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Subj: Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2277 for Friday June 18, 2021
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Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2277 for Friday June 18, 2021
Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2277 with a release date of Friday June
18, 2021 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.
The following is a QST. The Bouvet Island Three Y Zero J Dxpedition is
cancelled. The UK's National Hamfest is cancelled — and a proud moment for
the island nation of Mauritius. All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline
Report Number 2277 comes your way right now.
***
BILLBOARD CART
**
3Y0J BOUVET ISLAND DXPEDITION CANCELLED
PAUL/ANCHOR: Our top story this week marks the end of a DXpedition dream:
The Intrepid-DX Group has called off its planned activation of Bouvet
Island. Jim Meachen ZL2BHF brings us those details.
JIM: The RV Braveheart, the sailing vessel that has carried many
DXpeditioners to remote and challenging destinations, is being sold and the
Three Y Zero J (3Y0J) Bouvet Island DXpedition has been cancelled. The
Braveheart was to have taken members of the Intrepid-DX Group to Bouvet in
2023. It was a trip that had been in the planning stages since 2016,
following the team's DXpeditions to South Sandwich and South Georgia
Islands.
Writing on the group's webpage, Paul Ewing, N6PSE and Kenneth Opskar LA7GIA
said the ship will be sold as a result of a downturn in the charter vessel
business—a direct result of the pandemic. Paul and Kenneth are advising
donors that their contributions are being returned to them by the same
method in which they were received and it will take several weeks.
The hams wrote: [quote] "We will continue to research other ships and
possibly find another suitable vessel for a future project." [endquote]
Based in New Zealand, the Braveheart was the vessel of choice for numerous
DXpeditions, including the Perseverance DX Group's VP8PJ DXpedition to South
Orkney Island in 2020 and the VP6D Ducie Island DXpedition in 2018. Its
skipper is Nigel Jolly, K6NRJ, a member of the CQ DX Hall of Fame.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jim Meachen ZL2BHF.
(INTREPID DX GROUP)
**
SUSPECTED CYBERATTACK AT RESEARCH FACILITY SITE
PAUL/ANCHOR: A major player in the realtime mapping of changes in the
ionosphere was suddenly shut down following a suspected cybersecurity attack
at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, where the facility is based. The
UMass Lowell Center for Atmospheric Research was among those services
impacted by the outage that resulted. The campus was shut down on Tuesday
June 15th and an investigation began. The university posted a note on its
website saying "UMass Lowell continues to retain control over its IT
infrastructure and is working with a leading cyber forensics firm to
identify, evaluate and eliminate any issues that are discovered." [endquote]
The school established a temporary website for information at umasslowell
dot com (umasslowell.com)
(UMASS LOWELL, NBC)
**
UK'S NATIONAL HAMFEST POSTPONED UNTIL 2022
PAUL/ANCHOR: Those waiting to attend the biggest radio rally in the UK will
have to wait one more year, as we hear from Jeremy Boot G4NJH.
JEREMY: The National Hamfest, considered the premier radio rally in the UK,
has been postponed until September of 2022. Organisers made the announcement
on their website and Twitter account on Friday, June 11th. They said that a
number of factors were making it impossible to predict whether the event can
be safely held in September of this year as scheduled. With at least three
months' worth of planning involved in staging the hamfest, they determined
it was wiser to wait another year. The announcement said: [quote] "The
organisers not only wish to act in a responsible way towards the large team
of volunteers who staff the event and make it possible every year but also
the visitors and the partner organisations, all of whom make the event a
success each year."[endquote] The show was to be held as always at the
Newark & Nottinghamshire Showground.
The rally is held by National Hamfest (Lincoln) in association with the
Radio Society of Great Britain.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jeremy Boot G4NJH.
(NATIONAL HAMFEST)
**
SLOVENIAN INDEPENDENCE EVENT RUNS THROUGH END OF YEAR
PAUL/ANCHOR: The celebration of Slovenia's independence isn't a small one so
ham radio operators have been making big plans. Ed Durrant DD5LP tells us
about them.
ED: Hams in Slovenia are inviting amateurs from around the world to join
them in celebrating 30 years of Slovenian independence. They're doing that
by activating a special event around the number 30.
Beginning on Saturday, June 26th at 0000 UTC and running through to the end
of the year, Slovenian amateur radio stations will be able to add the number
30 to the suffix of their S5 callsigns. Any foreign radio operator
contacting 30 Slovenian hams are eligible for a special award. At least 10
of the Slovenian contacts must contain the special callsign suffix 30 but
the rest can be regular S5 callsigns. Hams may make the contact using any
band and any mode.
For more details, visit the Slovenia Contest Club website whose URL appears
in the printed version of this script on our ARNewsline website at
arnewsline.org
Awards will be downloadable as PDFs from the club website.
The independent Republic of Slovenia was created on June 25, 1991, when the
Slovene Parliament adopted the declaration of independence. Slovenia had
been a part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Ed Durrant DD5LP.
[for print only, do not read: http://lea.hamradio.si/scc/]
(SLOVENIA CONTEST CLUB)
**
FRENCH HAMS OPERATE NEW BONUS STATION FOR 13 COLONIES EVENT
PAUL/ANCHOR: On this side of the Atlantic, another celebration of
independence is about to kick off. It's the popular 13 Colonies Special
Event and it's back this year with a new bonus station on board. Sel Embee
KB3TZD has those details.
SEL: When the colonial army fought for American independence in 1776, the
French became the soldiers' primary allies. Now the French are offering
another gesture of support to the 13 Colonies — and this time, by 13
Colonies, we mean the annual special event by that name. As the event kicks
off on July 1st, French radio operators will be adding a new bonus station:
TM13COL will join bonus stations GB13COL in England and WM3PEN in
Philadelphia.
This year also marks the 13th year for the 13 Colonies Event, which will be
on the air through July 7th. It marks America's Independence Day, which is
observed on July 4th. Last year, event operators made more than 202,000
contacts. This year, the improved band conditions have organizers feeling
optimistic that they can beat that total, especially with some stations
operating via satellite and at least two bonus stations using digital voice.
All stations will be on HF. So be listening for K2A through K2M and work
toward your certificate and the individual QSL cards which this year will
feature a ship associated with each colony, city, or country.
For more details, visit QRZ.com, the 13 Colonies Special Event page on
Facebook, or the event website at www.13colonies.us.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Sel Embee, KB3TZD.
(BOB JOSUWEIT WA3PZO)
**
SWEDEN'S ALEXANDERSON TRANSMITTER PREPARES FOR JULY 4 MESSAGE
PAUL/ANCHOR: The fourth of July is a big day in Sweden this year too -- and
anyone with access to a VLF receiver can be part of the action. Jeremy Boot
G4NJH gives us those details.
JEREMY: There's another big event coming up that's also traditionally
connected to July 4th: It's the annual transmission of the old Alexanderson
alternator SAQ at the historic site in Grimeton Sweden. The radio event
marks July 4th as Alexanderson Day, named for the Swedish radio engineer
Ernst Fredrik Werner Alexanderson. If you have a compatible receiver, be
listening on the VLF frequency 17.2 kHz CW for the call sign SAQ.
There will be two transmissions in CW. One begins with a tuneup at 0830 UTC
followed by a transmission of a message at 0900 UTC. The second one will
have a tuneup at 1130 UTC with a transmission of a message at 1200 UTC. Both
transmission events will be livestreamed on YouTube, beginning five minutes
before the tuneup. The only people present during the event will be those on
staff, in order to comply with pandemic safety restrictions.
At the same time, the Amateur Radio Station SK6SAQ will also be on the air
looking for contacts. Be listening on 3.535 MHz for CW or on 7.140 kHz SSB
for phone transmissions.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jeremy Boot G4NJH.
(THE ALEXANDER GRIMETON ASSOCIATION)
**
BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio
Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including the WG8ARS
repeater of the Germantown Amateur Radio Society in Germantown, Ohio on
Sundays after the 9 p.m. net.
**
WIA ASKS AUSTRALIAN REGULATOR TO REVIEW EXAMS
PAUL/ANCHOR: Is ham radio as accessible as it can be to newcomers in
Australia? The country's largest amateur radio society is asking a few
questions about that and hopes the nation's regulator will have some
answers. Jason Daniels VK2LAW tells us more.
JASON: The Wireless Institute of Australia has asked for a review of the ham
radio licence exam and the management of the amateur operator's certificate
of proficiency in response to what the WIA deems stagnant growth in the
country's newly licensed operators. The WIA is concerned that even as
pandemic conditions inspired many new hams in other nations to become
licensed, the number of hams in Australia has shown no growth, particularly
throughout 2020. The WIA report did not cite specific numbers in the news
report on its website, calling it only [quote] "a lack of growth."
[endquote]
The WIA is asking the Australian Communications and Media Authority to
review the amateur service examination system and find a new model for
managing the certificate of proficiency's syllabus to encourage more amateur
involvement. At the same time, the WIA continues to press for standard
class licensees, the equivalent of the US General or UK Intermediate
licences, to be given access to the six metre band between 50 MHz and 52 MHz
in addition to the 52-54MHz that they already have. Advanced licensees
already have access to the full 4 MHz.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Jason Daniels VK2LAW.
(WIA)
**
ISS PREPS TO DEPLOY CUBESAT FROM MAURITIUS
PAUL/ANCHOR: Satellite-watchers, the small island nation of Mauritius is
about to have its proud moment. John Williams VK4JJW tells us more.
JOHN: The first amateur radio CubeSat from Mauritius is about to be deployed
from the International Space Station where is being carried in the Japanese
Experimental Module. MIR-SAT1 (Meer-SAT-ONE) was sent on June 3rd from
Florida's Kennedy Space Centre aboard the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and is
scheduled for deployment on Tuesday, June 22nd. Its initials stand for
Mauritius Imagery and Radiotelecommunication Satellite 1 and it is a
creation of researchers from the Mauritius Research and Innovation Council.
The project went forward with support from the local amateur radio society
and experts from technology provider AAC-Clyde Space UK.
The CubeSat's missions include engaging in experimental satellite
communication with other islands using an amateur radio digipeater. The V/U
9600bps GMSK digipeater will be available to hams around the world when the
satellite is not in use for this or any other of its other missions. There
is a downlink on 436.925 MHz. Decoders to be downloaded for free by schools
and the world's amateur radio community were developed by Chris AC2CZ and
Daniel EA4GPZ. Visit the AMSAT bulletin board and the Space Mauritius
website for links.
MIR-SAT1 has an expected lifetime of between two and three years and during
that time it is expected to make ground contact with Mauritius four to five
times daily.
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm John Williams VK4JJW.
(AFRICA NEWS, MAURITIUS RESEARCH AND INNOVATION COUNCIL)
**
REVIEW: 'HAM RADIO FOR DUMMIES' BY WARD SILVER N0AX
PAUL/ANCHOR: Still confused by a few things in this hobby called amateur
radio? Ward Silver N0AX has updated a book he wrote to serve as a guide to
hams at all levels of proficiency. Neil Rapp WB9VPG has read the book and
brings us this review.
NEIL: The fourth edition of “Ham Radio for Dummiesö is now available. Ward
Silver, N0AX, is once again the author. Since the previous edition, a lot
has happened in ham radio. Every chapter has been updated in some manner.
Many topics have been added and updated including software defined radios,
many new digital modes and digital voice modes, and remote license testing.
This book is not meant to be a study guide. Rather, it’s a written
reference Elmer. The book contains a lot of information, but broken up into
small chunks for easier comprehension. “Ham Radio for Dummiesö is a great
introduction to ham radio for those who might be interested or just getting
started. But, there’s also some things for the experienced ham as well.
Some of my favorite parts of reviewing this book were the labeled photos of
all kinds of connectors, from RF to audio. The pictures and diagrams in
this book are a huge help for those learning about ham radio for the first
time. Also, the book is jam packed with quality hyperlinks to web sites
with more information on the topics than will fit into a single book. It
also has an extensive glossary.
Reporting for Amateur Radio Newsline, I’m Neil Rapp, WB9VPG in Union,
Kentucky.
**
WORLD OF DX
In the world of DX, be listening for Simone, IK5RUN and Carlo, IK5MES using
the callsigns IG9/IK5RUN and IG9/IK5MES, respectively, from Lampedusa Island
until June 25th. They will be operating holiday style on 40-6 meters using
SSB. QSL via their home callsigns, direct
or by the Bureau.
Members of the Royal Omani Amateur Radio Society will be on the air as A43MI
from Masirah Island, Oman, between July 22 and 27th. They will also use the
callsign A44M during the RSGB IOTA Contest being held July 24 and 25th). QSL
both callsigns via ClubLog's OQRS, LoTW or eQSL.
Be listening for Luca, IK5AEQ and Franco, IZ5IUY operating as IL7/IK5AEQ and
IL7/IZ5IUY from San Domino Isle until July 8th. Be listening on various HF
bands. QSL via their home callsign direct or via LoTW.
(OHIO PENN DX)
**
KICKER: A FATHER, A SON AND A REPEATER
PAUL/ANCHOR: Our final story comes to us this week just in time for Father's
Day which in many parts of the world, is being celebrated this year on
Sunday, June 20th. One ham in Pennsylvania is marking his second holiday
without his father. But there are a few ways amateur radio is letting him
keep his father close by. Here's Dave Parks WB8ODF with this story of father
and son.
DAVE: The callsign W3NTT and the repeater W3NTT are now assigned to Aaron
Groover but as far as this Pennsylvania amateur radio operator is concerned,
part of both still belong to his father, James. A veteran of the US Navy,
James Groover became a Silent Key on June 10, 2020 at age 62. He had been
the inspiration for his son who at the time of his father's death, held the
callsign K3ALG.
Now operating with his dad's call, Aaron runs the repeater they had dreamed
of building and running together. Aaron fulfilled that dream alone atop from
Pimple Hill, Pennsylvania, for the both of them and getting it on the air
for him is as much a source of pride as a gesture of love and respect. He
told Newsline [quote] "it's making fantastic QSOs and became one of the most
used repeaters around." He added: "I figured he would love this."
Aaron has also been busy with the gift his father bought for him just before
his passing. Knowing his son's affinity for PiStar and DMR gateways, he'd
surprised him with an OpenSpot, a gift Aaron received only after his father
was gone. He uses it today, he said, in his memory.
On June 10th of this year, the first anniversary of James Groover's death,
Aaron went on the air and gave a call for him in his memory, a proper Silent
Key notice. It went out from a repeater that stands now on a hilltop as a
symbol of the bond between father and son. Aaron told Newsline: "Everytime I
key it up, I will forever think of my father."
For Amateur Radio Newsline I'm Dave Parks WB8ODF.
(AARON GROOVER W3NTT)
**
NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Africa News; the Alexander Grimeton
Association; Amateur News Weekly; AMSAT; ARISS; the ARRL; CQ Magazine; David
Behar K7DB; FCC; Intrepid DX Group; Mauritius Research and Innovation
Council; NASA; National Hamfest; Ohio Penn DX newsletter; QRZ.com; Radio
Society of Great Britain; Slovenia Contest Club; Southgate Amateur Radio
News; shortwaveradio.de; Ted Randall's QSO Radio Show; WTWW Shortwave;
Wireless Institute of Australia; and you our listeners, that's all from the
Amateur Radio Newsline. You can write to us at newsline@arnewsline.org. For
more information or to support us visit our official website at
arnewsline.org. Be sure to follow some of these stories as they get a more
indepth look on the YouTube Channel of 100 Watts and a Wire. Search for the
video segment with the title "Two Stories."
For now, with Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and our
news team worldwide, I'm Paul Braun WD9GCO in Valparaiso Indiana saying 73.
As always we thank you for listening.
Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2021. All rights reserved.
73 de Bill, PY2BIL
PY2BIL@PY2BIL.SP.BRA.SOAM
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+
BBS: PY2BIL - Timed 18-jun-2021 07:43 E. South America Standard Time
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