A daily service that brings you the latest in Amateur Radio News from around the world,
with a weekly synopsis to keep you up to speed with current events on the Amateur Radio Scene.
Delivered to over 2400 hams every week.
European Commission takes soft line on interference from BPL 2004-11-04 The European Commission has stated that: “…when resolving interference (from BPL), the Member States should take into account the importance of the services, as well as technical and economic aspects”. In other words, if a European country judges BPL to be more important economically than Amateur Radio, it should take this into account when dealing with interference complaints. For more details on this story, visit the RAC News Service: www.rac.ca/news/bplnews.htm#European Commission
Great Britain....Changes Announced to Advanced Licence Exam
RSGB Board member Ed Taylor, G3SQX, said, “We proposed some amendments in the operation of the Advanced exam, following comments that the new exam was more technical than the old RAE. Ofcom agreed, and we are pleased that a way was found to implement changes without reducing the rigour of the system.” To allow for the proposed changes to be implemented in March 2005, the Exam Group has requested that the previously-advertised exam timetable for 2005 be amended. The revised dates for the Advanced exam are now:
(RSGB)
South Africa...New Radio Regulations come into force Nov. 20 2004
3,500 - 3,800 MHz in the 80 m band; 7,000 - 7,100 MHz in the 40 m band; 14,070 - 14,099 MHz and 14,225 - 14,350 MHz in the 20 m band; 21,080 - 28,120 MHz and 21,300 - 21,450 MHz in the 15 m band; 28,050 - 28,150 MHz and 28,300 - 28,500 MHz in the 10 m band; In all cases, the maximum permitted power is 100 Watt PEP. When the new regulations take effect, the HF frequency allocations for ZU licenses will also change so they are identical with the ZR allocations on the 160, 80, 40 and 10 m bands. ZU licensees will be permitted to use SSB on all these bands. The frequencies applicable to ZU licenses are: 1,810 - 1,850 MHz in the 160 m band;
The maximum permitted power for ZU licensees remains 20 watts PEP. ZS licensees will retain all current frequency allocations, with a maximum power of 400 watt. (SARL)
Australia..EMR and health issues Nov. 19 2004
There is a new web site http://emr.aca.gov.au from which you'll find links to ARPANSA (Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency) and its specific advice on non-ionising radiation (as in radio) and ionising radiation (as in X-rays, and to a limited extent, computer monitors!) There are also the self-assessment guidelines from May 2002 at the ACA's site "Human Exposure to Electromagnetic Radiation: Guidelines for assessing fixed transmitters" that is a relatively small PDF file: http://www.aca.gov.au/consumer_info/issues_alerts/amateur.pdf References:
(Peter Ellis VK1KEP Wireless Institute of Australia)
Turkey Repeater and Echolink Node information
Information about Echolink repeaters in Turkey visit: http://echolink.sitemynet.com (Anil Cigtekin)
Belgium...QRP Power Tests Announced
Dec. 26th 2004 Jan. 16th 2005
(GB2RS)
RAC Youth Education Program participants
using IRLP for school-to-school contacts 2004-11-18
The following Wednesday, Patty VA7PTY and John VE7SDJ demonstrated how we use APRS in amateur radio; and the students looked up John's weather station on Findu.com www.varpa.bc.ca/aprs.html as well as my last reported position. Then they discovered that John's truck, Rocky, was still beaconing his position in the school parking lot! Yesterday, half of the students visited John, VE7JMF, the Municipal Amateur Co-ordinator (MAC),at the Esquimalt Emergency Operations Centre (EOC). John showed them the centre's packet operation, and then the students made contact with an amateur in Salem OR on 40 m., and each had the opportunity to speak to the operator. The other half of the class headed up to the 'flagpole', the highest point in Beacon Hill Park in Victoria, where they were able to see the mountains of the Olympic Peninsula across Juan de Fuca Strait. Rick, VE7TK www3.telus.net/ve7tk (who has one of the most impressive ham shacks I have ever seen -- check out his website! -- , and who is a master DX operator/contestor) had set up his Westphalia van for 40m and 20m operations. Because the band conditions over the past week have been crippled by sun-spot activity late last week, it was very difficult to make any contacts, but Rick managed to pull on signal out of the ether and the students had brief contact with an amateur in New Mexico. The terrible conditions did permit Rick to instruct the students in HF propagation, and the effects of sunspots on HF communications. In the 'theater wings' are several local amateurs, always ready to help Elmer the students and to arrange IRLP contacts from their home QTH. George, VE7ABX and Kip, VE7HVR are always there in the background to give assistance. The students have come to recognize their voices, and 'know they are there to help'. At least two of the students have begun thinking about taking the next Westcoast Amateur Radio Association (WARA) www.ve7vic.ca amateur licensing course which begins in January, 2005. That course, incidentally, is very comprehensive, and many of the students go on to write both their basic and advanced examinations, as well as the CW examination! The course classes are twice a week, with several Saturday morning sessions devoted to station visits and construction projects -- such as an oscillator for a Morse key). Our fall Central Middle School Enhancement Program will terminate in mid-December; but we are pleased to announce that the School Administration has invited us to have a 10-week session again in January! And we are now talking about the feasibility of having a permanent Amateur Radio Club at the school during the school year. A great big Thank You to our staff teacher Kathie Cross! 73, Terrance VE7TBC, ve7tbc@rac.ca (RAC News Service)
The Canadian Amateur Radio Bulletin has become very popular with many hams, requests have come in to update the news on a daily basis. In order to serve the Amateur Radio community this is exactly what we have done. The Canadian Amateur Bulletin is now 'ham radio news as it happens'. The time and date stamp at the top of the bulletin indicates the latest update. Another feature that has been requested is feature articles with photos, once again the bulletin team has come together and are please to announce, feature articles are now being included in the bulletin service. With the inclusion of feature articles and pictures the bulletin has become much to large to send out to our e-mail subscribers, a text only weekly synopsis will be delivered to subscribers every Sunday afternoon, the subscriber list now numbers over 2500. The online version of the bulletin receives over 150 visitors every day from all over the world: Canada, United States, Japan, New Zealand, Columbia, France, Brazil, Turkey, Tuvalu, Italy, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, Hungary, Netherlands, USA Military, Ivory Coast, Argentina, Togo, Denmark, Thailand, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Russian Federation and Romania. The Canadian Amateur Radio Bulletin team wish to acknowledge the many dedicated amateurs that help to make this service possible. Of special note our new Atlantic Regional Correspondent, Howard Dickson (VE1DHD) has been compiling information from the Atlantic region, providing news and feature articles. Thanks to Howard and the many hams in the Atlantic region for their contribution to this news service. However we do have a void and are
in need of Western Provinces Correspondents, I am sure there are many ham
activities from our western nieghbours that go unnoticed simply because
the news does not get sent in for publication.
Thank you for your continued support,
Nov. 16 2004 Feature Article......Beauty out of a vacuum
Jim Taylor VA3KU
(RAC News Service)
I am asking all hams that enjoy the many website services to help out with a small contribution. Full details on how this can be done can be found online at: www.hfradio.net/about.html Thank you for your continued support,
Halifax ARC Number One
Upgrades to VE1CDN
& VE1PKT
The VE1PKT VHF (145.030 MHz) packet node has a new radio, and the VE1PKT-1 UHF backbone packet node also has a new radio. VE1PKT (formerly VE1DXI) has been on the air since 1983. Also, as a bit of trivia, I continue to operate a very busy high speed HF Pactor (Pactor 1, 2, and 3) WinLink 2000 station. I scan seven frequencies on 80m, 40m, 30m, and 20m. The station gets 60 to 80 connects a day from mostly yachts. Note added by Correspondent – Neil wishes that there were some way of encouraging more VHF activity in Nova Scotia. We are encouraging nets to use the linking system to stimulate some activity. There are hundreds of 2-meter mobiles around, but very few use the linking system through the VE1CDN hub. Radio Amateurs in Nova Scotia owe Neil, Brad and Lorne a big thank you for the time, effort and financial commitment made to keeping the Halifax Airport hub and the VE1PHK repeater current and operational. Thanks so much guys!
The Fredericton Amateur Radio Club will be starting a course leading to the Basic License on Tuesday, November 23 at the EMO Conference Room, Victoria Health Center beginning at 7:00 PM. This first evening provides an introduction to the hobby and an overview of the course and is open to all interested persons without charge or obligation. Those who wish to enroll in the course will be able to register after the session. Classes will be held on (most) Tuesday and Thursday evenings over the Fall and Winter. Cost of the course (including all classes, text book, examination and membership in the Fredericton Amateur Radio Club) is $75.00 Students who already have the text ("RAC Study Guide for the Basic Exam - Sixth Edition") will pay $40.00. David Hildebrand (VE9AV)
Halifax Amateur Radio Club Christmas
Dinner
The cost for the meal and an evening of fun and camaraderie is $13.95 per person, with a discount for those over 60. All Radio Amateurs and their families are invited to join with members of the Halifax Amateur Radio Club. Reservations are required - to reserve a place please contact Tom Caithness - VE1GTC - at: tom.caithness@ns.sympatico.ca We hope to see you on the 15th.
Lunenburg County Amateur Radio
Club Christmas Dinner
Maritime Swap Shop The Maritime Swap Shop is held every Tuesday at 2330z or 7:30 local time on 3.750 MHz. All station are invited to checkin and post their wants and items for sale. The Maritime Swap Shop list can be found on many places on the internet, here are just a few: The Loyalist City Amateur Radio Club , hfradio.net , VE1AIC's Home Page and Truro Amateur Radio Club
Notice: Amateurs in the Atlantic Region are asked to submit their news items for 'The Canadian Amateur Radio Bulletin' to our 'Atlantic Regional Correspondent'. D. Howard Dickson - VE1DHD dhdickson@hfx.eastlink.ca
Montreal Amateur Radio Club Meeting Nov 24 2004
ARCI Fall QSO Party
Jeff will be active on all bands,
2 through 160 at some point in time over the period of authority for VC3W.
(RAC News Service)
QCWA, Fred Hammond Chapter 73, which meets at "The Plainsman" restaurant (on highway 5, Flamboro On.) twice a year for a luncheon announces a new level of membership called "A Friend of Chapter 73". This membership only applies to non licensed persons, or to amateurs licensed less than 25 years. It allows you to join us for the luncheons, receive the mailings, and meet your on the air friends. Once you reach the 25 year licensed mark, the membership is revoked, as we hope you would join QCWA and Chapter 73 at that time. As a "A Friend of Chapter 73" you help to support the scholarship program for college or university students as well. You cannot vote or hold office in the Chapter as "A Friend". If interested, an convenient application form is available at: www.hfradio.net/QCWA_app.doc (Ernie VE3OU)
The Lambton County Radio Club will be sponsoring a Basic Amateur Radio course beginning in the early part of January, 2005 and running for 8-10 weeks.
Tuition fee for the course is $55 (Cdn) per person, payable in advance. The tuition fee includes payment for a personal copy of the "Radio Amateurs of Canada Study Guide for the Basic Exam" (6th Edition) as well as payment for classroom materials and related costs. A closed book, written examination session for the Basic Qualification by an official Industry Canada accredited examiner will also be conducted as a part of the course during the final class session. Those who successfully take and pass this examination will be issued their Basic Certificate of Proficiency in Amateur Radio from Industry Canada along with a Canadian Amateur Radio call sign. Course registration and tuition fee collection will be conducted on Tuesday evening, November 23, 2004 at 7:30 PM at the downtown Sarnia Police Headquarters classroom facility. Due to the size of the classroom facility, the number of students that can be accommodated will be limited to approximately 15-20. Therefore, course registration will be on a "first-come, first-served" basis. For more information, contact Keith Baker, VA3KSF, at 519-481-0153 or you may contact him via e-mail at: va3ksf@rac.ca Full details on the Lambton County Radio Club can be found online: www.kcbassociates.com/lcrc
The Swap Shop list is posted every Monday on the Trans Provincial Net website, Ontario Swap Shop Listings , the swap shop list can also be found on packet by calling up VE3DID (Nick VE3NJG)
ARES ONTARIO SET 2004 REPORT
The ARES Ontario conducted their annual Simulated Emergency Test on the 23rd of October 2004. It took place against a backdrop of significant and on-going change within both the province’s emergency management system and the ARES Ontario structure. In January 2003 the province introduced an amended Emergency Management Act which mandated each of the 446 municipalities to appoint Community Emergency Management Coordinators and to develop approved emergency response plans. Over the next two or three years it is anticipated that each municipality will progressively achieve each of three successive and more challenging provincial certification levels. In response, ARES Ontario has also begun restructuring, increasing the number of ARES Districts, aligning them with EMO Sector boundaries to facilitate a closer working relationship with both EMO and municipal emergency management authorities, and introducing a more operational perspective to the DEC’s role. This year’s SET also introduced a new approach to the SET itself: a structured, province-wide exercise planned with formal EMO input. The SET plan had three components. At the highest level was EMO’s request to test HF communications throughout the province from VE3EMO located within the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre. The second EMO-specific task was to test the PSK-31 capability between the PEOC and the City of Toronto EOC. Recognizing that higher speed digital communications between municipal EOCs and the PEOC will be a near essential requirement in the near future, the second component of the SET was a DEC task to coordinate an internal District exercise with a focus on EOC-to-EOC communications using packet radio or WinLink/Airmail. The third component of the SET was an HF exercise to promote involvement by as many Amateurs as possible. The exercise plan had to recognize that the VE3EMO station is very limited in space and equipment. There is barely room for two operators, and as the SET quickly demonstrated it was very difficult to function on two radios, keep logs, pass traffic, and coordinate with the PEOC Duty Officer. It must also be kept in mind that the purpose of the SET is to test the Amateur Radio capability, not the PEOC’s capability to respond to SET message traffic. To stay within all these limitations the PSK-31 test was successfully conducted immediately prior to commencement of the SET and a closed net was established for the DECs to pass their SET message. The Trans-Provincial Net was used as a back-up to great effect (see below). At the time of writing the DEC reports are not yet available but it is believed that, between the two nets, the goal of HF contact with all ARES Districts was achieved. The goal of testing digital radio communications was of course very inconsistent across the Districts given the dilapidated nature of the packet system and the very recent introduction of the WinLink system. Nevertheless a significant amount of effort was contributed by ‘packeteers’ across Southern Ontario to restore parts of the backbone and the BBSs in preparation for the SET, and a number of groups experimented with the 2m/70cm component of the WinLink system. One group (Prescott/Russell) and perhaps a second (unconfirmed as yet) group near Burlington even tested the HF Airmail component under deployed field conditions. From the writer’s perspective a most impressive “show” was the TPN’s response to the SET Coordinator’s request for backup the DEC Net, and to conduct the general HF component of the SET. Assistant Net Control Stations were appointed. Procedures for giving ARES District HF Stations priority access, and for forwarding ARES traffic through the City of Toronto EOC station (VE3EOT) to VE3EMO over 2 metres, were published well in advance. The initial TPN Net Controller (VE3HMS) did an outstanding job of establishing a professional net routine and it’s my impression that the per hour volume of traffic handled increased substantially. A very sincere thank-you to the TPN organizers and VE3EOT crew for their invaluable support. I would be remiss if I did not also acknowledge the efforts of VE3OV (custodian) and VA3KU who spent a day at VE3EMO preparing the station for the SET. Many, many AROs contributed to planning, preparation and conduct of the SET. And then there are the repeater, digipeater, node and BBS operators who put in the extra time to ensure their equipment was ready. I thank you all and trust that your contributions will be individually recognized in the RAC Field Organization Forum section of TCA. A formal SET Report will be provided to the SEC after a scheduled return visit to EMO, and all DEC reports are received. Submitted by:
(Source: www.racaresontario.ca )
Golden Horseshoe Net now the ProCom Net This is to inform all stations that the Thursday night net at 8.30 pm, known as the Golden Horseshoe Net will now be known as the ProCom Net. ProCom is short for Provincial Communications. This will better reflect the coverage area of the net. Thursday - 8.30 pm
Be aware that the Toronto VE3SNM repeater will soon be shut down at its current location. When that happens and until a new Toronto location is found, Toronto stations should be ready to go to VE3WAJ on 442.425 (107.2) located in Thorold, to check into the net.
Midwest Newsletter Oct. 2004
1. BPL - (Broadcast over Power Lines) is an issue of considerable interest to Industry Canada. Trials are still taking place at Sault St. Marie and the Ramada Inn in Cornwall has been doing in-house trials on a system within their building. Industry Canada will be moving to the public input process early in 2005, through the Gazette process, soliciting input on BPL from the public. 2. Tower Consultation - Professor Townsend’s report is being finalized (he received over 1000 responses) and should be available early in 2005. Industry Canada’s best advice on Amateur towers continues to be that hams should establish a positive dialogue with their community before erecting towers. This translates to mean that IC is not anxious to be called in to settle disputes. 3. Reciprocal Operating Agreements - Industry Canada will be suggesting that Canada should be willing to allow short term (up to one year) operation by foreign hams on the strength of their own license. Beyond that, foreign hams should obtain Canadian certification (write the exam). It is hoped that other countries will then undertake to treat visiting Canadians in the same fashion. Unanswered - what to do about Foundation Licensees from Great Britain, as there is no comparable license in Canada. Should they have some sort of operating permission when operating in Canada? 4. Morse Code Proposal - The
Gazette period generated about 150 responses, which will be tabulated and
summarized during the next two weeks. This summary will appear on the IC
WEBsite. Then, a decision will be made by Industry Canada on what direction
to take. Much of it seems to hinge on whether changes will require regulatory
changes, as this process is very long and tedious. The worst-case scenario
in terms of time frame for a decision will be next summer. Maybe it will
happen sooner. In the meantime, examination pass marks remain at 60%, the
existing exam will be used and hams who wish to have access to HF are advised
to obtain their 5 wpm Morse certification.
5. Callsign Proposal - The 2X4 callsigns will, in all likelihood, be treated like special event callsigns, available for defined short periods only, not as permanent allocations. The Industry Canada database is not configured to record permanent 2X4 callsigns. 6. Designated Examiners - are reminded that they have to renew their status every two years and that they must be using the current exam generator, as available from the Industry Canada WEBsite. I will be calling the examiners in VE4 & VE5 in the near future for a brief chat. RAC News There are a couple of major items coming out of RAC, on which you will be receiving more, detailed information. The good: RAC has obtained insurance coverage, from a firm by the name of AXA which has insured Quebec Amateurs for many years. This insurance will provide $5 000 000 in liability coverage for RAC members and for qualified Amateur Radio Clubs. The insurance is a benefit of membership, not an extra cost item, for RAC members. It evidently meets the requirements of the CBC for repeater hosting on transmission towers. It will make it unnecessary, for participating clubs, to have (expensive) liability insurance for repeater installations, public events, etc, etc. This could be a significant saving for clubs. The participating clubs will have to be incorporated for this to work. Otherwise, the club members will carry the liability personally. (And, if RAC members, have their own $5M liability coverage, of course) The inevitable: RAC has been
forced to change the membership fee structure, to become effective with
the coming of the new year.
This change was required by Heritage
Canada in order to continue RAC’s qualification for favourable mailing
treatment, which is a significant budget factor. The old membership cost
of $39.95 has been in effect, unchanged, for many years. If RAC had continued
with this structure, the Heritage Canada benefit would have been lost.
For the past few years, it has NOT covered the actual cost of membership,
and had to be augmented by sales of merchandise and books to cover RAC’s
operating costs.
If you have questions or comments on the above (or anything else, of course) please get in touch with me. For those of you attending the RARA Flea Market in a couple of weeks, I hope to see you there. From: Bj. Madsen - VE5FX
(Source information: http://www.sirnet.mb.ca/~ve4sss/Midwest.PDF)
Nov. 19 2004 Tad Cook K7RA Solar Update
http://soi.stanford.edu/press/ssu03-00/backside.html. This weekend is the ARRL November SSB Sweepstakes. There is a possibility of aurora, but probably only at higher latitudes, nothing like recent sightings of northern lights as far south as Arizona. The predicted planetary A index for November 19-22 is 5, 12, 15 and 10. Predicted solar flux for the same period is 100, rising to 110 around November 22 and 120 the next day. Solar flux should peak for the near term near 135 around November 26-28. Chip Margelli, K7JA, who wrote in last week's bulleting about aurora propagation wrote back to say he got a big overheated in all the excitement, and wrote heliopause when he meant to say Harang Discontinuity. Chip writes: "Either side of the Harang Discontinuity seems to have some very dynamic possibilities during extreme geomagnetic events like we just experienced. Around the Harang Discontinuity, you get very interesting propagation shifts, between AU-E and straight E or F2 propagation. This would account, I believe, for the rapidly-changing reports of signal quality, especially from Northern California (where one guy would report KH6SX solid, direct path, with no AU sound, and five minutes later someone would report heavy aurora distortion and a more northerly path)." If you are wondering like I was what
a Harang Discontinuity could be, check out the web sites,
In some late aurora news, Lefty Clement, K1TOL in Turner, Maine said he had a tremendous thrill on November 7 when he worked OZ4VV and MM0AMW on 6 meters. This is only the third time in 30 years on 6 meters that he has worked Europe via Auroral-E skip without the assistance of the F2 layer. The OZ QSO was his furthest yet. He was also hearing European commercial television signals S9, and heard via a European chat cluster that G4IGO and an SM6 heard him for a five minute period. If you would like to comment or have a tip, email the author at, k7ra@arrl.net. For more information concerning propagation and an explanation of the numbers used in this bulletin see the ARRL Technical Information Service propagation page at, http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html Sunspot numbers for November 11 through 17 were 70, 52, 50, 69, 57, 46 and 59 with a mean of 57.6. 10.7 cm flux was 94.9, 97.4, 96.4, 100.3, 105.6, 108.4 and 104.9, with a mean of 101.1. Estimated planetary A indices were 23, 30, 8, 9, 3, 8 and 6, with a mean of 12.4. Estimated mid-latitude A indices were 22, 23, 7, 7, 2, 5 and 7, with a mean of 10.4. (ARRL News Service)
Europe Nov. 21 2004 Solar and propagation report, compiled by Neil Clarke, G0CAS,and Martin Harrison, G3USF. The solar report and forecast from Neil Clarke, G0CAS, and Martin Harrison, G3USF. In the wake of recent storms, calmer times returned this week. Solar flare activity was low, with only a daily sprinkling of C-class flares, which had only a minor effect on propagation. The solar flux varied between 96 and 108, averaging 103 - 12 points down on the previous week. The 90-day average was down one point at 106. The X-ray flux averaged B1.7 with little daily variation. By contrast with the previous week, when the geomagnetic index reached 181 on the peak day, it was in single figures every day until the 19th, averaging only 6 units. However, more unsettled conditions returned on the 20th. Solar wind speeds declined from 667km/sec on the 12th to 309km/sec on the 19th. It took the ionosphere some time to recover from the storms of the previous week but the low geomagnetic figures brought an expected, though rather patchy, improvement in HF propagation. This was particularly marked over east-west or transpolar paths, with some strong trans-Atlantic openings reported. All continents were again workable up to 28MHz. However, the shorter days in the northern hemisphere are now leading the higher bands to close earlier. This will now continue until after the winter solstice. The low geomagnetic levels meant that almost no VHF aurora was reported. The Leonids meteor shower, which peaked on the 19th, proved disappointing, with unexpectedly low meteor rates reported. During the coming week solar flare activity is expected to remain mainly low, though there is a possibility it will increase to moderate on the occasional day. Solar flux levels may go a little higher, though are unlikely to reach more than the 120s. Since Earth is currently inside a coronal stream, over the next day or so the geomagnetic field will be a bit more active than in recent days. Quiet-to-unsettled levels should then prevail for the rest of the week. MUFs at equal latitudes are expected to be around 28MHz in the south and 25 MHz in the north. Darkness hour lows will be in the vicinity of 8MHz. Paths to India should have a maximum usable frequency - giving a fifty per cent chance of a contact - of around 31MHz. The optimum working frequency, where contacts should be possible almost every day, will be around 21MHz. The best time to try the path will be between 1000 and 1400UTC. And that's all from the propagation team for another week. (G3USF)
Two Canadian schools hope to contact the International Space Station in December
The contact is made on two metres, usually with a 145.8 MHz downlink. The uplink frequency is decided at the last moment depending on band usage. Most amateurs within 1000 miles of the school should be able to hear at least part of the downlink side of the conversations. In addition, there are plans to put both the uplink and downlink audio on IRLP for distibution to other schools. Although IRLP has been used in the past for Canadian school contacts, a new system which has possible wider use within the ARISS program will be tested. For the latest information on Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS), visit the ARISS English language web site at: www.rac.ca/ariss (RAC News Service)
New Astronauts Licensed On November 12, six astronauts (and one astronaut spouse) from the latest candidate class took and passed their amateur radio exams. Naoko Yamazaki, and her husband, Taichi Yamazaki, Dorothy M. Metcalf-Lindenburger, Richard R. Arnold II, Satoshi Furukawa, Jose M. Hernandez, and Joseph M. Acaba are among the newest members of the ham community. Congratulations to all! Thanks to Carol Jackson, ARISS status reports, http://www.rac.ca/ariss/oindex.htm#ARISS Status (RAC News Service)
Honoring
the life of astronaut Leroy Gordon Cooper, Jr. Nov. 19,
2004
Whereas, when Gordon Cooper served as command pilot on the 8-day 120-orbit Gemini 5 mission that began on August 21, 1965, he and pilot Charles Conrad established a new space endurance record by traveling a distance of 3,312,993 miles in an elapsed time of 190 hours and 56 minutes; Whereas Gordon Cooper was the first man to go into space for a second time; Whereas Gordon Cooper served as backup command pilot for the Gemini 12 mission and as backup commander for the Apollo 10 flight; Whereas Gordon Cooper logged 222 hours in space and retired from the Air Force and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in 1970; Whereas the special honors Gordon Cooper received during his lifetime included the Air Force Distinguished Flying Cross, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Distinguished Service Medal, and the John F. Kennedy Trophy; and Whereas Gordon Cooper passed away at his home in Ventura, California, on October 4, 2004, at the age of 77: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate honors the life of astronaut Leroy Gordon Cooper, Jr. CARB Editor's Note: Thebiography of Leroy Gordon Cooper, Jr. can be found online at: www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/cooper-lg.html (SpeceRef.com)
NASA names space veteran, ham as deputy for exploration operations (Nov 16, 2004)
(ARRL News Service)
AO-51 E-Mail Request Box
(AMSAT-NA)
Maritime Mobile Service Network.....Streaming Audio Nov. 19 2004
Because of this, this streamed audio is not meant to be used to control the net. Rather, it is intended as another means for non hams to listen to the net, family of boat crews to listen for the boat and a way to monitor the net when you are away from the radio or when you have no propagation to hear the net control station. You can hear the streamed audio daily when the net is in operation. You will need a media player like Winamp or Real installed on your computer. Simply take your web browser to www.mmsn.org and click on the yellow icon that says "Listen Live." (MMSN)
Australia....A Heavenly Hobby Ian Dunlop has done and heard a lot during his years in amateur radio, including having a conversation with Jesus. The Octogenarian `radio- junkie' is a member of the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Society based at Nerang and holds claim to being the elder-statesman of the "mob", starting his wireless ways whilst on horseback. "I used to ride my horse every day fixing radios on my route," he said. "I might have been the only horse-riding radio repairman in Australia". With many fond radio experiences, when the Port Macquarie Ham Radio Club were hearing of his exploits for a story in their news bulletin heard one which Ian described as 'rather scary'. "About 30 odd years ago I received a transmission from South America that was quite broken so I tried to gain contact and told the voice my name. "After a lot more broken noise I heard this voice with an accent. "It told me he was Jesus." I got such a scary shock that I was trembling and my hair stood one end. "I hadn't realised that 'Jesus' was a common name in South America." (Ed The ORARC Inc.)
Wireless Institute of Australia....National Historian VK3AFU Looking back on amateur radio history, the Canberra Times newspaper archives contains an article headlined "Glasnost hits Aussie airwaves" which records the breakthrough in east-west relations that occurred this week in 1988. It was when the crew on the MIR space station made the first ever QSO with the western world. Bob Arnold VK3ZBB chatted with Soviet cosmonaut Mousa Manarova U2MIR on the 15th of November 1988. The Canberra Times reported Bob VK3ZBB as saying "I was absolutely over the moon, it was tremendous, to me a tremendous thrill." The Soviet Embassy in Canberra confirmed that these, the first ever transmissions from the MIR space station to the western world were part of the government's glasnost, or openness, policy. Australia had been deliberately chosen as the first western nation in the expansion of glasnost through the medium of amateur radio from the MIR space station that was then orbiting 400 kilometres above earth. (Jim Linton VK3PC)
LZ DX Contest--CW/SSB, sponsored by the Bulgarian Federation of Radio Amateurs from 1200Z Nov 20-1200Z Nov 21. Frequencies: 80-10 meters with 10 minute mode change rule. Categories: SOAB (CW, Phone, Mixed), SOAB-QRP Mixed, SOSB-Mixed, MS-Mixed, SWL. Exchange: RST + ITU zone or 2-letter LZ district. QSO Points: same continent--1 pt, different cont--3 pts, LZ station--10 pts. Score: QSO points × ITU zones + LZ districts counted once per band. For more information: www.qsl.net/lz1fw/contest. Logs due 30 days after the contest to lzdxc@yahoo.com or BFRA, PO Box 830, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria. RSGB 1.8MHz Contest--CW, from 2100 Nov 20 to 0100Z Nov 21. For more information: www.rsgbhfcc.org. Logs due 16 days after the contest to 2nd160.logs@rsgbhfcc.org or RSGB--G3UFY, 77 Bensham Manor Rd, Thornton Heath, Surrey CR7 7AF, England. CQ WW DX Contest--CW, from 0000Z Nov 27 to 2400Z Nov 28 http://cqww.com
UK-USA Team Active from Niger for CQ World Wide CW The CQ World Wide DX CW Contest is on 27 and 28 November, and numerous contest DXpeditions are expected to be on the bands during the weekend and also in the days leading up to the contest. One such group is the ‘VooDoo Contest Group’, which will be active from Niamey, the capital of Niger, as 5U5Z during the contest. Activity is in the Multi-Multi category with seven stations. Operators are G0MTN, G3PJT, G3SXW, G4BWP, G4PIQ, K5VT, KC7V and N7NG. Immediately before the contest there may be some activity, perhaps including 10, 18 and 24MHz and 6 metres, using personal 5U callsigns. There is also the possibility of some activity from Burkina Faso, XT2, while in transit. (RSGB)
Joplin, MO: Joplin Amateur Radio Club, W0IN. 1900Z-2300Z Nov 20. Letha Dangerfield, W0OUD, Commemorative Special Event Station from the Joplin Association for the Blind. SSB: 14.260 CW 15 40 m. QSL. Joplin Amateur Radio Club, PO Box 2983, Joplin, MO 64803. www.joplin-arc.org. The Villages, FL: The Villages Amateur Radio Club, K4VRC. 1600Z-2100Z Nov 27. Celebrating the Club's Ninth Anniversary. 14.260 7.030 147.030(+) Gen bands. Certificate. Don Edlund, 9616 SE 168 Elderberry Pl, The Villages, FL 32162. Various, USA: 10-10 International, W6OI. 0000Z Nov 27-2400Z Nov 28. Celebrating four decades and just under 75000 members in all 10 call areas. 28.340-28.400. QSL. Jack Moore, K5CC, 371 Ridge Creek Ln, Bulverde, TX 78163. Certificate for working all areas. www.10-10.org. Plymouth, MA: Whitman Amateur Radio Club, WA1NPO. 1400Z Nov 27-2000Z Nov 28. The first Pilgrim landing in Plymouth, MA. 28.360 14.280 7.250 3.890. Certificate. Bruce Hayden, NI1X, 1000 Locust St, Raynham, MA 02767.
Pearl Harbour Day Commemoratives ....Dec. 4-7 2004 Two upcoming special event stations will be on the air to commemorate Pearl Harbor Day. The first will be operated by the Historical Electronics Museum Amateur Radio Club from December 4th to the 7th using the call sign W2W. Operation will be in the General; class segments of all of the high frequency bands. Further information is on-line at: www.qsl.net/w3gr (Worldradio)
The other operation we have heard about will be one day only on December 7th. This one by the U-S-S Kidd Amateur Radio Club down in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Look for this operation mainly SSB on 20 meters from 14.250 to 14.320 MHz and C-W near the popular QRP calling frequencies on 40 through 10 meters. More on this one is on the web at: www.lsu.edu/brarc (Worldradio)
The Battle of The Bulge Dec. 16th - 20th 2004 The Anaheim California Police Amateur
Radio Club will sponsor special event station K6B. This, to commemorate
the
For more information please e-mail:km6hb@arrl.net. (Worldradio)
Nov. 18 2004 ARLD0424 DX News This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by E21EIC, NC1L, W9ROG, the OPDX Bulletin, The Daily DX, 425DXnews, DXNL, WA7BNM and Contest Corral from QST. Thanks to all. FIJI, 3D2. Naoyuki, JK1FNL will be active as 3D2NA from Mana Island, IOTA OC-121, from November 19 to 24. Activity will be on 80 to 6 meters using CW, SSB and RTTY. QSL to home call. TANZANIA, 5H. Ram, 5H9KR has been QRV on 15 meters around 1750z. QSL via KF9TC. QATAR, A7. Juma, A71EM has been QRV on 80 meters around 2030 to 2200z. QSL via EA7FTR. ETHIOPIA, ET. Peter, ET3BN has been QRV on 30 meters around 1600z. QSL via operator's instructions. TURKMENISTAN, EZ. Gene, EZ8BO has been QRV on 17 meters around 1230z. QSL direct. JAPAN, JA. JH1VVW, JA1KJW, JJ1JGI and members of the QTC Japan group will be QRV as 8J1AGE from Yamanashi Prefecture from November 19 to 21. Activity will be on 80 to 6 meters. QSL via bureau. MARIANA ISLANDS, KH0. Yoshiro, JL3SIK will be QRV as N1VF/KH0 from Saipan, IOTA OC-086, from November 20 to 22. Activity will be on 40 to 6 meters using CW, SSB and digital modes. QSL to home call. SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE, S9. Pekka, OH2TA, Pertti, OH2PM and Martti, OH2BH will be QRV as S9BB beginning November 20 for two weeks. Activity will be on 160 to 10 meters, including the newer bands, using CW and SSB. They will participate in the upcoming CQ WW contest as S9RR. QSL both calls via OH2TA. SOMALIA, T5. Baldur, DJ6SI and Thomas, DL1QW are QRV as 6O0X and 6O0W, respectively, until November 26. Baldur is doing only CW, while Thomas is using SSB and possibly RTTY. Activity is on 160 to 10 meters on the traditional DX calling frequencies. QSL 6O0X via DJ6SI and 6O0W via DL1QW. CANADA, VE. Bruce, KD6WW is QRV as VY0/KD6WW from the Nunavut Group, Belcher Islands, IOTA NA-196, until November 22. Activity is on 40, 30 and 20 meters. QSL to home call. ANGUILLA, VP2E. Tom, DL2RUM and Jan, DJ8NK are QRV as VP2ETL and VP2ENK, respectively, until November 30. Activity is on 160 to 10 meters, using CW, SSB and RTTY. QSL to home calls. MONTSERRAT, VP2M. Trond, LA9VDA is QRV as VP2MLA until November 30. Activity is on 160 to 10 meters using CW, SSB and RTTY. He will also be active in the upcoming CQ WW contest. QSL to home call. CHRISTMAS ISLAND, VK9X. Burt, W0MY and Charlie, W0YG will be QRV as VK9XG from November 22 to December 9. They will have two active station on all HF bands. QSL via W0YG. BERMUDA, VP9. Paul, K1XM, Charlotte, KQ1F and Ann, WA1S will be QRV as VP9/K1XM, VP9/KQ1F and VP9/WA1S, respectively, from November 21 to 28. They will also be active as VP9I in the upcoming CQ WW contest as a Multi-2 entry. QSL VP9I, VP9/K1XM and VP9/KQ1F via KQ1F. QSL VP9/WA1S via WA1S. CHAGOS ISLAND, VQ9. Roger, W9ROG is QRV as VQ9OG until the end of 2004. Activity is on 80 to 10 meters, including the newer bands, during his spare time. QSL to home call. CAMBODIA, XU. Champ, E21EIC and Bruce, AA4XR will be QRV as XU7ADE and XU7ADF, respectively, from Sihnoukville on November 22 to 30. Activity will be on 160 to 10 meters, including the newer bands, using CW, SSB and RTTY. They will also be active in the upcoming CW WW contest. QSL to home calls. THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO. The ARRL November SSB Sweepstakes, YO International PSK31 Contest, LZ DX Contest, EUCW Fraternizing CW QSO Party, All Austrian 160-Meter CW Contest, North American Collegiate ARC SSB Championship and the RSGB 2nd 1.8 MHz CW Contest are all scheduled for this weekend. Please see November QST, page 102, and the ARRL and WA7BNM contest websites for details. (ARRL)
Nov. 21-30 2004 I.C.P.O. Bulletin Islands, Castles & Portable Operations - I.C.P.O. 21/11/2004: NA-002
VP5/H.C.'s PROVIDENCIALES -
22/11/2004: XU7ADI
CAMBODIA -
22/11/2004: OC-133
9M6NA LABUAN ISLAND -
23/11/2004: NA-080
C6AKQ GRAND BAHAMA ISLAND -
23/11/2004: NA-106
KP2/H.C.'s U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS -
23/11/2004: NA-080
OK1DTP/C6A GRAND BAHAMA ISLAND -
24/11/2004: C91CG, C91NN
& C91F MOZAMBIQUE EXPEDITION -
24/11/2004: NA-100
V26K ANTIGUA -
24/11/2004: NA-101
J79A DOMINICA -
24/11/2004: OC-013
ZK1 RAROTONGA -
26/11/2004: C6AWS
THE BAHAMAS -
27/11/2004: SA-009
9Y4ZC TOBAGO ISLAND -
27/11/2004: AS-NEW
ATØB VYPIN ISLAND -
27/11/2004: USA-733
KD3CQ SANDY POINT SHOAL -
27/11/2004: OC-002
VK9XG CHRISTMAS ISLAND -
27/11/2004: OC-003
VK9AA COCOS-KEELING -
28/11/2004: 3D2FI
FIJI ISLANDS DXPEDITION -
28/11/2004: NA-096
GW3UOF/HI3 DOMINICAN REPUBLIC -
30/11/2004: SA-036
P4ØK & P4ØTA ARUBA -
73 and Good
Hunting!
Home of
ICPO:
www.qsl.net/va3rj
Note: A complete list of Prefixes assigned by International Telecommunications Union can be found on the Trans Provincial Website: www.tpn7055.ca/callsign.html
FCC approves first software defined radio (Nov 19, 2004)
(ARRL News Service)
Spammer Bounty suggested by FTC Nov. 19 2004
(FTC)
ARRL Headquarters and Maxim Memorial Station W1AW will be closed Thursday and Friday, November 25-26, for the Thanksgiving holiday. There will be no code practice or bulletin transmissions on those days, and there will be no editions of The ARRL Letter or ARRL Audio News on Friday, November 26. ARRL Headquarters will reopen Monday, November 29. The next editions of The ARRL Letter and ARRL Audio News will be Friday, December 3. We wish everyone a safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday! (ARRL Bulletin)
Subscribe to this bulletin and have it delivered to your e-mail box automatically every week, please put your name and callsign (if you have one) in the body of the text. hfradio@look.ca Acknowledgments
|
