[South Florida DX Association] The ARRL Letter, Vol 23, No 10

[Bill Marx]

***************
> The ARRL Letter
> Vol. 23, No. 10
> March 5, 2004
> ***************
>
> IN THIS EDITION:
>
> * +NTIA spectrum initiative no threat to amateurs
> * +League critical of Wall Street Journal BPL article
> * +Michigan, Ohio youngsters talk to ISS via ham radio link
> * +Hamvention 2004 moving full speed ahead
> * +Hams' surprise leaves West Virginia governor at a loss for words
> * +ARRL Foundation approves new officers, scholarships
> *  Solar Update
> *  IN BRIEF:
>      This weekend on the radio
>      ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Communications course registration
>     +Hollingsworth issues interference reminder
>      Bogus ARRL.net messages circulating via e-mail
>      Musical pioneer Alvino Rey, W6UK, SK
>      Clifford E. Fay, K7BQ, SK
>      Hawaii Amateur Radio antenna bills advance
>      New 241-GHz distance record claimed
>      Vote on QST Cover Plaque Award
>
> +Available on ARRL Audio News
>
> ===========================================================
>
> ==>NTIA SPECTRUM MANAGEMENT INQUIRY POSES NO DANGER TO HAM RADIO
>
> Apparently not to be outdone by the FCC's Spectrum Policy Task Force
> (SPTF) and resulting proceedings, the National Telecommunications and
> Information Administration (NTIA) has initiated its own spectrum
> management Notice of Inquiry
> <http://spectrumreform.ntia.doc.gov/notice.htm>. The NTIA administers
> spectrum used by the federal government and advises the White House in
> telecommunications matters. Comments on the NOI--which carries the
> somewhat unwieldy Docket No 040127027-4027-01--are due by March 18. Some
> in the amateur community believe the NOI represents a threat to Amateur
> Radio. ARRL Chief Technology Officer Paul Rinaldo, W4RI, says the League
> is taking a hard look at the NTIA NOI and its potential impact on the
> Amateur Radio Service and will comment formally by the filing deadline.
>
> "In a nutshell, there is no specific threat to the Amateur Radio Service
> in this proceeding," Rinaldo said, "unless one considers opening spectrum
> management to scrutiny as the US government does every so often."
>
> As it did with the FCC's SPTF, the League's Washington office is
> participating in meetings related to the NOI. On February 12 Rinaldo
> delivered a presentation on Amateur Radio spectrum management at an NTIA
> Forum on Spectrum Management Policy Reform, sponsored by the Computer
> Science and Telecommunications Board of The National Academies.
>
> Among other things, Rinaldo noted that amateurs are concerned about
> potential interference from unlicensed Part 15 devices, "particularly
> those that are broadband and distributed throughout residential areas."
> Such devices, he asserted, should have "globally harmonized bands and
> standards" designed to preserve a low-noise environment needed for
> scientific uses and to avoid power escalation in radio services as the
> noise level rises.
>
> The NTIA released the NOI February 2 in response to a May 29, 2003,
> executive memorandum from President George W. Bush called "United States
> Spectrum Policy for the 21st Century." The NTIA NOI now is being viewed as
> a counterweight to the FCC's SPTF.
>
> The NTIA proceeding is broader than the FCC's SPTF initiative, however,
> and it poses some fundamental questions--including whether the FCC and
> NTIA spectrum management functions should be combined in a single entity.
>
> "The League sees this NOI as a healthy opportunity for the airing of views
> on spectrum management and not a threat aimed at the Amateur Radio
> Service," Rinaldo concluded. "We appreciate an opportunity to hear
> members' views."
>
> FCC Chairman Michael Powell and Acting NTIA head Michael Gallagher met
> February 27 to plan and coordinate the efforts of the FCC and the NTIA on
> spectrum policy. The meeting included senior spectrum policy teams from
> both government agencies.
>
> ==>ARRL RESPONDS TO WALL STREET JOURNAL ARTICLE ON BPL
>
> The ARRL this week responded to a March 2 Wall Street Journal article,
> "The Web's New Outlet," that presented a one-sided, rosy picture of
> Broadband over Power Line while avoiding any mention of its interference
> potential. ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ, faxed a letter to the editor of
> the New York-based business and financial publication to point out some of
> BPL's shortcomings, which were largely missing from the WSJ report.
>
> "Any listing of the pros and cons of using power lines to deliver
> broadband services must mention its major disadvantage: it pollutes the
> radio spectrum, interfering with nearby radio receivers," Sumner said.
> "The only known exception is a microwave system being developed by
> Corridor Systems of Santa Rosa, California."
>
> Sumner pointed out that BPL involves sending wideband RF "over unshielded
> wires that were not designed for the purpose." Owing to the laws of
> physics, Sumner continued, these power lines function much like antennas,
> and BPL signals passing through wires in the vicinity can interfere with
> radio reception.
>
> "The frequencies in question are used by public safety agencies, the
> military, aeronautical and maritime services, broadcasters, radio
> astronomers, radio amateurs, and others," Sumner noted. He said BPL system
> designers have had only limited success in resolving the interference
> issue by notching certain frequencies.
>
> "Yet BPL implementation cannot go forward without solving it, because for
> very good and obvious reasons it is a violation of FCC regulations for a
> BPL system to cause radio interference," he went on. "If BPL causes
> interference--and it does--the BPL system must be shut down." Sumner
> included references to the ARRL's BPL Web page
> <http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/HTML/plc#video>, which documents HF
> interference the League monitored at four BPL field test sites last fall.
>
> The WSJ article, in the paper's "Marketplace" section, focuses on the
> announcement this week of what's said to be the largest rollout to date of
> BPL by Cincinnati-based utility Cinergy Corp and its BPL partner Current
> Communications. Cinergy and Current Communications hope to be offering the
> service to between 60,000 and 1.5 million Cincinnati-area customers by
> year's end and eventually to some 24 million potential customers elsewhere
> who are served by smaller utilities.
>
> While the article concedes that BPL "is unproven in wide use," it also
> cites FCC Office of Engineering and Technology Chief Ed Thomas, who called
> the technology "ready for prime time." Thomas stopped short of saying that
> the same was true for the BPL industry, however. It also quotes Cinergy
> Executive Vice President Bill Grealis, who called BPL "the last-mile
> solution" and said the service--at between $30 and $40 a month--would be
> "cheaper and faster than DSL or cable."
>
> A March 5 article about the Cinergy/Current Communications BPL rollout
> appearing in the Cincinnati Enquirer
> <http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2004/03/05/biz_cinergy05.html> cites
> Amateur Radio's concerns, although it also includes comments by FCC and
> industry sources saying that interference is not a major worry. Featuring
> a photo of ARRL Ohio Section Manager Joe Phillips, K8QOE, the report
> quotes the League's comments to the FCC in response to last April's BPL
> FCC Notice of Inquiry (ET Docket 04-104). Phillips expresses his concerns
> that interference from RF on unshielded power lines could interfere "with
> all types of radio transmissions," including emergency agencies.
>
> Sumner, in his letter to the Wall Street Journal, suggested that there are
> better choices than BPL, even from the standpoint of business and
> economics. "Potential investors in broadband delivery alternatives to DSL
> and cable would be far better off considering the various methods of
> delivering fiber-to-the-home in densely populated areas," he concluded.
> "For rural areas, adaptations of wireless LAN technology are generally
> recognized as offering far more promise than BPL."
>
> ==>HAM RADIO CONNECTS MICHIGAN, OHIO YOUNGSTERS WITH ISS
>
> Youngsters at schools in Michigan and Ohio were the latest to have an
> opportunity to interview International Space Station Expedition 8
> Commander Mike Foale, KB5UAC, via Amateur Radio. The contacts March 1 with
> Armstrong Middle School in Flint, Michigan, and February 20 with Glenwood
> Elementary School in Perrysburg, Ohio, were arranged via the Amateur Radio
> on the International Space Station (ARISS) program. Foale was at the
> controls of NA1SS for both QSOs. Originally set for January 12, the
> Armstrong Middle School contact had to be rescheduled because of the ISS
> air leak earlier this year. That now-resolved problem was the topic of the
> first question from an Armstrong student.
>
> "Yes, we did fix it. We found the leak using a special detector that
> listened for hiss--ultrasound," Foale replied. The leak was from a hose
> used to keep condensation from building up on a window. "Since then, we've
> replaced the hose that went to that window, so we don't have the leak
> anymore."
>
> Another youngster wanted to know what it was like to take off into space
> from Earth. Foale said the space shuttle offers a harder ride than the
> much-smaller Russian Soyuz vehicles the crews use now that the shuttle
> fleet remains grounded.
>
> "It's very very rough," Foale said, describing the shuttle take-off, which
> he compared to lying on a washing machine in spin cycle with a pair of
> sneakers inside. "On the Soyuz rocket--the Russian rocket--it's a lot
> smoother," Foale continued, "but you still feel the same pressure on your
> chest as the Gs build up. In fact, it's like having three people sitting
> on your chest at the very end--after eight minutes."
>
> Foale said that during his spare time, he enjoys using the NA1SS station
> for casual contacts, and he likes taking pictures of Earth--so he'll have
> something to remember his ISS experience.
>
> Armstrong Middle School Science Coordinator Nannette Wolak selected the
> students who participated in the contact. Local amateur and ARRL member
> Duane Fischer, W8DBF, worked with the school and ARISS to make the ISS
> contact a success. The school, which opened in 1970, was named for
> astronaut Neil Armstrong--the first human to walk on the moon.
>
> The ISS was over the US West Coast at the time, and W6SRJ at Santa Rosa
> College handled the direct uplink and downlink, and the students were
> linked via an MCI teleconference circuit. Bill Hillendahl, KH6GJV, was the
> W6SRJ control operator.
>
> Glenwood Elementary School Science Coordinator Linda Cutler, KC8RWJ, has
> been waiting about three years for her students to have a chance to speak
> with the ISS via ham radio. Among other things, the Glenwood pupils wanted
> to know about ongoing research aboard the ISS.
>
> "I'm working on experiments that grow plants that make new medicines to
> fight cancer," Foale said, "and also we're studying how we might make
> metals stronger." He noted that plants that can grow in space grow toward
> the light. He also said that cells grow differently in the zero-gravity of
> space than they do on Earth.
>
> Space exploration is part of the curriculum at the kindergarten through
> grade six school, Cutler said. Glenwood pupils were involved with
> polishing mirrors for the Starshine 3 satellite project a few years ago.
>
> Technical support for the direct contact came from the Wood County Amateur
> Radio Association and other local amateurs--among them James French,
> W8ISS, an AMSAT member and ham radio-in-space enthusiast. Larry Reitz,
> WA8CWD, was the primary liaison between the school and ARISS, and his call
> sign was used for the Earth station.
>
> ARISS <http://www.rac.ca/ariss> is an international educational outreach
> program with US participation from ARRL, NASA and AMSAT.--some information
> provided by NASA, AMSAT, Duane Fischer, W8DBF, and Bill Chaikin, KA8VIT.
>
> ==>HAMVENTION PLANNING, PREPARATIONS GOING FULL TILT
>
> Hamvention <http://www.hamvention.org> General Chairman Gary Des Combes,
> N8EMO, reports all is going smoothly as the 2004 show approaches.
> Hamvention will take place Friday through Sunday, May 14-16, at Hara Arena
> in Trotwood, near Dayton, Ohio. The theme for the 53rd Hamvention is "The
> Year of the Contact."
>
> "Things are going well, and my team is outstanding," Des Combes said in
> summing up Hamvention's preparations to date. "I really am fortunate to
> have the best volunteers in the world."
>
> Des Combes says all forum slots have been filled, and about two-thirds of
> the inside exhibit spaces have been spoken for--which, he points out, is
> ahead of last year. Des Combes says advanced ticket sales and flea market
> signups appear to be strong. "We are compiling data now, but demand is
> very high," he said. Hamvention has another mailing in the works in an
> effort to attract additional exhibitors. Des Combes also notes that the
> Hamvention Web site has been upgraded and now provides for on-line, credit
> card ticket purchases.
>
> Under the banner of its Great Lakes Division, the ARRL will offer a
> Hamvention forum, "How Grassroots Action Gets Lawmakers' Reaction," on
> Friday, May 14, 12:15 PM. Moderated by ARRL Great Lakes Division Vice
> Director Dick Mondro, W8FQT, the forum will feature an introduction by
> ARRL Great Lakes Division Director Jim Weaver, K8JE, and participation by
> ARRL General Counsel Chris Imlay, W3KD, who will discuss "How to Influence
> Congressional Representatives," ARRL New England Division Vice Director
> Mike Raisbeck, K1TWF, on "Getting State Legislators to Work with Us" and
> ARRL President Jim Haynie, W5JBP, who's titled his remarks "ARRL: Tighten
> that Cinch, and Go Do It!"
>
> The annual ARRL Forum gets under way at 8:30 AM on Saturday, May 15. Check
> the Hamvention Web site <http://www.hamvention.org> for additional
> details.
>
> ==>WEST VIRGINIA HAMS SURPRISE GOVERNOR
>
> It's not often one sees a state governor at a loss for words. Upon
> learning that the call sign of his late father, Robert Wise Sr, WA8AYP,
> was going to be used by the ham radio station in the new Kanawha County
> Metro Emergency Operations Center in Charleston, West Virginia, Gov Bob
> Wise quietly said, "I don't know quite what to say."
>
> In a February 17 ceremony, Gov Wise prepared to present a $50,000 check to
> Kanawha County officials to purchase Amateur Radio gear for the new
> EOC--set for completion next spring. However, he was interrupted by a
> voice calling him on the ham radio set up in his office for the event.
> Control operator Bill Hunter, K8BS, identified the station as WA8AYP. When
> he handed over the mike, the surprised governor responded, "This is the
> son of WA8AYP."
>
> It was then that Gov Wise learned that the call sign of his father, who
> died in 1986, had been secured for the ham station at the new EOC. It was
> an emotional moment. "Thank you very much for remembering Dad," he said.
> "I can't think of anything that would make him happier." Then he quipped,
> "Do I get a QSL card for this?"
>
> To the governor's surprise, officials then unveiled a specially designed
> WA8AYP QSL card and passed out copies, later signed by the governor for
> the eager hams in attendance.
>
> Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper, W8CHS, said Amateur Radio
> operators provide the county with $25,000 to $30,000 a year in free
> services during disasters.
>
> Some of the state funds also will provide ham gear for a new Mobile
> Command Center.
>
> On hand was the West Virginia Legislature's only ham radio operator,
> Kanawha County Delegate Sharon Spencer, KC8KVF, who also serves as the
> section's ARRL Affiliated Club Coordinator.--Jim Damron, N8TMW
>
> ==>ARRL FOUNDATION ELECTS OFFICERS, APPROVES SCHOLARSHIP
>
> The ARRL Foundation <http://www.arrl.org/arrlf/> elected the following
> officers during its annual meeting, held via teleconference on February
> 12. President: ARRL New England Division Director Tom Frenaye, K1KI; vice
> president: ARRL Dakota Division Director Jay Bellows, K0QB; treasurer:
> ARRL Treasurer Jim McCobb, W1LLU, who succeeds Roger W. Franke, K9AYK; and
> secretary: ARRL Chief Development Officer Mary Hobart, K1MMH, who succeeds
> Mary Lau, N1VH.
>
> The change in secretary reflects the first step of a plan to shift the
> administration of the ARRL Foundation from Field and Educational Services
> to the ARRL Development Office over the coming months. This will help to
> align ARRL and Foundation efforts to provide a single contact point for
> fund-raising activities. The Foundation Board recognized and expressed its
> appreciation for the exceptional service and support that outgoing
> secretary Mary Lau has provided to the Foundation over the past 15 years.
>
> In other action, the board approved the adoption of the new Indian River
> Amateur Radio Club (IRARC) Memorial Joseph P. Rubino Scholarship. Existing
> funds were transferred to the foundation from the Florida club, which has
> asked the Foundation to administer the pre-existing scholarship.
>
> ==>SOLAR UPDATE
>
> Sun watcher Tad "Sunshine On My Shoulders" Cook, K7RA, Seattle,
> Washington, reports: Propagation should be good for the ARRL International
> DX Contest (SSB). Geomagnetic conditions are expected to be quiet, with
> predicted planetary A index at 10 for Friday, March 5, and just 8 for the
> following three days. Solar flux is expected to rise to 105 for Friday and
> 110 for the following three days. Solar flux is currently expected to stay
> above 100 until March 17.
>
> Average daily sunspot numbers for the past week were up nearly 15 points
> to 76.9, compared to the earlier week, and average daily solar flux
> increased more than 5 points. Geomagnetic indices were about double this
> week over last. A solar wind stream caused this, but no geomagnetic storm
> erupted. Around March 10-11, Earth should enter another solar wind, and
> this could cause a geomagnetic storm, possibly lasting until March 12.
>
> Sunspot numbers for February 26 through March 3 were 105, 90, 104, 81, 66,
> 50 and 42, with a mean of 76.9. The 10.7 cm flux was 120.8, 122.2, 115.8,
> 110, 101.8, 98.8 and 90.4, with a mean of 108.5. Estimated planetary A
> indices were 5, 11, 20, 21, 18, 17 and 15, with a mean of 15.3.
>
> __________________________________
>
> ==>IN BRIEF:
>
> * This weekend on the radio: The ARRL International DX Contest (SSB), the
> Makrothen RTTY Contest, the Open Ukraine RTTY Championship, the DARC
> 10-Meter Digital Contest are the weekend of March 6-7. The RSGB 80-Meter
> Club Championship (CW) is March 10, and the Pesky Texan Armadillo Chase is
> March 11. JUST AHEAD: The YL-ISSB QSO Party (SSB), the RSGB Commonwealth
> Contest, the AGCW QRP Contest, the Oklahoma and Wisconsin QSO parties, the
> SOC Marathon Sprint, the North American Sprint (RTTY) the UBA Spring
> Contest (CW) and the NSARA Contest are the weekend of March 13-14. See the
> ARRL Contest Branch page <http://www.arrl.org/contests/> and the WA7BNM
> Contest Calendar <http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for
> more info.
>
> * ARRL Emergency Communications Course registration: Registration opens
> Monday, March 8, 12:01 AM Eastern Time (0501 UTC), for the Level II
> Emergency Communications on-line course (EC-002). Registration remains
> open through the March 13-14 weekend or until all seats are
> filled--whichever occurs first. Class begins Tuesday, March 23. Thanks to
> our grant sponsors--the Corporation for National and Community Service and
> the United Technologies Corporation--the $45 registration fee paid upon
> enrollment will be reimbursed after successful completion of the course.
> During this registration period, approximately 60 seats are being offered
> to ARRL members on a first-come, first-served basis. To learn more, visit
> the ARRL Certification and Continuing Education (C-CE)
> <http://www.arrl.org/cce/> Web page and the C-CE Links found there. For
> more information, contact Emergency Communications Course Manager Dan
> Miller, K3UFG, dmiller@arrl.org, 860-594-0340.
>
> * Hollingsworth issues interference reminder: FCC Special Counsel for
> Enforcement Riley Hollingsworth says no Amateur Radio stations are exempt
> from the requirement to avoid unnecessarily interfering with ongoing
> communications. "It is very important for all stations, including
> automated ones, to realize that they are responsible for any interference
> caused when they come on top of existing communications," Hollingsworth
> said in response to a recent inquiry. 'There are no exemptions for
> automated stations." FCC Part 97
> <http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/regulations/news/part97/> Amateur
> Service rules generally address interference with other communications in
> �97.101(d): "No amateur operator shall willfully or maliciously interfere
> with or cause interference to any radio communication or signal." An
> amateur had written to Hollingsworth alleging that what appear to be
> automated PACTOR stations routinely start transmitting atop PSK31 QSOs on
> 40 and 30 meters. The amateur also contacted one of the PACTOR stations in
> an effort to "dialogue about it not just complain." Hollingsworth
> expressed the hope that all involved could work things out. He also points
> out that stations responding to automated interrogations are equally
> responsible for not causing interference. "It doesn't mean the frequency
> is clear merely because they were interrogated by another station," he
> told ARRL this week. "It's a two-way responsibility."
>
> * Bogus ARRL.net messages circulating via e-mail: Several members have
> notified ARRL that they have received e-mail messages alleging to be from
> the ARRL E-Mail Forwarding Service
> <http://www.arrl.org/members-only/emailfwd.html>, "The ARRL.net team" or
> some variation. The messages, which often carry a subject line along the
> lines of "Warning about your e-mail account," indicate that the
> recipient's ARRL E-Mail Forwarding Service <call sign>@arrl.net address
> will be closed within three days because of an alleged violation of
> acceptable practices. These messages are false and did not come from The
> ARRL Forwarding Service. They are the result of one of the variants on a
> number of viruses now permeating the Internet. A file usually is attached
> to these messages. As always, do not open any attachments that you cannot
> identify. Opening the file could result in your computer being infected by
> a virus. This is only one of the several virus-laden messages currently
> propagating across the Internet. The ARRL advises its members to be
> cautious in opening any message and/or attachment, even if it appears to
> be from someone you know. All of these viruses use e-mail addresses from
> the address book of an infected computer to falsify the "From:" address in
> the header to make it appear that the message is from someone the
> recipient knows.
>
> * Musical pioneer Alvino Rey, W6UK, SK: Alvino Rey, W6UK, of Sandy, Utah,
> died February 24. He was 95 and had been in failing health. An ARRL
> member, Rey was a well-known musician for several decades and was
> considered "the father of the pedal steel guitar." Born Alvin McBurney in
> California and raised in Cleveland, Rey was an inveterate tinkerer who
> gained a reputation both as a musician and an electronics whiz who got his
> ham ticket at an early age. During the Big Band era he was a star of the
> Horace Heidt and his Musical Knights and later formed his own ensemble.
> The Alvino Rey Orchestra's biggest hit, "Deep in the Heart of Texas," came
> in 1942, but his trademark was novelty music and creating new sounds. At
> one point during World War II, however, he found himself out of the music
> business and working as a mechanic in an aircraft factory. He subsequently
> joined the US Navy and led a service band. Rey and his orchestra were
> featured during the 1960s' "The King Family Show" on TV, and he was
> married to Luise King, who died in 1997. An active amateur, Rey and his
> "talking guitar" performed at more than one ARRL Southwestern Division
> convention in past decades. "He was great and a lot of fun as well as a
> long-time League member," recalled ARRL Honorary Vice President and former
> Southwestern Division Director Fried Heyn, WA6WZO, who also remembers
> hearing Rey talking to his friends on HF.
>
> * Clifford E. Fay, K7BQ, SK: Cliff Fay, K7BQ, of Peoria, Arizona, died
> February 28. One of the oldest members of the Amateur Radio community, Fay
> turned 100 last December 2. An ARRL member, Fay remained active on the air
> until very recently. He was an active DXer and a regular participant in
> the Lions Club's annual Hunting Lions in the Air contest. First licensed
> as 9ARG in 1919 when he was 16 and living in St Louis, Fay had held a ham
> ticket continuously since then--nearly 85 years. "Cliff was a truly great
> person," said his friend Ken Hopper, KD7KH. "His mind was sharp as a tack
> to the very end of his life." Hopper said Fay made arrangements for him to
> donate his Amateur Radio gear to an organization that encourages young
> people to become licensed. Survivors include a son, Ted, and a daughter,
> Barbara. Fay's family requests memorial donations in Cliff Fay's name to
> the Sierra Winds Charitable Foundation, 17300 N 88th Ave, Box PL 2,
> Peoria, AZ 85382.
>
> * Hawaii Amateur Radio antenna bills advance: Two Amateur Radio antenna
> bills under consideration in the Hawaii State Legislature soon will move
> from a House to a Senate committee, according to their sponsor, Rep Ken
> Hiraki. House bills 2773 and 2774 would provide for Amateur Radio antennas
> in housing developments, condominiums and subdivisions governed by
> covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs). HB 2773 would allows
> condominium apartment owners who are licensed Amateur Radio operators to
> install antennas on their apartment units. HB 2774 would permit the
> installation of amateur radio equipment in subdivisions. Following a March
> 1 hearing in the Hawaii House Committee on Consumer Protection and
> Commerce, committee members amended the bills to have an effective date of
> 2099, unanimously approved them and advanced them for consideration by a
> Senate committee. The 2099 effective date will permit additional time for
> the committees to amend the bills and integrate them with other
> CC&R-related legislation. The ARRL submitted written testimony on behalf
> of the measures (see "ARRL Submits Testimony Supporting Hawaii Antenna
> Bills" <http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/02/27/4/>).
>
> * New 241-GHz distance record claimed: Perennial microwave-band record
> seeker Brian Justin, WA1ZMS, has claimed a new world and North American DX
> record for the 241 GHz band. On February 17, WA1ZMS/4 in EM96wx worked
> W2SZ/4 in FM07fm at a distance of 79.6 km (49.35 miles). The two stations
> used slow-speed CW (QRSS). Pete Lascell, W4WWQ, was the W2SZ operator.
> Both stations used Spectran <http://www.qsl.net/padan/spectran.html>
> software to aid in receiving the slow-speed CW, in which a dit lasted
> about one second and each dah lingered for three. "The entire QSO took
> well over an hour to complete, with both stations having to send the
> exchanges several times," Justin said. "Some portions of the CW were
> copied by ear, but the DSP software came through in the end to help make
> the QSO happen." Justin says the QSO marked the fifth grid W2SZ needed for
> the ARRL VUCC Award <http://www.arrl.org/awards/vucc/> for 241 GHz--the
> first VUCC on that band. Additional details are on the Mount Greylock
> Expeditionary Force Web site <http://www.mgef.org/zms_241_vucc.htm>.
>
> * Vote on QST Cover Plaque Award: The winner of the QST Cover Plaque Award
> for February is Dan Clark, W9VV, for his article " A Historic Receiver
> from a Radio Pioneer--Fred Schnell." Congratulations, Dan! The winner of
> the QST Cover Plaque award--given to the author--or authors--of the best
> article in each issue--is determined by a vote of ARRL members. Voting
> takes place each month on the QST Cover Plaque Poll Web page
> <http://www.arrl.org/members-only/qstvote.html>. Cast a ballot for your
> favorite article in the March issue of QST. Voting ends March 31.
>
> ===========================================================
> The ARRL Letter is published Fridays, 50 times each year, by the American
> Radio Relay League--The National Association For Amateur Radio--225 Main
> St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259;
> <http://www.arrl.org>. Jim Haynie, W5JBP, President.
>
> The ARRL Letter offers a weekly e-mail digest of essential news of
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> weekly "ham radio newscast" compiled from The ARRL Letter.
>
> Material from The ARRL Letter may be republished or reproduced in whole or
> in part in any form without additional permission. Credit must be given to
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>
> ==>Delivery problems (ARRL member direct delivery only!):
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> ==>Editorial questions or comments: Rick Lindquist, N1RL, n1rl@arrl.org
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