Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) Report 1708 - May 7 2010

Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1708 with a release date of
Friday, May 7, 2010 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a Q-S-T. Skywarn hams on alert as tornadoes hit in
mid-America, a solar wind brings DX to six meters, the first ever US
based 4 meter beacon comes on the air, a ham is arrested for allegedly
harassing police and fire communications in California and a Nebraska
radio club gets an unexpected reward for its public service during a
recent telephone outage. Find out the details on Amateur Radio
Newsline(tm) report number 1708 coming your way right now.


(Billboard Cart Here)

**

RESCUE RADIO: SKYWARN TEAMS ON ALERT AS TORNADOS HIT MID AMERICA

Skywarn volunteers supported local rescue radio operations during the
recent tornado outbreaks in Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi and
Tennessee. This, as severe weather outbreaks developed in what the
Storm Prediction Center described as particularly dangerous situation
and prompting the activation of severe weather watches. Volunteers
like these hams near Little Rock, Arkansas, quickly went on alert:

--

Actual on-scene audio - hear it in the MP3 version of this weeks newscast
downloadable at www.arnewsline.org

--

Since April 24th, fifteen of the sixteen tornado related deaths were
recorded in Mississippi, Arkansas, and Tennessee with five coming at one
time in Choctaw County, Mississippi. During this severe weather outbreak
Skywarn volunteers provide ground intelligence to local emergency managers
and the National Weather Service.

Meantime, as part of their training, a German Skywarn Team is visiting the
United States this month. Their mission is to obtain information to use in
the continued development of a similar program in their home nation. So
far the team has visited the National Weather Center and is planning stops
at Emergency Management programs across the United States southern Great
Plains. (Story material and audio provided by KC5FM)

**

PROPAGATION: GEOMAGNETIC STORM BRINGS AURORA OPENING TO NORTH AMERICA

A high-speed solar wind stream hit Earth's magnetic field the night May 2nd
and into the early hours of May 3rd. The eruption sparked a geomagnetic
storm that lasted more than 15 hours, and bringing with it some interesting
propagation.

In Scandinavia, the Northern Lights were so bright they could be seen
through the glow of the midnight sun. Meantime, what's reported as a
red colored aurora spilled across the Canadian border and were spotted
in several Northern U-S states. Some good 6 meter auroral DX is reported
to have accompanied the aurora.

Later in the day on May 3rd there was a major opening trans-equatorial
opening to the Caribbean and South America DX Stations reported as heard or
worked in eastern and central North America during the storm included P43JB
on Aruba on 50.099 running CW, FM5CD in Martinique on 50.096 using CW,
PJ2LS in the Netherland Antilles on 50.162 SSB and LU8YD in Argentina on
50.120 also on SSB.

Meantime a West to East E-skip opening brought the mountain states into
southern California. Stations like K0DU were strong enough to be
recorded off an FT-847 transceiver and an AEA loop only 6 feet off the
ground at the Newsline studio. This, as he worked a station in grid
square D M Zero 4. --

Actual off-air audio - hear it in the MP3 version of this weeks newscast
downloadable at www.arnewsline.org

--

To the North, Dave Bernhardt, N7DB, in Boring, Oregon, says over the V-H-F
Reflector that his first contact was at 17:11 UTC with Dave Wagner, W7CI at
down in Sierra Vista, Arizona. He also heard beacons from California,
Mexico and South America.

Perhaps the biggest surprise was the AM activity detected up on 50.4
MHz. While signals were far to weak to detect much audio or even get a
callsign, the type of fading indicated them to be E-Skip and likely from
the same regions being heard down the band on C-W and SSB.

In all it was a good day on the 50 MHz band for any ham who bothered to
listen or call CQ. As we go to air, sporadic openings on 6 meters are
still continuing. (ARNewsline(tm))

**

PROPAGATION TEST: NEW US BASED 4 METER BEACON ON THE AIR

A United States based 4 meter beacon is on the air, but its not a ham radio
system. On Monday May 3rd , the 70.005 MHz beacon using the Experimental
call WE9XFT took to the airwaves from Bedford, Virginia with a power level
that may make it receivable in the British Isles and other areas of Europe.

The new beacon is the brain child of Brian Justin, WA1ZMS. Back in January
Justin filed an application with the FCC for a Special Temporary Authority
to operate a propagation beacon in the 4 meter band for domestic as well as
trans-Atlantic reception tests. The FCC granted the request as a
non-amateur experimental license since there isn't a 70 MHz Amateur band in
the United States.

WE9XFT is running 3 kilowatts Effective Radiated Power on 70.005 MHz
beaming towards Europe. It is operating 24 hours a day and the
experimental license is valid until September 1st. Reception reports
should be sent to Brian by e-mail to wa1zms (at) att (dot) net. (VHF
Reflector)

**

ENFORCEMENT: HAM ARRESTED FOR MAKING ON AIR THREATS ON POLICE AND FIRE
FREQUENCIES

Authorities have arrested a 29-year-old San Jacinto, California ham who
investigators allege interrupted police and fire radio communications and
made threats over the air during a two day period. Mark Abramowicz, NT3V,
has been following the story and has mo

--

Police closed in on Irene Levy, KJ6CEY, just seconds after she made a
transmission on a Hemet California police frequency using a commercial H-T.

Investigators from Hemet as well as Cal Fire say the unauthorized, random
transmissions made from Levy's mobile home in San Jacinto went beyond
nuisance calls. Hemet Police Sgt. Mark Richards was quoted by The
Press-Enterprise newspaper in Riverside, California, as saying Levy
disguised her voice as a man and made references to the deaths of police
and firefighters and made bomb threats. He said some of the transmissions
came during a Cal Fire search and rescue call, a major traffic accident,
and a brush fire.

Richards report stated the transmissions began May 1 and ended in the early
morning hours of May 3. Richards said in the report that direction-finding
equipment helped locate Levy, who in one of her transmissions on May 2
suggested "police would never find her."

Richards report said that during the raid on her trailer, police seized 11
radios, seven scanners, radio frequency lists, computer equipment and
miscellaneous radio gear. He says in the report they also seized Levy's
Technician license, showing it had been issued in September 2009.

Levy was charged on suspicion of making terrorist threats, falsely
reporting a bomb threat, and maliciously interrupting, disrupting, impeding
or interfering with a transmission on a public radio frequency. Sources
close to the investigation tell Amateur Radio Newsline that authorities
believe Levy acted alone and without the knowledge of her husband, Michael,
KE6ALV, who has been licensed since 1993.

On her (now removed) QRZ.com bio page, Levy claims to have a General Mobile
Radio Service license, but the call sign is actually registered to her
husband, Mike. Levy also claimed she monitored the Keller Peak repeater as
well as the Hemet repeaters.

Levy says in that bio she was active on Citizens Band radio prior to
getting married and described herself as a CB'er at heart.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Mark Abramowicz, NT3V.

--

As this report is being prepared, Levy is being held in lieu of $50000
bail. Its unknown if she is represented by counsel. (ARNewsline(tm),
published news reports)

**

ENFORCEMENT: FLORIDA UNLICENSED BROADCASTER FINED $10000

Still with enforcement news, the FCC has affirmed a $10,000 fine it had
previously issued to Balthazard Senat. This for his alleged operation an
unlicensed radio transmitter on 91.3 MHz in Orlando, Florida.

Back on March 2nd, the Commission's Tampa Office of the Enforcement
Bureau issued a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture in the
amount of $10,000 to Senat. Since that time Senat has not filed a
response to the NAL.

On April 29th and based on the information before it, the FCC has affirmed
the forfeiture and given Senat the customary 30 days to pay or to file an
appeal. (FCC)

**

ENFORCEMENT: FCC GOES AFTER ILLEGAL CB AND UNWANTED REPEATER USERS

Since the beginning of the year the FCC's enforcement effort in the private
radio area seems concentrated in two areas. These are violations of the
Part 95 rules governing the 11 meter Citizens Radio Service and ridding
repeaters of unwanted users in the Amateur Service.

A quick count of enforcement letters issued since January 1st shows nine
warning notices sent to individuals for violations of Part 95. Most of
these were for running overpowered transmitters on 11 meters that were
causing interference to their neighbors home electronics. In each case the
C-B operator in question was given 10 days to respond to the FCC and to
outline the specific steps taken to bring that 11 meter CB station into
compliance with the Commission's rules.

In the area of ham radio, four hams have received warning letters ordering
them to stay off of various repeaters. In each case the FCC notes that the
letter's recipient was requested by the repeater owner or control operator
to refrain from using the system but either refused or failed to do so. So
the Commission is now backing the system licensees and control stations by
ordering the unwanted users to cease using the repeaters. If they fail to
heed the agency's enforcement warning they could face such penalties as a
license modification proceeding to restrict the frequencies upon which a
given ham may operate, a fine or even revocation of their Amateur Service
licenses.

In going through the various warning letters we found none dealing with the
situations on various frequencies on 75 and 20 meters that seem to be the
talk of the amateur radio community. Nor was there anything mentioned in
regard to collecting any fines previously issued to those the agency
determined to be in violation of the Part 97 rules. The only non-repeater
issue we found went to a ham accused of operating with a call other than
the one assigned to him.

All of these letters are available to the general public on the FCC's
Enforcement Web page. It can be found at
http://www.fcc.gov/eb/AmateurActions/ (ARNewsline(tm))

**

BREAK 1

From the United States of America, We are the Amateur Radio Newsline,
heard on bulletin stations around the world including the KC4HAZ Repeater
Network serving all of Central Florida.

(5 sec pause here)


**

TAX LAW: IF YOU ARE A 501C RADIO CLUB YOU MUST FILE A FEDERAL TAX RETURN

If you are a radio club that holds federal government tax exempt status,
listen up. You are in danger of loosing that standing unless you file a
tax statement with the Internal Revenue Service by May 15th. So says the
ARRL in a special bulletin issued earlier this week. Bruce Tennant, K6PZW,
has the details of what federally tax exempt clubs have little time to do:

--

Changes made three years ago to federal tax laws could cause many radio
clubs to lose their tax-exempt status this year. To protect themselves,
clubs that are tax-exempt under Section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code
must file the required IRS annual returns or reports before the deadline,
which is May 15th for those organizations with corporate calendar years.

Many clubs have, at some time in the past, applied for tax-exempt status
under Section 501(c)(3) as charitable organizations, Section 501(c)(4) as
civic leagues or Section 501(c)(7) for recreational clubs. Years ago, any
club with gross receipts averaging less than $25,000 per year was not
required to file annual returns with the IRS. However, after 2006, such
clubs have been required to file a Form 990-N. This is a simple postcard
with minimal information. It is due by the fifteenth day of the fifth
month after the close of each fiscal year.

Some clubs may not have been aware of this new requirement or didn't bother
to comply. Even those that filed in a prior year may have neglected to
keep up with the required filings as officers changed from year to year.

Well it turns out that Section 6033(j) of the Federal Tax Code provides
that failure to file Form 990, 990-EZ or 990-N for three consecutive years
results in revocation of an organizations tax-exempt status as of the
filing due date for the third return. That filing date for calendar year
2009 is less than two weeks away.

If you are a club officer and are uncertain who is responsible for IRS
filings or whether such filings are current, you should determine your
fling status as soon as possible and take immediate steps to file the
current and any missed prior-year IRS forms. Going forward, your club's
board should assign the responsibility for compliance filings with a
designated officer and document that responsibility in the written job
description for the position so that subsequent holders of the office are
made aware of the requirements. This is the only way to make certain that
you tax exempt status remains in place.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Bruce Tennant. K6PZW, in Los Angeles.

--

The bottom line: If you have questions about your club's status, you may
wish to consult a Certified Public Accountant or other tax advisor versed
in not-for-profit tax law. (ARRL)

**

RADIO LAW: NAB PRESIDENT SAYS NO TO FCC BROADBAND PLAN

A war, albeit right now only a war of words appears to be brewing between
television broadcasters and the FCC. This over the latter's desire to
reclaim spectrum from the former to be auctioned to wireless broadband
providers. Amateur Radio Newsline's David Black, KB4KCH, is at the
South-East bureau with mo

--

Terming the Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Plan as
the "great spectrum grab," National Association of Broadcasters president
Gordon Smith told a broadcaster gathering at the now concluded NAB
Conference in Las Vegas that that the spectrum reclamation portion of the
plan was an example of unnecessary government intervention.

In what the trade press has described as a gloves-off keynote speech to the
annual convention Smith told the audience that broadcasters were not a
spectrum ATM, and that the government needed to do a thorough inventory of
where the spectrum is, who has it, how it is being used. It also has to
look carefully at compression technologies before squeezing broadcasters
out.

Smith also said that the FCC plan does not recognize the lifesaving or
lifeline values of broadcasting. He noted that the people who would be
most hurt by the new broadband plan are the disadvantaged and the
elderly. He noted that fifteen percent of households rely exclusively on
free, over the air television and that number appears to be growing in the
post Digital Television transition.

The FCC wants another 120 MHz from television broadcasters within five
years. Its proposing to get it via a voluntary program in which
broadcasters would be compensated from some of the proceeds from the
spectrum, which would be re-auctioned for wireless broadband. But the
agency has also noted that it might unilaterally reallocate spectrum if
broadcasters failed to cooperate.

But in interview a week earlier Smith signaled that he was going to be
tough on the plan, which he has compared to an offer from the Mob that
carries with it an implied threat.

--

The FCC believes that the current television broadcast spectrum is the best
place for the expansion of broadband. If it cannot cut a deal with the
broadcast community and acts unilaterally, the matter could wind up in the
courts and bring broadband expansion to a halt for years. (Multichannel
News)

**

ON THE NET: ALCATEL - LUCENT ANNOUNCE NEW HIGH SPEED DSL

Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs say they can now send data at rates of up to 300
megabits per second down telephone lines. According to a press release the
Lab achieved 300 megabits per second over at a distance of 400 meters and
100 megabits per second over 1 kilometer by making use of the so called
"DSL Phantom Mode". This involves the creation of a virtual or "phantom
"
channel that supplements the two physical wires that are the standard
configuration for copper transmission lines.

The increase in transmission capacity arises from the use of analog
phantom mode technology in combination with other industry standard
techniques. These are the vectoring that eliminates crosstalk between
copper wires, and bonding that makes it possible to take individual lines
and combine them.

This DSL services make use of the High Frequency radio spectrum to send
data over telephone lines. There is no mention in the Alcatel-Lucent Bell
Labs press release of how much radio interference this new development
could possibly cause. To date DSL has had no impact on ham radio
operations and there's little reason to believe this could change.
(Southgate)

**

RESTRUCTURING: CAYMAN ISLANDS GET NEW HAM REGULATIONS

The Cayman Islands Governor in Cabinet has adopted a set of regulations to
govern that nations amateur radio service, The effect of the new law will
be to create a plan for the issuance of amateur radio licenses by the
Cayman Islands Information and Communications Technology Authority to
persons who have satisfied the certification process by way of examination
of their knowledge and competence with respect to electricity and radio,
including amateur radio apparatus.

The new rules also allow for the recognition of licenses issued by the
United Kingdom and other countries which have agreed to grant, with respect
to the Cayman Islands, reciprocal amateur radio operating privileges. Also
they will ensure compliance with international standards, including the
requirement that amateur radios be operated without any financial interest
and at the same time minimize the likelihood of interference caused by, and
suffered by, amateur radio operators.

These new regulations were developed in collaboration with the Cayman
Amateur Radio Society. As an Information and Communications Technology
Authority agent, the society will administer the examination for license
applicants. The new regulations came into effect following their
publication in the Cayman Islands Gazette on March 29th. (Via e-mail)

**

NEW PRODUCTS: CUBA UNVEILS FIRST DOMESTICALLY PRODUCED TRANSCEIVER

Cuba is going into the ham radio transceiver business. At least
domestically. This as a prototype of new Caiguaran low cost 1.8 MHz
transceiver was presented at the 8th Congress of the Cuban Ham Radio
Federation.

The prototype transceiver was manufactured at one of the factories
controlled by the Cuban Ministry of Informatics and Communications. It is
designed to put out 20 watts on 160 meters but with additional hardware it
can also operate on the 80 and 40 meter bands.

The Chair of the Cuban Ham Radio Federation is Pedro Rodriguez, CO2RP. He
told the Cuban News Agency that the first 600 units are ready for delivery
to Cuban amateur radio operators. The radios primary purpose is to help to
support emergency communication in Cuba. (Southgate)

**

NEW PRODUCTS: WOUXON US TO INTRODUCE CHINESE BUILT HT AT HAMVENTION

If the information on the Hamvention Yahoogroups Reflector is correct, then
there is a new player in town to rival Alinco, Icom, Kenwood and Yaesu in
the dual band handheld radio competition for your dollar. The new company
is called Wouxon dot US and their first radio for the United States market
is their new model KG-UVD1P 2 meter and 70 centimeter Dual-Bander will be
available at the Dayton Hamvention.

In a news release, Wouxon.US says that it will be at booth is #172, just
inside the North Hall entrance and to the right. The company says that it
will have 100 units plus accessories packed up and ready to go at a special
Hamvention price. The news release did not specify what that price will
be, but from Hong Kong dealers advertising on eBay, these radios, complete
with a rechargeable battery, desktop drop-in charger, auxiliary earphone
and a belt clip seem to sell for an average of around $80 plus $40 shipping
to the United States That said, few expect the price to be that low in a
retail environment such as Hamvention or your favorite radio store.

The home company is Quanzhou Wouxun Electronics Co. Ltd. of Fujian,
China. It says that the new ham radio dual bander has received FCC
certification. It's approved as FCC ID: WVTWOUXUN04. More on the new radio
is on-line at www.Wouxun.US (Hamvention Yahoogroups, Wouxon.US Web page)

**

BREAK 2

This is ham radio news for today's radio amateur. From the United States
of America, 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)

**

THE CHANGING OF THE GUARD: FAMED DX'ER VINCE THOMPSON, K5VT - S.K

The changing of the guard in ham radio continues with word of the passing
of famed DX'er Vince Thompson, K5VT who passed away on April
24th. Thompson was best known as a DX-peditioner known for activating many
African countries, and a founder of the Voodoo Contest Group. A physician,
K5VT trained doctors overseas on his trips, and practiced medicine in the
Phoenix, Arizona area. Thompson also served as the ARRL Southwestern
Division representative to the Leagues's DX Advisory Committee (ARRL)

**

THE CHANGING OF THE GUARD: FORMER ARRL SW DIVISION DIRECTOR GARY
STILLWELL, KI6T -S.K.

And Gary Stillwell, KI6T, served as Southwestern Division Vice Director in
the 1973 era when he was W6NJU has also become a Silent Key. Stillwell had
relinquished the post when he moved to Sacramento in Northern California
for his work with the California Transportation Agency also known as
Caltrans. He was a well known DXer at the top of the DXCC honor
roll. Stillwell was also the founder and original owner of The Radio
Place, a Sacramento store serving the needs of that city's amateur radio
community. (ARRL)

**

MOONBOUNCE: K1JT GIVES INITIAL KP4AO REPORT

One of the organizers of the recent EME operation using the 1000 foot dish
in Arecibo, says the operation was a definite success. Amateur Radio
Newsline's Jim Davis has the details:

--

WSJT inventor Joe Taylor, K1JT, has provided a report on the recent KP4AO
amateur radio moon bounce operation from the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto
Rico.

According to K1JT, the wall of stations calling was simply incredible. A
rough estimate suggests that the Arecibo group may have worked something
like 20% of the callers potentially workable on SSB, 10% of those workable
on CW, and only a few percent of those workable on JT65.

From Joe's memory he says that the log shows nearly 240 completed QSOs
with some 57 DXCC entities, in a total of 8 operating hours. He notes that
they made recordings of the whole 432 MHz EME sub-band for most of the time
KP4AO was on the air. He says that in due course it will be possible to
"tune the band again carefully picking out callsigns. If and when this is
done he will be happy to post a list of received callsigns.

In the meantime Joe has some requests to all who took part in the
operation. I f you worked KP4AO with a setup significantly smaller than is
normally required for EME, please send him a short note describing your
antenna, receiver, and transmit power. Or if you only heard KP4AO, please
also send him a note describing your antenna and receiver. Joe's direct
e-mail is k1jt(at) arrl (dot) net.

I'm Jim Davis, W2JKD.

--

Again, if you missed that e-mail address where to send your reports its
k1jt(at) arrl (dot) net. (Southgate)

**

WORLDBEAT: UK PREPARES FOR DIGITAL RADIO SWITCHOVER

The United Kingdom's Digital Economy Bill which will force all analog radio
off the air in coming years has become law. The move came barely a week
after a British Parliament's House of Lords report questioned the wisdom of
moving all national and regional radio broadcasting to Digital Audio
Broadcasting. It echoed many criticisms voiced over the bill, which is
likely to consign all FM and AM radios to landfill in five years, except
for listening to ultra-local FM stations.

But digital radio switch-over arguments are unlikely to cease for long
time. This is because the new law constructs a framework of conditions
rather than fixing a date. It requires Digital Audio Broadcasting coverage
and listening-share to reach a certain level before FM switch-off can be
initiated. This in turn will be followed by a delay before the
transmitters are actually turned off. (Electronics Weekly)

**

HAM RADIO IN SPACE: BEQUEST WILL HELP LAUNCH FUNCUBE

Great Britain's Radio Communications Foundation has announced that it is
handling a legacy donation that will help fund the AMSAT-UK FUNcube
project. This grant to the Foundation stipulates that the funding must be
used for the development of a suitable amateur satellite project.

So the Radio Communications Foundation went looking for a suitable
candidate. It found what it was looking for in a proposal from AMSAT-UK to
use the inheritance to help with the FUNCube educational project that has
the aim of educating young people about radio, space, physics and
electronics.

By way of background, FUNcube is the first ever cubesat designed to benefit
young spectators and is expected to be the first British cubesat to reach
space. Its target audience consists of primary and secondary school
children. The FUNcube satellite itself will feature a 145 MHz telemetry
beacon that will provide a strong signal for the students to receive.

A tentative launch date is sometime this fall. This, after FUNcube
completes its flight readiness review. (Southgate)

**

HAM RADIO IN SPACE: THE SMALL SATELLITES SYMPOSIUM

The Small Satellites Systems and Services Symposium takes place in Madeira,
Spain, from May 31 to June 4, 2010 and this year features a CubeSat
Workshop. This biennial event covers all aspects of small satellite
programs such as flight experiences, mission definition, technologies,
launches, ground segment and data exploitation. An abstract of the papers
to be presented can be seen in PDF format at tinyurl.com/2423paz. (AMSAT-UK)

**

WORLDBEAT: NEW 10 METER FM REPEATER IN PORTUGAL

A new 10 meter FM amateur radio repeater has come on the air in
Portugal. Sponsored by the Ham Radio Association of Beira Alta, CQ0HAR
operates on European repeater channel RH4 with an input of 29.5 and an
output of 29.6 MHz. A 67 hertz CTCSS tone is required for access
CQ0HAR. More on the system is on-line at www.ct1arb.com (EC1AME)

**

DX

In DX, PA7JWC, will be active as 3B8/PA7JWC from Pereybere, Mauritius
Island (AF-049) between May 5-22nd. Activity will be on the HF bands and 6
meters, using CW, SSB, RTTY and PSK31. QSL via the LoTW or to his home
callsign direct or by the Dutch QSL Bureau.

DF5AU will be active portable H B Zero from Lichtenstein through May the
12th. His operation will be on the HF bands using CW and SSB with his
focus on 80 meters. QSL via his home callsign.

IK8HCG will be active as IB0R from Ventotene Island during the RSGB
Islands on the Air Contest July 24th and 25th. QSL via his home callsign,
direct only.

Lastly, listen out for Bulgarian special event station LZ2010KM to be on the
air through May 31st. This activity is to celebrate St. Kiril and
Methodius' Day. Operations will be on all bands and modes. QSL to LZ1BJ, by
the Bureau (preferred). Logs will be uploaded to LoTW.

(Above from various DX news sources)

**

THAT FINAL ITEM: WINDSTREAM COMMUNICATIONS DONATES $5000 TO LINCOLN ARC

And finally this week an old adage that says do good to others and it will
be repaid in droves has come true for one radio club. A club that has long
been known for its dedication to public service. Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF,
is here with the details:

--

Windstream Communications has announced that it is donating $5,000 to
Nebraska's Lincoln Amateur Radio Club. This, in appreciation of the
group's communications support to residents and the Lincoln-Lancaster
County 911 center during the telecommunications outage that took place back
on April 1st.

As previously reported, the outage occurred after an upgrade to an internal
timing system in a switch that hosts the 911 routing system. Roughly 36,000
customers lost landline phone service. The failure of the routing switch
interrupted 911 service for cell phones and landlines in at least a dozen
counties for nearly 15 hours, forcing authorities to take reports in person
and by e-mail. It also caused a callout of local ARES and Lincoln Club
members who were stationed on street corners and at strategic public
service agencies as a replacement for the interrupted 911 service.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, in the newsroom
in Los Angeles.

--

Windstream Communications announced the $5000 donation to the Lincoln
Amateur Radio Club on Monday, May 3rd. At same time its spokesman said
that the company had determined that timing cables were not in conformance
with industry and company specifications. As a result, this had caused the
phone system outage. (Lincoln Journal-Star, K0NEB)

**

NEWSCAST CLOSE

With thanks to Alan Labs, AMSAT, the ARRL, the CGC Communicator, CQ
Magazine, the FCC, the Ohio Penn DX Bulletin, Radio Netherlands, Rain, the
RSGB, the Southgate News and Australia's WIA News, that's all from the
Amateur Radio Newsline(tm). Our e-mail address is
. 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

Before we go, a reminder that the nominating period for the 2010 Amateur
Radio Newsline Young Ham of the Year Award closes on May 30th. That gives
you only a few short weeks to nominate a deserving teen or pre-teen radio
amateur for this yearly ham radio honor.

Each year, we here at the Amateur Radio Newsline in association with Vertex
Standard Corporation -- the makers of Yaesu brand ham radio gear -- and CQ
Magazine combine to honor a ham radio operator age 18 or younger for his or
her contributions to ham radio or to society itself through ham radio.

All nominations and materials required by the official rules must be
received by Amateur Radio Newsline no later than midnight on May
30th. Both "mail-in" and electronic submissions are being accepted this
year. Full rules and a downloadable nominating form are now on our website
at www.arnewsline.org. Just scroll down until you see "2010 Young Ham of
the Year Awards Now Being Accepted" and click on the word "here" to
download the directions and the form. You can also leave questions and
comments on the official Young Ham of the Year Award page on Facebook dot
com.

For now, with Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, at the editors desk, I'm Don
Carlson, KQ6FM, saying 73 from Reno, Nevada, and we thank you for
listening.

Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.

On 2010-05-07, William M. Pasternak wrote:
Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) Report 1708 - May 7 2010

Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1708 with a release date of
Friday, May 7, 2010 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

In Scandinavia, the Northern Lights were so bright they could be seen
through the glow of the midnight sun. Meantime, what's reported as a
red colored aurora spilled across the Canadian border and were spotted
in several Northern U-S states. Some good 6 meter auroral DX is reported
to have accompanied the aurora.

Not to be picky about details, but are you sure the original message
stated "midnight sun"?
North Cape at 71deg 10' North, which is the absolute northernmost well-known
geographical point of Scandinavia, is not able to see a full midnight sun
until May 13th.
I suspect the report may have stated "mid-day sun" ...

Yours,

.rune
Rune Bakken
M0GDC / LA6XMA