eHam.net News

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Propagation Forecast Bulletin #17 de K7RA:

Posted: 22 Apr 2016 07:53 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36635


Over the past reporting week, April 14-20, average daily sunspot
numbers rose from 32 to 40, while average daily solar flux declined
from 106.1 to 100.8. Average daily planetary A index declined from 12.4 to
10.9, but
average daily mid-latitude A index rose slightly from 8.3 to 8.9.


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Crystal Radio History On YouTube:

Posted: 22 Apr 2016 07:54 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36634


The crystal radio was widely used in the 1920s and 1930s.
Check out this video showing a number of examples of early
radios.


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Wellesley House School Ready to Host Contact Day with Astronaut Tim Peake:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 05:21 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36633


A SPACE Extravaganza will be held at Wellesley House School in Broadstairs
this Friday and Saturday. The event will include pupils having direct
contact with British astronaut Tim Peake on the International Space
Station. Schools from across the isle have been invited to join the two
days of fun which will include a buildathon where pupils will learn about,
build and use a working radio receiver which they will take back to their
own school. On Saturday Wellesley House will welcome 23 schools to join
them for the ARISS (Amateur Radio on the ISS) contact with Tim Peake. This
is thanks to the collaboration between the ARISS, the Radio Society of
Great Britain (RGSB), the UK Space Agency and the European Space Agency.


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How Can We Know 'What Hath God Wrought?'

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 05:20 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36632


During the 1840s, Samuel Morse invented a system for transmitting messages
by code over a wire laid between senders and receivers. It was called the
Morse Code. To see if his invention worked, Morse sent the first message
over an experimental line from Washington DC to Baltimore, Maryland, in May
of 1844. Transmitted as a series of dots and dashes (or dits and dahs), it
asked, "What hath God wrought?"


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Strong Solar Flare Temporarily Disrupts Radio Communications:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 05:20 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36631


While they make for stunning images, solar flares could also disturb the
atmospheric layer where GPS and communications signals travel. NASA's Solar
Dynamics Observatory captured images of a mid-level solar flare at 8:29
p.m. EDT last April 17. A loop of solar material was seen emanating off the
sun's right limb. An awe-inducing solar event, solar flares are potent
bursts of energy radiating from the surface of the sun. Once these intense
energy beams hit Earth, they can interact with the planetary magnetic field
and atmosphere, producing lights at the north and south poles. It is yet to
be known exactly what causes these flares, but it has been proposed that
the process of magnetic reconnection occurs and converts magnetic energy
into light. This prevailing theory obtained evidence in the form of
high-resolution images of an eruption in 2015, the most detailed image seen
of the formation of these events. This recent flare led to "moderate radio
blackouts" during its peak. Such blackouts only take place during the
course of a solar flare, which means they have already subsided and are no
longer a cause for worry. They are also unlikely to have a major impact on
the planet. The Space Weather Prediction Center defines a radio blackout as
the lack of capability to communicate on high-frequency bands in the 5 to
35 MHz spectral range. Lower frequency radio communications, though, may
also be substantially affected during radio blackouts. Here's how it
happens. X-rays and extreme UV light from solar flares ionize the planet's
atmosphere, causing the sun-facing ionosphere to be enhanced, which then
blocks radio signals normally reflected off this atmospheric layer. When
radio waves are successfully reflected off the ionosphere, long-distance
radio communication pushes through -- thus no radio blackout occurs.


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2016 Olympics Games Brazil and Ham Radio:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 04:51 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36630


ANATEL (Brazilian National Agency of Telecommunications) authorized foreign
radio amateurs during the 2016 Olympics Games, irrespective of reciprocity
treaties, operating stations in Brazil in the period from August 1 to
September 30, without the need for application submission to ANATEL and
without incidence taxes.


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Before Social Media:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:39 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36629


Radio was the medium that broke the silence. How many people in the room
remember what they were listening to on their bedroom radios in 1945 when
the broadcast was interrupted with the news that President Franklin D.
Roosevelt had died? This correspondent remembers. He was listening to The
Lone Ranger: "Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear!
From out of the past come the thundering hoofbeats of the great horse
Silver! The Lone Ranger rides again!" The Collection of Historical
Scientific Instruments, in the Science Center, has opened a new exhibition
in the second-floor Special Exhibition Gallery called "Radio Contact:
Tuning In to Politics, Technology and Culture." It runs through December 9
and is open to the public free of charge.


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DX News -- ARRL DX Bulletin #17:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:34 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36628


This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by
CO3JK, QRZ DX, the OPDX Bulletin, 425 DX News, The Daily DX, DXNL,
Contest Corral from QST and the ARRL Contest Calendar and WA7BNM web
sites. Thanks to all.


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This Week In Radiosport:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:34 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36627


This Week In Radiosport:


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New ARRL CEO, NY2RF, Pledges World-Class Service, Openness, Inclusiveness:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:34 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36626


The ARRL's new Chief Executive Officer Tom Gallagher, NY2RF, got down
to work on his first day in office on April 18 by promising to make the
League's foundational business processes "rock solid" and bring them up
to state of the art, which members have a right to expect.


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EchoLink VoIP Service Proving Valuable Handling Ecuador Earthquake Traffic:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:33 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36625


What you see on the news is only the tip of the iceberg of what really
happened as a result of the devastating April 16 earthquake in Ecuador,
Michigan physician Rick Dorsch, NE8Z/HC1MD, told ARRL. Since the 7.8
magnitude quake hit while most people were at home finishing dinner,
"thousands of people" remain buried in the rubble of collapsed
buildings, he said, although some have been found alive.


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You Have an Appointment With the Doctor!

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:31 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36624


A new episode of "ARRL The Doctor is in" podcast is available now: Does CW
Really Get Through When Nothing Else
Can?


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National Parks On the Air Update:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:31 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36623


National Parks Week is April 16-24, and NPOTA activity is through the roof!
Saturday, April 23, offers two events:


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Ham Radio Praised Following Participation in WA Interoperability Exercise:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:29 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36622


Amateur Radio came in for high praise following its role in a March 30
to April 3 Washington National Guard interoperability communication
exercise, sponsored by the US Northern Command. The so-called "Vital
Connection-Cascadia 2016" exercise was aimed at improving
interoperability among Department of Defense entities, federal, state,
and local first responders, and Amateur Radio operators.
Interoperability was tested on 5 MHz frequencies. The spring drill was
a run-up to June's "Cascadia Rising/Vigilant Guard/Ardent Sentry"
exercise. It included voice and data radio and satellite communication
plus video integration from airborne assets.


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US ARDF Champions Now Looking Toward Sept. World Championships in Bulgaria:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:29 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36621


The results of the
United States 16th national championships of Amateur Radio Direction Finding
(ARDF), held earlier this month in Central Texas, are now in the record
books.


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On-The-Air Activity to Highlight International Marconi Day on April 23:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:28 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36620


Around-the-world Amateur Radio activity will mark the 29th annual
International Marconi Day (IMD), a 24-hour
event held annually to celebrate the anniversary of wireless pioneer
Guglielmo Marconi's birth on April 25, 1874. IMD is observed each year
on a Saturday close to Marconi's birthday, and this year it will be
observed on Saturday, April 23, with many special event stations on the air
-- some operating from
Marconi-related sites that count as points toward the Marconi Award.
Certificates are available for both transmitting stations and shortwave
listeners (SWLs).


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The 'Other' Heard Island DXpedition -- VK0LD:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:27 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36619


The recently ended Heard Island VK0EK DXpedition logged more than 75,000
contacts, but the brief, under-the-radar,
contemporaneous VK0LD operation also put a new one into a few more
logs. VK0EK logistics team member Mike Coffey, KJ4Z, operated as VK0LD
from California, remotely controlling one of the VK0EK Elecraft K3S
operating positions.


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In Brief...

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 02:27 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36618


Islands on the Air (IOTA) Management Shifts to Not-For-Profit Company:
Following agreement with the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB),
management of the Islands on the Air (IOTA) program has transitioned
to "Islands on the
Air (IOTA) Ltd," a new not-for-profit company.


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Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2008, April 22, 2016:

Posted: 21 Apr 2016 05:19 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/36617


The following is a QST. Hams mobilize as Ecuador digs out from a deadly
earthquake. Getting on the air from Brazil just become a whole lot easier
during the Summer Olympic Games. Radio amateurs assist with elections in
West Bengal, India. And a new museum of radio science in the UK competes
for a big prize. All this and more in Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2008
coming your way right now.