Home |
Search |
Today's Posts |
#1
![]() |
|||
|
|||
![]()
Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) Report 1740 - December 17 2010
Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1740 with a release date of Friday, December 17th 2010 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1. The following is a Q-S-T. Hams in Hawaii are ready as a Pacific storm hits the island state, a New Brunswick cellphone law could ban amateur radio mobile operations, the long awaited Jarvis Island DXpedition is put on hold until November of 2011 and Ohio hams provide the technology to improve a sheriff's radio system. All this and more on Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) report number 1740 coming your way right now. (Billboard Cart Here) ** RESCUE RADIO: HAWAII HAMS READY AS PACIFIC STORM HITS Hams in Hawaii were ready as a major Pacific storm raked itself over the Island state. Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, is in the newsroom with mo -- (Sound of ham rtadio emcomm operations) That's the sound of ham radio RACES and SKYWARN operations as a strong Pacific storm system moved over Hawaii on December 9th and 10th bringing with it heavy rain, accompanied by thunder and lightning. According to News reports, worst hit was Oahu and Kauai with gusty winds taking down trees in several areas. Ron Hashiro, AH6RH, is the Hawaii State Civil Defense RACES Coordinator and an accredited SKYWARN member. He explains the system that caused the severe storm: -- AH6RH: "What we had was a cold front move through the system and butting up against some warm air to the South-East. As that storm front came through it produced a collection of thunder storms and those were sweeping through Kauai then hiting Oahu and moving toward the South-East : -- Hashiro told Newsline that the National Weather Service needed severe weather spotters all across the Island state and the hams were ready to respond: -- AH6RH: "Ray Tanabe, who is WH7IH, is one of our contacts at state Civil Defense asked us to activate SKYWARN so Clem Jung, KH7HO, contacted a number of hams on Oahu and put together a response team and had people scheduled from 6 p.m. on Thursday all the way through Friday evening. -- According to Hashiro, the ham radio volunteers were both communicators and severe weather spotters: -- AH6RH: "We (hams) provided radio communications at the National Weathewr Service in Honolulu and a number of hams at their homes or on the road called in weather reports on the tremendous amount of rain, lightning, thunder and the wind conditions. (That's) something that the National Weather Service can't quite pick up on is what is the wind speed on the ground and what is the total amount of lightning that is present in a given area. Therefore weather spotting is a very important part of the collection of information on weather conditions." -- As hams did their job, Honolulu Fire crews worked to clear what was left of the roof of a plumbing supply company that had been sheared off by the storm. Officials said that the overnight, gusty winds blew open a large warehouse door, and then lifted the roof off. Some 3,000 feet of the roofing material was taken off, with some parts landing several blocks away on the famed Nimitz Highway. With thanks to former Newsline Production Coordinator Bill Orenstein, KH6QX, for the on the scene audio, I'm Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, in the newsroom in the City of Angels reporting for the Amateur Radio Newsline. -- Thanks to the ongoing training that many hams in Hawaii devote themselves to, everyone was ready to handle this latest challenge that Mother Nature brought their way. (ARNewsline(tm) with some audio supplied by KH6QX) ** RESTRUCTURING: UK GOVERNMENT LOOKING FOR 500 MHZ FOR BROADBAND The United Kingdom's government is looking 500MHz spectrum and this could spell problems ahead for hams in that nation. The British newspaper the Register recently carried a story on government plans to reallocate as much as 500 MHz of spectrum for broadband Internet. The article points out that if large chunks of Ministry of Defense spectrum are sold off, the new owners are unlikely to be willing to share it with others. The problem for UK hams comes from the fact that all Amateur Radio UHF and Microwave bands are shared with either the Ministry of Defense or the U-K Civil Aviation Authority. If some of the spectrum that gets reallocated happens be shared with radio amateurs, its quite likely that the hams will be forced off those bands. Those interested can read the entire Register article at tinyurl.com/28ayvzl (Southgate) ** RESTRUCTURING: NEW MICROWAVE BAND ALLOCATIONS IN SPAIN Thanks to the efforts of the Spanish amateur radio society the U-R-E, hams in that nation now have access to three new microwave bands. These are 2320 to 2322, 5760 to 5762 and 10368 to 10370 MHz Amateur use of this spectrum has been authorized for a year, however, those intending to use 2320 to 2322 must first inform the nations telecommunications regulator. More on this regulatory change in Spain in Google translated English is on line at tinyurl.com/SpainURE. (URE) ** RADIO LAW: NEW BRUNSWICK CANADA CELL LAW COULD BAN MONBILE HAM OPEATIONS The Canadian province of New Brunswick has introduced legislation banning cellular telephone and two way radio use while mobile. Amateur radio Newsline's Norm Seeley, KI7UP, has the details: -- The measure was introduced in the New Brunswick Legislature on November 24th. Its aim is to control cell phone and any other hand-operated electronic device use while driving. As worded it would prevent radio amateurs from using their mobile radios while in motion. Now in a letter to Brunswick Minister of Public Safety, Robert Trevors, the national society Radio Amateurs of Canada has taken strong opposition to the proposed law. In its communiqu‚ to Trevors, RAC notes that most provinces such as Nova Scotia, Manitoba, British Columbia, Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador have chosen not to restrict the operation of mobile amateur radio equipment while driving. RAC notes that these governments have recognized the value of amateur radio to their citizens during such emergencies such as floods, dangerous weather and ice storms. Also noted is the support by Canadian hams in support of public events such as Marathons and of emergency relief groups such as the Red Cross and a variety of provincial and municipal agencies across Canada. RAC adds that this support provided by amateur radio is frequent, freely given and in the highest standard of public service. The letter goes on to state that hams in New Brunswick regularly and without fail respond to the provinces citizen's needs. This includes helping municipalities fighting flooding along the St. John River. The note ends by warning New Brunswick legislators that eliminating the use of Federally Certified Canadian radio amateurs to use mobile radio equipment will not increase public safety but will decrease it. The third reading on the bill is expected during the week of at about the time this newscast goes to air. After that the Bill permits the New Brunswick government to proclaim the legislation at a time of its choosing anytime thereafter. For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Norm Seeley, KI7UP, watching the events up North from Scottsdale, Arizona. -- Radio Amateurs of Canada says that it is preferable that any exclusion for Amateur Radio operators occurs in the legislation itself as it has requested. However it notes that there are provisions for a regulated exclusion for radio amateurs under Canadian law. This states that the Lieutenant-Governor in Council may make regulations exempting, with or without conditions, certain classes or types of devices or motor vehicles, or certain classes of persons. Read the latter as referring to Canadian hams. (RAC, VE4BAW) ** BREAK 1 This week coming to you from down-under, we are the Amateur Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including the W7CSK repeater serving Everett, Washington. (5 sec pause here) ** BREAKING DX NEWS: JARVIS ISLAND OPERATION DELAYED TO NOV 2011 The DXpedition to Jarvis Island organized by Radio Expeditions Inc has been postponed until November 2011. The reasons are complex but boil down to it taking authorities to long to come up with a plan acceptable to all parties and then getting it approved though all the bureaucratic red tape. Once it was in place several groups qualified under it. So more time was spent in holding a lottery to decide which group would be permitted to go. While Radio Expeditions Inc was fortunate to be the group selected in late August, it soon became apparent that due to all these factors plus scheduling transportation to Jarvis, that it was best for all involved that the expedition be postponed one year. November remains the best month to visit Jarvis Island from a propagation standpoint, with the largest combination of openings predicted to Europe on the H-F band. This being the case the new plan is for the operation to take place in November of 2011 with exact dates to be announced. (Radio Expeditions Inc.) ** RESCUE RADIO: OHIO HAMS PROVIDE TECHNOLOGY SUPPORT TO IMPROVE COUNTY RADIO SYSTEM Ham radio operators have volunteered their time and technical expertise to improve communications for the Wood County Sheriff's Office just south of Toledo, Ohio. Amateur Radio Newsline's Fred Vobbe, W8HDU, has the rest of the story: -- After years of incomplete police radio coverage, the Wood County Sheriff's Office has made some significant communications upgrades. In many remote areas of the county, deputies' police radios wouldn't work once they got out of their car. That caused them t0 loose contact with dispatchers and other officers. But with a little ingenuity, and some help from ham radio operators, the problem is solved. "It was scary for me to know that there were times when my deputies went there on a call we had no communication with them, said Wood County Sheriff Mark "That caused a lot of sleepless nights." Estimates for communications upgrades ran in to the millions. Wood County did not have that kind of money. So the Sheriff turned to amateur radio operators from around the county. "They looked at our system and came up with a relatively inexpensive fix which was to move antenna situation around the county to much high locations," said Wasylyshyn. Wood County was able to update the system for just $160,000. Tower space at eight locations around Wood County was donated, from radio towers to water towers. And to make sure deputies could stay in contact anywhere outside, as well as inside buildings, they are putting mobile repeaters in the trunks of cruisers. I'm Fred Vobbe, W8HDU, reporting from Lima, Ohio. -- To even further strengthen Wood County's communication system, it has now installed two new propane powered generators for the radio system. That means the county can maintain radio contact with its officers in the field in case of a power outage that could last several days. Up until the generators the battery back-up system would only keep the county's communication's network going four hours. (W8HDU from published news reports) ** ENFORCEMENT: CALIFORNIA CB'ER ISSUED NOTICE OF UNLICENSED OPERATION The FCC's Sam Francisco Field Office has issued a Notice of Unlicensed Operation to Victor M. Coucelos of Anderson, California. This for what the regulatory agency says were violations of its Part 95 Rules governing the Citizens Radio Service. According to the FCC, it received a complaint of Citizens Band Radio interference in the city of Anderson, California. This past August 24th agents from the San Francisco office confirmed by direction finding techniques that radio signals on 27.085 MHz were emanating from Coucelos residence. Agents also heard Coucelos station transmitting sound effects, language that might be classified as profane, indecent or obscene, and music. During an inspection on August 25th of Coucelos CB station he was identified as the person responsible for its operation. The inspection revealed that a Galaxy, model DX 2517, transceiver was in use at Coucelos base station, and a model Magnum S-9 Nitro transceiver installed in Coucelos vehicle. These transmitters are not certificated for CB use and Coucelos operation of these transmitters voided his authority to operate his CB station. During the inspection, the San Francisco agents issued Coucelos a verbal warning that any further operation with these transmitters might subject him to more serious sanctions for engaging in violations of the Part 95 rules. Coucelos was told that he must cease such violations immediately. If he fails to abide by the FCC edict, he could be re-investigated during FCC enforcement efforts. If such an investigation were to indicate that Coucelos had violated any FCC Rules he could face severe penalties, including a substantial monetary forfeiture, seizure of his radio equipment and criminal sanctions including imprisonment. He was given 15 days from the date of the letter to respond advising what corrective actions hr has taken to eliminate the observed violations of the Commission's Rules. (FCC) ** RADIO LAW: FCC GRANTS WAIVER FOR TRAIN BREAK RADIO SYSTEM The FCC has granted eight railroads temporary waivers of the power limit for telemetry operations in the 450 to 470 MHz band. Specifically, the waivers to permit the operation of end-of-train ot E-O-T devices with eight watts transmitter output power, pending the resolution of a related rulemaking proceeding. Also granted in the December 3rd decision was a waiver to permit the equipment authorization of E-O-T devices with a transmitter output power of up to eight watts. For those not aware, end-of-train devices operate on frequency pair 452 and 457.9375 MHz. They transmit information regarding the brake pipe pressure on the rear car to the lead locomotive for display to the locomotive engineer. This in turn allows the engineer to apply the rear train brakes in an emergency. (FCC) ** HAM HAPPENINGS: PAPERS SOUGHT FOR 2011 SOUTHESTERN VHF SOCIETY CONFERENCE A call has gone out for papers to be presented at the 15th annual Southeastern VHF Society Conference to be held in Huntsville, Alabama on April 29th and 30th, 2011. Papers and other presentations can be on both the technical or operational aspects of VHF, UHF and Microwave weak signal amateur radio. Contact Steve Kostro by e-mail tp SVHFS2011 (at) downeastmicrowave (dot) com by January 8th if you wish to make a presentation or submit a paper. Deadline for the submission of papers is next March 11th. For further information about the conference please take your web browser to www.svhfs.org. (Southeastern VHF Society) ** NAMES IN THE NEWS: TWO UK HAMS SERVING ON ETSIC Some names in the news. First up is Peter Chadwick, G3RZP. He has been reappointed as Chairman of European Telecommunications Standards Institute Committee on Wireless Medical Applications. In the same announcement it was learned that Nigel Wilson, G4VVZ, has been appointed Chairman of the committee on Digital Mobile Radio. (Southgate, GB2RS) ** BREAK 2 This is ham radio news for today's radio amateur. This week from the beneath the Southern Cross, 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) ** HAM RADIO IN SPACE: SANASA TO SUPPORT HAM RADIO SPACE PROGRAM The newly formed South African National Space Agency has announced its intention to champion the amateur radio in space. In response to a question at the agency's launch ceremony press briefing from the South African Radio League, the new space agency's representative stated that the organization will support the amateur radio satellite program and that radio amateurs are part of the plans. Naledi Pandor is the South African Minister of Science and Technology. She officially launched the South African National Space Agency at a gala event on Thursday December 9th. At that time she said that the new agency will be that nations primary but not its only leader to direct Government's investment in space sciences and technology. Just how the South African National Space Agency will support amateur radio space efforts was not spelled out at the briefing. (SARL) ** EMERGING TECHNOLOGY: MULTIPLEXED AMATEUR RADIO DTV DOWN UNDER A group of New Zealand hams have successfully multiplex four digital video and audio streams. On Saturday, December 4th, a group of Wellington and Hutt Valley Radio Amateurs simultaneously multiplexed the four video and audio streams into a single digital television transmission and did so using low cost equipment. The transmission was centred on 1282 MHz, in accordance with the NZART bandplan. It occupied 1274 to 1290 MHz, the same bandwidth as one analogue FM television transmission. DVB-S modulation format was used and was receivable on an unmodified satellite TV set-top box. Further development and testing is planned with the aim of transmitting the four video and audio streams within an 8 MHz bandwidth. Thats half the bandwidth used by the initial tests. The next transmissions will use the DVB-T modulation format. That wil make them receivable on an ordinary Digital terrestrial television receiver of the type sold down-under. (NZART) ** EMERGING TECHNOLOGY: 100 MW SIGNAL ON 8.970 KHZ HEAR OVER 2873 KM The low frequency transmissions by DK7FC on 8.970 kHz have been received at a distance of 2873 km by 4X1RF in Haifa, Israel. Reception at these super low frequencies within the human audio hearing range requires ground rod antennas, low noise preamps and sophisticated decoding software. None the less, the fact that DK7FC's 100 milliwatts of effective radiated power was copied and recorded by 4X1RF at this great a distance indicates that transatlantic amateur VLF reception may indeed be possible in the very near future. (VHF Reflector) ** WORLDBEAT: REPEATER LOCATION GUIDE FOR GREECE NOW IPHONE APP A directory of amateur repeaters in Greece is now available for iPhone, iPod and IPad users developed by SW1NJX is now available from the iTunes on-line store. This is a free app designed to assist hams living in or traveling through Greece to find the closest VHF or UHF to their current location. You can find it tinyurl.com/grkrpt (SW1NJX) ** CONTEST CORNER: THE ARRL JANUARY VHF SWEEPSTAKES JANUARY 22 To 24 Turning to radiosporting news, the ARRL January VHF Sweepstakes is set for 1900 UTC on January 22nd to 03:49 UTC on January 24th. This is primarily a weak signal contest aimed mainly at operators who use SSB and CW. Some FM is allowed as long as it's not on a United States national calling frequency or through a repeater. The required exchange is simply your callsign and the Maidenhead grid square locator you are operating from. Logs are due no later than 0400 UTC on Wednesday, February 23rd. Paper submissions go to the ARRL January VHF Sweepstakes, 225 Main Street, Newington, Connecticut 06111. Electronic logs must be in Cabrillo format and e-mailed to Januaryvhf (at) arrl (dot) org. (ARRL) ** DX In DX, getr ready for Tonga as W6ZL, informs OPDX that he is planning to be active as A35KL rom Foa Island between December 16th to the 20th. His operation will be primarily CW with the possibility of some RTTY and SSB. His gear is an Elecraft K3 radio and verticals on the beach for 80 through 10 meters. He will not have InterNet access there. QSL Logbook of the World or direct to W6ZL, with a SASE or new style IRC. JE1RXJ, will be on the air as T88RX from Palau between January 21st and the 26th. Activity will be holiday style on 160 to 6 meters using CW and SSB. His emphasis will be on the lower band and CW. QSL via JE1RXJ, direct or by the JA Bureau. For those of you still needing Bangladesh for your DXCC listen out for S-21-FGC during the period December 16th to the 21st. Several foreign operators will be using this call. QSL is via JH1AJT. Lastly, JA2EZD will be active from Laos as XWPA from the Vientiane DX Club for another year. His operation will be on the HF bands only. QSL to Hiroo Yonezuka, Box DD153, Huang Sathai, Vientiane, Laos. And that callsign is not a mistake. It is XWPA. (Above from various DX news sources) ** THAT FINAL ITEM: TV RECEIVING ANTENNAS REGAIN POPULARITY And finally this week, word that over-the-air television antenna sales in the United States are growing dramatically. This as people disconnect from cable and satellite as they rediscover free, over the air TV. Much of it now in true High Definition. Asked if the popularity will continue, one antenna manufacturer and distributor said yes because 80% of the population doesn't even know you can get over-the-air High Definition TV, but they are finding out. The same manufacturer added that when you tell people that the same programming is available over the air they look at you like you're crazy. They then say: "You're saying I can actually get free HDTV from an antenna? It's shocking to a lot of people." As it turns out, the ability of over the air stations to multicast several channels on what used to be one has opened up a a new and growing market for those wanting High Definition Television reception without having to pay a monthly fee. More about the comeback of antennas to tele-viewing in the United States is on line at tinyurl.com/39fhj39. (TV News Check, CGC) ** 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 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 in the USA, I'm Jim Meachen, ZL2BHF, saying 73 from Auckland, New Zealand, a very happy holiday from down-under and we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2010. All rights reserved. |
Reply |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
Display Modes | |
|
|