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Subj: Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2293 for Friday Octo
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Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2293 for Friday October 8th, 2021
Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2293 with a release date of Friday
October 8th, 2021 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.
The following is a QST. A breakthrough in licensing for several
British islands and territories in the South Atlantic. In the US, the
Appalachian Trail comes alive with amateur radio â-" ham radio gets a
supporting role in a new short film. All this and more as Amateur Radio
Newsline Report Number 2293 comes your way right now.
***
BILLBOARD CART
**
NEW CALLSIGN PREFIX SETTLES FALKLANDS ISLAND DILEMMA
JIM/ANCHOR: We begin this week with report of a development that spells
good news for DXpeditioners and chasers: At long last a new callsign
prefix has evolved out of a long-simmering issue over licensed
operations in the former Falkland Islands Dependencies. Jim Meachen
ZL2BHF brings us that report.
JIM: Ofcom, the communications regulator in the UK, has agreed to use
of a new prefix for the former Falkland Islands Dependencies, which had
been mistakenly omitted from the Falkland Islands Communications
Ordinance in 2017. The prefix Victor Papa Zero, VP0, has been assigned
to these territories and the Falkland Islands Communications Regulator,
which was part of the discussions with Ofcom, is to administer these
licenses on behalf of the governments of the British Antarctic
Territory and South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands. The prefix will
also apply to the British sector of the Antarctic mainland, including
the Antarctic Peninsula and nearby islands as well as the South Orkney
and South Shetland Islands. This brings welcome news to DXpeditioners
and others who have been unable to use VP8 licenses in these former
dependencies for years. The new call signs will only be issued with
three-letter suffixes.
Hams assigned VP8 call signs under the old Falkland Islands
Communications Ordinance will remain valid until the licenses require
revalidation. At that time, they will be reassigned a VP0 call sign.
Hams may coment on the draft of this policy until the 18th of October,
Falklands Island Time. Follow the link that appears in the script for
this week's newscast at arnewsline.org.
[FOR PRINT, DO NOT READ:
www.gov.gs/amateur-radio-licences-policy-consultation/]
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jim Meachen ZL2BHF.
(OHIO PENN DX, SOUTHGATE)
**
WEST BENGAL HAMS ASSIST MOTHERS OF NEWBORNS
JIM/ANCHOR: In India, West Bengal hams turned their efforts recently
to aiding two displaced mothers of newborn babies. John Williams VK4JJW
has more.
JOHN: Relying on their amateur radio skills and the vast network of
connections that enables members to reconnect missing persons with
their families, members of India's West Bengal Radio Club came to the
asssistance of two women shortly after they had given birth.
According to a report in the Sujanya News, a woman who was in the
advanced stages of pregnancy was taken to Diamond Harbour Super
Specialty Hospital in West Bengal by police who found her at the local
railway station and noticed she appeared to be mentally challenged. The
child was born on September 10th and according to the news account her
family was located in Punjab after police requested intervention by the
amateur radio club. Ambarish Nag Biswas, secretary of the club, said
the connection was made with the help of Satnam Singh Birdi, VU2COR, in
Punjab state. According to the newspaper story the woman's brother told
the hams she had been missing for more than two months and that her
husband also appeared to be suffering from mental illness. The brother
made the trip to the hospital, accompanied by other relatives, to
retrieve the woman and her newborn baby.
In another more challenging case, however, the fate of another mother
and her newborn child at that same hospital is less certain. The West
Bengal hams learned that the woman, who also appeared to be mentally
challenged, is a widow and the mother of two older children who are now
being cared for by neighbours. Ambarish Nag Biswas told the newspaper
that no one has stepped forward to bring the woman home, claiming her
pregnancy was the result of sexual assault and a stigma to her family.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm John Williams VK4JJW.
(SUJANYA NEWS, WEST BENGAL RADIO CLUB)
**
SILENT KEY: ACTIVE NET PARTICIPANT WALTER PAGE PYNE, WA3EOP
JIM/ANCHOR: A prominent active amateur radio operator and a well-known
voice on the OMISS and Century Club nets has become a Silent Key. Sel
Embee KB3TZD tells us about him.
SEL: Walter Page Pyne was known for identifying his callsign as WA3EOP
- We Are Three Elephants On Patrol - and his voice was a familiar one
on the OMISS Net, the Century Club Net, the YL International Single
Sideband Net and numerous other nets. Page, as he was known to friends,
died on September 26th in his Maryland hometown of Hagerstown. A life
member of the Antietam (Ann-Tee-Tum) Radio Association and the
International Order of Odd Fellows ham club, he was also a cofounder of
the Cheese Hollow Amateur Radio Society in Maryland. He had served as
Charter Year President of the Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Chapter (#222)
of the Quarter Century Wireless Association. Page, a former phone
activities manager for the ARRL's Maryland/DC section, at the time of
his death belonged to the Maryland Emergency Phone Net.
Walter Page Pyne was 74.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Sel Embee KB3TZD.
(QRZ.COM, TRIBUTE ARCHIVE)
**
SCHOOL FOR DEAF PREPS FOR UNIQUE ARISS CONTACT
JIM/ANCHOR: Few things are outside the realm of possibility with
amateur radio, as a group of deaf students in the UK is about to learn
in an ARISS QSO with an American astronaut. Here's Jeremy Boot G4NJH.
JEREMY: American astronaut Mark Vande Hei, KG5GNP, is scheduled to
complete a unique amateur radio contact from the ISS with students at
Mary Hare School for deaf children in Berkshire, England.
Ciaran Morgan, M0XTD, the UK's ARISS operations lead, told Newsline
that the event will proceed like a standard ARISS contact for the
astronaut, but students and school volunteers will have access to a
stenographer using a device that projects what is being said onto a
large screen in their auditorium. Ciaran added that the text will also
appear on a live web stream which will also feature a sign language
interpreter. Meanwhile, hams from the Newbury and District Amateur
Radio Society have been assisting the students by providing lessons on
amateur radio.
The school noted on its blog: [quote] "These will be the first deaf
children to have done this, making it a world first." [endquote]
While some of the students will be linked to the action by a web feed,
others will be in the auditorium itself as socially distanced
spectators. It is scheduled to take place sometime during the week of
October 10th.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jeremy Boot G4NJH.
(CIARAN MORGAN, M0XTD, ARISS-UK, MARY HARE SCHOOL)
**
CQWW DX CONTEST GAINS PLAQUE SPONSORS FOR YOUTH
JIM/ANCHOR: As the date inches forward for the CQ WorldWide DX contest,
there are new sponsors for categories featuring young competitors. Ed
Durrant DD5LP has those details.
ED: The IARU Region 1 Youth Working Group will be sponsoring plaques
awarded in the upcoming CQWW DX contest for competitors in Europe and
Africa who are 25 years of age or younger. Plaques will be given to
young SSB and CW operators. A number of other YOTA branches and IARU
Youth Working Groups are sponsoring other awards on other continents
for young participants. The CQWW contest announced on its blog in
August that organisers have created a number of overlays within the
contest, including those for young operators and for hams who are
experimenting with new technologies. A new Explorer category has been
created for those radio operators who are using SSB and CW while
employing such new technologies as internet-linked stations.
The contest dates are October 30th and 31st for SSB and November 27th
and 28th for CW.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Ed Durrant DD5LP.
(CQWW BLOG)
**
IT'S 'FALLOUT' WEEKEND FOR 100 WATTS AND A WIRE
JIM/ANCHOR: Don't forget to be listening for operators calling "CQ FALL
OUT!" on October 8th, 9th and 10th. Those are the days for the portable
operating event of the 100 Watts and a Wire community. Operators are
being encouraged to work any band, any mode and alone or as a team. The
exchange is your call sign, your 100Watts ID if you have one, your
state, province or DX country and a true signal report.
For details visit the website 100wattsandawire.com and use the numerals
"1 Zero Zero" for the word "one hundred."
(100 WATTS AND A WIRE)
**
BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur
Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world, including
the K7MMA repeater in Spokane, Washington on Fridays at 5 p.m.
localtime.
**
APPALACHIAN TRAIL ACTIVATIONS LIGHT UP AIRWAVES
JIM/ANCHOR: When POTA, SOTA and Worldwide Flora and Fauna operators
activated sites along the Appalachian Trail in the eastern United
States recently, the airwaves above apparently blazed a few trails of
their own. Dave Parks WB8ODF brings us that report.
DAVE: Saturday, October 2nd was a busy day for Appalachian Trail
activations, as more than 60 stations called CQ from points along more
than two thousand miles of trail. David, ND1J, and Mike KB7THL operated
POTA stations in North Carolina and Pennsylvania, respectively, and
Jonathan, W4UYE, and Bob, AC1Z, activated SOTA summits in Georgia and
Virginia, respectively. According to organizer Mike WB2FUV, the day
ended with at least 25 unique SOTA summits activated and at least 26
POTA partipants in 11 of the 14 states. Mike himself was operating QRP
CW on West Mountain along the original section of the trail and logged
77 contacts. He said many SOTA stations were also making
summit-to-summit contacts with W7A SOTA stations on the 10 point peaks
in Arizona.
The event marked the trail's 100th anniversary. But the celebration
extended beyond the US: Preliminary results on the event website showed
that the farthest DX went to Heinz, OE5EEP/p in the Austrian mountains.
He broke through the stateside pileups to work two SOTA stations on
thetrail.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Dave Parks WB8ODF.
(MICHAEL MORAN WB2FUV)
**
RESULTS ARE IN FOR PORTABLE OPERATIONS CHALLENGE
JIM/ANCHOR: The results are in for the Portable Operations Challenge
held in Sepember. Here's Ed Durrant DD5LP.
ED: The Portable Operations Challenge 2021 took place on September 4th
and 5th and the overall winner showed what can be done from a great
portable location and using very low power. With just six contacts and
running at one-watt CW on twenty metres, Jack Haefner NG2E took out the
top spot with a grand total of 615,924 points. His six contacts were
from all around the US plus one that went all the way from his Hogback
Mountain SOTA summit W4V/SH-007 in Virginia to French SOTA chaser
Christian F4WBN near the French/Spanish border. All contacts took place
within 32 minutes of operating, in session two of the contest.
The most efficient contact measured in kilometres per watt used was
that same Virginia - France contact with 6,340 kilometres per watt
achieved.
So, this year both the overall winner and the furthest km/watt contact
title go to one person - Jack Haefner NG2E. WELL DONE Jack!
The number of entrants was a little disappointing. There were only
eighteen, far more had been hoped for in this, the second year, of the
challenge.
Of those entering however, there were a wide variety of power levels
and modes both from home and portable locations.
Of the eighteen entrants, fifteen were from the US, two from Europe and
one from Australia.
For the portable operations challenge and ARNewsline this has been
EdDD5LP.
**
CHINA ANNOUNCES LOSS OF SATELLITE
JIM/ANCHOR: China had great hopes for a satellite launched late last
month but following a malfunction, has declared it lost. Jason Daniels
VK2LAW has that story.
JASON: China's Shiyan-10 satellite was declared lost shortly after its
launch on Monday, September 27th. In releasing the news, Chinese state
media reported that the spacecraft did not function properly despite
having had a normal flight one day earlier. A report on Twitter said a
flash was seen in the sky above New South Wales, Australia. According
to SpaceNews, the flash was believed to be a sign that the launch was
on course and that this was a visible burn of the upper stage of the
Long March 3B rocket that carried the satellite as payload. The
satellite was to have entered a geosynchronous orbit around Earth. It
was said to have malfunctioned during the launch and by Tuesday,
September 28th, was officially declared a failure.
Shiyan-10's launch closely followed the liftoff of China's Jilin-1
Gaefen 02D satellite, which was reported to have achieved
successfulorbit.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jason Daniels VK2LAW.
(SPACE.COM, SPACENEWS)
**
IN-PERSON EXAMS RETURNING IN UK
JIM/ANCHOR: In the UK, it's almost back to business as usual for
amateur radio exams but there are a few changes in the works. Jeremy
Boot G4NJH explains.
JEREMY: Face-to-face amateur radio exams are making a comeback now that
pandemic restrictions are easing after 18 months. Exams via remote
invigilation and training by distance-learning sessions are giving way
to in-person club meetings and training for those who choose it. The
Radio Society of Great Britain has announced that starting on the 1st
November, clubs will be able to use a new online booking system for
candidates' paper-based exams. The same booking system is already in
use for online exams as of the 6th of October. There are plans,
however, to phase out the paper exams eventually.
Meanwhile, candidates planning to take the Foundation exam, going
forward, will no longer be required to complete a practical test,
according to the RSGB Examination Standards Committee. The tests had in
any case been suspended during the 18-month pandemic restriction
period, but clubs are still encouraged to include a practical component
in their candidate training.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jeremy Boot G4NJH.
(RSGB)
**
WORLD OF DX
In the world of DX, be listening for Nobby, G0VJG, operating as
3B8/G0VJG from Mauritius until the 16th of October. He's on 80 through
10 metres using SSB and the Digital modes. Request QSLs via M0OXO's
OQRS or send directly to him.
(OHIO PENN DX)
**
KICKER: HAM RADIO FILM SHORT, 'NIGHT,' COMES TO LIGHT
JIM/ANCHOR: Our final story takes us to the moviesâ-"namely to the
screening of a short film featuring student actors....and amateur
radio! Mike Askins KE5CXP wraps it up for us this week.
MIKE: In 34 harrowing minutes, a world awakens darkened by a sudden and
unexplained absence of morning sun. Amateur radio provides a lifeline
for a group of terrified children who've disovered they've been plunged
into an endless state of midnight. This is the plot of the film short,
"Night," which premiered recently on YouTube following its release by
John D'Aquino's Young Actors Workshop, a California-based drama school.
The workshop had reached out to the Edmond Amateur Radio Society K5EOK
for technical assistance to prepare for the filming in Stillwater,
Oklahoma.
The young actors may all be relative unknowns for now but hams in
Oklahoma and beyond might recognize two of the names in the credits:
Marcus Sutliffe, N5ZY, and Kevin O'Dell N0IRW. Marcus gets special
thanks for making the connections with the club and Kevin is credited
as technical advisor. Kevin, who has an extensive film and video
production background, is also featured in a key speaking role as The
Colonel, the radio operator the youngsters reach out to for guidance.
The Colonel tells them that a nuclear blast has occurred, putting a
shroud of darkness between the Earth and the sun.
Written and directed by John D'Aquino, the film is a showcase for the
young student actors and was created with assistance from the Oklahoma
Film and Music Office. But even within its plotline of darkness and
destruction, amateur radio emerges as a shining light and a ray of hope
for making meaningful connections in troubled times.
To view the film, see the link in the printed version of this week's
script at arnewsline.org
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Mike Askins KE5CXP.
[FOR PRINT ONLY, DO NOT READ: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kf1Q4tS32Ww ]
(MARK KLEINE, N5HZR)
**
NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to AMSAT; the ARRL; ARISS-UK; CQ Magazine;
CQ Worldwide contest blog; David Behar K7DB; Mark Kleine, N5HZR; Mary
Hare School; Michael Moran, WB2FUV; Ohio Penn DX; QRZ.com; Radio
Society of Great Britain; the SOTA Reflector; Southgate Amateur Radio
News; shortwaveradio.de; SOTA Reflector; space.com; spacenews; Sujanya
News; Ted Randall's QSO Radio Show; West Bengal Radio Club; WTWW
Shortwave; and you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio
Newsline. You can write to us at newsline@arnewsline.org. We remind our
listeners that Amateur Radio Newsline is an all-volunteer non-profit
organization that incurs expenses for its continued operation. If you
wish to support us, please visit our website at arnewsline.org and know
that we appreciate you all.
For now, with Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and
our news team worldwide, I'm Jim Damron N8TMW in Charleston West
Virginia saying 73. As always we thank you for listening.
Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2021. All rights reserved.
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