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N9PMO > LETTER 14.11.14 22:37l 729 Lines 33371 Bytes #999 (0) @ ARRL
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ARRL Seeks Input on Recommended VHF-UHF-Microwave Contest Rule Changes
"Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2014" Attracts More than a Dozen New
Co-Sponsors
FCC Reverses ALJ's Decision, Revokes Convicted Sex Offender's Ham
Radio License
International Space Station Briefly "Ham-less" After Crew Members
Return to Earth
W1AW Centennial Operations Heading South to Florida, Arkansas
ARRL "Red Badges" Will Be Back On the Air on Saturday, November 22
4M Lunar Flyby Spacecraft Amateur Radio Payload Now in Silent Earth
Orbit
California Scientist-Ham On the Air from Antarctica's McMurdo Station,
Ross Ice Shelf
AMSAT Celebrates 40 Years in Space for AO-7
Some CQ WPX Applications via LoTW Not Processed
The ARRL November Sweepstakes SSB is This Weekend
AMSAT Invites Ideas and Suggestions for Next-Gen Satellites
Past ARRL Connecticut SCM Victor L. Crawford, W1TYQ, SK
A Century of Amateur Radio and the ARRL
The K7RA Solar Update
Just Ahead in Radiosport
Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events
ARRL Seeks Input on Recommended VHF-UHF-Microwave Contest Rule Changes
The recently formed "Ad Hoc Subcommittee on VHF and Above
Revitalization" -- created by the ARRL Board of Directors' Programs
and Services Committee (PSC) -- is seeking member input by December 15
on updating various aspects of the League's VHF-UHF-Microwave and EME
contest program. In the subcommittee's solicitation for input,
Chairman Kermit Carlson, W9XA, said members can help the work of the
committee "by providing additional insights and ideas for our
consideration."
"Contest participation benefits both individual amateurs and the
Amateur Radio Service as a whole," said Carlson, who is ARRL Central
Division Vice Director. "Individual operators gain overall operating
experience, increase their knowledge of band characteristics, test the
results of changes in equipment, antennas and locations, and have
incentive to add bands and modes to their station complement, all in
the context of enjoyable, yet challenging, activities."
He said operating in contests also helps the Amateur Radio Service
increase its pool of skilled operators and can demonstrate more
intense use of our allocations, "some of which may be under threat
from ever-expanding commercial and consumer services."
Subcommittee members have recommended one set of changes that would
apply across all ARRL VHF-UHF-Microwave and EME contests. These
include:
1. Removing the current prohibition on the use of amateur and
non-amateur forms of assistance for all operator categories, with such
use having no impact on entry category.
2. Removing the current prohibition on self-spotting for all operator
categories.
3. Allowing single operators to transmit on more than one band at a
time.
"Unlike most HF contests, operating skill and knowledge of propagation
may not be enough to find stations to work. You can't just point your
antenna to Europe or Asia at the right time and find a ready supply of
potential contacts," Carlson explained. "The less-predictable nature
of VHF+ propagation and the necessarily higher-gain, narrow-beamwidth
antennas used make finding someone to work largely a matter of chance.
Indeed, most microwave contacts would never occur at all without the
use of real-time coordination."
Carlson said the League's current prohibitive stance toward assistance
and self-spotting "is the most often-heard complaint about our VHF
contest program." He said subcommittee members believe that removing
those prohibitions "will foster greater participation and result in
more contacts and a more positive experience for participants without
impacting the existing challenge of actually completing contacts."
Similarly, he continued, the present restriction of Single-Operator
stations to one transmitted signal at a time precludes such activities
as calling CQ on one band while soliciting or completing contacts
using digital modes on another. "Such restriction constrains the
number of potential contacts among participants while yielding no
apparent benefit," he said.
The full announcement details and explains the rationale behind the
specific recommended rule changes.
"You can help us by considering the potential impact of each proposal
and sharing any specific observations about it," Carlson said. "We're
not tallying votes; rather, we want to be sure we have considered all
foreseeable results of the proposed changes." Carlson said that
collective input from user groups would be more helpful and expedient
than receiving multiple versions of the same position from individual
group members.
Submit comments prior to December 15, 2014. Only comments received
through vhf-input@arrl.org will be assured of reaching all the members
of the Subcommittee.
"Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2014" Attracts More than a Dozen New
Co-Sponsors
The list of co-sponsors for the Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2014, H.R.
4969, has grown to 63. Sixteen new co-sponsors signed aboard as the
113th Congress re-convened for its final session before adjournment.
ARRL Regulatory Information Manager Dan Henderson, N1ND, is urging
ARRL members to keep in contact with their Congressional
representatives and to encourage them to become co-sponsors to the
bill.
"We are excited about the addition of 16 new co-sponsors when Congress
reconvened after the November mid-term elections," Henderson said.
"Each new co-sponsor brings us one step closer to achieving our goal
of getting HR 4969 enacted. We have a long way to go - but we are
definitely moving in the right direction."
A few more co-sponsors may still be in the wings. The current tally
represents a considerable expansion of support from the number of US
Representatives who had signed aboard as Congress adjourned prior to
the mid-term elections. All 16 of the latest co-sponsors were
re-elected on November 4.
H.R. 4969, which was introduced in the US House of Representatives
with bipartisan support in late June, would call on the FCC to apply
the "reasonable accommodation" three-part test of the PRB-1 federal
pre-emption policy to private land-use restrictions regarding
antennas. The limited PRB-1 pre-emption currently applies only to
state and municipal land-use ordinances. The FCC has indicated its
reluctance to provide the same legal protections from private land-use
agreements -- often called covenants, conditions, and restrictions or
CC&Rs -- without direction from Congress.
The League has opened a HR.4969 page. HR.4969 has been referred to the
House Energy and Commerce Committee. Rep Greg Walden, W7EQI (R-OR),
chairs that panel's Communications and Technology Subcommittee, which
will consider the measure.
FCC Reverses ALJ's Decision, Revokes Convicted Sex Offender's Ham
Radio License
The FCC has reversed the decision of an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ)
who had ruled in 2010 that David Titus, KB7ILD, of Seattle,
Washington, could keep his Amateur Radio license in the wake of his
conviction for a sex-related crime 17 years earlier. In his March 9,
2010, Initial Decision, ALJ Richard L. Sippel determined that Titus
"has been a law-abiding member of his community for many years" and,
based on evidence that Titus and witnesses on his behalf had
presented, ordered that Titus's amateur license not be revoked. Sippel
also ruled that the FCC's Enforcement Bureau had failed to meet the
burden of proof necessary for revocation. He determined that Titus had
shown remorse and been rehabilitated, and that the Enforcement Bureau
had presented no credible evidence to indicate that Titus should be
categorized as a high-risk sex offender. In a November 5 Decision in
the proceeding (EB Docket 07-13), the FCC reversed Sippel's decision.
"We find that the ALJ erred in holding that the Enforcement Bureau
failed to meet its burden of demonstrating that Titus is currently
unqualified to remain a Commission licensee," the Decision said,
"inasmuch as the ALJ failed to consider relevant convictions for sex
offenses and failed to give appropriate deference to the judgment of
local law enforcement authorities that Titus is a convicted sex
offender who poses a high risk to the safety of the community."
The FCC also said Sippel should have given more weight to incidents in
2002 and 2004 that, while not resulting in conviction, "prompted the
Seattle Police Department to raise Titus's assessed risk level from
moderate to high."
In January 2007 the FCC issued a show-cause Order and designated for
hearing the issue of whether Titus was qualified to remain a licensee
in light of a 1993 felony conviction for "communicating with a minor
for immoral purposes." The Communications Act provides that the FCC
may revoke any license, if conditions come to its attention that would
have warranted a denial of the licensee's original application. The
Commission has said in the past that felony convictions, "especially
those involving sexual offenses involving children," raise questions
regarding a licensee's character qualifications.
Titus's General class license expired in 2009, and the FCC deferred
action on his renewal application while the revocation proceeding was
still in play.
The FCC said that given "known risks of Amateur Radios in the hands of
sex offenders, such misconduct is prima facie disqualifying, and has
resulted in the loss of licenses in past cases."
"In focusing on the impact of Titus's misconduct on his qualifications
to hold an Amateur Radio license," the FCC concluded, "we would be
remiss in our responsibilities as a licensing authority if we continue
to authorize Titus to hold an Amateur Radio license that could be used
to put him in contact with children."
International Space Station Briefly "Ham-less" After Crew Members
Return to Earth
The only two radio amateurs on the International Space Station (ISS)
were among three crew members who returned to Earth on November 10,
and another ham-astronaut won't arrive on board the ISS until later
this month. An exciting 2015 appears to be in store.
NASA Flight Engineer Reid Wiseman, KF5LKT, and European Space Agency
Astronaut Alexander Gerst, KF5ONO, joined Expedition 41 Commander and
Russian Cosmonaut Max Suraev on the flight home this week. Traveling
in a Soyuz space capsule, the trio touched down safely in Kazakhstan
after some 6 months on the station. Wiseman and Gerst were active on
Amateur Radio during their time in orbit, handling questions from
curious Earthlings during Amateur Radio on the International Space
Station (ARISS) educational contacts and, in Wiseman's case, his first
ARRL Field Day in June -- an activity he discussed in a recent
#askAstro YouTube post.
Reid Wiseman, KF5LKT, operated ARRL Field Day while on the ISS. [NASA
image]
This was the first mission for both Wiseman and Gerst. While in space,
the pair carried out a spacewalk to relocate a failed pump module and
configure the station for upcoming additions. Wiseman completed a
second spacewalk with fellow NASA astronaut Barry Wilmore, now the ISS
Expedition 42 Commander.
According to ARISS, there will be no US Operational Segment hams on
the ISS until December 7, and the ARISS Russian team will conduct any
school contacts in the interim. European Space Agency astronaut
Samantha Cristoforetti, IZ0UDF, heads to the ISS on November 23. She
will be the sole radio amateur on orbit until next March. That's when
Cosmonauts Gennady Padalka, RN3DT, and Mikhail Kornienko, RN3BF --
both space veterans -- will arrive. A key research focus during
Expedition 41 was human health management for long-duration space
travel, as NASA and Roscosmos prepare for Kornienko and NASA Astronaut
Scott Kelly to remain aboard the ISS for 1 year.
Several call signs are available for use on the ISS. NASA astronauts
use NA1SS, while Russian cosmonauts operate under RS0ISS. Other call
signs include DP0ISS, OR4ISS, and IR0ISS, available for use by
European Space Agency astronauts. UK telecoms regulator Ofcom recently
issued the call sign GB1SS for assignment to UK space travelers while
aboard the ISS.
NASA Astronaut Kjell Lindgren, KO5MOS, and Japan Aerospace Exploration
Agency (JAXA) Astronaut Kimiya Yui, KG5BPH, will head to the ISS next
May. Astronauts Tim Kopra, KE5UDN, and Tim Peake, KG5BVI, will be part
of a crew increment heading into space a year from now. Peake, who is
from the UK, may use the GB1SS call sign.
Sarah Brightman undergoes medical tests in Russia. [Photo courtesy of
AMSAT-UK]
British pop singer Sarah Brightman is currently scheduled to travel to
the ISS in October 2015 for a 10-day visit as a fare-paying
"spaceflight participant." Her website has adopted an otherworldly
theme. While it is not known if she will participate in any Amateur
Radio contacts during her short ISS stay, she apparently would be
eligible to do so using GB1SS.
ARISS has announced that the deadline is December 15 for schools and
educational institutions and organizations -- formal and informal --
to submit proposals to host an Amateur Radio contact with an ISS crew
member. ARISS is especially interested in arranging contact events
that will draw large numbers of participants and integrate the radio
contact into a well-developed educational plan. ARISS anticipates that
the ham radio contacts between students and the space station will
take place between May 1 and December 31, 2015. The ARRL website has
more information.
Contact ARISS with any questions or for additional information.
NASA has posted more information on the International Space Station
and its crews.
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W1AW Centennial Operations Heading South to Florida, Arkansas
The ARRL Centennial W1AW portable operations taking place throughout
2014 from each of the 50 states are now in Mississippi and Rhode
Island. They will transition at 0000 UTC on Wednesday, November 19
(the evening of November 18 in US time zones), to Florida (W1AW/4) and
Arkansas (W1AW/5). So far during 2014, W1AW has visited each of the 50
states for at least 1 week, and by year's end W1AW will have been on
the air from every state at least twice.
The ARRL Centennial QSO Party kicked off January 1 for a year-long
operating event in which participants can accumulate points and win
awards. The event is open to all, although only ARRL members and
appointees, elected officials, HQ staff and W1AW are worth ARRL
Centennial QSO Party points.
Working W1AW/x from each state is worth 5 points per mode/contact,
even when working the same state during its second week of activity.
To earn the "Worked all States with W1AW Award," work W1AW operating
portable from all 50 states. (Working W1AW or W100AW in Connecticut
does not count for Connecticut. Participants must work W1AW/1 in
Connecticut.) A W1AW WAS certificate and plaque will be available.
An ARRL Centennial QSO Party leader board shows participants how many
points they have accumulated in the Centennial QSO Party and in the
W1AW WAS operations. Log in using your Logbook of The World (LoTW)
username and password, and your position will appear at the top of the
leader boards. Results are updated daily, based on contacts entered
into LoTW.
Find ARRL on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter!
ARRL "Red Badges" Will Be Back On the Air on Saturday, November 22
The next ARRL "Red Badges on the Air" activity will take place on
Saturday, November 22 UTC (starting the evening of Friday, November
21, in US time zones). That's when holders of red ARRL name/call sign
badges will once again be roaming the bands, offering yet another
chance to boost your ARRL Centennial QSO Party total. There will be
Working this Red Badge holder -- ARRL President Kay Craigie, N3KN --
is worth 300 points!
one more Red Badges on the Air activity on New Year's Eve, Wednesday,
December 31. ARRL officers, elected officials such as Director or
Section Manager, as well as Headquarters staffers and volunteers, and
other members of the ARRL family will take to the air en masse for
both occasions. Contacts with red badge wearers are worth as much as
300 points per contact for working ARRL President Kay Craigie, N3KN.
Many of the 200 or so holders of red badges will be on the air on
November 22 and December 31, along with other ARRL appointees, VEs,
and members.
These events are considered activity days, not contests, and operation
is permitted on all bands. Participants can call "CQ ARRL Centennial
QSO Party" on phone or "CQ CENT" on CW or digital modes. While the
focus is to encourage ARRL red badge holders to hand out Centennial
QSO Party points, all activity is welcome, regardless of point value.
ARRL members are worth at least one point in the Centennial QSO Party.
Participants get credit for each band/mode contact, regardless of
point value. ARRL Centennial QSO Party participants can use the leader
board to determine how many points they have accumulated.
As of November 13, 13,000 people have reached 1000 points in the QSO
points Challenge, and 7000 ops have reached the 3000-point level. Read
more.
4M Lunar Flyby Spacecraft Amateur Radio Payload Now in Silent Earth
Orbit
The Amateur Radio payload in the Manfred Memorial Moon Mission (4M)
lunar flyby experiment has gone silent, but the spacecraft itself will
likely be in Earth orbit for some time to come.
"It is there for some thousands of years, I think, but it might also
be ejected into heliocentric orbit if it passes close to the Moon,
which is what some simulations show," said Ghislain Ruy, LX2RG, of
Luxspace (LSE), the private company behind the 4M payload. Ruy said
the 4M is orbiting Earth every 16.5 days.
Ruy told ARRL that the 4M's Amateur Radio payload exhausted its
batteries on November 10 after 438 hours of service -- four times more
than Luxspace engineers had predicted. "It can be considered a huge
success that opened new paths and made people think or even dream," he
said.
The Luxspace 4M spacecraft, sporting a measuring-tape antenna, was
attached to the third stage of the Chinese Long March 3C vehicle.
[Courtesy of Luxspace]
On November 10 the battery voltage began dropping, and Rein Smit,
W6SZ, in California, received the last signal at 0135 UT on November
11, when the battery voltage had fallen to 8.4 V.
"Here at Luxspace, we have to thank you all for the reports, for the
tracking, and we also hope that we provided you with the challenges
you expected," Ruy posted to the Moon-Net list. "4M may possibly
awaken from time to time if illumination becomes better. We shall now
endeavor to prepare the next one."
The Chinese Chang'e 5T-1 lunar mission payload that the 4M initially
accompanied into space on a Long March 3C rocket already has been
recovered. The 4M and Chang'e 5T-1 -- part of the China Lunar
Exploration Program -- launched into space on October 23, with the 4M
payload hitchhiking on the launch vehicle's third stage. Until early
this week the Amateur Radio payload was transmitting a WSJT JT65B
beacon and telemetry on 145.980 MHz, and it was only by chance that
the 4M managed to attain Earth orbit on the return leg, rather than
burn up in the atmosphere -- which had been its more likely fate. Read
more.
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California Scientist-Ham On the Air from Antarctica's McMurdo Station,
Ross Ice Shelf
Ham radio is not the primary reason that Ron Flick, K6REF, is in
Antarctica, but it's proving to be an enjoyable diversion to his
scientific activities at McMurdo Station and the Ross Ice Shelf. He's
put a few hundred contacts in the log since arriving late last month
from California. Flick, an oceanographer with the California
Department of Parks and Recreation, Division of Boating and Waterways,
and colleagues are conducting ice vibration studies on the Ross Ice
Shelf, sponsored by Scripps Institution of Oceanography. McMurdo is
home to KC4USV, but Flick's initial experience at the station -- once
he was able to locate the key to unlock the door -- was less than
optimal.
Ron Flick, K6REF, at the helm of KC4USV at McMurdo Station. [Photo
courtesy of Scripps Institution of Oceanography]
"The view is spectacular!" he enthused. "After I plugged the radio
into power and the Yagi, I was able to hear a few stations on the
lower end of 20, but was not able to contact anyone. The Yagi is fixed
in an east-west orientation."
Flick subsequently learned that the Antarctic winds had shifted the
Yagi's orientation. He'd been using 14.243 MHz -- the "usual" KC4USV
frequency -- and 14.290 MHz, which he called "my personal favorite."
He was also using 21.260 MHz, generally getting on the air around 2200
UTC for a few hours, depending upon his work schedule.
According to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Amateur Radio
operations are part of the outreach and education efforts of the
"Dynamic Response of the Ross Ice Shelf to Wave-Induced Vibrations"
expedition.
Starting this week, Flick will be on the air as time and conditions
permit as KC4/K6REF from Yesterday Camp near the International Date
Line on the Ross Ice Shelf, running 100 W to dipole antennas. He hopes
to be active for a few hours during the Antarctic afternoon and
evening, starting at about 0300 UTC. He will be in the field until
December 5.
The US Antarctic Program has a webcam at McMurdo Station. Read more.
-- Thanks to Joe Garza, AB6RM
AMSAT Celebrates 40 Years in Space for AO-7
Saturday, November 15, will mark 40 years since the AMSAT-OSCAR 7
(AO-7) ham radio satellite went into space from Vandenberg Air Force
Base in California. Special Event W7O will be on the air November
15-24 to commemorate the launch of AO-7, the oldest working Amateur
Radio satellite. Satellite aficionado Patrick Stoddard, WD9EWK/VA7EWK,
who secured W7O for the occasion, plans to work satellite passes
during the special event from Arizona, including AO-7 passes. He also
hopes to recruit other operators to participate in the celebration
from other locations and on other bands, including HF.
AO-7 made the cover of the April 1974 issue of QST.
AO-7 was the second so-called "Phase 2" Amateur Radio satellite that
AMSAT-NA constructed and launched into low-Earth orbit. It remained in
operation until a short circuit occurred in a battery in 1981. More
than 20 years later, however, AO-7 unexpectedly returned to life, its
2 meter beacon showing up on 145.9775 MHz. AMSAT describes the Mode
A/B bird as "semi-operational" and dependent upon its solar panels for
a reliable power source; AO-7 works only as long as its solar panels
are illuminated by sunlight. Satellite experts speculate that AO-7's
resurrection occurred when the short circuit in the battery opened,
allowing the solar cells to power the spacecraft. When the satellite
goes into eclipse, it powers down. Since the satellite returned to the
outerworld of the living, terrestrial users have enjoyed numerous
contacts via AO-7.
According to its operating plan, AO-7 switches to Mode B (70
centimeters up/2 meters down) at 0000 UTC. AO-7 has beacons on 29.502
MHz (used in conjunction with Mode A) and, nominally, on 145.972 MHz
(used in conjunction with Mode B and Mode C -- low power Mode B). The
435.100 MHz beacon has an intermittent problem, switching between 400
mW and 10 mW.
Stoddard said he would publish a schedule through a link on his WD9EWK
QRZ.com entry. Contact Stoddard for more information.
AMSAT has posted a series of photos documenting the early OSCAR years,
including AO-7. Read more. -- Thanks to AMSAT-NA, AMSAT News Service
Some CQ WPX Applications via LoTW Not Processed
It has been determined that some CQ WPX Awards Program applications
using ARRL's Logbook of The World (LoTW) were not properly processed,
because the applications were inadvertently tagged as incomplete.
If you used LoTW to apply for a WPX Award between mid-October and
early November and have not yet received an e-mail acknowledgment,
contact WPX Award Manager Steve Bolia, N8BJQ.
The ARRL November Sweepstakes SSB is This Weekend
"CQ SS, CQ SS!" Operators in the US and Canada will be exercising
their vocal cords (or their digital voice memories) to compete in the
2014 ARRL November Sweepstakes SSB event this weekend, November 15-17.
The action gets under way at 2100 UTC Saturday and runs through 0259
UTC Monday (Sunday evening in continental US time zones).
Many operators hope to get a "Clean Sweep" by working stations in all
83 ARRL and Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC) sections.
Ad
AMSAT Invites Ideas and Suggestions for Next-Gen Satellites
AMSAT has invited the Amateur Satellite community to submit ideas and
suggestions for the next generation of AMSAT satellites. AMSAT Vice
President-Engineering Jerry Buxton, N0JY, announced the plan at the
2014 AMSAT Space Symposium in Baltimore. AMSAT asked that ideas be
based on the CubeSat platform, as "this is the standard through which
we will look for launches in the foreseeable future," its announcement
said.
"The door is open for everyone to submit their ideas," Buxton said.
"AMSAT Engineering has a long-term strategy, and this is the first
step." He outlined the goals of that strategy:
Advance Amateur Radio satellite technical and communications skills.
Enhance international goodwill.
Grow and sustain a skilled pool of Amateur Radio satellite engineers.
Establish and maintain partnerships with educational institutions.
Develop a means to use hardware common to all opportunities.
"Within the bounds of the type of satellite it takes to achieve any of
the various orbit opportunities, let's consider in those plans the
possibility of developing a platform that can suit any and all
orbits," Buxton said in reference to the last goal.
Buxton pointed out that the purpose of the proposal is not just
collecting suggestions. "Being an all-volunteer team," he said, "AMSAT
needs your help in carrying out the idea." He asked that submissions
be thorough. The deadline is May 30, 2015. Read more. -- Thanks to
AMSAT News Service
Past ARRL Connecticut SCM Victor L. Crawford, W1TYQ, SK
Past ARRL Connecticut Section Communications Manager (SCM) Victor L.
"Vic" Crawford, W1TYQ (ex-W8NUV, HZ3TYQ), of Rapid City, Michigan,
died November 8. He was 94. An ARRL Life Member, Crawford served as
Connecticut's SCM from 1957 until 1960, when he stepped down to work
in the Middle East.
Vic Crawford as HZ3TYQ. [Courtesy of Hamgallery.com]
As HZ3TYQ from 1963 until 1976, Crawford made two DXpeditions each to
what were then called the Saudi Arabian/Iraqi and Saudi
Arabian/Kuwaiti Neutral Zones, 8Z4 and 8Z5. In 1961, he led an
operation from the Saudi Arabian/Kuwaiti neutral zone (9K3TL/NZ), with
Jack Laub, HB9TL, Roy Fleming, MP4BBD, and L.M. "Rundy" Rundlett,
W3ZA/K4ZA.
Crawford also operated from HZ1AB, using the phonetics "Hot Ziggety
One American Boy." Don Karvonen, K8MFO, recalled that Crawford was
known worldwide for his impeccable CW and top-notch operating. "I will
always remember June 29, 1962, when, as a 16-year-old with a rag-tag
station in Upper Michigan, I worked Vic from HZ1AB," Karvonen
recounted. "I know I'm not alone in sharing lifelong respect for Vic,
both as a top-notch operator and a world-class guy. We have lost one
more from America's Greatest Generation." Read more. -- Thanks to The
Daily DX and Hamgallery.com
A Century of Amateur Radio and the ARRL
After many years of political unrest in Myanmar that resulted in the
banning of Amateur Radio, the country formerly known as Burma starting
cracking the door open to hams in 1994. Following 3 years of
negotiations with Myanmar officials and two small-scale DXpeditions to
that country, Martti Laine, OH2BH, obtained permission for a
large-scale DXpedition that would demonstrate the value of ham radio
to the government. A multinational ham team operating as XZ1A made
many thousands of contacts and even operated in the CQ World Wide DX
SSB contest. The article, "DXing from the Golden Land," published in
the March 1996 issue of QST, told the fascinating story.
For many years, interest in 10 GHz operation had been building,
spurred on by the ARRL's 10 GHz contests. By the mid 1990s, many hams
were heading to the mountaintops with their small dishes to operate at
10 GHz. Coastal hams with pleasure boats would often go offshore to
operate from the rarer grids, but sometimes they would have to suspend
operation, when seas became high enough to make dish-pointing from
their bouncing boats almost impossible.
Gate 1 of the long-awaited vanity call sign program finally opened on
May 31, 1996, after many delays -- including a total federal
government shutdown at the beginning of that year, because Congress
could not pass a budget. Gate 1 accepted applications from former
holders of expired and unused call signs and from hams asking for the
call signs once held by now-deceased relatives. Gate 2 opened on
September 23, 1996, for Amateur Extra class licensees to apply.
An interesting juxtaposition of two "the old and the new" articles
appeared in the September 1996 issue of QST. The first was an article
explaining how the then-new Global Positioning System (GPS) works. The
next article looked far into ham radio's past as it attempted to
On display at ARRL Headquarters today, the Wouff Hong is a constant
reminder to Amateur Radio operators to be mindful of their operating
etiquette.
explain the inexplicable mysteries of the Wouff-Hong and the
Rettysnitch. The Wouff Hong and Rettysnitch were fictional tools that
sprang from the imagination of "The Old Man" (Hiram Percy Maxim), to
be used for punishing Amateur Radio operators who demonstrate poor
operating practices.
As the "It Seems to Us" editorial related in the October 1996 issue of
QST, "August was ushered in by a sudden announcement of rewritten FCC
rules governing human exposure to RF fields, creating a mountain of
uncertainty and concern in the Amateur Radio community." The
"Happenings" column in that issue provided more details. An article in
the January 1997 issue of QST further explained how the new rules
would affect hams. -- Al Brogdon, W1AB
The K7RA Solar Update
This was one of those confounding weeks, when the average daily
sunspot number was down, while the average daily solar flux went up.
Compared with the 7 days previous, the November 6-12 average daily
sunspot number declined 10.7 points to 85, while average daily solar
flux rose 11.5 points to 139.4.
The latest prediction from the USAF/NOAA 45-day outlook has solar flux
at 165 on November 13, 180 on November 14-15, then 180, 185, 190, and
195 on November 15-18, 200 on November 19-20, then 195, 190, and 170
on November 21-23, then 150, 135, and 125 on November 24-26, 105 on
November 27-28, 100 on November 29-30, 90 on December 1-3, and
bottoming out at 80 on December 5. It then rises to a short-term
maximum of 200 on December 16-17.
The predicted planetary A index is 8 on November 13-15, 12 on November
16-18, 10 on November 19, 8 on November 20-21, 12 on November 22-24, 8
on November 25, and 5 on November 26-29. It then rises to a high of 22
on December 6, and again on December 26.
This weekly "Solar Update" in The ARRL Letter is a preview of the
"Propagation Bulletin" issued each Friday. The latest bulletin and an
archive of past propagation bulletins is on the ARRL website.
In Friday's bulletin, look for an updated forecast and reports from
readers. Send me your reports and observations.
Just Ahead in Radiosport
November 15 -- Feld-Hell Turkey Shoot Sprint
November 15-16 -- Russian WW Multi-Mode Contest
November 15-16 -- All Austria 160 Meter Contest (CW)
November 15-17 -- ARRL November Sweepstakes (SSB)
November 15-17 -- Collegiate ARC Championship (see ARRL Sweepstakes)
November 15-16 -- RSGB Second 1.8 MHz Contest (CW)
November 16 -- ARS HF Contest (CW/SSB/Digital)
November 16 -- Homebrew and Oldtime Contest (CW)
November 17 -- Run For the Bacon (CW)
November 20 -- NAQCC Monthly QRP Sprint (CW)
See the ARRL Contest Calendar for more information.
Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions and Events
November 15-16 -- Indiana State Convention, Fort Wayne, Indiana
December 12-13 -- West Central Florida Section Convention, Plant City,
Florida
January 4 -- New York City/Long Island Section Convention, Bethpage,
New York
January 10 -- TECHFEST, Lawrenceville, Georgia
January 16-17, 2015 -- North Texas Section Convention, Forest Hill,
Texas
January 18-24 -- Quartzfest, Quartzsite, Arizona
January 23-24 -- Mississippi State Convention, Jackson, Mississippi
January 23-25 -- Puerto Rico State Convention, Hatillo, Puerto Rico
February 7 -- South Carolina State Convention, North Charleston, South
Carolina
February 7 -- Virginia State Convention, Richmond, Virginia
Find conventions and hamfests in your area.
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