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PY2BIL > ARNR 01.03.24 20:21l 403 Lines 18441 Bytes #294 (0) @ WW
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Subj: Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2418 for Friday March 1st, 20
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Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2418 for Friday March 1st, 2024
Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2418 with a release date of Friday
March 1st, 2024 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.
The following is a QST. An island expedition in India draws attention to
vital emergency communications. YLs are getting out in the park for a one-
day POTA party -- and prepare for FUNCube-1 to go silent, at least for a
while. All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2418 comes
your way right now.
**
BILLBOARD CART
**
EXPEDITION ON INDIAN ISLAND DRAWS ATTENTION TO CYCLONE PERILS
NEIL/ANCHOR: An Islands on the Air expedition in India has raised awareness
of the need for better emergency communications in a remote region that is
prone to deadly cyclones. Graham Kemp VK4BB gives us those details.
GRAHAM: The recently completed AU2RS IOTA Expedition received public praise
from India's Ministry of Communications for its successful ham radio
activation of cyclone-prone Nachugunta Island. The team chose the island,
which carries the IOTA designation of AS-199, to mark the 60th anniversary
of that global amateur radio programme. The hams were on the air from
cyclone shelters on the Bay of Bengal coastline during the weekend of the
23rd of February. Operating with five HF stations and one satellite station,
they reached amateurs in Europe, South Africa, the US, Canada and Japan.
Even as operators were uploading their logs upon return from the island, a
press release from the communications ministry reported an estimated 4,000
contacts logged.
The hams were applauded by public officials, including those from the
Department of Telecommunications, for their demonstration of radio's
importance in areas vulnerable to natural disasters
This is Graham Kemp VK4BB.
(INDIAN MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS, AMATEUR RADIO DAILY)
**
SILENT KEY: EMERGENCY RESPONDER NORA RODRIGUEZ RODRIGUEZ, CO8NRR
NEIL/ANCHOR: Members of the national emergency network in Cuba are grieving
the loss of a devoted team leader. Nora Rodriguez Rodriguez, CO8NRR, became
a Silent Key in a hospital in Guantanamo, Cuba on Monday, the 26th of
February.
Her death was announced on Facebook by Carlos Alberto Santamaria Gonzalez,
CO2JC, the national emergency network coordinator of the Amateur Radio
Federation of Cuba. The Facebook post said her death was the result of
complications from a chronic illness. Nora had served as information system
coordinator of the Federation of Radio Amateurs of Cuba in her province.
Carlos wrote: [quote] "She was always willing to cooperate in communications
during emergencies and disasters. Until the last days of her life she kept
track of any event that could affect our archipelago." [endquote]
Carlos told Newsline in an email that there were few additional details as
the family is being given privacy at this time.
(CARLOS ALBERTO SANTAMARIA GONZALEZ, CO2JC)
**
LUNAR LANDER STILL FUNCTIONS DESPITE LANDING ISSUES
NEIL/ANCHOR: Troubles with the first US-built lunar lander in 50 years have
apparently not kept the spacecraft from staying in touch. Jack Parker W8ISH
explains what happened.
JACK: Builders of the private moonlander that made its historic touchdown
near a lunar crater on the 22nd of February, said the spacecraft is
successfully sending and receiving communications despite having tipped over
during its final descent near the moon's south pole. Flight engineers have
told the company that Odysseus is now resting on its side, propped up on a
rock, but that the mission is not imperiled. Intuitive Machines of Houston,
Texas has given assurances that five of the six NASA payloads designed to
conduct experiments are on sections of Odysseus that can send and receive
communications. The NASA payloads will collect space weather and lunar
surface information as well as conduct demonstrations of communication and
navigation.
The lander is the first US-built spacecraft to land on the moon in five
decades.
This is Jack Parker W8ISH.
(NBC NEWS, THE HILL, CNN, NASA)
**
YLS GATHER IN PARKS FOR A POTA PARTY
NEIL/ANCHOR: Throwing a party that's 24 hours long and inviting as many YLs
as possible isn't such a daunting task when the venue for that party can be
anywhere as long as it's a registered site for Parks on the Air. Andy
Morrison K9AWM tells us about the upcoming festivities.
ANDY: If you are chasing POTA on March 8th at any time of the day or night
you will likely hear even more YLs than ever calling CQ. The first YL POTA
Party is taking place that day to mark International Women's Day. Activating
parks has been a way of life for the organizer, Shannon KC1OHT, whose
limited antenna options in her city neighborhood in Massachusetts led her to
operate portable shortly after getting her license in 2020. For Shannon,
POTA became a way to build confidence - and build community.
Now that community is getting ready to celebrate: Shannon told Newsline she
has been waiting since last fall to make a POTA party like this happen. She
and the other organizers are hoping that more experienced YL ops will
operate and invite someone new to POTA to join them. No one will be left out
either. YLs who can't get to a park can still come to the party as a hunter
from the home QTH.
This is Andy Morrison K9AWM.
(SHANNON, KC1OHT; BARBARA, KC1KGS)
**
ARISS CELEBRATES 40 YEARS OF HAMS ON THE RADIO IN SPACE
NEIL/ANCHOR: ARISS - Amateur Radio on the International Space Station - had
a big celebration recently in Florida, and I was fortunate to attend. I
filed this report while I was still there -- to give listeners a sense of
all the excitement.
NEIL: ARISS celebrated the positive impact of 40 years of amateur radio on
human space flight at its conference held late last month at the Center for
Space Education: Astronauts Memorial Foundation near the Kennedy Space
Center in Florida. One hundred and ten leaders, volunteers and fans of the
program gathered to hear and see memorabilia from the past four decades and
got a look into how to rocket into the future. Keynote speaker Richard
Garriott, ex-W5KWQ, inspired the group toward a bold future and passed his
license exam at the conference to become re-licensed. His previous license
had lapsed not long ago. ARISS also had a few announcements, including a new
partnership with Estes model rockets and expansion of the SPARKI radio kit
availability for school classrooms. HamTV will return on the next ISS supply
mission, SpaceX 30, scheduled for mid-March and be returned to service soon
after. Lou McFadin, W5DID, received a special achievement award for his work
in building amateur stations in space since the very first one on STS-9,
which carried the first Spacelab mission and the first astronaut
representing the European Space Agency 40 years ago. Of course, the crowd
was treated to a live contact with astronauts on the ISS as three youths
presented their questions to the astronauts.
From Kennedy Space Center Florida, this is Neil Rapp WB9VPG
**
FUNCUBE TRANSPONDER TO BE SILENT THROUGH MID-MARCH
NEIL/ANCHOR: If you're a fan of AO-73, the satellite called FUNcube-1, you
can expect a period of silence this month. Dave Parks WB8ODF tells us why.
DAVE: Under the best of conditions, sometimes the fun has to end - even if
you happen to be FUNcube-1, the educational and amateur radio satellite also
known as AO-73. The FUNcube's busy transponder will be turned off between
March 3rd and March 15th to permit the batteries to take a much-needed short
rest. The satellite will still provide low-power telemetry but it will
remain in Safe Mode during this period. Much of its telemetry data is used
for educational programming in schools.
Since its launch into sun-synchronous orbit in November of 2013, FUNCube has
gained popularity with hams who make good use of its VHF to UHF transponder.
It was created through the joint efforts of AMSAT-UK, AMSAT-NL, and ISIS-BV
in The Netherlands.
This is Dave Parks WB8ODF.
(AMSAT, AMATEUR RADIO DAILY)
**
VINTAGE RADIO MUSEUM'S HAM SHACK IS BACK ON THE AIR
NEIL/ANCHOR: A beloved radio museum near Dublin is QRV again. Here's Jeremy
Boot G4NJH with the good news.
JEREMY: Amateur Radio Station EIØMAR is back on the air from the Ye Olde
Hurdy Gurdy Museum of Vintage Radio near Dublin. Two powerful storms in
early January left its antenna unusable and the museum went silent for about
three weeks. Tony, EI5EM, who holds the callsign for the museum station,
told Newsline in an email that the historic site did not stay idle for long
thanks to Tom May, EI9LA, who donated an X8Ø vertical antenna that he had
not been using. Tony and Joe, EI2JZ, installed the replacement antenna,
swapping out the coax at the same time.
Challenging weather is a way of life at the historic tower that houses the
museum. The location overlooking Howth Harbour played a key role in the
pioneering days of wireless where both Lee de Forest and later, the Marconi
Company, carried out numerous experiments. The museum is open on weekends
from 11 am to 4 pm local time.
This is Jeremy Boot G4NJH.
(IRTS, TONY BREATHNACH, EI9LA)
**
BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio
Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world and on the East Coast
Reflector on Sundays at 1 p.m. Eastern Time and now Wednesdays at 10 p.m.
Eastern Time.
**
NOMINATIONS OPEN FOR YOUNG HAM OF THE YEAR
NEIL/ANCHOR: Nominations are now open for the 2024 Bill Pasternak WA6ITF
Memorial Amateur Radio Newsline Young Ham of the Year award. Mark
(pronouncer-Abram-oh-vich) Abramowicz NT3V, chairman of the YHOTY award
committee is here with more.
MARK: The late Bill Pasternak WA6ITF, Amateur Radio Newsline’s co-founder,
started this award 47 years ago to recognize young people for their
achievements in amateur radio.
Bill assembled a top-flight group of amateur radio operators to serve as
judges.
He insisted that this independent panel of people with credentials and
accomplishments of their own in the world of amateur radio pick the winner
from among the many nominees he received each year.
I can tell you from the many conversations I was privileged to have shared
with Bill over the years that he was always thrilled to hear the results. He
was the first one to see the nominees but was careful to avoid any personal
communications that might influence the judges.
Bill asked me to fill a board vacancy and serve as the chairman of the award
and judging committee in 2002. It’s hard to believe that was 22 years ago!
Unfortunately, we lost Bill in 2015.
His legacy lives on because the Amateur Radio Newsline staff voted to attach
his name to the award.
Now, we here at Newsline need your help to identify a ham 18 years or
younger living in the continental United States to nominate for this year's
award.
The nomination form and details are available on our website –
arnewsline.org.
We only accept online nominations to make it easier to put together a
package that includes photos, letters, emails, and anything else that will
help us get to know the young person you are endorsing.
The deadline for nominations is May 31.
This is Mark Abramowicz, NT3V.
**
FCC HONORS PROGRAM SEEKS ENGINEERING APPLICANTS
NEIL/ANCHOR: If you are an engineering student graduating this coming May,
you may be eligible for a job with the US Federal Communications Commission
through its Honors Engineers Program. Jobs are available for graduates in
electrical and electronics engineering. The FCC will receive applications
through the 2nd of July. The agency's most recent recruitment efforts took
place at job fairs at Historically Black Colleges and Universities and
Hispanic Serving Institutions. If you are an interested student, or know
someone who might be, visit USAjobs dot gov (USAjobs.gov) to learn more or
to apply. The direct link can be found in the text version of this week's
newscast script at arnewsline.org
[DO NOT READ: https://www.usajobs.gov/job/767902700. ]
(FCC)
**
OLDER STARLINK SATELLITES MARKED FOR DEORBITING
NEIL/ANCHOR: Starlink has announced it is deorbiting 100 of its older
satellites in the interest of safety. Travis Lisk N3ILS brings us the
details.
TRAVIS: SpaceX will be deorbiting 100 Starlink satellites launched in 2019
and 2020 to prevent them from becoming hazards in low Earth orbit, the
company said recently. While deorbiting satellites is not uncommon for
Starlink, these so-called "controlled descents" are deemed necessary because
the company has identified a defect that could cause issues. SpaceX did not
specify what the defect was but said that the 100 satellites risk becoming
unavailable for further maneuvering and must be taken out of service. The
deorbiting is to occur gradually over a period of months, with the
satellites retaining maneuverability throughout the process. Starlink, which
is owned by Elon Musk, maintains the largest satellite constellation in
orbit. SpaceX said that removal of these older satellites will not have an
impact on Starlink's broadband services.
This is Travis Lisk N3ILS.
(GIZMODO, SPACENEWS, AMATEUR RADIO DAILY)
**
WORLD OF DX
In the World of DX, be listening for the Grassroots Amateur Radio Club,
VO1GRC, operating as VO1TAP from Newfoundland until the 18th of March. The
club is marking the anniversary of the naval disaster involving the USS
"Truxtun" and USS "Pollux" off the coast of Newfoundland on the 18th of
February 1942. See QRZ.com for QSL details.
Gerard F5NVF, Luc F5RAV and Abdel M0NPT are using the callsign TY5C from
Benin from the 2nd to the 29th of March using CW, SSB and FT8 on various
bands including 6 metres. They will also operate via the QO-100 satellite.
See QRZ.com for QSL details.
Be listening for Gildas, F6HMQ and Michel, F6GWV operating as FG/F6HMQ,
FG/F6GWV and TO3Z from Guadeloupe, IOTA number NA-102, until the 17th of
March. They are also taking part in the ARRL DX SSB Contest on the 2nd and
3rd of March. QSL information is on QRZ.com
Special callsigns including YR95AR, YR95CC, YR95CH and YR95IN are among
those calls active until the 31st of May. The operators are celebrating the
95th anniversary of the first amateur radio association in Romania's Arad
County. This is being organised by C.S. Radio-club Admira, YO2KBQ. See
QRZ.com for QSL details.
(425 DX BULLETIN)
**
KICKER: PEDESTRIAN MOBILE BECOMES A WALK IN THE PARK
NEIL/ANCHOR: For our final story this week, we visit a Wisconsin amateur who
decided to put his portable antenna up front - way up front - and carry it
where he could see it: on his chest. The results surprised and delighted
him, as we learn from Kent Peterson KCØDGY.
KENT: For the past year or two, activating POTA has been a walk in the park
for Martin KØBXB. After more than six decades of amateur radio from his home
shack, he discovered that operating portable could give him an even bigger
shack and a chance to channel his good engineering talent into creating an
efficient way to deploy his antennas and his gear in the great outdoors.
Most recently, he took that a step forward - actually a few huge steps
forward - and that's what led to the walk in the park: He started operating
pedestrian mobile. Carrying his gear in a light backpack, he said most of
his pedi-mobile trips have lasted an hour or two, working stations in the US
and Canada. His 5-watt CW signal has even grabbed an occasional DX from
whatever park he may be at in Wisconsin.
Ever the tinkerer, Martin believed he could make a good thing even better.
He was troubled by lack of access to the antenna, which was mounted behind
him. So he decided to move it to the front where he could see it by adding a
wearable breast panel. He said that using an operating power of 5 watts, he
wasn't necessarily concerned about a radiating antenna being inches from his
head.
On Friday, February 16th, Martin did his first field test of the new
configuration and proclaimed it a success: His first QSO was a park-to-park
contact on 20 meters with Drew N2AKJ, in New York, some 774 miles away. He
told Newsline in an email: [quote] "That little setup that I was testing
when I talked with N2AKJ was my best yet." [endquote] He said a few more
activations have followed since then and he called them [quote] "some of the
most fun activations to date." [end quote]
While pedi-mobile is not his preferred activation method, he told Newsline
that he intends to quicken his pace. In fact, with his newest configuration
he's certain to be putting his best foot forward.
This is Kent Peterson KCØDGY.
(DREW DEMARCO, N2AKJ; MARTIN KØBXB)
**
DO YOU HAIKU?
Don't forget the Amateur Radio Newsline haiku challenge. If you're not too
busy tuning your antennas or chasing the latest DXpedition, pick up a pencil
and share your experience by sending an original haiku to us here at
Newsline. Use the entry form on our website, arnewsline.org and please
follow the rules for writing your three-line haiku -- sorry but we cannot
accept any entries that aren't written in traditional haiku form.
NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Amateur Radio Daily; AMSAT; Barbara, KC1KGS;
CQ Magazine; David Behar K7DB; Drew DeMarco N2AKJ; DXWorld; FCC; 425DXNews;
Gizmodo; Irish Radio Transmitters Society; Tony EI9LA; QRZ.com; Martin
KØBXB; Shannon KC1OHT; shortwaveradio.de; SpaceNews; YouTube; and you our
listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. 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. We also remind our listeners that if you like our
newscast, please leave us a 5-star rating wherever you subscribe to us. For
now, with Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and our news
team worldwide, I'm Neil Rapp WB9VPG in Union Kentucky saying 73. As always
we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2024.
All rights reserved.
73 de Bill, PY2BIL
PY2BIL@PY2BIL.SP.BRA.SOAM
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+
BBS: PY2BIL - Timed 01-mar-2024 15:14 E. South America Standard Time
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