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G4TNU > NEWS 23.08.20 00:33l 231 Lines 11328 Bytes #999 (0) @ EU
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Subj: RSGB Main News - 23 Aug 2020
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GB2RS Main News for Sunday the 23rd of August 2020
The news headlines:
* Nominate a new DXer for G5RP Trophy
* Latest Online RSGB Convention news
* Vacancies on important RSGB committees
The G5RP Trophy is an annual award to encourage newcomers to HF
DXing. The award is not limited to youngsters or the newly-licensed;
it is open to anyone who has recently discovered and made significant
progress in HF DXing. If you are an established HF DXer and want to
recommend someone to be awarded the G5RP Trophy for 2020, now is the
time to send in your nomination. Your nominee should be an
up-and-coming HF DXer who has made rapid progress in the last year
and has some real achievements to show, for example, a good total of
new countries worked or some serious HF DXpedition activity. Please
send your nominations to Ian Greenshields, G4FSU by email to
hf.manager<at>rsgb.org.uk to arrive no later than the 25th of
September.
During the online RSGB Convention for 2020, you will be able to enjoy
some excellent lectures. On Saturday the 10th of October, the RSGB
will be putting on two streams online for everyone to enjoy. In An
introduction to… we will have Kevin, G0PEK and Lauren, 2E0HLR talk
about youngsters using amateur radio and combining it with other
activities such as cycling, hiking, canoeing and kayaking. In the
Learn more about.... stream, the popular RSGB Convention lecturer Jim
Bacon, G3YLA will talk about VHF propagation and weather. Jim will
describe the processes behind compiling the GB2RS propagation
bulletin. He'll look at weather forecasting, tropospheric
propagation, rain scatter and how to identify suitable candidates
from forecast charts as well as Sporadic-E and its relationship to
weather. We'll highlight more lectures in the coming weeks, but you
can find out more at www.rsgb.org/convention.
The RSGB is looking for two people to fill the important volunteer
roles of Legacy Committee Chair and Nominations Committee Chair. Full
details of the roles and the committees can be found on the Society's
website at www.rsgb.org/volunteers.
The CW Open for 2020 takes place over the first weekend of September
and is sponsored by The CW Operators' Club. The three sessions are
all on the 5th of September, from 0000 to 0359UTC, then 1200 to
1559UTC and finally 2000 to 2359UTC. See
https://cwops.org/cwops-tests/cw-open/ for full details.
Tim, G4YBU and Richard, G8ITB have planned a Summits on the Air
activity weekend ending today, the 23rd. The objective is to activate
as many of the 15 summits in the Southern SOTA region of England. The
event is for everyone and it is suggested that the popular 2m and 40m
bands are used, on FM and SSB. For a detailed summit list see
www.sotadata.org.uk.
International Lighthouses and Lightships Weekend is still going ahead
this weekend. Participation will dependent on local circumstances and
government rulings regarding Covid-19 restrictions, see
https://illw.net. Wirral ARS will be operating using GB2BHL from the
club premises. Moray Firth ARS will be using GB0CSL from individual
club members homes.
The RSGB has released two more 2019 Convention presentations to its
YouTube channel. In the first one, Don Field, G3XTT talks about the
fun and experience you can have by ‘Guest Operating' as part of a
multi-operator contest or DXpedition. In the second presentation,
Nobby Styles, G0VJG builds on that by giving details of the
DXpedition to Wallis Island. You can watch both on the RSGB YouTube
channel, www.youtube.com/theRSGB
The Grid and Prefix Award Program has announced a comprehensive
Digital Awards Program. Awards are available for radio amateurs and
short wave listeners for confirmed grids and prefixes worked or heard
using digital modes. Contacts made under any callsign you may have
used in the past are valid for confirmations; there is no start time,
so all confirmed digital contacts are acceptable. The program accepts
electronic confirmations. See www.gapawards.com.
The RSGB 2020 Construction Competition is open for entries. There are
four categories, including one specifically for people who are new to
amateur radio. Deadline for entries is the 25th of September. For
more details, including how to enter, see
www.rsgb.org/construction-competition.
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.
To commemorate the 75th anniversary of VJ Day, the RSGB has organised
a 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 until the 31st of August. See
www.rsgb.org/ve-vj-marathon.
August sees two GB80 special event stations on the air, marking the
critical role that radar played in the Battle of Britain 80 years
ago. GB80BRS will be operated to commemorate Bawdsey Radar Station in
Suffolk, where radar was developed in the late 1930s. This was the
location of the world's first operational radar station. Activity
will be on 80 to 10m using SSB, CW and FT8. GB80CH, Chain Home, will
be operated from Chelmsford in Essex.
And now the DX news
Many stations will be on the air this weekend from lighthouses around
Europe and beyond. Listen out for T45FM, CQ0ODX/P, TM2LW, GB9UL and
OV1LH amongst many others. A full list can be found at
https://illw.net.
Giorgio, YI/IU5HWS is with the military in Iraq and will be operating
on 40, 20 and 10 metres until the end of November.
Now the contest news
There are no RSGB HF contests this month, as August is the month of
the traditional summer holiday. Please remember to check before the
contest for new rules due to lockdown and social distancing, which
may differ around the world. The RSGB strongly advises obeying your
own national and local government's advice first and foremost,
especially in the instance of local lockdowns.
On Tuesday the SHF UK Activity Contest runs from 1830 to 2130UTC.
Using all modes on the 2.3 to 10GHz bands, the exchange is signal
report, serial number and locator.
Next Sunday, the 30th, The UK Microwave group's High Band contest
runs from 0600 to 1800UTC. Using all modes on the 5.7 to 10GHz bands,
the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator.
Over the weekend of the 5th and 6th September, three RSGB contests
occur. On Saturday the 5th, there is SSB Field Day that starts at
1300UTC and the 144MHz Trophy Contest that starts at 1400UTC. On
Sunday the 6th, there is the fifth 144MHz Backpackers Contest, which
starts at 1100UTC.
Sadly, the HF and VHF Contest Committees have come to the conclusion
that the Government guidance on Covid-19 does not yet allow the
restart multi-operator sections in RSGB contests. As a result, the
multi operator sections in the 144MHz Trophy Contest have been
removed. The single operator sections will continue as normal. For
the 5th 144MHz Backpackers Contest and SSB Field Day, all sections
are being restricted to single operator entries only. The committees
realise this announcement will disappoint some people, but they do
hope that many will be able to enter the contests as single
operators, whether from home or as portable stations. These contests
normally bring exciting DX and weekend contest activity levels have
been high this year, so please do come on and have some fun. The
rules for all RSGB Contests are at www.rsgbcc.org.
Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO
on Friday the 21st of August.
Sunspot region 2772 was rotating off the Sun's limb at the end of the
week. As a result, the solar flux index declined from 74 down to 71
as the Sun's surface cleared. There was some activity though. A solar
storm cloud was hurled into space on the 16th of August by a
slow-motion solar flare in the Sun's southern hemisphere. The coronal
mass ejection was due to sweep past Earth on the 20th. A group of
three smaller coronal holes passed the Sun's central meridian on
Wednesday and Thursday, which could spell unsettled conditions at the
weekend due to the solar wind emanating from them. NOAA predicts that
the Kp index will rise to three until the threat passes. This is not
really high enough to cause big problems, but keep an eye on the Kp
index at solarham.com as a guide.
Next week, NOAA has the SFI pegged at 71 to 72 reflecting a lack of
sunspots. The Kp index should also be pegged at two, at least until
Sunday the 30th of August when it could climb to four. Look out for a
potential positive pre-auroral phase enhancement, followed by a
decline in maximum usable frequencies as any potential geomagnetic
storm progresses.
Current daytime MUFs over a 3,000km path are still in the 14-18MHz
range, with night-time MUFs covering 10-14MHz according to
Propquest.co.uk.
And now the VHF and up propagation news.
A deep low and gales over the northern and western part of the
British Isles is not ideal summer holiday weather and not good for
antennas either. In fact, this unsettled pattern will stay with us
through to Thursday, when some models show temporary high pressure
over the country to end the week.
It's fair to say that not all models do this and instead of a high,
it's no more than a one-day weak ridge before further lows arrive. In
terms of propagation it's looking like another period of weather more
suitable for GHz bands rain scatter.
Tropo may put in an appearance later in the week, but it might only
be a brief visit and perhaps not with a well-developed inversion if
it's a temporary visit. As an aside, it's a particularly good period
of summer Tropo over the Mediterranean at the moment, with potential
for east to west paths, say from EA to IT9 or IT9 to SV or 5B4.
The Sporadic-E season is hanging on, particularly for digital modes,
and next week should continue to offer several nicely placed jet
streams for paths into Europe.
Note that the propquest.co.uk website, which contains a daily blog on
where the weather triggers may be more active, now contains a single
Sporadic-E probability index, EPI. This combines many of the
contributory factors into one experimental index on a map showing
where the chance of Sporadic-E is highest. Click on the map or enter
your locator to overlay the ideal distance rings for Sporadic-E from
your QTH.
Moon declination is now negative and falling all week, and, as
perigee was Friday, EME path losses are low but rising. Moon windows
will shorten as the week progresses. 144MHz sky temperatures are
rising, peaking at over 3000K on Thursday, so your masthead preamps
won't help you! Read G4BAO's GHz bands column from the April 2020
RadCom for an explanation of why.
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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