eHam.net News

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Using Ham Radio During Natural Disasters:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 06:20 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40115


ELKHART -- It's unlikely we'll see many strong earthquakes here. But when
things like tornadoes touch down some areas have few options for contacting
others. There's a group of people who can communicate despite the lack of
connection. This way of communicating has been around since 1914. It
doesn't need help from cell phone towers or electricity to send a message
from here to other places throughout the world. Even when Mother Nature
creates heavy damage this machine can send for help. One-way emergency
responders communicate when the lines are down by using ham radio. "It
doesn't require any external wires or antennas. We can do it all with what
we pack in or what we bring in our own vehicles. Sometimes literally in
backpacks," said Goshen Amateur Radio Operator Dave Menges. Menges says
they can hear damage reports from Puerto Rico through a network called
Saturn. "That's a Salvation Army Network where they will put operators down
there and then Health and Welfare messages can be relayed back to other
countries. Particularly the United States or main land or other countries
or islands. Without having to depend on a military network or something
from the government to be setup," he said.


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In Devastated Dominica, 'Hams' Become Vital Communications Link:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 06:19 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40114


When Hurricane Maria smashed into the tiny island of Dominica in the
Eastern Caribbean earlier this week, phone service went down, virtually
cutting off the island. But within hours, amateur radio operators got on
the air and have been providing a vital link to the outside world ever
since. Speaking to ABS Television/Radio in his first interview since Maria
made landfall, Dominican Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, on a visit to
Antigua, said at least 15 people were dead and at least 20 others missing
amid "unprecedented" destruction. Shortly before the storm struck,
ham-radio enthusiasts Michelle Guenard and her husband, Brian Machesney,
set up a Facebook page from their home in Craftsbury, Vt., to act as a
clearinghouse for whatever information they could glean through the ham
airwaves via ham operators on Dominica, many of whom they know personally.
There's also a livestream of the HF radio frequency being used for the
emergency network. The couple have been traveling to Dominica on and off
for the past decade, where they've trained ham operators, helping get them
licensed, bringing in radio equipment and getting them set up. "We know
through these emergency situations that ham radio is the only way to get
information when everything else goes down," Guenard tells NPR.


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DX News -- ARRL DX Bulletin #38:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:18 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40113


This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by
WB0TEV, 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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Just Ahead In Radiosport:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:18 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40112


Just Ahead In Radiosport:


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Hurricane Redux: Amateur Radio Community Fires Up for Maria:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:18 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40111


Caribbean Island residents and the Amateur Radio community hardly had a
chance to catch a breath from Hurricane Irma, as recovery operations
continue, before Hurricane Maria was knocking on the door. The
Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) activated September 18
on 14.325 MHz and on 7.268 MHz (after dark). The VoIP Hurricane Net
activated the same day to track Hurricane Maria
and its potential impact in the Caribbean. WX4NHC, the Amateur Radio
Station at the National
Hurricane Center, activated to receive weather information from both
nets, while the Caribbean Emergency Weather Net (CEWN) was called up on
September 18 on 3.815 MHz (and/or
7.188 and 7.182 MHz as propagation dictates) to provide round-the-clock
coverage during the passage of Hurricane Maria and in the storm's
immediate wake. It has been handling health-and-welfare traffic in and
out of Dominica and is accepting inquiries via e-mail. (Indicate your name
and location, as well as that of the
party sought).


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Reports of Hurricane Devastation On Dominica Relayed by Amateur Radio:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:16 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40110


In the immediate aftermath of then-Category 5 Hurricane Maria's passage
over Dominica on Monday, Frans van Santbrink, J69DS, on St. Lucia
checked into the VoIP Hurricane Net to relay damage reports he'd
gathered via repeater conversations with other hams there. The New York
Times also reported and posted audio that Amateur Radio was a primary
source to gather initial damage reports from the storm-ravaged Caribbean
Island nation of some 70,000
residents. US-based Julian Antoine, J73JA, solicited reports via a VoIP
connection with the J73MAN repeater on Dominica.


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Amateur Radio Emergency Net Active In Wake of Earthquake In Central Mexico:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:16 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40109


The FMRE National Emergency Net (Red Nacional de Emergencia or RNE)
activated Tuesday on 7.060 MHz following a magnitude 7.1 earthquake in
the central Mexico state of Puebla at 1814 UTC. The epicenter was some
75 miles southeast of Mexico City, which also felt the temblor and
suffered damage.


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The Doctor Will See You Now!

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:15 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40108


"How High is High Enough" -- a discussion on the effects of antenna
height -- is the topic of the current episode of the "ARRL The Doctor
is In" podcast. Listen...and learn!



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Amateur Radio Supported Hurricane Irma Response In US Virgin Islands:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:15 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40107


Members of the St. Croix Amateur Radio Club supported the Hurricane
Irma response at the Virgin Islands Territorial Emergency Management
Agency (VITEMA), utilizing 60-meter band
channel 2 (5.346.5 MHz USB) to coordinate emergency communications. The
club's NP2VI served as the net control station at the St. Croix
Emergency Operations Center (EOC). Participants included the Virgin
Islands National Guard Joint Force Headquarters, National Guard Task
Forces, and VITEMA EOCs on St. Croix and St. Thomas. Puerto Rico Army
MARS members also participated. FEMA posted personnel on two Navy
vessels, and they worked directly with USVI amateurs via 60-meter
interoperability channels.


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FCC Opens 630/2200-Meter Bands; Stations Must Notify UTC Before Operating:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:14 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40106


The FCC has announced that the Office of Management and Budget has
approved, for 3 years, the information-collection requirement of the
Commission's March 29 Report and Order that
spelled out Amateur Radio service rules for the two new bands -- 630
meters (472-479 kHz) and 2200 meters (135.7-137.8 kHz). Notice of the
action appeared in the September 15 edition of the Federal Register.
Before using either band, stations must notify the
Utilities Technology Council (UTC) that they plan to
do so. If UTC does not respond within 30 days, they may commence
operation.


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HamSCI Presents Eclipse Results at ARRL-TAPR Communications Conference:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:13 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40105


At the 36th annual ARRL and TAPR Digital Communications Conference (DCC),
held September 15-17 in St. Louis,
members of the HamSCI group presented preliminary evidence that the
August 21 solar eclipse had a significant effect on HF propagation. The
DCC is geared toward technically minded Amateur Radio operators who
specialize in building and designing hardware and software to support
digital communication and radio.


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IARU Administrative Council Considers New Radio Spectrum Pollution Threat:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:11 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40104


The Administrative Council (AC) of the International Amateur Radio
Union (IARU) believes high-power wireless power
transfer (WPT) for electric vehicles has significant potential to
interfere with radio communication. That assessment came as the AC met
on September 15 and 16 in Landshut, Germany, immediately prior to the
IARU Region 1 Conference, to review its priorities and positions with
regard to the 2019 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-19).
Conference Agenda Item 9.1.6 would call for studies in advance of
WRC-23 to assess the impact of WPT for electric vehicles on
radiocommunication services and to study suitable harmonized frequency
ranges to minimize its impact. The AC determined that addressing the
threat requires an increased commitment of resources by potentially
affected radiocommunication services, including Amateur Radio.


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JOTA 2017 Organizers Urge Scout Stations to Register Now:

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:10 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40103


Scouting's Jamboree on the Air/Jamboree on the Internet (JOTA/JOTI)
event takes place over the October 20-22 weekend, and organizers are
urging Scout stations planning to participate to register now. The world
JOTA-JOTI team has activated its online sign-up system.


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Former MIT President, Electrical Engineering Professor Ex-W2UWN, (SK):

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:10 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40102


Former Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) President Paul E.
Gray, ex-W2UWN and K1ZVT, of Concord, Massachusetts, died on September
18. He was 85. Gray had a nearly lifelong association with MIT,
including turns as student, professor, dean of engineering, associate
provost, chancellor, president, and MIT Corporation chair. He served as
MIT's 14th president for the decade 1980 to1990, and chaired the MIT
Corporation for another 7 years before returning to teaching and
advising. He was an emeritus professor of electrical engineering.


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In Brief...

Posted: 21 Sep 2017 09:09 AM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/40101


Hurricane Damage Forces Changes to Planned DX Operations: Members of
Argentina's Yaguarete DX Group, expected to be active as PJ7T from Sint
Maarten from October 24 through November 4, have cancelled their plans
due to Hurricane Irma damage. "Hurricane Irma destroyed 95% of
infrastructure on the island, and it will be impossible to arrive and
live there for a long time," the group said in its announcement. It has
changed the destination for its fall DXpedition to San Andres Island
and is in the process of working out the formalities.