicular radar operations at 77-81 GHz. "It notes that it is unconvinced after several meetings with the technical staff of ARRL that there is any 'significant incompatibility,'" the FCC /NPRM&RO/ recounted, "and describes how amateur operations in the band 'tend to be largely experimental, occurring in geographic areas such as mountaintops and other rural areas where motor vehicle operation is not typical.'" The FCC noted, however, that it "has previously recognized evidence of potential interference conflicts" between Amateur Radio and vehicular radar systems in the 76-77 GHz band, and believes the potential for "similar compatibility issues" could exist above 77 GHz. More than 10 years ago the FCC suspended Amateur Radio and Amateur Satellite operation in the 76-77 GHz segment and recently extended the suspension. "Our goal is to adopt rules that address amateur use, including Amateur Satellite use, within the 76-81 GHz band in a comprehensive and consistent manner," the FCC asserted. The FCC said that to the extent commenters believe Amateur Radio can continue to use the 4 millimeter band, it seeks comments on "what additional rule modifications we would have to adopt to realize successful shared use of the entire band." One possibility the FCC raised was altering current amateur power limits in that portion of the spectrum. The Commission said it also wants to "develop a record on the types of amateur use, and the extent of such use, that is currently undertaken" at 4 millimeters. The ARRL plans to comment in the FCC proceeding. Word From Navassa: Turn Off Those Speech Processors! K1N Tops 100,000 Contacts The pressure to work K1N on Navassa Island continues. The DXpedition has topped 100,000 contacts, but demand seems insatiable, as it enters its final few days. The pileups continue to be *K1N team member Glenn Johnson, W0GJ.* fierce with little letup, K1N team member Glenn Johnson, W0GJ, said in a February 10 media release. A day earlier, during a satellite telephone interview with Wolf Harranth, OE1WHC, Johnson advised phone operators to turn off their speech processors when trying to break the pileups. He said the splatter generated when phone ops max out their audio in an effort to be heard "makes it almost impossible" to pick out individual callers. "If we could somehow magically eliminate all speech processors, we could probably double or triple our rate, particularly in working Europeans," Johnson told OE1WHC. Johnson said the distribution of K1N contacts forms "almost a bell-shaped curve centered on 20 and 30 meters," although, he added, 40 meters has been "very productive" as well. On the outer edges, K1N had logged more than 2500 contacts on 160 as of February 9 and has been working stations in Oceania and Europe on 6 meters, where K1N has been maintaining a beacon on 50.103 MHz. *K1N CW operator Ralph Fedor, K0IR, works down a pileup.* Johnson said the team will continue to operate full bore into the early weekend but will start closing down on Friday, February 13, sending unneeded supplies back to Jamaica. "We'll probably be in full swing through Friday evening (local time)," Johnson explained. Operations will proceed through Saturday, but "at the break of dawn" on Sunday, February 15, the team will have to depart Navassa, and it could be another decade before anyone is able to activate Navassa Island. "Everyone is still healthy and in good spirits," Johnson said in the team's February 10 news release. "We really thank everyone for standing by while we work our propagation windows, especially to Japan." The K1N logs have been posted. John Bigley, N7UR, Appointed as Nevada Section Manager John Bigley, N7UR, of Las Vegas, has been appointed ARRL Nevada Section Manager, succeeding the late Gary Grant, K7VY, of Reno, who *New Nevada SM John Bigley, N7UR (right), receives the ARRL Pacific Division "Ham of the Year" award from Pacific Division Director Bob Vallio, W6RGG.* died February 1 after a period of ill health. Field Services and Radiosport Manager Dave Patton, NN1N, consulted with Pacific Division Director Bob Vallio, W6RGG, and made the appointment effective on February 5. Bigley has been serving as an Assistant Section Manager and as the Public Information Coordinator for Nevada. He edits the /Nevada Amateur Radio Newswire/ . Bigley will complete Grant's remaining term of office, which concludes on June 30. Bigley was selected as the 2014 ARRL Pacific Division "Ham Of The Year." ARRL is now soliciting nominations for the next 2-year term of office for Nevada Section Manager, which starts on July 1. Nominating petitions are due at ARRL Headquarters by March 6, 2015. Details are available on the ARRL website. ARRL Field Day 2015 Field Day Packet Now Online The complete 2015 ARRL Field Day packet is now online. There are no rule changes for 2015. Field Day 2015 takes place June 27-28. "Following a successful Centennial QSO Party with on-the-air activity at an all-time high, we are very excited for this year's event and hope that individuals and clubs will carry their enthusiasm over to Field Day," said ARRL Contest Branch Manager Matt Wilhelm, W1MSW. ARRL Field Day is the most popular on-the-air event held annually in the US and Canada. On the fourth weekend of June, more than 35,000 radio amateurs gather with their clubs, groups, or simply with friends to operate from remote locations. Participants are encouraged to register their Field Day operations using the FD Site Locator . Field Day gear will be available by March 1. If you have questions about Field Day, e-mail them, or call 860-594-0232. Ad ARRL International DX Contest 2015 CW Event is February 21-22 CW, DXing, and contesting come together and go global February 21-22 for the 2015 ARRL International DX CW contest . This HF contest season has seen incredible high-band conditions and record entry numbers, and as it draws to a close, this is a terrific opportunity to get on the air and get in on the fun. It's the US and Canada working the world in this event. If you have never operated in a CW contest, the event's short and simple exchange, combined with abundant stations on the air, makes it an ideal opportunity to try something new. Participating in the ARRL DX CW is a fantastic way to hone your CW operating skills and expand your knowledge of HF propagation. DX stations around the world will be looking to work US and Canadian stations, so don't miss this chance to put a "new one" in your log. At the top-scoring K3LR MM in 2014, W5OV (L) and K3UA seem to be enjoying themselves working the pileups. Think your station is too small to operate in one of the largest contests of the year? Think again. There are Low Power and QRP categories, and, if the improved solar conditions we saw at the end of 2014 continue, there will be plenty of stations for "Little Pistols" to work. Keep an eye on 10 meters, which can be a great place to find a quiet slice of spectrum to run on low power. Stations in the US and Canada work only DX stations (Alaska and Hawaii are considered DX for this contest), while DX stations work only the US and Canada. The contest exchange is simple: US and Canadian stations send a signal report and their state or province, while DX stations send a signal report and their power output. The contest gets under way at 0000 UTC on Saturday, February 21 (the evening of Friday, February 20, in US time zones) and continues through through 2359 UTC on Sunday, February 22, 2015. Complete rules and forms are on the ARRL website. E-mail electronic logs (Cabrillo format). Mail paper logs to ARRL DX CW Contest, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111. /Logs must be received or postmarked no later than 2359 UTC on Tuesday, March 24, 2015./ Another Round of International Space Station SSTV Activity Set for Late February The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS ) program has announced another round of Amateur Radio slow-scan television (SSTV) activity from the International Space Station will take place later this month. Transmissions will be from RS0ISS. The images transmitted will reprise the first series commemorating Russian space history, previously sent last December and again earlier in late January and early February. Non-stop SSTV transmissions from *John Sweigart, KK4SHF, received this SSTV image from RS0ISS of Soviet space pioneer Yuri Gagarin on February 1.* RS0ISS will begin on February 21 at 1000 UTC and end on February 23 at 2130 UTC. The SSTV mode will be PD180, which can produce high-quality images with a frame scan of 187 seconds. Twelve different images depicting Soviet space pioneer Yuri Gagarin -- the first human to orbit Earth -- will be sent on 145.800 MHz, with a 3-minute off time between transmissions. Received images may be uploaded to the image gallery . During the last round of SSTV transmissions from RS0ISS, a Polish radio enthusiast, 22-year-old Radoslaw Karwacki, used an RTL-SDR "dongle" to pick up the SSTV signals from the ISS. The tiny software-defined receiver, which plugs into a computer USB port and includes an antenna port, cost about $15. He used a basic dipole and free software to receive and display the images. "I blindly tuned in on that frequency during ISS flyby and happened to receive the signal," he told /Daily Mail/ Science and Technology reporter Jonathan O'Callaghan. "This is an excellent example of how low cost systems can be employed by students to copy pictures directly from the ISS," said ARISS International President Frank Bauer, KA3HDO. "We are working on additional picture downlinks over the course of the year using images from our international team. Our next initiative is a series of pictures of 'spaceflight inventors,' including Tsiolkovsky, Goddard, Oberth, Von Braun, and others." AMSAT-UK has posted a report on the last round of SSTV transmissions in late January and early February. Polish Radio Amateurs Receive 3D-Printed ARTSAT2: DESPATCH QSL Card Micha?? Zawada, SQ5KTM,**and a Polish team of radio amateurs who received signals from the ARTSAT2: DESPATCH (FO-81) spacecraft while it was more than 1.68 million miles from Earth have been rewarded with a QSL generated by a 3D printer. Zawada reported that the team heard FO-81 on December 9. One half of the "card" is a 3D depiction of the sculpture ARTSAT2 carried into deep space; the other half is a printed reception confirmation. The two-part QSL included a 3D printer image representing the ARTSAT2 sculpture sent into deep space (left) and a more conventionally printed reception report. "The last signals received by us from ARTSAT2: DESPATCH were very weak, but clearly stood out on the waterfall diagram of the monitoring program," he reported. "To avoid misinterpretation we asked for confirmation directly from the creators of the space probe -- Tama Art University and The University of Tokyo." Zawada said the data he and his team reported were analyzed, compared with the model and successfully authenticated, "and we have received confirmation with thanks." He said the team sent "gigabytes of data" to the operators of the ARTSAT2 and Shin'en-2 space probes for further analysis. The Industrial Research Institute for Automation and Measurements (PIAP ) loaned the use of its 4.5 meter parabolic mesh dish and the help of some employees to the project; the team used its own Amateur Radio equipment. "Preparations of our ground station took us almost 2 weeks, including some hours on a roof at freezing weather conditions," Zawada reported. ARTSAT2: DESPATCH and Shin'en 2 (FO-82) were launched on December 3 with the Hayabusa 2 asteroid sample-return mission. ARTSAT2: DESPATCH carried a 7 W CW transmitter on 437.325 MHz and included the first sculpture ever to be carried into deep space. The spacecraft transmitted for approximately 1 month before going silent. Read more . ------------------------------------------------------------------------ FindARRL on Facebook . Follow us on Twitter ! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ad Denying Permission for FCC Station Inspection Nets Florida CBer a $3000 Fine The FCC Enforcement Bureau has imposed a reduced fine of $3000 on a Florida, CB operator for failing to allow FCC agents inspect his station. The Commission issued Tommie Salter of Jacksonville a /Forfeiture Order/ on February 5. Last August the FCC had proposed fining Salter $14,000 for denying agents from the FCC's Tampa Office permission to check out his station in the wake of renewed complaints of interference to a neighbor's "home electronic equipment." In March 2014, agents monitored radio transmissions on 27.245 MHz and used radio direction-finding techniques to track the signal's source to Salter's residence. The FCC said it agreed to reduce the proposed forfeiture based on Salter's financial circumstances. "Mr Salter does not deny that he refused to allow the agents to inspect his CB station but alleges he could not stay for the inspection, because he had a doctor's appointment," the FCC /Forfeiture Order/ said. The Enforcement Bureau said it was unable to substantiate Salter's appointment claim but said that he could have asked to reschedule the inspection in such a situation. The Bureau concluded that it could "find no reason to reduce the forfeiture based on his alleged appointment." The FCC said financial documents that Salter provided offered "sufficient basis" to reduce the forfeiture to $3000. "We have previously rejected inability to pay claims in cases of repeated or otherwise egregious violations," the Commission added. "Therefore, future violations of this kind may result in significantly higher forfeitures that may not be reduced due to Mr Salter's financial circumstances." The FCC's /Forfeiture Policy Statement/ and its rules set a base forfeiture amount of $7000 for failure to permit inspection. Salter had previously received a /Notice of Violation/ for refusing an inspection request in 2004, the /Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture/ (/NAL/ ) in the case noted, and he also had been fined for operating with a non-certificated transmitter during restricted hours the Commission had imposed following similar interference complaints. Read more .\ RadioShack Enters Chapter 11 "Debtor-in-Possession" Bankruptcy Electronics retailer RadioShack , which once supplied Amateur Radio equipment and has continued to maintain an inventory of electronics components, has reached an asset purchase agreement with General Wireless Inc, an affiliate of RadioShack creditor Standard General, to acquire up to 2400 of RadioShack's more than 4000 company-owned stores. Many, but not all, RadioShack stores will close, as the Fort Worth, Texas-based company attempts to restructure under Chapter 11 bankruptcy following 11 quarterly losses. General Wireless has agreed in principle on terms with Sprint to establish a new dedicated mobility "store-within-a-store" retail presence in up to 1750 of the acquired stores. Stores that are closing are expected to sell remaining inventory. Discussions are under way with interested parties to sell all of the company's remaining assets. /-- RadioShack news release, media accounts/ "Gray Radio Gang" Reactivates Vintage Battleship /Iowa/ HF Transmitter It's a massive project on a number of levels, but the so-called "Gray Radio Gang" that's been working to restore some of the vintage US Navy radio gear on board the Battleship /Iowa/ (BB-61), docked in Los Angeles, recently fired up one of the vessel's transmitters for the first time in about 25 years. Restoration team member Jim Jerzycke, KQ6EA, recounted on his "Every Blade of Grass" blog how the group was finally able to get 950 W into a dummy antenna from one transmitter on 20 meters. *One of the Battleship /Iowa/'s AN/URT-23(C) transmitters. The exciter is at the top, the PA is in the middle, and the amplifier power supply is on the bottom. [Jim Jerzycke, KQ6EA, photo]* "We still have quite a way to go before we attempt to put one [transmitter] on the air, but the results were quite encouraging for at transmitter that was last powered up sometime in 1990," Jerzycke said in his blog. "BB-61 should be on the air later this year with a /big/ voice!" He told ARRL that, once transmitters are deemed operational, they probably would not be used very often on the ham bands. The Iowa already has a ham radio station, NI6BB, under the auspices of the Battleship Iowa Amateur Radio Association (BIARA ), an ARRL-affiliated club. BIARA's president is Doug Dowds, W6HB. NI6BB has more modern gear but makes use of the ship's own antennas. The BIARA is active from the /Iowa/ most Wednesdays and for many national holidays, such as Veterans Day, Pearl Harbor Day, and Memorial Day, and for operating events such as the Museum Ships Weekend and International Lighthouse/Lightship Weekend. The station also has hosted Boy Scouts' Jamboree On The Air (JOTA) groups each fall. *Arnold Shatz, N6HC, at the helm of the Iowa's NI6BB club station.* Jerzycke said the Gray Radio Gang is composed of about 10 individuals with experience on various types of US Navy radio gear dating from the 1950s to the 1980s, when most of them served in the Navy. "At 63 years old, I'm one of the 'youngsters' in that group," he added. The team has been trying to get the original receivers, transmitters, RTTY gear, and antennas working again, Jerzycke said. "We are very fortunate in having the guys from the aircraft carrier /Midway/ in San Diego and the Battleship /New Jersey/ in Camden, New Jersey, who have provided us with technical help, documents, and spare parts." The AN/URT-23(C) transmitters, he joked, are "built like a battleship," with a pair of 4CX1500Bs in the final and nominally capable of putting out a couple of kilowatts. He noted that once the Gray Radio Gang has confirmed the signal paths for the various shipboard transmitters and receivers, it will be able to put a transmitter/receiver pair in operation for certain special events. "At this time it's unlikely that we will use the original radio equipment for 'routine' Amateur Radio operations, as it's very manpower intensive, requiring at least six people to operate," Jerzycke explained. "It's an honor and a privilege to be able to work on the /Iowa/, and I enjoy every minute of it!" Hamvention Week AuxComm Course Registration Now Open The Department of Homeland Security's Office of Emergency Communications will offer its Auxiliary Communications (AuxComm) course May 12-14 prior to Hamvention ^? 2015 in Dayton, Ohio. More than 1000 Amateur Radio operators have completed the course, which trains qualified hams to assist local, county, and state government with emergency backup communication. The AuxComm course covers emergency communication in a public safety context within the National Incident Management framework. It also introduces the auxiliary communicator to the Communications Unit Leader function. Details and regist//ration requirements are available on the Hamvention website. Applicants/must/ meet all prerequisites and provide documentation to attend this class. The class is limited to 50 qualified students. The intensive 3-day course provides facilitated lectures, student exercises, and interactive discussions. The AuxComm workshop is designed for auxiliary emergency communicators who volunteer to provide backup emergency radio communication support to public safety and emergency response professionals and their agencies. Read more . -- Thanks to Henry Ruminski, W8HJR, Hamvention Media Chair Ad In Brief... *World Radio Day, February 13, Will See Inauguration of Special 4U0ITU Call Sign: *ITU International Amateur Radio Club station 4U1ITU in Geneva will mark World Radio Day on Friday, February 13. This event also kicks off the International Telecommunication Union's (ITU) 150th anniversary. International Amateur Radio Union President Tim Ellam, VE6SH, will inaugurate special call sign 4U0ITU at 0900 UTC. He will be accompanied by ITU Secretary General Houlin Zhao, other elected officials, and VIPs. The IARC will use the 4U0ITU call sign until World Radiocommunication Conference 2015, November 2-27, 2015. World Radio Day commemorates the first broadcast of UN Radio in 1946. All 4U0ITU contacts will be confirmed. QSL information is available on QRZ.com . *Winter SWL Fest Set for February 27-28 near Philly*: The North American Short Wave Association's 28th Annual Winter SWL Fest will be held February 27-28 at the Doubletree Guest Suites in Plymouth Meeting, near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Winter SWL Fest is a conference for all radio hobbyists, and it attracts medium wave, scanning, satellite TV, and Amateur Radio enthusiasts. ARRL Southern New Jersey Section Manager Skip Arey, N2EI, will deliver a presentation, "Regenerative Receivers Past and Present," during the gathering. Arey is the author of the /Radio Monitoring: The How-To Guide/ . Other forum topics will include "Pirate Radio," "Ultralight Medium-Wave DXing," and "Crisis Communications." Additional information is on the NASWA website. *Worked All Wisconsin Counties Applicants May Claim Wisconsin QSO Party Contacts:* The West Allis Radio Amateur Club has announced that applicants for its Worked All Wisconsin Counties (WAWC ) award now may claim Wisconsin QSO Party contacts for award credit. The West Allis Radio Amateur Club sponsors both activities. The Wisconsin QSO Party takes place March 15-16 UTC). For 2015, WAWC applicants may claim Wisconsin QSO Party contacts without a QSL card. Applicants must indicate QSO Party contacts on the entry form, and the club will utilize the QSO Party database to confirm these. *Brazil Forms an AMSAT Organization*: An AMSAT organization has been formed in Brazil (AMSAT-BR), as a special-interest group under the Liga de Amadores Brasileiros de Radio Emiss?o (LABRE ), the national International Amateur Radio Union member society. AMSAT-BR was established "to better organize Brazilian Amateur Satellite activities, to better represent the Amateur Radio community to organizations developing CubeSat projects, and to attract more amateurs in different regions of the country to join our cause," LABRE Executive Director Orlando Perez Filho, PT2OP, told AMSAT-NA . The primary missions of AMSAT-BR will be to foster activities related to development, building, operating, and monitoring Amateur Radio satellites and high-altitude balloons, as well as activities using these in STEM education. Read more . *Free Android Propagation Tool Available*: /WSPR World Watch / is a free Android app that plots real-time radio transmission paths on a world map and incorporates a background display of the gray line or terminator. It was developed by Derek Turner, G4SWY. Users may view paths of individual stations, and there is an aurora plot option and display of space weather indices. /WSPR/ is designed for probing radio propagation paths using low-power, beacon-like transmissions. /WSPR/ signals convey only a call sign, Maidenhead grid locator, and power level. Receiving stations with Internet access automatically upload reception reports to a central database. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The K7RA Solar Update Tad Cook, K7RA, Seattle, reports: We saw solar indices drop this week. Average daily sunspot numbers dropped from 139 to 81.6, while average daily solar flux went from 151.1 to 144.1. Geomagnetic indices were more stable this week, with average daily planetary A index going from 14.7 to 8.4, and average mid-latitude A index declining from 9.4 to 6.6. The two 7-day periods compared here are January 29 through February 4, and February 5-11. Predicted solar flux for the near term is 140 for February 12-14, 130 for February 15-16, then 125, 135, 150, and 145 for February 17-20, 140 for February 21-22, 145 for February 23-26, 150 for February 27-28, 145 on March 1, 140 for March 2-7, and 135 for March 8-10. Solar flux then reaches a low of 125 for March 12-13, a high of 140 for March 16-17, and heads back to 125 for March 21-22. Predicted planetary A index is 8 for February 12-14, then 10, 12, 10, 8, and 10 for February 15-19, 5 for February 20-21, 15, and 12 for February 22-23, 10 for February 24-27, 20 for February 28 through March 1, 15 on March 2, 10 for March 3-4, 5 for March 5-6, 8 on March 7, 10 on March 8, and 8 for March 9-12. This weekly "Solar Update" in /The ARRL Letter/ is a preview of the "Propagation Bulletin" issued each Friday. The latest bulletin and an archive of past propagation bulletins is on the ARRL website. For Friday's bulletin, expect an updated forecast for the near term and reports from readers concerning 6 meters. Send me /your/ reports and observations. /-- Tad Cook, K7RA/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Just Ahead in Radiosport * February 14 -- Asia-Pacific Sprint (CW) * February 14 -- FISTS CW Winter Sprint * February 14 -- RSGB - First 1.8 MHz Contest (SSB, CW) * February 14-15 -- PODXS 070 Club Valentine Sprint * February 14-15 -- CQ WW RTTY WPX * February 14-15 -- Dutch PACC Contest (SSB, CW) * February 14-15 -- OMISS QSO Party (SSB) * February 14-15 -- New Hampshire QSO Party * February 15 -- Maine 2 Meter FM Simplex Challenge * February 18 -- Semi-Automatic Key Evening See the ARRL Contest Calendar for more information. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events * February 13-15 -- Southeastern Division Convention , Orlando, Florida * February 20-21 -- Arizona Section Convention , Yuma, Arizona * February 28 -- New Mexico Techfest Convention , Albuquerque, New Mexico * February 28 -- Vermont State Convention , S Burlington, Vermont * March 7 -- Santa Clara Valley Section Convention , Del Rey Oaks, California * March 13-14 -- North Carolina Section Convention , Concord, North Carolina * March 14 -- West Texas Section Convention , Midland, Texas * March 20-21 -- Louisiana State Convention , Rayne, Louisiana * March 21 -- MicroHAMS Digital Conference , Redmond, Washington * March 21 -- Nebraska State Convention , Lincoln, Nebraska * March 21 -- Southern Florida Section Convention , Stuart, Florida * March 28 -- Texas State Convention , Rosenberg, Texas * April 4 -- West Central Florida Technical Conference , Sebring, Florida * April 4 -- North Carolina State Convention , Raleigh, North Carolina * April 11-12 -- Communications Academy , Seattle, Washington * April 17-19 -- International DX Convention , Visalia, California * April 25 -- Aurora Conference , White Bear Lake, Minnesota Find conventions and hamfests in your area .* * ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ** *ARRL *-- *Your One-Stop Resource for * *Amateur Radio News and Information*** . . ** ** ** ** ******. ** * Join or Renew Today! ARRL membership includes /QST/ , Amateur Radio's most popular and informative journal, delivered to your mailbox each month. * Listen to /ARRL Audio News/ , available every Friday. Subscribe to... * /NCJ / /-- National Contest Journal/ . Published bi-monthly, features articles by top contesters, letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprint and QSO Parties. * /QEX/ *//*/-- A Forum for Communications Experimenters/ . Published bi-monthly, features technical articles, construction projects, columns, and other items of interest to radio amateurs and communications professionals. Free of charge to ARRL members... * 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! Find ARRL on Facebook ! Follow us on Twitter ! Ad Ad Ad Ad Ad ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The ARRL Letter is published Thursdays, 48 times each year. ARRL members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their Member Data Page as described at http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/. Copyright ? 2015 American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved www.arrl.org From bmarx at bellsouth.net Fri Feb 13 08:55:11 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Fri, 13 Feb 2015 08:55:11 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] AWA Saves a Piece of Delano Station by James O'Neal, K4XAR In-Reply-To: <1801467734.4724096.1423786884326.JavaMail.zimbra@comcast.net> References: <1801467734.4724096.1423786884326.JavaMail.zimbra@comcast.net> Message-ID: <54DE023F.6010604@bellsouth.net> Big, I mean really BIG, article in the February 11, 2015 RadioWorld Magazine. You won't want to miss this story about the 250kW Collins transmitter which was saved from the scrap yard by the combined efforts of the AWA (Antique Radio Association - http://www.antiquewireless.org/ ) and the Collins CCA (Collins Collector Association - http://www.collinsradio.com/ ) Online version - http://www.radioworld.com/article/awa-saves-a-piece-of-delano-station/274511 This transmitter was rescued from the 'Voice of America Delano California Shortwave Station' with the rescue crew given only about one week to remove it. A massive undertaking. It will be on display in the new AWA Museum located in Bloomfield, NY. 73, John Dilks, K2TQN www.k2tqn.com/ Former Editor Vintage Radio Column, QST 2000-2014 From bmarx at bellsouth.net Sat Feb 14 09:02:27 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Sat, 14 Feb 2015 09:02:27 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] K1N - Navassa Island - Update 1456Z February 13, 2015 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <54DF5573.8030108@bellsouth.net> News / Updates 13 February 2015 @1456Z The rules for ATNO days: DEFINITION: ATNO = ALL TIME NEW ONE This means that you have NOT YET worked K1N on ANY BAND or ANY MODE. They WILL have the log at their fingertips, so please do NOT call them if you already worked them. Only call K1N as per their announcement. They may be calling specific areas. There will be TWO ATNO operations: ? SATURDAY, Feb 14, will be WORLDWIDE ATNO DAY on 20M SSB between 1300-2400Z. 14.240 (plus/minus) will be our transmit frequency, listen for instructions. ONLY ATNO stations will be logged. ? FRIDAY Feb 13 AND SATURDAY Feb 14 will be TWO JA, ASIA AND OCEANIA ATNO DAY operations on 15 meter SSB between 2200-2400Z. Transmit frequency 21205 + or -. ONLY JA-ASIA-OCEANIA ATNO stations will be logged. Times MAY be extended. ? The 20 meter operation will have a worldwide focus. The two 15 meter slots were selected to help our friends in deep Asia and Oceania who have not been able to work K1N have a realistic chance to work Navassa for an all-time new one. ? Other band operations will be occurring during these activities, and they will not be ATNO operations. But let's be fair at this point to make sure that the little pistols have a chance. It will be a VERY long time before Navassa comes back on the air. ? Be aware that the team is beginning to dismantle, and prepare for final departure on Sunday. Some operators have already left. See ya' in the Pileups! Bob Schenck, N2OO Chief Pilot, K1N - Navassa DXpedition Bernie McClenny, W3UR Editor of: The Daily DX The Weekly DX How's DX? Two week trial - http://www.dailydx.com/trial.html https://twitter.com/dailydx 410-489-6518 _______________________________________________ DailyDX mailing list DailyDX at kkn.net http://www.kkn.net/mailman/listinfo/dailydx From bmarx at bellsouth.net Sat Feb 14 19:42:28 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Sat, 14 Feb 2015 19:42:28 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] KB6NU's February 2015 Column In-Reply-To: <3E5584ACA66542A9B94B5A45B671ED39@danromanchik.com> References: <3E5584ACA66542A9B94B5A45B671ED39@danromanchik.com> Message-ID: <54DFEB74.604@bellsouth.net> Hi, all: This column is a little early and a little longer than usual. I guess I just felt prolific this month. If you want a photo of yours truly to go along with the column, you can find one of me at http://www.kb6nu.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/kb6nu-key-600x400.jpg. Feel free to crop as necessary. 73! Dan KB6NU ======= start column ======= Make your own dipoles with these center insulators By Dan Romanchik, KB6NU One of the things that always gets my goat is the price some companies charge for dipole antennas. It's not that they're charging an outrageously large sum of money, and I certainly don't begrudge them making a profit for their efforts. It's just that if hams would just buy their own wire and parts, they would not only save money over the long run, but be encouraged to experiment with antennas. That's what I started doing about ten years ago, and I've been very happy with the results. One of the first things that I did was to purchase ten Budwig HQ-1 center insulators and ten HQ-2 end insulators (http://www.budwig.com/antenna-connector-insulators.html). I've made a bunch of antennas with these insulators, including several 40m/20m inverted vees for portable use (such as Field Day and special events), a 17m dipole, and a 10m loop antenna. These insulators are very well-made, and can easily be reused, too. Universal Radio sells the set (http://universal-radio.com/catalog/antsup/1782.html) for $18.50. I just placed another order for ten HQ-1s and 20 HQ-2s (the minimum number that you can purchase to get a quantity discount). The price, including shipping, is $143. There are a bunch of other center insulators on the market, including: * The Alpha Delta Delta-C antenna hardware kit (http://universal-radio.com/catalog/antsup/0297.html) consists of a Delta-C Center Insulator, antenna connecting hardware, 1 SEP Arc-Plug? static protector (installed in Delta-C) and 2 Delta-CIN end insulators. This is a little heavier-duty than the Budwig insulators, but it costs more, too ($30 at Universal Radio). Unless you're going to be running a kW, I don't see the need to spend nearly twice as much money on these insulators. * The TEN-TEC ACRO-BAT Antenna Connector & Hanger (http://www.tentec.com/products/ACRO%252dBAT-Antenna-Connector-%26-Hanger.html) is an interesting product. Unlike the Budwig and Alpha-Delta insulators, this product does not have an SO-239. Instead, this insulator clamps over the coax and antenna wire, and in doing so, provides strain relief. I haven't tried this one, but it seems like a nice design. The cost is $10, directly from TEN-TEC or from Universal Radio. * The Unadilla W2AU ANsulator (http://universal-radio.com/catalog/antsup/0913.html) is made from PCV tubing and include eyelets for terminating the antenna wire and for supporting the insulator in the middle. For $15, I think I'd rather have the Budwig insulator. Also, you should be able to make one of these insulators for less than 15 bucks. * The Hy-Gain C-1C Center Insulator (http://www.hy-gain.com/Product.php?productid=C-1C) has a screw for tightening down the antenna wire, so you don't have to do any soldering, but overall, I don't think I like the looks of this model. And, at 30 bucks, it seems kind of pricey. * The W8AMZ Dipole Antenna Starter Kit (http://www.w8amz.com/W8AMZ_ACC_Page.html) comes a center insulator made from PVC pipe, similar to the Unadilla W2AU ANsulator and two end insulators. It costs $18. If none of these strikes your fancy, you can always make your own. WP4AOH has some very good instructions on how to do this using PVC pipe and fasteners that you can find at your local hardware store (http://wp4aoh.blogspot.com/2012/07/dipole-antenna-center-insulator.html). Whatever route you take, I encourage you to keep several on hand and enough antenna wire and coax to complete the antenna. You never know when the urge will strike you to build an antenna, and if you don't have the parts you've missed an opportunity to do some experimenting. ============================================================== When not checking his stock of antenna parts, you'll find KB6NU working on updates to his "No Nonsense" study guides, blogging about amateur radio at www.kb6nu.com, or working 30m CW. ======= end column ======= From bmarx at bellsouth.net Mon Feb 16 07:24:29 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2015 07:24:29 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] HRO Announces Price on IC-7850 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <54E1E17D.6070505@bellsouth.net> $16,459.95 USD http://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=71-001813 Bill W2CQ From bmarx at bellsouth.net Mon Feb 16 07:39:28 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2015 07:39:28 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] Mercury Paddle Book Is Ready For Shipping In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <54E1E500.3020201@bellsouth.net> This book is about N2DAN and the Mercury Paddle. Ray has a few books left. It contains pictures and history regarding the Hand Made Mercury Key. Only 50 books were printed so if you have one you may want this book. Only about 250 Keys were made By Steve, although Bencher manufactures a version licensed by N2DAN's widow. Bill W2CQ Hi All, Have sent out a good number of books, */Messenger of the Gods/*, if you would still like a copy? please send Pay Pal payment to raymondbullock13 at supanet.com please note that it is *supanet* not super, the total cost to USA is $45.12, should you not require a book could you kindly let me now so that i can allocate your book to someone else? Please send also the Book Number you would like, to possibly match your Key! also postal address, UK postage and total is ? 20.57, EU is 39.85, sorry about the high postal costs but that's the best i could do, i look forward to hearing from you, because i have a great number of different email address for some people could you ask your friends who you are aware of, that may have an interest in the book as i would not like sending a email not informing them, Hello Ray, As requested, the book arrived at 1045 hrs today. I thought I would give it a quick scan but an hour later I realised I have things to do. Icould not put it down. It is a most fascinating book and you have done a great job in producing it. I have a friend who bought a Mercury key and I will try to forward details when I get them. Congratulations on a job well done. 73, Bert Take care Ray 73 G0EML ps, From n4tzhradio at gmail.com Mon Feb 16 07:40:52 2015 From: n4tzhradio at gmail.com (Donald Drennon) Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2015 07:40:52 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] [SFDXA] HRO Announces Price on IC-7850 In-Reply-To: <6BC0B4D9-DD63-4FD8-9BFE-8AEC2C2A7D6C@psd.toshiba.com> References: <54E1E17D.6070505@bellsouth.net> <6BC0B4D9-DD63-4FD8-9BFE-8AEC2C2A7D6C@psd.toshiba.com> Message-ID: <71F3FEF9-7513-48CE-93BE-E388A8D8686B@gmail.com> So, Bill, order 2 ... One for you and one for me! Hi. Don N4TZH Sent from my iPad mini > On Feb 16, 2015, at 7:25 AM, Wohlschlegel, Mark wrote: > > Ridiculous ! > > Sent from my iPhone > > >> On Feb 16, 2015, at 7:24 AM, Bill wrote: >> >> >> $16,459.95 USD >> >> http://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=71-001813 >> >> Bill W2CQ >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" >> SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com >> SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone >> To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net >> To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > ______________________________________________________________ > South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" > SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com > SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone > To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net > To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net From bmarx at bellsouth.net Mon Feb 16 07:50:24 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2015 07:50:24 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] [SFDXA] HRO Announces Price on IC-7850 In-Reply-To: <71F3FEF9-7513-48CE-93BE-E388A8D8686B@gmail.com> References: <54E1E17D.6070505@bellsouth.net> <6BC0B4D9-DD63-4FD8-9BFE-8AEC2C2A7D6C@psd.toshiba.com> <71F3FEF9-7513-48CE-93BE-E388A8D8686B@gmail.com> Message-ID: <54E1E790.4030405@bellsouth.net> Ill buy a used one in 10 years....wait for a 7851 I'm guessing they'll be in the $12,000 range. Bill W2CQ On 2/16/2015 7:40 AM, Donald Drennon wrote: > So, Bill, order 2 ... One for you and one for me! Hi. > > Don > N4TZH > > Sent from my iPad mini > >> On Feb 16, 2015, at 7:25 AM, Wohlschlegel, Mark wrote: >> >> Ridiculous ! >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >> >>> On Feb 16, 2015, at 7:24 AM, Bill wrote: >>> >>> >>> $16,459.95 USD >>> >>> http://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=71-001813 >>> >>> Bill W2CQ >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" >>> SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com >>> SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone >>> To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net >>> To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> ______________________________________________________________ >> South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" >> SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com >> SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone >> To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net >> To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net From n8pr1 at bellsouth.net Mon Feb 16 09:54:00 2015 From: n8pr1 at bellsouth.net (Pete Rimmel N8PR) Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2015 09:54:00 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] [SFDXA] HRO Announces Price on IC-7850 In-Reply-To: <54E1E790.4030405@bellsouth.net> References: <54E1E17D.6070505@bellsouth.net><6BC0B4D9-DD63-4FD8-9BFE-8AEC2C2A7D6C@psd.toshiba.com><71F3FEF9-7513-48CE-93BE-E388A8D8686B@gmail.com> <54E1E790.4030405@bellsouth.net> Message-ID: <506008FEB06449CC9881F4D03A615BD2@PeteRGateway> Ebay Special... Icom 7851 From Japan $9999.00 + $1620 shipping ( it weighs almost 100 pounds in the shipping boxes) ICOM USA will NOT warranty it-Ray told me at Orlando. http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-IC-7851-HF-50MHz-all-mode-transceiver-Icom-Japan-Model-made-in-Japan-/151579674622?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item234ada47fe Go get it ! PeteR -----Original Message----- From: Bill Sent: Monday, February 16, 2015 7:50 AM To: Donald Drennon ; Wohlschlegel, Mark Cc: sfDXA at mailman.qth.net ; qcWA Subject: Re: [SFDXA] HRO Announces Price on IC-7850 Ill buy a used one in 10 years....wait for a 7851 I'm guessing they'll be in the $12,000 range. Bill W2CQ On 2/16/2015 7:40 AM, Donald Drennon wrote: > So, Bill, order 2 ... One for you and one for me! Hi. > > Don > N4TZH > > Sent from my iPad mini > >> On Feb 16, 2015, at 7:25 AM, Wohlschlegel, Mark >> wrote: >> >> Ridiculous ! >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >> >>> On Feb 16, 2015, at 7:24 AM, Bill wrote: >>> >>> >>> $16,459.95 USD >>> >>> http://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=71-001813 >>> >>> Bill W2CQ >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" >>> SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com >>> SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone >>> To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net >>> To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> ______________________________________________________________ >> South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" >> SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com >> SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone >> To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net >> To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net ______________________________________________________________ South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net From bmarx at bellsouth.net Mon Feb 16 12:51:35 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2015 12:51:35 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] [SFDXA] HRO Announces Price on IC-7850 In-Reply-To: <506008FEB06449CC9881F4D03A615BD2@PeteRGateway> References: <54E1E17D.6070505@bellsouth.net><6BC0B4D9-DD63-4FD8-9BFE-8AEC2C2A7D6C@psd.toshiba.com><71F3FEF9-7513-48CE-93BE-E388A8D8686B@gmail.com> <54E1E790.4030405@bellsouth.net> <506008FEB06449CC9881F4D03A615BD2@PeteRGateway> Message-ID: <54E22E27.9060209@bellsouth.net> That is the Japanese version. Check out the TX frequencies. Unfortunately it cannot be modified for US frequencies. It is also the 7851 and not the 7850 Limited Edition which is the more expensive one. No added features but outfitted in different colors for the LE version. Bill W2CQ On 2/16/2015 9:54 AM, Pete Rimmel N8PR wrote: > Ebay Special... Icom 7851 From Japan $9999.00 + $1620 shipping ( it > weighs almost 100 pounds in the shipping boxes) ICOM USA will NOT > warranty it-Ray told me at Orlando. > > http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-IC-7851-HF-50MHz-all-mode-transceiver-Icom-Japan-Model-made-in-Japan-/151579674622?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item234ada47fe > > > Go get it ! > > PeteR > > -----Original Message----- From: Bill > Sent: Monday, February 16, 2015 7:50 AM > To: Donald Drennon ; Wohlschlegel, Mark > Cc: sfDXA at mailman.qth.net ; qcWA > Subject: Re: [SFDXA] HRO Announces Price on IC-7850 > > Ill buy a used one in 10 years....wait for a 7851 I'm guessing they'll > be in the $12,000 range. > Bill W2CQ > > > > On 2/16/2015 7:40 AM, Donald Drennon wrote: >> So, Bill, order 2 ... One for you and one for me! Hi. >> >> Don >> N4TZH >> >> Sent from my iPad mini >> >>> On Feb 16, 2015, at 7:25 AM, Wohlschlegel, Mark >>> wrote: >>> >>> Ridiculous ! >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>> >>> >>>> On Feb 16, 2015, at 7:24 AM, Bill wrote: >>>> >>>> >>>> $16,459.95 USD >>>> >>>> http://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=71-001813 >>>> >>>> Bill W2CQ >>>> >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" >>>> SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com >>>> SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone >>>> To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net >>>> To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa >>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" >>> SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com >>> SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone >>> To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net >>> To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" > SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com > SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone > To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net > To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > ______________________________________________________________ > South Florida DX Assoc. "SINCE 1974" > SFDXA WebSite: http://www.SFDXA.com > SFDXA Repeater 147.33+ 103.5 Tone > To Post: mailto:SFDXA at mailman.qth.net > To UNSUBSCRIBE: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/sfdxa > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > From bmarx at bellsouth.net Tue Feb 17 06:11:58 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Tue, 17 Feb 2015 06:11:58 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] PstRotator - Software For Antenna Rotators - By YO3DMU Message-ID: <54E321FE.8050302@bellsouth.net> Interesting Controller Software http://www.qsl.net/yo3dmu/index_Page346.htm From bmarx at bellsouth.net Tue Feb 17 13:23:29 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Tue, 17 Feb 2015 13:23:29 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] Lafayette Article and RS & Allied Catalogs In-Reply-To: <8EB1BE2E-AA37-4A05-8EB0-75C82235537A@bellsouth.net> References: <8EB1BE2E-AA37-4A05-8EB0-75C82235537A@bellsouth.net> Message-ID: <54E38721.5010803@bellsouth.net> Sixty Years of Lafayette Radio > http://www.ohio.edu/people/postr/bapix/LafArt_60_3.htm > Allied Radio catalogs: > http://www.alliedcatalogs.com/ > RFadio Shack Catalogs: > http://www.radioshackcatalogs.com/ From bmarx at bellsouth.net Thu Feb 19 08:29:01 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Thu, 19 Feb 2015 08:29:01 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] TI9CF 1970 - How Not To Go On A DXPedition Message-ID: <54E5E51D.5070304@bellsouth.net> (Full story with pictures) http://hamgallery.com/qsl/country/Cocos_Island/ti9cf4.htm TI9CF 1970 Cocos Island The operators were Bernal Fonseca TI2BF (Brother of Carlos Fonseca TI2CF), Carlos TI2CAP, Carlos Manuel Fonseca TI2CMF (Carlos later changed his callsign to TI2CF, Jose TI2J (As I recall Jose went to Serrana Bank in 1971, Jim TI2USA (Jim was a Marine guard at the U.S. Embassy in 1970, Fernando TI2W, Don Blankenship K6JGS (today W4PUL), Joe Goggin K9KNW, Roger "Flip" Ries W9FIU, Wayne Warden W9IGW, now W9GW. THIS IS A CLASSIC STORY OF HOW NOT TO CONDUCT A DXPEDITION The 1970 DXpedition group to Cocos Island almost cost the lives of all five Americans and about seven Costa Ricans. For the first time the story is told below. The amateur radio group which eventually landed on Cocos operated only about 100 feet in from the shoreline at Chatham Bay. In 1970 the jungle growth was so thick down to the shoreline that it appeared impenetrable. Today it is completely cleared and there are open paths with wooden benches placed there by the Costa Rican Parks Authority. When the 1970 DXpedition group landed on Cocos, they were utterly and completely exhausted following a dangerous storm ridden voyage from Puntarenas, Costa Rica. The passage in open seas during a terrible Pacific Ocean storm had completely exhausted the strength of the landing party. This fierce ocean storm almost sank their boat en route to Cocos the day earlier. This caused dangerous flooding of their chartered fishing vessel. Due to a faulty bilge pump, the tuna boat they used for the voyage actually began to sink in mid-ocean between Costa Rica and Cocos Island. This water pump became totally inoperative at a critical moment as the ship was taking on lots of water. It began to sink by mid-day following a storm the night before. After Roger Ries (W9FIU) made emergency repairs to the bilge pump the morning following the great storm, the boat then lumbered on to Cocos Island. A second storm struck Cocos Island while the crew was landing and off-loading their equipment and before any food could be off-loaded to the island. The only dinghy bringing supplies and personnel to the island was demolished by the raging storm leaving the amateurs stranded ashore for four days with little or no food. The bottom of the dinghy was completely smashed after it was thrown upon the rocks on the small beach at Chatham Bay. With this as a backdrop you may understand why the amateur radio group was unable to consider any other options other than to try to operate close to the beach. Due to the storm and the heavy cloud cover, the navigator was unable to get good star shots for his sextant readings. Plotting our course was done almost entirely with dead reckoning. Unfortunately, our course was very uncertain at best. So it is interesting and quite amazing that the island was located by using the pirate's method of dead reckoning. They also watched for frigate and other sea birds at daybreak as they flew outward from the island in radial flight to forage for food. The ship's captain then followed the reverse flight of the birds to find Cocos island. A very inexact science, but it worked for the old Spanish pirates and it worked for us as well. This was a DXpedition doomed to failure almost from the onset. If there is something to be learned from this DXpedition fiasco in 1970, it is to only trust yourself and those who you have observed and tested. Simply put, you must only rely on the organizational and operational talents of people you know and absolutely trust. Also be assured that you have adequate funding for your expedition. In this particular case, the Americans along for this DXpedition were almost entirely at the mercy of their local hosts. One could say that the Americans were at fault for ever letting themselves be drawn into a situation of total trust of people they didn't even know and people who were primarily concerned with self interests. This reliance on others to do the planning and safeguard their lives while in a foreign country almost cost the Americans their lives when the boat almost sank. First among the most egregious abuses of confidence was when the Americans accepted a rickety old tuna boat to take them to Cocos Island from Puntarenas, Costa Rica. They also relied upon their hosts to provision the ship with supplies adequate for the four-day round trip voyage and subsequent stay on the island. DXpeditions require a tremendous effort to plan and execute. You don't simply travel to a remote location or foreign country and expect everything will neatly fall into place once you arrive. It simply won't. Murphy's law always prevails. Difficult or dangerous expeditions require extraordinary planning to assure they have a fair chance of success. Because proper planning had not been done before the trip, the food supply for the expedition was woefully lacking. A quick dash by our local hosts to a corner grocery store in Puntarenas, Costa Rica, just before the ship sailed, represented what typified this unusual organizational plan. There were no shopping lists to buy adequate and appropriate provisions for the group. About three or four small cardboard boxes of tinned foods, such as sardines and mackerel, salt crackers, beans, rice and ketchup were purchased just hours before the voyage. This small amount of food was entirely inadequate to sustain the group over the duration of the round trip to Cocos Island. No questions had been asked of the Americans concerning what they would like to eat nor had any thought been given to how the food would be prepared. I recall mostly eating boiled rice with a tomato ketchup topping or sauce, with perhaps a spoon sized portion of sardine for most of the meals during the trip to and from the island. There was obvious discomfort because of the inadequate food portions and the lousy taste of the food itself. The mood among the Americans was one of anger for having been deceived by our hosts. However, we tried to be good guests and make the most of it because, after all, we were going to be operating from Cocos Island, a DX location relatively rare in 1970. Much of our pain and discomfort was simply tolerated and any manifestation of anger deferred until after the expedition was over. That is what mature grown men do in times of adversity. However, each of them promised that it would never happen to them again. Some of the group, such as K9KNW (Joe Goggin) and W9IGW (Wayne Warden) went on to complete several other DXpeditions including Juan Fernandez (CE0), San Felix CE0), Bajo Nuevo (HK0) and San Andres (HK0). Once on the island, the situation was very bleak during the first 12 hours. Tremendous storms brought lightning and thunder claps so loud, it was absolutely deafening through the thin walls of the tent. Shortly after our arrival, we managed to set up one tent before the worst of the storm hit. In spite of our careful efforts, the downfall of torrential rain filled the interior of an otherwise rainproof tent. Water on the floor of the tent was about 1 inch deep and we simply were unable to evacuate it. We therefore later fell asleep in the crowded tent with about an inch of water on the floor. It was cold and miserable and just about the very worst night anyone ever spend on one of these "so-called" DXpeditions. During the first night, the tumultuous winds from the storm and the ferocious ocean currents washed one of our generators out into water. The powerful wave action on the beach crashed the dinghy up and down upon the rocks such that by morning there was absolutely no bottom, only one big hole where a bottom used to be. The radio equipment had been wrapped in plastic but both generators had water damage and required extensive cleaning the following day. We were off to the very worst possible start one could imagine. We also had lost our small boat, our life line to the mother ship which waited for us out in the harbor. There was no way to transit between the tuna boat and the island. We were, for all intents and purposes "stranded on Cocos Island" and would remain so for the next four days. We had no contact with the other Costa Rican group that remained aboard the tuna boat. To them, it probably didn't matter very much because their gratuitous trip was to fish near Cocos Island. And.....the worst part of it was we all were hungry.....terribly hungry! However, for the Americans, the sole purpose of going to Cocos Island was only to operate their amateur radio equipment. So the fisherman aboard the tuna boat simply disappeared for a lengthy period of time and left the Americans and two Costa Rican amateurs on the island to fend for themselves. During the following few days the amateurs were on the island, they managed to exist by eating the few precious treats that Flip (W9FIU) had stowed away as his personal supplies because of his finicky eating habits. Then when the weakness from famine began to seriously affect the group, Jose (TI2J) took his .22 cal. rifle out into the jungle growth and was able to bag a small deer. With this venison meat and a little bit of rice that had been brought along to the island, the amateurs were able to cook a proper meal and regain their strength. I also recall that later someone also rigged a fishing line of some sort and caught a few fish. Without these emergency measures taken to acquire food, the amateur radio group would have been in very serious circumstances as their health deteriorated. As it turned out, about four days after the amateurs arrived on the island, a Nicaraguan fishing boat approached Cocos Island. They quickly were summoned by the tuna boat that brought us to the island. They were then asked to aid in our rescue if they could provide a small dinghy that could be used to extricate us from the island. They were told that our dinghy was now inoperable due to a bad storm. The Nicaraguan fishing vessel accommodated us and even provided a man to row a small boat back and forth from the island to the chartered boat. Using the small boat, we eventually were able to depart the island with all of the equipment we brought with us. In spite of all the bad luck and very poor planning, the amateur radio group was still able to make about 4,000 contacts from Cocos using the callsign TI9CF. Don Blankenship K6JGS/W4PUL speaking with Wayne Warden W9IGW in San Jose, Costa Rica just before the launch of the expedition. In the background Jim TI2USA and Flip Ries W9FIU. (Full story with pictures) http://hamgallery.com/qsl/country/Cocos_Island/ti9cf4.htm From bmarx at bellsouth.net Thu Feb 19 20:46:27 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Thu, 19 Feb 2015 20:46:27 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] The ARRL Letter for February 19, 2015 In-Reply-To: <20150219234635.E3DC520E05C3@bmail.arrl.org> References: <20150219234635.E3DC520E05C3@bmail.arrl.org> Message-ID: <54E691F3.7050203@bellsouth.net> Preview If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at: http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2015-02-19 The ARRL Letter February 19, 2015 Editor: Rick Lindquist, WW1ME ARRL Home Page /ARRL Letter/ Archive Audio News Ad * ARRL Warns Experimental Licensee to Avoid Interference to HF Ham Activity <#toc01> * US to Propose Additional Sharing of 10 GHz Band at WRC-15 <#toc02> * FCC "Paperless" Amateur Radio License Policy Now in Effect <#toc03> * ARRL Foundation Announces Two New Scholarships <#toc04> * Exit Navassa, Enter Cocos <#toc05> * ARISS Contact Proposal Window for 2016 Events Now Open <#toc06> * AMSAT-NA Board Approves Seed Money for Technology Development <#toc07> * Ulrich Rohde, N1UL, Wins Second Prestigious IEEE Award <#toc08> * Canada Funds Amateur Radio Disaster Assistance Project in Saint Lucia <#toc09> * Hams in Haiti to Build Tower, Promote International Goodwill <#toc10> * Hams Encouraged to Hit the Water for New US Islands Awards "One-Day Getaway" <#toc11> * In Brief... <#toc12> * The K7RA Solar Update <#toc13> * Just Ahead in Radiosport <#toc14> * Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events <#toc15> ARRL Warns Experimental Licensee to Avoid Interference to HF Ham Activity The ARRL has asked a Massachusetts company that plans to conduct experimental transmissions over wide portions of the HF spectrum either to avoid Amateur Radio allocations or to announce the times and frequencies of their transmissions in advance. The FCC last fall granted MITRE Corporation of Bedford, Massachusetts, a 2-year Part 5 Experimental License, WH2XCI , to operate 21 transmitters at 10 fixed New York and Massachusetts sites. MITRE plans to test wideband HF communication techniques on a variety of bands between 2.5 MHz and 16 MHz. "[I]t will not be possible for MITRE to operate these transmitters within the Amateur Radio Service allocations...without causing harmful interference to a large number of Amateur Radio operators on an ongoing basis," ARRL Chief Counsel Chris Imlay, W3KD, said in a February 12 letter to MITRE. Imlay said that if MITRE does not agree to avoid ham radio bands or to announce times and frequencies of transmissions ahead of time, it will ask the FCC to rescind the company's Experimental License or to impose a prior notification requirement "in real time for each and every use of the transmitters authorized at each site." The WH2XCI Experimental License authorizes maximum bandwidths of 5 kHz, 500 kHz, and 1 MHz at effective radiated power levels of 6 W, 24 W, or 122 W. MITRE has indicated that most bandwidths would be between 100 and 300 kHz. "At these power levels with the operating parameters proposed, it will be impossible to conduct your tests at any time within the Amateur Radio allocations and, at the same time, avoid harmful interference," Imlay said. He noted that MITRE already conceded this point in a technical exhibit submitted to the FCC with respect to its 1 MHz bandwidth mode. *ARRL General Counsel Chris Imlay, W3KD. [Rick Lindquist, WW1ME, photo]* Imlay said that when interference from MITRE's wide-bandwidth transmitters "inevitably occurs in the narrow-bandwidth, sensitive receivers" hams use, amateur licensees will have no way to determine the source of the interference or know to whom they might complain. "Thus, your assurance of operation on a 'non-interference basis' is meaningless under the circumstances, and yet that is both a special condition of operation" of the WH2XCI license and under FCC Part 5 regulations, Imlay told MITRE. "It is ARRL's intention to ensure that this experimental authorization, improvidently granted to the extent that it includes heavily used Amateur Radio allocations, is not permitted to cause interference to ongoing Amateur Radio HF communications," Imlay concluded. MITRE obtained the Experimental License to investigate high data rate wideband HF communication systems. US to Propose Additional Sharing of 10 GHz Band at WRC-15 The US proposal for World Radiocommunication Conference 2015 (WRC-15) Agenda Item 1.12 -- to expand the Earth Exploration Satellite Service (EESS) in the vicinity of 10 GHz -- supports allocating an additional 600 MHz of spectrum to the EESS (active) as a primary allocation in the frequency band 9.9-10.5 GHz, with certain limitations. The Amateur and Amateur-Satellite services have secondary allocations of 10.0-10.5 GHz and 10.45-10.5 GHz, respectively; the only current primary allocation is to Radiolocation. A study conducted by a Working Party of the International Telecommunication Union Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R) concluded that the interference potential of EESS (active) to Amateur Radio was limited to very brief and infrequent periods. "In this hotly contested frequency range, the best we can hope for is that sharing partners will be compatible with continued amateur access, and that is the case here," ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ, commented. The US proposal does /not /include adding the United States to a "country footnote" that allocates the 10.0-10.45 GHz band to the fixed service in some Region 2 countries -- a position advocated by Mimosa Networks and strongly opposed by the ARRL. Mimosa Networks had petitioned the FCC to allow wireless broadband services in the band, which the ARRL has also strongly opposed. The US proposal includes a provision that recognizes the Amateur-Satellite Service. "This proposal ensures that secondary Amateur-Satellite service operations in the frequency band 10.45-10.5 GHz that are advance published prior to the date of entry into force of the primary EESS (active) allocation in 9900-10,500 MHz are treated on a co-equal basis with EESS (active) operations," the US position states. After that date, presumed to be January 1, 2017, new stations in the Amateur-Satellite Service would be considered secondary to the EESS. *ARRL Chief Technology Officer Brennan Price, N4QX. [Rick Lindquist, WW1ME, photo]* EESS use of the 9900-10,500 MHz band would be limited to systems requiring necessary bandwidths greater than 600 MHz that cannot be fully accommodated within the 9300-9900 MHz band. ARRL Chief Technology Officer Brennan Price, N4QX, has been advocating on behalf of positions favorable to Amateur Radio at WRC-15 during the US preparatory process. He notes that administrations in Europe generally favor an EESS allocation down to 9.2 GHz and up to 10.4 GHz, sparing the Amateur Satellite segment. A US proposal on WRC-15 Agenda Item 1.4, involving the possibility of an Amateur Radio allocation in the vicinity of 5 MHz, has not been finalized. US proposals on WRC-15 agenda items that already have been agreed upon are available on the National Telecommunications and Information Agency (NTIA) website. Each proposal represents the US position on WRC-15 agenda items for possible changes to the international Radio Regulations. FCC "Paperless" Amateur Radio License Policy Now in Effect Effective February 17, the FCC no longer routinely issues paper license documents to Amateur Radio applicants and licensees. The FCC will continue to provide paper license documents to all licensees who notify the Commission that they prefer to receive one, but what arrives in the mail now will be printed on plain white recycled paper, instead of the more distinctive stock the FCC had been using until recently. All of this is part of the FCC's efforts to streamline procedures and save money. "We find this electronic process will improve efficiency by simplifying access to official authorizations in ULS, shortening the time period between grant of an application and access to the official authorization, and reducing regulatory costs," the FCC Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) said. According to the WTB, the new procedures will save more than $300,000 a year, including staff expenses. The Commission has maintained for some time now that the official Amateur Radio license authorization is the electronic Universal Licensing System (ULS ) record, although the FCC had routinely continued to print and mail hard copy licenses until this week. In mid-December, the FCC adopted final procedures to provide access to official electronic authorizations, as it had proposed in WT Docket 14-161 as part of its "process reform" initiatives. Under the new procedures, licensees will access their current official authorization ("Active" status only) via the ULS License Manager. Licensees can also print an official license authorization -- as well as an unofficial "reference copy" -- from the ULS License Manager. The ULS License Manager now permits licensees to change the default setting, so that the Bureau will print and mail a license document. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ FindARRL on Facebook . Follow us on Twitter ! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ad ARRL Foundation Announces Two New Scholarships The ARRL Foundation has announced the establishment of two new scholarships -- The James Cothran, KD3NI, Scholarship Fund and The Dan Huettl, WZ7U, Memorial Scholarship Fund. The Cothran scholarship, endowed by his daughter, ARRL President Kay Craigie, N3KN, and her husband Carter, N3AO, will award $2000 annually to a young radio amateur pursuing higher education. President Craigie said her father, a life-long experimenter, had tried unsuccessfully to get her interested in electronics when she was a child. *James Cothran, KD3NI. [Photo courtesy of Kay Craigie, N3KN]* "He came to Amateur Radio late in life but was active in several clubs in the Atlanta area, where he signed N4IQR, before moving to Pennsylvania for the last decade of his life," President Craigie said. "He packed a lot of fun and many friendships into his few years in Amateur Radio." Cothran died in 1997, a few days shy of turning 84. During World War II, Cothran served in the US Army Signal Corps, assembling military radio stations from boxes of components. "That was good preparation for being a radio amateur," President Craigie said. "Although he did not graduate from college, he encouraged my doing so, and he paid the bill for it," she continued. "In the last years of his life, Amateur Radio was a great shared interest in our family. Put it all together, and it just made sense to name our ARRL Foundation scholarship in his memory." Preference will be given to Cothran scholarship applicants who live in the ARRL Atlantic, Roanoke, or Southeastern divisions. The Huettl Scholarship, which will award $1000 annually to a radio amateur pursuing higher education, was established by the radio amateurs in his family. Huettl died earlier this year. His niece, Connie Mah, NR4CB, said Huettl got interested in ham radio as a teenager, when another ham relative -- as an impromptu demonstration -- brought a radio to Huettl's house, threw a wire over a fence, and began making contacts. *Dan Huettl, WZ7U. [Photo courtesy of Connie Mah, NR4CB]* "Fascinated by what his Elmer helped him experience, he learned Morse code and passed his license exams," Mah said. Huettl attended Arizona State University, earning an electrical engineering degree and going on to work in the semiconductor industry for 33 years until his death at age 55. While working in Czech Republic, he held call sign OK8DX. "Dan was a member of ARRL for 37 years, making contacts with hams locally and internationally as a way to relax. Amateur Radio was one way Dan pursued what he was passionate about -- electronics, technology, and, most of all, connecting with people around the world," Mah said. The Huettl scholarship will give preference to applicants attending Arizona State who are pursuing a degree in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics. The ARRL Foundation will administer both scholarships. Descriptions of all scholarships The ARRL Foundation administers are available on the Foundation's web pages. Exit Navassa, Enter Cocos The K1N Navassa Island DXpedition is now a part of ham radio history. The 15-member team wrapped up operations on schedule early on February 15. While some seekers went away empty-handed -- even after hours of trying to break the massive pileups (and some intentional interference) -- thousands were more fortunate. As K1N exited the world stage, another /far/ more modest DXpedition on Cocos Island began operating the next day as TI9/3Z9DX. *The K1N DXpedition team at the Navassa Lighthouse.* Going into the DXpedition, Navassa Island (KP1) was the second most-wanted DXCC entity (after North Korea) on ClubLog's Most Wanted List . Cocos Island is number 25 overall. From startup in the waning hours of February 1 until shutdown on February 15 at 1130 UTC, K1N logged 138,409 contacts with 35,702 unique call signs. A helicopter took the last three members of the DXpedition off the island on February 15 at 1500 UTC. They had remained behind to keep K1N active "until the last possible moment," said team member Glenn Johnson, W0GJ. "There was an excellent opening to Asia/Oceania almost all day and all night during the last 24 hours [of the DXpedition]." Johnson thanked DXers who stood by while K1N worked areas of the world into which it had short propagation windows. "The Jamaica Amateur Radio Association members provided valuable support for all phases of our operation," he added. The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS ) oversees access to the small island, and it has indicated that it would not allow any more DXpeditions to Navassa for another decade. A log search engine and detailed contact statistics are on the K1N Navassa Island website. *Dom, 3Z9DX, operating from Cocos Island.* As was the case with Navassa, access to Cocos Island is restricted. The small Pacific Ocean island is designated as a national park and does not permit inhabitants other than Costa Rican park rangers. Due to new regulations, the DXpedition will not use the TI9A call sign but TI9/3Z9DX. The Cocos Island team, which includes operators from Costa Rica, Poland, and Russia, got off to a late and shaky start, but things have picked up. A storm on February 19 damaged some antennas, since repaired, and HF conditions have not been the best, but the team has uploaded an initial batch of nearly 6000 contacts. Expedition leader Dom Grzyb, 3Z9DX, has asked for patience on the part of DXers hoping to put TI9 into the log, given the size of their "super low-budget" operation and the fact that two members are DXpedition neophytes. Operation from TI9/3Z9DX will be on CW, SSB, and digital modes on all or most HF bands. The team will be on the island until February 23. The island manager has assigned the team to a location that may work to the advantage of North American operators. The group has posted some photos on Facebook. Logs are being uploaded to ClubLog./-- Thanks to /The Daily DX ARISS Contact Proposal Window for 2016 Events Now Open The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS ) program is now accepting applications from formal and informal educational institutions and organizations in the US -- individually or working together -- that would like to host an Amateur Radio contact with an ISS crew member between January 1 and June 30, 2016. Crew scheduling and ISS orbits determine the exact contact dates. The application window closes on April 15. ARISS is looking for organizations that have the potential to draw large numbers of participants and can integrate the contact into a well-developed educational plan. FM voice contacts with ISS crew members last about 10 minutes -- the typical length of an orbital pass -- and allow students and educators to interact with the astronauts in a question-and-answer format. ARISS contacts afford an opportunity for participants to learn firsthand from astronauts and cosmonauts what it is like to live and work in space, and about ISS research. Students will also have an opportunity to learn about satellite communication, wireless technology, and radio science. Because of the nature of human spaceflight and scheduling complexity, schools and organizations must demonstrate flexibility to accommodate changes in contact dates and times. Details on expectations, audience, proposal guidelines, the proposal form, and dates and times of information sessions are on the ARRL website. E-mail ARISS with any questions. Amateur Radio organizations around the world, NASA, and space agencies in Russia, Canada, Japan, and Europe sponsor this educational opportunity by providing the equipment and operational support to enable communication between ISS crew and students around the world via Amateur Radio. In the US, ARISS is managed by the ARRL and AMSAT, in partnership with NASA. AMSAT-NA Board Approves Seed Money for Technology Development As a part of its "Design The Next AMSAT Satellite " challenge, the AMSAT Board of Directors has approved $5000 as seed money for future satellite development. The Board will also seek additional fund-raising possibilities. *AMSAT-NA President Barry Baines, WD4ASW.* "We're prepared to return to space in 2015 with a fleet of satellites that will equal, if not exceed, the performance, and availability to the average ham, of our previously popular AMSAT OSCAR 51," AMSAT President Barry Baines, WD4ASW, said. "Meanwhile, we are preparing for the future looking to potentially leverage new technologies, to provide the best opportunities for enhancing Amateur Radio's presence in space." The AMSAT Board met in December. AMSAT hopes its Fox-1A CubeSat will be one of its 2015 successes. In January, the CubeSat successfully completed required pre-launch testing, including so-called "shake and bake" vibration and thermal testing. Fox-1A is scheduled to launch in late August on a NASA ELaNa flight . AMSAT has expressed interest in supporting technology ideas that enhance the utility of the CubeSat form factor to support more robust Amateur Satellite capabilities. These could include microwave technology suitable for use in amateur spacecraft and complementary, low-cost ground systems. Another potential enhancement would be attitude determination and control systems that would point a spacecraft's antennas toward the user, while maximizing solar panel production. For more details, contact AMSAT Vice President-Engineering Jerry Buxton , N0JY. Buxton told the Board that construction and testing of five Fox CubeSats continues on schedule. /-- Thanks to AMST News Service/ Ad Ulrich Rohde, N1UL, Wins Second Prestigious IEEE Award Ulrich Rohde, N1UL (ex-KA2WEU), has been named by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE ) to receive the prestigious I. I. Rabi Award for 2015. The award recognizes outstanding contributions related to the fields of atomic and molecular frequency standards, and time transfer and dissemination. The author of some 200 scientific papers and books, including several /QEX/ and /QST/ articles, Rohde was cited specifically for "intellectual leadership, selection, and measurement of resonator structures for implementation in high-performance frequency sources, essential to the determination of atomic resonance." *Ulrich Rohde, N1UL.* "I am really in disbelief and overwhelmed by this totally unexpected honor close to my 75th birthday," Rohde said in thanking Gregory Weaver, the 2015 Awards Chair of the IEEE International Frequency Control Symposium (IFCS) Standing Committee. "Since the age of 16, I have been fascinated with oscillators as well as their performance and their influence on atomic standards. Some of the results of my research are still the basis of all really high-performance oscillators." Last year Rohde was the recipient of another IEEE IFCS honor, the C.B. Sawyer Memorial Award , which recognizes "entrepreneurship or leadership in the frequency control community; or outstanding contributions in the development, production or characterization of resonator materials or structures." Rohde, who is the chairman of Synergy Microwave Corporation and President of Communications Consulting Corporation, will receive the Rabi Award at the 2015 Joint Conference of the IEEE International Frequency Control Symposium and European Frequency and Time Forum, held April 12-16 in Denver. The award's namesake, physicist Isidor Isaac Rabi, received the Nobel Prize in 1944 for his discovery of nuclear magnetic resonance, which is used in magnetic resonance imaging. Canada Funds Amateur Radio Disaster Assistance Project in Saint Lucia The Government of Canada will provide more than $25,000 (CDN) to the Saint Lucia Amateur Radio Club to improve Amateur Radio coverage and communication in the small Caribbean island nation in the event of a disaster. The project will install two repeater systems including solar backup power, train 90 radio operators, and increase coverage for all of Saint Lucia's 18 districts. "Rising sea levels, coastal erosion, and an escalation in the frequency and intensity of tropical storms and hurricanes threaten homes and businesses across the Caribbean. These situations can have a significant negative impact on sustainable economic growth and result in loss of life," the Canadian Government said in announcing the grant. According to the announcement, the Repeater System for the Saint Lucia Amateur Radio Club will provide enhanced two-way communication during normal and disaster conditions, allowing for Amateur Radio coverage in all communities -- and especially in known high-risk areas. "The project will ensure that, in future hazard events, reliable and accurate information can be passed from communities to response teams, leading to more timely and effective assistance to those communities," the announcement said. The Saint Lucia Amateur Radio Club secured support for this project through the Canada Caribbean Disaster Risk Management Fund (CCDRM ), part of Canada's $600 million Caribbean Regional Program. The fund is designed to support Caribbean-based non-governmental organizations, community groups, and governmental agencies working at the community level to reduce risks from natural hazards and climate change. /-- Thanks to the Canadian High Commission, Bridgetown/// Hams in Haiti to Build Tower, Promote International Goodwill Dale Long, N3BNA, and others are back in Haiti to oversee the construction of a 300-foot broadcast station antenna and to do a little hamming while there. Long, from Pennsylvania, has been on the air as HH2/N3BNA, and he expects to operate as 4V1JR during the ARRL International DX Contest (CW) over the February 21-22 weekend. The antenna raising is a project of the Haiti International Friendship Amateur Radio Club . *A tower grows in Haiti, thanks to the Haiti International Friendship ARC.* "Our mission is to foster international friendship and promote Amateur Radio in Haiti," the club's website states. The 300-foot tower was shipped from the US to Haiti in sections, each weighing about 340 pounds. It is being installed on a 9-acre semi-marsh near the ocean. Once up, the tower, which will have a complete radial field, will serve a popular radio station that has played a role in disaster relief efforts in Haiti. Long said the radio station has agreed to let the ham radio group use the tower for 160 meters -- presumably during periods when the radio station is off the air -- in exchange for helping to put it up. The entire project is largely supported by donations, and the work is being done by volunteers. Since no trees or a crane were available, the tower team needed to build a second, smaller tower to winch the big tower into place. A lot of the work is being done with rudimentary tools. Long has traveled to Haiti and to Central America to work on similar projects in the past. Contact the club for more information or to volunteer for future projects. Hams Encouraged to Hit the Water for New US Islands Awards "One-Day Getaway" Fans of portable ham radio are encouraged to grab their equipment and head for the water as part of the new "One-Day Getaway," sponsored by the US Islands Awards Program . The annual event will debut on Saturday, May 9, from 0000 UTC through 2359 UTC (Friday evening to Saturday evening in the continental US). Founded in 1994, US Islands promotes portable ham radio operation from islands in all bodies of water -- lakes, rivers, streams, ponds, and coastal islands in US territorial waters. "US Islands is a great way to go on a mini-DXpedition without spending a lot of money," said US Islands Awards Manager Jay Chamberlain, NS4J. "Discovering islands in your own backyard and setting up a station outdoors is always a good time. If hams have only operated outdoors during Field Day, we offer another route to get outside and enjoy portable ham radio in a different way." *Jim Paine, N4SEC (left), and Wes Lamboley, W3WL, operated with Terry Joyner, W4YBV, last November from the Turkey Islands on the Suwannee River in West Central Florida. [Photo courtesy of Jim Paine, N4SEC]*// The One-Day Getaway is an on-air activity, /not/ a contest. No scores are tallied, and no prizes are awarded. Participation from all radio amateurs, regardless of experience level, is encouraged. Contacts may be made with any station. US Islands offers achievement awards for both island activators and island chasers, including a certificate for your first US Islands activation. While there are some 2800 islands on the US Islands list, there are more than 17000 islands within the US. Participants can use Google Earth to locate new islands and be the first to operate ham radio from those locations. Complete information on the US Islands Program, a how-to guide for One-Day Getaway participants, and a list of currently qualified islands are available on the group's website. Ad In Brief... */A Reminder/ -- ARRL International DX Contest 2015 CW Event is February 21-22*: CW, DXing, and contesting come together and go global February 21-22 for the 2015 ARRL International DX CW contest . Stations in the US and Canada work only DX stations (Alaska and Hawaii are considered DX for this contest), while DX stations work only the US and Canada. The contest exchange is simple: US and Canadian stations send a signal report and their state or province, while DX stations send a signal report and their power output. The contest gets under way at 0000 UTC on Saturday, February 21 (the evening of Friday, February 20, in US time zones) and continues through 2359 UTC on Sunday, February 22, 2015. Complete rules and forms are on the ARRL website. *Slow-Scan Television Transmissions from ISS Set for February 21-23* Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS ) has issued a reminder that continuous slow-scan television transmissions are scheduled from Saturday, February 21, at about 1030 UTC until Monday February 23, at about 2130 UTC. The AMSAT-NA website has a pass prediction calculator . "It is expected that 12 different photos will be sent on 145.800 MHz FM, using SSTV mode PD180, with 3-minute off periods between transmissions," said ARISS-EU Chairman Gaston Bertels, ON4WF. Transmitted images will commemorate Russian space history, and most have been transmitted previously. The equipment used will be the Kenwood TM-D710 transceiver in the ISS Russian Service Module.//Received images may be uploaded to the image gallery . Plans are being discussed for transmitting new images from space enthusiasts around the world. /-- Thanks to ARISS-EU Chairman Gaston Bertels, ON4WF/ *ARRL 2014 September VHF Contest Results Available*: Complete results for the 2014 ARRL September VHF contest now are online, with a summary article by Jeff Klein, K1TEO. ARRL Contest Branch Manager Matt Wilhelm, W1MSW, said that line scores are in a new format, courtesy of K9JK, and Log Checking Reports (LCRs) and results in the online searchable database are also available. Contact Matt Wilhelm with any questions. *Past QSL Bureau Manager, Carolina DX Association President Ken Boyd, K4DXA, SK*: Kenneth W. Boyd, K4DXA (ex-WA4UNZ), of Mint Hill, North Carolina, died February 16 following a brief illness. He was 69. Boyd served for 6 years as the W4 single-letter QSL Bureau manager, and as the current and previous (1988-1992) president of the Carolina DX Association. Boyd was licensed in 1973 and was an ARRL Life Member. Roanoke Division Vice Director Bill Morine, N2COP, a former North Carolina Section Manager, called Boyd a "ham's ham" and an inspirational leader as head of CDXA. He was a veteran of the US Air Force and attended Clemson University. After serving in the military Boyd worked for IBM from 1969 until 2002. He held DXCC Honor Roll. Survivors include his wife Bev, KE4EHB, and three sons. *DXpeditioner, Expert Amps Owner Charles "Frosty" Frost, K5LBU, SK*: DXpeditoner and Expert Amps founder Charles "Frosty" Frost, K5LBU, of Missouri City, Texas, died on his birthday, February 14, after an illness. He was 74 and an ARRL Life Member. A member of the Texas DX Society and former teacher, Frost went to Southern Africa every summer. Over the years he traveled to, lived in, and operated from Africa, where he was on the air as 9L1CF, 9J2CF, 9G1LL, 3DA0CF, C91CF, and 7P8CF. He also operated from Sudan as K5LBU/ST0, and from Nicaragua as YN2EJ (with W5GCX and K5UO) and was on the 2013 3DA0ET DXpedition. He operated Mission Communications in the 1980s. Survivors include his daughters, Elizabeth White and Rachael Larkins, who operate Expert Amps as a family business. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The K7RA Solar Update Tad Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington, reports: Average daily solar flux and sunspot numbers were down for the second week in a row. Average daily sunspot numbers for January 29 to February 4 were 139, then down to 81.6 the next 7 days, and now 54.6 during the February 12-18 period. The three averages for daily solar flux over the same periods were 151.1, 144.1, and 121.4. The latest prediction for solar flux is 120 on February 19, 115 for February 20-21, 120 for February 22-24, then 125 and 135 on February 25-26, 130 for February 27-28, 125 for March 1-5, 120 on March 6, and 115 for March 7-14. Solar flux then rises to 135 for March 23-25. Predicted planetary A index is 8 on February 19, 5 for February 20-21, 12 for February 22-23, then 10, 8, 5, and 10 for February 24-27, 18 for February 28 through March 1, 15 on March 2, 10 for March 3-4, then 5 and 7 on March 5-6, 10 for March 7-8, and 5 for March 9-13. The NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC ) has announced that it will suspend operations on Saturday, February 21, 1300 to 2000 UTC. During this period the SWPC website will remain in service, but it will not be updated with new data until the outage has concluded. In the event of active space weather or a reasonable chance of active space weather, the maintenance will be postponed. This weekly "Solar Update" in /The ARRL Letter/ is a preview of the "Propagation Bulletin" issued each Friday. The latest bulletin and an archive of past propagation bulletins is on the ARRL website. For Friday's bulletin, look for an updated forecast for the near term and reports from readers, as well as one more article on the infamous 19th century Carrington Event. Send me /your/ reports and observations. /-- Tad Cook, K7RA/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Just Ahead in Radiosport * February 18 -- Semi-Automatic Key Evening * February 20-21 -- Russian WW PSK Contest * February 21 -- SARL Youth Day Sprint * February 21 -- Feld-Hell Bingo Sprint * *February 21-22 -- **ARRL International DX Contest (CW)* * February 21-22 -- REF Contest * February 22 -- CQC Winter QSO Party See the ARRL Contest Calendar for more information. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events * February 20-21 -- Arizona Section Convention , Yuma, Arizona * February 28 -- New Mexico Techfest Convention , Albuquerque, New Mexico * February 28 -- Vermont State Convention , S Burlington, Vermont * March 7 -- Santa Clara Valley Section Convention , Del Rey Oaks, California * March 13-14 -- North Carolina Section Convention , Concord, North Carolina * March 14 -- West Texas Section Convention , Midland, Texas * March 20-21 -- Louisiana State Convention , Rayne, Louisiana * March 21 -- MicroHAMS Digital Conference , Redmond, Washington * March 21 -- Nebraska State Convention , Lincoln, Nebraska * March 21 -- Southern Florida Section Convention , Stuart, Florida * March 28 -- Texas State Convention , Rosenberg, Texas * April 4 -- West Central Florida Technical Conference , Sebring, Florida * April 4 -- North Carolina State Convention , Raleigh, North Carolina * April 11-12 -- Communications Academy , Seattle, Washington * April 17-19 -- International DX Convention , Visalia, California * April 25 -- Aurora Conference , White Bear Lake, Minnesota Find conventions and hamfests in your area .* * ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ** *ARRL *-- *Your One-Stop Resource for * *Amateur Radio News and Information*** . . ** ** ** ** ******. ** * Join or Renew Today! ARRL membership includes /QST/ , Amateur Radio's most popular and informative journal, delivered to your mailbox each month. * Listen to /ARRL Audio News/ , available every Friday. Subscribe to... * /NCJ / /-- National Contest Journal/ . Published bi-monthly, features articles by top contesters, letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprint and QSO Parties. * /QEX/ *//*/-- A Forum for Communications Experimenters/ . Published bi-monthly, features technical articles, construction projects, columns, and other items of interest to radio amateurs and communications professionals. Free of charge to ARRL members... * 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! Find ARRL on Facebook ! Follow us on Twitter ! Ad Ad Ad Ad Ad ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The ARRL Letter is published Thursdays, 48 times each year. ARRL members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their Member Data Page as described at http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/. Copyright ? 2015 American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved www.arrl.org From bmarx at bellsouth.net Fri Feb 20 18:01:10 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Fri, 20 Feb 2015 18:01:10 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] ARLP008 Propagation de K7RA In-Reply-To: <20150220211523.2548221459FD@bmail.arrl.org> References: <20150220211523.2548221459FD@bmail.arrl.org> Message-ID: <54E7BCB6.9010008@bellsouth.net> SB PROP @ ARL $ARLP008 ARLP008 Propagation de K7RA ZCZC AP08 QST de W1AW Propagation Forecast Bulletin 8 ARLP008 >From Tad Cook, K7RA Seattle, WA February 20, 2015 To all radio amateurs SB PROP ARL ARLP008 ARLP008 Propagation de K7RA Average daily solar flux and sunspot numbers were down for the second week in a row. Average daily sunspot numbers for January 29 to February 4 were 139, then down to 81.6 the next seven days, and now 54.6 during the February 12-18 (latest) reporting period. The three averages for daily solar flux over the same periods were 151.1, 144.1 and 121.4. The latest prediction for solar flux is 120 on February 20-21, 125 on February 22-24, 130 on February 25-28, 125 on March 1-5, 120 on March 6, 115 on March 7-14, 125 on March 15 and 130 on March 16-18. Solar flux then rises to 135 on March 23-25. Predicted planetary A index is 5 on February 20-21, 12 on February 22-23, then 10, 8, 5 and 10 on February 24-27, 18 on February 28 through March 1, 15 on March 2, 10 on March 3-4, then 5 and 7 on March 5-6, 10 on March 7-8, and 5 on March 9-13. Here is a new Czech Republic geomagnetic forecast, this time from Petr Kolman, OK1MGW. The geomagnetic field will be mostly quiet February 20-21, quiet to active February 22-23, quiet to unsettled February 24-27, active to disturbed February 28, disturbed on March 1, active to disturbed March 2, quiet to unsettled March 3-4, mostly quiet March 5, quiet on March 6, mostly quiet March 7, quiet to active March 8, quiet to unsettled March 9, quiet to active March 10, quiet March 11-13, mostly quiet March 14, quiet to unsettled March 15, quiet to active March 16-17, and mostly quiet March 18. Petr believes there is a reduced probability of increased activity on February 22-23. I received a nice report summary from Jeff, N8II of West Virginia: "Hi Tad. It's been a while since I reported in, not too much exciting was happening over December and January. The ARRL 10 Meter Contest conditions were pretty good with a few Russians logged along with a multitude of central and western Europeans. Conditions to Japan were open Saturday evening, but signals were not as strong as the CQWW in October/November. All during December and 45 days after the solstice despite fairly high solar flux numbers and resultant very short skip on 20 meters, the polar and near polar paths were pretty much shut down on 12 meters and 10 meters, and poor most of the time on 15 meters. In the past couple of weeks the increasing polar daylight and decreasing disturbances have really livened up the bands, despite decreased SFI (solar flux) to around 120 recently. "Going back a week to February 12, I logged UN7AB on 10 meter CW an honest S9 at 1318 UTC. Also worked on 10 CW were several Russians in the southern sixth call area and Ukraine along with TA2AL. Of note also, 10 meters is now open much later to Europe than in December and 20 is still open to southern and western Europe at 2100-2200 UTC most days. The next morning, Friday, February 13, was also noteworthy, logging EY8MM 539 on 12 meter CW at 1247 UTC and UA4PT 579 on 10 meter CW at 1404 UTC. JH1MDJ was S9 on 10 phone at 2300 UTC. "I worked the Dutch PACC Contest (see http://pacc.veron.nl/) on February 14-15. 10 meters was a bit slow to open to Holland, but eventually the little guns were strong enough to work by 1415 UTC and the big guns were loud. Dutch signals on 15 meters were loud all morning. "Evening low band conditions were mediocre, but the big guns were fairly loud on 40 peaking 1-2 hours after sunset. "I made a dozen Dutch QSOs on 80, 30 and 40 meters, but could have done a lot better if I had worked through the European sunrise. I tired of tracking down the very limited number of Dutch stations and checked 15 meter phone at 0100 UTC Sunday to find it wide open to the Far East, finding XW3DT about S5 and both BV0RW and BW2/JP1RIW in Taiwan with S9 signals. A CQ brought a steady run of seven loud JA stations, most of which were S9 before quitting at 0132 UTC. Of note on February 15 was the very late 10 meter opening to S57AL at 1846 UTC and M0BZH at 1931 UTC. "On February 16 on 15 meter CW a very loud RU0LAX was logged, then VK6HM (S2) and RA0LMK answered my CQs followed by finding BG9XD about S7. That morning two UA3 area stations answered CQs on 10 CW starting 1438 UTC (rather late), and R5WW and UV1IW were also logged. "On February 19 RW0CR was S9+ 30-35 dB on 15 phone at 0042 UTC and due to a bout of insomnia, I caught a good 160 meter CW opening from 0448 UTC finding US5, HA8, and F5IN. Then from 0502-0521 UTC running a steady stream (many S9), logging in order OK1, KP2M, DF9, SP9, SP2, US2, S58N, 9A5X, OM7, US0, 9A2, M0, and DK3. Also heard well was TI9/3Z9DX, but no QSO. 160 has been largely completely closed to EU in the early to mid-evening here, so this opening was a surprise probably helped by a low K index and SFI hovering around 120 rather than the 140's and higher in January. "Today, February 19, was the coldest day of the season with a high of 14 degrees F and wind chill factor never above zero all day. "73, Jeff N8II" Thanks, Jeff! On February 17, the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center emailed a notice about a planned temporary shutdown this Saturday which we reported in the ARRL Letter, but as of Thursday February 19 it has been postponed. Lanny Lamphere, KC7RUN of Oklahoma City shared this link to space weather reports from Dr. Tamitha Skov, available in online video at http://spaceweather.tv/ . She has focused her reports toward amateur radio of late, and I think this looks promising. Don't miss the ARRL International DX CW Contest this weekend. The Phone portion is the first full weekend in March. The CW weekend begins tonight in North America (0000 UTC Saturday, or 4:00 PM PST/7:00 PM EST) and ends 48 hours later. For details see http://www.arrl.org/arrl-dx K9LA has a new post on his website, a review of one-way propagation, at http://k9la.us/Feb15_One-Way_Propagation_Revisited.pdf . Here he gives a history of his propagation columns for WorldRadio, then CQ Plus, which ended recently: http://k9la.us/html/monthly_feature.html Poke around his website. You will find many interesting and informative articles. 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. More good information and tutorials on propagation are at http://k9la.us/. 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 February 12 through 18 were 50, 59, 49, 45, 44, 40, and 95, with a mean of 54.6. 10.7 cm flux was 127.6, 124.9, 120.4, 119.6, 118.1, 118.5, and 121, with a mean of 121.4. Estimated planetary A indices were 5, 3, 3, 6, 5, 22, and 19, with a mean of 9. Estimated mid-latitude A indices were 3, 2, 2, 5, 4, 18, and 15, with a mean of 7. NNNN /EX From bmarx at bellsouth.net Sat Feb 21 09:26:43 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Sat, 21 Feb 2015 09:26:43 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] Ozark Patrol Receiver Message-ID: <54E895A3.6030303@bellsouth.net> From the K9YA Telegraph: There was an article that appeared in the March issue by K9PL. I searched out the information for this post. To read the article by K9PL you need to subscribe to the K9YA Telegraph. Subscribe to K9YA Here: K9YA.org Radio A little Regenerative receiver available from the 4 States QRP group. A Regenerative Blast from the Past by David Cripe, NM?S, and 4SQRP Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXbfuoJjigw&feature=youtu.be http://www.4sqrp.com/index.php Yahoo Group https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/ozarkpatrol/info From bmarx at bellsouth.net Sun Feb 22 08:05:53 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Sun, 22 Feb 2015 08:05:53 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] First Band, Top Band Message-ID: <54E9D431.3090900@bellsouth.net> The Story Behind Top Band - 20 March 1923 First Band, Top Band Full Article With Photos: http://w2pa.net/HRH/first-band-top-band/ Posted on 0057z - 24 June 2013 On 20 March 1923 Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover convened his second national radio conference and, as before, the ARRL was there in force. A May /QST/ photo shows Maxim at center flanked by C. F. Jenkins, identified as ?inventor of radio transmission of photographs,? and Major General G. O. Squier, US Army, Chief Signal Officer. Paul Godley of transatlantics fame and ARRL Secretary Kenneth Warner can be seen in the background. Besides Maxim and crew, other prominent participants from the radio research community included inventors Edwin Armstrong, Louis Hazeltine, Professor C. M. Jansky?amateurs all?and many others from government, academia and industry.^1 QST May 1923 p. 12 (Maxim, et al) Maxim at the conference, with Godley and Warner behind The majority of the attendees, however, represented the broadcasting industry, as expected. After all, the conference?s main purpose was to determine what could be done to ease the industry?s interference problems by establishing new regulations deemed permissible under the current law, now eleven years old. Since the previous year?s attempt at legislation had failed, this was the only path left. To accomplish any meaningful relief, other services had to give up spectrum space to create new wavelengths for the broadcasters. Recommendations included reclaiming the 450-meter maritime wavelength and the amateur extension at 275 meters to create a continuous broadcast band from 222 to 545 meters (approximately 1,351 to 550 kHz, which is very close to today?s AM broadcast band limits). The ?government reserve? allocation above 600 meters was then recast to include the maritime service that would be displaced from 450 meters. The broadcast band was further divided between /Class A/ stations, those with high power and continuous service, and /Class B/ stations ?of restricted range and ability.? Class B would operate below 286 meters where wavelength assignments would be made on a geographical basis so as to minimize interference. Assignments for Class A stations above 286 meters would be handled a bit differently. One wavelength would be assigned exclusively to each geographical region, and stations in that region would further divide up the use of the channel into time slices. The conference asserted that this would make it possible to assign fifty such regional wavelengths spaced 10 kHz apart. With this scheme in place, anyone with a good receiving setup could tune in to various other areas of the country and, conditions permitting, would have some hope of hearing them without interference. Ten local areas within each of five national zones would have allocations separated by 50 kHz, and no areas in adjacent zones would be closer than 20 kHz. All broadcasters were required to have measuring equipment to ensure that they were operating within 2 kHz of their ?assigned wave frequency,? as the rule phrased it. To ease the transition for an existing broadcaster, a temporary classification could be assigned to allow it to continue to use its present allocation until it could obtain a new one and move there. The amateurs would get exclusive use of 150 to 200 meters (1.5 to 2 MHz), which is larger than our current 160-meter band?widely called /top band /by hams. Special license holders would be permitted to operate between 200 and 222, and ?extra special? licensed stations could use ?some quiet wave below 286 meters for use in the difficult Rocky Mountain region for the benefit of trans-continental relay work.? There could be at most six of these stations?a severe restriction. Spark transmission was /tentatively/ assigned to 175 to 200 meters, with only straight CW allowed between 200 and 220, and CW, ICW and phone between 150 and 176 meters. Further subdivision was possible and the ARRL was asked to recommend allocations by transmission type at a later date. Significantly, everything below 150 meters was designated as /reserved/ but open to special licensing. The department would also require all radio stations to surpress harmonics to a level yet to be specified. And the conference resolved that spark transmitters should be replaced ?as rapidly as practicable by apparatus which will produce a minimum of interference.? It further resolved that amateurs should ?by mutual arrangement? observe periods of silence during religious broadcasts on Sundays. To put some teeth into the regulation, it stipulated that the Department of Commerce had the power to minimize or eliminate interference by rescinding licenses, regulating operation and other means. Although the major conference benefits went to the broadcast industry as intended, nearly all concerned parties were pleased with the outcome and some wondered why the government had not done this a year earlier instead of expending energy trying to get legislation passed. (The answer would become clear a few years later.) The ARRL board was to study the proposed regulations in full and make its own recommendations before they became final. The conference also asked the ARRL to recommend how the 200?150-meter amateur allocation might be subdivided.^2 The League?s board then canvassed the membership across the country to come up with a unified set of recommendations about allocations and other issues that might arise. Although the membership opposed any sort of elaborate subdivision plan based upon signal type, there was widespread support for something that would protect the shorter wavelengths from QRM. So, in a proposal similar to but simpler than the one made by the Conference, the board recommended that all modulated forms of transmission be limited to the band from 176 to 200 meters, and that straight CW be permitted anywhere in the amateur allocation, thus protecting the shorter wavelengths which were increasingly viewed as important by amateurs. (This reversed the previous scheme where, like today, broader modes were confined to shorter wavelengths, that is, higher in each frequency band.) In a worrisome surprise the Commerce Department began to recall amateur licenses in order to add a stipulation that no transmitting could occur between 7:30 and 10:00 p.m.?an official mandate for the Rochester Plan. Knowing about the ARRL?s voluntary program and realizing that not all amateurs were League members, the Department was trying to ?help? but only ended up alarming most amateurs. After the League explained the difference between how amateurs viewed a voluntary program as opposed to a required one, the Department agreed to suspend further action and only apply the new regulation to new licenses until the ARRL Board could consider it. With unanimous objection the Board concluded that such a mandatory regulation was undesirable and, in particular, would obviously prohibit operation during emergencies. The Department?s action would remain pending. The League also suggested that the amateur allocation be expanded to 220 meters in a more formal manner and establish an ?Extra First Grade Amateur Operators License? which would conform to the 1912 law permitting special licenses. Action on this was also still pending. Meanwhile all of the old 375-meter special licenses were being recalled since that wavelength was now part of the broadcast band. On 28 June the Commerce Department signed approval of the new regulations, designated General Letter No. 252.^3 General and Restricted Amateur Radio Station Licenses would permit the use of pure CW anywhere between 150 and 200 meters, with spark, modulated CW and unfiltered CW being restricted to wavelengths of 176 to 200 meters?basically adopting the League?s suggestion. Special Amateur Radio Licenses could extend the use of pure CW to 220 meters. /Pure/ CW was defined as oscillations produced using a power supply of ?substantially direct current? such as a battery, generator, or rectified, filtered AC with less than 5% ?supply modulation,? the term used to describe any remaining non-DC component. Input power for all three classes was limited to 1,000 watts. Each station license would specify the equipment in use and the restrictions that applied to a specific transmitter (more than one was possible). /Special/ stations had to be operated by amateurs holding an Extra First Grade Amateur operator?s license,^4 a newly established class, or a First Class or Extra First Class commercial license. The new Extra First Grade Amateur license required passing (with a 75% grade) an examination containing a new set of questions, sending and receiving code at twenty words per minute, and two years of experience as an amateur operator, as the League had recommended. General and Restricted licenses were again being recalled for modification, this time to specify wavelength and quiet hours, whereas special licenses were being replaced with newly issued ones to reflect the new allocation. All licenses would specify that transmitting was not permitted between 8:00 and 10:30 p.m. local time ?nor Sunday mornings during local church services.? On one hand, this was recognition of the effectiveness of the voluntary quiet hours in the Rochester Plan, and on the other, observation that it was not being uniformly observed. The later 8:00 p.m. start time was a welcome change. For the first time, amateurs officially had a /band/ assigned to them rather than a single specific wavelength (200 meters). Although the League did not get the desired access to wavelengths shorter than 150 meters, the Commerce Department assured amateurs that it would grant special licenses to operate there for all applicants who were ?seriously interested? in experimenting. Having a band of wavelengths opened up new possibilities for reducing QRM. Warner optimistically, if unrealistically, suggested that, ?we have so many cycles in our band that if we distribute ourselves even approximately evenly we should have almost no QRM.?^5 But to take advantage of the space, amateurs needed a technique to make it easier to change wavelength, normally a cumbersome procedure. ?This is something we have never developed because it hasn?t been permitted us before,? he noted. A frustrating yet common occurrence was that you would hear a station you?d like to work calling on a different wavelength from your transmitter, then fail to raise him because he was not tuning around with his receiver. The League secretary marveled at ?how funny it is to call blindly and hope our correspondent will be kind enough to turn his knobs to our wave; how much more to the point to call on the wave we know he?s listening on!? He cited an example where two stations miss each other, one on 200 meters and the other on 215?a difference of about 105 kHz. And he called for invention by the members, writing that, ?We don?t believe there is a circuit whereby it can be done efficiently with even two controls; the couplings have to be changed and it is likely to become a half-hour job? just to QSY! The second big job was to devise transmitters that produced no spurious emissions?or at least fewer of them. The Commerce Department indicated that it might consider lifting the quiet hours requirement if amateurs could build ?a transmitter which is silent on the waves it isn?t supposed to be using, even when listened to next door.? This was an implied reference to interference to broadcast listeners who would likely be using unselective receivers?a broadcaster on 222 meters, for example, is only 150 kHz away from 200 meters. This clearly called for the use of /pure CW/ with no modulation effects of any kind. ?When all these things are solved,? predicted Warner, ?a /bugproof/ amateur transmitter will be the result; we shall be much happier, our work will be much more pleasant and more enjoyable.? Ahead of the ARRL board?s upcoming detailed consideration of the new rules, Warner summed up his impressions and suspicions this way: From the standpoint of the broadcasters it?s FB but from that of the amateur?? It seems somebody else has their eye on the waves below 150 meters and we did not succeed in our effort to secure an amateur band around 100 meters ? The majority sentiment on the Conference was to fix up the broadcasting business so it could succeed, and tribute was exacted from the government services; the amateur, the commercial, and even perhaps the facilities safeguarding life at sea, to make that possible. BT sep smAround this time amateurs began to discuss how band allocations were specified and talked about. Echoing an increasingly popular opinion, /QST/ correspondent A. N. Goldsmith asked how and why wavelength was chosen over frequency to describe radio waves, when frequency was much more ?natural?^6 in his estimation. After all, nobody referred to AC power as 5,000,000-meter waves. The practice of specifying wavelength probably dated back to Hertz (ironically enough, since his name would later be used internationally as the standard unit of frequency), who was experimenting with waves of only a few meters, and to studies of light waves which had frequencies so high as to be ?practically impossible? to comprehend, wrote Goldsmith. But for radio it seemed a big mistake to think in terms of wavelength. It was much easier to speak about ?space for transmission? in terms of frequency, since that amount of space depended directly on the frequency of the modulating signal. Thus the frequency at the center of a signal?s band of occupied frequencies is the /carrier frequency/. It then becomes easy to say, for example, a 200-meter CW signal at a speed of 20 WPM is on a carrier frequency of 1,500 kilocycles and occupies a band 10 cycles wide. Similarly, a phone signal occupies a band having a width that is double the maximum desired audio frequency, which, Goldsmith asserted, ranges from roughly 4,400 cycles for speech to 15,000 for ?high grade music.? The band of wavelengths depends on the wavelength itself, whereas the band of frequencies is the same for a given mode of transmission regardless of the carrier frequency. Using frequency made it much easier to talk about signal occupancy within bands. This discussion also made clear why spark was on its way out. A spark signal extends out indefinitely from its carrier, getting weaker as you move further from the center. ?A well-behaved modern station must have a definite address. It must occupy a certain numbered residence of reasonable width on the /Street of Carrier Frequencies/, and it may not invade everyone else?s home to some extent. And that is exactly what the spark station unfortunately does,? and why it must be eliminated, wrote Goldsmith. Having used wavelength for so long, it would be difficult to make the change due to ?conventional and sentimental objection? to it, he added. But converting was easy, really?dividing 300 by the wavelength in meters gives the frequency in megahertz. To get the frequency at 200 meters, you divide 300 by 200 which equals 1.5 MHz. With the arrival of a band and allocations within it, amateurs would have to change both how they /produced/ signals and how they /talked/ about them. AR sep sm de W2PA ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Full Article With Photos: http://w2pa.net/HRH/first-band-top-band/ From bmarx at bellsouth.net Sun Feb 22 09:38:53 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Sun, 22 Feb 2015 09:38:53 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] Ham Radio History Message-ID: <54E9E9FD.1030608@bellsouth.net> Written in segments this is a very informative and interesting site and story. - Bill W2CQ *Welcome!* This is a tour of amateur radio history, beginning around the turn of the last century. It unfolds blog-style in periodic installments or chapters/|.|||/ This table of contents is useful whether you?re new to this site or have been following it for a while. It presents stories in chronological order. The /*Chapters*/ page lists the same contents but with the most recent first, proceeding backward in the order in which they were posted (which is also nearly always historically reverse chronological order). The site reads best chronologically, but you are welcome to jump in at any point. Reading in random order might get confusing, though, since some installments refer back to events described in earlier ones. Full Site with all the Chapters written so far... http://w2pa.net/HRH/ From bmarx at bellsouth.net Tue Feb 24 15:26:08 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Tue, 24 Feb 2015 15:26:08 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] Honeymoon Island Activation by W4FDX 28 February 2015 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <54ECDE60.9060802@bellsouth.net> From Tony N2MFT: Mid Florida DX Association will activate Honeymoon Island IOTA*NA034*US Island FL148S, Saturday, 27 February 2015 1200 UTC to 2000 UTC +/- WX and propagation (0700-1500 local) Join us for a day in the shine promoting Amateur Radio to the other Visitors to the park. Don't forget your sunscreen. We can enter the park a little earlier than the other guests. Bring your radio, antenna, chair and table. I'll have my Generator, radio and antenna. I'll post us on the RSGB IOTA site. Jim KG4JSZ is already listed. Let me know if you can attend. Any help operating or talking to visitors is helpful always. 73, Tony N2MFT, President Mid Florida DX Association W4FDX www.W4FDX.com 813-318-1700 mobile DXCC/WAS/WAC/VUCC/IARU Card Checker and VE Coordinator From bmarx at bellsouth.net Tue Feb 24 17:55:45 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Tue, 24 Feb 2015 17:55:45 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] CORRECTION Honeymoon Island Activation by W4FDX 28 February 2015 References: Message-ID: <869ADA12-EF95-4245-84F8-5666D159C7A4@bellsouth.net> CORRECTION Honeymoon Island Activation by W4FDX 28 February 2015 > > First email had wrong date in body of message. Day and Message subject were correct. > > SATURDAY , 28 FEBRUARY 2015 > > Mid Florida DX Association will activate Honeymoon Island IOTA NA034 US Island FL148S, > > Saturday, 28 February 2015 > 1200 UTC to 2000 UTC +/- WX and propagation > (0700-1500 local) > > Join us for a day in the shine promoting Amateur Radio to the other Visitors to the park. Don't forget your sunscreen. We can enter the park a little earlier than the other guests. > > Bring your radio, antenna, chair and table. > > I'll have my Generator, radio and antenna. > > I'll post us on the RSGB IOTA site. Jim KG4JSZ is already listed. Let me know if you can attend. Any help operating or talking to visitors is helpful always. > > 73, > Tony N2MFT, President > Mid Florida DX Association W4FDX > www.W4FDX.com > 813-318-1700 mobile > DXCC/WAS/WAC/VUCC/IARU Card Checker and VE Coordinator From n8pr at bellsouth.net Wed Feb 25 07:37:23 2015 From: n8pr at bellsouth.net (Pete Rimmel N8PR) Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2015 07:37:23 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] Tromelin DXpedition book Message-ID: <88F94A6DA77149D0B73D21DFAFB02152@PeteRGateway> Just in case you did not get this link to an 84 page book on the DXpedition to Tromelin last fall, here it is: http://www.blurb.com/books/5999560-hamradio-dxpedition-to-tromelin-island-ft4ta-2014 It is very nicely done. 73, PeteR N8PR From bmarx at bellsouth.net Wed Feb 25 08:41:43 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2015 08:41:43 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] The ARRL Contest Update for February 25, 2015 In-Reply-To: <20150225042148.46AC5211CFDF@bmail.arrl.org> References: <20150225042148.46AC5211CFDF@bmail.arrl.org> Message-ID: <54EDD117.3090006@bellsouth.net> Preview If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at: http://www.arrl.org/contests/update/?issue=2015-02-25 The ARRL Contest Update February 25, 2015 Editor: Ward Silver, N?AX /Contest Update/ Archive Contest Calendar ARRL Home Page Ad IN THIS ISSUE * Vox Populus - ARRL DX Phone <#Contests> * The Code - YLs, Belgians, Spartans, and More <#Contests> * World's Largest Radio Observatory <#News> * All 50 State QSO Parties <#Newsweek> * WRTC2014 Video by James Brooks, 9V1YC <#Sights> * September VHF Results and NAQP Preliminaries <#Results> * Electromagnetic Skin <#Tech> * One-Way Propagation <#Techweek> * Our Unique Story <#Conversation> NEW HF OPERATORS - THINGS TO DO The third of the three North American QSO Parties is on this weekend - RTTY is the mode. Enjoy a Saturday of digital dabbling. The next weekend wraps up the ARRL DX contest with the phone edition - Technicians in particular will enjoy the worldwide action on 10 meters! BULLETINS Watch out for band edges on phone as it's easy to forget where your sidebands are - tune your SSB carrier frequency (what is displayed by the transceiver) no higher than 2.5 kHz below an upper band edge on USB (14.3475 and 21.4475 MHz, for example) and no lower than 2.5 kHz above the lower band edge on LSB (similarly, 7.1275 MHz). BUSTED QSOS The Radwav SkyPi-40 mentioned in the previous issue is a transmitter and not a transceiver. (Thanks, Bill WA7NWP) CONTEST SUMMARY Complete information <#Contests> for all contests follows the Conversation <#Conversation> section *February 28 - March 1* * /*North American QSO Party RTTY*/ * CQ WW 160 Meter SSB--Phone (Feb 27) * Worldwide EME Contest * UBA Contest--CW * North Carolina QSO Party * OK1WC Memorial Contest (Mar 2) * ARS Spartan Sprint--CW (Mar 3) * YL CW Party (Mar 3) *March 7-8* * */ARRL International Phone DX Contest/* * CWOps Weekly Mini-CWT Tests (Mar 4) * John Rollins Memorial DX Contest--CW (Mar 4) * NS Weekly RTTY Sprint (Mar 6) * NS Weekly Sprint--CW (Mar 6) * Straight Key Weekend Sprintathon * Open Ukraine RTTY Championship NEWS, PRESS RELEASES, AND GENERAL INTEREST The Reverse Beacon Network's unending stream of radio observations from around the world has been noticed by the geophysics community as described in this story by the Earth & Space Science News . The detailed paper, "Ionospheric Sounding Using Real-Time Amateur Radio Reporting Networks " in the journal /Space Weather/ is available online, as well. (Thanks, Dave KM3T and Pete N4ZR) The World Wide Lightning Location Network is a new tool that has been developed for research into our changing climate . Perhaps an enterprising amateur will integrate this new data set into our plethora of mapping applications! (Thanks, Tom K1KI) February 11, 2015 marks five years in space for NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, which provides incredibly detailed images of the whole Sun 24 hours a day. In honor of SODO's fifth anniversary, NASA has released a video showcasing highlights from the last five years of sun watching. Watch the movie to see giant clouds of solar material hurled out into space, the dance of giant loops hovering in the corona, and huge sunspots growing and shrinking on the Sun's surface. (Thanks, Rus K2UA) In related space science news, /Sky and Telescope / magazine reports in the March 2015 issue that contact has been lost with the STEREO B spacecraft. The STEREO mission includes two satellites, A (for /*A*/head) and B (for /*B*/ehind), which image the Sun from two directions, providing three-dimensional views of solar phenomena, such as flares and coronal mass ejections that affect terrestrial radio communications. The February 2015 issue includes an article about another solar mission, the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS), which has discovered new types of behavior at small scales, dubbed "solar tornadoes" and "solar bombs," in the interface region between the chromospheres and corona. AMSAT Engineering is looking for hams interested in developing ground station equipment for future satellites. An inexpensive L-Band uplink converter is something that is of interest right now for LEO satellites as part of the recently approved technology funding. If you are interested in helping, please contact AMSAT Engineering by completing this form to tell Jerry Buxton, N?JY the Vice President of Engineering, how you can volunteer your time and skills to help AMSAT engineering build satellites and other required hardware/software. (From AMSAT News Bulletin ANS-046) Yes, it still had that "new radio smell", reported John VE3EJ who got to use the brand-spanking-new IC7850 right out of the box during the ARRL DX CW contest oni 20 meters at K3LR. How did it work? "Flawlessly!" said VE3EJ. (Photo by N?AX) Hosted by the Mt Airy VHF Club Packrats , the 2015 Mid-Atlantic States VHF Conference will be held October 2-4 at the Holiday Inn in Bensalem, PA, near Philadelphia. Speakers and papers are being solicited right now, so contact Rick K1DS with your proposals. Dennis N6KI did a little online research and found that the radio operator of one of the Antonov 225 Russian aircraft - the largest in the world - is a ham; UY7MH, Gennady Antipov. CQ World Wide Director, Randy K5ZD, reports that John N2NC and a team of volunteers have now extended the CQ WW online database back to its beginnings in 1953. Given the amount of activity these days, it's hard to believe there were only 167 phone entries and 187 CW entries back then. Among other interesting stats, you can see the winning score every year for any combination of country/category. *Website of the Week* - The website of the week refers to all of the state QSO party websites out there! There are either individual state contests or regional contests that feature sometimes hard-to-work states for WAS-chasers. A tip to contest managers - add a simplified "How To Play In Our Contest" rule set right on the contest's first page so visitors can participate as easily as possible in these popular events. WORD TO THE WISE Sad news was received Monday morning that competitor and station host Dich Pechie KB1H suffered a heart attack and died after participating in the ARRL DX CW contest through the weekend - a huge and unexpected loss to his family and the Yankee Clipper Contest Club community. Without inferring that the contest had anything to do with his demise, it is nevertheless a good idea to take care of yourself before, during, and after these marathon radio events in which we sit at our radios for hour after hour, often foregoing good nutrition, sleep, and exercise. Ad SIGHTS AND SOUNDS James Brooks 9V1YC has produced a professional documentary on the 2014 WRTC event. Fast-paced and of the highest quality, this hour-long video makes for great viewing and the many interesting elements make this program well-suited for a club program attended by hams and non-hams alike. Imagine putting up a broadcast tower by hand! These hardworking Haitians put it all up without all the heavy machinery usually employed - check out their work on the IFARC Facebook page! (Photo by N3BNA) The 4V1JR team operated in this past weekend's ARRL DX CW contest using a large broadcast facility currently under construction. The International Friendship Amateur Radio Club has put together a Facebook page showing how they erected a 180-foot tower completely by hand with a lot of people pulling the 340-lb sections all the way up the tower. Fortunately the project was a success and there were no injuries. CQ Haiti! (Thanks, Dale N3BNA) This upcoming March 5^th webinar shows how the 2013 VK9CZ DXpedition to the Cocos (Keeling) Islands made 51 QSOs with U.S. Zone 5 (East Coast) on 80 meters. 21 of these QSOs - more than 40 percent - were with stations in Florida. This presentation discusses several possible propagation mechanisms for this gray line event, and concludes that propagation through the dark ionosphere, rather than along the gray line itself, was the responsible mechanism. Organic AM demodulation? It's possible as shown in this impromptu video which demonstrates you really can hear the grass growing. Well, burning maybe...(Thanks, Ken WB?QNA) The Voice of America's Edward R Murrow station is open for your visit by taking this online video tour . (Thanks, Art W?KG) The latest helmet-cam video presentation of a tower climber at work is fascinating, if a little scary. (Thanks, David WA1OUI) RESULTS AND RECORDS The package of results for the ARRL's September VHF Contest is now online , including the full results, line scores, results database, and log checking reports (LCRs). Log checking reports for the June VHF Contest have been posted, as well. (Thanks, ARRL Contest Branch Manager, Matt W1MSW) Preliminary results for the January CW and SSB North American QSO Parties are now posted on the NCJ website . Please check your category and QSO totals to make sure they appear to be accurate. If if something appears to be off or wrong contact the contest managers, Bill AC?W for SSB and Chris KL9A for CW, so it can corrected for the final results. Considering that the station in Virginia was totally snowed in, operating from a balcony in sunny Florida looks pretty good! Bill W3UL was part of the ARRL DX CW K4VV remote multi-multi team. (Photo from W3UL) A team of operators mounted the first totally remote Multioperator Unlimited category effort in last weekend's ARRL DX CW contest at the station of K4VV. After putting in a lot of work to get the station ready, it turned out to be a good decision to go remote because weather made it impossible to be on-site. The team wound up with 4224 QSOs and 556 multipliers for a score of 7.040 Mpts. There weren't even any candy wrappers to pick up afterward! (Thanks, Bill W3UL) Pete N4ZR reports that Saturday and Sunday of ARRL DX CW ranked second and third among the busiest days on the RBN /ever/. While the system's new servers seemed to have performed very well, the RBN managers would like to receive by email any reports of anomalies such as delays. OPERATING TIP How important is accurate operating? Here's another example from the ARRL DX CW contest's post-even claimed score totals: * TI5W: 8119 QSOs x 361 multipliers = 8,751,723 points * PJ4X: 8275 QSOs x 354 multipliers = 8,725,392 points The net result is a lead by TI5W equal to about 7 minutes worth of operating. Ad TECHNICAL TOPICS AND INFORMATION This new magnetic-sensitive foil , when applied to the skin, could give people a sense of "magnetoception". Maybe you could literally keep in touch with your ham radio friends? As contributor Dennis N6KI suggests, "Just think of all the possibilities!" The best way to secure a tower's grounding wire to its ground rod is by welding and the easiest way to make that weld is Erico's CADWELD Exothermic Welding process. Among the line of Erico products now carried by DX Engineering , the "one-shots" make copper-to-copper or copper-to-steel electrical connections without the need for outside heat or power sources. The result is a permanent bond that won't loosen or corrode over time, which is important for lightning protection. This online grey line map is a handy resource that lets you keep an eye on propagation opportunities while your ears are busy listening for the bands to open. Jeff AC?C recently upgraded his FTdx5000 radio and documented a very significant improvement in occupied transmit bandwidth - a major improvement over previous versions and another good step in the direction of cleaner transmit signals. Talk to your Yaesu dealer about installing the upgrade firmware package. (Thanks also, Jim K9YC) If you are rebuilding old radios and are looking for the right capacitors and other components, Hayseed Hamfest offers kits of components to save you a lot of shopping. You can then use the new-found spare time to make your own artisanal vacuum tubes ! (Thanks, Kelly VE4XT and Tim K3HX) Owen VK2OMD (ex-VK1OD) published a lot of excellent technical material on a variety of topics but the site was off-line for a time. I'm pleased to report that Owen is back online ! While grappling hooks are usually associated with movie-style prison breaks, rock-climbing, and various forms of pilferage, this High-Performance Grappling Hook from the Instructables project archives might have a home in your ham radio tower tool tote! *Technical Web Site of the Week* - Carl K9LA has a new post on his website, a review of one-way propagation . Carl has also created a history of his propagation columns for the now-discontinued /WorldRadio/ and /CQ Plus/. (From ARRL Propagation Bulletin ARLP008) CONVERSATION Our Unique Story At K3LR this weekend, I was part of the 15 meter team with Doug K1DG. From before dawn until way past dusk, we were each focused on a radio, trying to work every DX station that emitted so much as a call sign. We tried hard and knew well there were more stations "out there." With the headphones on and watching the grey line move across the map minute by minute, you catch yourself /willing/ the band to open, thinking "Come on...just a little bit farther!" "Just one more QSO!" is going through K3LR's mind at the 160 meter position as dawn approaches on Sunday morning of the ARRL DX CW contest. (Photo by N?AX) With a big monobander stack, we sure attracted a lot of attention and occasionally I could hear a station (or several!) calling just under the noise, darting beneath the surface like shadowy radio fish that I could never quite land. I've been that shadow as have we all - so close and yet so far from that QSO you so badly want to complete. Some managed to catch a short swell, riding a wave of QSB, fluttery but strong enough for those few seconds to make it in the log, maybe never to be heard again. Other stations, I'm sure, tuned away but came back later and made the QSO with a better path between us. Experienced operators know well that when conditions are marginal or a band is just opening or closing, signals will come and go very quickly. A path may open and close in just a few seconds and you either make that QSO right then or you don't at all - there may be no "later." At sunrise, there were quite a few contacts during which I could literally hear the band opening as the Sun illuminated just a little bit more of the F layer with each passing second. Even though each QSO was very short, that was enough time to hear the world turn just a little bit more! Propagation is what makes ham radio totally unique among hobbies. Astronomers have their "good seeing" and certainly the upper atmosphere affects what they do, but to us the ionosphere (at least at HF and lower VHF) is life itself. And we can't see it at all! I'm sure that most of us share the experience, though, of looking up into the sky and sensing the signals flying back and forth above our heads. It gives you goose-pimples, doesn't it! Our "seeing" doesn't depend on whether you're using the latest product from the commercial labs or a home-built rig from your own workbench. When the power is switched on and the headphones come to life or a waterfall display starts cascading down the screen, each transceiver and antenna open a little window into a world that most people have never experienced. It's a unique story - and one we can all be proud to tell. 73, Ward N?AX Ad CONTESTS *25 February through 10 March* An expanded, downloadable version of QST's Contest Corral in PDF format is available. Check the sponsor's Web site for information on operating time restrictions and other instructions. *HF CONTESTS* CQ WW 160 Meter SSB--Phone, from Feb 27, 2200Z to Mar 1, 2200Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8. Exchange: RST and state/province or CQ zone. Logs due: 5 days._Rules _ UBA Contest--CW, from Feb 28, 1300Z to Mar 1, 1300Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Exchange: RS, serial, and ON province. Logs due: 2 weeks._Rules _ North American QSO Party RTTY--Digital, from Feb 28, 1800Z to Mar 1, 0600Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Exchange: Name and S/P/C. Logs due: 7 days._Rules _ North Carolina QSO Party--Phone,CW,Digital, from Mar 1, 1500Z to Mar 2, 0059Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28, 50, 144, CW 3.54,7.04,7.14,14.04,21.04,28.04,50.04,144.04; Phone 3.86,7.26,14.26,21.36,28.36,50.16,52.04(FM),144.26,146.58(FM) MHz. Exchange: NC county or S/P/C, RS(T) optional. Logs due: Mat 22._Rules _ OK1WC Memorial Contest--Phone,CW, from Mar 2, 1630Z to Mar 2, 1730Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5, 7. Weekly on Monday, see website for bands. Exchange: RS(T) and serial. Logs due: 5 days._Rules _ ARS Spartan Sprint--CW, from Mar 3, 0200Z to Mar 3, 0400Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28. Monthly on the first Monday evening local time. Exchange: RST, S/P/C, and power. Logs due: 2 days._Rules _ YL CW Party--CW, from Mar 3, 1900Z to Mar 3, 2100Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5. Exchange: RST, serial, if YL "YL," name. Logs due: Mar 31._Rules _ CWOps Weekly Mini-CWT Tests--CW, from Mar 4, 1100Z - See website. Multiple time periods. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Weekly on Wednesday, 28 to 38 kHz above band edge. Exchange: Name and member number or S/P/C. Logs due: 2 days._Rules _ John Rollins Memorial DX Contest--CW, from Mar 4, 2300Z - See website. Multiple time periods. Bands (MHz): 7,14. Exchange: RS, name, and S/P/C. Logs due: 4 weeks._Rules _ NS Weekly RTTY Sprint--Digital, from Mar 6, 0145Z to Mar 6, 0215Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-14. Weekly on Thursday evenings local time. Exchange: Serial, name, and S/P/C. Logs due: 2 days._Rules _ NS Weekly Sprint--CW, from Mar 6, 0230Z to Mar 6, 0300Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-14. Weekly on Thursday evenings local time. Exchange: Serial, name, and S/P/C. Logs due: 2 days._Rules _ ARRL Int'l Phone DX Contest--Phone, from Mar 7, 0000Z to Mar 8, 2359Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: RS and state, province, or power. Logs due: Apr 8._Rules _ Straight Key Weekend Sprintathon--CW, from Mar 7, 1200Z to Mar 7, 2359Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50. Exchange: RST, QTH, name, member nr if member. Logs due: 5 days._Rules _ Open Ukraine RTTY Championship--Digital, from Mar 7, 1800Z - See website. Multiple time periods. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28. Exchange: Regional abbreviation and serial. Logs due: Apr 30._Rules _ *VHF+ CONTESTS* Worldwide EME Contest--Phone,CW, from Feb 28, 0000Z to Mar 1, 2400Z. Bands (MHz): 2.3G. Exchange: TMO/RS(T) and "R". Logs due: Jun 15._Rules _ North Carolina QSO Party--Phone,CW,Digital, from Mar 1, 1500Z to Mar 2, 0059Z. Bands (MHz): 3.5-28, 50, 144, CW 3.54,7.04,7.14,14.04,21.04,28.04,50.04,144.04; Phone 3.86,7.26,14.26,21.36,28.36,50.16,52.04(FM),144.26,146.58(FM) MHz. Exchange: NC county or S/P/C, RS(T) optional. Logs due: Mat 22._Rules _ Straight Key Weekend Sprintathon--CW, from Mar 7, 1200Z to Mar 7, 2359Z. Bands (MHz): 1.8-28, 50. Exchange: RST, QTH, name, member nr if member. Logs due: 5 days._Rules _ LOG DUE DATES *25 February through 10 March* * February 25 - _ARRL January VHF Contest _ * February 26 - _QRP Fox Hunt _ * February 26 - _RSGB 80m Club Championship, CW _ * February 27 - _Russian PSK WW Contest _ * February 27 - _SKCC Sprint _ * February 28 - _Feld Hell Sprint _ * February 28 - _AGCW Straight Key Party _ * February 28 - _SARL Youth Day Sprint _ * February 28 - _Triathlon DX Contest _ * February 28 - _PODXS 070 Club Valentine Sprint _ * February 28 - _QRP Fox Hunt _ * February 28 - _CWops Mini-CWT Test _ * March 1 - _SPAR Winter Field Day _ * March 1 - _OMISS QSO Party _ * March 1 - _NCCC RTTY Sprint _ * March 1 - _SARL Digital Contest _ * March 3 - _F9AA Cup, CW _ * March 3 - _RSGB 1st 1.8 MHz Contest _ * March 5 - _ARS Spartan Sprint _ * March 6 - _CQ 160-Meter Contest, SSB _ * March 7 - _SARL Hamnet 40m Simulated Emerg Contest _ * March 8 - _British Columbia QSO Party _ * March 8 - _Vermont QSO Party _ * March 8 - _YLRL YL-OM Contest _ * March 8 - _North American QSO Party, RTTY _ * March 9 - _REF Contest, SSB _ * March 9 - _FYBO Winter QRP Sprint _ * March 9 - _RSGB 80m Club Championship, Data _ * March 10 - _AWA Amplitude Modulation QSO Party _ * March 10 - _Black Sea Cup International _ * March 10 - _Dutch PACC Contest _ * March 10 - _Mexico RTTY International Contest _ ARRL Information Click here to advertise in this newsletter, space subject to availability. Your One-Stop Resource for Amateur Radio News and Information *Join or Renew Today!* ** ARRL membership includes /QST/ , Amateur Radio's most popular and informative journal, delivered to your mailbox each month. Subscribe to /NCJ/ - the National Contest Journal . Published bimonthly, features articles by top contesters, letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprint and QSO Parties. Subscribe to /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:/ Subscribe to The ARRL Letter (weekly digest of news and information), the ARES E-Letter (monthly public service and emergency communications news), Division and Section news -- and much more! /ARRL offers a wide array of //products/ //to enhance your enjoyment of Amateur Radio. Visit the site often for new publications, specials and sales. Donate to the fund of your choice -- /support programs not funded by member dues!/ Reprint permission can be obtained by sending email to permission at arrl.org with a description of the material and the reprint publication. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ARRL Contest Update wishes to acknowledge information from WA7BNM's Contest Calendar and SM3CER's Contest Calendar . Ad Ad Ad Ad Ad ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The ARRL Contest Update is published every other Wednesday (26 times each year). ARRL members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their Member Data Page as described at http://www.arrl.org/contests/update/. Copyright ? 2015 American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved www.arrl.org From bmarx at bellsouth.net Thu Feb 26 15:21:29 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Thu, 26 Feb 2015 15:21:29 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] ARLB011 ARRL Seeks Member Input on Draft HF Band Plan Proposals In-Reply-To: <20150226193223.EB7E4213DBF7@bmail.arrl.org> References: <20150226193223.EB7E4213DBF7@bmail.arrl.org> Message-ID: <54EF8049.8070109@bellsouth.net> SB QST @ ARL $ARLB011 ARLB011 ARRL Seeks Member Input on Draft HF Band Plan Proposals ZCZC AG11 QST de W1AW ARRL Bulletin 11 ARLB011 >From ARRL Headquarters Newington CT February 26, 2015 To all radio amateurs SB QST ARL ARLB011 ARLB011 ARRL Seeks Member Input on Draft HF Band Plan Proposals The ARRL is asking members to comment by April 19 on possible changes to the League's HF Band Plans suggested by the HF Band Planning Committee. The survey is part of the committee's efforts to tweak the band plans for the RTTY/data/CW portions of 80 through 10 meters - excepting 60 meters. The committee developed its suggested revisions to the voluntary band plans after reviewing some 400 member comments in response to a March 2014 solicitation that sought suggestions for using the spectrum more efficiently so that data modes may coexist compatibly. "The committee concluded that most of the concerns voiced by members could be addressed by modest adjustments to the existing band plans, and mainly by confining data modes with bandwidths greater than 500 Hz to the FCC-designated segments for automatically controlled digital stations (ACDS) and to parts of the RTTY/data subbands above those segments," ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ said. His article detailing the committee's suggestions will appear in the April edition of QST. The proposed changes differentiate among ACDS, narrow RTTY/data modes having a bandwidth no greater than 500 Hz, and wider data modes having a bandwidth up to 2700 Hz. Band by Band Draft Recommendations The committee suggests several modifications to the 80 meter band plan. FCC action in 2006 reduced the 80 meter RTTY/data subband to 100 kHz and limited access to the 3600-3700 kHz segment to Amateur Extra class licensees. "Unless and until the FCC Rules are modified, changes in the band plan for 3500-3600 kHz will not improve the situation," Sumner said. The HF Band Planning Committee recommends that the League petition the FCC to move the boundary between the 80 meter RTTY/data band and the 75 meter phone/image band from 3600 to 3650 kHz and restoring that segment to General and Advanced class licensees. Members are asked to comment on this proposal, as well as on whether or not the ARRL should petition the FCC for these other changes: * Shift the ACDS band segment from 3585-3600 to 3600-3615 kHz, consistent with the IARU Region 1 and 2 band plans. * Extend the current Novice/Technician CW segment of 3525-3600 kHz to 3650 kHz. * Add 80 meter RTTY/data privileges for Novices and Technicians. On 40 meters, the committee concluded that it would be unrealistic to try to bring the ARRL band plan into alignment with the rest of the world, particularly with Regions 1 and 3 where operating patterns developed when the entire band, including phone, was just 100 kHz wide and is still only 200 kHz. While 7040 kHz is a recognized RTTY/data DX frequency in the band plan, the best place for other RTTY/data activity in the US is above 7070 kHz. The committee proposes aligning the band plan with the "Considerate Operator's Frequency Guide," with wide data modes - outside of ACDS - at 7115-7125 kHz. The "Guide" shows 7070-7125 kHz for RTTY/data, while the ARRL band plan shows 7080-7125 kHz. The FCC mandates that ACDS be confined to the 7100-7105 kHz segment. On 30 meters, the committee recommends confining wide data modes to 10.140-10.150 MHz, separated from other RTTY/data at 10.130-10.140 MHz. On 20 meters, the committee recommends using the 1 kHz IARU/NCDXF beacon network frequency (14.0995-14.1005 MHz) as a line in the sand between wide ACDS in the 14.1005-14.112 MHz segment, and narrow ACDS in the 14.095-14.0995 MHz segment. The committee recommends 14.070-14.095 MHz for RTTY and narrowband data, noting that so-called "weak-signal" data modes often are used between 14.070 and 14.078 MHz. On 17 meters, the committee recommends confining wide data modes to the FCC-mandated ACDS segment of 18.105-18.110 MHz, separated from narrow RTTY/data at 18.100-18.105 MHz. FCC rules do not permit RTTY/data above 18.110 MHz, limiting options for this band. On 15 meters, the committee recommends that 21.070-21.090 MHz for narrow RTTY/data modes, the FCC-mandated ACDS segment of 21.090-21.100 MHz for both narrow and wide automatically controlled data station activity, and above 21.100 MHz for any additional wide data activity. The ARRL Board also wants members to comment on the desirability of adding RTTY/data privileges for Novices and Technicians in their existing 15 meter segment, where they're now limited to CW. On 12 meters, the committee recommends confining wide data to the FCC-mandated ACDS segment, 24.925-24.930 MHz, separated from narrow RTTY/data operation at 24.920-24.925 MHz. FCC rules do not permit RTTY/data operation above 24.930 MHz, limiting options for this band. On 10 meters, the committee recommends that wide data be confined to the FCC-mandated ACDS segment, 28.120-28.189 MHz, separated from narrow RTTY/data modes at 28.070-28.120 MHz. How to Comment The League has set up a web page to record members' preferences and comments at, http://www.arrl.org/bandplan . Those wishing to offer more detailed comments may e-mail ARRL at, bandplan at arrl.org . The comment deadline is April 19. The HF Band Planning Committee will deliver its final report at the ARRL Board of Directors' July meeting. NNNN /EX From bmarx at bellsouth.net Fri Feb 27 07:39:34 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Fri, 27 Feb 2015 07:39:34 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] WRTC 2014 Documentary by 9V1YC Message-ID: <54F06586.3030309@bellsouth.net> https://vimeo.com/119947598 From bmarx at bellsouth.net Fri Feb 27 08:34:33 2015 From: bmarx at bellsouth.net (Bill) Date: Fri, 27 Feb 2015 08:34:33 -0500 Subject: [QCWA Everglades Chapter #69] The ARRL Letter for February 26, 2015 In-Reply-To: <20150227013644.454DC202D39F@bmail.arrl.org> References: <20150227013644.454DC202D39F@bmail.arrl.org> Message-ID: <54F07269.3040903@bellsouth.net> Preview If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at: http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2015-02-26 The ARRL Letter February 26, 2015 Editor: Rick Lindquist, WW1ME ARRL Home Page /ARRL Letter/ Archive Audio News Ad * ARRL Seeks Member Input on Draft HF Band Plan Proposals <#toc01> * ARRL Partners with Liberty Mutual to Offer Home, Auto Insurance Discounts <#toc02> * Joseph Palsa, K3WRY, Appointed as Virginia Section Manager <#toc03> * Two New ARRL Section Managers Will Take Office on April 1 <#toc04> * No One in the Shack as Station Logs 4200+ Contacts in ARRL DX CW Contest <#toc05> * There's a Place for You in the ARRL International DX Phone Contest! <#toc06> * Spacewalks Interrupt ISS Amateur Radio SSTV, School Contact Schedules <#toc07> * Australian Hams Respond Following Severe Weather <#toc08> * German Radio Amateurs Breathe New Life into "Orphaned" Shortwave Channel <#toc09> * "Mega DXpeditions Honor Roll" Posted on GDXF Site <#toc10> * Nominations Sought for 2015 /Amateur Radio Newsline/ Young Ham of the Year Award <#toc11> * Astronaut-Ham John Grunsfeld, KC5ZTF, Named to Astronaut Hall of Fame <#toc12> * The K7RA Solar Update <#toc13> * Just Ahead in Radiosport <#toc14> * Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events <#toc15> ARRL Seeks Member Input on Draft HF Band Plan Proposals The ARRL is asking members to comment by April 19 on possible changes to the League's HF Band Plans suggested by the HF Band Planning Committee. The survey is part of the committee's efforts to tweak the band plans for the RTTY/data/CW portions of 80 through 10 meters -- excepting 60 meters. The committee developed its suggested revisions to the voluntary band plans after reviewing some 400 member comments in response to a March 2014 solicitation that sought suggestions on how to use the spectrum more efficiently, so that data modes may coexist compatibly. "The committee concluded that most of the concerns voiced by members could be addressed by modest adjustments to the existing band plans, and mainly by confining data modes with bandwidths greater than 500 Hz to the FCC-designated segments for automatically controlled digital stations (ACDS) and to parts of the RTTY/data subbands above those segments," ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ, said. His article detailing the committee's suggestions will appear in the April issue of /QST/. The proposed changes differentiate among ACDS, narrow RTTY/data modes having a bandwidth no greater than 500 Hz, and wider data modes having a bandwidth up to 2700 Hz. */Band-by-Band Draft Recommendations/* On *80 meters*, the committee suggests several modifications to the band plan. FCC action in 2006 reduced the 80 meter RTTY/data subband to 100 kHz and limited access to the 3600-3700 kHz segment to Amateur Extra class licensees. "Unless and until the FCC Rules are modified, changes in the band plan for 3500-3600 kHz will not improve the situation," Sumner said. The HF Band Planning Committee recommends that the League petition the FCC to move the boundary between the 80 meter RTTY/data band and the 75 meter phone/image band from 3600 to 3650 kHz and restoring that segment to General and Advanced class licensees. Members are being asked to comment on this proposal, as well as on whether or not the ARRL should petition the FCC for these other changes: * Shift the ACDS band segment from 3585-3600 to 3600-3615 kHz, consistent with the IARU Region 1 and 2 band plans. * Extend the current Novice/Technician CW segment of 3525-3600 kHz to 3650 kHz. * Add 80 meter RTTY/data privileges for Novices and Technicians. On *40 meters*, the committee concluded that it would be unrealistic to try to bring the ARRL band plan into alignment with the rest of the world, particularly with Regions 1 and 3 where operating patterns developed when the entire band, including phone, was just 100 kHz wide -- and is still only 200 kHz. While 7040 kHz is a recognized RTTY/data DX frequency in the band plan, the best place for other RTTY/data activity in the US is above 7070 kHz. The committee proposes aligning the band plan with the "Considerate Operator's Frequency Guide," with wide data modes -- outside of ACDS -- at 7115-7125 kHz. The "Guide" shows 7070-7125 kHz for RTTY/data, while the ARRL band plan shows 7080-7125 kHz. The FCC mandates that ACDS be confined to the 7100-7105 kHz segment. On *30 meters*, the committee recommends confining wide data modes to 10.140-10.150 MHz, separated from other RTTY/data at 10.130-10.140 MHz. On *20 meters*, the committee recommends using the 1 kHz IARU/NCDXF beacon network frequency (14.0995-14.1005 MHz) as a line in the sand between wide ACDS in the 14.1005-14.112 MHz segment, and narrow ACDS in the 14.095-14.0995 MHz segment. The committee recommends 14.070-14.095 MHz for RTTY and narrowband data, noting that so-called "weak-signal" data modes often are used between 14.070 and 14.078 MHz. On *17 meters*, the committee recommends confining wide data modes to the FCC-mandated ACDS segment of 18.105-18.110 MHz, separated from narrow RTTY/data at 18.100-18.105 MHz. FCC rules do not permit RTTY/data above 18.110 MHz, limiting options for this band. On *15 meters*, the committee recommends that 21.070-21.090 MHz for narrow RTTY/data modes, the FCC-mandated ACDS segment of 21.090-21.100 MHz for both narrow and wide automatically controlled data station activity, and above 21.100 MHz for any additional wide data activity. The ARRL Board also wants members to comment on the desirability of adding RTTY/data privileges for Novices and Technicians in their existing 15 meter segment, where they're now limited to CW. On *12 meters*, the committee recommends confining wide data to the FCC-mandated ACDS segment, 24.925-24.930 MHz, separated from narrow RTTY/data operation at 24.920-24.925 MHz. FCC rules do not permit RTTY/data operation above 24.930 MHz, limiting options for this band. On *10 meters*, the committee recommends that wide data be confined to the FCC-mandated ACDS segment, 28.120-28.189 MHz, separated from narrow RTTY/data modes at 28.070-28.120 MHz. */How to Comment/* The League has set up a web page to record members' preferences and comments, which includes links to the HF Band Planning Committee report to the ARRL Board and to Sumner's April /QST/ article (and *high-resolution band charts*). Those wishing to offer more detailed comments may e-mail ARRL. The comment deadline is April 19. The HF Band Planning Committee will deliver its final report at the ARRL Board of Directors' July meeting. ARRL Partners with Liberty Mutual to Offer Home, Auto Insurance Discounts ARRL and Liberty Mutual Insurance have reached an agreement to provide League members with home and automobile insurance discounts. In the past, this membership benefit was provided by MetLife. Under the affinity arrangement, a portion of each premium comes back to ARRL. "Liberty Mutual is an undisputed group-insurance affinity leader with excellent rates," said ARRL Membership Manager Diane Petrilli, KB1RNF. "Convenient support is available by phone, online, or one on one with a local sales representative, and with thousands of dedicated retail agents and hundreds of offices across the country." Given the ready access to Liberty Mutual's customer support, Petrilli said, it will be even easier for ARRL members to obtain quotes, begin coverage, and get answers to any questions. Petrilli assured members who already have home or auto insurance through the League's arrangement with MetLife that their coverage will continue, but, she added, when the current policy comes up for renewal, the ARRL group discount may no longer apply. ARRL Marketing Manager Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R, said that League members with existing Liberty Mutual policies should contact Liberty Mutual or their local agent directly to see if they qualify for additional ARRL group savings and discounts. He noted that savings under the new agreement could be substantial, and that members may save even more by bundling their home and auto coverage. Savings and discounts are available where state laws and regulations allow, and may vary by state. To the extent permitted by law, applicants are individually underwritten, and not all applicants may qualify. Policies are underwritten by the Liberty Mutual Insurance Company and its affiliates, 175 Berkeley St, Boston, MA 02116. In addition to auto and home insurance, Liberty Mutual offers life, motorcycle, condo, renter's, and personal liability insurance. Liberty Mutual representatives can discuss options and recommend coverage. To learn more, call 800-524-9400 or visit the Liberty Mutual website. When contacting Liberty Mutual, ARRL members should request group savings and discounts offered to members of the "American Radio Relay League." Joseph Palsa, K3WRY, Appointed as Virginia Section Manager Joseph Palsa, K3WRY, has been appointed Virginia Section Manager. An ARRL Life Member from Richmond, Palsa succeeds Carl Clements, W4CAC, of Portsmouth, who has stepped down due to increased work commitments. Palsa's appointment is effective *Virginia SM Joe Palsa, K3WRY.* immediately. ARRL Field Services and Radiosport Manager Dave Patton, NN1N, made the appointment of Palsa in consultation with ARRL Roanoke Division Director Dr Jim Boehner, N2ZZ. Clements had been the Virginia Section Manager since 2008. He also had served in the post from 2001 until 2006. Palsa will complete the current term of office, which continues until March 31, 2016. An Amateur Radio operator for more than 50 years, Palsa has been serving as Virginia State Government Liaison. During 2014, he was president of the Richmond Amateur Radio Club. In past years, he has held ARRL Field Organization positions as Official Bulletin Station, Official Observer, and Official Emergency Station. Active in ARES, he has received two ARRL Public Service Awards. Palsa enjoys DXing, contesting, and public service communication. Ad Two New ARRL Section Managers Will Take Office on April 1 Wyoming and Kentucky will be getting new ARRL Section Managers on April 1, while incumbents in several other sections have been re-elected for new terms. Ballots in contested elections in the winter Section Manager election cycle were counted on February 24 at ARRL Headquarters. Several candidates in this cycle ran unopposed. In Wyoming, challenger Jack Mitchell, N7MJ, of Cheyenne, will be the new Section Manager. He received 125 votes to 108 votes for incumbent Wyoming SM Garth Crowe, WY7GC, of Gillette. Crowe has served as SM since January 2009. A ham since 1973, Mitchell is an active ARRL Volunteer Examiner who enjoys exploring and operating new modes, attending hamfests, making new friends, contesting casually, and chasing DX. He currently serves as secretary of ShyWY Amateur Radio Club. The Kentucky Section will also have a new Section Manager starting in April. Alan Morgan, KY1O, of Paris was the only nominee for the position. An ARRL Life Member for more than 30 years, Morgan has held several leadership posts, including District Emergency Coordinator, Emergency Coordinator, and net manager, and has served as an ARRL-affiliated club president. Outgoing SM Jim Brooks, KY4Z, decided not to run for another term after being at the helm in Kentucky since 2007. In other contested races, two incumbent SMs prevailed over their challengers. In Arizona, Robert Spencer, KE8DM, of Yuma, outpolled Steven Wood, W1SR, of Tucson, 775 to 464. In Iowa Section Manager Bob McCaffrey, K0CY, of Boone also was re-elected, defeating challenger Scott Kirstein, N0OOD, of Ankey, 402 to 127. Spencer and McCaffrey both have served since 2013 and will be starting their second terms in April. Several other incumbent Section Managers faced no opposition in this election cycle and have been declared re-elected. They are Dale Temple, W5RXU (Arkansas); Malcolm Keown, W5XX (Mississippi); George Forsyth, AA7GS (Montana); Chris Brewer, N5GMJ (North Texas), and Carl Gardenias, WU6D (Orange). No One in the Shack as Station Logs 4200+ Contacts in ARRL DX CW Contest The six-person group operating as K3TN in the recent ARRL International DX Contest (CW) may have made Amateur Radio history by mounting the first completely remote-controlled multioperator contest effort. The scattered K3TN team worked via the Internet through the station of Jack Hammett, K4VV, on Catoctin Ridge in Northern Virginia. All of K4VV's operating positions were vacant over the February 21-22 weekend, because the operators were elsewhere. One participant even managed to operate during the contest from /two/ states -- Maryland and Florida. *Note the absence of chairs in the K4VV shack. The station can be operated remotely as well as on site. [Photo courtesy of Mike Lonneke, W0YR]* "No one was in the K4VV shack for the entire contest!" said Mike Lonneke, W0YR, who took part in the contest via K4VV from his own shack in Virginia. Two other operators were in North Carolina. "Perhaps this is a new category -- Totally Remote (TR)." Lonneke said 3-minute timers at the remote-capable positions allow FCC requirements to be met. The "Team K4VV" contingent made 4224 contacts and logged 556 multipliers for a claimed score of more than 7 million points -- not a Top 10 score, but respectable. For comparison, the top-scoring K3LR multi-multi operation has claimed 18.85 million points. K4VV boasts two Telrex "Big Bertha" rotating masts that support 17 wide-spaced Yagi arrays for 10, 15, and 20 meters and a two-stack of four-element OWA Yagis on 40, plus wire antennas for 80 and 160 meters. This is not the sort of antenna farm likely found in the typical suburban neighborhoods from which the K3TN participants operated. Despite the vagaries of winter weather, the station performed well. "We had a foot of wet snowfall Saturday afternoon/evening, and the station was totally inaccessible," said John Pescatore, K3TN, in a 3830 website log post. "The ops fairly winced as they watched the on-screen direction indicators for K4VV's Big Berthas turn at a tortoise's pace in the near zero-degree cold. But, turn they did. The station played great, and band conditions were, across the board, good." *Mike Lonneke, W0YR. [Norman Styer, AI2C, photo]* Lonneke said one member of the ARRL DX CW team, Bill Rogers, W3UL, started the contest from his home in Maryland, before taking the auto train to Florida and rushing to his condo to finish up. Team K4VV, a group of more than 20 operators, helps to maintain and operate the station, which has become a real-world laboratory in the to-date niche field of remotely controlled contesting. "Jack's [K4VV] health is not the best," Lonneke noted, "but he is happy to see his station -- an outstanding facility -- used and maintained by a group of his Amateur Radio friends." Three of K4VV's well-equipped operating positions can be operated either from within the shack or via remote control from anywhere in the world. In 2013 ARRL November Sweepstakes (CW), Tom Morton, CX7TT, who lives in near Montevideo, Uruguay, logged into one of the K4VV operating positions. Operating as W4YY at a distance of nearly 5200 miles, he managed a clean sweep. Lonneke has said that the operating experience from the remote end "is transparent." *John Pescatore, K3TN.* Until recently contacts made during such operations were ineligible for DXCC credit for either station. Changes to the DXCC Rules now allow a control operator to be outside the DXCC entity in which the radio transmitter/receiver is located. For DXCC purposes transmitter location continues to define a station's location. /CQ/ Magazine recently began sponsoring an award for working 100 countries while using remote control. In addition to Pescatore, Lonneke, and Rogers, the K3TN operators for the ARRL International DX CW were Rick Miller, N1RM, in Virginia; Jim Gulvin, W4TMO, in North Carolina, and Rowland Archer, K4XD, in North Carolina. The K3TN log was submitted under the Potomac Valley Radio Club banner. Pescatore is hoping to gather a team of phone operators to mount a similar multi-multi effort in the ARRL International DX Contest SSB event in March. There's a Place for You in the ARRL International DX Phone Contest! Set aside your CW key, and shake those dits and dahs out of your ears. It's time to get your voice in trim or to program your digital voice keyer. The SSB weekend of the ARRL International DX Contest is Saturday and Sunday, March 8-9 (UTC), and in this major event on the radiosport calendar, the DX will be looking for stations in the US and Canada. There are entry categories for single ops and for multioperator teams as well as a choice of power levels in each category, from QRP to full legal limit. In other words, there's a place for Big Guns, Little Pistols, and everyone in between. Excitement and enthusiasm levels will be high, and it's a terrific opportunity to boost DXCC totals too. *Leonce Richer, FM5DN, in Martinique, took part in the 2014 ARRL DX phone and expected to be back this year.* Not only that, but the ARRL International DX Contest events offer great opportunities to expand your knowledge of MF and HF propagation and to tweak your contesting skills. The basic objective is simple: W/VE amateurs work as many DX stations in as many DXCC entities as possible on the 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, and 10 meter bands. Participating DX stations work as many stations as possible on the 48 contiguous US states and Canadian provinces. US and Canadian stations send a signal report and their state or province abbreviation. DX stations send a signal report and their output power. The action gets under way March 8 at 0000 UTC (Friday, March 7, in US time zones) and continues for the next 48 hours until March 9 at 2359 UTC. By the way, if you're planning to do this one /without/ any digital voice assistance, keep those lozenges and maybe some hot tea and honey handy. A couple of 2014 participants complained afterward of hoarse throats. Complete rules and forms are on the ARRL website. E-mail electronic logs (Cabrillo format). Mail paper logs to ARRL DX CW Contest, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111. /Logs must be received or postmarked no later than 2359 UTC on Tuesday, April 8, 2015./ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ad Spacewalks Interrupt ISS Amateur Radio SSTV, School Contact Schedules Spacewalks recently disrupted previously scheduled Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS ) activities. ISS crew members Barry Wilmore, Terry Virts, and Samantha Cristoforetti, IZ0UDF, worked outside the ISS on February 21 and 25, and another "extra-vehicular activity" or EVA -- NASA's term for a spacewalk -- is set for March 1. During such excursions, Amateur Radio gear on the ISS is shut down for safety reasons. Over the past weekend, a planned 3 days of continuous slow-scan TV transmissions from the Russian sector ended up taking place only on February 22 and 23. The occasional SSTV transmissions from RS0ISS are on 145.800 MHz FM, using SSTV mode PD180. In addition, an ARISS school contact scheduled for February 25 with students at Riversink Elementary School in Crawfordville, Florida, had to be rescheduled for the following day. Over the course of the series of spacewalks, the astronauts have been preparing cables and communication gear for new docking ports that will allow future crews launched from Florida on US commercial spacecraft to dock with the space station. Paulo, PV8DX, of AMSAT-Brazil turned the latest series of SSTV transmissions into an educational outreach opportunity. During a *Paulo, PV8DX, demonstrates SSTV to students at the Gon?alves Dias School in Brazil.* February 23 visit to the Gon?alves Dias School, he explained Amateur Radio to the students and demonstrated reception of an SSTV image from the ISS. Although the signal wasn't strong enough to render a clear and complete image, he was able to capture at least part of it, and the students were excited and enthusiastic. Paulo said he's hoping for more ISS SSTV transmissions on weekdays, when youngsters are in school. Clint Bradford, K6LCS, in California, found that receiving SSTV images from the ISS can really be simple. He used loaded a $3 iOS app onto his iPod Touch and held the device near the speaker of his VHF transceiver. "I didn't think there was too much left in the hobby to excite me, but I was wrong," he said. Greg Dolkas, KO6TH, was equally enthusiastic. "I've never received a clearer SSTV picture from anywhere, let alone outer space!" he said. /-- Thanks to ARISS, AMSAT-UK/ Australian Hams Respond Following Severe Weather Amateur Radio volunteers with Australia's Central Queensland Amateur Radio Association (CQARA ) initiated nets on HF and VHF in the wake of a tropical cyclone (hurricane). After making landfall on February 20, Cyclone Marcia caused major damage, ripping roofs from structures, downing trees and power lines, and damaging other infrastructure. Flooding was widespread. The cyclone was a category 5 storm with winds of 155 MPH when it hit Yeppoon. It lost intensity as it slowly moved south, and was downgraded to a Category 1 storm. CQARA volunteers were reported active on 40 meters and 2 meters. Other Wireless Institute Civil Emergency Network (WICEN) groups stood by to help emergency responders. The few people who remained on Queensland's tourist coastal islands were evacuated to shelters. According to Australian news media, many residents were left without electricity, and power was expected to be off for several days. Emergency managers were asking residents to use water only when absolutely necessary. The Rockhampton Airport was closed due to flooding. Jim Linton, VK3PC, the chairman of IARU Region 3's Disaster Communications Committee, said no deaths were reported due to the storm. "During previous major Queensland cyclones extensive agricultural crops were lost," he pointed out. A separate weather system dumped rain over southeast Queensland, including the capital of Brisbane, causing some localized flooding. Elsewhere in Australia, Cyclone Lam, initially a Category 4 storm, engulfed the northeast region of the Northern Territory. Linton said that early evacuation of lightly populated islands and sheltering of residents were effective. German Radio Amateurs Breathe New Life into "Orphaned" Shortwave Channel A few radio amateurs are frustrated broadcasters, and when German national broadcaster the Deutsche Welle closed down a 500 kW shortwave broadcast transmitter near Munich, an entity headed and operated by hams applied for and was granted the vacant channel of 6070 kHz in the 49 meter shortwave band. DARC Radio -- which has a business association with the Deutscher Amateur Radio Club (DARC ) but is privately owned -- now has a 10 kW broadcast station, branded "Channel 292 ," up and running, and a new Amateur Radio DX program will debut next month. "After the demolition of one of the world?s biggest shortwave facilities of the Deutsche Welle last year, we managed to get an official radio broadcast license for the German Amateur Radio Club and have built up a shortwave transmitter with some parts of the old 500 kW transmitter from there," said DARC Radio Project Manager Rainer Englert, DF2NU, an ARRL member and president of the Munich South Section of the DARC. "As far as we know, there is no similar ham project like this worldwide." The Deutsche Welle used the 6070 kHz channel until mid-2013 for European transmissions. DARC Radio hopes to fund its operating expenses by leasing airtime. The DARC is a customer, and under its banner, a weekly Amateur Radio-oriented magazine of DARC news, contest schedules, DX information, interviews, DXpedition reports, market reviews, technical hints, and "some nice old music from the '70s and '80s" will debut on Sunday, March 22, at 1000 UTC, Englert told ARRL. The program will *Rainer Englert, DF2NU, with the Deutsche Welle 500 kW transmitter site. [Photo courtesy of Rainer Englert, DF2NU]* be in German, but the RSGB has expressed interest in contributing English-language program segments, he said. The inaugural DX magazine will be repeated on Monday, March 23, at 1600 UTC. According to the DARC, the initial March 22 broadcast will air from a 100 kW transmitter in Austria, while the repeat broadcast on March 23 will emanate from Radio DARC's 10 kW transmitter near Ingolstadt, Germany. Rainer Ebeling, DB8QC, owns the official licensee -- Intermedicom GmbH (LLC). He repurposed parts from the driver stages as well as a few transformers from the former Deutsche Welle transmitter for DARC Radio's 10 kW transmitter. "The antenna is a low-hanging, simple dipole with a very high radiation angle, optimized for short-range coverage," Englert explained. The station easily covers much of Western Europe, he said, and also has been heard in Russia and elsewhere, including North America. *The Channel 292 coverage map.* Although its license allows full-time service, the station has mostly been on the air from 0700 until 1700 UTC. The station airs "The Golden Days of Offshore Radio" weekdays at 0700-0900 UTC, with offerings that evoke the era of pirate stations RNI, Radio Caroline, Radio Veronica, and others. In fact, the Channel 292 brand recalls the Channel 192 pirate station of the 1960s and 1970s. It also airs programs in Dutch and Spanish. Englert said others, in addition to DARC, have been leasing airtime -- currently filling about 20 hours per week. DARC Radio's hourly rate is rock bottom -- about $17.50 US. "This rate really only covers expenditures like electric power and the write-off of the power amplifier," he said. "The transmitter sucks almost 40 kW out of the grid at 100 percent modulation." "The orphaned shortwave frequencies hardly interest anyone these days," allowed the DARC. "Not so radio amateurs, who will take advantage of these new possibilities to also get broadcasting licenses." All reception reports to Channel 292 will be answered with a QSL card. Outgoing cards will go out via the DARC QSL bureau. Ad "Mega DXpeditions Honor Roll" Posted on GDXF Site Anyone who likes Top 10 lists or even statistics will find something to appreciate in the "Mega DXpeditions Honor Roll ," compiled and posted by Jari Jussila, OH2BU, and Bernd Koch, DF3CB. At the very least, this resource will help to settle any arguments as to the accomplishments of any DXpedition that logged at least 30,000 contacts. The German DX Foundation (GDXF) is hosting the Honor Roll, which includes 221 Mega DXpeditions. Each listing provides a link to details of the DXpedition and QSL card image. Individual links sort the database on various categories, including such statistics as QSOs per day and Top 20 modes. Jussila had kept and maintained records of DXpeditions making at least 30,000 QSOs and published his list, then containing some 40 DXpeditions, in the late 1990s. Requests to provide additional or corrected information helped to refine the list, which evolved into the Mega DXpeditions Honor Roll. Koch had compiled and maintained the database, which now has found a home on the GDXF website. The list includes statistics for individual DXpeditions. In terms of contact numbers, topping the list was the 2011 T32C DXpedition to Christmas Island in Eastern Kiribati. The 32-day operation, which boasted 41 operators, logged 213,090 contacts. By way of comparison, the 15 operators mounting the recent 15-day K1N DXpedition to Navassa put 139,702 contacts into the logbook, putting that operation in 9th place in terms of QSO numbers. *The 2011 T32C Christmas Island DXpedition holds the record for the most contacts logged for a multioperator DXpedition.* The average number of operators among the 221 listed operations was 11. The 2006 VU4AN DXpedition to Andaman and Nicobar Islands involved 69 operators -- the most of any DXpedition, although the 403T DXpedition to Montenegro that same year came close, with 60 operators. One interesting statistic you can glean from the Honor Roll is most-activated DX entities among the 221 listed Mega DXpeditions. The greatest number was six operations to Conway Reef (3D2C). Spratly, Clipperton, Malyj Vysotskij, and Myanmar were grouped as a close second with five DXpeditions each. Most contacts made during a single-operator DXpedition? That would have been the 53,849 QSOs that Jukka Heikinheimo, OH2BR, logged as VP6BR during his 88-day visit to Pitcairn Island in early 2000. This has been recognized as a Guinness World Record. The Honor Roll also includes a list of the most active operators to take part in a Mega DXpedition. Address comments, corrections, or additions to the list to Jari Jussila , OH2BU, and Bernd Koch , DF3CB. /-- Thanks to /The Daily DX Nominations Sought for 2015 /Amateur Radio Newsline/ Young Ham of the Year Award /Amateur Radio Newsline / is seeking nominations for its 2015 Young Ham of the Year (YHOTY) Award. To be considered, a nominee must have used Amateur Radio in some way that has benefited his or her community or encouraged technological development directly or indirectly related to communications. Nominees must be no older than 19 and reside in the United States, Canada, or Puerto Rico. The individual must also hold a currently valid US or Canadian Amateur Radio license. Candidates considered for the Young Ham of the Year Award will be judged on their overall accomplishments and contributions -- especially in terms of public service activities or experimentation in the areas of science, technology, or electronic communication -- that may be of an outstanding nature. The decision of the judging committee is final. The deadline to submit an application is May 30, 2015. An application form also is available by sending a self-addressed, stamped envelope to 2015 Young Ham of the Year Award, c/o Amateur Radio Newsline, 28197 Robin Ave, Santa Clarita, CA 91350. Basic information on required documentation and how to file are included on the nominating form. Presentation of the 2015 Amateur Radio Newsline Young Ham of the Year Award will take place at the Huntsville Hamfest, August 15-16, in Huntsville Alabama. /-- Thanks to Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF//Amateur Radio Newsline Astronaut-Ham John Grunsfeld, KC5ZTF, Named to Astronaut Hall of Fame NASA astronaut and Amateur Radio operator John Grunsfeld, KC5ZTF, is among those to be inducted into the Astronaut Hall of Fame this spring. The others are Margaret Rhea Seddon, Steven Lindsey, and Kent Rominger. They will join previous honorees, including Alan Shepard, Neil Armstrong, and John Young in a ceremony on May 30 at Kennedy Space Center. The 2015 inductees are the 14th class. All told, the group has recorded 18 space shuttle missions over 26 years. An astronomer and astrophysicist, Grunsfeld worked on the Hubble Space Telescope on three shuttle missions. *John Grunsfeld, KC5ZTF. [NASA photo]* To date, fewer than 90 astronauts have been selected by a panel of their peers to join this elite group. Astronaut Hall of Fame inductees are selected from a pool of nominations, with the finalists chosen by a panel of Hall of Fame astronauts, NASA leaders, flight directors, historians, and journalists. For its inaugural class in 1990, the Hall of Fame inducted the original group of US astronauts -- the Mercury Seven. The Astronaut Hall of Fame features the world's largest collection of personal spaceflight memorabilia. It is operated as part of the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex . Now a NASA associate administrator for science, Grunsfeld is a veteran of five spaceflights. He logged more than 58 days in space and eight spacewalks. His first flight was in 1995 as part of the STS-67 shuttle mission aboard /Endeavour/./-- Thanks to AMSAT News Service via/ Spaceflight Insider ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The K7RA Solar Update Tad Cook, K7RA, Seattle, reports: Average daily sunspot numbers over the past week were about the same (59) as last week (54.6), while average daily solar flux declined from 121.4 to 116.3. Average daily planetary A index increased from 9 to 11.3. The average daily mid-latitude A index also was higher, rising from 7 to 9.3. These numbers compare the 7-day period from February 19-25 with the previous 7 days. The NOAA/USAF 45-day forecasts for planetary A index and solar flux have been late on several days this week. The latest available is for February 24, which calls for solar flux at 125 for February 26 through March 5, 130 on March 6, 135 for March 7-9, 130 on March 10, 125 for March 11-12, 120 for March 13-17, and 115 for March 18-23. Solar flux then reaches a peak of 135 for April 3-5 before declining again. Predicted planetary A index is 10, 8, and 20 for February 26-28, then 22, 15, and 8 for March 1-3, then 10, 5, and 7 for March 4-6, rising back to 10 for March 7-8, down to 5 for March 9-13, then 10, and 5 for March 14-15, 15 for March 16-17, 8 on March 18, and 5 for March 19-21. John Magliacane, KD2BD, of Sea Girt, New Jersey, e-mailed a blast from the past -- some old e-mail from me, ARRL bulletins, and various posts from the late 1980s and early 1990s on Usenet and the Amateur Packet Radio Network, which he recovered from archives on an old hard drive. I hope to post some newly recovered ARRL Propagation Bulletins from 1990-1991. Let me know if you find any old archives such as this. This weekly "Solar Update" in /The ARRL Letter/ is a preview of the "Propagation Bulletin" issued each Friday. The latest bulletin and an archive of past propagation bulletins is on the ARRL website. For Friday's bulletin, look for an updated forecast and reports from readers. Send me /your/ reports and observations. /-- Tad Cook, K7RA/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Just Ahead in Radiosport * February 27-March 1 -- CQ World Wide 160 Meter Contest (SSB) * February 28-March 1 -- Worldwide EME Contest * February 28-March 1 -- UBA Contest (CW) * *February 28-March 1 -- **North American QSO Party **(RTTY)* * March 1-2 -- North Carolina QSO Party * March 2 -- OK1WC Memorial Contest (SSB, CW) * March 3 -- ARS Spartan Sprint * March 3 -- YL CW Party * March 4 -- CWOps Weekly Mini-CWT Tests * March 4 -- John Rollins Memorial DX Contest (CW) See the ARRL Contest Calendar for more information. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events * February 28 -- New Mexico Techfest Convention , Albuquerque, New Mexico * February 28 -- Vermont State Convention , S Burlington, Vermont * March 7 -- Santa Clara Valley Section Convention , Del Rey Oaks, California * March 7-8 -- Alabama Section Convention , Irondale, Alabama * March 13-14 -- North Carolina Section Convention , Concord, North Carolina * March 14 -- West Texas Section Convention , Midland, Texas * March 20-21 -- Louisiana State Convention , Rayne, Louisiana * March 21 -- MicroHAMS Digital Conference , Redmond, Washington * March 21 -- Nebraska State Convention , Lincoln, Nebraska * March 21 -- Southern Florida Section Convention , Stuart, Florida * March 21 -- Wisconsin State Convention , Milwaukee, Wisconsin * March 27-28 -- Maine State Convention , Lewiston, Maine * March 28 -- Texas State Convention , Rosenberg, Texas * April 4 -- West Central Florida Technical Conference , Sebring, Florida * April 4 -- North Carolina State Convention , Raleigh, North Carolina * April 4 -- Arkansas State Convention , Fort Smith, Arkansas * April 11 -- Delta Division Convention , Bartlett, Tennessee * April 11-12 -- Communications Academy , Seattle, Washington * April 17-19 -- International DX Convention , Visalia, California * April 17-19 -- Eastern VHF-UHF-Microwave Conference , Manchester, Connecticut * April 25 -- Aurora Conference , White Bear Lake, Minnesota Find conventions and hamfests in your area .* * ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ** *ARRL *-- *Your One-Stop Resource for * *Amateur Radio News and Information*** . . ** ** ** ** ******. ** * Join or Renew Today! 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