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G4TNU  > NEWS     17.09.23 01:31l 266 Lines 12811 Bytes #999 (0) @ EU
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Subj: RSGB Main News - 17 Sep 2023
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T:From: G4TNU@GB7CIP.#32.GBR.EURO <g4tnu@gb7ipf.ampr.org>
T:Newsgroups: ampr.news.europe
T:Message-Id: <E1_4237700_G4TNU@gb7ipf.ampr.org>

GB2RS Main News for Sunday the 17th of September 2023

The news headlines:

* RSGB Strategic Priorities
* RSGB 2023 Convention
* YOTA month


The RSGB Board has chosen four strategic priorities for the Society 
to focus on until the 2024 AGM. These are the growth of amateur 
radio; membership of the RSGB; spectrum and licensing; and ensuring 
the continued financial stability of the Society. These priorities 
will set the framework for the RSGB's activities over the coming 
months. Both HQ staff and volunteers across the range of RSGB teams 
will be involved in planning how best to implement these four 
priorities. Look out for further details in the coming weeks.

The RSGB 2023 Convention has a great speaker programme and there are 
also some fantastic forums to take part in. The RSGB HF and VHF 
Forums will take place on Sunday, and on Saturday in conjunction with 
ICQPodcast, the RSGB is offering Convention attendees the chance to 
discuss two important topics. The first will challenge you to 
consider and take responsibility for the issues within amateur radio 
today – for example, is amateur radio just about what you like? 
Should someone else fix the issues you see? The second forum will 
focus on QRM and how both newcomers and experienced radio amateurs 
can sometimes feel frustrated or discouraged by on-air activities. In 
both forums you can discuss personal experiences, share ideas, and 
help to promote positive interactions with fellow radio amateurs. You 
will leave with a notepad full of ideas. The only way to participate 
in these forums is to be at the Convention, so do book your package 
or tickets now! Full information about the updated programme, 
speakers, the drop-in buildathon and the social scene are on the RSGB 
website at rsgb.org/convention

December is Youngsters on the Air, or YOTA, month and is an exciting 
opportunity for you, your club, school, or social group to host an 
amateur radio station with the aim of getting youngsters active on 
the amateur bands. Once approval from Ofcom is received, the RSGB 
will provide access to the special callsign GB23YOTA and a full list 
of operating slots will be made available on QRZ.com. These slots 
will be first-come, first-served, so check your calendars and reserve 
your place as soon as possible. If you'd like to register your 
interest for YOTA month, or simply ask for further information, you 
can email Jamie, M0SDV at yota.month<at>rsgb.org.uk  

The RSGB Learning Team is calling out for your help – it is looking 
for volunteers to get involved in the development, implementation and 
relaunching of the new Discovery Challenge, which is a revamp of the 
Individual Scheme from the Beyond Exams initiative. The team is 
proposing to split the activities into three levels – Explorer, 
Adventurer and Master. If you'd like to help out with these exciting 
changes, or would just like to share some ideas or feedback, you can 
contact Mark Burrows, 2E0SBM the Beyond Exams Coordinator at 
be.coordinator<at>rsgb.org.uk 

The UK Six Metre Group's 2023 AGM will be held via Zoom on Sunday the 
8th of October from 6pm BST. The brief formal part of the meeting 
will be followed by a talk from Antoine, 3D2AG entitled "Extending 6m 
DX boundaries from the Heart of the South Pacific." Zoom details have 
been emailed to members. Non-members will be welcome to join the 
call but will not be able to vote on AGM business. For more 
information about the group, visit uksmg.org

The popular Railways on the Air weekend, coordinated by Bishop 
Auckland Amateur Radio Club, usually takes place on the weekend 
closest to the 27th of September each year. This date celebrates the 
anniversary of the first steam-powered passenger railway journey 
which took place on the 27th of September 1825. The first passenger 
train ran on a line in North East England from Darlington to 
Stockton. This year, the event will run on the weekend of the 23rd 
and 24th of September with lots of special event stations on the air. 
For more information, to register, and to see a list of stations 
taking part, visit rota.barac.org.uk


And now for details of rallies and events

The Hack Green Military Surplus and Military Radio Hangar Sale will 
take place on Sunday the 24th of September. The venue will be Hack 
Green Secret Nuclear Bunker, Nantwich, Cheshire, CW5 8AL. The sale 
will include electronic equipment, amateur gear, components, military 
radio items and vehicle spares. For more information visit 
hackgreen.co.uk or contact coldwar<at>hackgreen.co.uk  Any 
last-minute news will appear on facebook.com/HGsecretbunker

The Bury St Edmunds Radio Rally will take place on Sunday the 24th 
of September. The venue will be Rougham Tower Museum, IP32 7QB. The 
doors will be open from 8am for traders and from 9.30am for the 
public. The entrance fee will be GBP 3. The event will feature trade 
stands, tabletop sales, bring and buy, local radio clubs' displays, 
an RSGB book stall and Raynet. Refreshments will be available from 
the Museum's cafeteria. Please direct enquiries to 
rally2023<at>bsears.co.uk

The Weston super Mare Radio Society Radio and Electronics Rally 
will take place on Sunday the 24th of September. The venue will be 
The Campus Community Centre, Worle, Weston-super-Mare, BS24 7DX. The 
doors will open at 10am and entry will be GBP 3 per person. Under 16s 
will be admitted free of charge. Free parking and refreshments will 
be available. For more information, or to book a table, email 
westonradiosociety<at>gmail.com or call 07871 034 206. 

Biggleswade Swap-meet and Auction will take place on Sunday the 24th 
of September. The venue will be The Weatherley Centre, Eagle Farm 
Road, Biggleswade, SG18 8JH. The doors will open at 9.30am and entry 
costs GBP 8. The auction starts at 12.30pm. Bring and buy, hot food 
and ample parking will be available. To book tables, or for further 
information, email Jeremy, G8MLK via Jezzer3<at>hotmail.com


Now the Special Event News

Special callsign TI70RC [TANGO-INDIA-SEVEN-ZERO-ROMEO-CHARLIE] will 
be active until the 30th of September to celebrate the 70th 
anniversary of the Radio Club de Costa Rica, TI0RC, founded on the 
29th of September 1953. QSL via Logbook of the World.

Special event callsign DM23BUGA is active until the 8th of October. 
The suffix stands for 'Bundesgartenschau' [BOON-DES-GAR-TEN-SHAW], 
the biennial horticulture show and festival that is taking place in 
Mannheim this year. All QSOs will be confirmed automatically via the 
bureau. Direct cards will be managed via DL2VFR.


Now the DX news

Claudio, HB9OAU is active as SV5/HB9OAU from Karpathos Island, 
EU-001, until the 21st of September. He is operating using SSB, CW, 
RTTY and FT8 on the 80 to 10m bands. QSL via Logbook of the World, 
eQSL, or direct to his home call.

Ken, KH6QJ is active as T32AZ from Christmas Island, OC-024, until 
the 17th of October. QSL via KH6QJ, direct or via the bureau.

John, VK1POR is active on Deal Island, OC-195, until the 1st of 
December. He often uses FT8 on the HF bands and uploads his log to 
eQSL and Logbook of the World.


Now the contest news

Today, the 17th of September, the 70MHz Affiliated Societies Contest 
runs from 0900 to 1200UTC. Using all modes on the 4m band, the 
exchange is signal report, serial number and locator.

Today, the 17th of September, the IRTS 70cm Counties Contest runs 
from 1300 to 1330UTC. Using SSB and FM on the 70cm band, the exchange 
is signal report, serial number and locator. EI and GI stations also 
give their county.

Also today, the 17th of September, the IRTS 2m Counties Contest runs 
from 1300 to 1500UTC. Using SSB and FM on the 2m band, the exchange 
is signal report, serial number and locator. EI and GI stations also 
give their county.

Also today, the 17th of September, the British Amateur Radio Teledata 
Group Sprint PSK63 Contest runs from 1700 to 2100UTC. Using PSK63 on 
the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is 
serial number.

On Monday the 18th of September, the RSGB FT4 Contest runs from 1900 
to 2030UTC. Using FT4 on the 80, 40 and 20m bands, the exchange is 
your report.

On Tuesday the 19th of September, the 1.3GHz UK Activity Contest runs 
from 1900 to 2130UTC. Using all modes on 1.3GHz frequencies, the 
exchange is signal report, serial number and locator.

On Thursday the 21st of September, the 70MHz UK Activity Contest runs 
from 1900 to 2130UTC. Using all modes on the 4m band, the exchange is 
signal report, serial number and locator.

The CQ Worldwide DX RTTY Contest starts at 0000UTC on Saturday the 
23rd and ends at 2359UTC on Sunday the 24th of September. Using RTTY 
on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is 
signal report and CQ Zone. The UK is in Zone 14.

On Sunday the 24th of September, the UK Microwave Group 5.7 and 10GHz 
Contest runs from 0600 to 1800UTC. Using all modes on 5.7 and 10GHz 
frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator.

Also on Sunday the 24th of September, the Practical Wireless 70MHz 
Contest runs from 1200 to 1600UTC. Using all modes on the 4m band, 
the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator.


Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA, and G4BAO 
on Thursday the 14th of September 2023

While our terrestrial weather this week was variable, it seems our 
space weather was equally unsettled!

We warned last week that it wouldn't take much to cause the Kp index 
to rise and on Tuesday a coronal mass ejection, or CME, hit the Earth 
sending the Kp index to 5.67. The Bz component of the interplanetary 
magnetic field tipped sharply south for a long duration causing 
visible aurora to be seen across the north of the UK and as far south 
as Cornwall.

This really hit HF quite hard and good signals were scarce.

Unsettled radio conditions continued into Wednesday bringing the 
Maximum Usable Frequency, or MUF, over a 3,000km path down below 
18MHz for most of the day. The Kp index was still around 3 or 4 on 
Thursday, but MUFs were recovering and were at around 28MHz over 
3,000km by lunchtime.

Next week NOAA predicts that the Solar Flux Index will start the week 
around 165 and then decline as the week progresses, perhaps ending at 
around 145 to 150.

Geomagnetic conditions are forecast to be quiet, at least until the 
23rd when the Kp could rise to four. But at this point in the solar 
cycle the risk of a solar flare, and subsequent CME, remains high 
every day, so watch solarham.net for up-to-date information.

And finally, a new paper by NASA's Lisa Upton and David Hathaway 
indicates that sunspot maximum is now forecast to be in the Autumn of 
2024. They predict a maximum sunspot number of 135, plus or minus 10, 
which is slightly larger than Cycle 24's maximum of 116.4, but well 
below the average of 179 for Solar Cycles 1 to 23.


And now the VHF and up propagation news

Tropo conditions are still present over southern areas today, the 
17th. However, by early next week, low pressure will be a dominant 
force and the coming week looks very unsettled with rain and quite 
strong winds at times.

This means that any Tropo, either across the southern North Sea or 
down across Biscay, will not last beyond this weekend, ending today 
the 17th.

The unsettled low-pressure-driven weather will mean that rain scatter 
is a distinct possibility on some of the more active days. The other 
propagation modes are the usual fall-backs of meteor scatter using 
random meteors and aurora, which may not be too far-fetched in view 
of the geomagnetic activity and visible auroras experienced recently. 
The September Epsilon Perseids meteor shower has already peaked 
earlier in the month, but a few lingering meteors may give some truly 
random radio reflections. 

Last week there were indications that this normally quiet period 
after the August Perseids and the forthcoming October Draconids can 
still provide some interest for persistent meteor scatter enthusiasts.

During this coming equinox week, the Moon will reach its lowest 
declination of the month on the 22nd and 23rd. This point also 
coincides with the Moon being in Sagittarius, so that sky noise will 
be very high. This will make moon bounce operations particularly 
difficult towards the end of the week.

And that's all from the propagation team this week.


And that's the end of the main news for this week prepared by the
Radio Society of Great Britain.  Items for inclusion in subsequent
bulletins can be emailed to  radcom<at>rsgb.org.uk to arrive by
10:00 on the Thursday before transmission.


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