Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) Report 1887 - October 11
2013
Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1887 with a
release date of October 11 2013 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.
The following is a QST. The 2013 Scouting Jamboree
on the Air takes to the air on October 18th; Complaints pour
in about closed government websites; Several hams receive warning
notices from the FCC; The South African Radio League announces its
young scientist expo winner and the Dayton Hamvention puts out a call
for its 2014 awards. Find out the details are on Amateur Radio
Newsline(tm) report number 1887 coming your way right
now.
(Billboard Cart Here)
**
SCOUTING: JOTA 2013 TO
AGAIN INVOLVE HAM RADIO
The 2013 Scouting Jamboree on the
Air is slated for October 18th to the. Amateur Radio Newsline's
Mark Abramowicz, NT3V, is here with the rest of the
story:
--
Jamboree on the Air, or JOTA as it
is known by those who participate, is the largest Scouting event in the
world.
James Wilson, K5ND, is the national Boy Scouts of
America coordinator for JOTA in the United
States.
"Typically, about 700,000 Scouts get on the
air from 6,000 stations and roughly 14,000-15,000 radio amateurs are
making things happen around the event," Wilson
says.
"It's a huge deal worldwide and that's
part of its excitement. It's not just, gee let's check out the
fun, technology and the magic of amateur radio. But, let's get on
and talk to other Scouts.
"It might be in another
state, it might be across the country, or they could be around the
world. And, a lot of fun interaction happens reaching out to Scouts who
are from a completely different culture but still enjoying Scouting and
being introduced to amateur radio."
Jamboree on the
Air is coordinated by the World Organization of the Scout Movement out
of the World Scout Bureau in Geneva, Switzerland.
The
activity is in its 56th year.
Wilson says JOTA operations
in the U.S. range from home stations where a den of Cub Scouts or a
patrol of Boy Scouts might be introduced to the event by an operator to
set-ups on an outdoor or larger scale...
"There are
troops, for example, that are going out on a campout. One of the dads
or maybe a Scoutmaster is an amateur radio operator and they're
setting up, probably a fairly simple station at the campout and getting
it on the air," Wilson says.
"And, then there
are large camporees or merit badge universities or what have you where
they're setting up multiple stations and planning to get literally
hundreds, if not thousands, of Scouts in front of the radio during
Jamboree on the Air."
This year marks the end of an
era for one well-known station, HB9S, the station based at the World
Scout Bureau.
"This year will be it's last year
because the World Bureau is relocating its offices," Wilson says.
"It's moving out of Geneva, pretty much it's moving out of
Europe. They don't know exactly where, but they do know it will be
taking place in 2014.
"And, so, this will likely be
the last time that HB9S is on the air from
Switzerland."
If you're looking for more
information about JOTA and want to participate, the best place to look,
Wilson says, is www.scouting.org/jota
<
br>"That gives a list of frequencies which includes Echo Link and
D-Star and those nodes as well so it really provides a great deal of
information about Jamboree on the Air," Wilson
says.
"That also, that same site, scouting.org/jota,
has a link to register your station. And, once you register your
station, you'll be added to an email list and you'll be updated
on Jamboree on the Air on all what we call Radio Scouting activities
which is the broad sweep of amateur radio activities within
Scouting."
Station registration is still under way
and Wilson says it's not too late to get involved.
For
the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Mark Abramowicz, NT3V, in
Philadelphia.
--
The complete history of the
event can be read on Wikipedia at tinyurl.com/scouting-worldwide.
(NT3V, ARNewsline)
**
RADIO LAW:
LAWYERS AND OTHERS COMPLAIN ABOUT GOVERNMENT WEBSITE
SHUTDOWNS
Lawyers and others are accusing several Federal
regulatory agencies of unnecessarily blocking access to websites during
the government shutdown.
Agencies including the Federal
Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission have
entirely shut down their websites, preventing the public from accessing
regulations, filings and other documents. Other federal agencies
including the Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug
Administration and the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration have stopped updating their websites during the shutdown
but old information is still available.
The the
Federal Trade Commission shutdown guide does not directly address
whether the website should be kept available during a shutdown.
Instead, it directs the agency to retain up to six information
technology employees to work to ensure the integrity and security of
the agency's information infrastructure and its availability for use by
exempt employees pursuing excepted and essential law enforcement
actions during the shutdown. The FCC's shutdown plan also did
not mention cutting off access to its website. According to the plan,
the agency retained four employees for critical information technology
issues.
Congressional Republicans have accused the
Obama administration of maximizing the pain of the shutdown to increase
Democrats' leverage in negotiations. Because of the shutdown, the
FTC and FCC were unable to comment. More on this story can be
found on the web at tinyurl.com/government-websites-down. (The
Hill)
**
GOVERNMENT HALTED: MOST OF
ARMY MARS STILL OPERATIONAL
The US Army MARS gateway
station at Fort Huachuca, Arizona, is operating on its normal schedule
during the government shutdown, but routine administrative activity is
on hold. This is because computer systems are down and no
membership paperwork can be processed for the duration of the fiscal
crisis.
As a civilian contractor not covered by the
shutdown, Operations Officer David McGinnis, K7UXO, is completing final
preparations for the November 3rd to the 4th national communications
exercise. Also, the MARS national net is still functioning
normally. (US Army MARS,
ARRL)
**
GOVERNMENT HALTED: NIST CLOSED
AND AFFILIATED WEB SITES NOT AVAILABLE
While the tick and
the announcements over WWV and WWVH are still available over the
airwaves, the current deadlock in Washington over the Federal budget
has shut down the National Institute of Standards and Technology or
NIST. It has also closed most NIST and affiliated web sites until
further notice. As a result, the NIST is warning that its time
signals may not be 100% accurate until staffing returns.
The National Vulnerability Database and the NIST Internet
Time Service web sites will continue to be available. A limited
number of other web sites may also be available. Take a look
at tinyurl.com/2dt3l7 to see whats on-line and whats not.
A notice will be posted at www.nist.gov once operations resume.
(NIST)
**
BREAKING DX NEWS:
GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN PUTS WAKE ISLAND COMMEMORATIVE ON
HOLD
According to news reports the partial Federal
shutdown is preventing a group of radio amateurs visiting Wake Island
to commemorate a WWII massacre.
A dozen operators
using the special call sign K9W were supposed to be on Wake Island as
this newscast goes to air. They were working to assemble their
gear in Hawaii for transport to Hickam Air Force Base and then on to
Wake Island. Instead, after months of preparation, the trip is on
indefinite hold because of a paperwork delay the group attributes to
the partial federal shutdown.
The operators still
hope to make the trip once the government funding crisis is
solved. Please keep an eye on wake2013.org for the latest details
and we will have more DX news for you later on in this weeks
report. (wake2013, various other
sources)
**
BREAK 1
Time for you
to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio Newsline,
heard on bulletin stations around the world including the Xerox Amateur
Radio Club system WD6CZH in El Segundo and Long Beach,
California.
(5 sec pause
here)
**
ENFORCEMENT: HAMS
SENT WARNING NOTICES BY FCC
According to the ARRL, the
FCC's Enforcement Bureau recently made public warning letters to
several individuals. This for alleged infractions of the Part 97
Amateur Service rules or Section 301 of the Communications Act of
1934. Amateur Radio Newsline's Heather Embee, KB3TZD, has the
details:
--
Back on June 24th, FCC Special
Counsel Laura Smith sent identical warning notices to Eric J.
Christianson, KNZ0CW, and Thomas E. Barnes, N7OVC, of Reno,
Nevada. This, to inform them that the trustee of the WA7DG
repeater in Sparks, Nevada, had requested that they refrain from using
his system.
In her notices, Smith said that the written
request was issued as a result of the failure of the two hams to follow
operational rules set forth by the licensee and control operators of
the repeater system for their users. She went on to note that the
Commission requires that repeaters be under the supervision of a
control operator. Also that it not only expects, but requires
that such control operators be responsible for the proper operation of
the repeater system. As such, control operators may take whatever
steps they deem appropriate to ensure compliance with the repeater
rules.
Smith then advised the two licensees that the FCC
expects them to abide by the repeater owner's request and any similar
requests by other repeater licensees, control operators or trustees of
other systems. She also said that continued use of the WA7DG
repeater could subject the two hams to severe penalties, including
monetary forfeiture, a modification proceeding to restrict the
frequencies upon which you may operate or even license
revocation.
On August 9th, Smith took on a High
Frequency band issue. This in a letter to Jack Hartley, K4WSB, of
Tampa, Florida. In it, Smith cited evidence received from members
of the Amateur Auxiliary Official Observers that Hartley had operated
outside of his Advanced class privileges on four separate occasions
while attempting to contact a station on Kwajalein Atoll in the South
Pacific.
Smiths letter to Hartley noted that According to
the Official Observer's, the Kwajalein operator refused the contact
noting that Hartley was not authorized to be operating in that part of
the band. She noted that after sending Hartley three previous
notices the O-O's contacted the Commission and asked it to remind K4WSB
that his continued attempts to contact the operator on Kwajalein Atoll
constitute a violation of the Amateur Service rules. Smith
cautioned Hartley that continued operation outside the parameters of
his license could lead to enforcement action that could include
revocation or suspension and fines. The three prior instances
noted by the Official Observers occurred in 2007 and
2008.
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Heather Embee,
KB3TZD, in Berwick, Pennsylvania.
--
The FCC
also sent warnings to several non hams for operating without a
license. That part of the report next week. (ARRL,
FCC)
**
ENFORCEMENT: ALLEGED UNCERTIFIED
TRANSMITTER SUPPLIER CITED BY FCC
The Federal
Communications Commission's Los Angeles Enforcement Bureau has cited a
company known as FCCFrequency for marketing unauthorized RF devices in
the U.S.. Amateur Radio Newsline Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF,
reports:
--
The case began when the
Los Angeles Office received complaints alleging that FCCFrequency was
selling and installing non-certified low-power FM transmitters that
could be used in LPFM stations. In addition, the company was also
reportedly selling and installing the gear to individuals and entities
that had no FCC authorization to operate the devices.
The
company'name: FCCFrequency. That's FCCFrequency spelled as
one word. It came to the FCC's attention when the agency was
inspecting an unlicensed station in the Los Angeles suburb of
Arleta. At that time the operator showed agents the purchase
contract for the 100-watt transmitter manufactured in the Dominican
Republic that he bought in March for around $6,000 from
FCCFrequency.
The regulatory agency noted
that at the time of its investigation that the company's website
said that it specializes in Low Power FM Radio Station equipment sales
and installation, and encouraged nonprofit organizations to install
their own Low Power FM Radio Station. The website also
advertised that the company will help applicants to file for new
L-P-F-M's and major changes to existing stations in the upcoming filing
window, which is supposed to open on October 15th. A check of the
website on October 9th now only shows an almost blank page with the
short message that reads "new.FCCFrequency.com is coming soon."
In its citation the FCC told FCCFrequency that it must
stop marketing the unauthorized devices and avoid any recurrence of the
alleged misconduct. The company must also inform the FCC within 30 days
of the date of the citation who it sold RF equipment to since January
of 2012. It must also supply contact information on each
purchasers and copies of sales contracts. Not responding in 30
days could result in further sanctions.
For the
Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Bill Pasternak, in the newsroom in Los
Angeles.
--
More on this story is on the web
at tinyurl.com/transmitter-supplier-cited. (FCC,
RW)
**
RESCUE RADIO: FCC SEEKS COMMENTS
ON EAS FIXES
It is nearly two years since the first-ever
nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System and the FCC is now ready
to look at making some procedural changes based on what it learned
November 9, 2011. This as the agency begins accepting
public comments on several equipment and operational issues. The
FCC says the goal is to create a dialogue with broadcasters and
equipment companies to develop a list of recommendations for what
action the agency needs to take. Obviously nothing much is going to
happen until Congress passes a measure that fully funds the
government's agencies but more on this issue is on the web at
tinyurl.com/eas-revisited (Inside
Radio)
**
NAMES IN THE NEWS: SARL SPONSORED EXPO FOR YOUNG SCIENTIST
AWARD
The South African Radio League sponsored Expo for
young scientist award has won by Justin Boyce, a student at St.
John's College in Johannesburg. Boyce set out to predict
future Solar Coronal Mass Ejection activity by proving a correlation
between the number of C-M-E's and the sunspot cycle. His findings
were that Coronal Mass Ejections and the sunspot cycle are both caused
by intense activity in the Sun's magnetic field and therefore
strong correlations can be expected. Also that predictions on the
future of C-M-E's can be made using the repetitive pattern of the solar
sunspot cycle. The press release from the South African Radio
League did not say if Boyce was or was not a radio amateur.
(SARL)
**
NAMES IN THE NEWS: K6OSC RESIGNS AS W6RO QUEEN MARY WIRELESS ROOM
MANAGER
So0me names in the news. First up comes word
that Nate Brightman, K6OSC, stepped aside as the W6RO Wireless Room
Manager aboard the Queen Mary museum ship, anchored in Long Beach,
California.
Brightman, now 96, was the W6RO
Wireless Room Manager for 34 years. Prior to that K6OSC devoted a
decade arranging for the GB5QM "Last Voyage" Amateur Radio operation
from the Queen Mary. He then was responsible for establishing
W6RO as the club station of the Associated Radio Amateurs of Long
Beach.
K6OSC cited his recent illness, hospitalization and
his advanced age as reasons for his decision to step aside effective
October 1st. He is succeeded as W6RO Station Manager by David
Akins, N6HHR. (ARRL, ARALB)
**
NAMES IN
THE NEWS: THE PSYCHOLOGY OF A QRMER BY JAMES
MILNER WB2REM
The Psychology of a QRMer is the title of a
feature article authored by James Millner, WB2REM. In it, Millner
who is a licensed Psychologist with 35 years of experience delves into
the thinking of those who cause problems for their fellow hams.
Without giving away any of the plot so as to speak, we
will say that Milner is very meticulous in separating unintentenional
from intentenional interference. This, as he looks into the
underlying factors of operators who cause these kinds of problems on
the amateur bands.
The Psychology of a QRMer
makes good reading, especially if you have ever been the intentional
target of a jammer. You will find it beginning on page 44
of the October issue of CQ Magazine.
(ARNrewsline(tm))
**
BREAK
2
This is ham radio news for today's radio amateur.
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: THE OTHER
EFFECT OF THE SOLAR CYCLE
As almost every ham knows, the number
of sunspots rises and falls in a regular cycle that repeats every 11
years, but there's a lot more to the story. Here's Amateur
Radio Newsline's Cheryl Lasek, K9BIK, with that part of the
story:
--
Sunspots are among the least
dramatic activities in a solar cycle. This is because they are
easy to count and closely correlated with flares and other indications
of solar activity. As such astronomers and scientists have used
them for centuries to monitor variations in the sun's
activity.
But it is Solar Flares and Coronal Mass
Ejections that pose the biggest risk to power grids and communications
systems here on Earth. These take place when billions of tones of
solar plasma erupt from the surface of the sun and are flung out into
space at speeds up to millions of miles per second.
Variations in the amount of heat and light reaching the
Earth's surface as a result of the changes in the 11 year cycle are
tiny. Total solar output reaching the surface varies by just 1.3
Watts per square meter or 1/10th of 1 percent between the maximum and
minimum phases of a solar cycle. However some researchers say
that even this miniscule variation has profound impacts on climate and
weather. They note that rainfall, cloud formation and river
run-off are all strongly correlated with the sun's 11-year
cycle.
All in all, the impact is far smaller than the warming
associated with other sources of climate change.
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Cheryl Lasek, K9BIK,
in Zion, Illinois.
--
One thing that solar
activity cannot explain long-term trends in global temperatures such as
those associated with global warming. That said there are some
researchers believe that it may have a noticeable impact over shorter
timescales.
(macedoniaonline.eu)
**
RADIO IN SPACE:
LADEE SPACECRAFT GOES INTO LUNAR ORBIT
NASA's Lunar
Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer or LADEE spacecraft fired its
engines Sunday morning, October 6th, slowing it enough to be captured
by lunar gravity and placing it into orbit around the Moon. Once
given the green light the spacecraft will begin its mission to study
the Moon's exotic and almost transparent atmosphere, which is
highly affected by space weather. That information will be sent
by radio back to Earth for further analysis.
(Spaceweather)
**
HAM RADIO NEAR
SPACE: HABEX BALLOON TO FLY NOVEMBER 30
Plans to
launch an unmanned high altitude balloon called HABEX have received the
approval of South Africa's Central Airspace Management Unit. The
launch will take place from the Klerksdorp Airport between 06:00 and
08:00 local time on Saturday, November 30th. The payload is
expected to reach an altitude of about 130,000 or more feet before the
balloon bursts and returns to the ground.
Chris
Gryffenberg, ZS6COG, is coordinating the project. He says that
the mission will carry an Automatic Packet Reporting System which will
allow the monitoring of the balloon trajectory via the internet at
aprs.fi.
HABEX is a joint project of the Gauteng
Department of education and the South African Radio League. It is
specifically aimed at getting young people involved scientific
activities as a precursor to following a career in communication and
electronics. (SARL)
**
WORLDBEAT:
VOICE OF RUSSIA MAY GO QRT JANUARY 1 2014
North American
and Western European international shortwave broadcasters aren't the
only one's feeling todays financial squeeze. RIA Novosti
reports that the Voice of Russia will cut its shortwave service as of
January 1st, 2014. However, the government shortwave broadcaster,
originally known as Radio Moscow, has not confirmed this plan of
action, according to The SWLing Post. The station has been
broadcasting since 1922. (SWL
Post)
**
DX SUPPORT: NCDXF ANNOUNCES
ESTABLISHMENT OF W7OO CONTRIBUTION CHALLENGE
The Northern
California DX Foundation has announced the establishment of the W7OO
Contribution Challenge. From October 15th through the end of
December long-time DXer Bill Everett, W7OO, will match contributions
received by the Northern California DX Foundation. For those
contributors who file United States income tax returns, contributions
to Northern California DX Foundation are tax-deductible under Section
501(c)(3) as an entity with the IRS. More information is at www.ncdxf.org.
(W0GJ)
**
DX
In DX, word
that CT2HPM is once again on the air from Angola operating as
D2CT. He plans to be there through November 15th operating PSK31
and RTTY on 20 through 10 meters including the WARC bands. QSL
via CT2HPM.
W1CDC will be operational from Guyana as 8R1A
between October 13th and November 1st. Activity will be holiday
style on 80 through 10 meters using CW and SSB. QSL via his home
callsign, direct or by the bureau.
YB9WZJ and YD9RQX will
be active using their home calls stroke P from Waigeo Island between
October 16th and the 22nd. Operations will be on 40, 20 and 15 meters
using SSB only. QSL only via their home callsigns.
Members
of the Andorran Amateur Radio Union will again be active as C37NL from
Andorra during the CQWW DX SSB Contest. The dates are October
26th and the 27th. QSL via C37URA.
N0HJZ, will be active
as C6ARW from Grand Bahama Island between October 22nd to the
29th. Operations will be on 30, 17 and 12 meters using CW and
RTTY. QSL via his home callsign, direct (with sufficient postage) or by
the Bureau.
Lastly, AA1AC will be on the air stroke 6W
from La Somone, Senagal between December 8th and the 14th. No
information on times or frequencies was given. QSL direct or by
the Bureau to his home callsign.
(Above from various DX
news sources)
**
THAT FINAL ITEM:
HAMVENTION 2014 OPENS AWARDS NOMINATION SEASON
And finally this
week, the Dayton Hamvention has announced that it is soliciting
nominations for its awards for the 2014 Amateur of the Year, Special
Achievement, Technical Excellence and Club of the Year. Amateur
Radio Newsline's Stephan, Kinford, N8WB, has the
details:
--
The Amateur of the Year Award
goes to an individual who has made a long-term, outstanding commitment
to the advancement of amateur radio.
The Special
Achievement Award honors someone who has made an outstanding
contribution to the advancement of amateur radio. This is usually
someone who has spearheaded but bit necessarily limited to spearheading
a significant project.
The Technical Excellence
Award is for the person who has made an outstanding technical
advancement in the field of amateur radio.
Last but
by no means least, the Club of the Year award goes to an organization
which has made a significant contribution to the advancement of amateur
radio.
The Hamvention Awards Committee makes its decision on
all awards based in part upon the information it receives and not on
the number of nominations submitted for a given candidate.
Documentation that informs the Awards Committee of a nominee's
accomplishments may include magazine articles, newsletters, newspaper
clippings, and even videos. These materials become the property
of Hamvention and will not be returned.
The winners will be
recognized at the 2014 Hamvention, which runs May 16th to the
18th. To be considered, nominations must be received by January
17, 2014. Additional details on these awards and a nomination
form are available on the Dayton Hamvention Web site at
tinyurl.com/hamvention-awards-2014.
For the Amateur
Radio Newsline, I'm Stephen Kinford, N8WB, not far from Dayton in
Wadsworth, Ohio.
--
Once again Forms and
other information are on the web at
tinyurl.com/hamvention-awards-2014. The last day for a nomination
to be postmarked is January 17, 2014. Nominations may be sent by
e-mail to the awards at Hamvention dot org or mailed to Dayton
Hamvention Awards, P.O. Box 1446, Dayton, OH 45401-1446 in the
USA. (DARA)
**
NEWSCAST
CLOSE
With thanks to Alan Labs, AMSAT, the ARRL, the CGC
Communicator, CQ Magazine, the FCC, the Ohio Penn DX Bulletin, Radio
Netherlands, Rain, the RSGB, the Southgate News, TWiT-TV and
Australia's WIA News, that's all from the Amateur Radio
Newsline(tm). Our e-mail address is newsline (at) arnewsline
(dot) org. More information is available at Amateur Radio
Newsline's(tm) only official website located at www.arnewsline.org. You can
also write to us or support us at Amateur Radio Newsline(tm), 28197
Robin Avenue, Santa Clarita California, 91350
For now,
with Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, at the editors' desk, I'm Jim Damron,
N8TMW, in Charleston, West Virginia, saying 73 and we thank you for
listening.
Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright
2013. All rights reserved.
***
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