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Skriven 2019-10-18 09:05:02 av Sean Dennis (1:18/200.0)
Ärende: The Weekly ARRL Letter
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The ARRL Letter
October 17, 2019
* ARRL to Launch New On the Air Magazine
* ARRL Online Auction Bidding is Now Open
* Report Causes Concern and Confusion in California's Amateur Radio
Ranks
* NASA Spacecraft Launches on Mission to Explore Frontier of Space
* So Now What? Podcast
* Next School Club Roundup Set for October 21 - 25
* The K7RA Solar Update
* Just Ahead in Radiosport
* PACTOR Developer SCS Announces Monitoring Software
* AMSAT Goal: "Amateur Radio in Every CubeSat"
* Homebrew Heroes Award for 2019 in Amateur Radio Announced
* In Brief...
* Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions
ARRL to Launch New On the Air Magazine
ARRL is launching a new magazine, On the Air, in January 2020. To be
published on a bimonthly basis, On the Air will offer new and
beginner-to-intermediate-level radio amateurs a fresh approach to
exploring radio communication. Each issue will include advice and
insights on topics from the variety of Amateur Radio interests and
activities: radio technology, operating, equipment, project building,
and emergency communication. The goal of this new magazine is to be a
vital resource in helping new and newer radio amateurs get active and
involved in radio communications.
"On the Air responds to the brand-new and not-so-brand-new radio
amateur seeking ideas and answers," said QST Managing Editor Becky
Schoenfeld, W1BXY. Schoenfeld is part of the ARRL staff team that
developed the new magazine. The planning included an extensive
national-level study of new Amateur Radio licensees, identifying their
motivations for getting licensed and their experiences of getting
started. A focus group responded positively to a trial sample edition
of the magazine.
"Too many new licensees never take the next step," says Schoenfeld.
"We're excited to introduce a new Amateur Radio magazine for this
audience, aimed at getting them active, getting them involved, and
getting them on the air."
The first issue of On the Air will be published in January 2020
(January/February issue) and will be introduced as a new ARRL
membership benefit. Effective November 1, when eligible US radio
amateurs join ARRL or renew their memberships, they will be prompted to
select the print magazine of their choice -- On the Air or QST. Current
members receiving the print edition of QST, upon renewal, may choose to
continue receiving the print edition of QST (monthly) or the print
edition of On the Air (bimonthly).
All ARRL members, including international members, will be able to
access digital editions of both QST and On the Air. Members who already
access QST on the web or from the mobile app will be able to access QST
and On the Air starting in January.
ARRL Online Auction Bidding is Now Open
Bidding began today, October 17, on more than 230 items on the block in
the 14th annual ARRL Online Auction. Bidding got under way at 10 AM EST
(1400 UTC), and the auction will continue through Thursday, October 24,
closing at 10 PM EST (Friday, October 25, at 0200 UTC).
The 2019 auction includes lab-tested QST "Product Review" gear, vintage
books, used equipment, and one-of-a-kind items. Some premier "Product
Review" items up for bid include the Elecraft KPA1500 legal-limit HF
and 6-meter linear amplifier, the Icom IC-7610 HF and 6-meter
transceiver, the Palstar LA-1K 160 - 6 meter amplifier, the FlexRadio
Systems FLEX-6400M HF and 6-meter SDR transceiver, and the Kenwood
TS-890 HF and 6-meter transceiver.
Among book offerings in the auction are the "sold out" 2019 Handbook
Boxed Set, a special defense edition of The Radio Amateur's Handbook
from 1942, and a 1949 ARRL Antenna Book.
Proceeds from the annual Online Auction benefit ARRL education
programs. Bidders must register (your arrl.org user ID and password
will not work on the auction site). If you have registered for a
previous ARRL Online Auction, you may use the same login information
this year.
Report Causes Concern and Confusion in California's Amateur Radio Ranks
By all credible and reliable accounts, the State of California has not
turned its back on Amateur Radio as an emergency communication
resource, nor have established repeater owners been asked to remove
their equipment from state-owned sites unless they pay sizable fees.
The California controversy, inflamed by a viral YouTube video, stemmed
from a California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE)
communication telling a repeater owner or group that Amateur Radio
equipment would have to be removed from a state-owned site or "vault"
if the owner(s) determined the cost was too great to proceed with a
formal application to keep it there.
"I do understand and appreciate all of the service you have provided in
the past," CAL FIRE's Lorina Pisi, told the unknown repeater owner(s)
or group(s) last month. "However, with constantly changing
technological advances, there is no longer the same benefit to State as
previously provided. Therefore, the Department no longer financially
supports HAM operators [sic] radios or tenancy. If you desire to enter
into a formal agreement to operate and maintain said equipment, you
must complete and submit attached collocation application along with
fee as outlined on page one of application. There is cost associated
with getting an agreement in place."
It's not clear to whom Pisi's memo was addressed, because any name or
names were redacted from the version of the memo that is being
circulated. ARRL reached out to Pisi but has not heard back.
ARRL officials who have also looked into the situation agree that it's
been blown out of proportion by parties with their own agendas.
"The State of California has not made any determination we can find
'that Ham Radio [is] no longer a benefit,'" Pacific Division Director
Jim Tiemstra, K6JAT, is quoted on the Sacramento Valley Section
website. "What happened is that CAL FIRE has transferred responsibility
for its communications sites to its property management department.
That department has the task of evaluating each site, its condition,
use, and tenants. If a repeater not known to be associated with the
emergency management function of a local jurisdiction is found in a CAL
FIRE vault, the default action is to move it out or subject it to
commercial rental rates."
ARRL Southwestern Division Director Dick Norton, N6AA, has been
responding to inquiries with the same message. Read more.
NASA Spacecraft Launches on Mission to Explore Frontier of Space
NASA's Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON) spacecraft is in orbit
for a first-of-its-kind mission to study a region of space where
changes can disrupt communications and satellite orbits, and even
increase radiation risks to astronauts. ICON was launched on October 11
after a Stargazer L-1011 aircraft from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station
in Florida carried it to about 39,000 feet. Then, a Pegasus rocket
fired the roughly refrigerator-sized ICON into space.
+----------------------------------+
|An artist's rendering of NASA's |
|ICON spacecraft, which was |
|launched into space last week at |
|39,000 feet from a L-1011 |
|Stargazer aircraft. [NASA image] |
+----------------------------------+
The spacecraft's solar panels successfully deployed, indicating it has
power with all systems operating, NASA reported. ICON will start
sending back its first science data in November.
ICON will study changes in the ionosphere, where, in addition to
affecting radio signal propagation, space weather can prematurely decay
spacecraft orbits and expose astronauts to radiation-borne health
risks. "Historically, this critical region of near-Earth space has been
difficult to observe," NASA explained. "Spacecraft can't travel through
the low parts of the ionosphere and balloons can't travel high enough."
ICON's orbit around Earth places it at a 27ø inclination at an altitude
of about 360 miles, from which it can observe the ionosphere around the
equator.
Nicola Fox, Director for Heliophysics at NASA Headquarters in
Washington, said that ICON will be the first mission to simultaneously
track what's happening in Earth's upper atmosphere and in space to see
how the two interact, causing the kinds of changes that can disrupt
radio communication. ICON will employ four instruments to explore the
connections between the neutral atmosphere and the electrically charged
ionosphere. Three of these rely on the phenomenon called airglow, which
is created by a process similar to that which causes aurora -- gas is
excited by radiation from the sun and emits light. By way of airglow,
ICON can observe how particles throughout the upper atmosphere are
moving. ICON's fourth instrument provides direct measurements of the
ionosphere around it.
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) veteran Will
Marchant, KW4WZ (ex-KC6ROL), is part of the ICON team.
So Now What? Podcast
"Ham Lingo" will be the focus of the new (October 17) episode of the So
Now What? podcast for Amateur Radio newcomers.
If you're a newly licensed Amateur Radio operator, chances are you have
lots of questions. This biweekly podcast has answers! So Now What?
offers insights from those who've been just where you are now. New
episodes will be posted every other Thursday, alternating new-episode
weeks with the ARRL The Doctor is In podcast.
So Now What? is sponsored by LDG Electronics, a family owned and
operated business with laboratories in southern Maryland that offers a
wide array of antenna tuners and other Amateur Radio products.
ARRL Communications Content Producer Michelle Patnode, W3MVP, and ARRL
Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, co-host the podcast. Presented as a
lively conversation, with Patnode representing newer hams and Carcia
the veteran operators, the podcast will explore questions that newer
hams may have and the issues that keep participants from staying active
in the hobby. Some episodes will feature guests to answer questions on
specific topic areas.
Listeners can find So Now What? on Apple iTunes, Blubrry, Stitcher
(free registration required, or browse the site as a guest), and
through the free Stitcher app for iOS, Kindle, or Android devices.
Episodes will be archived on the ARRL website.
Next School Club Roundup Set for October 21 - 25
ARRL's twice-yearly School Club Roundup (SCR) gets under way on Monday,
October 21, at 1300 UTC, and runs through Friday, October 25, at 2359
UTC. Stations may operate for up to 24 hours during the entire contest
and for 6 hours during any single 24-hour period. Any mode -- SSB, CW,
or digital -- is allowed for the event.
Stations will participate in five categories: Elementary/Primary,
Middle/Intermediate/Junior High School, Senior High School,
College/University Club, and Non-School Club. There is also a category
for Individuals to participate.
The most popular time for younger students to be on the air is during
after-school hours, but older students may be on the air at any time.
Groups are limited to one transmitter on the air at any given time.
Stations exchange signal report, category (School, Club, or
Individual), and state, province, or DXCC entity. Stations can be
worked once per band and mode. Participants will now be able to make up
to three contacts with a station on each band using CW, voice, and
digital modes.
The School Club Roundup is co-sponsored by ARRL and the Long Island
Mobile Amateur Radio Club (LIMARC), and results appear in QST as well
as online. The top three entries in each category -- Elementary,
Middle/Intermediate/Junior High School, Senior High School
College/University -- will receive an award certificate. Non-school
clubs or multioperator groups and individuals are also eligible for
certificates.
Submit scores and logs via the SCR score entry website. Scores and logs
may be entered from the time the contest begins through the log
submission deadline. Paper logs are acceptable as well. Logs for the
October SCR are due by November 9.
The K7RA Solar Update
Tad Cook, K7RA, Seattle, reports: Solar activity remains very low. At
the bottom of the sunspot cycle, any sunspot activity is fleeting.
Another week has passed with no sunspots at all. Spaceweather.com
reports no sunspots for the past 2 weeks, and the total number of
spotless days this year is now 213, or 73%, which matches the
percentage of spotless days in 2008 -- 11 years ago.
Average daily solar flux during the week of October 10 - 16 was 67.3,
down insignificantly from 67.6 during the previous week.
The average daily planetary A index was 6.4, down from 14.4 over the
previous week, and the average daily mid-latitude A index declined from
11 to 5.1.
The predicted solar flux for the next 45 days is 68, through the end of
November.
Predicted planetary A index is 5 on October 17 - 20; 12, 8, 5, 18, 25,
12, 10, and 8 on October 21 - 28; 5 on October 29 - November 9; 8 on
November 10 - 11; 5 on November 12 - 16; 15 on November 17; 5 on
November 18 - 19; 15, 20, 10 and 8, on November 20 - 23, and 5 on
November 24 - 30.
Rick Tucker, W0RT, of Parsons, Kansas, was listening for HZ1TT (Saudi
Arabia) on October 14 on 21.023 MHz at 1045 UTC. The band sounded dead,
but at 1115 UTC he copied several European stations calling and working
the Saudi station. Tucker said he never heard HZ1TT, but HZ1TT was
spotted by a station in New Brunswick, Canada.
Sunspot numbers for October 10 - 16 were 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, and 0, with
a mean of 3.1. The 10.7-centimeter flux was 67.5, 68.5, 68.3, 67.2,
66.2, 67.2, and 66.3, with a mean of 67.3. Estimated planetary A
indices were 13, 8, 5, 2, 6, 5, and 6, with a mean of 6.4. Middle
latitude A index was 10, 6, 4, 1, 5, 5, and 5, with a mean of 5.1.
A comprehensive K7RA Solar Update is posted Fridays on the ARRL
website. For more information concerning radio propagation, visit the
ARRL Technical Information Service, read "What the Numbers Mean...,"
and check out K9LA's Propagation Page.
A propagation bulletin archive is available. Monthly charts offer
propagation projections between the US and a dozen DX locations.
Share your reports and observations.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Just Ahead in Radiosport
* October 18 -- Zombie Shuffle (CW)
* October 19 -- Feld Hell Sprint
* October 19 -- Argentina National 7 MHz Contest (Phone)
* October 19 - 20 -- Araucaria World Wide VHF Contest (CW, phone)
* October 19 - 20 -- ARRL EME Contest (CW, phone, digital)
* October 19 - 20 -- JARTS WW RTTY Contest
* October 19 - 20 -- 10-10 International Fall Contest (CW)
* October 19 - 20 -- All New York QSO Party (CW, phone, digital)
* October 19 - 20 -- Worked All Germany Contest (CW, phone)
* October 19 - 20 -- Stew Perry Topband Challenge (CW)
* October 20 -- Asia-Pacific Fall Sprint (CW)
* October 20 -- UBA ON Contest, 2 Meters (CW, phone)
* October 20 - 21 -- Illinois QSO Party (CW, phone, digital)
* October 20 -- RSGB RoLo CW
* October 21 -- Run for the Bacon QRP Contest (CW)
* October 21 - 25 -- ARRL School Club Roundup (CW, phone, digital)
* October 21 - 22 -- Telephone Pioneers QSO Party (CW, phone,
digital)
* October 23 -- SKCC Sprint (CW)
* October 23 -- RSGB 80-Meter Autumn Series (Digital)
See the ARRL Contest Calendar for more information. For in-depth
reporting on Amateur Radio contesting, subscribe to The ARRL Contest
Update via your ARRL member profile email preferences.
PACTOR Developer SCS Announces Monitoring Software
SCS, the company that created PACTOR, has unveiled software that offers
the ability to monitor the content of PACTOR 1, 2, and 3 transmissions
over the air. The free PMON software runs under the Linux operating
system. A software version to monitor PACTOR 4 is scheduled to become
available next year. PMON will offer "thorough observation and
documentation of all presently available PACTOR 1, 2, and 3
transmissions," SCS said.
"PMON covers all PACTOR levels with the appropriate speed levels and
packet variations," SCS said. "PMON will read in parallel PACTOR 2 and
PACTOR 1. The very wide receiving range (frequency offset ñ200 Hz), as
well as automatic sideband recognition, ease routine operation of PMON
with PACTOR 2 and PACTOR 3 considerably."
According to SCS, only minimal hardware is required to use PMON. The
equipment complement includes a Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+ (minimum)
computer and a USB sound device. SCS noted in an October 11 news
release that all SCS PACTOR hardware modems include a command to allow
PACTOR monitoring on the fly. The German company says PMON now makes
this possible without a modem and adds the ability to decode
B2F/LZHUF-compressed messages -- Winlink email and others.
"This exciting new software development for Raspberry Pi complements
and surpasses previously released SCS software that leveraged PACTOR
modems' ability to monitor PACTOR to read Winlink for meaning," SCS
said. The company also said the new software permits modem-less
monitoring of all kinds, something that would be useful for monitoring
Winlink email traffic.
The Winlink Development Team called the new software a "welcome
contribution to the Amateur Radio community."
The issue of message encryption arose in recent months with respect to
renewed attention to ARRL's so-called "symbol rate" petition for
rulemaking (RM-11708) and the accommodation of automatically controlled
digital stations (ACDS) -- many of which employ Winlink. Some
commenters on ARRL's petition have asserted incorrectly that PACTOR
facilitates de facto message encryption, which would violate FCC
Amateur Service rules.
AMSAT Goal: "Amateur Radio in Every CubeSat"
AMSAT wants to see Amateur Radio in every CubeSat, and it's partnering
with non-Amateur Radio partners to make that happen. In the "Apogee
View" editorial for the September/October issue of The AMSAT Journal,
Executive Vice President Paul Stoetzer, N8HM, wrote, "[W]e continue to
support a stream of LEO satellites. RadFxSat-2/Fox-1E is ready for
launch no earlier than December 1, 2019, on the ELaNa XX mission. The
linear transponder and telemetry system carried aboard Fox-1E was
designed for use in different CubeSats by merely adding an interface
adapter for connection to the host bus."
+-----------------------------+
|AMSAT Executive Vice |
|President Paul Stoetzer, |
|N8HM. |
+-----------------------------+
Stoetzer said CubeSat programs interested in launching an Amateur Radio
payload may partner with AMSAT to carry a Fox-1E module on their
spacecraft. "By providing Amateur Radio capability, the CubeSat program
gets a worldwide ground station network to receive their telemetry and
experiment data while the Amateur Radio community gets a transponder to
use in orbit," he pointed out.
Stoetzer said the first such partnership will be with the Husky
Satellite Lab at the University of Washington. Its 3U CubeSat --
HuskySat-1 -- is set to launch on the ELaNa XXV mission from Wallops
Island, Virginia, no sooner than November 2. A Northrop Grumman Cygnus
spacecraft will carry HuskySat-1 to the International Space Station,
and after completing its mission there, Cygnus will continue to an
orbit of approximately 500 kilometers (310 miles) to deploy HuskySat-1.
"After a 30-day mission to complete tests of its experimental payloads
-- a pulsed plasma thruster, and a K-band (24 GHz) communications
system -- the satellite will be turned over to AMSAT, and the linear
transponder will be made available to the Amateur Radio community,"
Stoetzer said.
AMSAT will celebrate its 50th anniversary at its 2019 Board of
Directors meeting and AMSAT Space Symposium October 18 - 20 in
Arlington, Virginia. -- Thanks to AMSAT News Service
Homebrew Heroes Award for 2019 in Amateur Radio Announced
The Homebrew Heroes Award Program has announced its first annual
recipient. He is Hans Summers, G0UPL, of East Sussex in the UK. The
annual award recognizes individuals, groups, or organizations who help
define the frontiers of Amateur Radio technology through the
long-standing tradition of constructing their own equipment.
+-------------------------------+
|Homebrew Hero Hans Summers, |
|G0UPL. |
+-------------------------------+
"Our Steering Committee sought the advice of an anonymous selection
committee that surveyed the landscape of known homebrew designers in
Amateur Radio," Steering Committee member Frank Howell, K4FMH, said in
an October 13th news release. "There are indeed many very deserving
ones! But only one can be chosen each year." Other Steering Committee
members are Martin Butler, M1MRB, and Colin Butler, M6BOY -- all
affiliated with the ICQ Podcast.
For his part, Summers said he was humbled and "just blown away by it
all" to be the first recognized with the Homebrew Heroes Award. Summers
said he's been sharing his homebrew work and that of his company QRP
Labs through his website for years. "To have these efforts publicly
recognized in this way is so personally gratifying," Summers said.
Martin Butler said that Summers "has continually demonstrated to all
with at least one eye open that the traditional homebrew craft and
science is alive and well."
"I've watched Hans Summers continue to innovate in his design of
terrific homebrew kits and products that have made a fantastic impact
on the Amateur Radio marketplace," Colin Butler added. "As publisher of
the ICQ Podcast, I am delighted for us to serve as the official
promotional partner of this awards program." Read more.
In Brief...
Scouting's Jamboree on the Air (JOTA) takes place this weekend. The
largest Scouting event in the world, with an estimated half-million
participants, JOTA links Scouts and hams across the nation and around
the world via Amateur Radio. Typical exchanges may include name,
location, Scout rank, age, and hobbies. JOTA officially starts Friday
evening during the "JOTA Jump Start" and runs through Sunday evening.
The event will be competing for band spectrum with the popular Worked
All Germany (WAG) contest. JOTA participants seeking contacts with
stations in Europe should note that the WAG rules define contest-free
segments, so the two events can operate at the same time with minimal
problems. -- Thanks to Boy Scouts of America and Geert Jan de Groot,
PE1HZG
The legendary Radio Corporation of America (RCA) incorporated on this
date, October 17, in 1919. RCA negotiated patent cross-licensing
agreements with other industry leaders, paving the way for the
explosive development of American radio in the early 1920s. In 1921,
WCC in Chatham, Massachusetts, became the first RCA coastal station
equipped with tube sets offering 2 kW on 600 and 2200 meters. The WCC
Amateur Radio Association (WCCARA) continues its year-long celebration
of the RCA centennial as WA1WCC/100RCA. -- Thanks to Ed Moxon, K1GGI,
trustee, WCC commemorative station WA1WCC
Two separate groups took advantage of the Amateur Radio Emergency Data
Network (AREDN) to monitor wildfires in California. The Mariposa Area
Amateur Radio Organization (MAARO) used the Amateur Radio mesh to
stream -- via microwave -- video from the Briceburg Fire near Yosemite
National Park. The Pleasant Valley Amateur Radio Club (PVARC) employed
the AREDN mesh to stream video from the Saddle Ridge Fire near Los
Angeles from a repeater site overlooking San Fernando Valley. The
Briceburg and Saddle Ridge fires are now under control, but archived
streams are still available. This is the same network that was used to
stream video from the Thomas and Woolsey fires in 2017 and 2018,
respectively. -- Thanks to Ben Kuo, AI6YR
A mail delivery problem has affected delivery of West Gulf Division
Board election ballots. Recent flooding has affected some US Postal
Service distribution centers in the Houston area, damaging some sorting
machines. This is delaying delivery to many members in that area. They
are processing mail, but there are delays in processing bulk mail,
which include the ballots. If you still do not receive your ballot by
Monday, October 21, 2019, please send a request for a new ballot. ARRL
Headquarters will process replacement requests on Tuesday, October 22,
2019, via first-class mail and daily as later requests come in. Read
more.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions
* October 18 - 19 -- Delta Division Convention, East Ridge, Tennessee
* October 18 - 20 -- Pacific Division Convention, San Ramon,
California
* October 19 -- 21st Wisconsin ARES/RACES Conference, Wisconsin
Rapids, Wisconsin
* October 26 -- South Carolina Section Convention, Conway, South
Carolina
* November 2 - 3 -- Georgia State Convention, Lawrenceville, Georgia
* November 16 -- Indiana Section Convention, Fort Wayne, Indiana
* December 13 - 14 -- West Central Florida Section Convention, Plant
City, Florida
* January 4 -- New York City-Long Island Section Convention,
Brookville, New York
* January 17 - 18 -- North Texas Section Convention, Forest Hill,
Texas
* January 19 - 25 -- Quartzfest, Quartzsite, Arizona
* January 24 - 26 -- Puerto Rico State Convention, Hatillo, Puerto
Rico
* January 25 -- ARRL Midwest Conference (Winterfest), Collinsville,
Illinois
Find conventions and hamfests in your area
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
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* Origin: Outpost BBS * Limestone, TN, USA (1:18/200)
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