Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2129 for Friday, August 17, 2018   
      
   Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2129 with a release date of Friday,    
   August 17, 2018 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.   
      
   The following is a QST. Packet radio is returning to the International    
   Space Station. In India, hams help a family reunite - and a special    
   report on NASA's newly launched solar probe. All this and more as    
   Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2129 comes your way right now.   
      
   **   
      
   BILLBOARD CART   
      
   **   
   NASA'S SOLAR PROBE BEGINS ITS JOURNEY   
      
   STEPHEN/ANCHOR: We begin this week with our eyes turned to the sun and    
   NASAÂ’s recently launched solar probe. With that special report, we    
   welcome the newest member of our Newsline team, Science Editor Dr.    
   Tamitha Skov WX6SWW.   
      
   TAMITHA SKOVÂ’S REPORT: The NASA Parker Solar Probe successfully launched    
   on a Delta IV Heavy rocket from FloridaÂ’s Cape Canaveral on Aug. 12,    
   2018. The probe was named after one of the founding fathers of Space    
   Weather science, Dr. Eugene Parker, who at a young 91 years old, was in    
   attendance.   
   Dubbed, “The mission to touch the Sun,” The Parker Solar Probe is viewed    
   by many scientists as a miracle mission, as NASA has been flirting with    
   the idea of a solar probe since the 1960s. Until recently the technology    
   required to make the journey and survive while grazing the hot solar    
   atmosphere meant the mission was too costly to design. Even today, the    
   probe is poised to set many new records. It will be the closest we have    
   ever come to the Sun, at 3.8 million miles, it will fly the fastest we    
   have ever gone, at 430,000 mph, and it will survive temperatures over 3    
   million degrees Fahrenheit, the hottest environment we have ever known.   
   Indeed the corona is hot, even 300 times hotter than the surface of the    
   Sun.   
   But the tenuous region called the “corona,” where the SunÂ’s atmosphere    
   changes into a driving solar wind, is a mysterious place and it has    
   refused to give up its secrets to the casual observer. Data from this    
   region is critical to advancing models of the solar corona and the solar    
   wind, and will extend scientistsÂ’ ability to predict the intensity of    
   space weather.Events such as solar storms, solar radio bursts, and    
   radiation storms can impact radio and satellite communications, causing    
   radio blackouts, as well as disrupting emergency communications and GPS    
   navigation on the ground.   
   The probeÂ’s first close pass of the Sun will be in November 2018, with    
   23 ever-closer passes over the next 7 years. When the probe finally runs    
   out of fuel some 10-20 years in the future, it will fall into the Sun    
   and burn up-- all except for the carbon-based heat shield. Long after    
   the probe is gone, that carbon disk will continue orbiting the Sun for    
   many generations to come.   
      
   For Amateur Radio Newsline IÂ’m Dr. Tamitha Skov, WX6SWW.   
      
   **   
      
   PACKET RADIO RETURNING SOON TO SPACE STATION   
      
   STEPHEN/ANCHOR: In just a few short months, something else will be    
   heading into space: packet radio for the International Space Station.    
   Robert Broomhead VK3DN has that report.   
      
   ROBERT: It looks like APRS and packet radio will be back aboard the    
   International Space Station sooner rather than later. NASA has given the    
   go-ahead for the launch of a new packet module to replace the one that    
   died aboard the space station in July of last year. The module has been    
   outfitted with a new battery and given sufficient testing to verify that    
   it is operational. A request has been made to send it up as part of the    
   manifest for supply mission 71P, which could come as early as the 31st    
   of October with a projected docking on November 2nd. Meanwhile, the    
   ARISS hardware team has been working on the space stationÂ’s new    
   Interoperable Radio System which it now hopes can be deployed in early    
   2019. As for the packet module, the crew will make an attempt to get    
   that installed as time permits. ARISS reports that it is expected to be    
   operational by late November.   
      
   For Amateur Radio Newsline, IÂ’m Robert Broomhead VK3DN.   
      
   (ARISS)   
      
   **   
      
   SILENT KEY: FORMER AMSAT PRESIDENT BILL TYNAN W3XO   
      
   STEPHEN/ANCHOR: A noted figure in amateur radio satellite operations has    
   become a Silent Key, as we hear from Jack Parker W8ISH.   
      
   JACK: William Tynan W3XO, who was known throughout the amateur radio    
   satellite world, has become a Silent Key. The Washington, D.C. native    
   had an early love of radio that led him to a career in broadcasting as    
   well as an affinity as a hobbyist for VHF and ham radio satellites. He    
   attended the first meeting of a group in 1969 that later became AMSAT, a    
   group he would serve as president in 1991. For two decades he was also    
   AMSATÂ’s volunteer OSCAR Number Administrator, designating the    
   alphanumeric identities on amateur radio satellites. He stepped down    
   from that role only last month.   
   As AMSATÂ’s vice president for human spaceflight, Bill lobbied hard for    
   NASA to allow space shuttles to permit ham radio operation. This    
   launched the program known as Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment, or    
   SAREX, which led eventually to the program known as ARISS, Amateur Radio    
   on the International Space Station. He was a strong advocate too for the    
   ARISS interoperable radio system project soon to get underway on the    
   ISS. He served on AMSATÂ’s board of directors from 1986 to 2003 and was    
   chairman for his final five years.   
   Many amateurs also remember his column “The World Above 50 MHz” which    
   ran in QST Magazine from 1975 to 1992. During that time he advocated for    
   the adoption of a grid system for VHF/UHF operators which led to the    
   option of the Maidenhead grid system and ultimately the ARRLÂ’s VUCC    
   operating award program for 50 MHz and above.   
   A Life Member of ARRL, AMSAT and the Institute of Electrical and    
   Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Bill was HamventionÂ’s Amateur of the Year    
   in 1996.   
   Bill Tynan, who lived in Kerrville Texas, was 91. Vale Bill Tynan.   
      
   For Amateur Radio Newsline IÂ’m Jack Parker W8ISH.   
      
   (AMSAT)   
      
   **   
   MINING FOR GOOD CONTACTS ON HF   
      
   STEPHEN/ANCHOR: From the heights of space to the depths of the earth,    
   hams are always seeking good QSOs. Neil Rapp WB9VPG spoke with one    
   amateur who is mining for good contacts. Literally.   
      
   NEIL: Portable operation is sweeping the planet.  While some locations    
   on the air events have been around for a long time, many have popped up    
   after the success of National Parks on the Air. Some of them include    
   Islands, Summits, Jamboree, National Parks, Walmart Parking Lots, Pubs,    
   NASA, Lighthouses, Windmills, Beaches, and Moats.  Craters is being    
   planned for this fall.  But today, weÂ’re talking about Mines on the    
   Air.  John Fuller, WJ0NF took a few minutes to talk with me about the    
   event.   
      
   JOHN: Actually, I thought of it before I got my license.  But then I did    
   a lot of research online, watching YouTube and stuff, and I thought this    
   would be great to combine with some of my other hobbies. I like to go    
   ATV riding, and hiking, and do some exploringÂ… and then thereÂ’s so many    
   mines in this area that I was trying to research.  I thought wow, this    
   would be great.  I could take my radio and I could talk to people. And I    
   had been looking at that time, we had National Parks on the Air and it    
   just seemed like a great ideaÂ… even if nobody else wanted to    
   participate, I figured IÂ’d have fun doing it as well. I like to do a    
   little photography, so it really just combined a whole bunch of hobbies    
   together and started me on this path to create Mines on the Air, which    
   is basically going out to minesÂ… whether they are current mines,    
   abandoned mines, or historical mines and then setting up and activation    
   just like you would a park or a SOTA type of activation.   
      
   NEIL:  While there isnÂ’t an award program at least yet, you can score    
   some very unique QSL cards working the mines.   
      
   JOHN: If I activate a mine, I take a bunch of pictures and I document    
   that mine.  And, I create custom QSL cards and send those to like the    
   first 20 people or how many ever that IÂ’ve contacted. So they get a    
   unique QSL card with a picture of that mine in the location, and then a    
   little bit of information on it.   
      
   NEIL: John encourages those who might be interested to go to    
   MinesOnTheAir.com for more information, including safety.   
      
   JOHN: A couple of key things is obviously safety.  Just like doing a    
   SOTA activation or an island activation or anything, you want to be    
   safe.  You have to use some common sense and not go into mines and    
   things like that.  But IÂ’ve got some documentation on the web site with    
   some good ideas.  Even if theyÂ’re just interested in seeing the    
   pictures, thereÂ’s a lot of very cool pictures and locations on the site.   
      
   NEIL:  John says Mines on the Air is a great way to enjoy the outdoors    
   along with ham radio.   
      
   Reporting for Amateur Radio Newsline, IÂ’m Neil Rapp WB9VPG.   
      
   **   
      
   NO PERMANENT 4M AMATEUR USE IN GERMANY   
      
   STEPHEN/ANCHOR: In Germany, the temporary allocation of 70.150 to 70.180    
   MHz in the 4 metre band comes to an end at the end of this month. In    
   response to an email BNetzA, the government regulator, has told AR    
   Newsline correspondent Ed Durrant DD5LP that no permanent allocations of    
   frequencies in the 4 metre band to radio amateurs are currently being    
   considered. So amateurs in Germany can only hope for another test period    
   during next year's sporadic-E season.   
      
   **   
      
   BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur    
   Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including    
   the K7EFZ repeater in Idaho Falls, Idaho on Tuesday nights at 9    
   following the Eagle Rock Emergency Practice Net.   
      
   **   
      
   2 METERS CAN LIGHT UP THE NIGHT   
      
   STEPHEN/ANCHOR: If you keep your 2-meter rig handy, this low-key special    
   event is for you. Jim Damron N8TMW explains.   
      
   JIM DAMRON: At 7 p.m. local time Sunday on the 26th of August, turn on    
   your radio and listen to the sound of 2 meter FM simplex. Then -- key    
   the mic. ItÂ’s that simple – and thatÂ’s what Joseph Durnal NE3R is hoping    
   hams will do to mark an event heÂ’s calling “Light Up Two Meters Night.”    
   ItÂ’s an activity that heÂ’s reviving after years of dormancy. He told    
   Amateur Radio Newsline heÂ’d discovered the event 14 or so years ago when    
   it was promoted by a now-defunct yahoo group. Joseph told us [quote]    
   Â“There are no points or awards, just the satisfaction that the QSO was    
   something you made happen on your own.” [endquote] Weather permitting,    
   heÂ’ll be out there operating mobile on a hilltop with a small yagi on a    
   mast outside his car. But whether you use a handheld to have some    
   ragchews or you go portable and try it in combination with Summits On    
   the Air, Joseph says “light up the night.”   
      
   For Amateur Radio Newsline IÂ’m Jim Damron N8TMW.   
      
   **   
   AUSTRIANS OBJECT TO PROPOSED CHANGES IN RADIO LAWS   
      
   STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Hams in Austria are raising serious concerns about what    
   might happen to amateur radio services if a set of proposed changes    
   becomes law. Ed Durrant DD5LP has been following this story.   
      
   ED: More than 500 amateurs in Austria have registered their objections    
   to the unexpected announcement that the Austrian Government plans to    
   remove the current Amateur Radio-specific laws and reallocate Amateur    
   Radio under the TKG, or (Telecommunications Act). Officials report that    
   as of the end of July 572 objections were filed including the continued    
   objection from the national society the ™VSV. The radio society has been    
   fighting this and similar suggested changes since 2014.   
      
   Many of those objecting have cited the following consequences from the    
   proposed removal of the existing Amateur Radio laws and regulations:   
      
   Amateur radio will lose its status as a service and be relegated simply    
   to be a hobby which will impact its ability to cooperate with rescue    
   organizations during disasters. Information transferred by radio    
   amateurs during emergencies will also be restricted.   
      
   The amateur bands will lose protection they now have from interference    
   from unauthorised sources and the use of remote stations will become    
   even more difficult legally than it is today.   
      
   The process of amateur radio exams and licensing will no longer be    
   defined and will require additional red-tape to be able to happen.   
   There will also be no more reminders of expiry of licences every five    
   years which will lead to call signs being reallocated to other amateurs.    
   Licence extensions after five years will no longer be automatic, or    
   could be refused or delayed   
      
   Hearing these and other complaints, the Ministry of Infrastructure has    
   agreed to talk with the ™VSV and it is hoped a clearer picture will be    
   available in around 4 weeks as to whether these changes can be avoided    
   or not.   
      
   From across the border in Germany, For Amateur Radio Newsline this is    
   Ed Durrant DD5LP.   
      
   **   
      
   LOST AND FOUND IN INDIA   
      
   STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Amateurs in India have once again been able to help    
   reunite a family with a missing member - in this case it was a woman    
   missing for three years. Here's Jeremy Boot G4NJH.   
      
   JEREMY: Thanks to amateur radio operators in India, a mentally    
   challenged woman got a big farewell from the hospital where she was    
   being treated – and a big welcome home from the family she had not seen    
   in three years. According to a Telegraph India newspaper report, Maziran    
   Khatun had been admitted to a hospital in West Bengal in late July but    
   was unable to recall very much about her life until after receiving    
   psychiatric treatment. When the 25-year-old woman finally recalled where    
   she was from, the hospital reached out to the West Bengal Radio Club    
   which got in touch with Taheruddin Ahmed VU2TUO, vice president of the    
   Amateur Radio Club of Assam. He contacted police and began seeking out    
   her family members in a village in Barpeta district in lower Assam.    
   According to news reports, the womanÂ’s mother was able to identify her    
   from photos and later spoke to her on the phone. The mother told    
   authorities that her daughter, herself the mother of two children, had    
   suffered a mental breakdown and went missing not long after her divorce.    
   Hospital authorities bought her train tickets for the trip home and gave    
   their former patient a grand farewell. She was reunited with her family    
   on Saturday, August 11th.   
   For Amateur Radio Newsline, IÂ’m Jeremy Boot G4NJH.   
      
   (TELEGRAPH INDIA)   
      
   **   
      
   WORLD OF DX   
   In the world of DX, listen for Jose, NP4G, using the call sign CE0Y/NP4G    
   from Rapa Nui, Easter Island between the 26th and 29th of August. He    
   will be operating holiday style on 40-10 meters using CW and FT8. Send    
   QSLs via LoTW   
   or NP4G.   
      
   Members of the DX World team are joining with Norman/5B4AIF to activate    
   the island Ayios Yeoryios in the Cyprus Coastal Islands Group between    
   August 25 and 27th. They will use the callsign C4II. Listen on 80-10    
   meters and possibly 6m. They will be using CW, SSB and FT8. QSL via    
   LoTW. QSL Manager will be announced later.   
      
   Don't forget this weekend, it's the International Lighthouse and    
   Lightship weekend, to see if there's an activation near you, check the    
   list at ILLW. NET. This fun international event which promotes the    
   conservation of lighthouses and publicises amateur radio has even    
   attracted some of the Amateur Radio Newsline crew with Caryn KD2GUT and    
   the Great South Bay Amateur Radio Club activating lighthouse US0019 on    
   Fire Island, New York on Saturday/Sunday starting around 8:30 a.m. local    
   time and over in Germany Ed DD5LP is activating DE0138 Westmole and    
   DE0140 Mangturm in Lindau on Lake Constance in Southern Germany from    
   around 11 a.m. local time on Sunday.   
      
   (OHIO PENN DX)   
      
   **   
   KICKER: TWO RESCUES, 90 YEARS APART   
      
   STEPHEN/ANCHOR: We end this week's report with the story of two rescues,    
   90 years apart - both made possible by radio. Here's Jim Meachen ZL2BHF.   
      
   JIM MEACHEN: It has been 90 years since the Zeppelin “Italia” crashed on    
   the way home from an expedition to the North Pole, killing several    
   members of the crew of explorers and leaving survivors stranded on an    
   ice pack 120 km northeast of Svalbard.   
   Ninety years later, a North Pole expedition sponsored by the Air Ship    
   Italia Search Expedition and planned in tribute to that disaster met    
   with a harrowing fate as well. On August 2nd, the expedition yacht Mea    
   Lux with special event call sign II0PN/MM (India India Zero Papa    
   November) encountered a serious storm off the south coast of Svalbard,    
   Norway and waves measuring 5 to 6 meters high – or as high as 20 feet –    
   left the craft rudderless as it caught fire and began to take on water.    
   Neither cell phone nor satellite phone service worked but the 20 meter    
   Marine Net heard the calls for help from Simone Orlandini IU5KUH and the    
   Norwegian Coast Guard was dispatched. All on board were airlifted to    
   safety by helicopter. The expedition and the yacht, however, were    
   abandoned.   
   Fortunately, there is also a rescue story associated with the historic    
   zeppelin incident -- and it too came about because of radio. A Russian    
   radio amateur ultimately heard signals from the stranded crew being    
   transmitted by Giuseppe Biagi using the emergency transmitter and    
   receiver he had salvaged from the airship. Using a makeshift    
   quarter-wave antenna and a counterpoise he was able to get out a    
   distress call. Although the support ship never received the signals,    
   RussiaÂ’s Nikolai Schmit did, a dozen days later. An international rescue    
   effort was launched. It became the first air and sea polar rescue. Those    
   rescued included the airshipÂ’s commander Umberto Nobile but the Swedish    
   meteorologist Finn Malmgren died before being rescued.   
   As for the modern-day rescue from the yacht, crew member Alberto IT9MRM    
   posted on DX-World.Net that it was sadly [quote] “ungovernable and at    
   the mercy of the waves.” [endquote]   
   For Amateur Radio Newsline IÂ’m Jim Meachen ZL2BHF.   
      
   **   
      
   NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Alan Labs; Amateur News Weekly; AMSAT;    
   ARISS: the ARRL; CQ Magazine; DX-World.Net; Facebook; Hap Holly and the    
   Rain Report; Irish Radio Transmitters Society; Ohio-Penn DX Bulletin;    
   QST Magazine; Southgate Amateur Radio News; Ted Randall's QSO Radio    
   Show;Wireless Institute of Australia; WTWW Shortwave; and you our    
   listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. Please send    
   emails to our address at newsline@arnewsline.org. More information is    
   available at Amateur Radio Newsline's only official website at    
   www.arnewsline.org.   
      
   For now, with Caryn Eve Murray, KD2GUT, at the news desk in New York,    
   and our news team worldwide, I'm Stephen Kinford N8WB in Wadsworth Ohio    
   saying 73 and as always we thank you for listening.   
      
   Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2018. All rights reserved.   
      
      
      
      
      
   --    
      
      
      
   73   
   James-KB7TBT   
   www.arnewsline.org   
   www.ylsystem.org   
      
      
      
      
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