International

Jan. 28 2004   World Amateur Radio Day 2004 theme designated:

The theme for World Amateur Radio Day 2004 is "Radio Amateurs: Pioneers in Bridging Barriers to World Understanding." Commemorating the anniversary of the founding of the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU), World Amateur Radio Day takes place each year on April 18. This year, the IARU marks its 79th anniversary. The 2004 theme is intended to emphasize the IARU's long history of bringing people together across geographic, cultural, and political barriers. Created in Paris, the IARU has been the watchdog and spokesman for the world Amateur Radio community since 1925. The worldwide federation of national Amateur Radio organizations represents some three million radio amateurs in 159 countries. For more information, visit the IARU Web site: www.iaru.org

(ARRL News Service)

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Jan. 28 2004  Croatia benefits from WRC-03 40-meter expansion:

Croatia has become the first country in Region 1 to benefit from the expansion of the 40-meter band agreed at World Radiocommunication Conference 2003 (WRC-03) last summer. Croatian amateurs have also now enjoy new privileges at 70 and 3400 MHz and no longer have to pass a Morse code test for HF access. New amateur radio regulations went into effect December 26. In addition to the normal Region 1 allocation of 7000 to 7100 kHz, amateurs in Croatia may operate between 7100 and 7200 kHz on a secondary basis with a maximum power of 1 kW PEP. On 4 meters, Croatian may operate 70.000 to 70.450 MHz with up to 10 W. The new 3400-3410 MHz band permits a maximum power of 150 W. Croatia now has only two license classes--the full license and a beginners' license.

(RSGB)

Feb. 1 2004   What has RAC done for me lately?

Did you know that....Amateur Radio exists as a frequency spectrum user because it qualifies as a service. Its continued existence depends to a great degree not on the the service it has performed in the past, or on its simple potential for service, but on what service it is performing now and will continue to perform in the future. Recognizing this principle, American Radio Relay League in 1935 organized what is known now as the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES). In 1949, ARRL created the National Traffic System (NTS). These two organizations are sponsored throughout Canada by RAC. The emergency-preparedness program of ARES combines with the daily traffic-handling program of the NTS to produce a single strong facility for rendering continuous service to the public. The emergency-preparedness program of ARES is kept up to date by frequent drills and tests. In an emergency, the NTS serves as the vehicle for relay of traffic over medium and long distances while local ARES nets take care of local communications and deliveries. Close liaison is maintained between these two divisions at a national and local level.

You can play an important role:  volunteer your time to ARES and NTS,  to find out more visit the RAC Info Centre  www.rac.ca

Jim Taylor VA3KU  RAC Member
Editor: hfradio.net

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The Trans Provincial Net Celebrates White Cane Week Feb. 1-7 2004

White Cane week gives us opportunity to recognize the service white cane amateurs provide. Listen to any National Traffic System or ARES Net you will find blind amateurs passing traffic, providing emergency communications and as net control stations, their service is certainly invaluable.

During the first week of February, the Trans Provincial Net spotlights these dedicated ladies and gentlemen. Many of the net control stations on the TPN are white cane operators, which play an essential role in keeping the net going 365 days a year. We will have other blind operators joining the TPN team during ‘White Cane Week’.

The following groups will be joining us on the TPN

Canada Science and Technology Museum Amateur Radio Station (VE3JW) from Ottawa will be active on the net with several white caners manning the station.
Website: www.ovmrc.on.ca/ve3jw.htm

We are also working with the CNIB Amateur Radio Station (VE3AW) to have operators on board from their station.  Website: www.cnib.ca/eng/national/amateurradio

The Sarnia White Cane Amateur Radio Club has always been active on the TPN and we can expect to hear a lot from them.
Website: www.hfradio.net/swc

The Toronto ARES Group will have some of their blind operators with us during ‘White Cane Week’
Website: www.ares.meskes.ca

We look forward to hearing from these ladies and gentlemen as the host the net sharing their stories of how they got involved with amateur radio and what it means to them. Please tune in and join us throughout the week on the Trans Provincial Net 7.055Mhz.

Note:  Keep an eye on the Net Control Schedule as the time approaches for complete details. www.tpn7055.ca/net.html

Jim Taylor VA3KU
Net Manager, Editor
www.tpn7055.ca

Atlantic Maritime Section

The Loyalist City Amateur Radio Club  News

Next Club Meeting - February 10, 7:30pm. Meetings are held the second Tuesday of every month at 7:30 PM
at The New Brunswick Community College (950 Grandview Avenue) in Saint John.

Larry Fagan-VE9LJF will be heading up the course again this year, so help him out and bring in some new blood. Here is the details:
Tentative Start Date: Feb. 10, 2004
Location: NBCC Saint John (room TBA)
Duration: 10 weeks
Cost: $25.00
Course Textbook: $43.00 (Supplied at our cost by LCARC)

Thanks, Let me know if you need anything else.

Larry VE9LJF
faganl@nbnet.nb.ca

Club Website:  www.qsl.net/ve9lc

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Kings County Amateur Radio Club  News

The next meeting of the KCARC will be held in Building 43, Kentville Research Station, Kentville, Nova Scotia on Monday, February 2, 2004, at 19 hours 30 minutes. This is the Annual General Meeting.

Club Website:  www.kcarc.ns.ca

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Truro Amateur Radio Club  News

The Truro Amateur Radio Clubs February 9th meeting will be held at the Red Cross building on Prince Street, beside the Police Station, at 7:30 pm.  All welcome to come.VE1II Bruce Harvey, will be putting on a program first about linking systems, IRLP, then the monthly meeting will take place.

Also the TARC is having a Club supper at The Chow Family Restraunt , on Prince Street , Truro on February 7th at 6:15pm, all are welcome to attend. Just let Peter, VE1PJS know at 893-8359 well in advance for seeting arrangments can be booked.

Thanks
Paul VE1DGS
paulrodd@tru.eastlink.ca

Club Website:  http://groups.msn.com/VE1LV

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Dartmouth Amateur Radio Club  News

The Dartmouth Amateur Radio Club is located in the City of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia which is on the Eastern side of Halifax Harbour. The Club was founded in 1953 and the callsign is: VE1YO  which was the callsign of one of the founding members. The Club has moved to a new home and at the present time we are located at 21 Mt Hope Avenue, Dartmouth, N.S. The hamshack at the club has HF, Clover, Packet and 2 meter equipment which is used by the club members mostly for recreational purposes such as SSB, CW, SSTV, PSK31 and other Digital Modes and occasionally for Emergency purposes under the umbrella of the Emergency Measures Organization (EMO). The Club also has Repeater and Autopatch facilities located on Mt. Edward Road, Dartmouth, N.S. The callsign is VE1DAR +147.15, 444.6Mhz Voice 144.91 Mhz Packet

Next Meeting:  14 February 2004 at 10AM

Club Website:  www.accesswave.ca/~leoadler/darc.html

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New Brunswick Spring Hamfest and Fleamarket   (May. 29 2004)

Sponsored by: The Loyalist City Amateur Radio Club
Location: Gondola Point Recreation Center, Quispamsis, NB

Take exit 141 off of Highway 1 (about 20 km east of Saint John) for Route 119 North. Go approx. 4.5 km north on #119 to Meenan's Cove Rd., turn left (west)and go 1/2 km to Recreation Center Rd., turn left and go about 1/4 km to the Recreation Center.

Opening times: Vendors 8 am, Public 9:30 am to 1 pm
Cost: Admission $3, Tables $2
Talkin: VE1EE 147.270 (+)

Notes: There will be door prizes and a grand prize draw. Amateur licencing examinations including code will be available on site, plus DXCC QSL card checking and a transmitter Fox hunt in the afternoon after the flea market. RAC and commercial vendors will be present.

For more info: For more info please check our website www.qsl.net/ve9lc . For table reservations contact Kal White at kalwhite.nbnet.nb.ca or 506-847-3744

Email info: kalwhite@nbnet.nb.ca

It is a great time to visit the Maritimes so perhaps folks from "Upper Canada" might be interested in coming to it !

Ian MacFarquhar VE9IM

West Island Amateur Radio Club  News

Next Meeting Feb. 16 2004. Meetings are on the 3rd Monday of each month at 7pm (official start is 7:30). We meet at the Lakeside Heights Baptist Church , 275 Braebrook in Pointe-Claire (western end of the Island of Montreal).
The club welcomes all visitors, so if you are going to be in Montreal and have some time, come down and join us.

Club Website:  http://shell.pubnix.net/~wiarc

Feb. 7 2004   NPARC 26th Annual Big Event

Sponsored by the Niagara Peninsula Amateur Radio Club
Location: Canadian Auto Workers Hall 124 Bunting Road St. Catharines, Ontario
Opening:  Vendors 7 am, Public 9 am to 1 pm
Cost: Admission $6, Vendors $20, Extra tables $14
Talkin:  VE3NRS 147.240 (+)

For table reservations contact Dave Wilson VE3BBN by phone at 905-262-5588 or by email at ve3bbn@rac.ca. For other event info contact Ron Counsell VE3NDI by phone at 905-688-8137 or by email at ve3ndi@rac.ca

Free Coffee, Door Prizes, Demonstrations, CANWARN, ARES, QSL Bureau, RAC, Radio World, Durham Radio, Mapleleaf Communications and more Dealers. Grand Prize Draw $1000.00 Radio World Gift Certificate

Website Info:  www.qsl.net/ve3vm/bigevent.html

============

Feb. 28 2004   Burlington Spring Flea Market

Sponsored by: the Burlington Amateur Radio Club

Date:  Saturday, February 28, 2004
Opens: Vendors 7 am Public 9am to 12.00 noon

Location: Royal Canadian Legion-828 Legion Rd,Burlington From Toronto-QEW to Brant St,south on Brant St past Fairview St,right on Grahams Lane, right on Legion Rd From London-403 to QEW Toronto to Brant St,south on Brant St past Fairview St,right on Grahams Lane,right on Legion Rd

Cost: Admission $6.00 Tabales $10.00
Talkin:  VE3RSB 147.210 (+)

For more info check the Club Website: http://www.barc.ca

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Festival City Amateur Radio Club News

Next Radio Club meeting is Thursday February 19th 2004, at 7:30pm at the Canadian Red Cross Society Building, 100 Gordon Street. Stratford ON.  Our meetings are held at the Canadian Red Cross Building which is located behind the Donut Mill Coffee Shop on Ontario Street. Look for the Tower and Antennas on your right if coming in from Kitchener on Highway 7 -8 West OR on your left if coming from Goderich on Highway 8

If you have problems you can also call on our local repeater, VE3RFC 145.150 -600kHz use a 114.8 tone if possible.

Club Website:  www.qsl.net/ve3fcg

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Kingston Amateur Radio Club News

Next Meeting 4 Feb 2004 7pm Smitty's Restaurant Join us for Supper at 5:30 before the meeting. The monthly general meetings are held on the first Wednesday of the month and held at 7:00 p.m. at Smitty's Restaurant. All Amateurs and those interested in Amateur Radio are invited to attend. (Wheelchair accessible).

Club Website:  www.king.igs.net/~karc/main.html

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Kitchener-Waterloo Amateur Radio Club News

Next Meeting: Feb. 2 2004  7:30pm at the RCAF 404 Wing / Rotary Adult Centre Dutton Drive, Waterloo.

Internet Service Providers are reporting that SPAM occupies well in excess of 60% of their available bandwidth. Most members can probably attest to this number as there inboxes overflow with unsolicited SPAM. There are many good tools and ways of combating spam. Club member Paul Cassel VE3SY will provide an informative presentation on combating and evading spam from your inbox.

Club Website:  www.kwarc.org

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Quinte Amateur Radio Club News

The next QARC Meeting will be on Wednesday February 18, 2004.  at Loyalist College, Pioneer Building Room P2 at 7:30 PM.

Weekly Breakfast: Saturdays 8:00 AM - at the Quinte Restaurant, 135 Cannifton Rd (Northtown Plaza at the corner of Cannifton Road and College St E) in Belleville.

Club Website: www.qarc.on.ca

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Rideau Lakes Amateur Radio Club News

The next meeting of the R.L.A.R.C. will be held on Thursday, the 19th, of February, 2004 at 7:30 PM  at the R.C.A.F.A. Hall Abbott St. Smiths Falls.

The 20th Annual Smiths Falls Fleamarket will be held on Saturday May 8th, 2004.

Club Website: www.falls.igs.net/~rlarc

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Skywide Amateur Radio Club News

The SARC  meets at 07:30 pm on the 2nd and 4th Mondays of the month at the  Fairfield Senior Citizen Centre 80 Lothian Ave Etobicoke, Ontario. Next meeting Feburary 9, 2004 (Banquet Night)

Senior's Coffee Club - Meets every Tuesday at 09:30 at McDonald's, 2116 Kipling Ave., north of Rexdale Blvd.

Club Website:  http://webhome.idirect.com/~jproc/sarc

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South Georgian Bay Amateur Radio Club News

The next Club Breakfast will be February 07, 2004 (Saturday) at Mom's Restaurant in Midland (200 Pillsbury Drive) at 9am.

Our monthly meeting occurs on the 1st Saturday of the month at 9am. The location is Mom's Restaurant in Midland (200 Pillsbury Drive). All Hams (and non Hams) are invited to attend !

Talk-in is on 146.910(-).

Club Website:  www.csolve.net/~sgbarc
 

Western Provinces

Winnipeg Amateur Radio Club  Meeting

Our meetings consist of a short business portion, a coffee break for socializing, and a presentation normally related to radio.  Every meeting also features a raffle open to all attendees and a door prize for members.

• February 9, 2004: David, VE4DAR, will be giving a presentation on "The RR DXpedition"
• March 8, 2004: Bruce, VE4KQ, will be giving a presentation on "How To Work DX, 144 Mhz and above"
• April 19, 2004: Our "Home Brew Night"
• May 10, 2004: Ed, VE4YU, will be giving a presentation on "Digital Communication"
• June 14, 2004: TBA

Meetings are held on the second Monday of each month. The meeting will be on the third Monday if the second is a statutory holiday. No meetings are held in July & August  Mettings are held in the theatre or cafateria of  Sturgeon Creek Regional Secondary School  Ness Ave. at Thompson Dr. in Winnipeg 7:30 p.m.

All are welcome!

Club Website:  http://ve4.net/warc

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Meewasin Amateur Radio Society  News

Coffee Klatch

Every Thursday evening (with excptions of meeting nights) several of us get together for a coffee at the A & W Restaurant at 38th St. & Idylwyld Dr. N.  We meet at about 8pm and usually get a number of the world's problems solved by the time we go home. If you are going through Saskatoon give a call on the VE5SKN ( 144.690  CTCSS 100.0  ) repeater and we'll be more than glad to have you join us! Call ahead to make sure someone is there, usually there is at least one handheld on the table.

Club Website:  www.qsl.net/ve5ufo

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The Peace Country Amateur Radio Club News

The Peace Country Amateur Radio Club meets every Saturday morning at the Army Navy Airforce Veterans In Canada Unit 389 for coffee and breakfast.
Location: 10117 - 93 Street, Grande Prairie.
Time: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM

If you are new to the area or just passing through, please stop in and have an eyeball QSO and a coffee or breakfast with some very interesting Amateur Radio operators.

Club Website:  www.qsl.net/ve6arc

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Chilliwack Amateur Radio Club News

The club has a "Drop By" meeting every Tuesday at 1900 at Fire Hall #4 and a General meeting every last Tuesday of the month at 1900 at Fire Hall #4 Second floor of Fire Hall #4: 45433 South Sumas Rd

Lost? Give us a call on the clubs repeater 146.960- tone 110.9 hz or 443.000+  We'll be happy to guide you in!

Club Website:  www.qsl.net/chwkclub

Propagation Report    (For the week of Feb.1 2003)

America's

Jan. 30  2004  Forecast Bulletin 5  ARLP005 from Tad Cook, K7RA

There are no sunspots. The visible solar disk is blank. This prompts email inquiring if it's normal to see a spotless sun at this point in the solar cycle. Yes, it is normal, because there are big variations from day to day.

In order to generalize and see the larger trends, we need to calculate a very smooth running average, where readings from many days or months are averaged together. An example of a smooth chart using running or moving averages of many data points can be seen on the web at www.ngdc.noaa.gov/stp/SOLAR/SSN/annual.gif or www.dxlc.com/solar/cyclcomp.html.

There is an explanation of how a smoothed sunspot number is calculated based on 12 months of averaged data at,
www.ngdc.noaa.gov/stp/IONO/sunspot.html. There is also a very interesting graphic representation of the difference between a running average based on 12 months and the averages for each individual month over the same period at,
www.meadows3.demon.co.uk/html/trends.html.

For the 12 months of data there is still a point on the graph for each day, but that point represents all the data from 6 months
before and 6 months after, averaged together. The point for the next day is the same, but drops one day off at the back end and averages in another day's data from 6 months in the future. This is why reports showing the current smoothed sunspot number always must be at least 6 months in the past.

In that chart at the previous web link, those tiny colored diamonds each represent a month of averaged data, just like those averages presented frequently in this bulletin. An example of those monthly averages is in 2003's Propagation Forecast Bulletin 49, at www.arrl.org/w1aw/prop/2003-arlp049.html.

Jeffrey Philpott, N6QYS wrote to ask if the solar cycle is near bottom, and how long until conditions improve? If we look at the end of a recent (January 6) issue of the NOAA Preliminary Report and Forecast of Solar Geophysical Data at
www.sec.noaa.gov/weekly/pdf/prf1479.pdf, it shows a projection of future sunspot and solar flux values for nearly the next four years, until December 2007.

This is a rough guess based on previous solar cycles. We can see from both spreadsheets that the predicted bottom of the cycle is expected to occur some time around the end of 2006, although given what we covered above concerning long moving averages, we won't know when the bottom occurs until some time after we've passed it.

We could assume that as we examine projections for rising values during the next cycle, an estimate could be made for when conditions should improve past the current level by looking for a value that matches current conditions. Unfortunately, the data doesn't go that far into the future. The best we can say is that a year from now conditions should be worse, and that the projected number for January 2005 doesn't rise back to that same level until December 2007.

Because January 2005 is a year from now, could we assume that current conditions will worsen and not be at this level again until December 2008? We can't really do that, because solar cycles tend to rise faster than they decline, but a wild guess could be that some time in 2008 conditions will be back up to where they are now.  We can all make notes in our PDA to check back to this bulletin in 2008 and see if we were far off base. I've done this, and four years from now I should be quite surprised to see this note from the past.

Conditions will likely improve somewhat over the next week. The weekly average of daily sunspots for this week was half what it was the week before. Average daily solar flux declined over 21 points. Projected solar flux for Friday through Monday, January 30 through February 2 is 90, 90, 100 and 100. Solar flux is expected to peak for the short term around February 8.

Geomagnetic conditions may be rough over the next week, unsettled to active. The predicted Planetary A index for January 30 through February 5 is 15, 20, 20, 25, 25, 15 and 10.

Yesterday's ARRL DX Bulletin reported that this weekend is the UBA DX SSB Contest. The CW section will be in February, but the target in this competition is to work as many European stations on the five non-WARC HF bands, and especially Belgian stations. Working Belgium is worth 3 times the points counted for contacts with other European countries. We won't hazard to guess when 80 and 40 meters should be good for working Belgium or the rest of Europe, but here are some projections for bands higher than 40 meters.

From Seattle, best conditions look to be on 20 meters after local sunrise, 1630-1900z, and a weak possibility on 15 meters around 1630-1700z. There is another possible opening on 20, although not as strong, after local sunrise at the European end around 0830-1000z.

From Southern California, conditions look best on 20 meters again after local sunrise, from 1530-1900z, and around 1700z on 15.

From North Texas, conditions look best after local sunrise from 1400-2030z on 20 meters, 1530-1700z on 15 and possibly on 10 around 1630z.

From Utah, check 20 meters around 1530-2000z.

From Nebraska and Kansas, the center of the contiguous 48 states, check 20 meters around 1500-1930z.

From Chicago, check 20 meters after sunrise from 1400-2030z and 15 meters 1630-1830z.

From Ohio, check 20 meters after sunrise from 1330-2030z and 15 meters 1600-1800z.

Boston should have an excellent path around 1230-2000z on 20 meters, and 1500-1730z on 15 meters.

Centered around the New York City area, the projection looks like Boston's, except there is a greater chance of a 10 meter opening around 1630-1700z. Philadelphia's prediction looks just like New York City's.

Atlanta looks good from 1300-1930z on 20 meters and 1500-1630z on 15 meters.

South Florida should be good on 20 meters from 1230-2000z, 15 meters 1400-1700z, and possibly 10 meters around 1430-1600z.

Montreal, Quebec looks good on 20 meters from 1230-2030z and 15 meters around 1530-1730z.

Winnipeg, Manitoba looks good on 20 meters right at sunrise, from 1400-2000z. This is a polar path, so it could be especially affected by geomagnetic activity.

Edmonton, Alberta is also a polar path, and 20 meter openings may occur 1630-1930z.

South Central Alaska is also a polar path, and doesn't look very good at all for 20 meters to Europe. There are only about 7 hours of daylight at the Alaska end. The worst times look to be 0400-0600z on 20 meters.

Hawaii is so far from Europe that the openings have nothing to do with sunrise at the KH6 end, but look good on 20 meters after sunrise at the Belgium end, 0800-1330z.

From Japan, the openings look long, 0630-1800z on 20 meters, 0830-0900z on 15 meters, and possibly 10 meters around 0800z.

For more information concerning propagation and an explanation of the numbers used in this bulletin see the Propagation page on the ARRL Web site at www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html.

Sunspot numbers for January 22 through 28 were 76, 62, 47, 48, 38, 0 and 0 with a mean of 38.7. 10.7 cm flux was 121.8, 115.2, 107.5, 102.3, 98, 93.7 and 88.5, with a mean of 103.9. Estimated planetary A indices were 62, 38, 15, 33, 17, 16 and 19, with a mean of 28.6.

(W1AW)

Europe

Feb. 1 2004  GB2RS Propagation Update

Last week turned out much as forecast. Solar flare activity was low or very low, with only a few, small, C-class flares. The solar flux declined from 108 on the 24th to 87 on the 29th, recovering to 93 on the 30th. The weekly average, 97, was down 28 points. The less volatile 90-day average dropped 12 points to 123. X-ray flux levels were in similar decline, from an average B3 to B1. The geomagnetic field was at minor storm level at the start of the week; with an Ap index of 33 units on the 25th. The rest of the week was a mix of 'quiet' and 'unsettled' periods, reaching 'active' or 'minor storm' levels at times, giving a daily average of 18 Ap units. Solar wind speeds went as low as 383km/sec but reached 852km/sec on the 30th under the influence of a high-speed coronal stream.

Geomagnetic activity resulted in mediocre propagation on the higher HF bands, though 15 and 20 metres remained reasonably reliable, and tended to stay open a shade longer as the period of daylight increased in the northern hemisphere: Australia, for example, remained workable on Twenty most mornings until lunch time. Although 28MHz was below expectations there were nevertheless quite good, short openings to Africa and South America, tending to peak around 1500 UTC. Auroral propagation was reported on Six and Two metres during the afternoon and evening of the 25th, down to the West Midlands and South Wales.

During the coming week flare activity should continue mostly low or even very low - though occasional M-class flares are possible. These are likely to be of fairly low strength. Solar flux levels seem to have bottomed out for this rotation and could well climb towards the 130 by next weekend. However, due to high speed streams associated with two coronal holes, the geomagnetic field will predominantly be 'unsettled' to 'active', with stormy periods on some days. On the better days MUFs at equal latitudes should reach 28MHz in the south, with 25MHz expected in the north. Paths to the Middle East should have a maximum usable frequency - that's a fifty per cent chance of success - of up to 30MHz. However, the optimum working frequency, where the chances should be nine in ten, will be around 20MHz. So, 15 and 20 remain the most reliable choice, but it will be worth trying the bands above on the bands above on the better days. The best time will be between 0800 and 1300 UTC.

And that's all for another week from the propagation team.

Jan. 28 2004   NASA dedicates Columbia memorial:

NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe will preside at the February 2 dedication of the memorial for the crew of the space shuttle Columbia at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. The Columbia STS-107 crew, which included three Amateur Radio licensees, was headed by Commander Rick Husband. It also included Pilot Willie McCool, Mission Specialists Kalpana "KC" Chawla, KD5ESI; David Brown, KC5ZTC; Laurel Clark, KC5ZSU, and Michael Anderson, and Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon--the first Israeli astronaut. The ceremony is closed except for family members and invited guests, but the memorial site will be open to the public after the event. The Columbia broke apart February 1, 2003, while returning from a 15-day science mission.

Information about the Columbia memorial is available on the NASA Web site. www.nasa.gov/externalflash/remember/index.html

(ARRL News Service)

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Jan. 29 2004  AO-40 Still Ailing

Ground controllers for the AO-40 satellite still are trying to figure out just what happened aboard the spacecraft earlier this
week to cause a significant drop in the bus voltage. For now, the satellite has gone silent in the wake of a precipitous voltage drop from around 26 volts down to 18 volts early on January 27 (UTC). AO-40 controllers are fairly certain that one or more shorted battery cells are at the root of the problem. Efforts to restart the satellite's 2.4-GHz downlink transmitter so far have been unsuccessful.

"Our current best understanding is that we suffered a catastrophic failure of the main battery, which is clamping the bus voltage at a low level," Stacey Mills, W4SM, of the AO-40 command team said in a posting on the AMSAT-DL Web site.

The AO-40 ground team is sending blind commands to the spacecraft to activate its onboard computerized control system in order to switch in the auxiliary battery bank, which was tied to the main battery bank after a bus voltage drop January 26, and disconnect the main battery.

Mills said that while ground controllers don't claim to fully understand what happened aboard AO-40, operator practices were not to blame.

"AO-40 was designed to withstand all that you can throw at it," he said. "Although there was a lot of passband activity on Sunday--and under really marginal conditions heavy usage could put us transiently in a negative power budget--it is now clear that it was the failing of another cell on the main battery that caused the passband shutdown at that time."

Mills explained that the main AO-40 batteries consist of 20 40-Ah cells arranged on three of the radial support arms inside the
spacecraft--two packs of seven cells and one pack of six cells.

"It is entirely possible or even probable that the main batteries suffered some damage during the 400-N motor event," Mills said, referring to the onboard catastrophic incident that caused AO-40 to go dark and destroyed some onboard systems less than a month after its launch in November 2000.

"If it's at all possible to bring AO-40 back, we will," said Mills, who concedes that he's "lived and breathed AO-40" for more than four years. "No success for even weeks or months does not mean that we won't eventually be successful. We will sure keep trying."

(W1AW)

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Note: For information about Amateur Radio on the International Space Station "ARISS" visit the Radio Amateurs of Canada website:  www.rac.ca/ariss

Note: "Hams in Action" is a new area in the bulletin and is in need of articles and stories of events from your local club or ARES Group. Submission to Hams in Action:  Bulletin Editor: va3ku@rac.ca

===============

Jan. 28 2004  Mid-Atlantic Emergency Net meeting on 60 meters:

The Mid-Atlantic Emergency Net (MAEN) meets Wednesdays at 2200 Eastern Time on 5330.5 MHz (USB). The net control station now rotates each month by call district, starting with the first call district in January. The net seeks additional net control volunteers. Contact Acting Net Manager Charles E. Harris, KE4SKY if you wish to be an NCS or would like additional information. MAEN sessions are limited to about 30 minutes.  ke4sky@att.net

(ARRL News Service)

Jan. 28 2004   Bogus eBay, PayPal e-mails circulating:

Amateurs who frequent the eBay auction site should be on the lookout for e-mail messages appearing to be from eBay or PayPal that requests recipients to update their billing information or face account termination. Such e-mails are bogus, eBay says. "The people who send these e-mails--referred to as 'spoof" or 'phishing' e-mails--hope that unsuspecting recipients will reply or click on a link contained in the email and then provide sensitive personal information." That information could include passwords, Social Security numbers and even credit card numbers. "Remember, just because an e-mail looks like it's from eBay or PayPal--and even includes links to a site that appear to be eBay or PayPal--it doesn't mean it really is," the auction site says. The eBay Web site offers a "Spoof Email Protection Tutorial" [ http://pages.ebay.com/education/spooftutorial ] that includes on-line safety tips. Among other tips, it requests that recipients forward suspicious e-mails appearing to come from eBay or PayPal to spoof@ebay.com or spoof@paypal.com

(ARRL News Service)

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Jan. 30 2004   Harmonics bother 20 Meters

An unidentified broadcaster on 14.280 MHz, has been identified as a harmonic of a Radio Liberty.  The transmitter in question operates on 4.760 MHz and it's the 3rd harmonic that been heard in V-K-Land.

Meantime, another intruder on 14.320 MHz has been found to be Radio Uzbeckistan.  This time it's the 2nd harmonic of a transmitter on 7.160 that's responsible for what's being heard.

(Q-News)

=========

Looking for a neat little electronic project to keep you busy on a cold winter's day?

Well here's a nifty website that will keep you busy all through the winter. 'Bowden's Hobby Circuits'  A small collection of electronic circuits for the hobbyist or student. Site includes over 100 circuit diagrams, links to related sites, commercial kits and projects, newsgroups and educational areas. Most of the circuits can be built with common components available from Radio Shack or salvaged from scrap electronic equipment. Most all of the circuits have been built and tested and believed to perform as described, however possible mistakes may be found.

http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Bill_Bowden/homepage.htm#menu

(Dick VE3COO)

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The Seti Institute is Monitoring

Science Online says that technological advances have opened the way for scientists to check millions of previously unknown star systems, dramatically increasing the chances of finding intelligent life in outer space in the next 25 years.

The article quotes Seth Shostak. Shostak is the senior astronomer at California's non-profit Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute says that it is like looking for needles in the haystack that is our galaxy, but there could be thousands of needles out there. But on a recent visit to Australia to attend a conference on extraterrestrial research, Shostak said detecting alien life is only the start.

Since it was founded in 1984, the SETI Institute has monitored radio signals, hoping to pick up a transmission from outer space. Its Project Phoenix conducts two annual three-week sessions on a radio telescope at Arecibo, Puerto Rico. Project Phoenix, is the privately funded successor to an original NASA program that searched the heavens for signals from extra-terrestrial beings. That program was canceled in 1993 amid much skepticism in the Congress regarding the possibility of life in outer space.

Norm Seeley, KI7UP ARNewsline

Note: Science Online says that the search has been slow. About 500 of 1,000  targeted stars have been examined and no extraterrestrial transmissions have been heard.

(ScienceOnLine)

Contest News

6-Meter Mileage Marathon--WSJT modes, sponsored by the Six Club, 0000Z Jan 31-0000Z Feb 9. SOLP (<200 W), SOHP. Use JT44, FSK441, JT6M modes. Exchange: full call signs, four-digit grid square, and acknowledgement. Score: sum of distances between stations for all QSOs. For more information: http://6mt.com. Logs due Apr 1 to contests@6mt.com or Wayne Lewis, W4WRL, Contest ­Director, 3338 South Cashua Dr, Florence, SC 29501-6306.

North American Sprint--CW--sponsored by the National Contest Journal, from 0000Z-0400Z, Feb 1. (SSB is Feb 8.) Frequencies (MHz)--3.540, 7.040, 14.040, work stations once per band. North American stations work everyone; others work NA stations only. Exchange: other station's call, your call, serial number, name, S/P/C. QSY rule: Stations calling CQ, QRZ, etc, may only work one station in response to that call; they must then move at least 1 kHz before working another station or 5 kHz before soliciting another call. Once you are required to QSY, you may not make a new QSO on the previous frequency until you have made a contact at least 1 or 5 kHz (as required) away. (See http://www.contesting.com/articles/198 for beginner's guide.) Score: QSOs × S/P/C (count each only once). For more information: http://www.ncjweb.com. Logs due 7 days after the contest to cwsprint@ncjweb.com or Boring ARC, 15125 Bartell Rd, Boring, OR 97009.

Spartan Sprint--CW--sponsored by the Adventure Radio Society, 0200Z-0400Z Feb 3 (Monday). The contest is held on the first Monday (local time) of every month. Frequencies (MHz): 3.560, 7.040, 14.060, 21.060, 28.060. Categories: SOAB. Exchange: RST, S/P/C, and power output. For more information: http://www.arsqrp.com. Logs due following Wednesday afternoon to hjohnc@core.com or via automated scoring system on ARS Web site.

===========

CLARA and FAMILY HF CONTEST MARCH 2004

This year’s HF Contest, sponsored by the Canadian Ladies Amateur Radio Association (CLARA), will be held over the weekend of March 20th and 21st, 2004. Commencing at 1700Z March 20th and continuing until 1700Z March 21st, 2004.
The Contest is open to all CLARA members and their families and also to all Amateurs.

These are suggested frequencies only for easier location of contacts: Call “CQ CLARA”.
FREQUENCIES:
• CW 14.033, 21.033, 7.033, 3.688
• Phone 28.300, 21.225, 14.120, 14.285, 7033, 7.200, 3.750, 3.900
Can work stations once per band/mode. Cross-mode contacts count as phone for both stations.

LOGS: Logs must include the date, time (GMT), mode, call sign of contact, contact name, contact QTH (city, town, etc.) and whether the contact is a CLARA member, family member, non-member YL, or OM. Logs are to be received by the Contest Manager no later than April 24th, 2004 and must include call sign, address and claimed score. Because we are in the age of computerization, electronic logs are encouraged. You can also e-mail your logs to me in Plain Text, MS Word or MS Excel
format. For the white cane operators, other arrangements can be made for transmitting your logs. Please contact me, or Helen VA1YL at hfarchibald@ns.sympatico.ca in advance.

SCORING:
• Contact with CLARA member (includes CLARA to CLARA) – 5 points
• Contact with CLARA family member, (OM’s, sons, daughters, in-laws, etc.) – 2 points
• Contact with non CLARA member YL – 3 points
• Contact with OM (includes OM to OM) – 1 point MULTIPLIERS:
• 1 for each Canadian call area (14 possible)
• 1 for each ARRL DX Country contacted if the op was a YL
• No multipliers for DX OM’s
Points claimed – (Contact Points) x Multiplier

PRIZES:
• Mini prize draw from all logs submitted
• Trophy – Highest scoring CLARA member
• Certificate – 2nd highest scoring CLARA member
• Certificate – 3rd highest scoring CLARA member
• Certificate – Highest scoring DX YL
• Certificate – Highest scoring OM

Contest Manager:
Paulette Schouten, VE7VPE
c/o VECTOR, 3301 East Pender Street, Vancouver, B.C. V5K 5J3 Canada
e-mail: ve7vpe@rac.ca

Lubbock, TX: Buddy Holly Memorial, W5B. 1600Z Jan 31-0400Z Feb 4. 45th Anniversary of the death of Buddy Holly. 28.336 21.360 14.260 7.260. QSL. W5B Buddy Holly QSL, c/o Bryan Edwards, 3801-68th St, Lubbock, TX 79413. http://www.amcrc.com/W5B.

Nacogdoches, TX: Nacogdoches Amateur Radio Club, W5NAC. 1300Z-2400Z Feb 1. Shuttle Columbia Recovery Effort. 14.250 14.050 7.250 7.050. QSL. NARC, 167 County Rd 2093, Nacogdoches, TX 75965. http://www.andersoft.com/narc.

Washington County, PA: Washington Amateur Communications ARC, W3C. Feb 5-Feb 8. 2004 Washington County Sportmen's Show. 21.350 14.250 7.230 3.860. QSL. Washington Amateur Communications ARC, c/o Ed Oelschlager, N3ZNI, 60 Carl Ave B2, Eighty Four, PA 15330.

Jan. 29 2004  ARLD004 DX News

This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by NC1L, the OPDX Bulletin, The Daily DX, 425DXnews, DXNL, WA7BNM and Contest Corral from QST.  Thanks to all.

UNITED NATIONS HQ, 4U_UN.  Bernie, W3UR, Christa, KB3JIU, Steve, KU9C and Henry, KT1J will be QRV from 4U1UN beginning 1400z on January 30. Planned activity will be on 80 to 10 meters using CW, SSB, RTTY and PSK. QSL via operators' instructions.

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO, 9Y.  Walter, DL8JS, Ulla, DF6QP, Alfons, DJ8VC, Eberhard, DJ8OT and Hannelore, DH5JR are QRV as 9Y4/homecall from Tobago, IOTA SA-009, until February 14.  Activity is generally on 20, 15 and 10 meters.  QSL to home calls.

THE GAMBIA, C5.  Andy, C56/G0VUH has been QRV on 15 meters between 1700 and 1800z.  QSL to home call.

PHILIPPINES, DU.  Jon, DU9/N0NM is usually QRV on 160 meters around 1000z.  QSL via W4DR.

KYRGYZSTAN, EX.  Bek, EX8AB has been QRV on 40 meters CW around 0200z.

SCOTLAND, GM.  Hans, DJ6AU is QRV as MM0XAU from the Shetland Islands, IOTA EU-012, until the end of March.  He is generally QRV on 20 and 17 meters SSB.  QSL to home call.

SOLOMON ISLANDS, H4.  Bernhard, DL2GAC is QRV as H44MS from Honiara, IOTA OC-047, until the end of April.  It is not very likely that he will visit other island groups.  QSL to home call.

DOMINICA, J7.  Lars, SM0CCM will be QRV as J73CCM from February 5 to March 4.  Activity will be on 160 to 6 meters using mostly CW, with some RTTY and PSK.  QSL to home call.

FAROE ISLANDS, OY.  Caen, OY1CT has been QRV on 160 meters around 2300z and 17 meters around 1400 to 1530z.  QSL direct.

INDIA, VU.  Ram, VU3DJQ may be QRV as either AT0D or AT0DJQ until March 31.  He plans to be QRV in a few of the upcoming contests. QSL via EA7FTR.

MEXICO, XE.  Hector, XE2K and others will be QRV as XF1K from the Sonora State South Group, IOTA NA-166, from February 5 to 9.  They plan to be active with three stations using CW and SSB on 80 to 10 meters, and possibly 160 meters.  QSL via N6AWD.

CAMBODIA, XU.  Peter, NO2R is QRV as XU7ACY from Sihanoukville from February 2 to 8.  Activity will mainly be on 160 meters.  QSL via K2NJ.

BULLETIN CORRECTIONS.  As mentioned in DX Bulletin ARLD003, Rick, K6VVA will actually be QRV as KP2CW during the upcoming ARRL DX CW Contest in February.

The following operations are approved for DXCC credit:  TO4E and TO4WW from November 25, 2003 to December 21, 2003.  YI/N2OBM, beginning January 2004, YI9ABL beginning December 2003, YI3Q beginning January 2004, YI9YMA beginning January 2004 and YI9ZF beginning January 2004.

THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO.  The UBA DX SSB Contest, North American CW Sprint, Spartan Sprint and the 6-Meter Mileage Marathon are all scheduled for this weekend.  Please see January QST, page 98, February QST, page 103 and the ARRL and WA7BNM contest websites for details.

(W1AW)

============

Jan. 31 2004  4 2 5  DX  News

The 425DXN survey  for the best  DXpedition in 2003 (to be chosen among  14 selected operations) has now reached the 1000th vote mark and will be up and running at http://www.425dxn.org/trophy_2003/ for a few more weeks.

4S== Four members of the Lufthansa Amateur  Radio Club (DL0DLH) -  namely Frank/DJ3FK, Bernd/DK7TF, Karl/DL4FP and Rudi/DK7PE - will be active on all bands (160m will depend  on local situation) CW and SSB  from Sri Lanka on 3-8 February. [TNX NG3K]

7Q=== Harry, G0JMU will be active again as 7Q7HB  from Malawi from 8 February for at least a couple of months. QSL direct only via G0IAS. [TNX G0IAS]

9A=== Look for 9A/DF9MV (Sven),  9A/DJ1MHS (Markus), 9A/DL5MFL  (Mathias), 9A/DL9CHR (Chris), 9A2V/p (Vlado),  9A2WJ/p (Daki), 9A3KB/p  (Boro), 9A5JR/p (aka OE3REB, Ron) and 9A6AA/p  (Emir) to operate CW and  SSB from Plocica  Island (EU-016)  and  Lighthouse (WLA  LH-0097,  ARLHS CRO-013) on  8  and 15  May.  They may  also use 9A0CI during the operation. More details will be available at http://www.inet.hr/9a6aa [TNX 9A6AA]

9M6=== Saty, JE1JKL will be active again as 9M6NA (http://jsfc.org/je1jkl/9m6na.html) from Labuan Island (OC-133), East Malaysia from 17 February to 2 March. He will concentrate on 80 and 160 metres and will take part in the ARRL DX CW Contest as SOSB (80 metres). QSL via home call. E-mail requests for bureau cards are welcome at 9m6na@jsfc.org [TNX NG3K]

9Y=== Chad, WE9V reports will be active as 9Y4/WE9V (QSL via home  call) from Tobago Island (SA-009) from 29 February to 10 March. Plans are to operate on all HF bands on CW, SSB and RTTY, and to participate in the ARRL DX SSB Contest as  9Y4ZC (SOAB HP). QSL 9Y4ZC (for this operation only) via WE9V.

C6=== Bill, K1CN (C6AMM) and his wife Laurel, N1EBL (C6AWW) will be active again from Harbour Island (NA-001), Bahamas  on 6-20 February.  Look for activity on 40, 20, 15, 17, 12 and 10 metres SSB (CW if needed). QSL via K1CN, direct or bureau. [TNX K1CN]

C6=== Randy, W6SJ will be active (primarily on CW with an emphasis on the WARC bands) as C6A/W6SJ from the Bahamas Islands on 17-21 February. He will then participate in the ARRL DX CW Contest (21-22 February) as C6AWS (SOAB Low Power). QSL via home call. [TNX W6SJ]

CE0_ei ===  Ralph, K0HML expects to be active in his free time (around 14  UTC and from 22  to 3 UTC) from Easter  Island on  8-12 February. [TNX QRZ-DX]

CT=== Weather permitting, CT1GFK/p and CT1GPQ/p will operate from Ilha de Cabanas (not IOTA, DIP AL-07) on  1 February. Look for activity on 40, 20, 17 and 15 metres SSB and CW between 7 and 12 UTC. QSL via home calls. [TNX CT1END]

F==== The Council of Europe Amateur Radio Club will be activated with the call TP7CE on on 6-8 February. For further information please visit http://ewwa.free.fr [TNX F6FQK]

FM=== Jacques, F5TRC is active on 10.40 metres CW as FM/F5TRC from Martinique (NA-107, DIFO FM-001) until 5  March. QSL via home call, direct or bureau. [TNX F5NQL]

FO0=== A multi-national team of experienced operators led by Dave Anderson, K4SV will be active from Clipperton Island  (NA-011) for 8-10 days starting on or around 8 March. The callsign and the web site will be announced just prior to leaving for the island. Activity will be on 10-160 metres on CW, SSB, RTTY,  PSK and also AO-40 (CW and  SSB) using five stations with amplifiers and beam/vertical antennas.  QSL via K4YL. Donations to help cover costs will be gratefully received; for more information please contact Dave, K4SV  (K4SV2@Charter.net). [TNX K4SV]

I=== ARI Aosta (IX1) club station IQ1VD will be active on 30-31 January during the 1004th (!)  annual Fair of  Sant'Orso. Look for activity from 8 to 18 UTC on  20, 40 and 80 metres SSB,  CW and PSK 31. [TNX IX1OEN and IX1ESM]

OH0=== Look for OH3BHL, OH7WW and OH9MM to participate in the CQ/RJ WW RTTY WPX Contest (7-8  February) as  OH0I (Multi-Single)  from the Aland Islands. QSL via OH3BHL. [TNX NG3K]

OX=== Allan, OX3KV (OZ8A) will be active (on all HF bands mainly CW) as OX2KAN for the rest of the  year to celebrate the 175th anniversary of Kangaatsiaq. There are are also plans to operate from NA-134. QSL via bureau or direct to P.O.  Box 551, 3955 Kangaatsiaq,  Greenland. [TNX OZ8ABE]

P4=== Paolo, I2UIY and Jacobo, P43P will participate in the CQ/RJ WW  RTTY WPX Contest  (14-15 February)  as P40G  from Aruba. Look for P40G (single-operated by I2UIY) during the  ARRL DX CW  as well. QSL via I2EOW, bureau or direct.

P4=== Andy, AE6Y will be operating as P40Y from Aruba (SA-036) on 15-22 February, including an entry in the ARRL DX CW Contest. QSL via home call. [TNX AE6Y]

PJ7=== Bill, W8EB and his wife Dorothy, W8DVC will be on the island of St. Maarten (NA-105) from 15 February to 21 March. They will operate as PJ7/W8EB on 160-10 metres CW, SSB, RTTY and PSK31; look for Bill to participate in the ARRL DX CW  Contest (21-22 February) as  PJ7/W8EB (SOAB), and for K8RLM and W8EB to multi-operate in the ARRL DX Phone Contest (6-7 March) as PJ7B. QSLs via W8EB. [TNX NG3K]

PY=== Look for Nelson/PS8NF, Dalton/PS8DCA and Glauber/PS8DEL to be active (on 10-80 metres SSB) as PS8NF/PR8 from Aracagi Lighthouse (DFB 007) on Sao Luis Island (SA-016, DIB-007) until 1 February. QSL via home call. [TNX PY8AZT and PT7WA]

SV=== SV1CIB, SV3FUO and SV3BSF will participate in the CQ/RJ WW WPX  RTTY Contest (7-8  February) as  J43BSF (Multi-Single).  QSL via  SV1CIB. [TNX SV1DPI]

SV=== Kostas, SV1DPI  reports he will be signing SX1A in contest until June. He plans to participate in the  CQ/RJ WW WPX RTTY, ARRL DX  CW and ARRL DX SSB events as SOAB LP. QSL via SV1DPI (Kostas  Stamatis, P.O. Box 66, 30100 Agrinio, Greece).

VK9=== Babs, DL7AFS and Lot, DJ7ZG will be active as VK9LB from Lord Howe Island (OC-004) on 16-27 February and as VK9NB from Norfolk  Island (OC-005) starting on 1 March for two weeks. Look for activity on 80-6 metres SSB, RTTY and  PSK. All QSLs via DL7AFS, either direct (Baerbel Linge, Eichwaldstrasse  86, D-34123  Kassel, Germany) or through the DARC bureau. Their web site is at http://www.qsl.net/dl7afs [TNX DL7AFS]

VP5=== Dennis, K7BV will be active (with an emphasis on the WARC and  6/ metre bands) as VP5/K7BV from  the Turks &  Caicos Islands on 19-26 February. He expects to participate in the ARRL DX CW Contest using VP5M  (approval    pending). Updates will be posted on http://www.qth.com/k7bv/Turks; QSL via KU9C. [TNX K7BV]

W=== Look for a group of operators from the Hillsborough County (FL) Sheriff's Tactical Amateur Radio Club, the Long Island  DX Association (NY) and The Brandon Amateur Radio  Society (FL) to be active as W2NDP/4  from Honeymoon Island  (NA-034) on 7-8  February. They plan to run two stations during local daylight hours on 10, 15 or 20 metres and one  station on  40 meters during local evening hours. QSL direct to W2NDP. [TNX W2NDP]

XF4=== The web pages for the XF4IH  DXpedition to Socorro Island (NA-030), Revillagigedo [425DXN 660] are under    construction at http://xf4ih.xedx.net/. The all-band all-mode operation is confirmed to start on 3 March. QSL via XE1IH (Enrique Garcia Munive, P.O. Box 118-481, 07051 Mexico - D.F., Mexico). [TNX XE1IH]

YI=== George, K7YMA has been active as YI9YMA from Iraq since 29 January and will remain there through 15  April. He will operate on 10,15 and 20 metres SSB only as duties permit. QSL via K7YMA, direct or bureau. George will submit his log to LOTW upon return to his home QTH. [TNX K7YMA]

YV0=== The Daily DX reports that the DXpedition to Aves Island [425DXN 655] is now delayed until late February or (more likely) March.

ZD8=== Glenn, K6NA will be active again as ZD8A from Ascension Island (AF-003) on 13-17 February and again from 28 February to 2 March. He will operate on on all HF bands, mostly CW. QSL via N6CW. [TNX  The Daily DX]

ANTARCTIC OPERATIONS (*)

ANTARCTICA=== The three operators (namely Filippo/IK0AIH,  Fabrizio/I0HJC and Michele/IK7JGQ) at the Italian Antarctic station  "Baia Terra Nova" are now active as IR0PS (new call). They can be found around 17.30-18.15 UTC on 14185 kHz, where they plan to be  QRV also between 7.30 and 8.30 UTC (long  path) Michele, IK7JGQ reports he expects to board and operate /mm from the polar ship "Italica"  starting around  30 January. [TNX IK7JCQ]

SOUTH ORKNEYS=== Henry (Horacio), LU4DXU eventually left Ushuaia for the South Orkneys  in the late UTC hours  on 26 January. He expected to be QRV as AY1ZA [425DXN 663] from Laurie Island (AN-008) around 31 January.  Look for  him on 14250 kHz at 01.30 UTC. Henry plans to operate SSB (28390, 24930, 21190 18130, 14290,  7090, 3785 kHz), CW (28035, 24905, 21035, 18090, 14035, 10120, 7025, 3515, 1835 kHz), RTTY (28120, 21090, 14090 kHz)  and  PSK31 (21070, 14070 kHz) with a linear amplifier, a 4-element yagi, a rhombic antenna and some wire antennas.QSL via LU4DXU: Horacio Enrique Ledo, P.O. Box 22, 1640 Martinez -  Buenos Aires, Argentina). For further information, please visit www.ay1za.dxers.com.ar/

SOUTH SHETLANDS=== Oleg/UA1PBA,  Alex/UA1PAW and Slava/UA1PAI will be overwintering at  Bellingshausen  station (R1ANF) on King George Island (AN-010). They should be able to spend more time on the amateur radio bands starting in late February operations from the German Dallmann Laboratory (King George Island) and the Argentine Ballve Refuge (Ardley Island) are also being planned. [TNX DL5EBE]

(*) As far as base names, locations and accessory information are concerned, the reference source is the WABA  Directory   2003 (which is also an acknowledged reference source for the RSGB IOTA  Programme).  The WABA Directory is downloadable at http://www.425dxn.org, but please note that 425 DX News is  not and has  never been involved  in WABA  management, so  please refrain from contacting us on WABA matters.

Good to Know:

CCIA=== The Five Argentine Islands Award (Certificado Cinco Islas Argentinas) is  issued by the Grupo Argentino de Radiotelegrafia for  five contacts made on CW with as many stations located on LU islands. See http://gacw.no-ip.org/islas.html for further details. [TNX GACW]

CHILEAN ISLANDS=== Marco, CE6TBN his planning  his future IOTA operations and would like to know which Chilean groups (SA-001, SA-005, SA-008,  SA-013, SA-018, SA-031, SA-032,  SA-043, SA-050, SA-053, SA-061, SA-064,  SA-069, SA-070, SA-083, SA-085, SA-086 and SA-091) are most needed by island chasers. Check your logs and send your list to iota@surnet.cl [TNX CE6TBN]

DXCC HONOR ROLL DEADLINE=== The deadline to be shown in the next DXCC Honor Roll list is 31 March 2004. There are 335 entities on the DXCC list and the current minimum requirement for Honor Roll is 326 current entities. The  DXCC Honor Roll list will appear in August 2004 QST.

DXCC NEWS===  Bill Moore, NC1L reports that the following operations are approved for DXCC credit: TO4E and TO4WW (25 November-21 December 2003) from Europa Island; YI/N2OBM (starting January 2004), YI9ABL (starting  December 2003), YI3Q (starting January  2004), YI9YMA (starting January 2004), and YI9ZF (starting January 2004) from Iraq.

NOT XF4=== Jean-Michel, F6AJA reports that Alain, F6BFH and the other three French operators who are currently in Mexico  (Yves/F5TYY, Andre/F6AOI and Bernard/F9IE) were  never active  from Revillagigedo.  Apparently the  XF4/hc
spotted on the cluster were either pirates or "wishful thoughts".

PORTUGUESE NAVY HF CONTEST===  It will be held from 8 UTC on 15 May through 23 UTC on the16th.Details are available at http://www.qsl.net/cq5mgp. [TNX CT1END]

QSL T94OM===  Ralph Fariello, K2PF reports that effective immediately, he is the QSL manager for Ado, T94OM.

QSL Z33F=== Pietro, IZ8FWN reports he is the new QSL manager for Zoki, Z33F. He confirm QSOs made from 1 January 2001 onwards.

QSL VIA VE3EXY=== Effective  immediately, Nenad takes over all QSL chores from Nick, VK1AA (ex VK2ICV). This  includes the following callsigns:  H40XX, H44XX, VK1AA/2,  VK1AA/4, VK9LX,  VK9LX/9. Cards  can be  sent either  direct (Nenad Stevanovic, P.O. Box 65046, Nepean, Otario K2G 5Y3, Canada) or through the Canadian bureau. At the moment  Nenad has VK9LX,  H44XX, and H40XX  blank QSL cards, while VK9LX/9, VK1AA/2 and  VK1AA/4 are still in process of  being printed. Multiple requests are OK, but keep in mind that Canada Post accepts only 30 gr letters for basic international rate (please note that 1 USD is no longer sufficient for an international overseas letter from Canada).The list of Nenad's QSL  clients is  at http://www.magma.ca/~ve3exy/clients.html [TNX VE3EXY]

============

Jan 29 - Feb 18, 2004   I.C.P.O. Bulletin Islands, Castles & Portable Operations - I.C.P.O.

29/01/2004:  Bob (AA1M) and Mike (W1USN) will be QRV from Grenada (NA-024) as J3/homecall between January 29th and February 6th. Activity will be on CW, SSB and some PSK on the HF bands. QSL to their home calls, either direct or via the bureau. [Tnx OPDX]

29/01/2004:  Look for PR8/PS8NF to be QRV from Sao Luis Island (IOTA SA-016, DIB-007) and Aracagi (MA) Lighthouse (DFB-007, ARLHS BRA-005) between January 29th and February 1st. The operators will be: Operators: PS8NF (Nelson), PS8DCA (Dalton), and PS8DEL (Glauber). Activity will be on 80 through 10 meters (on IOTA frequencies), SSB only. QSL via PS8NF (QRZ.com). [Tnx PT7WA]

29/01/2004:  Look for Antonio, I0SBA/p, to be QRV January 31st (07:30-08:00 UTC) from Rocca di Tolfa Nuova sul monte Tolfaccia ad Allumiere (DCI reference RM-289, for the Italian Castles Award). This reference is located in the Region of Lazio, Province of Roma (RM). Activity will be on 40 and 20 meter SSB. QSL via home call, direct or bureau. [Tnx F5NQL]

01/02/2004:  Weather permitting CT1GFK/p and CT1GPQ/p will operate from Ilha de Cabanas (not IOTA, DIP AL-07) on February 1st. Look for them on 40, 20, 17, and 15 meter SSB and CW between 07:00 and 12:00 UTC. QSL via home calls. [Tnx CT1END]

02/02/2004:  Look for UE9SFF/9 to be QRV February 2nd from the Yuzhno-Ulalsky Natural Reserve (RFF-101, RDA VA-38). QSL via operator's instructions. [Tnx RU3GN]

02/02/2004:  Look for Gerd (DJ4KW) and Gisela (DK9GG) to be QRV February 2nd to 6th as V31YN/p from Lighthouse Reef (IOTA NA-123). Activity will be on 40 through 10 meter CW only. QSL via DJ4KW, direct or bureau. [Tnx 425DXN]

02/02/2004:  Peter, NO2R, has received his callsign/license and will be active as XU7ACY from Sihanoukville, February 2nd to 9th. Activity will be on 160, 80 and 40 meters exclusively. QSL via K2NJ, direct. [Tnx OPDX]

03/02/2004:  Look for Fabrice, F5FUA, to be active as FM/F5FUA/p from Sainte Marie, Martinique, (IOTA NA-107, DIFO FM-001) from February 3rd to 24th. Activity is scheduled daily, from 11:00 to 13:00 UTC and 22:00 to 24:00 UTC on 80, 40, 20, 15 and 10 meters., with IC 706 MKIIG and Double Dipole Multipbande Diamond W-8010. No information yet provided on modes. QSL via the French REF bureau preferred. [Tnx F5NQL]

05/02/2004:  Lars, SM0CCM, will be QRV as J73CCM from Dominica (NA-102) between February 5th and March 4th. He will operate on 160 through 6 meter CW, with some RTTY and PSK. QSL via home call, preferably through he bureau. Direct cards should include 2 USD or 1 IRC. [Tnx 425DXN]

05/02/2004:  Hector, XE2K and others will be active as XF1K from Pajaros Island, Sonora, Mexico (NA-166, the most "most wanted" IOTA group in North America) on 5-9 February. Plans are to operate on 80 through 10 meter (maybe on 160m as well) SSB and CW, with three 100 watt stations powered by battery and generator for 18-24 hours on the air. They will have two triband yagis, two verticals for 40-10m and 80-10m (maybe a third one for 160-10m) and one dipole for 80-40-30m. The group also plans to activate the Pajaros Lighthouse (WLA LH-1138, ARLHS MEX-011, WW Loc. DL47nv). QSL via N6AWD (Fred K. Stenger, 6000 Hesketh Dr., Bakersfield, CA 93309, USA). [Tnx 425DXN]

06/02/2004:  Look for Rich, PA0RRS, to be QRV as 9M#/homecall, from Malaysia, as follows: February 6th to 9th from Kuala Lumpur (9M2), February 9th to 20th from Keningau (OC-088) East Malaysia (9M6) and February 20th to March 2nd from Penang Island (9M2, AS-015). QSL via PA0RRS, direct or bureau. [Tnx 425DXN]

07/02/2004:  The Metro Amateur Radio Club, K9Y, will be QRV from the Chicago Harbor Breakwater South Lighthouse (ARLHS reference USA-1185) between 16:00 UTC February 7th and 23:59 UTC February 8th. Activity will be on 40, 20, 15 and 10 meter CW and SSB. QSL via N9TN, direct (Bill Borgstrom, 1330 W Columbia Ave, Chicago, IL 60626) with #10 SASE (for U.S. stations) or SAE + IRC (or sufficient funds for postage) for DX stations. [Tnx Metro ARC]

07/02/2004:  Members of the Hillsborough County (FL) Sheriff's Tactical Amateur Radio Club, the Long Island DX Association (NY) and The Brandon Amateur Radio Society (FL) will be QRV from Honeymoon Island (IOTA NA-034, USI FL-017S, Pinellas County) in Florida on Saturday and Sunday, February 7 and 8, 2004. Plans are to have 2 stations on the air continuously during daylight hours (in FL) on 10, 15 or 20 meters and 1 station on 40 meters during evening hours (in FL). Antennas will be yagis and verticals for 10 thru 40 meters. IOTA frequencies will be used. We will be using the call of the team coordinator, Dan, W2NDP/4. QSL to home call W2NDP at CBA. [Tnx W2NDP]

09/02/2004:  Look for Rich, PA0RRS, to be QRV as 9M#/homecall, from Malaysia, as follows: February 9th to 20th from Keningau (OC-088) East Malaysia (9M6) and February 20th to March 2nd from Penang Island (9M2, AS-015). QSL via PA0RRS, direct or bureau. [Tnx 425DXN]

11/02/2004:  Scott, N9AG, a member of the J6DX team who will be QRV from St. Lucia (NA-108) as J68AS between February 11th and 25th for contesting and vacation, announced they have plans for a big effort on 160 meters. They will have an Inverted-L antenna, about 65 feet tall, on the side of the hill and a KW. The antenna will have a favorable path to the north and through the west to the southeast, but they are blocked by a hill toward Europe. They will be active on 160m beginning about February 14th, Scott suspects. QSL J68AS via N9AG. [Tnx OPDX]

12/02/2004:  Rag, LA5HE, will once again be active from Spitsbergen Island (EU-026) as JW5HE between February 12th and 18th. There will be an emphasis on the low bands and CW. QSL via his home callsign. [Tnx OPDX]

13/02/2004:  I2YSB (Silvano) reports that he, I2MOV (Flaviano), IK1AOD (Carlo), and IK2DIA (Marcello) will be active from Tokelau (OC-048) beginning February 13th and ending February 25th. Activity will be on 160 through 6 meter CW, SSB and possibly RTTY. The team is looking for your input on your needs and wants from Tokelau, and a survey is available at their Web site at: www.qsl.net/i2ysb . QSL Manager for DIRECT cards go via I2YSB. QSL Manager for BUREAU cards go via IK2DIA. [Tnx OPDX]

15/02/2004:  Andy, AE6Y, will be QRV from Aruba (SA-036) as P40Y between February 15th and 22nd. His activity will include an entry in the ARRL DX CW Contest (February 21-22nd). Activity outside of the contest will be on 160 through 10 meters, including the WARC bands. However, his activity before the contest will be limited because he has a lot of station maintenance to do. QSL via AE6Y. [Tnx OPDX]

15/02/2004:  Bil, W8EB, and his wife Dorothy, W8DVC, will be on the island St. Maarten (NA-105) from February 15th through March 21st. Activity will be on 160 through 10 meter, CW, SSB, RTTY and PSK31. Bil's callsign will be PJ7/W8EB. His activity will include a Single-Op/All Band entry in the ARRL DX CW Contest as PJ7/W8EB and a Multi-Op/High Power entry (with K8RLM) in the ARRL DX Phone Contest as PJ7B. QSL both contests via W8EB. His equipment: FT-100D, Averatec Laptop, Ameritron 811H amplifier, WriteLog and DX4WIN software, Cushcraft R-7000 vertical for 10 thru 40, long wire for 80 and 160. [Tnx OPDX]

16/02/2004:  Babs, DL7AFS, and Lot, DJ7ZG, will be active from Lord Howe Island (OC-004), February 16th to 27th. The callsigns will be VK9LB and VK9LL. Activity will be on 80-6 meters on SSB, RTTY and PSK. QSL via DL7AFS (direct to: Baerbel Linge, Eichwaldstrasse 86, D-34123 Kassel, Germany) or via the DARC Bureau. [Tnx OPDX]

17/02/2004:  Nakamura, JE1JKL, will be active as 9M6NA in the ARRL DX CW Contest (February 21-22nd) as a Single-Op/Single Band (80m) entry. Activity will be from Labuan Island (OC-133) between February 17th and March 2nd. Outside of the contest, look for him on 160 and 80 meters. QSL via JE1JKL. E-mail requests for Bureau QSLs are OK via:
9m6na@jsfc.org . Visit his Web page at: http://jsfc.org/je1jkl/9m6na.html

17/02/2004:  Bill, N7OU, reports that he will be in HI9-land (Dominican Republic, IOTA NA-096) from February 17th to 26th. Bill will be active on 160 through 10 meters before and after the contest, CW only. QSL via N7OU. [Tnx OPDX]

18/02/2004:  Operators Dave (K3LP, Team Leader), Larry (N7DD), Steve (N3SB), Tyler (K3MM), Jeff (N8II), Clint (W3ARS) and Kam (N3KS) will be QRV from French St. Martin (NA-105) between February 18th and 24th. They will operate from Mort's (W1UQ's) QTH at Paradis Peak (1,400 elevation). Each team member will operate with their own FS/homecall prior to and after the ARRL Contest. During the ARRL DX CW Contest (February 21-22nd), the team will be active as FS5UQ during the contest as a Multi-Multi entry. All QSLs are via www.QRZ.com. [Tnx OPDX]

18/02/2004:  Rick, K6VVA, reports that he will be QRV from the U.S. Virgin Islands (NA-106) as KP2CW in the ARRL CW DX Contest (February 21-22nd) as a Single-Op/All Band/High Power entry. QSL via K6VVA. Rick will be there between February 18th and 24th. His activity outside of the contest will be on Thursday (2/18) and some on Friday (2/19) - All Bands as they are opening, but also doing setup/testing. He will also be active primarily on CW. The NCCC Co-Founder Rick, K6VVA, emerges from DX/Contest Mothballs after 25+ years and hopes to QSO many old friends! [Tnx OPDX]

18/02/2004:  John, W2GD, will be QRV from Aruba (SA-036) as P40W, ARRL DX CW Contest included (SOAB entry) between February 18th and 23rd. Activity will be on all bands SSB and CW, with an emphasis on 160 meters at night, 10 meters during the day. QSL via N2MM. [Tnx OPDX]

ANTARCTIC NEWS FROM DOMINIK, DL5EBE -
I just got a message from our good friend Oleg, R1ANF/UA1PBA, that this season they had lots of work to do and there was hardly time left to be QRV. In peaking times they had up to 40 visitors on the base, even some VIP's like the King of Spain and the President of Chile. Even Alex, UA1PAW, who has always been one of the more active operators at R1ANF is now busy painting the buildings and Slava; UA1PAI, joins him. But at the end of February, many people will leave and there will be more time to be on the air. It is now for sure that Oleg and his team will overwinter again. His wintering crew consists of 8 people plus a celibate priest - you are reading correctly - they have built an orthodox church on King George Island! The church will be officially opened on the 15th of February and this event will be celebrated by ca. 30 VIPs from Moscow and the Russian Orthodox Church.

Any operation from Dallmann will be either, when these visitors will leave for Europe or when his old crew will leave on the 24th of February. An operation from Ballve is also planned and Oleg has already got the keys from the building.

By the way, those who are still waiting for their DP1ANF and R1ANF/p (Ballve) cards - due to an error in the postal adress the package with the QSL cards was sent back to Italy!! Alfio, IT9EJW, has sent the package to RK1PWA again by airmail. We hope that the cards will arrive to Amderma very soon. However, in winter time there is only one aircraft every two weeks which can deliver the mail to the polar station. So please be patient. [Tnx DL5EBE]

73 and Good Hunting!
Dave Raycroft - VA3RJ

Home of ICPO: www.qsl.net/va3rj
Mirror: http://webhome.idirect.com/~va3rj
Join ICPO e-Group:  www.qsl.net/va3rj/icpo.html
E-mail: va3rj@rac.ca

===============

Note: A complete list of  Prefixes assigned by International Telecommunications Union can be found on the Trans Provincial Website:  www.tpn7055.ca/callsign.html

Tropical Hamboree is February 7:

The Tropical Hamboree[ www.hamboree.org ], one of the largest gatherings Amateur Radio enthusiasts in the southeastern United States, will celebrate its 44th year when the gates open February 7 at the Fair-Expo Center in Miami, Florida. The two-day event also is the setting for the ARRL Florida State Convention. In addition to the presence of a number of area ARRL Field Organization volunteers, ARRL Headquarters will be represented by Dan Miller, K3UFG, who will hold an emergency communications forum, and Bill Moore, NC1L, who will participate in the DX forum and be available to check cards, as well. Members of the South Florida DX Association will have a DX forum and DX dinner on Saturday morning. The guest speaker will be Bob Schenck, N2OO, who will talk about his recent BQ9P DXpedition to Pratas Island. For more details, check out the SFDXA Web page: www.qsl.net/k4fk/Tropical_Hamboree.html

Tropical Hamboree is sponsored by the Dade Radio Club of Miami:  www.daderadioclub.org

(ARRL News Service)

==========

Jan 27, 2004   SSB, Radar Pioneer Mike Villard, W6QYT, SK

Renowned RF engineer, Stanford University researcher and author Oswald Garrison "Mike" Villard Jr, W6QYT, of Palo Alto, California, died January 7. He was 87. A pioneer of Amateur Radio single sideband (SSB) and meteor-scatter techniques, Villard authored some two dozen QST articles between 1946 and 1994. They covered topics ranging from SSB, supermodulation, meteor detection and long-delayed echo (LDE) phenomena to VHF and microwave experimentation, antenna construction and fox hunting. He also was the author of more than 60 technical papers and held a half-dozen patents.

"His technical achievements were legendary," Dave Leeson, W6NL, a consulting professor of electrical engineering in Stanford`s Space, Telecommunications and Radioscience Laboratory (STARLab), told Stanford University News Service "Stanford and the entire engineering community were enriched by his person and his accomplishments." www.stanford.edu/dept/news/pr/04/villardobit128.html

Born in Dobbs Ferry, New York, the son of O.G. Villard Sr, a noted publisher and editor (The New York Evening Post and The Nation), Mike Villard developed an interested in radio while still a youngster. He was first licensed as W1DMV in 1932, while living in Connecticut.

Since his father wanted him to follow in his footsteps, the younger Villard earned a bachelor's degree in English from Yale in 1938, but then headed to Stanford University to pursue his first love, electrical engineering. While at Stanford, he studied under Professor Frederick Terman (ex-6FT and 6AE)--later regarded as the "father of Silicon Valley."

During World War II, Villard followed Terman to work at Harvard University's Radio Research Laboratory on enemy countermeasures research. He returned to Stanford after the war, joined the school's electrical engineering faculty in 1946 and completed his PhD in 1949. He taught and carried out research at Stanford for five decades, and he headed STARLab's predecessor--The RadioScience Laboratory--from 1958 until 1972.

While a student at Stanford, Villard found mentors in Russell and Sigurd Varian, David Packard and William Hewlett, William Webster Hansen and other luminaries. Villard later repaid the favor by aiding them as they developed the klystron--the basis of radar.

Among his Amateur Radio accomplishments, he experimented with and championed single-sideband, suppressed-carrier modulation in 1947, and the Stanford Amateur Radio Club's W6YX is said to have been the first ham station to use SSB transmission. While a student, he also served as the club's president, and from the 1950s through the early 1980s he was the trustee of W6YX. An ARRL member for many years, Villard was also a past scientific advisor to the Northern California DX Foundation.  www-w6yx.stanford.edu/w6yx

During his career at Stanford (and later at Stanford Research Institute--SRI), Villard pioneered the concept and development of a program to design and build an over-the-horizon radar system to detect incoming military aircraft and high-altitude missiles. In addition, he demonstrated the feasibility of the "stealth aircraft" concept by using specially treated low-impedance surfaces.

For those achievements he received the Department of Defense civilian Medal of Honor.

Another accomplishment was the design of a simple, small high-frequency receiving antenna that aided in nulling out signals that jammed broadcasts of the Voice of America, the BBC and others. Villard's design has remained in use around the world for several decades.  http://users.erols.com/k3mt/hla/hla.htm

Villard was a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering and the International Scientific Radio Union. He was a fellow of SRI, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Survivors include two sons and a daughter. His wife Bobbie died in 1996. A private graveside service will be held this spring in New York. Plans are pending for a West Coast memorial service.

The family requests donations in support of the Mike Villard Memorial Fund to SRI International, 333 Ravenswood Ave, AD-114, Menlo Park, CA 94025.--some information from Stanford News Service

(ARRL News Service)

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