[SFDXA] The ARRL Letter for June 18, 2015
Bill
bmarx at bellsouth.net
Thu Jun 18 21:50:08 EDT 2015
Preview
If you are having trouble reading this message, you can see the original at:
http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2015-06-18
The ARRL Letter
June 18, 2015
Editor: Rick Lindquist, WW1ME <mailto:ww1me at arrl.org>
ARRL Home Page <http://www.arrl.org/>
/ARRL Letter/ Archive <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>
Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>
Ad <http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&i=2015-06-18&t=t>
* FCC Chairman, Lawmakers Agree to Scale Back Field Office Shutdowns
<#toc01>
* Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, IZ0UDF, Sets New Record for Woman
in Space <#toc02>
* /W1AW Portable Operations/ Booklet Now Available <#toc03>
* /Amateur Radio Newsline/ Co-Founder, Editor Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF,
SK <#toc04>
* West Virginia Section Manager Charles Hardy, WV8CH, SK <#toc05>
* Ed James, KA8JMW, Appointed as New Mexico Section Manager <#toc06>
* Oklahoma Amateur Radio Clubs Join Forces to Support Cycling Event
<#toc07>
* Colorado Radio Amateur Aids in Search <#toc08>
* Medium-Wave Experimenters to Transmit Field Day Greetings <#toc09>
* Colorado to Host USA Amateur Radio Direction Finding Championships
in August <#toc10>
* In Brief... <#toc11>
* The K7RA Solar Update <#toc12>
* Just Ahead in Radiosport <#toc13>
* Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events
<#toc14>
FCC Chairman, Lawmakers Agree to Scale Back Field Office Shutdowns
Leaders of the US House Energy and Commerce Committee have reached
agreement with FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler to amend the Commission's plans
-- announced in March -- to close a number of FCC field offices. Under
the revised plan, the FCC will keep 15 of its 24 field offices open.
According to a Committee media release, the plan would "ensure better
rapid response capabilities for the West, provide a mechanism for
escalating interference complaints, improve enforcement of the FCC's
rules against pirate radio operators, and prevent the Commission from
transferring field office jobs to FCC Headquarters." The FCC had been
under pressure from lawmakers and others to step back from its plan to
shutter the field offices.
"We found a good solution that makes sense. These changes will keep
field offices open in strategic locations and help ensure that the
commission can fulfill its responsibilities to the public and public
safety communities," said Communications and Technology Subcommittee
Chairman Greg Walden, W7EQI. "This agreement strikes a balance between
the important work of FCC field agents and streamlining field operations
to ensure the efficient use of taxpayer dollars. Positive outcomes often
result from collaborative work. This agreement represents just such an
effort."
As a result of the announced agreement, a June 11 hearing of Walden's
subcommittee to address the proposed closings was cancelled. ARRL
General Counsel Chris Imlay, W3KD, was among those prepared to testify
at the session.
The closure plans were revealed earlier this year via an apparently
leaked internal FCC Enforcement Bureau (EB) memorandum that indicated
the Bureau planned to ask the full Commission to cut two-thirds of its
field offices and eliminate nearly one-half of its field agents. At the
same time, the Bureau would develop a so-called "Tiger Team" of field
agents as a flexible strike force it could deploy as needed.
*Greg Walden, W7EQI, chairs the House Communications and Technology
Subcommittee*
After the League learned of the field office closure plans, ARRL CEO
David Sumner, K1ZZ, expressed dismay at the proposals, coming, he said,
"at a time when the Field staff is facing ever-increasing challenges."
Sumner also had expressed concern "that there is already no sense of
urgency in the FCC's enforcement activities targeting spectrum
polluters, such as utilities with noisy power lines, or the few
violators in our own ranks." The League has been working behind the
scenes at the FCC and on Capitol Hill to make a case that more
enforcement leads to better compliance in all services.
Under the proposals, initiated last fall, the field office geographic
footprint would have been reduced from 24 sites to 8 sites, with the EB
set to "pre-position" equipment in several other strategic locations.
Offices already slated to remain open are New York City; Columbia,
Maryland -- the site of the Bureau's HF Direction-Finding Center;
Chicago; Atlanta; Miami; Dallas; Los Angeles, and San Francisco. The
other offices the FCC plans to keep open have not yet been announced.
Read more
<http://www.arrl.org/news/fcc-chairman-lawmakers-announce-agreement-to-scale-back-field-office-shutdowns>.
Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, IZ0UDF, Sets New Record for Woman in Space
European Space Agency Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, IZ0UDF, who
returned to Earth June 11 with her crewmates -- NASA Astronaut Terry
Virts, and Russian Cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov -- has set a new record
for the longest single space mission by a woman. Cristoforetti's duty
tour on the International Space Station was extended by about a month,
following the failure in late April of the Russian robotic /Progress 59/
cargo spacecraft to reach the ISS. The /Progress/ went out of control,
eventually burning up in Earth's atmosphere.
"Early start into Day 200 in #space
<https://twitter.com/hashtag/space?src=hash>," Cristoforetti tweeted
before boarding the /Soyuz/ vehicle for the trip home. "It's been an
amazing journey, thx for coming along! Now time to go home to Earth."
*Record-setter: ESA Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, IZ0UDF, sips
espresso on board the International Space Station. [NASA photo]*
While in space, Cristoforetti, 38, conducted several Amateur Radio on
the International Space Station (ARISS <http://www.ariss.org>) school
contacts. She was to have returned to Earth in early May.
Cristoforetti, from Italy, set the record on June 6, when she surpassed
the previous record of 194 days, 18 hours, 2 minutes, logged by NASA
astronaut Suni Williams, KD5PLB, during her time aboard the
International Space Station in 2007. Cristoforetti's new record will
come up just short of 200 hours, counting her flight back to Earth.
Cristoforetti, Shkaplerov, and Virts took off late last November from
Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Her departure from the ISS will leave
Russian cosmonauts to support the ARISS program until late July, when
Kjell Lindgren, KO5MOS; Oleg Kononenko, RN3DX, and Kimiya Yui arrive at
the ISS as part of a scheduled crew rotation. Before flights were
reshuffled, they had been scheduled to arrive in May. All three are set
to return December 22.
NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonauts Mikhail Kornienko,
RN3BF, and Gennady Padalka, RN3DT, arrived on the station in March as
part of the Expedition 43/44 crew increment. Kelly and Kornienko will
remain on the ISS for 1 year. Padalka also will return to Earth in December.
The next Russian cargo craft, /Progress 60/, will launch in early July
to deliver several tons of food, fuel, and supplies. The space station
has sufficient supplies to support crews until the fall.
/W1AW Portable Operations/ Booklet Now Available
///The W1AW Portable Operations/
<http://www.arrl.org/shop/The-W1AW-Portable-Operations/> commemorative
booklet, which chronicles the central activity of the year-long ARRL
Centennial QSO Party, is now available. The Centennial celebration may
be over, but the memories can live on with this keepsake publication,
which features 40 pages of stats, stories, and photos from the hams who
put W1AW/p on the air, bringing enjoyment to many thousands of hams.
/The W1AW Portable Operations/
<http://www.arrl.org/shop/The-W1AW-Portable-Operations/> is available
from the ARRL Store <http://www.arrl.org/shop> (ARRL Item No 0383; $9.95
retail), or call 860-594-0355 (toll-free in the US, 888-277-5289).
E-mail ARRL Publication Sales <mailto:pubsales at arrl.org> for more
information.
Ad <http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2015-06-18&p=0>
/Amateur Radio Newsline/ Co-Founder, Editor Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, SK
A well-known voice in the Amateur Radio news media has gone silent. Bill
Pasternak, WA6ITF, of Santa Clarita, California, died June 11 following
a period of ill health. He was 73. Pasternak was co-founder (with Jim
Hendershot, WA6VQP) of /Amateur Radio Newsline™/ (formerly /The/
/Westlink Report/) ham radio news webcast and a frequent presence at
Amateur Radio conventions. Pasternak served as /Newsline/'s managing
editor and as an occasional newscaster. ARRL Rocky Mountain Division
Director Brian Mileshosky, N5ZGT, became acquainted with Pasternak at
the Albuquerque hamfest, and in 1997 was named /Newsline/'s "Young Ham
of the Year" (YHOTY).
*Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF.*
"An incredible man, ham, and one of Amateur Radio's too-few giants, who
woke up every day to make the hobby better for everyone, especially its
legacy -- youth," Mileshosky said of Pasternak. "I've enjoyed the energy
he put into keeping hams informed via /Newsline/ and have been honored
to give back to his /Newsline/ Young Ham of the Year Award program,
since being asked by him to sit on its judging panel well over a decade
ago."
A Brooklyn, New York, native, Pasternak became a radio amateur in 1959
as WA2HVK. "I love the hands-on approach to ham radio and built my very
first transmitter using parts salvaged from an old Dumont television
set," Pasternak recounted in an online biography
<http://www.arnewsline.org/staffbios/bill-pasternak-wa6itf.html>. He
eventually made his career in television engineering and production,
retiring from KTTV in Los Angeles in 2012.
Pasternak was the spark plug behind the all-volunteer /Amateur Radio
Newsline/ bulletin -- which was relayed on repeaters around the US and
elsewhere -- as well as the creator and administrator of the annual
Young Ham of the Year Award. He was the author of three books and served
as a writer/producer on several educational films and videos, including
the award-winning "Amateur Radio Today." In earlier years, he wrote the
"Looking West" column for /73 Amateur Radio Today Magazine/ and the
"VHF, FM, and Repeater" column for /WorldRadio/.
<http://arvideonews.com/hrn/HRN_Episode_0209.html>
*/Ham Radio Now/ devotes its **latest episode*
<http://arvideonews.com/hrn/HRN_Episode_0209.html>*to reflections on
Bill Pasternak's life (Click on image to view)*.
Pasternak was the only person ever chosen to receive both the Dayton
Hamvention Special Achievement (1981) and Radio Amateur of the Year
(1989) awards.
Survivors include his wife of 43 years, Sharon, KD6EPW.
ARRL Hudson Division Director Mike Lisenco, N2YBB, remarked, "Some would
say that you measure an individual by the amount of wealth they've
acquired. I would say that the true measure of value of an individual is
by the amount lives they've touched. If that is the case, then Bill died
a very wealthy man."
The future of the /Amateur Radio Newsline/ broadcast, out of production
since its May 22 edition, has not been determined.
/Ham Radio Now/ producer Gary Pearce, KN4AQ, has devoted his latest
webcast episode <http://arvideonews.com/hrn/HRN_Episode_0209.html> to
reflections on Pasternak's life from six people who knew him well. Read
more
<http://www.arrl.org/news/amateur-radio-newsline-co-founder-editor-bill-pasternak-wa6itf-sk>.
West Virginia Section Manager Charles Hardy, WV8CH, SK
ARRL West Virginia Section Manager Charles L. "Charlie" Hardy, WV8CH
(ex-KD8MOA), of Fayetteville, died June 14, apparently as the
*Charles Hardy, WV8CH.*
result of an accidental electrocution while he was working on an antenna
at his home. He was 50 and had been a radio amateur since 2008.
Hardy became West Virginia SM in October 2013, and he was the only
candidate to continue in that position for another 2-year term. He was
very active in the National Traffic System (NTS) 8th Region Net and had
served as West Virginia Section Traffic Manager since 2012, a post he
continued to hold when he became SM. He also was an ARRL Official
Observer and had served since 2009 as a District Emergency Coordinator
for District 7.
Hardy was the President of the Plateau Amateur Radio Association (PARA
<http://www.parawv.com/>) and of the Summit Repeater Association.
Survivors include his wife, Jane, WV8JH. A successor to Hardy as West
Virginia SM will be appointed.
Ed James, KA8JMW, Appointed as New Mexico Section Manager
A new Section Manager has been appointed in New Mexico. Ed James,
KA8JMW, of Albuquerque, was named on June 11 to succeed Bill Kauffman,
W5YEJ, who has resigned citing increased family responsibilities.
Kauffman had served as New Mexico's SM since 2012, and was the Section
Emergency Coordinator for many years prior to that. James will complete
the remainder of the current term, which continues through the end of
the year.
*ARRL New Mexico Section Manager Ed James, KA8JMW.*
ARRL Field Services and Radiosport Department Manager Dave Patton, NN1N,
made the appointment after consulting with Rocky Mountain Division
Director Brian Mileshosky, N5ZGT, and Vice Director Dwayne Allen, WY7FD.
A ham for 35 years, James has served as an Assistant Section Manager of
New Mexico since 2012, and currently serves as an Assistant Director in
the Rocky Mountain Division. He recently concluded a 30-year electrical
engineering career at Sandia National Laboratories.
James comes from a ham radio family. His late father was WD8MMG. His
wife Carol is N5ZYP, and all five of the couple's daughters hold ham
tickets and are ARRL members. Field Day is among his passions. "Most
weekends I can be found operating from somewhere in the mountains of New
Mexico," James said in his QRZ.com biography. "I love operating from the
field."
Petitions to nominate
<http://www.arrl.org/section-terms-nomination-information> candidates to
serve as New Mexico Section Manager for the next 2-year term should be
submitted to ARRL Headquarters by September.
Ad <http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2015-06-18&p=1>
Oklahoma Amateur Radio Clubs Join Forces to Support Cycling Event
Two Oklahoma Amateur Radio clubs got together during the June 13-14
weekend to support communication for the Saint Francis Tulsa Tough
<http://tulsatough.com/> cycling event. Some 1400 riders registered for
the road events. More than 20 volunteers from the Tulsa Amateur Radio
Club (TARC <http://w5ias.com/>) and the Tulsa Repeater Organization (TRO
<http://www.tulsahamradio.org/>) carried out radio operations to support
logistics and rider safety over the 2-day competition. Marking its 10th
anniversary this year, the Tulsa Tough serves, in part, as a public
health-awareness campaign of Saint Francis Hospital.
Road events range up to 110 miles in a loop circuit that begins in the
center of Tulsa and covers four counties in two different rides. Among
other things, hams help to recover riders who are unable to complete the
course. At the command post, net control operators use ham radio to
coordinate support activities ensuring rider safety.
Serving as the backbone for radio operations was TARC's large,
regionally linked UHF system. Complementing that was TRO's VHF system,
with remote receivers to serve the logistics net of operators stationed
at rest stops along the route. These operators monitor and report on
rider status and supplies and relay any medical information from the
on-scene nurse. TRO also provided a smaller, linked UHF system, on the
second day of the event to cover areas at points most distant from
Tulsa, in eastern Osage County.
*Live streaming video of a Tulsa Tough event via Icedot.org.*
In the months leading up to the event, Tulsa County ARES Assistant
Emergency Coordinator and TARC President Bart Pickens, N5TWB, served as
the primary Amateur Radio interface with event organizers. This included
recruiting volunteers, establishing an operations plan, and arranging
for radio equipment and antennas to outfit vehicles.
The Safety and SAG recovery ham operators responded to the usual reports
of mechanical and tire troubles, supplying tubes that could put riders
back on the road, or transporting them to rest stops, where further
mechanical assistance was available. The worst injury reported was a
broken wrist, but many riders suffered the effects of Oklahoma's heat
and humidity. The ham radio volunteers also kept an eye on a developing
weather event affecting the end of the ride with heavy rain, lightning,
and wind. Read more
<http://www.arrl.org/news/oklahoma-amateur-radio-clubs-join-forces-to-support-cycling-event>.
/-- Thanks to Bart Pickens, N5TWB, and Oklahoma SEC Mark Conklin, N7XYO/
Colorado Radio Amateur Aids in Search
Colorado Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) volunteer Neal Tew,
KD0MBL, responded on June 11 to a call from a search-and-rescue team
that needed a radio operator. Colorado ARES R5D1 Emergency Coordinator
Amanda Alden, K1DDN, said she got a call on her local UHF repeater from
Dave Dickens, KE0AEG, and Pat Caulfield, KE0AEE, from Fremont County
Search and Rescue.
*Neal Tew, KD0MBL (right), with Fremont County SAR members Pat
Caulfield, KE0AEE (left, pointing), and Dave Walker.* *[Photo courtesy
of Amanda Alden, K1DDN]*
"SAR was conducting a search for a possible body in the Arkansas River,"
Alden said. "They were short-handed and wondering if any ARES personnel
could operate their radios during the search." She stressed that the
volunteer would not be operating on Amateur Radio frequencies, just
operating the search and rescue team's radios.
"The Arkansas River is a very popular river to raft, with over 150,000
rafters a year," Alden told ARRL. "The Colorado snow runoff has just
begun and the river is running at its highest and fastest of the year."
So, Alden called Tew, whom she referred to as "the best operator I knew
outside of my district," and he was available and agreed to help. He was
assigned to the Incident Command Post and handled and logged all traffic
on the state digital radio network for about 4 hours.
"He did a fantastic job and made ARES shine for our first time working
with Fremont SAR," Alden said. Tew worked the mission from about
0930-1330. Caulfield said Tew was a quick study and was up and running
within 15 minutes.
Alden said that searchers were unable to locate anything, and the search
was eventually called off due to high water.
Medium-Wave Experimenters to Transmit Field Day Greetings
Once again this year, a group
<http://njdtechnologies.net/mf-and-lf-demonstration-opportunity-for-arrl-field-day-2015-the-field-day-greetings/>
of medium-wave experimental licensees will transmit greetings on 630
meters during the ARRL Field Day <http://www.arrl.org/field-day>
weekend, June 27-28. While the 472 to 479 kHz band is not yet available
for Amateur Radio use, John Langridge, KB5NJD, said he'd like to
continue promoting awareness of the proposed ham band. In April, the FCC
proposed a new 630 meter Amateur Service MW allocation at 472 to 479
kHz, and it allocated a new LF band, 135.7 to 137.8 kHz -- both on a
secondary basis. Langridge this year is hoping that some LF
experimenters will also take part in the exercise. No Amateur Radio
operation will be permitted in either band until the FCC establishes
specific operating rules. Some of the stations involved in the Field Day
activity, including Langridge, are associated with the ARRL 600 Meter
Experimental Group <http://www.500kc.com/> (WD2XSH).
ARRL 600 Meter Experiment (WD2XSH) Coordinator Fritz Raab, W1FR, said
that while the FCC's April /Report and Order, Order, and Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking/
<http://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/comment/view;ECFSSESSION=mQyDVDSLRNvSQXB7WskxBcTHwjtrhT7cyXlys2H52tGBGbnSwdGJ%21-160118126%21-1673700907?id=60001030137>
is a step in the right direction, it could be some time before hams have
a 630 meter ham band in the US. "With that in mind," he told ARRL this
week, "we plan to renew the WD2XSH license and continue operations much
as we have been, until such time as the 630 meter band becomes a reality."
Langridge said last year he got about 60 reports on his own
transmissions from Texas. "It seems the longer we do this, the more legs
that grow on it, and participation has really increased," he said. The
point is to make active, relevant signals available to existing Field
Day stations that might have a large pool of operators, many still
having no idea that anything is going on below the broadcast band."
Langridge said Field Day stations could try using an HF transceiver
capable of covering the 472-479 kHz range to listen for participating
stations. He stressed that stations can use "whatever antennas that they
have on site -- a dipole, a tribander, a vertical, whatever -- as the
impedance mismatch may help improve the signal-to-noise ratio enough for
effective copy."
Langridge said that in 2014 he received an /Argo/ screen shot of his CW
signal from Utah. "Reporting is important, since we all like to know who
is listening and how we are doing," he said. Stations hearing any of the
MW (or possible LW) Field Day "greeters" may report their reception
<http://w5jgv.com/enterlogs.htm> online. Read more
<http://www.arrl.org/news/medium-wave-experimenters-to-transmit-field-day-greetings>.
Ad <http://www.arrl.org/nladclick.php?n=al&t=i&i=2015-06-18&p=2>
Colorado to Host USA Amateur Radio Direction Finding Championships in August
Registration <http://www.homingin.com/farsnews> is open for the 15th USA
and 8th IARU Region 2 Amateur Radio Direction Finding (ARDF)
championships, August 27-30, in Elbert, Colorado. The event will take
place at the Peaceful Valley Scout Ranch, a 3300-acre site at 7000 feet
elevation, about 40 miles southeast of Denver.
An optional ARDF "training camp" will take place on Monday through
Wednesday, August 24-26, just prior to the competition, with separate
morning and afternoon sessions planned for each day. Participants may
attend as many sessions as they wish. Training sessions will concentrate
on how to take reliable bearings, interpret reflected signals, and
determine likely transmitter locations, as well as on course strategies,
route choices, and other essentials for success.
The championship competition begins on Thursday, August 27 with foxoring
<http://www.homingin.com/sprints.html#foxoring> -- a combination of RDF
and classic orienteering on 80 meters, in which participants navigate to
marked locations on their maps where very low power transmitters can be
found nearby. A 10-transmitter short-course sprint competition
<http://www.homingin.com/sprints.html> on 80 meters takes place the next
day.
The classic full-course 2 meter main event gets under way on Saturday
morning, with five transmitters in a very large forest. The banquet and
awards presentation follows that evening. A similar full-course 80 meter
main event takes place Sunday morning; an awards presentation follows.
The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU <http://www.iaru.org>) sets
ARDF championship rules <http://www.homingin.com/intlfox.html#rules>.
Participants are divided into 11 age/gender categories
<http://www.homingin.com/intlfox.html#categories>. In classic ARDF
championships, competitors start in small groups made up of different
categories. Working independently, they navigate through the course -- a
distance of between 4 and 10 kilometers -- seeking hidden transmitters.
They plot their direction-finding bearings on provided orienteering maps
that show terrain features, elevation contours, and vegetation type.
The USA ARDF Championships are open to anyone of any age who can safely
navigate the woods alone; a ham radio license is not required.
Participants compete as individuals and bring their own
direction-finding gear to the events.
More information is on the Event Information Page
<http://www.homingin.com/usachamps2015>. All entering the ranch must be
registered. For additional information on ARDF, visit the Homing In
<http://www.homingin.com/> website. /-- Thanks to ARRL Amateur Radio
Direction Finding Coordinator //Joe Moell, K0OV/ <mailto:k0ov at homingin.com>
In Brief...
*NCDXF Makes Major Grant to 2016 Juan de Nova Island DXpedition* The
Northern California DX Foundation (NCDXF <http://www.ncdxf.org>) has
donated $25,000 to the Juan de Nova Island (FT4/J) DXpedition
<http://www.juandenovadx.com/en/>, planned for March 2016. Located off
the eastern coast of Mozambique, Juan de Nova is among the Top 10
most-wanted DXCC entities. "Without major financial support from NCDXF,
DXpeditions like this to challenging or rare locations would not be
possible," NCDXF Vice President Glenn Johnson, W0GJ, said in announcing
the grant. "Juan de Nova is a very small and very environmentally
fragile area. There are strict limitations to the number of visitors and
the time allowable on the island. The team's antenna plans, pilot
feedback plans, and enthusiasm should make this entity available to many
DXers." Johnson said donations from Amateur Radio clubs make such
DXpeditions possible. /-- Thanks to NCDXF Vice President Glenn Johnson,
W0GJ /
//
*HamGallery Dayton 2015 Photo Gallery is Now Available:* Tom Roscoe,
K8CX, reports that the Dayton 2015 Photo Gallery
<http://hamgallery.com/dayton2015/> has been posted on his HamGallery
website. Tom's Dayton photo galleries date back to 1997 and contain
nearly 4500 photos. You can access these annual photo databases from the
HamGallery <http://www.hamgallery.com/> homepage, and you can search
within individual annual photo galleries.
*Sheldon Shallon, W6EL, SK:* ARRL has learned that Sheldon "Shel"
Shallon, W6EL, of Los Angeles died on April 11. He was 89. Shallon
developed the /W6ELprop/ <http://brucerichards.com/army/w6elprop.htm>
radio propagation software (originally /miniProp/) that has remained
popular with radio amateurs for decades and is still available. An ARRL
Charter Life Member, Shallon had reached the top run of the DXCC Honor
Roll. Shallon was a Hughes Aircraft scientist in the early days of space
exploration. According to various sources, Shallon managed to hide a US
flag in his company's /Surveyor 1/ unmanned lunar lander. The secret was
not revealed until after the mission was successful. Survivors include
his wife, Sylvia./-- Thanks to Steve Lawrence, WB6RSE/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The K7RA Solar Update
Tad Cook, K7RA, Seattle, reports: Depending on which measure we choose,
solar activity weakened a little or increased slightly over the past
week. The June 11-17 average daily sunspot number declined from 112.4
over the previous 7 days to 99.9, while average daily solar flux rose
from 131.4 to 135.9 over the same period.
The current outlook from NOAA and USAF has solar flux at 135 on June 18;
130 on June 19-21; 125 on June 22; 120 on June 23-24; then 115, 90, and
95 on June 25-27; 100 on June 28-29; then 110, 115, and 120 on June
30-July 2; 125 on July 3-4; 120 on July 5-6; 125 on July 7, and 130 on
July 8-10. Flux values then dip below 100 for July 19-24, and rise above
100 after July 26.
All of this looks pretty weak when compared to Cycles 21-23, but is
normal for Cycle 24, which peaked in April and May of 2013 and again --
about 40 points -- higher in February and March of 2014. This is based
on a 3-month moving average of Boulder sunspot numbers. For a straight
monthly average, we see a May 2013 peak of 125.6 and a February 2014
peak of 174.6.
Since then, numbers have steadily declined, with the weekly sunspot
number average for the last 7 weeks at 60.9, 146.9, 92.1, 56.1, 34.3,
112.4, and 99.9.
Predicted planetary A index is 12 on June 18; 5 on June 19-July 4; then
25, 15, 12, 10, and 5 on July 5-9, and 8, 15, 12, and 8 on July 10-13.
After this, planetary A index drops to 5, where it will remain until
early August, when it is predicted to rise to 25, indicating a
geomagnetic storm. But early August seems a long way off.
At 0933 UTC on June 18, SpaceWeatherLive.com
<http://www.spaceweatherlive.com/> issued a proton storm alert, saying a
small, S1-class proton storm was in progress. Indeed, looking at their
Electron Proton and Alpha Monitor (EPAM) display at 1000 UTC, we see a
rise in activity beginning after 0400 UTC and continuing.
In Friday's bulletin, look for reports from readers and an updated
forecast. Send <mailto:k7ra at arrl.net> me your reports and observations.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just Ahead in Radiosport
*
June 19 -- NCCC RTTY Sprint
*
June 19 -- NCCC Sprint Ladder (CW)
*
June 20 -- Feld Hell Sprint
*
June 20 -- AGCW VHF/UHF Contest (CW)
*
June 20-21 -- All Asian DX Contest (CW)
*
June 20-21 -- Ukrainian DX Classic RTTY Contest
*
June 20-21 -- Stew Perry Topband Challenge (CW)
*
June 20-21 -- West Virginia QSO Party (CW, SSB, digital)
*
June 21 -- WAB 50 MHz Phone
*
June 21 -- Kids Day
*
June 22 -- Run for the Bacon QRP Contest (CW)
*
June 24 -- SKCC Sprint (CW)
*
June 24-25 -- CWops Mini-CWT Test
See the ARRL Contest Calendar <http://www.arrl.org/contest-calendar> for
more information.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events
*
July 4 -- Eastern Pennsylvania Section Convention
<http://www.w3uu.org>, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
*
July 10-11 -- Northern Florida Section Convention
<http://miltonarc.org>, Milton, Florida
*
July 13-16 -- Mobile Amateur Radio Awards Club Convention
<http://www.marac.org>, The Villages, Florida
*
July 17-19 -- Montana State Convention <http://gwhamfest.org/>, East
Glacier, Montana
*
July 23-26 -- Central States VHF Society Conference
<http://csvhfs.org/>, Westminster, Colorado
*
July 24-25 -- Oklahoma Section Convention <http://hamholiday.org>,
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
*
July 31-August 2 -- Rocky Mountain Division Convention
<http://utahhamfest.com>, Bryce Canyon, Utah
*
August 1 -- Great Lakes Division Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/great-lakes-divison-convention-columbus-hamfest>,
Columbus, Ohio
*
August 7-8 -- South Texas Section Convention
<http://www.austinsummerfest.org/>, Austin, Texas
*
August 7-9 -- New Mexico State Convention
<http://www.dukecityhamfest.org/>, Albuquerque, New Mexico
*
August 7-9 -- Pacific Northwest DX Convention
<http://www.wwdxc.org/>, Everett, Washington
*
August 15-16 -- Alabama State Convention <http://www.hamfest.org/>,
Huntsville, Alabama
*
August 16 -- Kansas State Convention <http://www.centralksarc.com/>,
Salina, Kansas
*
August 21-23 -- New England Division Convention
<http://www.boxboro.org/>, Boxborough, Massachusetts
*
August 22 -- West Virginia State Convention
<http://www.qsl.net/wvsarc>, Weston, West Virginia
*
August 30 -- Western Pennsylvania Section Convention
<http://skyviewradio.net/>, New Kensington, Pennsylvania
*
September 5-6 -- Roanoke Division Convention
<http://shelbyhamfest.org>, Shelby, North Carolina
*
September 11-12 -- W9DXCC <http://w9dxcc.com/>, Schaumburg, Illinois
*
September 11-13 -- Southwestern Division Convention
<http://www.hamconinc.org>, Torrance, California
*
September 12 -- Virginia Section Convention <http://vbhamfest.com/>,
Virginia Beach, Virginia
*
September 26 -- Washington State Convention <http://kbara.org>,
Spokane Valley, Washington
Find conventions and hamfests in your area <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests>.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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