MKARS - Milton Keynes Amateur Radio Society

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World Amateur Radio Day

Posted: 12 Apr 2016 04:00 PM PDT
http://www.mkars.org.uk/news/article...teur_radio_day




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World Amateur Radio Day


Every April 18, radio amateurs worldwide take to the airwaves in
celebration of World Amateur Radio Day. It was on that day in 1925 that the
International Amateur Radio Union was formed in Paris.

Amateur Radio experimenters were the first to discover that the short wave
spectrum — far from being a wasteland — could support worldwide
propagation. In the rush to use these shorter wavelengths, Amateur Radio
was “in grave danger of being pushed aside,� the IARU’s history has noted.
Amateur Radio pioneers met in Paris in 1925 and created the IARU to support
Amateur Radio worldwide.

Just two years later, at the International Radiotelegraph Conference,
Amateur Radio gained the allocations still recognized today — 160, 80, 40,
20, and 10 meters.Â* Since its founding, the IARU has worked tirelessly to
defend and expand the frequency allocations for Amateur Radio. Thanks to
the support of enlightened administrations in every part of the globe,
radio amateurs are now able to experiment and communicate in frequency
bands strategically located throughout the radio spectrum.Â* From the 25
countries that formed the IARU in 1925, the IARU has grown to include 160
member-societies in three regions. IARU Region 1 includes Europe, Africa,
the Middle East, and Northern Asia. Region 2 covers the Americas, and
Region 3 is comprised of Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific island
nations, and most of Asia. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
has recognized the IARU as representing the interests of Amateur Radio.

Today, Amateur Radio is more popular than ever, with over 3,000,000
licensed operators!

World Amateur Radio Day is the day when IARU Member-Societies can show our
capabilities to the public and enjoy global friendship with other Amateurs
worldwide.

We have provided a poster for World Amateur Radio Day.Â* Any club may
download it and use it to promote WARD in their area.Â* The poster comes in
two sizes: 61cm x 91cm and a small (A4) flyer.

Groups should promote their WARD activity on social media by using the hash
tag #WARD2016 on Twitter and Facebook. IARU will list all WARD activities
on this page. To have your WARD activity listed, send an email to ARRLÂ*
Public Relations Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X.

April 18 is the day for all of Amateur Radio to celebrate and tell the
world about the science we can help teach, the community service we can
provide and the fun we have.

We hope you will join in the fun and education that is World Amateur Radio
Day!