eHam.net News

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Nayif-1 CubeSat with Amateur Radio Transponder Set to Launch on February 15

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 02:24 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38629


AMSAT-UK and AMSAT-NL have announced that at the Nayif-1 1U CubeSat,
which includes a full FUNcube communication package, is set for
launch on an Indian PSLV launch vehicle on February 15 at 0358 UTC.
PSLV Flight C-37, will carry more than 100 satellites into orbit.
Nayif-1 carries a U/V linear Amateur Radio transponder for SSB and
CW and a telemetry transmitter. The initial plan called for a
late-2015 launch.


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Slow-Scan TV Transmissions from International Space Station Planned:

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 02:23 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38628


Slow-scan television (SSTV) transmissions are planned from the
International Space Station (ISS) on February 13-14. The SSTV images will
be transmitted on 145.800 MHz FM as part of the
MAI-75 Experiment, using the Kenwood TM-D710 transceiver located in
the ISS Russian Service Module. It's anticipated the transmissions
will be in PD-180 SSTV format.


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Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2050 for Friday, February 10, 2017:

Posted: 10 Feb 2017 02:24 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38626


The following is a QST. Hams test drive an experimental band in the U.S.
Young amateurs prepare for School Club Roundup -- and we hear from the
winner of the Dave Kalter Youth DX Adventure's essay competition. All this
and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2050 comes your way right now.


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Freeport's 'Mr. Friday Night' Keeps Ham Radio Operators Coming Back:

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 04:07 PM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38625


FREEPORT -- If you were to walk into Jim Dorsey's one-bedroom apartment,
you might not expect to see 30 to 50 people gather there each Friday night.
Dorsey, 69, runs Friday Night Fun Net, a weekly gathering of ham radio
operators. Dorsey's net draws people from Freeport to Michigan to his
living room via radio waves. As many as 120 people in a single night have
tuned in to Dorsey's frequency to swap stories. Dorsey, who is legally
blind, got his ham radio license in 2004 after memorizing all the questions
to the test. His love for radio goes back to when he was growing up in
Ridott. Overall, there are 68 people with amateur radio call signs in
Freeport, according to radioreference.com. "Radio has always been my
thing," he said. "I've been interested in it since I was a young man. I
listen to more radio than I watch TV." When people tune in to Dorsey's net,
it's all about relaxing and getting to know other people. Dorsey makes sure
he has a topic prepared that will spark conversation. He might ask everyone
about their Valentine's Day plans or their favorite beer. "I get to hear a
lot of hams come in and talk about what they're doing, what topics are on
their mind," said Scott Francis, a frequent participant on the Friday Night
Fun Net. "Jim gets the quite the collection of check-ins to his net." There
are plenty of nets to choose from, but none quite like Dorsey's. He started
Friday Night Fun Net in 2008, and he's seen its popularity boom, as well as
his own. His enthusiasm as a host has earned him the nickname "Mr. Friday
Night."


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Remembering Vimy Ridge; Nova Scotia Hams Commemorate the 100th Anniversary:

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 04:06 PM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38624


From Sandy Cove on the Digby Neck to Sydney, Nova Scotia Radio Amateurs
took to the airwaves to tell the world of Canada's victory at the Battle of
Vimy Ridge. Starting on New Year's Day and for the next six days, 14
operators across Nova Scotia told the Vimy story to more than 5,700 amateur
radio stations in 73 countries around the world. These contacts were made
using voice (SSB), Morse code (CW) and digital modes (RTTY and PSK31).
VE100VIMY/VE1, the call sign used by the operators, was issued specially
for the occasion by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada.
The call sign was issued to the Vimy Commemorative Station Society based in
Richmond, B.C. The society was formed in 2012 and with the co-operation of
the amateur's national organization, Radio Amateurs of Canada, organized
operations in all 13 of Canada's amateur radio call sign areas. Each call
sign area activates VE100VIMY for a week from January to March 2017. The
culmination of the society's Vimy initiative will be an around-the-clock
operation from April 1 to 9 by an international group of amateurs at the
battle site at Vimy, France.


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Just Ahead In Radiosport:

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:39 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38623


Just Ahead In Radiosport:


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ARRL Board of Directors Adopts Legislative Objectives for 115th Congress:

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:37 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38622


The ARRL Board of Directors unanimously adopted five legislative
objectives for the 115th US Congress when it met in Connecticut January
20-21. ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, chaired the session.


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ARRL Board Names Award Winners:

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:39 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38621


The ARRL Board named the winners of several awards when it met in
Connecticut January 20-21.


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ARRL Contributing Editor, N0AX, Wins 2016 Bill Orr Technical Writing Award:

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:38 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38620


ARRL Contributing Editor Ward Silver, N0AX, of St. Charles, Missouri,
is the 2016 Bill Orr Technical Writing Award winner, sponsored by the
ARRL Foundation. It marks the
second time Silver has been named to receive the prestigious award --
the first came in 2003. The QST editorial staff reviewed articles for
the past year and nominated Silver on the basis of his January 2016
article, "About SSB." Written in a clear, conversational style, the
prize-winning article offers a straightforward explanation of the
technical nature of single sideband and how to effectively receive SSB.


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ARRL Announces 2017 Teachers Institute On Wireless Technology:

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:36 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38619


ARRL has announced its 2017 Teachers Institute on Wireless Technology
schedule. This summer's sessions will be held
in Dayton, Ohio -- hosted by the Dayton Amateur Radio Association (DARA) --
and at ARRL Headquarters in Newington,
Connecticut. (DARA also helps to sustain the program as a generous
contributor.) The deadline to apply is May 1. Past
participants who have completed the introductory (TI-1) course may want
to consider signing up for the advanced (TI-2) session on Remote
Sensing and Data Gathering. These expenses-paid, intensive professional
development opportunities offer educators training and resources to
explore wireless technology in the classroom using Amateur Radio.


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The Doctor Will See You Now!

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:37 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38618


"AM and SSB" is the topic of the latest (February 9) episode of the
"ARRL The Doctor is In" podcast.
Listen...and learn!


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QST Antenna Design Competition is Under Way!

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:36 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38617


ARRL members are invited to submit entries for the 2017 QST Antenna
Design Competition. You
can enter in one of three categories.


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The ARRL International DX CW Contest Is Just Ahead:

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:34 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38616


Come mid-February, it's time to warm up to the ARRL International DX
CW Contest, February 18-19! It's the US
(except Alaska and Hawaii) and Canada (except St. Paul and Sable
islands) against the rest of the world on the third weekend of
February. W/VE stations send signal report and state/province
abbreviation. DX stations send a signal report and output power. Expect
a busy time on the bands as CW radiosport enthusiasts dive into the big
event at 0000 UTC on February 18 (the evening of February 17 in US time
zones.


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Radio Australia HF Station Signs Off In CW:

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:35 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38615


In an apparent nod to radio amateurs who may have tuned in, Radio
Australia's VL8A
transmitter in Alice Springs signed off
on January 31 in CW. The station sent "73 de VL8A QRT," before pulling
the big switch. Radio Australia announced last fall that it planned to
cease shortwave transmissions. Although the broadcaster shut down its
Katherine, Tennant Creek, and Roe Creek (Alice Springs) transmitters at
the end of January, it will continue to broadcast on the FM and AM
bands, via satellite, and via online streaming and mobile applications.


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Oldest, Longest-Licensed US Ham, Educator Charles Hellman, W2RP, (SK):

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:34 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38614


Charles "Charlie" Hellman, W2RP, of Hastings on Hudson, New York, died
on January 25. He was 106 and may have not only been the oldest
surviving radio amateur in the US but, at 92 years, also may have been
the longest licensed. Hellman outlived by 8 days Harry Wolf, W6NKT, of
Morro Bay, California, who had been considered the oldest US ham when
he died
on January 17, just a couple of weeks shy of his 108th birthday.


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Communication Satellite Pioneer Harold A. Rosen, Ex-W5JKW, (SK):

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:33 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38613


Communication satellite pioneer Harold Rosen, ex-W5JKW, of Pacific
Palisades, California, died on January 30. He was 90. Inspired by the
USSR's launch of Sputnik I in 1957 that kicked off the space race in
earnest, Rosen -- an alumnus of Tulane and Caltech -- foresaw the
potential for such spacecraft to do more than transmit a beacon signal.
An engineer with Hughes Aircraft (later Boeing), he, Thomas Hudspeth,
and Don Williams developed a prototype geosynchronous communication
satellite called Syncom.


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In Brief...

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:33 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38612


School Club Roundup is February 13-17! The winter-spring term of the
School Club Roundup (SCR)
gets under way on February 13 at 1300 UTC and continues through Friday,
February 17, at 2359 UTC. This twice-yearly event is an opportunity for
school club stations -- from elementary school to college -- to get on
the air for a friendly, low-pressure radio competition. Non-school
clubs and stations are encouraged to participate too. Stations may
operate no more than 6 hours in any 24-hour period, up to a maximum of
24 hours. Results of previous
SCRs are available.


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Getting It Right!

Posted: 09 Feb 2017 10:32 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/38611


The story "Transcontinental Relay Recreated for 100th Anniversary
Commemoration" in the February 2 edition of The ARRL Letter contained
an error in the first photo caption. It should have read, "David Hodge,
N6AN, originates the commemorative transcontinental message at W6UE."