eHam.net News

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King of Thailand Bhumibol Adulyadej, HS1A (SK):

Posted: 14 Oct 2016 05:50 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37770


Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX), HS1A, died on October 13,
after a long period of declining health. Born in Cambridge,
Massachusetts, while his physician father was at Harvard University,
the king, whose name translated as "strength of the land,
incomparable power," was 88.


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Propagation Forecast Bulletin #42 de K7RA:

Posted: 14 Oct 2016 05:32 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37769


At 0356 UTC on October 13, the Australian Space Forecast Centre
issued this geomagnetic warning: "Increased solar wind speed due to coronal
hole effects expected for
14-15 Oct. Active conditions forecast with possible Minor Storm
periods.


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Amateur Radio Simulated Emergency Rest Raises No Alarms:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 05:10 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37767


The Dunn County ARES/RACES (Amateur Radio Emergency Service/Radio Amateur
Emergency Service) conducted its portion of the Amateur Radio Relay League
(ARRL) Simulated Emergency Test (SET) from Sept. 29 through Oct. 1 with
great success. In 2015, the group ranked first in Wisconsin on ARES
Activity (served agency contacts) and Local Nets (messages and
participation within the amateur community), the two categories for the
SET. Nationally, they ranked fifth and sixth respectively. Building on that
program led by Mike Johnsen, Dunn County's 13 members and friends doubled
its ARES Activity contacts and tripled our Local Nets score in the 2016 SET.


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Perth Morse Code Experts Dazzle the Younger Generation with Skills:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 05:09 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37766


With a combined age of 245 years, three members of the Perth Morsecodians
of WA showed their knowledge and skills for curious young viewers at the
Kalamunda and Districts Historical Society's Open Day. The event took place
on Sunday at the History Village on Railway Road. As part of the annual
Open day, visitors were invited to enter the old Post Office Building and
send a telegram allowing the morsecodians to show the skills they are
preserving and learnt many years ago. The first telegram was sent in
America in 1844. In 1854, the first telegram was sent in Melbourne from
Williamstown in the Western suburbs. In Perth, it took another 15 years
before the first telegram was sent in 1869. Some hundred years later when
the last telegrams were wrapped up in WA, Morse became a language lost to
many people. But a group of enthusiastic former postal and telecom workers
have kept Morse alive by private practice and in some cases forming clubs.


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DX News -- ARRL DX Bulletin #42:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:39 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37762


This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by
QRZ DX, the OPDX Bulletin, 425 DX News, The Daily DX, DXNL, Contest
Corral from QST and the ARRL Contest Calendar and WA7BNM web sites.
Thanks to all.


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New Satellites with Amateur Radio Payloads Launched, Monitored:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:39 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37761


The AlSat-1N and Pratham satellites, both carrying Amateur Radio
payloads, have both been heard and identified following the India
Space Research Organization (ISRO) PSLV-C35 mission launch on
September 26. Reports are requested. Reports on AMSAT-BB indicate
the Pratham CW beacon on 145.980 MHz is active.


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Just Ahead In Radiosport:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:39 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37760


Just Ahead In Radiosport:


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Amateur Radio Volunteers Mustered In Response to Hurricane Matthew:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:38 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37759


After the longest activation in its more than 50-year history, the
Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) secured operations for
Hurricane Matthew on October 9 at 0400 UTC. HWN Manager Bobby Graves,
KB5HAV, reported that the net was in continuous operation for 6 days, 7
hours, gathering real-time ground-truth weather data as the storm
passed through the Caribbean and up along the US Eastern Seaboard, and
passing the data along to WX4NHC at the
National Hurricane Center (NHC). Various
Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) nets also activated along the
East Coast. The first major hurricane of the 2016 Atlantic hurricane
season and, at one point, a Category 5 storm, Matthew was downgraded to
a post-tropical cyclone as it headed out into the Atlantic.


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Current Rules Holding Hams Back from Adopting State-of-the-Art Technology:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:38 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37758


In comments filed on October 12 with the FCC, ARRL reiterated its case that
the FCC
should impose a 2.8 kHz limit on symbol rate for digital modes, arguing
that its approach is both balanced and necessary. ARRL had asked the
FCC to change the Part 97 rules to delete the symbol rate limits in
Section 97.307(f) and replace them with a maximum bandwidth for data
emissions of 2.8 kHz on amateur frequencies below 29.7 MHz. In a July
Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) in WT
Docket 16-239, the FCC proposed to eliminate the current baud rate
limitations for data emissions, consistent with ARRL's Petition, but it
declined to propose a bandwidth limitation for data emissions in the MF
and HF bands to replace the baud rate limitations.


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The Doctor Will See You Now!

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:36 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37757


"Bits vs Baud" is the topic of the latest (October 6) episode of the
"ARRL The Doctor is In" podcast.
Listen...and learn!


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National Parks On the Air Update:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:36 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37756


Of the 489 ARRL National Parks on the Air (NPOTA) units, the real stars of
the event have been
the National Scenic and National Historic Trails. Added to the National
Park Service official units list in the last week of 2015, the trail
units have accounted for the majority of NPOTA activations this year.
Nine of the top 10 most-activated NPOTA units are trails, with nearly
11 percent of all NPOTA contacts (80,580 QSOs) made from an eligible
National Scenic or Historic Trail. The Lewis and Clark National
Historic Trail (TR-09) leads the
pack, with nearly 13,000 contacts made from numerous points along the
trail.


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Pacific Seafarer's Net Assists In Rescue of Sailors on Sinking Sailboat:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:36 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37755


The Pacific Seafarer's Net relayed a call
for help and contacted the US Coast Guard on September 28, after the SV
Rafiki began taking on water some 230 miles south of Cold Bay, Alaska.
At approximately 0300 UTC, Charles Houlihan, KD6SPJ, a net relay
station, received the distress call from the sailboat's caption.
Houlihan, who was also at sea in SV Jacaranda, contacted Randy
VanLeeuwen, KH6RC, a net relay station in Hawaii. He, in turn, got in
touch with Hawaii USCG District 14 to report the incident and provide
Rafiki's location. The Hawaii USCG district then contacted the 17th
USCG District in Alaska, which handled the rescue. VanLeeuwen kept in
constant radio contact with the Rafiki until contact was lost. Fred
Moore, W3ZU, in Florida, and Peter Mott, ZL1PWM, in New Zealand, also
were on frequency and in contact with the vessel's captain until a US
Coast Guard rescue helicopter arrived.


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Donations of Unwanted Amateur Radio, Test Gear Support ARRL's Mission:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:31 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37754


Downsizing your shack? Want your now-unused equipment to help promote
and preserve Amateur Radio for future generations? Consider donating
your used Amateur Radio and test equipment to ARRL.


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Get Set for School Club Roundup!

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:31 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37753


With the fall semester well under way, school clubs are at full
throttle. That means it's time for the ARRL School Club Roundup (SCR) --
fall edition. Propagation
typically improves at this time of year, and clubs should not find it
too difficult to make contacts across the US and around the globe, even
with a modest station. Unlike most contests, this one takes place
during the week. SCR 2016 starts on Monday, October 17, beginning at
1300 UTC, and runs through Friday, October 21, at 2359 UTC. Stations
may operate for up to 24 hours during the entire contest, and may only
operate for 6 hours during any single 24-hour period.


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US JOTA Registrations Reach 340 This Year:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:33 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37752


With Scouting's Jamboree On The Air (JOTA) just days away, JOTA
Coordinator Jim Wilson, K5ND, said this week that approximately 340 US
Amateur Radio stations have registered for this weekend's event. That's
out of a total JOTA and JOTI (Jamboree on the Internet) count of 596.
The official JOTA-JOTI sign-up system remains open. JOTA will
be on the air October 14-16. Wilson urged all stations that register to
file post-JOTA reports.


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ARRL Invites Nominations for 2016 International Humanitarian Award:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:32 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37751


Nominations are open for the 2016 ARRL International Humanitarian Award.
This award is
conferred upon an individual radio amateur or Amateur Radio group that
has demonstrated devotion to human welfare, peace, and international
understanding through Amateur Radio. The League established this annual
award to recognize Amateur Radio operators who have used ham radio to
provide extraordinary service to others in times of crisis or disaster.


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IARU Administrative Council Establishes WRC-19 Priorities and Strategies:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:31 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37750


The Administrative Council of the International Amateur Radio Union
(IARU) held its annual in-person meeting on
October 7 and 8 in Vina del Mar, Chile, prior to the IARU Region 2
(IARU R2) Conference. The Council
is responsible for the policy and management of the IARU and consists
of the three IARU international officers and two representatives from
each of the three IARU regional organizations.


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'Best 6 Years of My Life' -- Round-The-World Cyclist OZ1AA Back Home:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:30 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37749


Round-the-world cyclist Thomas Andersen, OZ1AA/K9DXX, is back home in
Denmark after a little more than 6 1/2 years of on-and-off cycling. On
October 8, Andersen arrived at the spot where his Odyssey began -- the
central square of Copenhagen. Begun in 2010, Andersen's "Cycling the
Globe" adventure covered some 36,000
miles.


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Former ARRL DXCC and Awards Manager Bill Moore, NC1L (SK):

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:29 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37748


Former ARRL DXCC and Awards Manager Bill Moore, NC1L (ex-KA1MRR,
KB1UN), of Newington, Connecticut, died on October 6. He was 64. Moore was
seriously injured in a motor vehicle
accident in July 2014 that left him paralyzed from the chest down. He
was never able to return to work at ARRL Headquarters and retired in
2015. An ARRL member, Moore had worked at League Headquarters for 23
years, starting in 1992.


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Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2033, Friday, Oct. 14, 2016:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 05:10 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37747


The following is a QST. Ohio school kids contact the space station - via an
amateur in Italy. The bicycling ham from Denmark returns home to Copenhagen
-- and hams from Australia, Europe and points in between prepare for a
global Summit-to-Summit event. All this and more as Amateur Radio
Newsline's Report #2033 comes your way right now.


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ETH039 -- Jamboree On The Air:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:34 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37744


In this episode we talk about Jamboree on
the Air!


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R3RT: Added a Gallery of QSL Cards:

Posted: 13 Oct 2016 11:27 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37743


It would seem that in connection with the
use of such services to exchange QSO
confirmations like LoTW and eQSL, the
exchange of QSL cards, so-called "old
model", that is, the paper should come to
naught, but in practice, everything is
exactly the opposite - there is a constant
growth of real exchange QSL cards.