Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) Report 1943 - November 7 2014
Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1943 with a release date of November
7th 2014 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.
The following is a QST. China's Moon fly-by and return to earth mission is
a success, but where is the 4 M ham radio payload? Also, the latest on
sunspot activity; Australian hams to keep access to the 3.5 Gigahertz band;
Enhanced Loran comes to United Kingdom shipping ports; ARISS U.S. partners
now accepting proposals for school contacts in 2015 and the BBC announces it
Genome Project for cataloging its past. Find out the details are on Amateur
Radio Newsline report number 1942 coming your way right now.
(Billboard Cart Here)
**
HAM RADIO IN SPACE: 4M MOON FLY-BY MISSION HAS COME TO AN END
The epic voyage of the 4M ham radio Lunar fly-by mission has come to an end
as we hear from Amateur Radio Newsline's Heather Embee, KB3TZD:
--
The Lux Space Manfred Memorial Moon Mission, nicknamed 4M that circled the
Moon on October 28th is now in Earth orbit. At least it was as of November
3rd as reported in a post to the Lux Space mission blog.
From the information available as we go to air, the 4 M Amateur Radio
payload was attached to the upper stage of a Chinese Long March 3C rocket.
Its primary payload was the Chang'e 5-T1 which is a prototype of a Mars
lander capsule with the ability to safely return to Earth. Both completed
the loop around the moon early on October 28th and headed back toward our
home planet. As widely reported the Chang'e 5-T1 made it safely through the
Earth's atmosphere without any real heat damage. It touched down at 22:42
UTC on October 31 in Inner Mongolia.
But before that, it appears that the 4 M payload was separated from the Long
March and injected into an elliptical Earth orbit averaging around 24,800
miles with a inclination of 50 degrees. It reached perigee early Sunday
morning November 2nd with good JT65 digital signals heard over Europe on
145.980 MHz. At that time, Lux Space estimated that the 4M payload had
enough power left for another 2 to 3 days of operation. Also noted was that
the Dosimeter experiment called DRALUX had stopped functioning.
Exactly what's next for the 4M payload can only bee speculated. Being self
contained with no solar charging ability it wills more than likely go QRT if
that has not taken place by now. If you happen to locate its signal, Lux
Space would appreciate getting activity reports. They go via the mission
client program that can be downloaded at tinyurl.com/4M-online-report
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Heather Embee, KB3TZD, in Berwick,
Pennsylvania.
--
While there is likely a lot more to this story, there is no doubt that the 4
M amateur radio Lunar fly-by will go into the history books as a first for
ham radio in space. (Lux Space Blog, published news reports)
**
PROPAGATION: NASA RELEASES VIDEO OF SOLAR FLARES FIRING FROM MONSTER SUNSPOT
NASA has released a video showing eight days of solar flares produced by the
largest sunspot in the past two dozen years. Known as AR 2192, the video is
a time lapse that shows its X-class flares in both visible and ultraviolet
light using images taken by the Solar Dynamics Observatory Atmospheric
Imaging Assembly Instrument. As previously reported here on Amateur Radio
Newsline, the massive sunspot, which has now rotated away from Earth,
produced of the most powerful X-class flares between October 19th and the
27th, plus many more medium-class flares during that same period. The video
is on-line several places including YoyuTube at tinyurl.com/sunspot-AR2192.
Another version with graphics and a musical background is at
tinyurl.com/sunspot-AR2192-video (spacereporter.com)
**
PROPAGATION: NEW SUNSPOT AR2205 ROTATING TOWARD EARTH
Meantime, a new sunspot region, designated AR 2205, has already produced
four medium M-class flares and is rotating in Earth's direction. AR 2205
unleashed the flares including one rated M6. That flare was recorded by
NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory on November 3rd at 22:40 UTC. Sunspot AR
2205 has also produced several Coronal Mass Ejections though these did not
head toward our planet. Observers at the Space Weather Prediction Center are
monitoring it carefully. For the latest updates take your web browser to
spaceweather.com. (space.com, spaceweather.com)
**
RESTRUCTURING: AUSTRALIA TO KEEP 3.5 GHZ HAM RADIO STATUS QUO
Radio amateurs down-under engaged in microwave work can breathe a sigh of
relief. This as the Australian Communications and Media Authority or ACMA
decides to retain the existing mix of spectrum licensing arrangements in the
3.5 GHz band.
Earlier this year the Australian Minister for Communications, Malcolm
Turnbull issued a draft direction to the telecommunications regulator to
enable licensing of 3.5 GHz to the National Broadband Network or NBN in major
mainland cities.
The draft direction document specified that the ACMA look at a 25 MHz block
at 3400 to 3425 MHz and a 50 MHz block at 3492.5 to 3542.5 MHz. The 3.5 GHz
spectrum band was identified for possible reallocation so the NBN had a
'spectrum gap' to fill in the outskirts of metropolitan areas affecting
80,000 homes and businesses.
But in issuing its decision the telecommunications regulator stated that
after taking into account the commentary submissions received and
developments that have occurred since then, the ACMA has decided to maintain
existing licensing arrangements in the band. That means the retention of
Amateur Radio as a secondary user of the band. The issue attracted 24
submissions. (VK3PC)
**
RESTRUCTURING: BRAZIL TO EXTEND FM BROADCAST BAND DOWNWARD TO 76 MHZ
The FM Radio Data System website reports that some countries appear to be
planning to extend the FM broadcast band downward. According to a web post,
Brazilian telecommunications regulator ANATEL was contacted and it confirmed
the planned extension of the FM band down to 76 MHz. It was noted that there
will be a problem with the Radio Data System operating in the range 76 to
87.5 MHz however with implementation of RDS2.0 this could likely be solved.
The entire story is on-line at tinyurl.com/brazil-band-extension. The same
website also notes that China plans to extend broadcast FM radio down to 64
MHz. (Southgate)
**
DX UP-FRONT: PANGOR ISLAND NOVEMBER 8 - 9
In DX up-front late word that the 9M2SE Pangor Island operation is likely
taking place as some of you hear this newscast. The latest word is that this
Island Islands On The Air operation was slated to begin at Zero Hundred hours
UTC on November 8th and end precisely 24 hours later on November 9th. The
group has also announced that Pangor will be its last DXpedition and Islands
on the Air activation. After it concludes the organization will be dissolved.
QSL via the 9M2SE information on QRZ.com. (9M2SE Team)
**
DX UP FRONT: BOUVET ISLAND - JANUARY to APRIL 2016
ON4WW reports that he has been granted permission by the Norwegian Polar
Institute to land and live on Bouvet Island during the mid-January until
mid-April of 2016. The sole purpose of this operation will be to provide
contacts with Bouvet which is currently ranked number three on the various
DXCC Most Wanted Lists. During his time on Bouvet, ON4WW hopes to make at
least 100,000 QSO's using CW, SSB and RTTY on all of the High Frequency
bands. There is however one caveat: Whether or not this DXpedition will take
place depends on raising the necessary funding. More is on the web at
www.on4ww.be/bouvet2016.html (OPDX)
**
BREAK 1
Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio Newsline,
heard on bulletin stations around the world including the WB5RAP repeater
serving Purcell, Oklahoma.
(5 sec pause here)
**
RESCUE RADIO: UK TO USE WW2 TECHNOLOGY TO BACK UP GPS IN THE UK
Technology developed during World War Two is to be used as a back-up for
GPS. This after the United Kingdom's General Lighthouse Authorities
announces that it has installed a system called enhanced or e Loran in seven
ports across Britain. Amateur Radio Newsline's Don Wilbanks, AE5DW, reports:
--
The United Kingdom's General Lighthouse Authorities says that many critical
instruments on ships use Global Navigation Satellite Systems also known by
the acronym GPS. It says that if GPS were to fail the consequences could be
disastrous. But says the General Lighthouse Authorities, the new system,
which uses proven technology dating back to the 1940's is ground rather than
satellite-based and is designed to be used in the event of a GPS failure.
Testing for eLoran has taken place in Felixstowe which is the busiest
container port in the UK. Each year some three million cargo containers are
brought into this port on some of the biggest ships in the world.
According to Wikipedia, LORAN is an acronym for Long Range Navigation. The
system was developed in the United States during World War II and was similar
to the UK's GEE system but operated at lower frequencies in order to provide
improved range up to 1,500 miles.
As an aside, it's a pity this story didn't get released just before June 6th
this year, the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings on the northern France
coast. The original system was used to assist the mine clearance operations
in the English Channel so that the invading fleet could reach the shore with
the minimum of casualties. A 'Ghost' slave station was also put into
operation at the same time to make the Germans think that the real invasion
was to be at the Pas de Calais and the Straits of Dover and that the Normandy
landings were purely a diversionary tactic. How wrong they were..!
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Don Wilbanks, AE5DW, in New Orleans.
--
An in-depth look at the return of this 20th century navigation system here
in the 21st century can be found at tinyurl.com/e-loran-return. A full
explanation of the development, implementation and demise of the original
system is at wikipedia.org/wiki/LORAN (G7VFY, G8AUU, Southgate, BBC,
Wikipedia)
**
RESCUE RADIO: HAM RADIO ASSISTS IN AT SEA RESCUE
When the sailing ship Hale Revenge ran into trouble in the Pacific it turned
to ham radio as we hear in this report:
--
Larry Lecrone (WW6USA) called to report that he was monitoring one of the
ham radio emergency projects known as the Maritme Net which is continually
monitored by a series of volunteer radio operators across the country.
While monitoring that net on Sunday night he served as back-up when another
amateur radio operator on board a sailing vessel adrift in the Pacific was
taking on water in nearly 60-foot seas nearly 800 miles west of the
California-Oregon border. That vessel wanted to declare an emergency but was
having trouble contacting the Coast Guard. The ham that took the call
notified the Coast Guard and served as a relay between them and the
distressed vessel.
The Coast Guard sent out an HT-130 aircraft from the Point Reyes Coast Guard
Air Station in California. The ham Maritime Net operator instructed the
sailboat to activate their Emergency Locator Beacon.
A container cargo ship; the 965 foot the Hyundai Grace was in the region and
responded to that beacon signal and rescued all on board that sailboat which
was on its way from Honolulu to Everett, Washington, when it was damaged by
high winds and seas.
Ken Bass, KALH Spectrum News from Alamogordo, New Mexico, reporting.
--
The ham radio gear on board the 32 foot vessel that was an ICOM IC-718
transceiver. Nathan Stickel, NH7FS, is reported to have been the ham radio
operator on the voyage.
(WW7USA with audio report provided by Ken Bass of KALH Spectrum News )
**
RESCUE RADIO: OKLAHOMA HAMS GET TRAINING IN AUXILLIARY COMMUNICATIONS
About 23 hams from the state of Oklahoma attended a special Auxiliary
Communications Class held the weekend of November 1st and 2nd in the city of
Altus. According to Lloyd Colston, KC5FM, who is Altus Emergency Management
Director, the attendees represented faith based groups, Community Emergency
Response Teams, the American Radio Relay League, the Military Auxiliary Radio
System, and local government.
Colston says that the class covered numerous topics including how to use
volunteers and how amateur radio operators are technical specialists to
mention only two. Instructors were amateur radio operators with one being a
member of the Military Auxiliary Radio System as well as a division director
for the American Radio Relay League. KC5FM added that the class also
received Homeland Security training. (KC5FM)
**
RESCUE RADIO: BROADCASTERS AND CABLE VS DISABILITY ADVOCATES ON EAS TEXT
Trade groups have told the FCC that its proposed new guidelines for the text
that crawls at the top of the screen during a flood, snowstorm or other
emergency are not necessary and could be expensive but disability advocacy
groups are not buying that position. Amateur Radio Newsline's Stephan
Kinford, N8WB, takes a look at the issue:
--
The FCC is said to be working on new guidelines for the text that runs
during an emergency alert. This, as part of its broader overhaul of the
emergency system that will create a new location code for transmitting
emergency messages nationwide.
But says the National Cable and Telecommunications Association the current
cable systems generally display visual crawls that are readable by viewers,
that do not pass too quickly, and continue throughout the duration of the
Emergency Alert Service activation. The NCTA added that standardizing the
appearance of Emergency Alert Service messages for speed and size is
unnecessary to address accessibility concerns and would lead to significant
cost with little benefit.
On the other side of the argument a coalition of disability advocacy
organizations has strongly recommended a standardized system of emergency
messages. One that included slower text crawl speed and larger size
characters.
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Stephen Kinford, N8WB, reporting.
--
At airtime it is not known if or when the FCC will take action on this item.
(The Hill)
**
RADIO READING: LATEST CQ-DATV MAGAZINE IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR FREE DOWNLOAD
The November issue of the CQ-DATV e-magazine is now available for free
download. The new issue contains the latest amateur television news from
around the world, an editorial, Ian Abel, G3ZHI, that asks why ATV repeaters
do not have internet inputs, a simple microwave detector for 10 GHz by John
Hudson G3RFL and much more. Those interested can find this issue and those
of previous months at tinyurl.com/datv-november-2014. (CQ-DATV)
**
NAMES IN THE NEWS: KI4LA RECEIVES KENTUCKY HISTORICAL SOCIETY AWARD
Some names in the news. First up is former ARRL Great Lakes Division
Director Gary Johnston, KI4LA, who has been named as the recipient of the
Kentucky Historical Society's 2014 Award of Distinction.
KI4LA is president of the Board of Trustees of the Behringer-Crawford Museum
in Covington, Kentucky. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer newspaper,
since joining the board of trustees in 2003, Johnston has had a significant
impact on the museum and the communities it serves.
The article also notes that during thousands of volunteer hours, he
redesigned and upgraded the museum's computer systems, chaired the committee
that revamped its organizational structure, and helped secure more than $2.3
million dollars in funding to complete the museum's major expansion which
opened in 2007. (ARRL, Cincinnati Enquirer)
**
NAMES IN THE NEWS: M0PHI NEW CHAIR OF RSGB TRAINING AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
The Radio Society of Great Britain has announced the appointment of Philip
Willis, M0PHI as the new Chairman of its Training and Education Committee.
Willis succeeds Steve Hartley, G0FUW in this post. (GB2RS)
**
NAMES IN THE NEWS: K6LCS FREQUENCY CHARTS GETTING READY FOR FOX-1A
Clint Bradford, K6LCS, has updated his frequency programming charts for the
so-called easy-sats to include the upcoming orbiting AMSAT-North America
FOX-1A satellite. The chart as well as a copy of JoAnne Maenpaa K9JKM's
article titled "Getting Ready for FOX-1A" are both available for downloading
at work-sat.com/Sat_Skeds.html. An easy sat is basically defined as an easy
to access and use ham radio satellite requiring a minimum of equipment for
the task. (Southgate, Facebook)
**
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)
**
WORLDBEAT: IARU REGION 1 ANNOUNCES YOUTH BUDGET FOR 2015 - 2017
Region one of the International Amateur Radio Union plans to spend roughly
$28,000 on young hams in 2015, 2016 and 2017. According to the minutes of
the recent 23rd IARU Region 1 General Conference for that time frame about
$26,000 will be spent directly on youth oriented projects with another $2000
on a new Youth Working Group that will be chaired by Lisa Leenders, PA2LS.
This Youth Working Group will organize and coordinate the Region One
Youngsters On The Air program and other Region One youth oriented activities.
(IARU R-1)
**
WORLDBEAT: IRELANDS RTE LONGWAVE CLOSURE POSTPONED TO 2015
The imminent closure of the Irish public broadcaster RTE's long wave service
has been postponed until January 19, 2015.
Its original shut down date was this past October 27th but the Managing
Director of RTE Radio, Jim Jennings, announced plans to travel to the United
Kingdom to meet with community groups affected by the loss of service.
Jennings hopes to find other solutions might be found acceptable to them.
Long wave is the only RTE radio service that reaches the United Kingdom
using RF transmission though the global Irish audience can also listen
online. The outcry over the closure was greater than expected, but Jennings
says the long wave service is still set to be shuttered early next year.
(Southgate, Radiosurvivor)
**
WORLDBEAT: SHORTWAVE'S NEWEST BROADCASTER GLOBAL 24 RADIO NOW ON THE AIR
There is a new shortwave radio broadcaster coming your way from here in the
United States. Global 24 Radio is an English language, around-the-clock,
fixed-frequency, commercial shortwave radio broadcaster, transmitting via the
facilities WRMI in Okeechobee, Florida. It began broadcasting on Friday,
October 31st at zero hundred hours UTC on 9.395 MHz. More information on the
station and a daily programming listing is at global24radio.com (Global24)
**
WORLDBEAT: CHELMSFORD CALLING TO BE BROADCAST ON SHORTWAVE
Jim Salmon, 2E0RMI, has announced that the program Chelmsford Calling will
also be relayed on shortwave by Florida-based broadcaster WRMI. Chelmsford
Calling is described as a light entertainment program produced by Salmon from
the Chelmsford Calling Network. This organization was established with the
aim of promoting past, present and future radio technology to its audience.
The first shortwave relay will take place on Friday, November 14th at 2300
UTC. More about the this show is at chelmsfordcalling.com (Chelmsford
Calling, Southgate)
**
WORLDBEAT: LOGGERS SUFFER LED LIGHTING INTERFERENCE
New Zealand telecommunications regulator Radio Spectrum Management has
identified serious cases of interference to radio communications at log
hauler sites from the operation of vehicle mounted LED lighting. The
interference is so severe that in hours of darkness where the lights are on
radio systems have become inoperable.
Due to serious safety concerns Radio Spectrum Management was requested to
investigate the situation. It conducted an audit of emergency lighting
suppliers where it was generally found that these companies were not aware of
the need to ensure their equipment met that nations necessary EMC radiation
standards. (NZ RSM, Southgate)
**
HAM RADIO IN SPACE: ARISS U.S. PARTNERS NOW ACCEPTING PROPOSALS FOR
CONTACTS IN 2015
The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station or ARISS Program is
seeking formal and informal education institutions and organizations,
individually or working together, to host an Amateur Radio contact with a
crew member on board the ISS.
ARISS anticipates that the contact would be held between May 1st and
December 31st of 2015 but as always, crew scheduling and the space stations
orbits will determine the exact contact dates. Also, to maximize these radio
contact opportunities, ARISS is looking for organizations that will draw
large numbers of participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed
education plan.
ARISS contacts can be performed in one of two ways. One is s radio link
between an amateur radio station set up in a school talking directly to the
amateur station on board the ISS. The other involve the use of a
teleconference bridge where a specific amateur radio ground station
establishes the radio link with the ISS. Voice communications between
students and the astronauts are then patched over regular telephone lines.
The ariss.org website gives details. On the home page, right below the
title is a menu line of choices. Click on "Submit a Contact Proposal" page.
The deadline to submit a proposal is December 15th. (K1STO. ARISS.org)
**
ON THE NET: DX SUMMIT GETS A NEW LOOK
The popular DX Summit website operated by Radio Arcala station OH8X is
getting a new look and a new name. As of December 1st, the site will become
My DX Summit will soon have a fresh new face and a more modern user
interface. Among the changes will be real time posting of DX spotting that
is user selectable of precisely the kind of spots that interest them. Also,
entering a spotting will be made easier through a simple dialogue box. Site
developers also note that a lot of effort is being put into having it work
with a majority of mobile devices and browsers. It's expected that the
ongoing testing procedure could result in some changes to the site before its
actual rollout. (RADIO ARCALA)
**
RADIO RESEARCH: NEW NORTHERN IRELAND 70 CM PROPAGATION BEACON
GB3NGI which is the first of the United Kingdom's new 70 centimeter
propagation beacons is now operational on 432.482MHz. The system is located
on a hilltop in Northern Ireland and is licensed for 250 watts peak envelope
power output on a 125 degree bearing. GB3NGI transmits both CW and the JT65B
digital mode. Reception reports and a coverage map are at www.beaconspot.eu.
(GB2RS)
**
ON THE AIR: CELEBRATING THE TRANSATLANTIC SAILING RACE
On the air, keep an ear open for members of the FG4KI Radio Club who are
currently operating special event station TO4R from Guadeloupe. This in
celebration of the 10th Sailing Transatlantic Race which takes place between
Saint Malo, France, and Pointe a Pitre, Guadeloupe. Stations are operational
on 160 through 6 meters using CW, SSB, RTTY and a number of digital modes.
The station will shut down on November 16th. QSL via F4AVX. (OPDX)
**
DX
In DX, DL6KVA will be active as 4K0CW from Azerbaijan between November 26th
and December 2nd. Operations will be CW only on all HF bands using 100 watts
into a long wire. He also plans to participate in the CQ World Wide DX CW
Contest on November 29th and 30th. QSL via DL6KVA via the bureau or
electronically using Logbook of the World.
DL7DF will be on holiday in Senegal through November 13th operating slash
6W. Operations are 160 through 10 meters using CW, SBB, RTTY, PSK31 and SSTV.
QSL via DL7DF, direct or by the DARC Bureau.
RV3MA will be operational from Morocco as CN2MA until December 1st. QSL
both callsigns via UA2FM.
JA0JHQ will be active stroke FK from New Calidonia between November 21st
through the 24th. Operations will be limited to the High Frequency bands
using CW and SSB. QSL via his home callsign.
Lastly, UT5UGR will be active as FM stroke KL7WA from Martinique between
November 24th and December 1st. Activity will likely be on all HF bands
except 30, 17 and 12 meters and the digital modes. Also look for him to be
active during the CQ World Wide DX CW Contest signing as TO7A. QSL both
callsigns via UT5UGR.
(This weeks DX news courtesy of the Ohio-Penn DX Newsletter)
**
THAT FINAL ITEM: BBC UNVEILS ITS GENOME PROJECT
And finally this week, the British Broadcasting Corporation has announced
the launch of what it calls the BBC Genome. This is a comprehensive project
that's aimed at publishing a comprehensive history of every radio and TV
program ever broadcast by the Corporation.
Launched in beta test format, the BBC Genome lets viewers and listeners
search millions of programs, cast details, writers and transmission dates of
past BBC shows as listed in 4469 editions of Radio Times. The project scanned
350,622 pages and 4,423,653 program records from Radio Times between 1923 and
2009.
The next phase of the project will look at capturing regional and national
variations and changes to the planned broadcast schedules. More is on the
web at tinyurl.com/BBC-genome
(BBC)
**
NEWSCAST CLOSE
With thanks to Alan Labs, AMSAT, the ARRL, CQ Magazine, the FCC, the Ohio
Penn DX Bulletin, Rain, the RSGB, the South African Radio League, the
Southgate News, TwiT-TV, Australia's WIA News and you our listeners, 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 Skeeter
Nash, N5ASH, saying 73 and we thank you for listening.
Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2014. All rights reserved.
***
As a Service to the HAM Radio Community and HAM Operators all over the
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We hope you enjoyed it!
Please address all comments and questions to the ARNewsletter editor as
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