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VK7AX > NEWS 18.04.10 06:36l 504 Lines 22533 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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Subj: VK7 Regional News Broadcast for 18 April 2010
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From: VK7AX@VK7AX.#ULV.TAS.AUS.OC
To : NEWS@WW
VK7 REGIONAL NEWS BROADCAST
FOR SUNDAY 18 APRIL 2010
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VK7 EVENTS CALENDAR
A summary of the events across VK7 over the coming months:
REAST April 21 & 28 ATV Experimenter's Nights Queen's Domain Clubrooms from 7:30pm
http://reast.asn.au/events.php#ATVnights
CCARC May 1 Starting at 1.30 pm will be the next meeting of CCARC details in next week's broadcast.
http://www.my-x15.net/ccarc
REAST May 5 Heard Island DXpedition VK0IR Presentation on the big screen. Starts 8pm in the Queens's Domain Clubrooms.
http://reast.asn.au/events.php#HeardIsland
NTARC - May 12 - "Digital for dinosaurs" Starts 7:30pm at Alanvale Campus of the Tasmanian Skills Institute.
www.ntarc.net
And advanced warning for the diaries of all VK7 amateurs CHARCT Central Highlands Hamfest at Miena in the Central Highlands on December 4th 2010.
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Sri Lanka - 4S7B - Calling
Request for beacon reports
A quick reminder that Shante who is 4S7WP is trying to enlist some VK7 amateurs to listen for the 4S7B repeater near Colombo in Sri Lanka. The beacon callsign is 4S7B, and is located about 110 km south of Colombo, Sri Lanka and has operating frequencies on: 14.100 MHz, 18.110 MHz, 21.150 MHz, 24.930 MHz and 28.200 MHz.
Shante and his fellow amateurs in Sri Lanka are particularly interested in reception reports from the 21.150 MHz beacon. Any reports can be emailed to Shante 4S7WP at ohms73(AT)hotmail.com
(Thanks, Mike, VK7MJ)
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Northern News
Northern Tasmanian Amateur Radio Club
www.ntarc.net
The Wednesday just gone saw NTARC members gather at Alanvale campus of Tasmania Skills Institute, where Tony VK7YBG described what WICEN in Northern Tasmania is up to, and what capabilities they hope to develop over the coming months. WICEN get into all sorts of activities from assisting with public events like horse endurance rides and Targa, to providing front line communications assistance to the Tas Fire Service during times of peak demand. If this sounds like something that you want to become involved with, or want to at least know more, why not join up to the Yahoo groups mailing list
just go to the Yahoo groups web page and search for wicennorth (all one word).
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wicennorth
Tony not only does WICEN activities, but he also is NTARCs repeater co-ordinator as well. Part of that job is to switch this very broadcast you're listening to via VK7RAA and take call backs at the conclusion. With all these responsibilities, its amazing that Tony has any time for other activities
and yet he does! Tony and Ann VK7FYBG are heavily involved in the historic military vehicle club as well, and as part of that interest, they'll be taking part in the ANZAC parade on Sunday 25th. As a result, we're looking for someone to be able to switch the broadcast on VK7RAA and to take callbacks at the end. You'll need a radio with DTMF capabilities and paper & pencil. Have a chat to Tony if you need more information about this. Oh, and if you see an immaculately restored Dodge M37 truck on ANZAC day, give Tony, Ann and Tabitha a wave, I'm sure they'll appreciate the recognition.
The theme for NTARCs May meeting will be "Digital for dinosaurs". If you've ever wanted to know what WSJT was, or pondering over PSK31, then this is the night for you. May the 12th at Alanvale Tas Skills Institute will be the venue.
Combining two hobbies is a wonderful thing, and its always most interesting to hear amateurs combining ham radio with another hobby. Karl VK7HDX gives us a great example of this. He goes quad-bike riding most weekends, and has his set of wheels fitted with a Tait T2000 radio and Tiny Traker and an RF Industries ground independent antenna for APRS duties. Karl doesn't travel alone, however, joining him on his travels is Neil VK7NT, Tony VK7FTAA and Tony VK7YBG. Karl would like to thank both Joe VK7JG and Tony VK7YBG for their assistance in getting his APRS system working smoothly.
For the next couple of weeks, Jason VK7ZJA will be taking part in the great mainland winter exodus, with Bill VK7MX taking over the reigns for that time.
See you in a few weeks time!
Thanks from
.
(Jason VK7ZJA, NTARC Secretary)
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NORTH WEST News
Cradle Coast Amateur Radio Club (CCARC)
CCARC News
http://www.my-x15.net/ccarc
CCARC members are advised that the meeting scheduled for Saturday the 24th of April is being postponed until the following Saturday, the 1st of May at 1.30 pm. The venue will be confirmed on the next broadcast and on the club website.
The Cradle Coast Amateur Radio Club has been invited to join WICEN (South) to provide communications coverage for an equine endurance Riders for a 24 hour event coming up at St Helens, starting midnight Friday the 21st of May, so if you want to be involved contact David VK7DC.
What to become an Amateur?
If you are a non amateur or a short wave listener living in the North West, or West coast of Tasmania, and would like to become a licenced amateur radio operator, then come along to a meeting and find out about this interesting hobby. If you cannot make the meeting but would like to find out more about the hobby then contact the learning facilitator, Keith Winkler VK7KW, or any of the committee members.
Full contact details are available on our website which can be easily found by a "Yahoo" or "Google" search of CCARC TASMANIA
Regards from
(David, VK7DC, Secretary, CCARC)
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North West Tasmania Amateur Television Group
http://www2.vk7ax.id.au/atvgroup/
Club Merchandise
Members of the NWT-ATV Group are advised that another supply of Club Caps are now available and those requiring one should contact the Club.
Repeater Propagation maps
Maps predicting the propagation contours and availability of workable signals from the Gawler 2 & 6 Meter Repeaters VK7RTV are now available on the Club's Web site.
We take the opportunity of thanking David VK7DC for doing the calculations and making the maps available to the Club.
Yagi Calculation Program.
Also available on the Club's Web Site is a very good program for calculating all measurements & aspects for multiple element Yagis. In addition measurements can be taken of an existing yagi , the expected gain and frequency of same can be ascertained.
The program is courtesy of John Drew VK5DJ.
The web address of the North West Tasmania ATV Group can be found on the text and internet editions of this broadcast.
http://www2.vk7ax.id.au/atvgroup/
Amateur Radio Licence Assessments and Training
Persons in the N/West Area of VK7 interested in Training and Assessments for all classes of Amateur Radio are advised that the Club can provide all these requirements and in addition provision of Facilitators via the Radio and Electronics School if candidates so desire.
For more information regarding these facilities, please contact the Club's Learning Organizer Tony VK7AX, or the Club. Contact details can be found on the Club Web Site or the WIA site under VK7 Clubs.
73's until next time
(Tony VK7AX, News Officer NWT-ATV Group)
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Southern News
WICEN Tasmanian (South)
VK7RAD-1 APRS Digipeater
This digipeater, located at the REAST clubrooms on the Queens Domain in Hobart, has been behaving erratically in recent weeks. It's radio was replaced last week and , fingers crossed, VK7RAD-1 has been performing steadily since.
According to statistics supplied by DB0ANF, over the past year, VK7RAD-1 has digi-peated 55 different calls, including:
G7MAR-9 maritime
JA3ASU-7 and N7DDH aeronautical
KC7PTK-7
ZL1KM-9
And one VK2, three VK3s, one VK4 and one VK5, presumably holidaying in the area.
The heaviest local users, each with more than 4,000 packet frames digipeated are, in order of usage:
VK7s HCH, QF, TED, BJ, VKK, and ABC
Thanks to those who contribute to maintaining the APRS network, especially Scott VK7HSE who runs, at a significant cost, the southern APRS I-Gate internet gateway on a 24/7 basis.
REAST, WICEN South, and VK7's BW, JGD, FCDW and ARN were recently able to assist Scott in maintaining this excellent service by providing a modern reliable radio for the I-Gate facility.
There is a link on the email and internet editions of this broadcast showing the Southern VK7 region and the mapped APRS digipeater users.
http://reast.asn.au/images/RAD-1_Digi_Users_201004.jpg
(73, Roger, VK7ARN)
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WICEN Capabilities Day
Last Saturday WICEN Tasmania (South) members put on a great show and tell session of their capability in the Queen's Domain compound.
Items included a 12m winch up trailer mounted tower, Roger VK7ARN's fully equipped trailer with an array of radios, computers displaying APRS and position data and the trailer has it's own tower.
Gary VK7JGD displayed his impressive portable HF and VHF operating position and car stabilised tower.
The WICEN tent housed a impressive display of many of the portable radio equipment cases that WICEN use that contain a complete radio set.
An of course not forgetting Chris VK7FCDW's contribution to the day as the WICEN chef for our great BBQ lunch, thanks Chris.
If you are considering becoming involved in WICEN activities then I suggest you take a look at their very informative website and the link can be found on the email and internet editions.
http://tas.wicen.org.au/
There is a great presentation on the day on the WICEN website and the link can be found on the email and internet editions.
http://tas.wicen.org.au/Photo_pages/showtell_10.html
There was steady interest shown during the day and thanks to the WICEN crew who came along and displayed their impressive equipment display.
(73, Justin, VK7TW)
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Radio and Electronics Association of Southern Tasmania
May Presentation
VK0IR Heard Island DXpedition Presentation
Our May presentation will be a professional video presentation created by James Brookes, 9V1YC of the 1997 DXpedition to Heard Island.
The presentation will be projected on to the big screen along with Dolby Digital audio.
This presentation has many references and some great archival film of the original ANARE expeditions to Heard Island in the 1940 and 50s.
The presentation also covers the history of Heard Island and some great film of the wildlife found on Heard Island.
Called "Outpost at the Edge" it covers the start from the Reunion Islands the transporting, setup of the operating tents, the operating and then the tear-down.
With over 80,000 contacts logged in the three weeks it is a great presentation about a famous DXpedition.
It is professionally filmed and edited by 9V1YC and is 50 minutes long.
See you there.
http://reast.asn.au/events.php#HeardIsland
(REAST Committee)
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ATV Experimenters Night
We had a fantastic roll-up on Wednesday night and had some special guests in Tom VK7NML who took a break from studies, Charles VK7KS, Scott VK7FRRT, Alan VK7ZAR, Ian VK7QF and Reg VK7KK along with many of our regulars, it was great to see everyone along.
After a quick training session for Tom and Ian on the video mixer operation get back underway with some great show and tell which included the 70cm PA for the DVB-T transmitter then into Tom VK7NML showing off his recently built Pixie 2 - QRP Transceiver which was tested after the session using the VK7OTC station.
Then it was onto Warren VK7FEET with a commercial diplexer for a Marine VHF repeater destined for Macquarie Island to assist the pest eradication program which is being run by the Parks and Wildlife service with help from the Antarctic Division.
It was then on to the video presentation for the night which was the 9V1YC video on the Scarborough Reef DXPedition.
After all that we headed into the clubrooms for a well earned cup of tea!
This week's ATV Experimenter's night will be a little different as we will be recording the WIA National Broadcast for the ANZAC Day broadcast.
So, you are invited to some along and read a segment for the National broadcast. We will be using the ATV studio for the recording.
If you are capable of transmitting 1250MHz ATV signals toward the Queen's Domain, we would like to hear from you.
We now have the ability to receive 1250MHz ATV and retransmit as part of the ATV program a kind of manual ATV repeater!
We will also be working on getting our ATV streaming PC up and going within the studio.
Interested? We get underway from around 7:30pm on analogue UHF TV just below SBS on 444.25MHz and very soon to be on DVB-T 446.5MHz!
Hope to see you along.
http://reast.asn.au/events.php#ATVnights
(73, Justin, VK7TW)
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DX News
Oceania DX
EAST MALAYSIA, 9M6. Mirek, VK6DXI is QRV as 9M8DX from Sarawak until April 20. Activity is holiday style using mostly CW on 30, 17 and 12 meters. QSL to home call.
WEST MALAYSIA, 9M2. After his Sarawak activity, Mirek, VK6DXI will be QRV as 9M8DX/2 from April 20 to 29. Activity will be holiday style using mostly CW on 30, 17 and 12 meters. QSL to home call.
PAPUA NEW GUINEA, P2. Operators JA1JQY, JA1KJW and JA8VE are QRV as P29VJY, P29VKJ and P29VEK, respectively, from New Britain Island, IOTA OC-008, until April 23. Activity is on 160 to 10 meters using CW, SSB and RTTY with two stations. QSL to home calls.
www.arrl.org
(ARRL DX News)
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Space News
Ten Hams in Orbit Now
Six of the seven astronauts on the shuttle Discovery are licensed radio amateurs and will join four radio hams already on the International Space Station (ISS).
The shuttle Discovery (STS131) crew consists of:
Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, KE5DAT
Stephanie Wilson, KD5DZE
Naoko Yamazaki, KE5DAS
James P. Dutton, Jr., KE5HOE,
Rick Mastracchio, KC5ZTE,
Clayton Anderson, KD5PLA
Alan Poindexter
And already onboard the ISS are radio hams:
Tracy Caldwell Dyson, KF5DBF
Timothy J. Creamer, KC5WKI
Soichi Noguchi, KD5TVP
Mikhail Kornienko, RN3BF
along with Oleg Kotov and Alexander Skvortsov.
This has got to be some sort of record!!
(Sourced from the AMSAT News Service)
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History News
"Houston, We've Had a Problem"
Sally Sherwen who is an Online Journalist for COSMOS e-zine wrote a great story that reminds us that this last week was the anniversary of the Apollo 13 mission to the moon and there was a little known involvement from Australia in this ill-fated mission.
Forty years ago, on 13 April 1970, NASA's worst nightmare became reality when there was an explosion aboard Apollo 13.
And in Australia, scientists and engineers at the Parkes radio telescope had to find a way to stay in contact with the stranded astronauts.
"The expertise and skills of Australian scientists proved vital in the tracking of the spacecraft - without which the rescue would not have succeeded," said John Sarkissian, the operations scientist at Parkes.
Apollo 13 was launched 40 years ago on 11 April 1970, and was intended to explore the hilly regions on the Moon around the 80-kilometer-wide Fra Mauro crater.
But almost 56 hours into flight, an oxygen tank exploded, which severely damaged the service module and crippled the entire energy system.
Astronauts Lovell, Swigert and lunar module pilot Fred Haise were stranded over 320,000 km from Earth with vital power levels dropping drastically.
"Communication between the spacecraft and Houston was vital," Sarkissian says.
The diminished power of the spacecraft severely weakened its signal, threatening to hinder communications between Houston and the Apollo 13 astronauts.
Don Gray experienced a "baptism by fire" as the newly appointed director of Honeysuckle Creek Tracking Station in Canberra: "I was listening in my office to the cruise phase of the mission when in moments the control centre from Houston rang. They stated, 'we have a serious problem - how fast can you get Parkes on air?'"
"When the explosion took place, the resources of NASA and its Australian partners swung into support," said historian and Apollo enthusiast Colin Mackellar.
John Bolton, the director of the Parkes telescope, and the team at Honeysuckle Creek, led by Gray, rallied more than 1,000 experts around Australia that worked through the night to assist in setting up Parkes so it could receive weak signals from Apollo 13 and relay them to Houston.
The team at Parkes set up the equipment, crews from Tidbinbilla tracking station near Canberra flew in to get the equipment running and people from the Australian Postmaster-General's Department to get the data from Parkes to Honeysuckle Creek where it could be processed by computers, with the relevant bits relayed to Houston.
"The magic part was how quickly we got Parkes up!" Gray said. "It was done in a record time of three hours, when it normally took three weeks".
NASA's three Apollo tracking stations in Australia - Honeysuckle Creek, Tidbinbilla and Carnarvon, successfully maintained the link with Apollo 13. The addition of the Parkes telescope allowed the control centre to receive 20% more data from Apollo 13, Mackellar says.
"We did our best to increase the likelihood of success of getting the astronauts back alive" Gray says.
Thanks to the vital communication link teams in Australia provided, Houston was able to communicate instructions to the astronauts how to adjust the lunar module into a rescue craft for the return trip to Earth.
"As Apollo 13 streaked back to Earth on the morning of 18 April 1970 [Australian time], Carnarvon, Tidbinbilla and Honeysuckle Creek were the last ground stations to see the spacecraft" Mackellar said.
The efforts of the many Australians who assisted the tracking of spacecraft, including the team that brought up the Parkes antenna in record time were singled-out and recognised by those who understood the importance of the communication link.
Gray received a personal letter of thanks from the three astronauts, which is now one of his most treasured possessions.
http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/news/3403/apollo-13-australian-story
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/Apollo13problem.ogg
http://history.nasa.gov/SP-350/ch-13-1.html
http://echoesofapollo.com
(Sourced from the COSMOS E-Zine via the Echoes of Apollo Mailing List)
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Web & Email Edition Extra Bits!!
BPL in Manassas QRT
http://www.informationweek.com/news/storage/systems/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=224300006
Interesting Picture Galleries
http://www.informationweek.com/galleries/
Retro SteamPunk Workshop (thanks to Ben VK7BEN)
http://steampunkworkshop.com/
UK Military Radio Site (thanks to Roger VK7ARN)
http://www.royalsignals.org.uk/
Fantastic Pictures from the Latest Shuttle Mission
http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/04/journeys_to_the_international.html
Echoes of Apollo Arecibo Operation
http://www.k2txb.com/2010_arecibo_operation.htm
Aurora Photo Gallery Oh to be in the Northern Hemisphere!!!
http://www.spaceweather.com/aurora/gallery_01apr10_page5.htm
Beacons
http://www.ncdxf.org/beacons.html
http://www.ncdxf.org/beacon/beaconschedule.html
http://www.ncdxf.org/beacon/monitors.html
Ionospheric Prediction Service
http://www.ips.gov.au/
International Marconi Day
http://radiomarine.org/
http://marconiconference.org/documents/MRHS%20MCC%20Event%20Schedule.pdf
North American QRP Club
http://home.windstream.net/yoel/
NASA - Sunset Planet Alert
http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2010/nasa-sunset-planet-alert/
NASA Citizen Scientist
http://science.nasa.gov/citizen-scientists/
Top 10 Worst Passwords
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/187354/study_hacking_passwords_easy_as_123456.html
Do you have some interesting internet sites you have some across in the last week send them in to justingc(AT)ozemail.com.au
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VK7 Regional News Group Email Addresses
Post message: vk7regionalnews(AT)yahoogroups.com
Subscribe: vk7regionalnews-subscribe(AT)yahoogroups.com
Unsubscribe: vk7regionalnews-unsubscribe(AT)yahoogroups.com
List owner: vk7regionalnews-owner(AT)yahoogroups.com
VK7 Virtual BPL Tours
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdcY0Eetvsw - Mt Nelson
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gsxpya3CnQ - North Hobart
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7DfdxjRkpU - RU ready for BPL?
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If you are interested in becoming an amateur radio operator or upgrading your licence then we suggest you contact your local club for details and/or take a look at what the Radio and Electronics School has to offer. They have a range of courses that can be delivered through a variety of methods.
They can be found at: www.radioelectronicschool.com
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Finally today, a reminder to those people rostered for next week's broadcasts:
Newsreader: VK7TW
80m: VK7JGD
40m: VK7RO
20m: VK7IL
10m: VK7ZGK
UHF CB: VK7HGO
HF CB: VK7TED
Thanks to all people and organisations who assisted with this broadcast.
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THAT CONCLUDES OUR VK7 REGIONAL NEWS BROADCAST FOR THIS WEEK.
YOU HAVE BEEN LISTENING TO OR JUST MISSED VK7WI. NEXT WEEK THE NATIONAL WIA NEWS CAN BE HEARD AT 0900 FOLLOWED BY THE VK7 REGIONAL NEWS AT 0930 HOURS.
DETAILS TO SEND NEWS FOR THIS BROADCAST CAN BE FOUND AT REAST.ASN.AU AND THE DEADLINE FOR ITEMS IS 21:00 ON FRIDAY PRIOR TO THE SUNDAY OF THE BROADCAST.
VK7 Regional Broadcast & News Coordinator
Justin Giles-Clark, VK7TW
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- NEWS POSTING TO PACKET -
Courtesy Tony VK7AX VK7AX(AT)VK7AX.#ULV.TAS.AUS.OC
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