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G4APL > NEWS 15.07.18 03:33l 283 Lines 13431 Bytes #999 (0) @ EU
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Subj: RSGB Main News - 15 July 2018
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Sent: 180715/0231Z @:GB7CIP.#32.GBR.EURO #:29106 [Caterham Surrey GBR]
From: G4APL@GB7CIP.#32.GBR.EURO
To : NEWS@EU
GB2RS Main News for Sunday 15th July 2018
The news headlines:
* New service to replace AROS
* Ham-designed comms support cave rescue
* International Youth at Sea begins
Following an extensive review of the Amateur Radio Observation
Service, AROS, the RSGB has decided to create a new service to
provide guidance to operators who experience misuse of the amateur
bands by others. This service will be known as the Operating Advisory
Service, or OAS, and will replace AROS. The change will come into
effect over the next few months. A new team of volunteers will
promote good practice and take a detailed look at how to tackle
problems such as on-air harassment, repeater abuse and the pirating
of callsigns. They will develop written advice that will be published
on the OAS pages on the RSGB website.
The dramatic rescue of twelve young footballers and their coach from
a cave in Thailand was facilitated, in part, by communications
technology developed by British radio amateur John Hey, G3TDZ.
Ordinary radio signals don't penetrate the solid rock surrounding
caves, but very low frequency signals can do. Around the turn of the
Millennium John designed a system that became known as the HeyPhone,
which could penetrate some 800m of solid rock and provide reliable
two-way voice communication. It used single sideband operating at
87kHz, with novel antenna techniques to couple the signals between
units. The HeyPhone was featured in the January 2002 edition of
RadCom. Unfortunately John became a silent key in 2016 but he saw his
equipment used in countless cave rescue and other applications. You
can read more about how his work helped save the Thai footballers on
the Hackaday site, via tinyurl.com/GB2RS-1507A
[Note for Newsreaders: the original URL is
https://hackaday.com/2018/07/11/ham-designed-gear-used-in-thailand-cav
e-rescue/]
A new cultural exchange-based radio activity, International Youth at
Sea, has been organised by the Finnish Lighthouse Society, the
Amateur Radio League of Finland, the OH-DX-Foundation and DX
University. The first team will activate Market Reef Lighthouse as
OJ0C, from the 21st to the 28th of July. The 2018 youth team members
are Nuuti, OH1UBO; Elias, OH2EP; Otava, OH3OT; Mikael, OH3UAF;
Pieter, ON3DI; Florian, OE3FTA, and Ilie, YO3IMD. They are all
between 6 and 25 years old. They will be participating in daily
workshops of safety and survival at sea in the remote lighthouse. In
addition, they will become familiar with the latest digital modes
and, most important, learning how operating the radio efficiently,
providing OJ0C with contacts and handling pileups. Their instructors
are Martti, OH2BH; Henri, OH3JR, and Pasi, OH3WS. QSL OJ0C via OH3JR.
The American Radio Relay League, ARRL, is beginning a process with
the Federal Communications Commission, FCC, to try and keep non
amateur radio satellites from using amateur band frequencies. The
ARRL is working to protect amateur radio frequencies against
exploitation by commercial entities. However, there are also ongoing
discussions to try and define what constitutes commercial use. For
example, if University staff build a Cubesat for educational use,
does the fact that they were paid for their time mean it is a
commercial endeavour? The arguments have the potential to become
complex and may possibly spill over to other parts of the world.
Cubesats usually fly over many countries as a natural part of their
low-earth orbit, so it is possible that a frequency allocated in the
USA might cause unexpected results elsewhere on the globe. You can
read much more about these goings-on on the ARRL website via
tinyurl.com/GB2RS-1507B
[Note for Newsreaders: the original URL is
www.arrl.org/news/arrl-urges-regulatory-regime-to-keep-non-amateur-sat
ellites-off-amateur-spectrum]
And, last but not least, a final call for the Train the Trainers
course that takes place next Saturday at Sully, Vale of Glamorgan.
Contact Glyn, GW0ANA via rm7<at>rsgb.org.uk to check for any
last-minute availability.
And now for the details of rallies and events for the coming week
The 22nd Red Rose QRP Festival takes place today, the 15th, at St
Joseph's Hall, Mather Lane, Leigh, WN7 2PR. There is easy access from
all major motorways plus the A580 and A579 etc. There is car parking,
a Bring and Buy, refreshments, a bar and disabled access. Doors open
at 11am, or 8.30am for traders and admission GBP 2.50. Details from
Les, G4HZJ, on 0779 626 4569.
Also today, the Cornish Radio Amateur Club Rally takes place at
Penair School, Truro, Cornwall, TR1 1TN. Doors open at 10.30am, with
admission GBP 2. There will be traders, Bring & Buy, club stalls and
car parking. Catering is available onsite. Contact Mike, G1NRF on
01209 211 069 for more information.
Next Sunday, the 22nd, the Finningley Amateur Radio Society Rally
takes place at The Hurst Communications Centre, Belton Road,
Sandtoft, Doncaster DN8 5SX. There is free parking and the doors open
at 10.30am. Admission is GBP 3. There is a large traders' area,
inside and out, with everything from microwave components to QRP. Hot
food and drinks are available all day. For ease of access it's all on
one level. Contact Kevin, G3AAF on 0783 161 4640.
Also next Sunday the McMichael Rally is at Reading Rugby Football
Club, Holme Park Farm Lane, Sonning Lane, Sonning-on-Thames, Reading
RG4 6ST. Talk-in will be on S22 and parking is free. Doors open at
9.30am and admission is GBP 3. Tables and car boot spaces are GBP 10.
There will be trade stands and special interest groups. Catering and
a licensed bar will be available on site. Due to venue rules, no dogs
are allowed other than assistance dogs. Details from Andy on
0777 594 0016.
To get your event into RadCom and GB2RS, send details as early as
possible to radcom<at>rsgb.org.uk.
And now the DX news from 425 DX News and other sources
Renner, PY7RP will be active as PY0F/PY7RP from Fernando de Noronha
Island, IOTA reference SA-003, until the 16th of July. He will
operate on 160 to 6m, including taking part in the IARU HF Contest.
QSL via home call direct, or OQRS.
Steve, KU9C will be active as KU9C/VP9 from Bermuda Islands, IOTA
NA-005, until the 17th of July. He will operate on HF bands,
including activity in IARU Contest, for which he will sign as VP9HQ.
The V6J Team will be active from Ta Island, Mortlock Islands, IOTA
OC-254, from the 19th to the 31st of July. They will operate on the
HF bands. QSL via JP3AYQ.
Members of SP3PET will be active as JW100PUT from Petuniabukta,
Spitsbergen, IOTA EU-026, to mark the 100th anniversary of the
Academic Ham Radio Club of the Poznan University of Technology. They
will operate on 80, 40, 20, 2m and 70cm SSB and FM. QSL via SP3PET.
Roly, ZL1BQD is active from Papua New Guinea as P29RR throughout
July. He is on the HF bands and will concentrate on using FT8. QSL
via home call, direct.
Geoff, ZL3GA will be active as YJ0GA from Efate, Vanuatu, OC-035,
from the 18th to the 25th. He will operate CW and FT8, plus some SSB,
on 80-10 metres.
The EIDX Group is activating all of the Irish IOTAs in turn this
summer, using the callsign EJ0DXG. This month EU-007 will be
activated from the 20th to the 22nd.
Now the special event news
Warrington Amateur Radio Club is operating GB2TAC at Hooton Park
today. On Tuesday there's a club night with a talk, technical and
practical sessions. Contact Jeff, G1DYN, via email to
secretary<at>warc.org.uk.
Dundee Amateur Radio Club is having an equipment preparation session
on Tuesday. From Thursday to next Sunday GB2BAJ will be on the air
from Blair Castle, Blair Atholl, Pitlochry, to support the Scouts
attending the Jamborette. More information from Martin, 2M0KAU, on
0776 370 8933.
If you're planning a special event station, please remember to send
advance publicity to radcom<at>rsgb.org.uk – we are very happy to
help publicise your event, for free, but can't help you unless you
tell us about it!
Now the contest news
The IARU HF Championship concludes today at 1200UTC. Using CW and SSB
on all the contest bands from 1.8 to 28MHz, the exchange is signal
report and ITU Zone, which is 27 for the UK. The official RSGB team
is using the callsign GR2HQ, and there are several stations dotted
around the country. You get points for working each one – and,
perhaps more importantly from the perspective of national pride –
you give them points that count towards their overall position in the
Championships.
Also as mentioned last week, the World Radiosport Team Championship
is also in progress at the moment, ending on Monday the 16th. There
are various awards to be won in both events, and the bands are lively
with DXpeditions to unusual places.
Tuesday sees the 1.3GHz UKAC, which runs from 1900UTC to 2130UTC.
Using all modes on the 23cm band, the exchange is signal report,
serial number and locator.
On Thursday the 70MHz FMAC and UKAC take place. The FM-only 70MHz
FMAC runs from 1800UTC to 1900UTC. It is followed immediately by the
all-mode 70MHz UKAC, which runs until 2130UTC. The exchange for both
is signal report, serial number and locator. These 70MHz events
provide a good opportunity to check out your 4m gear in advance of
the 70MHz Trophy contest this coming weekend.
Next Sunday, the 22nd, the RSGB Low Power Contest takes place from
0900UTC to 1600UTC. Using CW only on the 3.5 to 14MHz bands, the
exchange is signal report, serial number and power. It's also worth
knowing that this is an HF Championship event.
Finally for next weekend, the 70MHz Trophy contest takes place from
1000UTC to 1600UTC on Sunday. All modes can be used, on the 4m band
only, with signal report, serial number, locator and postcode forming
the exchange. This is a VHF Championship event.
Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO
on Friday the 13th of July.
Summer Sporadic-E brought some unusual short-skip propagation to 20
metres this week, with contacts being enabled between parts of the
UK. Signals between Southern England and Scotland were very loud
mid-morning after Sporadic-E cloud settled over the British Isles on
Monday. These UK openings are hard to predict, but can bring
short-skip on paths between the extreme ends of the United Kingdom on
frequencies up to and including 10 metres. Otherwise, F-layer
propagation was a little lacklustre, with zero sunspots and slightly
unsettled geomagnetic conditions bringing maximum useable frequencies
down to 20m and lower at times.
Next week, NOAA predicts the solar flux index will remain in the
mid-to-low 70s. We may expect unsettled geomagnetic conditions this
weekend and Monday the 16th due to a coronal hole that became
Earth-facing on Thursday the 12th. Another potentially-active region
will begin to turn into Earth view this weekend. This is a plage, a
brighter region of the Sun's chromosphere typically found in regions
near sunspots.
At the moment there are no visible sunspots to report in the region
and solar activity may continue at lower levels.
Twenty metres remains the most reliable DX band during the day,
although "most reliable" is a relative term! Forty and thirty metres
are worth checking after dark. For more accurate predictions it is
worth checking out voacap.com and predtest.uk, both of which can
handle SSB, CW and FT8 predictions.
And now the VHF and up propagation news.
The weather charts are starting to show subtle changes this week as
the high pressure of recent weeks is not quite so dominant. But it is
still there in parts and should continue to provide some occasional
Tropo.
The weakness of the high will allow some showers or weak fronts to
become involved, but as this is not a widespread affair any rain
scatter for the microwave bands will be fairly limited.
The unsettled part of the story will mean fronts and their associated
jet streams might put in an appearance. There may be one jet stream
over northwestern Britain for a brief time this weekend, and another
one through the Mediterranean, but this is also a fairly weak pattern.
The end result is that Sporadic-E may not have all the weather
ingredients in the right place and you'll need to check the beacons
and clusters for activity levels. Remember the season can last into
late August on 6m, so there's still time for further openings, even
if this week underperforms.
There are no meteor showers this week so stick to the early morning
random peak when the earth is rotating towards the orbital plane
meteor flux for the best chances of meteor shower contacts.
We are now past Moon perigee and maximum declination for this lunar
month. Declination is positive until Wednesday and losses will
increase as the week progresses. This means EME conditions will be
best in the first half of the week.
And that's all from the propagation team this week.
And that's the end of the main news for this week prepared by the
Radio Society of Great Britain. Items for inclusion in subsequent
bulletins can be emailed to radcom<at>rsgb.org.uk to arrive by
10:00 on the Thursday before transmission.
Our thanks to Andy G4TNU for providing this RSGB feed.
--
g4apl@gb7cip.ampr.org g4apl@gb7cip.#32.gbr.euro
http://www.theskywaves.net http://gb7cip.ampr.org
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