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VK7AX > BCAST 08.12.24 02:30l 787 Lines 24378 Bytes #287 (0) @ WW
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VK National News 08Dec24
Text edition:
Weekly news from the WIA:
MP3 edition of news available at: http://www.wia-files.com/podcast/wianews-2024-12-08.mp3
Text edition:
2024 DECEMBER 8 VK NATIONAL NEWS BROADCAST ON VK1WIA
------------------------------------------------------------*
THE BEST NEWS YOU'LL GET ALL WEEK
THIS LINK IS A VIDEO VERSION OF NEWS COMPILED BY VK5BD BEVAN
tinyurl.com/WIA-News-Videos
------------------------------------------------------------*
WIA
JOIN THE WIA
tinyurl.com/yyj87b9y
NEXT WES DIRECTOR TOB HERD ON NEWS WILL BE
Giles VK5GK
15-Dec-2024
Then roster is
Scott VK3KJ WIA PRESIDENT
22-Dec-2024
Peter VK8ZZ WIA SECRETARY
29-Dec-2024
Lee Vk3GK
5-Jan-2025
Chris VK3FY
12-Jan-2025
Peter VK4EA
19-Jan-2025
Steve VK2TSG
26 Jan-2025
AUSTRALIANA
VK6SANTA
Santa has a summer home and here in Australia, you can find him in
Wangara, Western Australia, where he is in his shack, excited to have
finally got his Australian callsign.
It's VK6SANTA and he's making good use of it right now through to the
24th of December, yes he HAS to start delivering presents then so hop
to it now and give VK6SANTA a shoutout
Visit his page on QRZ.com and you'll find that Santa is eager to work
local hams as well as some DX - he's on 2 metres as well as 10, 20 and
40 metres.
Quoting SANTA from his qrz.com page, "I will be operating an Amateur
Radio Net each day, giving children (and the young at heart) a chance
to talk directly with me over the airwaves. Whether you'd like to share
your Christmas wishes, ask about life here at the North Pole, or just
chat with me, Santa, Id love to hear from you!
The net will be operated daily from the 1st to the 24th of December
with the below schedule of frequencies and times (AWST - UTC+8):
2 meters: 146.550 MHz ( QRM)
Saturdays & Sundays: 16:00 - 16:30
10 meters: 28.916 MHz ( QRM)
Monday through Friday: 18:00 - 18:30
Saturday & Sunday: 17:00 - 17:30
20 meters: 14.316 MHz ( QRM)
Monday through Friday: 18:45 - 19:15
Saturday & Sunday: 17:45 - 18:15
40 meters: 7.190 MHz ( QRM)
Monday through Friday: 19:30 - 20:00
Saturday & Sunday: 18:30 - 19:00
(newsline/qrz.com)
Sands, VU2WXW / VK9WX is currently on deployment at the Giles Weather
Station in Western Australia and is operating as VK6GWX.
Giles Weather Station is near the Northern Territory border, about
330 kilometres west of Ayers Rock.
It is the only staffed weather station within an area of about
970,000 sq miles and is situated mid-continent and near the core of
the subtropical jetstream. This means it plays an important role as a
weather and climate observatory for the country.
So keep an ear out for Sands, (great name isn't it) VK6GWX in the
foothills of the Rawlinson Ranges.
( m0oxo.com/ )
ALARA
Sunday December 22 will be WIA National News Services ALARA edition.
Michelle VK2AYL
Linda VK7QP
Lyn VK4SWE and
Shirley VK5YL
will be awaiting your check in that day for the news service.
THE RETIRING TYPE
VK4BAT Trevor Taege who is the voice of all our WIA NATIONAL NEWS
and QNEWS station identifications has just announced his retirement
from Radio 4GY Gympie / Sunshine Coast's mainstream breakfast show.
Congratulations Trev on a job well done but you will still hear him
each week announcing things on WIA such as.....>
------------------------------------------------------------*
INTERNATIONAL NEWS is with thanks to ARRL, DX-WORLD, eHam, Hackaday,
IARU, ICQPodcast, IRTS, NEWSLINE, NZART, RAC, Radioworld.com, RSGB,
SARL and the World Wide sources of the WIA.
. . .
Radio enthusiasts from Cornwall are celebrating the 123rd anniversary
of the first radio transmission across the Atlantic this month.
In December of 1901 Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi and two
assistants travelled from Poldhu Wireless Station near Mullion, in
Cornwall, to the Canadian province of Newfoundland. It was on December
12 that history was made, when a pre-arranged signal of three dots
(the letter 'S' in Morse code) was heard by Marconi on Signal Hill
at St John's, Newfoundland - having been transmitted from Poldhu.
In doing so, Marconi was able to disprove the previously common held
belief that radio waves could only travel in straight lines.
His work laid the foundation for the development of radio, television
and all modern wireless communication systems since.
American Radio Relay League (ARRL) has warned its membership the
impending import tariffs of the Trump administration will cause
major disruptions to the cost of Amateur Radio gear due to almost all
radio equipment being manufactured in Asian countries.
Given the wildly fluctuating statements the US President-elect has
made, ranging from 20% to 100%, import tariffs will undoubtedly make
millions of products go up in cost to the American consumer and
Amateur Radio will be no exception.
Bart Jahnke, W 9 JJ, ARRL Director of Regulatory Affairs, has stated
that "All manufacturing brands will be affected and the long list of
items includes much more than radios, it will touch things like
Raspberry Pi computers and Hot Spots.
Expected big winners will be Canadian retailers along border states,
US Hams are expected to just drive up North to such places as Toronto
and buy gear there, thus avoiding the import tariff that Trump says
he will impose. Jahnke said.
Actually I'd take that story with a grain of salt, sourced to the
online ham news service "The Dipole" out of Canada, a satirical blog at
best. HiHi.
The FCC has intensified its focus on the 5.9 GHz band where new rules
are being finalized for the use of cellular delivery of communications
to and from cars and trucks on the road.
Intelligent Transportation Systems, or ITS, scored a big gain late
November as the FCC voted on a proposal enabling the use of
"cellular vehicle-to-everything" or C-V2X, on the 5.9 GHz band.
This would establish new rules for the use of ITS within 30 MHz of that
spectrum.
The system is already in use by many automakers, sending and receiving
messages over existing 5G cellular networks with alerts about traffic
issues, weather conditions, road hazards or speeding cars.
The FCC measure also sets out the technical parameters for the use of
C-V2X, including power and emission limits. The system permits vehicles
to communicate with roadside infrastructure and the cell phones of
pedestrians, cyclists and road workers, enabling safety communications
even when there are no line-of-sight warnings.
In the heart of the Amazon, amidst the dense foliage and the symphony
of nature's whispers, a silent revolution unfoldsone that transcends
borders, defies regulations, and challenges the very essence of
communication.
At the centre of this enigma lies the tale of the South American
satellite pirates, a clandestine network of individuals who have
ingeniously tapped into retired UHF MilSat bands to extend their
radio range deep into the heart of the rainforest.
vapor95.com say for decades, Brazilian loggers have employed 2m radios
modified with frequency doublers and directional antennas, turning the
once-secret communication channels of the U.S. Navy Satcom uplink
frequencies (280-310MHz) into conduits for their own purposes.
Dubbed "Bolinha" or "little ball" by its users, the FLTSATCOM geo-sync
satellites, once a pinnacle of military communication prowess, now find
themselves unwitting accomplices in this subversive endeavour.
What began as a means for Brazilian loggers to enhance their radio
range has evolved into a phenomenon that spans the breadth of Brazilian
society. Truck drivers, seeking superior communication capabilities in
remote regions beyond the reach of traditional infrastructure, flock to
these satellites. Rogue loggers, wary of authorities encroaching on
their illicit activities, deploy them as covert communication channels
to evade detection. Drug dealers, organized crime factions, and
ordinary citizens alike have found utility in this illicit network,
transforming it into an integral part of the Brazilian communication
landscape.
tinyurl.com/4sz6596n
820 WNYC(AM) plans to conduct an all-digital MA3 test of AM HD Radio
TODAY, December 8.
On the day of the test, New Yorks Public Radio's engineering team
plan to drive around New York Citys perimeter in what is described
as a corkscrew route. They will assess the digital signals
performance in the outer boroughs of the city and then turn inward to
areas like downtown Brooklyn, Manhattans Wall Street and
Lower Broadway. The trip will conclude by going directly north
through midtown.
Representatives from the HD Radio developer will provide a vehicle
and equipment to measure and record observations during the test.
820 WNYC runs 10 kW directional daytime and 1 kW directional at night.
Under the test, WNYC will turn OFF its analogue transmitter and run the
IBOC digital standard exclusively.
Due to an ongoing Canada Post strike, mail services have been disrupted
nationwide, delaying the delivery of letters, packages, magazines and
other materials to and from Radio Amateurs of Canada.
Delay in delivery of The Canadian Amateur (TCA) magazine is but one
service effected.
In a recent episode of This Week in Tech, the panel explored what is
being called the worst hack in US history China's "Salt Typhoon."
twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech/episodes/1007?autostart=false
This massive cyber espionage campaign has compromised US
telecommunications infrastructure, leaving officials increasingly
concerned about the far-reaching implications for national security.
The "Salt Typhoon" hack, first reported in October, has been ongoing
for months, with some instances dating back a full year. Chinese
hackers have exploited vulnerabilities in the outdated US telecom
system, gaining access to the communications of high-profile
individuals, including those in politics, intelligence, and
law enforcement.
During the discussion, the panel highlighted the challenges of securing
aging infrastructure against sophisticated cyber threats. They noted
that the US telecom system is built on a patchwork of older
technologies, making it difficult to implement modern cybersecurity
measures.
This has left the nation vulnerable to attacks like "Salt Typhoon,"
which has allowed Chinese hackers to surveil targeted individuals with
ease.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
OPERATIONAL NEWS - A FELIX VK4FUQ PRESENTATION
--------------
--------------
NOW CONTEST WISE:- 2024
--------------
--------------
RSGB HF CONTEST CHANGES.
Not only as we have previously noted are there changes to the popular
Commonwealth Contest where one change is you are encouraged to use
CC rather than BERU when calling, but changes also in their
FT4 series contests where there will be 12 (one per month) run,
with the best nine results contributing to each entrants final score
for the year.
Other changes are in the 1.8MHz Contests
along with Self-spotting
Self-spotting will be permitted on a trial basis in 2025, for both
assisted and unassisted entrants in all RSGB HF Contests and using
all modes.
I suggest if you do participate in RSGB contests to visit rsgb.org and
brush up on the 2025 rules of engagement.
tinyurl.com/2tm4tdbf
(rsgb)
SOUTH AFRICA
Still looking at changes in world-wide activity although the SARL has
five VHF/UHF operating trophies they have but ONE HF operating trophy.
At their Council meeting on 22 and 23 November, it was decided to add
TWO new HF operating awards - Council is now busy finalising the
criteria for these awards.
(sarl)
-------------------
ARRL 160 METER CW ON NOW
It is ALWAYS the first full weekend of December.
Beginning 2200 UTC Friday, ending 1559 UTC Sunday.
This is a forty-two hour period with no time limitation.
Logs MUST be returned within seven days
(arrl)
------------------------
10 METER ARRL CONTEST
For Amateurs worldwide to exchange QSO information with as many
stations as possible on the 10 meter band.
Second full weekend of December. Starts 0000 UTC Saturday; runs
through 2359 UTC Sunday (December 14-15)
Again as in most ARRL Tests logs are to be completed and returned
within 7 days.
(arrl)
--------------
YOTA CONTEST
Youth on the air test 3 of 3 will be from 10:00 to 21:59 UTC on
29 December on the five classic bands CW and SSB.
(yota)
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DX WINDOW TO THE WORLD.
Our I.A.R.U. celebrates its centenary in 2025.
Since its founding in Paris, France, IARU has worked tirelessly to
promote innovation in amateur radio and to encourage the growth of
the service in communities throughout the world.
VI 100 IARU is a special event callsign transmitting from VK3 to help
celebrate the IARU Centennial.
qsl via MO 0 OXO
(qrz.com)
----------
XMAS IN ENGLAND
The Humber Fortress DX Amateur Radio Club are once running the
special callsign GB 0 MC until 26 of December.
The MC in the callsign stands for Merry Christmas.
The Club would like to invite you to call in and give them a
hearty HoHoHo and tell them what radio equipment you would like
from Santa this year.
The Club will also be livestreaming on its YouTube Channel
youtube.com/@humberfortressdxarc
(rsgb)
--------------
Listen throughout the rest of the year for the special callsign
9 A 1 RKZ marking the 100th anniversary of the Radioklub Zagreb
which was founded the 24th of March 1924 in Croatia
QSL via 9A1ADE.
(ARNewsLine 2410)
-------------
AUSTRIA
OE100RADIO [OSCAR-ECHO-ONE-HUNDRED-ROMEO-ALPHA-DELTA-INDIA-OSCAR] is
active until the 31st of December celebrating the 100th anniversary
of beginning of regular radio transmissions in Austria in 1924.
The station has heard recently on the 40m band using CW.
QSL via the Bureau.
(gb2rs)
------------
Y
The Radio Club des Ardennes, ON4RCA, will be on the air as
OO 8 BB now through to the 15th of December, commemorating the
80th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge during World War II.
QSLs can only be requested via Club Log's OQRS until the 31st of
January 2025.
(newsline 2455)
-------------
Y
In the World of DX, be listening for members of the Zurich City
Police Radio Amateur Club who have been operating as HB 2 SP
the club is marking its 20th anniversary. NO Bureau QSL's but you can
use Logbook Of The World, and HB20SP runs until months end,
December 31.
(sourced to ARNewsLine 2410)
-------------------
Y
Special callsign HB 50 VC is active until 31 December celebrating the
50th anniversary of the Swissair Amateur Radio Club, HB 9 VC.
A growing trend these days is that QSL cards will not be provided
but QSOs will be uploaded to Logbook of the World.
You can also download a certificate for working this special event
station from the link we like in the text editions of
WIA National News
tinyurl.com/HB50VC-24.
(rsgb)
------------------------------------------------------------*
WORLD WIDE SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP NEWS
SUMMITS ON THE AIR, WORLD WIDE FLORA, FAUNA PROGRAM,
PARKS ON THE AIR and other ADVENTURE GROUPS.
hema.org.uk/index.jsp
minesontheair.com/about-mota
parksontheair.com/
sota.org.uk
sotawatch.sota.org.uk/en/
facebook.com/SotaAustralia/
wwffaustralia.com/
https://bunkersontheair.wixsite.com/october23
Organisers will be watching the weather forecast in the days between Christmas and the New Year to see what day is most suitable for the return of Gaulfest, a SOTA tradition first held in 2003. Over the years, the event's purpose has become one-half SOTA and one-half social. Since the beginning, activators have set up operations on summits in the Shropshire area or on summits near the border of England and Wales, staying close enough to one another for a convenient meet-up afterward in Church Stretton for coffee and cake.
Organisers Tom, M1EYP, and Jimmy, MHGY, are hoping for a turnout that even attracts SOTA first-timers. They expect lots of opportunities for summit-to-summit contacts. If you wish to participate, Tom advises following the discussion thread on the SOTA Reflector to coordinate with other activators as to which summits everyone is going to be on.
By the way, Tom explains that the name for the event actually originates from the ancient name for Wales: "Pay de Galles" - but someone misspelled it when the first SOTA event was launched. Gaul - spelled "G A U L" was actually the name for a region of western Europe. Tom said no one ever bothered to correct the mistake and so the name Gaulfest simply became permanent.
(newsline 2457)
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - FAITH.
In anticipation of Christmas, special event stations 4 X 8 X
from the Latrun Monastery and 4 X 9 X rom the Yardenit Baptismal Site
will this weekend 6-8 December.
Latrun is a strategic hilltop in the Latrun salient overlooking the
road between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, 25 kilometres west of Jerusalem
whilst Yardenit is situated on the banks of the Jordan River in which
Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist.
4X9X will be followed by 4 X 7 X from the Abbey of the Dormition
on 20-22 December.
All QSLs via 4 X 6 ZM.
A certificate will be available:
iarc.org/xmas2024.
(425 dxnews)
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - FINAL FRONTIER
AMSAT-VK Secretary - secretary(at)amsat-vk.org
Consider this:
It is now four decades ago that astronaut Owen Garriott, callsign
W5LFL, pioneered amateur radio communication from space.
He was a crewmember on the space shuttle program's STS-9 mission.
During that space shuttle flight in 1983, Garriott became the first
ever person in space to communicate with amateur radio operators on the
ground. He was also the first person to be heard directly from space
by members of the public using simple radio receivers and scanners.
That event transformed astronaut communications from space, forever,
allowing amateur radio operators and the public to communicate with
people in space.
But don't change that dial!
Much more is coming in terms of amateur radio and the
International Space Station.
tinyurl.com/2xtduash
(space.com)
IM-2.
Intuitive Machines second CLPS lunar mission, IM-2, carries the
Nova-C lander (Athena) and is now targeting a launch in February.
IMs first CLPS mission landed, albeit roughly, on the Moon in February
this year, becoming the first soft landing on the Moon by a private
company (and the first American landing since Apollo 17 in 1972).
For IM-2, IM is seriously upping their game, with multiple rovers and
hoppers on board and a target of the Moons south pole in an area
around 89S where water ice could be within the range of the landers
1 meter Honeybee Robotics TRIDENT drill.
(orbitalindex.com)
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - INTERNET, THE HAMS DOMAIN
In a fascinating and disturbing segment on a podcast from Security Now,
twit.tv/shows/security-now/episodes/1002?autostart=false
the hosts exposed the inner workings of a sophisticated cyber espionage
campaign by Russian state-sponsored hacking group known as Fancy Bear.
Using an exploit dubbed the "nearest neighbour" attack, the hackers
were able to breach the Wi-Fi network of their target organization from
thousands of miles away by compromising an organization located in a
building physically adjacent to their ultimate target.
BUT here's where it gets even more devious - the hackers had previously
obtained the credentials to log into the target's Wi-Fi via password
spraying attacks.
Once on the network, the attackers moved laterally, searched for key
data, and exfiltrated it back to Russia. They relied heavily on
"living off the land" techniques, utilizing common Windows tools to
help cover their tracks. As Steve explained, this attack demonstrates
that a sufficiently motivated adversary with enough time and resources
can find a way to penetrate almost any network.
(twit)
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - IOTA
iota-world.org/
AS-140 S21DX DHAL CHAR ISLAND
Dhal Char is the southernmost island of the Bhola district in
Bangladesh. The island has attracted the attention of researchers,
environmentalists and tourists alike for its unique position as one of
the country's remotest permanently inhabited islands, far out in the
Bay of Bengal.
It also one of the most threatened pieces of land in the world as a
result of rising sea levels.
The S21DX IOTA AS-140 DXpedition is scheduled for 13-19 December 2024.
s21dx.org/
(dx-world)
-----
7X7N MARQUESAS ISLAND OC-027
The Marquesas Islands are a group of volcanic islands in French
Polynesia.
Word is that the DXPedition to Marquesas is underway with their
700kg maritime crate on board the ARANUI, a mixed cargo ship which
is heading for Hiva Oa, arrival scheduled for December 16.
They are preparing 17 radio bags that will travel with them by plane
to carry transceivers, amplifiers, EME equipment, microphones/headsets,
mains power supply, antenna analyser, multimeters etc. The antenna
installation team will arrive on January 3, the other Operators will
arrive on January 11.
tx7n.com
(dx-world)
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- RADIO AMATEUR YOUNG TIMERS - YOTA
(Youngsters On The Air)
WIA committee:- Steve VK6SJ, Alec VK2MV and Pete VK2LP.
ham-yota.com/category/yota-region-3/
facebook.com/groups/YOTAOC/
youtube.com/channel/UClAapljf0VQ751sOgu2IzaA
EIGHT students from Kairi State School are now Australias youngest
amateur radio operators after they competed in the largest
amateur radio contest in the world.
The Year 5 and 6 students took part in the CQ Worldwide Radio Contest
and contacted a total of 31 different countries with the help and
mentoring from the older amateur radio operators from the Tableland
Radio and Electronics Club.
To the sound of CQ Contest. CQ Contest. This is Victor, Kilo, Four,
Kilo, Sierra, Sierra, the students belted out their identifier club
name to make radio contact to countries from Alaska to Ogasawara
Island.
In the previous years competition, Kairi State School Amateur Radio
Club came in at 4th in Australia in their category. However, the
competition conditions this year were more challenging due to
high solar winds and geomagnetic activity.
Since the inception of Kairis school radio program, they have gone
from strength to strength, winning the 2022 Encouragement Award
in the Queensland State Finals of the Resilient Australia Award.
The school library now has a fully functioning radio in the school
library.
theexpressnewspaper.com.au/conversations-from-another-world-2024-11-29
(the Express)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
2024 IT'S A DATE
Clubs are welcome to email text with audio for this section
Details of all WIA affiliated clubs and societies can be found
on the WIA website, including email addresses and website links.
----------------------------
VK4 TODAY
Brisbane VHF Group Showcase Day December 8 at Redcliffe and District
Radio Club. (VK2ZRH)
2025
VK7 - REAST CAR BOOT SALE January 19 @ 11 am (vk7news)
VK - Australian Ladies Amateur Radio Association 50th anniversary
Glen Waverly July 26 president(at)alara.org (vk2ayl)
VK4 - GOLD COAST AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY 2025 HAMFEST NOV 9 (vk4dmh)
Country Paradise Parklands 231 Beaudesert Nerang Road.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Reception Reports
WIA News rebroadcasters often give Short Wave Listeners a
welcome to the broadcast as they commence call-backs
straight after the Local News. Local news follows National
news in all states. It would be great if those SWL's would
email their reception reports and location to
callbacks(at)wia.org.au
---------------------------------------------------------------*
(Posted to the packet network courtesy Tony VK7AX)
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