***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 28, No. 27
July 10, 2009
***************

IN THIS EDITION:

* + ARRL Board of Directors, Standing Committees to Meet in Connecticut
Next Week
* + ARRL Teachers Institute: "It Is Elementary, It Is Advanced, It Is
Something for Everyone"
* + August QST on the Way to Your Mailbox
* + IARU Member-Societies On-The-Air for IARU HF World Championship
* + 500 kHz Experimenters in North America, Europe Get Active
* + New Section Manager Appointed in Ohio
* Solar Update
* IN BRIEF:
This Week on the Radio
ARRL Continuing Education Course Registration
+ Six New Co-sponsors Pledge Support for HR 2160
Tenth Annual "Night of Nights" On-The-Air July 12
NTS Official Jim Leist, KB5W (SK)

+Available on ARRL Audio News http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/

================================================== =========
==Delivery problems: First see FAQ
http://www.arrl.org/members-only/faq.html#nodelivery, then e-mail

==Editorial questions or comments only: S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA

================================================== =========

== ARRL BOARD OF DIRECTORS, STANDING COMMITTEES TO MEET IN CONNECTICUT
NEXT WEEK

The ARRL Board of Directors holds its second meeting of 2009 July 17-18
in Windsor, Connecticut, with Directors, Vice Directors and ARRL Board
officers in attendance. The meeting will be preceded on Thursday, July
16 with meetings of the Administration and Finance Committee and the
Programs and Services Committee.

The Administration and Finance Committee is chaired by Northwestern
Division Director Jim Fenstermaker, K9JF. This committee will review the
League's financial performance for the first half of the year and will
receive the report of the outside auditors.


The Programs and Services Committee, headed by Midwest Division Director
Bruce Frahm, K0BJ, studies, advises and makes recommendations for all
programs and services provided by the League, including operating
activities and the Field Organization. "All three Advisory Committees --
DX, Contest and VHF/UHF Contest -- have been busy since the last board
meeting," Frahm said. "The PSC appreciates their deliberations on behalf
of their stakeholders. Through a number of annual ARRL award programs,
we have the pleasure of presenting motions to the board to recognize
hams for their superior instruction, technical excellence, outstanding
publicity and other achievements. The Emergency Preparedness and
Response program, and EmComm issues in general, are taking more of the
committee's time as we work to ensure maximum effectiveness of staff and
volunteer efforts to work with served agencies. The PSC is excited about
the upcoming release of the Advanced ARECC EmComm course (replacing
Levels II and III) http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html with a new
syllabus and some innovative presentation methods. We also look forward
to the availability of a couple more awards via Logbook of the World
(LoTW) http://www.arrl.org/lotw/. This online QSO confirmation tool is
ever more popular. These are some of the interesting and challenging
issues the committee will discuss."

The second day of the meeting will be devoted to a review and updating
of the ARRL Strategic Plan. Per the Articles of Association
http://www.arrl.org/aabl.html, the ARRL Board of Directors meets twice
a year, in January and July.

== ARRL TEACHERS INSTITUTE: "IT IS ELEMENTARY, IT IS ADVANCED, IT IS
SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE"

Four sessions of the ARRL's Teachers Institute on Wireless Technology
wrapped up in June http://www.arrl.org/FandES/tbp/ti.html. These
sessions -- in Tucson, Arizona; Rocklin, California; Viera, Florida, and
Berrien Springs, Michigan -- saw 52 educators complete the four day
course. The California and Arizona sessions were held simultaneously,
marking the first time that the ARRL has offered simultaneous sessions
of the popular summer program for teachers. According to Education and
Technology Program Coordinator Mark Spencer, WA8SME, the addition of two
new TI instructors made it possible to hold two sessions at the same
time. "With Miguel Enriquez, KD7RPP, and Nathan McCray, K9CPO, on
board," Spencer said, "we are able to hold more sessions, and in turn,
involve more teachers in the process of bringing wireless technology
into their classrooms."

Tucson, Arizona -- June 15-18
At Pueblo Magnet High School in Tucson, Enriquez led a group of 16 local
teachers through the four day curriculum that includes basic
electronics, the science of radio, space in the classroom,
microcontroller programming and basic robotics. The class included nine
math teachers from Pueblo, three special education teachers from Pueblo,
one 4th grade teacher from a feeder elementary school to Pueblo, two
graduate students/teaching assistants in fields involving electronics
from University Medical Center (University of Arizona teaching hospital)
and one University of Arizona employee commissioned to work with area
schools and recruit high school students into space, science and
mathematics programs at the University of Arizona.

"The majority of the participants had expressed an interest in learning
electronics," Enriquez said. "In the coming year, I plan on following up
the introduction they received at the TI by teaching electronics as part
of a professional development program."

Enriquez said that each of the teachers will refer students whom they
believe will be interested in ham radio to his "Radio, Space and
Wireless Technologies" class he will begin teaching this fall: "Several
teachers who have that period as their planning period also stated they
would drop by to see the students in action and perhaps even help
teach!"

Enriquez said that there are 16 "really excited teachers in Tucson right
now. I intend to do everything I can to get them all involved in the
application of the knowledge and procedures they learned this week. The
only way we can really make the Teachers Institutes ultra successful is
to coordinate a cadre of teachers who understand and apply the knowledge
and tools the Teachers Institutes provides. Teacher collaboration is
essential toward this endeavor."

Rocklin, California -- June 15-18
Spencer conducted the Teachers Institute held at the Parallax facility
in Rocklin. "This group is more geographically diverse than the Tucson
group," he said, "with teachers from nine states from coast to coast."

Since the Tucson and Rocklin sessions were held at the same time,
Spencer said "we tried to connect the teachers in the Tucson session
with the teachers in the California session via an AO-27 contact;
satellites are part of the space in the classroom unit. Unfortunately,
this was not successful due to unforeseen complications with accessing
the satellite; however, a later attempt to demonstrate ham radio space
technology was successful."

Viera, Florida -- June 23-26
Fourteen educators took part in the Teachers Institute in Florida, also
led by Spencer. "This group was predominantly from the Southeastern US,
but a few participants joined the group from Missouri and Virginia," he
said. "The class was evenly split between male and female teachers. All
grade levels were represented and six participants were either old-time
hams or recently licensed in preparation for the Teachers Institute."

Spencer said to make the AO-27 satellite contact, they used call sign
W1AW/4. "The weather even cooperated, and though hot and humid, the fox
hunt outdoor activity went off without a hitch -- including a tornado
warning that occurred the morning of the outdoor activities," he said.

"Thanks for everything. It was elementary it was advanced, it is
something for everyone," one educator told Spencer. "I know I will be
incorporating many of your topics into the classroom."

One of the participants summarized the experience simply: "This was the
best in-service course that we have ever attended -- and we have
attended a lot!"

Berrien Springs, Michigan -- June 29-July 2
McCray led 10 educators through the Teachers Institute at the Berrien
Regional Education Service in Michigan. "I had a class that was half men
and half women," he said. "Most were from the Midwest, but we did have
two from New York State, one from California and one from South
Carolina. We had representatives from all walks of the education world:
Two elementary teachers, five junior high teachers, two high school
teachers and one college professor. Only four were hams and two of them
have expired licenses. The electronics knowledge level was low, but they
were motivated and proved to be a joy to teach all week."

McCray said that the highlights of the week included a successful AO-27
contact and multiple contacts on 2 meters with local children who were
attending a camp. "The work with the VOMs, protoboard and building the
boe-bots were also big hits," he said. "We also went quite deep with the
'What's a Microcontroller?' unit."

One of the teachers told McCray that the Teachers Institute has changed
the way she will present her curriculum. "I have been inspired to pursue
my Technician license and to add more hands-on electronics activities
into my 9th grade physical science class," the teacher said. "I would
also like to set up a ham station in my school."

Another teacher called the Teachers Institute a "most rewarding
experience. There is so much I learned about robotics, weather and ham
radio operation. I have so much information to take back to the
classroom and share with my students and fellow staff members. Thank you
for this opportunity!"

A session of the ARRL Teachers Institute wrapped up Thursday, July 9 in
Dayton, Ohio. The last session will take place at ARRL Headquarters on
July 27-30.

== AUGUST QST ON THE WAY TO YOUR MAILBOX

The August issue of QST is jam-packed with the news and information that
today's Amateur Radio operator needs. From product reviews to
experiments to contesting, the upcoming issue of QST has something for
just about everyone. This issue also features the 2008 DXCC Honor Roll.

Allen Baker, KG4JJH, doesn't let the lack of sunspot activity get in the
way of chasing DX. Find out his solution in his article "A 10 Meter
Moxon Beam." Larry Cicchinelli, K3PTO, shows a compact way to power your
equipment in his article "Four Output Bench Supply." If you like to
operate from your car, you won't want to miss "The Ignition Switch" by
Wayne Mahnker, WA5LUY.

Is your Amateur Radio club looking to get for publicity for your events?
Check out "Putting Ham Radio in the Cable Spotlight" by ARRL Chief
Operating Officer Harold Kramer, WJ1B, for some tips. In August, QST
goes to new heights with two articles featuring high altitudes: "QRP
from the Top of the Maritimes" by Mark Volstad, AI4BJ, and "Ham Radio in
the Air" by Eskil van Loosdrecht, AB6BC/SM5SRR.

In his monthly column "This Month in Contesting," ARRL Contest Branch
Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X, discusses club participation in contests:
"There are several reasons to join a contesting club," he tells readers.
"Making new friends, meeting people to operate contests with and maybe
even finding a little extra muscle when it's time to put up your tower
are just a few. Contest clubs also combine their members' individual
scores and enter many events in the Club Competition, hoping to win a
commemorative gavel for their efforts." The results of the 2009 ARRL
International DX CW Contest are also in the August issue. Find out about
upcoming contests in this month's Contest Corral.

QST Editor Steve Ford, WB8IMY, reviews the Alinco DJ-175T 2 meter FM
handheld transceiver. Ford said that the "Alinco DJ-T175T is a compact
handheld with more than enough power (and features) to satisfy the needs
of most hams. At around $99, it's a standout among low-cost handhelds."
QST Product Review Editor Mark Wilson, K1RO, reviews four switching
power supplies, saying "all of these supplies effortlessly deliver high
current for your transceiver and accessories and include voltage and
current metering and protection circuits. Although all of them have low
conducted emissions (which can cause interference to your receiver) in
the amateur bands, there are some significant differences at low
frequencies."

Of course, there are the columns you know and expect in the August QST:
Hints & Kinks, The Doctor Is IN, Amateur Radio World, How's DX, Vintage
Radio, Hamspeak and more. Look for your August issue of QST in your
mailbox. QST is the official journal of ARRL, the national association
for Amateur Radio. QST is just one of the many benefits of ARRL
membership. To join or renew your ARRL membership, please see the ARRL
Web page http://www.arrl.org/join.

== IARU MEMBER-SOCIETIES ON-THE-AIR FOR IARU HF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

In this weekend's IARU HF World Championship Contest
http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2009/07/02/10934/?nc=1, IARU
Member-Societies from all around the globe will be active and operating
with special call signs. According to ARRL Contest Branch Manager Sean
Kutzko, KX9X, many of these call signs end in HQ, designating a national
headquarters station; these can be worked as special multipliers in the
contest. Kutzko said that IARU Administrative Council members will also
be on and can also be worked for special multiplier credit: "If you hear
a station giving R1, R2, R3 or AC as their contest exchange, that
station represents part of the IARU Administrative Council or regional
Executive Committee."

The Daily DX http://www.dailydx.com/ has compiled a chart listing all
of the known IARU Member Society call signs that are scheduled to be
on-the-air for the contest:

PREFIX CALL SIGN/IARU MEMBER SOCIETY COUNTRY
4L 4L0HQ (NARG) Georgia
5N 5N0HQ (NARS) Nigeria
9K 9K9HQ (KARS) Kuwait
9Y 9Y4HQ (TTARS) Trinidad and Tobago
9Y 9Y4NED (EC R2) Trinidad and Tobago
AT AT1HQ (ARSI) India
BV BV0HQ (CTARL) Taiwan
BY B1HQ (CRSA) China
BY B3HQ (CRSA) China
BY B4HQ (CRSA) China
BY B5HQ (CRSA) China
BY B7HQ (CRSA) China
CE CE3HQ or XR3HQ (RCC) Chile
CO T40C (FRC) Cuba
CT CR5HQ (REP) Portugal
CX CX1AAA (RCU) Uruguay
DL DA0HQ (DARC) Germany
DU DX1HQ (PARA) Philippines
E7 E7HQ (BA) Bosnia-Herzegovina
EA8 AO8HQ (URE) Canary Islands (Spain)
EM EM5HQ (UARL) Ukraine
F TM0HQ (REF) France
G/GM/GW G3PSM (EC R1) Great Britain
G/GM/GW GB7HQ (RSGB) Great Britain
HB9 HB9HQ (USKA) Switzerland
HB9 HB9JOE (EC R1) Switzerland
HL HL0HQ (KARL) South Korea
HR HQ2W (RCH) Honduras
HS HS0AC (RAST) Thailand
I IU1HQ (ARI) Italy
I IU2HQ (ARI) Italy
I IU4HQ (ARI) Italy
I IU5HQ (ARI) Italy
I IU8HQ (ARI) Italy
I IU9HQ (ARI) Italy
JA 8N1HQ (JARL) Japan
JA 8N2HQ (JARL) Japan
JA 8N3HQ (JARL) Japan
JA 8N4HQ (JARL) Japan
JA 8N8HQ (JARL) Japan
JY JY6HQ (RJRAS) Jordan
KH6 NU1AW/KH6 (IARU) USA (Hawaii)
KL7 W1AW/KL7 (ARRL) USA (Alaska)
LA LA2RR (AC) Norway
LA LN2HQ (NRRL) Norway
LU L4RD (RCA) Argentina
LU LU2AH (EC R2) Argentina
LX LX0HQ (RL) Luxembourg
LY LY0HQ (LRMD) Lithuania
LZ LZ1US (EC R1) Bulgaria
LZ LZ7HQ (BFRA) Bulgaria
OD OD5TE (EC R1) Lebanon
OE OE1A (OVSV) Austria
OH OH2HQ (SARL) Finland
OK OL9HQ (CRC) Czech Republic
ON OP0HQ (UBA) Belgium
OZ OZ1HQ (EDR) Denmark
P4 P40HQ (AARC) Aruba
PA PA6HQ (VERON) Netherlands
PY PT2ADM (EC R2) Brazil
R R0HQ (SRR) Russia
S5 S50HQ (ZRS) Slovenia
SM SK9HQ (SSA) Sweden
SP SN0HQ (PZK) Poland
SV SX0HQ (RAAG) Greece
TG TG9AGD (EC R2) Guatemala
UN UN1HQ (KFFR) Kazakhstan
VE VE6SH (AC) Canada
VK VK7WI (WIA) Australia
VR2 VR2HK (HARTS) Hong Kong
W K1ZZ (AC) USA
W W6ROD (EC R2) USA
XE XE1KK (AC) Mexico
XE XE1LM (FMRE) Mexico
XX9 XX9A (ARM) Macau
YL YL4HQ (LRAL) Latvia
YO YR0HQ (FRR) Romania
YV YV5AJ (RCV) Venezuela
YV YV5AMH (EC R2) Venezuela
Z3 Z30HQ (RSM) Macedonia
ZL ZL2AZ (EC R3) New Zealand
ZL ZL6HQ (NZART) New Zealand
ZP ZP5AA (RCP) Paraguay
ZS ZS0HQ (SARL) South Africa
ZS ZS4BS (EC R1) South Africa

AC = IARU Administrative Council, EC = Regional Executive Committee

With HQ stations from each continent on-the-air for the contest, this
would be a great time to get your Worked All Continents Award
http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2008/09/20/10346/?nc=1.

Some stations have provided QSL information
http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2009/07/06/10947/?nc=1. The IARU HF
World Championship runs from 1200 UTC Saturday, July 11 to 1200 UTC
Sunday, July 12. For complete rules and forms, you can visit the IARU
Contest Web page http://www.iaru.org/contest.html or the ARRL Contest
Web page http://www.arrl.org/contests.

== 500 KHZ EXPERIMENTERS IN NORTH AMERICA, EUROPE GET ACTIVE

In the 500 kHz Experiment http://www.500kc.com/ quarterly report for
the period ending May 2009, Experiment Coordinator Fritz Raab, W1FR,
reported that 21 stations are currently active. The FCC's Office of
Engineering and Technology granted the WD2XSH experimental license to
the ARRL in September 2006. In this quarter, the FCC only issued one new
experimental license for 500 kHz, WF2XAU to Roy Croston, AB4OM. The FCC
renewed WD2XGI to Mike Reid, WE0H.

In the spring of 2009, hams in the WD2XSH experimental group made one
contact, bringing the total number of contacts to 336. Almost 500
reports were made to the 500 kHz Experiment's Web site, documenting 1051
hours of activity. Raab said more than 34,000 hours of activity has been
logged on the Web site since the experiment's inception. Stations do not
have to be members of the experimental team to post reception reports.

Raab said that due to increasing noise levels, activity has slowed some
on the band, but "propagation conditions have remained generally good
with a number of long distance receptions." He said that most of the
quarter's activity came from WD2XSH/6, run by Pat Hamel, W5THT, of Long
Beach, Mississippi, and WD2XSH/12, run by Mike Mussler, AI8Z, of
Nederland, Colorado.

Individuals in nine other countries hold licenses to experiment in the
500 kHz band: Sweden, Germany, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, Belgium,
Canada, Norway, Romania and Denmark.

To celebrate International Marconi Day on April 25, a Marconi official
station using Marconi equipment completed a radio contact that was
similar to those Marconi himself achieved many years ago. GB4FPR was
operated from the Fort Perch Rock Marine Radio Museum near Liverpool
http://www.gb4imd.org.uk/fortperch.htm. The operators used Marconi
marine equipment and CW, receiving a 539 report from VO1MRC in St
John's, Newfoundland http://www.ucs.mun.ca/%7Ejcraig/mrcn.html. GB4FPR
was transmitting 1 W ERP on 502 kHz and receiving the Canadian station
on 3566 kHz in this transatlantic crossband QSO.

On June 18, Norwegian coastal station LGQ in Rogaland and LM500LGN in
Bergen made a QSO on 500 kHz. LM500LGN is a special heritage license
arranged by the NRRL, Norway's IARU Member-Society, and Norkram.
According to Raab, this is the first issuance of a license specifically
for heritage operations.

Find out more information on the ARRL's 500 kHz Experiment in the
July/August 2007 issue of QEX
http://www.arrl.org/qex/2007/07/raab.pdf.

== NEW SECTION MANAGER APPOINTED IN OHIO

Frank Piper, KI8GW, of Pickerington, has been appointed Section Manager
of the ARRL Ohio Section. He will serve the balance of the term of Joe
Phillips, K8QOE; Phillips passed away on June 20
http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2009/06/22/10901/?nc=1.

Piper has moved up the ranks in ARES leadership positions by first
serving as Emergency Coordinator from 2002-2003 and then as District
Emergency Coordinator from 2003-2006. He was promoted to Section
Emergency Coordinator, serving in that position until 2008. Piper has
also served as an Official Emergency Station in the ARRL Field
Organization since 1997.

According to the Rules and Regulations of the Field Organization, when a
vacancy in the office of Section Manager occurs between elections, the
position is filled by appointment. Membership and Volunteer Programs
Manager Dave Patton, NN1N, in consultation with Great Lakes Division
Director Jim Weaver, K8JE, made the appointment effective July 7. His
term of appointment continues through September 30, 2010.

==SOLAR UPDATE

Tad "If it happens the Sun is shining bright" Cook, K7RA, this week
reports: Finally, some sunspot activity to report -- and not one of
those phantom spots that appear one day and vanish the next. Sunspot
group 1024 first emerged a week ago on July 3 with a daily sunspot
number of 17 and the magnetic signature of a new Solar Cycle 24 spot.
Over the next few days, it grew more rapidly and became larger than any
sunspot group in the past two years. Today, July 10, it should pass over
the Sun's western limb and disappear. Sunspot numbers for July 2-8 were
0, 17, 24, 26, 23, 21 and 18 with a mean of 18.4. The 10.7 cm flux was
66.5, 67.3, 71, 71.6, 68.9, 71.3 and 70.8 with a mean of 69.6. The
estimated planetary A indices were 3, 5, 3, 6, 4, 5 and 6 with a mean of
4.6. The estimated mid-latitude A indices were 2, 3, 2, 4, 3, 3 and 3
with a mean of 2.9. For more information concerning radio propagation,
visit the ARRL Technical Information Service Propagation page
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html. To read this week's
Solar Report in its entirety, check out the W1AW Propagation Bulletin
page http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/prop/. This week's "Tad Cookism" brought
to you by T.S. Eliot's "The Song of the Jellicles"
http://poetry.poetryx.com/poems/789/.

__________________________________

==IN BRIEF:

* This Week on the Radio: This week, the IARU HF World Championship is
July 11-12. The NCCC Sprint Ladder is July 10. The FISTS Summer Sprint
and the Feld Hell Sprint are July 11. The SKCC Weekend Sprint and the
ARCI Summer Homebrew Sprint are both July 12. The NAQCC Straight Key/Bug
Sprint is July 16. Next week is another NCCC Sprint Ladder on July 17.
The North American QSO Party (RTTY), the DMC RTTY Contest and the CQ
Worldwide VHF Contest are July 18-19. The CQC Great Colorado Gold Rush
is July 19. The Run for the Bacon QRP Contest is July 20 and the SKCC
Sprint is July 22. All dates, unless otherwise stated, are UTC. See the
ARRL Contest Branch page http://www.arrl.org/contests/, the ARRL
Contest Update http://www.arrl.org/contests/update/ and the WA7BNM
Contest Calendar http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html for
more info. Looking for a Special Event station? Be sure to check out the
ARRL Special Event Station Web page
http://www.arrl.org/contests/spev.html.

* ARRL Continuing Education Course Registration remains open through
Sunday, July 26, 2009, for these online course sessions beginning on
Friday, August 7, 2009: Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Level 1;
Antenna Modeling; Radio Frequency Interference; Antenna Design and
Construction; Ham Radio (Technician) License Course; Propagation; Analog
Electronics, and Digital Electronics. Each online course has been
developed in segments -- learning units with objectives, informative
text, student activities and quizzes. Courses are interactive, and some
include direct communications with a Mentor/Instructor. Students
register for a particular session that may be 8, 12 or 16 weeks
(depending on the course) and they may access the course at any time of
day during the course period, completing lessons and activities at times
convenient for their personal schedule. Mentors assist students by
answering questions, reviewing assignments and activities, as well as
providing helpful feedback. Interaction with mentors is conducted
through e-mail; there is no appointed time the student must be present
-- allowing complete flexibility for the student to work when and where
it is convenient. To learn more, visit the CCE Course Listing page
http://www.arrl.org/cep/student or contact the Continuing Education
Program Coordinator .

* Six New Co-sponsors Pledge Support for HR 2160: Earlier this week, HR
2160 -- The Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Enhancement Act of
2009 -- gained six new Congressional co-sponsors, bringing the total
number to 14: W. Todd Akin (MO-2), Michael Arcuri (NY-24), Michael Honda
(CA-15), Thaddeus McCotter (MI-11), Charlie Melancon (LA-3) and Peter
Welch (VT). Originally sponsored by Representative Sheila Jackson-Lee
(TX-18), HR 2160 is also sponsored by Roscoe Bartlett (MD-6), Madeleine
Bordallo (Guam), Bart Gordon (TN-6), Brett Guthrie (KY-2), Mary Jo
Kilroy (OH-15), Zoe Lofgren (CA-16), Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-9) and
Bennie Thompson (MS-2). Check the ARRL Web site
http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2009/05/12/10818 for information on
how to encourage your Congressional representative to sponsor HR 2160
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-...=111_cong_bill
s&docid=f:h2160ih.txt.pdf.

* Tenth Annual "Night of Nights" On the Air July 12: The Maritime Radio
Historical Society's 10th annual CW-only Night of Nights
http://www.radiomarine.org/non10.html, commemorating the history of
maritime radio, is scheduled for Sunday, July 12 at 1701 PDT (Monday,
July 13 at 0001 UTC). Years ago, the maritime mobile bands were
populated edge-to-edge with powerful coast stations that operated from
virtually every country on every continent. The ships of world trade and
the great passenger liners filled the air with their radiograms, as well
as their calls for help when in danger on the sea. Now those bands are
largely silent. But once a year, the MRHS returns stations KPH, KSM and
KFS to the air. Other stations, including WLO, KLB, NMC, NOJ and NMN,
often join in. Calls from ships at sea make the event seem like the
golden age of maritime radio has returned. The MRHS's club station,
K6KPH, will be on-the-air on several frequencies, receiving signal
reports from other amateur stations. The K6KPH operators are seasoned
commercial operators with years of experience "sitting the circuit" and
will give amateur stations the experience of what it was like to work a
real coast station. More information regarding the event, including
suggested frequencies, is available on the Night of Nights Web page
http://www.radiomarine.org/index.html.

* NTS Official Jim Leist, KB5W (SK): Jim Leist, KB5W, a longtime leader
of the ARRL National Traffic System (NTS)
http://www.emergency-radio.org/what_nts.pdf, passed away after a long
illness on June 22. He was 74. Leist, who lived in Gautier, Mississippi,
was Chair of the NTS Central Area Staff, as well as a longtime ARRL Net
Manager; he also served as the Mississippi Section Traffic Manager (STM)
from 1987 to 1998. "Jim was an elite CW op and Manager of Region Net 5,
Cycle 4, for most of the last 20 years and probably longer," said Phil
Sager, WB4FDT, Manager of the NTS Third Region Net, Cycle 4. "I worked
him several times each week for the six years I lived in Louisiana, and
have enjoyed working him again the past five or so years on my Alpha TCC
sked." A US Marine, Leist served in the Korean and Vietnam Wars; he was
awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in action during the Vietnam War.
"He led reconnaissance missions during the Vietnam War, and he never
lost a man," Sam Sitton, W5CU, told the ARRL. "Jim won the Star by
single handedly taking out a machine gun nest while his patrol was
occupied elsewhere. He was a true American hero." Leist was interred in
the National Cemetery at the Quantico Marine Corps Base in Virginia with
full military honors.

================================================== =========
The ARRL Letter is published Fridays, 50 times each year, by the
American Radio Relay League: ARRL--the national association for Amateur
Radio, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax
860-594-0259; http://www.arrl.org. Joel Harrison, W5ZN, President.

The ARRL Letter offers a weekly e-mail digest of essential and general
news of interest to active radio amateurs. Visit the ARRL Web site
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http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/ is a weekly "ham radio newscast"
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Material from The ARRL Letter may be republished or reproduced in whole
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given to The ARRL Letter/American Radio Relay League.

==Delivery problems (ARRL member direct delivery only!):

==Editorial questions or comments: S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA,

==ARRL News on the Web: http://www.arrl.org
==ARRL Audio News: http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/ or call
860-594-0384

==How to Get The ARRL Letter

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ARRL members first must register on the Members Only Web Site
http://www.arrl.org/members/. You'll have an opportunity during
registration to sign up for e-mail delivery of The ARRL Letter, W1AW
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membership data," check or uncheck the appropriate boxes and/or change
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Then, click on "Submit modification" to make selections effective.
(NOTE: HQ staff members cannot change your e-mail delivery address. You
must do this yourself via the Members Only Web Site.)

The ARRL Letter also is available to all, free of charge, from these
sources:

* ARRLWeb http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/. (NOTE: The ARRL Letter will
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* The QTH.net listserver, thanks to volunteers from the Boston Amateur
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cannot assist subscribers who receive The ARRL Letter via this
listserver.)

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