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G4TNU > NEWS 03.05.20 00:30l 299 Lines 15257 Bytes #999 (0) @ EU
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Subj: RSGB Main News - 03 May 2020
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GB2RS Main News for Sunday the 3rd of May 2020
The news headlines:
* Get on the air to care campaign succeeding
* May RadCom made available to all online
* Repeater and Beacon insurance renewed
The RSGB is delighted with the support from radio amateurs and clubs
for its 'Get on the air to care' campaign with the NHS. You can
find out more at www.rsgb.org/gota2c. There we will also be
highlighting stories and photos from clubs and individuals. If you
have a story to tell about how you are getting on the air to care
during these times of social isolation, please send it to
comms<at>rsgb.org.uk.
As another part of the RSGB Get on the air to care campaign, the May
edition of RadCom has been made available to radio amateurs around
the world to read online as a sample edition. A number of IARU
national societies have taken a similar step and the RSGB is happy to
join those societies in supporting the worldwide amateur radio
community during these difficult times. You can find it at
www.rsgb.org/sampleradcom.
RSGB Club Insurance and Beacon and Repeater Insurance has now been
renewed for the year to April 2021. Club Insurance Certificates can
be downloaded from the RSGB website; please use your Membership
Services login to obtain a copy of your Certificate. To ensure that
your beacon and repeater is covered under our Insurance we require a
GBP 10 admin fee and you may renew this on the RSGB shop at
www.rsgb.org/repeaterinsurance. Please allow a couple of days after
renewal for your certificate to be dispatched.
The latest figures for the RSGB's remote invigilation of amateur
radio exams shows that 116 exams have been run as of Friday the 1st
of May. Of these, 109 candidates have passed and a total of 997
different questions have been asked. There are currently 80 exams
booked and ready to be taken up until the 8th of May. A total of 300
more are scheduled to take place in May, with a further 187 so far
scheduled to take place in June and there are more in the pipeline.
The RSGB is grateful to all those working to make this possible
during the Covid-19 pandemic.
To commemorate the 75th anniversary of VE Day and VJ Day, the RSGB
has organised the VE/VJ Day amateur radio marathon on the HF bands
and 6m using SSB, CW and digital modes. Three special UK callsigns
GB75PEACE, GB1945PE, GB1945PJ will be on the air from the 1st to the
31st of May and again between the 1st and the 31st of August. The
special stations have their own QRZ.com pages that give details of
the activation schedule. If you wish to participate and transmit
using a VE/VJ Day radio marathon callsign, please contact Ian, G0FCT
via email to csc.chair<at>rsgb.org.uk. Full details of radio marathon
and the five awards are on the Society's radio marathon web page
www.rsgb.org/ve-vj-marathon.
As part of its Strategy 2022, the RSGB has just launched Beyond
Exams, which is a group of resources to encourage participation and
highlight the diversity of amateur radio. Beyond Exams includes
awards and schemes to help amateur radio licence holders and clubs
get the most from the hobby. During these challenging times of the
global pandemic, Beyond Exams is an important part of the Society's
'Get on the air to care' campaign in partnership with the NHS.
Through Beyond Exams you can get on the air for the first time or try
something new, a contest or CW, for example. Some of the activities
won't be available for radio amateurs to try due to the current
social distancing regulations but there are plenty of others that can
be done from the safety of your own home. For more information about
how you can get involved in the scheme as a radio amateur or a club,
see the RSGB website www.rsgb.org/beyond-exams.
The 93rd Annual General Meeting of the Radio Society of Great Britain
due to be held on the 25th of April in Birmingham was cancelled
because of government restrictions on travel and public meetings due
to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Board convened an online meeting to
receive the results of the votes submitted by the Society's Members
on the resolutions and elections they were asked to consider in the
Calling Notice. Members of the Board, other RSGB officials, those
standing for election and senior members of RSGB staff were online to
follow proceedings. At the close of the meeting the results on the
various Resolutions and annual trophy winners were announced online.
As a result of voting by the Society's Members, Dr Stewart Bryant,
G3YSX was endorsed as a Nominated Director. Andy Mace, M0MUX and Len
Paget, GM0ONX were elected as Board Directors. During the first
meeting of the new Board, Ian Shepherd, G4EVK was elected as the
Board Chair until the AGM in 2021. Following the AGM, the Nominations
Committee met and John Rogers, M0JAV, John Spurgeon, G4LKD and Philip
Willis, M0PHI were co-opted to join the Board of Directors until the
2021 AGM. To read more about the areas of responsibility for all of
Board members, go to wwww.rsgb.org/board.
Contest University, a staple of Dayton Hamvention, will take place
online this year through the Zoom video platform, and all sessions
will be free. You can register at www.contestuniversity.com. Live
Contest University sessions via Zoom will get under way on the 14th
of May at 1245UTC; these will be recorded and archived.
Now the special event news
Since the change of regulations applying to special event stations in
the UK, many activations are now able to go ahead. UK amateurs would
like to thank Ofcom for their help in making this happen.
Fort Purbrook Amateur Radio Club will be activating GB1VE on the 8th,
9th and 10th of May from six different members' homes. Two members on
HF voice, always on different bands, another on HF CW, one on HF data
modes, one on 6m or 2m or 70cm and, finally, one on 4m and Oscar-100.
Full details are on QRZ.com.
GB75BVE is now being hosted from homes in and around Bournemouth
until the 10th of May. Operators will be G3YUZ, G3XBZ, G4XEE and
G3WZP, using all modes and the 160 through to 2m bands. They hope to
share the VE Day commemorations on the air.
The RAF Amateur Radio Society will be activating the special event
GB75VED from the 1st to the 28th May from members' homes. Details are
at www.rafars.org/GB75VED and QRZ.com.
Dragon Amateur Radio Club and North Wales Radio Society are operating
GB0GIG, named after the National Health Service in the Welsh
language, throughout May. The station will be active on HF, VHF and
UHF using as many modes as possible. Award certificate is available
and full details can be found on QRZ.com.
Kent Active Radio Amateurs will be running GB0HVE on the 8th of May
as part of the anniversary of VE day. All operations will be from
members' homes.
Tokyo-based 7-CALL Amateur Radio Club will operate 8J17CALL for a
year to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Japanese 7-series
callsigns, for example 7K1AAA.
Although the Mills On The Air event has been cancelled, Chesham and
District Amateur Radio Society will be operating GB0BWM for Brill
Windmill from members' homes on 9th and 10th of May. The idea is to
celebrate the hope for the event next year and to give publicity to
the windmill that will need to attract visitors once restrictions
permit. Operation will be on 3.5, 7, 14, 50 and 144MHz, mainly SSB
but with some CW and FM. It is expected that stations will be on the
air from around 10am on Saturday, but a schedule of times and
frequencies will be available online.
XN1BOA is on the air until the 15th of May commemorating the end of
the Battle of the Atlantic. This event is being run by the Grass
Roots Ham Radio Club, whose operators will be active from their
homes. Details are on QRZ.com.
GU75LIB will operate at varying time between the 6th and 13th of May,
to commemorate Liberation Day on the 9th of May. They will be
operating from home, each taking turns on band and mode.
Braintree & District ARS will operate GB5VED with several club
members using their home stations. These will be active over the
weekend of the 7th to the 10th of May to commemorate the 75th
Anniversary of VE Day. Operators will include some of the senior club
members who were present at the original celebrations. Contacts will
be sought on HF, VHF, UHF.
Listen out on HF for GB4 V V V, the distinctive dit-dit-dit-DAH of
wartime broadcasting, sent by the special event station managed by
Andy, G0SFJ, until the 11th of May. He would prefer eQSL; SWL reports
are very welcome.
Now the contest news
This weekend is busy for contests, but please remember to check
before the events for new rules due to lockdown and social
distancing, which may differ around the world. RSGB strongly advises
obeying your own government's advice first and foremost.
The 432MHz to 248MHz Trophy contest ends its 24-hour run at 1400UTC
today, the 3rd. Using all modes, the exchange is signal report,
serial number and locator.
Another 24-hour contest is the ARL International DX event that ends
at 1200UTC today, the 3rd. Using phone and RTTY on the 3.5 to 28MHz
contest bands, the exchange is signal report and serial number, with
Italian stations also giving their Province code.
Today, the 3rd of May, the UK Microwave Group Low Band Contest runs
from 0800 to 1400UTC. Using all modes on the 1.3 to 3.4GHz bands, the
exchange is signal report, serial number and locator.
A one-off independent 2m contest is being held on the 4th of May, to
promote 2m usage during the COVID-19 lockdown. From 2pm to 3pm there
will be an FM contest, where operators should exchange signal
reports, serial number and 4-character grid squares. From 3pm to 4pm
there will be an FT8 contest using the standard FT8 messages to
exchange signal reports and grid squares. The contests are open to
all licensed amateur radio operators and short wave listeners but due
to the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions no portable or mobile operation
is permitted. Further details can be found at www.vhflockdown.fun.
On Tuesday the 144MHz FM Activity Contest runs from 1800 to 1855UTC.
This is immediately followed by the UK Activity Contest from 1900 to
2130UTC using all modes. The exchange is the same for both, signal
report, serial number and locator.
Next Sunday, the 10th, sees the 70MHz CW contest run from 0900 to
1200UTX. The exchange is signal report, serial number, locator and
postcode.
Also next Sunday is the IRTS 40m Counties Contest from 1200 to
1400UTC. Using SSB and CW, the exchange is signal report and serial
number, with EI, GI, 2I and MI stations also sending their County.
The Worked All Britain 70MHz contest takes place next Sunday, the
10th, from 1000 to 1400UTC. Entries need to be with the contest
manager by the 20th of May. The exchange is signal report, serial
number and WAB square. Full details of the rules and methods of entry
may be obtained from the WAB website www.worked-all-britain.org.uk.
Please note that no club or multiple operator entries will be
accepted from mobile or portable stations.
The UK Six Metre Group's Summer Marathon runs from the 2nd of May to
the 2nd of August. Using all modes in the 50MHz band, the exchange is
you 4-character locator.
And finally, don't forget the RSGB Hope QSO Party on weekdays, see
www.rsgbcc.org/hf for further details. So far around 300 UK and
non-UK participants have taken part, and for some it has been their
first attempt at an HF contest. One participant told us that it was
their first ever attempt at CW in 36 years. Come and join in the fun.
Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO
on Friday the 1st of May.
Sunspots are like buses - you wait all month and two turn up at
once! Even more interesting is that the sunspot groups are from two
different cycles. The first group, AR2760, was from the outgoing
Solar Cycle 24 and the second sunspot, AR2762, is from the new Solar
Cycle 25. We know this due to their magnetic signatures and the
relative location of the spots on the Sun's surface. AR2762 was a
high-latitude spot, while AR2760 was almost on the solar equator. In
any event, both spots were very minor and had little or no effect on
the solar flux index, which hovered around 69-71. Geomagnetic
conditions were more settled, with the Kp index remaining at zero or
one towards the end of the week.
The highlight for the week was the 2020 Summer Sporadic-E season on
10m, which is growing in strength. Stations in Gibraltar, Spain,
Romania, Finland, Norway and others were all workable on 10m FT8 on
Thursday morning, although it would have been nice to see a little
more activity on CW and SSB, but more on that later.
We expect solar activity to remain at very low levels in the short
term, with the Solar Flux Index remaining at around 68-70.
Geomagnetic conditions are likely to remain settled, other than this
weekend when SWPC predicts the impact of particles from a solar
coronal hole. NOAA disagrees and predicts that geomagnetic field
activity is expected to reach active levels on Tuesday 5th May in
response to a high-speed solar wind stream. It will be interesting to
see who is correct.
And now the VHF and up propagation news
A small high crosses the country today and pauses over the North Sea
on Monday, giving a Tropo option for most areas. This is soon
followed by a further spell of unsettled weather with a good
potential for rain scatter in the south over the middle of the week.
Other weather models retain the high pressure, and even the unsettled
model relents and brings another high to the northwest of Scotland,
which will start to build across the country from the west to bring a
fine, Tropo end to the week.
As for Sporadic-E prospects, the next week does have some useful jet
streams in good positions for paths from the UK. Early in the season
paths can be fleeting, but keep a watch on 10m activity and then
follow the opening higher in frequency as it develops on 6m, 4m and
eventually 2m if we are very lucky.
There is a big difference between FT8 and CW/SSB performance, but
follow the many wonderful clusters and logging sites to see where the
openings are. Try the daily Sporadic-E blog on www.propquest.co.uk to
get an idea of the significant jet streams. It will have changes to
the charts and a trial of the Sporadic-E Probability Index, or EPI.
There is plenty to investigate in the 2020 Sporadic-E season.
There are two meteor showers upcoming this week. The larger
eta-Aquarids is on Tuesday and the eta-Lyrids occur on Thursday.
Moon declination goes negative on Tuesday followed by perigee on
Wednesday with lowest EME path losses. 144 MHz sky noise is very high
today and for the early part of next 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.
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