Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) Report 1848 - January 11 2013   
      
   Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1848 with a release date of January 11   
   2013 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.   
      
   The following is a QST. Hams down-under respond to wildfires in Tasmania;   
   the comment deadline set in WRC 07 implementation proceeding; UK   
   telecommunications regulator OFCOM thanks RSGB for help with 2012 Olympics   
   and Campbell Island to be activated in November. Find out the details are   
   on Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) report number 1848 coming your way right now.   
      
      
   (Billboard Cart Here)   
      
      
   **   
      
   RESCUE RADIO: WICEN RESPONDS TO WILDFIRES IN TASMANIA   
      
   Major brush fires in south-east Tasmania, which began on Friday, January 4th   
   continue to burn relentlessly fanned by hot and windy weather. Amateur   
   Radio Newsline's Jim Meachen, ZL2BHF, is in Nelson, New Zealand, with the   
   latest:   
      
   --   
      
   WICEN Tasmania South Secretary, Roger Nichols VK7ARN reports that operators   
   were sent to the Incident Management Team headquarters coordinating the   
   firefighting efforts on the Tasman Peninsula and in the Derwent Valley.   
   There they helped to run the Tasmanian Fire Service Communications using its   
   80MHz system. This says Nichols is a communications role in which they are   
   trained.   
      
   Nichols said there had been power and communications outages caused by the   
   fires. Crews are working in safe areas to restore power and communications   
   and that WICEN had offered to link the Eaglehawk Neck and Port Arthur areas.   
      
   A search for possible victims has already involved 250 properties. More than   
   100 of them, including houses and a school, have been destroyed.   
      
   Access to the wild fire affected areas continues to be restricted, as more   
   hot and windy days are forecast with the major fires out of control.   
   Victoria State firefighters are now in Tasmania to help with the fires.   
      
   For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jim Meachen, ZL2BHF, reporting.   
      
   --   
      
   For those not familiar with WICEN, it can best be described as Australia's   
   version of the United States RACES but with some major differences. Chief   
   among these is that WICEN operates as an autonomous body under the relevant   
   disaster plan in each Australian state or territory. (VK3PC)   
      
   **   
      
   RADIO LAW: COMMENT DEADLINE SET IN WRC-07 IMPLEMENTATION PROCEEDING   
      
   The ARRL reports that a commentary deadline of February 25th and a reply   
   comment deadline of March 27th have been announced for rule making dealing   
   with ET Docket No. 12-338. This measure deals with implementation decisions   
   of the 2007 World Radiocommunication Conference and to make certain other   
   changes.   
      
   While most of the 130 page Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Order does not   
   directly affect the Amateur and Amateur-Satellite Services, two sections of   
   the document are of particular interest to the ham radio community.   
   Specifically, the FCC proposes to upgrade the Amateur Service allocation in   
   the upper half of the 160 meter band at 1900 to 2000 kHz from secondary to   
   primary, while deleting the existing allocation to the Radiolocation   
   Service. This is possible, because the re-accommodation of radiolocation   
   stations displaced by the expansion of the AM broadcasting band to 1705 kHz   
   has been completed and there are no non-federal radiolocation stations   
   licensed to operate in the 1900 to 2000 kHz band.   
      
   The FCC is also seeking comments on whether, and how, an amateur Low   
   Frequency allocation might be able to co-exist with Power Line Carrier   
   systems that are used by electric utilities to monitor and control the power   
   grid. The Commission notes that while Powerline Communication Systems do   
   not have the status of an allocation, they do carry communications important   
   to the reliability and security of electric service to the public. WRC-07   
   created a new secondary allocation to the amateur service at 135.7 to 137.8   
   kHz that already has been implemented in a number of other countries.   
      
   The complete text of the Notice of Proposed Rule Making can be found in PDF   
   format at tinyurl.com/wrc-07-fcc (ARRL, FCC)   
      
   **   
      
   WORLDBEAT: CENTENARY STATION GB100RSGB NOW ON THE AIR   
      
   A 12 month celebration of the founding of the Radio Society of Great Britain   
   is now underway. Jeramy Boot, G4NJH, reports from Nottingham in the U-K:   
      
   --   
      
   Radio Society of Great Britain Centenary station G100RSGB is now on the air.   
   RSGB President Dave Wilson, M0OBW, opened the year long operation of the   
   RSGB Centenary station, GB100RSGB, on January 1st as it was being hosted by   
   the Widnes & Runcorn ARC.   
      
   Although intentionally a celebration for all to enjoy, there is an associated   
   RSGB Centenary Award. The rules for this have been amended this week to   
   allow contacts with the station to count for points on a Region/Band basis.   
      
   I'm Jeramy Boot, G4NJH, and you are listening to the Amateur Radio Newsline.   
      
   --   
      
   Please check www.rsgb.org/centenary for further information. (GB2RS)   
      
   **   
      
   WORLDBEAT: OFCOM THANKS RSGB FOR OLYMPIC HELP   
      
   The Radio Society of Great Britain has received a thank-you letter from U-K   
   telecommunications regulator Ofcom. This in appreciation for the national   
   societies assistance in the area of communications during the London 2012   
   Olympic Games.   
      
   In the note, Ofcom's Peter Bury says that the games have come to an end he   
   wanted to express his warm thanks and appreciation for the contribution that   
   the RSGB made to the outstanding success of wireless communications during   
   the event.   
      
   According to Bury, one of the critical challenges for Britain was to find   
   enough people with the right skills in radio engineering and interference   
   management to support the needs of the Games. He says that Ofcom could not   
   have found enough people from its own resources and we therefore sought help   
   from you and other agencies to help us find expert staff.   
      
   Bury continues his letter by stating that the support of the RSGB for this   
   initiative introduced Ofcom to people who were very well motivated and with   
   a high level of technical skill and expertise. He noted that Ofcom could   
   not have provided such good service to its customers without the RSGB's   
   help.   
      
   Bury concludes by stating that he thinks the exchange of knowledge between   
   Ofcom and radio amateurs will be an enduring legacy of the 2012 Olympic   
   Games and that he sees this as a model for further fruitful cooperation   
   between the two organizations. (RSGB)   
      
   **   
      
   HAM RADIO IN SPACE: PHONESAT LAUNCH NOW RESCHEDULED FOR FEBRUARY   
      
   The PhoneSat cubesat, originally planned for a December 2012 launch, now   
   looks like it will fly aboard a new commercial rocket from Orbital Sciences   
   Corporation in February. Amateur Radio Newsline's Norm Seeley, KI7UP,   
   reports:   
      
   --   
      
   The PhoneSat series of micro sat flights is a technology demonstration   
   mission ultimately consisting of three 1 Unit CubeSats to be placed on-orbit   
   in succession. The flights are intended to prove that a smartphone can be   
   used to perform many of the functions required of a spacecraft bus.   
      
   The first satellite is built around the Nexus smartphone which will be   
   running the Android operating system and will be enclosed in a standard 1   
   Unit cubesat structure. The main function of the phone is to act as the   
   Onboard Computer, but the mission will also utilize the phone's Secure   
   Digital card for data storage.   
      
   The bird will also have a 5 Megapixil camera for Earth Observation, and   
   3-axis accelerometer and 3-axis magnetometer for attitude determination.   
      
   Ham radio wise, PhoneSat 1 carries an amateur radio payload that will   
   downlink on 437.425 MHz. It must be noted that this overall design was   
   chosen as one of the winners in the Aerospace category of Popular Science   
   magazine "Best of What's New in 2012" awards. Its also quite a lot of   
   flight hardware for such a tiny bird.   
      
   For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Norm Seeley, KI7UP, in Scottsdale,   
   Arizona.   
      
   --   
      
   Also planned for this launch is the commercial DOVE-1 satellite for a   
   technology demonstration nano satellite based on the triple CubeSat form   
   factor. Dove-1 plans to transmit its telemetry and image data to the ground   
   145.825 MHz in the amateur radio band although this is a commercial mission.   
   (ANS, AMSAT-UK)   
      
   **   
      
   BREAKING DX NEWS: CAMPBELL ISLAND TO NE ACTIVATED IN NOVEMBER   
      
   Some breaking news from the world of DX. This with word that the Hellenic   
   Amateur Radio of Association of Australia has announced that it is   
   organizing a DXpedition to Campbell Island to take place between November   
   17th through the 30th.   
      
   The ZL9HR DXpedition team will consist of a total of nine operators including   
   VK2IR and VK3YP. They are inviting experienced operators who might like to   
   join the team to contact to contact Tommy Horozakis by e-mail to vk2ir   
   (at) vk2ir (dot) com for more information.   
      
   Campbell Island whose prefix is Zed-L9 is Number 15 on the current DXCC most   
   wanted list. For updates and further details on this planned operation   
   please visit www.zl9hr.com on the World Wide Web. And we will have more DX   
   news later on in this weeks newscast. (OPDX)   
      
   **   
      
   BREAK 1   
      
   From the United States of America, We are the Amateur Radio Newsline, heard   
   on bulletin stations around the world including the N2KEJ repeater serving   
   Salem, New Jersey.   
      
   (5 sec pause here)   
      
      
   **   
      
   HAMVENTION 2013: CALL FOR AWARD NOMINATIONS   
      
   The Dayton Hamvention is soliciting nominations for its annual awards   
   program. Amateur Radio Newsline's Stephen Kinford, N8WB, has the details:   
      
   --   
      
   There are four Dayton Hamvention award categories that consist of the Radio   
   Amateur of the Year. the Technical Achievement Award, the Special   
   Achievement Award, and the Radio Club of the Year.   
      
   By way of background, the Amateur of the Year is for the special person who   
   has made a long term commitment to the advancement of amateur radio.   
      
   The Technical Excellence Award is presented to a radio amateur that has made   
   an outstanding technical advancement in the field of amateur radio.   
      
   The Special Achievement Award goes to a ham radio operator who has made an   
   outstanding contribution to amateur radio primarily by spearheading a single   
   significant project.   
      
   Last but by no means lest, the Club of the Year recognizes an organizations   
   on several levels. These might be a contribution of mitigating the effects   
   of disaster situations, support of public service events, amateur radio   
   education, recruitment, youth programs, years of service and media coverage.   
      
   The cutoff date to submit nominations is February 15th. For the Amateur Radio   
   Newsline, I'm Stephen Kinford, N8WB, in Wadsworth, Ohio.   
      
   --   
      
   More information and official nominating forms are now on-line at   
   www.Hamvention.org/awards.PHP. (Dayton Hamvention)   
      
   **   
      
   HAM HAPPENINGS: DAYTON DX DINNER - MAY 17   
      
   And still with Hamvention news, the SouthWest Ohio DX Association has   
   announced that it will again sponsor the DX Dinner to be held in conjunction   
   with the Hamvention 2013.   
      
   The date for this gathering is Friday, May 17th at the Dayton Marriott Hotel.   
   This will be the 28th annual DX dinner and planners say that it is an   
   excellent opportunity to make new friends, renew old acquaintances, as well   
   as learn about past DXpeditions and those in the planning stages. More   
   information is on the Web at www.swodxaevents.org. (AJ8B)   
      
   **   
      
   HAM HAPPENINGS: YOUTH IN AMATEUR RADIO EPISODE 5 READY FOR DOWNLOAD   
      
   Episode 5 of the Youth in Amateur Radio Podcast titled The Amateur Radio   
   Bands, is now ready for download. Joe Andrews, KD0LOS, one of the Podcast   
   producers has more:   
      
   --   
      
   In this episode we discuss the characteristics of the amateur radio bands and   
   highlight a high school in St.Charles, Missouri, that is in the process of   
   rebuilding a radio club for its students.   
      
   To listen to this episode, visit yarphams.com or look up the Youth in Amateur   
   Radio Podcast on i-Tunes.   
      
   For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Joe Andrews, KD0LOS, for the Amateur   
   Radio Newsline.   
      
   --   
      
   The Youth in Amateur Radio Podcast service is produced by a dedicated group   
   of young hams to serve the needs of young radio amateurs, world wide.   
   (YARP)   
      
   **   
      
   HAM HAPPENINGS: AMATEUR RADIO ENTERING ITS SECOND CENTURY OF DISASTER   
   COMMUNICATIONS IS THEME OF WORLD AMATEUR RADIO DAY 2013   
      
   The theme for World Amateur Radio Day 2013 is Amateur Radio Entering Its   
   Second Century of Disaster Communications.   
      
   Each year on April 18th, radio amateurs around the world celebrate World   
   Amateur Radio Day. In 1913, the first recorded instance of amateur radio   
   being used to provide communications in a natural disaster took place during   
   severe flooding in the Midwest of the United States. This in part led to   
   the formation of the International Amateur Radio Union in 1925.   
      
   Now, event planners say that activities surrounding World Amateur Radio Day   
   2013 can be a great opportunity to spread the word about what amateurs are   
   doing in the field of disaster communications in the 21st Century. More is   
   on-line at www.iaru-r2.org/world-amateur-radio-day-2013. (IARU)   
      
   **   
      
   NEW POWER SOURCE: FUEL CELL TO POWER MICROSOFT EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH   
   FACILITY   
      
   The Fuel Cell Energy Corporation has announced a project using a stationary   
   fuel-cell power plant to support Microsoft's latest data-center research   
   project. The power plant will use renewable biogas generated by a   
   wastewater-treatment facility as the fuel source to generate ultra-clean and   
   carbon-neutral electricity to power Microsoft's Data-Plant project in   
   Cheyenne, Wyoming. This sub-megawatt power-plant project will enable   
   Microsoft to evaluate the effectiveness of using FuelCell Energy power   
   plants to efficiently power future sustainable data centers.   
      
   The sub-megawatt Direct Fuel Cell power plant will be installed at the Dry   
   Creek Water Reclamation Facility in Cheyenne, Wyoming by the spring 2013.   
   The fuel cell plant will provide 200 kilowatts of power for Microsoft's Data   
   Plant which will be housed in a modular pre-assembled building that will   
   the home of a server farm to recreate a data center environment.   
      
   The Direct Fuel Cell power plant will also provide excess power not used by   
   the data center to the water reclamation facility to offset their electric   
   costs. In the event of a grid outage, the Data Plant project and fuel cell   
   plant will be configured to operate independently to provide continuous   
   power. (Fuel Cell Energy Report)   
      
   **   
      
   RADIO EDUCATION: ANACAPA SCHOOL TO HOLD 3 DAY SPACE RELATED SEMINARS   
      
   Students at California's Anacapa School will have several experts on hand for   
   their annual Synthesis Unit which will explore the topic "Space: Where Are   
   We Going?"   
      
   This year the school has scheduled an all-star lineup of presenters. These   
   range from astrophysicists and astronomy experts on the cutting edge of   
   modern interstellar research to specialists who will discuss how ancient   
   Central American stargazers. The students will also visit Vandenberg Air   
   Force Base to learn about space launch operations as part of their research.   
   After the three days of presentations, students will be asked to create   
   academic products designed to synthesize the information learned during the   
   week with the goal of charting the nation's future in space.   
      
   The annual, three-day event is Anacapa's premier tool for developing critical   
   thinking skills. Each Unit provides students with unique opportunities to   
   explore a topic in depth. Expert speakers make individual presentations   
   with plenty of time for questions and answers.   
   More about this special event is on-line at   
   tinyurl.com/anacapa-space-speakers. (K6LCM)   
      
   **   
      
   RADIO MARKETPLACE: FORMER HAM RADIO COMPANY DATONG HAS NEW BUSINESS   
      
   Former amateur radio manufacturer Datong Electronics has been mentioned in   
   the UK press. This following a recent $12 million dollar order win.   
      
   Datong was formed in 1974 by Dr. D. A. Tong, G8ENN. The company initially   
   specialized in the development of Radio Frequency technology for use by   
   amateur radio operators.   
      
   In the late 1970's and early 80's Datong was well known for a number of   
   successful amateur radio products that included Filters, RF Speech   
   Processors, Morse Tutor and an HF to VHF receive up-converter. The   
   company's final amateur radio product was its 2 Meter Direction Finding unit   
   known as the D F One that was produced in 1982. The D F One led Datong into   
   the security and defense sectors where it found a ready market for its   
   products in an era of heightened terrorist activity in the UK. At that   
   point Datong stopped producing equipment for radio amateurs.   
      
   Datong PLC, as it is known today, provides a range of advanced high   
   performance covert intelligence gathering solutions, supplying defense,   
   homeland security and law enforcement agencies around the world. More about   
   the company and its current products is on-line at www.datong.co.uk.   
   (Southgate)   
      
   **   
      
   NAMES IN THE NEWS: FIRST 24 GHZ CONTACT BETWEEN USA AND JAPAN   
      
   Some names in the news. First up are W5LUA and JA6CZD reportedly made the   
   first 24 GHz EME contact between the USA and Japan on January 2nd.   
      
   Their QSO took place at 1430 UTC when both stations had about an hour of   
   common time where each had 15 to 20 degrees of elevation to the Moon.   
   JA6CZD used a 2.4 meter offset fed dish with a 22 watt transmitter. W5LUA   
   also used a 2.4 meter offset fed dish and a Traveling Wave Tube mounted on   
   the feed support providing 100 watts out.   
      
   W5LUA's station was GPS locked and JA6CZD uses a Rubidium standard to control   
   frequency. The mutual Doppler Shift placed both at about 24048.108 MHz   
   based on a center frequency of 24048.100 MHz. This shifted down in   
   frequency as the schedule took place. (ANS, W5LUA)   
      
   **   
      
   MAMES IN THE NEWS: KC2UHB ON HAM RADIO EDUCATION   
      
   A number of articles written for Make Magazine by Diana Eng, KC2UHB, about   
   getting started in amateur radio are now available on the web. These   
   include Setting Up a Radio Shack; How-To: Set Up an HF Portable Radio While   
   Hiking and Seeing Radio Waves With a Light Bulb to mention only three. Most   
   of these articles date back to 2009 and 2010 but remain relevant today.   
   More information is on-line at blog.makezine.com or simply do a Google   
   search for Diana Eng. (Southgate)   
      
   **.   
      
   BREAK 2   
      
   This is ham radio news for today's radio amateur. From the United States of   
   America, We are the Amateur Radio Newsline with links to the world from our   
   only official website at www.arnewsline.org and being relayed by the   
   volunteer services of the following radio amateur:   
      
   (5 sec pause here)   
      
   **   
      
   EMERGING TECHNOLOGY: NEW SUB MICRO MEMORY UNVEILED   
      
   A major breakthrough in magnetic storage for data has been announced.   
   Amateur Radio Newsline's Jim Damron, N8TMW, has the details:   
      
   --   
      
   An atomically assembled array of 96 iron atoms containing one byte of   
   magnetic information in antiferromagnetic states has been announced.   
      
   The findings, being reported in the journal Science, could help lead to a new   
   class of nanomaterials for a generation of memory chips and disk drives that   
   will not only have greater capabilities than the current silicon-based   
   computers but will consume significantly less power. And they may offer a   
   new direction for research in quantum computing.   
      
   According to Shan X. Wang, director of the Center for Magnetic Nanotechnology   
   at Stanford University magnetic materials are extremely useful and   
   strategically important to many major economies, but there aren't that many   
   of them. To make a brand new material is very intriguing and scientifically   
   very important.   
      
   Until now, the most advanced magnetic storage systems have needed about one   
   million atoms to store a digital 1 or 0. The new achievement is the product   
   of a heated international race between elite physics laboratories to explore   
   the properties of magnetic materials at a far smaller scale.   
      
   Last May, a group at the Institute of Applied Physics at the University of   
   Hamburg in Germany reported on the ability to perform computer logic   
   operations on an atomic level.   
      
   The group at I.B.M.'s Almaden Research Center here in the United States has   
   now created the smallest possible unit of magnetic storage by painstakingly   
   arranging two rows of six iron atoms on a surface of copper nitride. Such   
   closeness is possible because the cluster of atoms is antiferromagnetic.   
   This is a rare quality in which each atom in the array has an opposed   
   magnetic orientation. In common ferromagnetic materials like iron, nickel   
   and cobalt, the atoms are magnetically aligned.   
      
   From Charleston West Virginia, I'm Jim Damron, N8TMW, reporting.   
      
   --   
      
   As this technology matures it could lead to a major breakthrough in magnetic   
   based data storage for many industries as well as in future scientific   
   endeavors. (Science)   
      
   **   
      
   WORLDBEAT: ABORIGINAL RADIO STATION IN CANADA'S NORTHWEST TERRITORIES GOES   
   DARK   
      
   A popular aboriginal radio station in Canada's Northwest Territories is no   
   longer on the air.   
      
   CKLB Radio made the announcement online early Saturday morning, January 5th.   
   Its posting to the World Wide Web says that as of December 21st, the society   
   didn't get the promised funding for the 2012 fiscal year, adding that it is   
   nine months overdue. Because of this, those in charge of CKLB have no   
   choice but discontinue the broadcasting service.   
      
   The post did not say if or when the station, which broadcasts on 101.9 FM,   
   might be back on the air. This Aboriginal radio station is run by the   
   Native Communications Society of the Northwest Territories. (RW)   
      
   **   
      
   HAM RADIO IN SPACE: CUBESAT LECTURES JAN 29 TO FEB 3 IN BRUSSELS   
      
   Lectures on CubeSat Technology and Applications that will be held at von   
   Karman Institute in Brussels, Belgium from January 29th to February 1st. In   
   all there will be close to twenty sessions presented by a group of worldwide   
   experts in this field. Participation is limited to 100 people. If you wish   
   to attend you must pre-register on-line now at   
   tinyurl.com/belgium-cubesat-gathering. (ANS)   
      
   **   
      
   HAM RADIO IN SPACE: SKN ON OSCAR 2013 BEST FIST NOMINATIONS DUE   
      
   AMSAT is thanking all who participated in Straight Key Night on OSCAR 2013.   
   It's also requesting that if you have not yet done so to please take a   
   moment to nominate someone you worked for Best Fist.   
      
   According top AMSAT, your nominee need not have the best Morse sending fist   
   of those you heard, only of those you worked. Send your nomination to w2rs   
   (at) amsat (dot) org. Those nominated will be recognized in an Amsat News   
   Service bulletin in early February, and in an upcoming AMSAT Journal. (ANS)   
      
   **   
      
   WORLDBEAT: EUROPEAN DX COUNCIL CONFERENCE SEPT 6 - 9 IN PORTUGAL   
      
   This year's European DX Council Conference takes place Friday September 6th   
   to Monday September 9th at Figueira da Foz, near Coimbra, Portugal. More   
   details will be released in the near future at the EDXC web site at   
   www.edxc.org (EDXC)   
      
   **   
      
   DX   
      
   In DX, K4ZW is currently on the air from South Sudan as Zed-81-Zed. He is   
   active on High Frequency Bands mostly using CW. Please QSL via home call or   
   electronically using Logbook of the World.   
      
   SM6CPY will be operational as 9X0PY from Rwanda between January 15th and the   
   31st. Activity will be holiday style on all bands using mainly CW and   
   listening up 25 kHz. QSL via his home callsign, direct or by the Bureau.   
      
   F6BLP is again be active as 6W7SK from Senegal through January 18th.   
   Operations are holiday style using an IC-7000 into G5RV antenna operating   
   mainly CW. QSL via F6BLP, direct or by the bureau.   
      
   F5OGL reports that back on March 24th and 25th, 2012, a station operating as   
   TO4E, and claiming that he was on Europa Island was definitely not where he   
   claimed to be. According to F5OGL tells the last TO4E DXpedition to Europa   
   was in 2003 and there has not been any authorized activity from this island   
   since.   
      
      
   Lastly, VK2CCC will be active from Lord Howe Island September 22nd to the   
   29th as VK9LL. He will focus on 160 and 80 meters. QSL direct via home   
   call or electronically using Logbook of the World.   
      
   **   
      
   THAT FINAL ITEM: SAVING EARTH FROM AN ASTEROID WITH PAINTBALLS   
      
   And finally this week, if an asteroid ever takes aim at our planet one MIT   
   researcher says that shooting paintball pellets at it could bump it off its   
   course. Amateur Radio Newsline's Cheryl Lasek, K9BIK has more:   
      
   --   
      
   In the event that a giant asteroid is headed toward Earth, you'd better hope   
   that it's blindingly white. Why you ask? This is because one researcher   
   believes that such a pale colored asteroid would reflect sunlight. So by   
   bouncing a lot of photons off its surface could create enough of a force to   
   push the asteroid into a different direction.   
      
   Sung Wook Paek is a graduate student in MIT's Department of Aeronautics and   
   Astronautics. He says that if timed just right, pellets full of paint   
   powder, launched in two rounds from a spacecraft at relatively close   
   distance, would cover the front and back of an asteroid. This would more   
   than double its reflectivity. Paek claims that the initial force from the   
   pellets might bump an asteroid off course and that over time, the sun's   
   photons would deflect it even more.   
      
   But there are a few caveats. From his calculations, Paek estimates that it   
   would take up to 20 years for the cumulative effect of solar radiation   
   pressure to successfully pull the asteroid off an Earthbound trajectory. He   
   also says that launching pellets with traditional rockets may not be an   
   ideal option, as the violent takeoff may rupture the payload. Instead, he   
   envisions paintballs may be made in space, in ports such as the   
   International Space Station. There a spacecraft could then pick up a couple   
   of rounds of pellets to deliver to the asteroid.   
      
   Paek's paper detailing this unconventional strategy won the 2012 Move an   
   Asteroid Technical Paper Competition. This is an award sponsored by the   
   United Nations' Space Generation Advisory Council, which solicits creative   
   solutions to space-related problems from students and young professionals.   
      
   The challenge put forth by this year's U.N. competition was to identify novel   
   solutions for safely deflecting a near-Earth object, such as an asteroid.   
   Scientists have proposed a wide variety of methods to avoid an asteroid   
   collision. Some suggested launching a projectile or spacecraft to collide   
   with an incoming asteroid. Other suggested detonating a nuclear bomb near   
   an asteroid or equipping spacecraft as "gravity tractors," using a craft's   
   gravitational field to pull an asteroid off its path. But when the judging   
   was complete, Paek's paintball strategy was deemed among the most novel   
   approaches presented to date.   
      
   For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Cheryl Lasek, K9BIK, in Zion, Illinois.   
      
   --   
      
   Researcher Paek recently presented his paper at the International   
   Astronautical Congress in Naples, Italy. More about this theoretical way to   
   deflect an asteroid off its trajectory is on-line at   
   tinyurl.com/asteroid-paintball. (MIT, Science OnLine, others)   
      
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   For now, with Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, at the editors' desk, I'm Skeeter Nash,   
   N6ASH, saying 73 and we thank you for listening.   
      
   Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2012. All rights reserved.   
      
      
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