The ARRL Letter
Published by the American Radio Relay League
********************************************
June 30, 2011
Editor: S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA
ARRL Home Page ARRL Letter Archive
Audio News
IN THIS ISSUE
- + Texas Hams Injured at Field Day Site
- + ARRL Field Day: There's Still More to Do for Field Day!
- + On the Air: The IARU HF World Championship -- Coming to a Radio
Near You
- + Amateur Radio in Space: ISS Survives Near Miss of Space Junk
- + SATERN Gets New Director
- Support ARRL: Meet the ARRL Second Century Campaign Committee
- At the Workbench: Homebrew Challenge Reminder
- + Space Weather Prediction Center to Continue Broadcasts on WWV and
WWVH
- ARRL Survey Underway
- Solar Update
- + Amateur Radio Amour: Do We Get Bonus Points for This?
- + ARRL to Close in Observance of Fourth of July
- This Week on the Radio
- Upcoming ARRL Section, State and Division Conventions and Events
+ Available on ARRL Audio News
> + TEXAS HAMS INJURED AT FIELD DAY SITE
On the morning of June 26, two Texas radio amateurs -- Danny Caldwell,
AD5IP, of Kamay, and Mike Byrne, AE5CO, of Iowa Park -- received
electric shocks as they took down an inverted V antenna. According to
Wichita County Emergency Coordinator Larry Ballard, KE5KNV, the two
were taking part in Field Day as part of the Wichita Amateur Radio
Society (WARS ).
"The Wichita Amateur Radio Society decided to terminate the
participation in the exercise at 10 AM on Sunday, due to extreme heat
and gusty wind conditions," Ballard told the ARRL. "Danny and Mike were
injured while lowering the center pole of the inverted V dipole antenna
to the ground. They were knocked to the ground when a guy wire, or the
antenna lead-in, was hit with very high wind gust that blew it into a
high [power] line wire." According to reports from witnesses, winds
were gusting up to 40 miles per hour.
Ballard said 911 was called immediately and a rescue van arrived in a
matter of minutes. The Fire Rescue Team determined that the two men
were stable and they were transported to United Regional Hospital in
Wichita Falls. Caldwell received CPR at the scene and was air lifted to
Parkland Hospital in Dallas. Byrne was transported to Parkland later by
ambulance.
"This was the second year that the Wichita Amateur Radio Society had
set up at Oscar Park in the City of Iowa Park for Field Day event,"
Ballard explained. "The antennas were located in the same location as
the prior year, using the same safety practice of locating the antennas
a safe distance from power lines and structures. The inverted V dipole
antenna had yellow caution tape, marking guy wires and antenna end
locations."
Ballard said that Byrne was released from the hospital on Monday, June
27 and was resting at home. Caldwell, who suffered more serious
injuries, was released a day later.
> + ARRL FIELD DAY: THERE'S STILL MORE TO DO FOR FIELD DAY!
The radios, antennas and the food might be put away after ARRL Field
Day 2011, but there is still plenty of work to do to close the books on
this annual operating extravaganza. According to ARRL Field Day Manager
Dan Henderson, N1ND, the fun may be over, but many details need to be
completed. "Thousands of Field Day entries will be received at ARRL
headquarters over the next 30 days," he explained. "The focus now is
doing what is necessary to make sure the individual and group Field Day
summaries and submissions are handled accurately and efficiently." Read
more here
.
> + ON THE AIR: THE IARU HF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP -- COMING TO A RADIO
NEAR YOU
Radiosport fans are gearing up for the summer's biggest HF
competition: the IARU HF World Championship. This 24 hour long contest
is the highlight of the summer HF contesting season, affording plenty
of opportunities to work DX from all around the globe on CW and SSB, as
well as make QSOs with many IARU officials and Member-Society club
stations. "The IARU HF World Championship is one of Radiosport's unique
events," explained ARRL Contest Branch Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X. "It's
the only major contest that uses International Telecommunication Union
(ITU) zones as part of the exchange, and the only contest that gives
special multiplier status for IARU Member-Society stations and IARU
officials." The IARU HF World Championship runs from 1200 UTC Saturday,
July 9 through 1200 UTC Sunday, July 10. Read more here
.
> + AMATEUR RADIO IN SPACE: ISS SURVIVES NEAR MISS OF SPACE JUNK
Just after 8 AM (EDT) on Tuesday, June 29, the six residents of the
International Space Station (ISS) climbed into two Soyuz space capsules
as an unidentified object hurtled past them at a speed of 29,000 miles
per hour, missing the space station by only 1100 feet. This was only
the second time in the 10 year history of people living on the space
station that the crew needed to take such precautions. If the station
had been hit, the crew could have quickly undocked from the ISS and
returned to Earth via the space capsules. Currently, there are four
hams on board the ISS: Ron Garan, KF5GPO (NASA), Mike Fossum, KF5AQG
(NASA), Sergei Volkov, RU3DIS (RKA
), and Satoshi Furukawa,
KE5DAW (JAXA ). The other two
cosmonauts -- Andrey Borisenko and Alexander Samokutyaev -- are not
licensed. Read more here
.
> + SATERN GETS NEW DIRECTOR
After serving as Director of the Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio
Network (SATERN) for more than 23 years, Major Patrick E. McPherson,
WW9E, is stepping down. Major Rick Shirran VE3NUZ, of Toronto, Ontario,
has been appointed as the new Director. McPherson -- an ARRL member --
founded SATERN in June 1988. Shirran, who received his Amateur Radio
license in 1975, served 12 years as a member of the Royal Canadian Navy
as a Radio Operator and Communications Technician. He is a Commissioned
Officer/Pastor in The Salvation Army Canada and Bermuda Territory.
Prior to his appointment, Shirran served as the Emergency Disaster
Services Director and SATERN Director for The Salvation Army in Canada
and Bermuda Territory. Read more here
.
> SUPPORT ARRL: MEET THE ARRL SECOND CENTURY CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE
At the end of April, David W. Brandenburg, K5RQ, of Osprey, Florida,
agreed to chair the ARRL Second Century Campaign. This multi-million
dollar campaign will focus on building the ARRL Endowment to further
secure resources to fund the League's commitment to the future. One
important focus of the campaign includes the development of a robust
national program geared at young people, enabling them to experience
and develop skills in scientific and technological discovery through
Amateur Radio. Read more here
.
> AT THE WORKBENCH: HOMEBREW CHALLENGE REMINDER
The ARRL has sponsored two Homebrew Challenges in the past, designed to
test our members' design and construction skills by making useful
amateur gear at low cost -- and sharing their results with our members.
Our first ARRL Homebrew Challenge, announced in QST for August 2006,
required the construction of a 40 meter, 5 W voice and CW transceiver
built for less than $50 of new parts. The Second Homebrew Challenge,
announced in February 2009, resulted in a number of creative designs of
low cost 50 W linear amplifiers to follow the transceiver -- two for
about $30, as well as a multiband amplifier with many features for
somewhat more.
For 2011, the ARRL has issued a challenge
to build a transceiver in
celebration of the (slow) return of sunspots. This challenge will be in
two parts and hams can enter either or both options:
- Option 1: A single band 25 W SSB and CW transceiver for 10 or 6
meters, with a prize of $200.
- Option 2: A 25 W SSB and CW transceiver that can be switched between
10 and 6 meters, using one or two switches, with a prize of $300.
Instead of challenging entrants to make the transceiver at the lowest
cost, the ARRL will instead challenge builders to provide the highest
quality, best performance and most features within the cost target of
$150 for Option 1 and $200 for Option 2. In addition to the cash prize,
the winners of these challenges will have articles describing their
designs in QST and will receive the usual page rate for the published
articles. Additional entrants who meet the minimum requirements -- and
have interesting design features -- may also be considered for QST or
ARRL Web articles.
Entries for either option must be received at ARRL Headquarters no
later than November 1, 2011. To be considered, each entrant must submit
a working transceiver that is suitable for testing in the ARRL Lab and
for on-the-air judging by the ARRL staff judges. Documentation required
includes a priced parts list indicating the source and purchase price
of each part, an article draft including a design description,
construction hints, alignment instruction, block diagrams and schematic
diagrams. Photographs may be provided, but final magazine photos will
be taken by ARRL staff.
For more information, including specific requirements and evaluation
criteria, please visit the ARRL Homebrew Challenge web page
.
> + SPACE WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER TO CONTINUE BROADCASTS ON WWV AND
WWVH
In April 2011, the Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC
) informed the public that as of
September 6, 2011, it would no longer broadcast its geophysical alert
message on WWV
and WWVH
. The ARRL has now learned that
the SWPC has changed its mind and will keep broadcasting these messages
that inform listeners of the solar flux, the mid-latitude A and K
indices and space weather storms, both current and predicted. Due to
listener feedback, the SWPC is considering updating the broadcast; in
addition to providing the current daily solar flux at 2800 MHz, the
SWPC is evaluating adding more frequent observations at 2695 MHz.
According to the SWPC website , other
improvements to the message content will also be evaluated.
> ARRL SURVEY UNDERWAY
The ARRL has asked an independent research company specializing in
survey research to conduct a survey of Amateur Radio operators. Readex
Research -- headquartered in
Stillwater, Minnesota -- has conducted similar studies for ARRL in the
past, including QST readership studies and large national surveys. This
most recent survey is being conducted by mail and e-mail, and includes
representative populations of Amateur Radio operators from among US and
international ARRL members, as well as non-member FCC licensees. While
not every member will receive a survey, participation from those
individuals who are selected is critical for the success of this
project. Responses will be kept confidential and only used in
tabulation with others; no data about survey participants -- including
contact information -- will be shared with anyone. Please contact ARRL
if you have any questions about the
survey.
> SOLAR UPDATE
Tad "Until the Sun comes up over Santa Monica Boulevard
" Cook, K7RA, reports: The
predicted Field Day geomagnetic storm never appeared, although
conditions were unsettled leading up to last weekend. The planetary A
index was 7 on Saturday and Sunday, while the mid-latitude A index
numbers were 5 and 6. The average daily sunspot numbers for the week
were down 13 points compared to the previous week, and average daily
solar flux was off by more than 7 points. The predicted solar flux for
the near term is quite a bit lower than recent numbers; the forecast
shows solar flux at 87 for June 30-July 4, then 85 on July 5-7, 88 on
July 8-9, 92 and 96 on July 10-11, and 100 on July 12-15. The expected
planetary A index is 5, 8, 10, 12 and 8 on June 30-July 4, 5 on July
5-7, 7 on July 8-9, and 5 again on July 10-18. Look for more
information on the ARRL website on Friday, July 1. For more information
concerning radio propagation, visit the ARRL Technical Information
Service Propagation page
. This week's "Tad
Cookism" is brought to you by Sheryl Crow's All I Wanna Do (Is Have
Some Fun)
.
> + AMATEUR RADIO AMOUR: DO WE GET BONUS POINTS FOR THIS?
When you think about ARRL Field Day, a few things come to mind:
food, radios, food, antennas, food and friends. And food. But one
couple took things a little bit further when they got married at their
Field Day site. Kevin Shissler, K1FQ, and Debra Hubbard, N1FQ, both of
Cherryfield, Maine, love Field Day so much that they decided it was the
perfect place to share their love for each other -- and for Amateur
Radio. Wearing their 2011 ARRL Field Day shirts, they tied the knot on
June 25 in Deblois, Maine at the shared Field Day site of the Ellsworth
Amateur Wireless Association (EAWA ) and Narraguagus
Bay Amateur Radio Club. In April 2010, Hubbard donated 60 percent of
her liver to co-worker Jan Watson, and now Watson had her chance to
return the favor -- she officiated the wedding.
> + ARRL TO CLOSE IN OBSERVANCE OF FOURTH OF JULY
ARRL Headquarters will be closed in observance of Independence Day
on Monday, July 4. There will be no W1AW bulletin or code practice
transmissions that day.
League Headquarters will reopen Tuesday, July 5 at 8 AM Eastern
Daylight Time. We wish everyone a safe and festive holiday weekend.
> THIS WEEK ON THE RADIO
This week:
- July 1 -- RAC Canada Day Contest
- July 2-3 -- Venezuelan Independence Day Contest; DL-DX RTTY Contest;
PODXS 070 Club 40 Meter Firecracker Sprint (local time)
- July 3 -- DARC 10 Meter Digital Contest
- July 4-5 -- Michigan QRP July 4th CW Sprint
- July 4-10 -- 10-10 International Spirit of 76 QSO Party
- July 5 -- ARS Spartan Sprint
Next week:
- July 8 -- QRP Fox Hunt
- July 9 -- FISTS Summer Sprint
- July 9-10 -- IARU HF World Championship
- July 10 -- SKCC Weekend Sprint; ARCI Summer Homebrew Sprint
- July 13-14 -- CWops Mini-CWT Test
All dates, unless otherwise stated, are UTC. See the ARRL Contest
Branch page , the ARRL Contest Update
and the WA7BNM Contest
Calendar for more
information. Looking for a Special Event station? Be sure to check out
the ARRL Special Event Stations Web page
.
> UPCOMING ARRL SECTION, STATE AND DIVISION CONVENTIONS AND EVENTS
- July 2 -- ARRL Eastern Pennsylvania Section Convention
,
Marysville, Pennsylvania
- July 15-17 -- ARRL Montana State Convention
,
Essex, Montana
- July 29-30 -- ARRL Oklahoma State Convention
,
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
- August 5-6 -- ARRL Texas State Convention
,
Austin, Texas
- August 5-7 -- ARRL Rocky Mountain Division Convention
,
Taos, New Mexico; ARRL Midwest Division Convention
, Cedar
Rapids, Iowa
- August 20 -- ARRL West Virginia State Convention
,
Weston, West Virginia
- August 20-21 -- ARRL Alabama State Convention
,
Huntsville, Alabama
- August 21 -- ARRL Kansas State Convention
, Salina,
Kansas
- August 28 -- ARRL Western Pennsylvania Section Convention
,
New Kensington, Pennsylvania
- September 9-11 -- ARRL Southwestern Division Convention
,
Torrance, California
- September 11 -- ARRL Great Lakes Division Convention
,
Findlay, Ohio
- September 17 -- ARRL Roanoke Division Convention
,
Virginia Beach, Virginia
- September 24 -- ARRL Washington State Convention
,
Spokane Valley, Washington
To find a convention or hamfest near you, click here
.
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