Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) Report 1759 - April 29 2011

Now, Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1759 with a release date of
Friday, April 29, 2011 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a Q-S-T. The FCC will host a live emergency
communications planning session and you can be there on the World Wide
Web. Also, two senators ask Congress to protect the Global Positioning
System from a proposed new terrestrial broadband system, information
surfaces on what may have caused the failure of ARISSat One to operate
from the I-S-S and we tell you how to send your name and callsign to
Mars. Find out the details are on Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) report
number 1759 coming your way right now.


(Billboard Cart Here)


**

RESCUE RADIO: HAM RADIO RESPONDS TO TORNADO OUTBREAK

Massive tornadoes cut a streak of destruction across the Southern tier
of the United States on Wednesday, April 27th. The twisters killed at
least 250 people in six states and destroyed countless homes and
businesses in their wake. Alabama's state emergency management agency
said it had confirmed 162 deaths, while there were 33 in Mississippi,
33 in Tennessee, 14 in Georgia, eight in Virginia and one in Kentucky.
In many areas all normal means of communications was lost.

Two of Alabama's major cities were among the places devastated by the
deadliest twister outbreak in nearly 40 years. Police and other first
responder radio systems fell silent when winds in excess of 120 miles
per hour ripped antennas off buildings and felled towers. But the
storms did not silence ham radio.

As we go to air, a group of hams is reportedly assisting in restoring
emergency communications in the city of Tuscaloosa where the entire
emergency communications system was wiped out by a tornado. It was
only through reports filed by radio amateurs that first responders
began to learn the magnitude of the devastation to that city.

Meantime in Pell City about 30 miles east of Birmingham, the Emergency
Operations Center lost all of its antennas to high winds. Amateur
Radio operators from ARES were dispatched to that E-O-C where at last
report they were still providing communications support to the storm
ravaged area. Similar scenarios were being played out in Arkansas,
Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and North Carolina as severe weather
hit those areas as well.

A spokesman for the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center
in Norman, Oklahoma said it received 137 tornado reports into Wednesday
night. An expert at the center said it appears some of the tornadoes
were as wide as a mile and likely packed a wallop that only 1 in 100
storms ever reach. It will be days, however, before scientists make an
official determination. We will have more on the role played by ham
radio in next weeks Amateur Radio Newsline report.

I'm Don Carlson, KQ6FM. Jim. (Various news sources)

**

RESCUE RADIO: FCC TO WEBCAST LIVE EMCOMM PREPAREDNESS SEMINAR

An important Emergency Communications planning meeting is being held by
the FCC and you can sit in vicariously. Amateur Radio Newsline's Burt
Hicks is here with all of the details:

--

The Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau of the Federal
Communications Commission will host an Earthquake Communications
Preparedness Forum on Tuesday, May 3rd from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Eastern Daylight Time.

In its announcement the FCC noted that catastrophic natural disasters
such as hurricanes and earthquakes are large-scale emergencies that may
affect substantial portions of the public. They can also have a
significant impact on critical national infrastructure, including
communications networks and services.

The FCC goes on to say that this forum will consider the preparations
that should be made in advance of an earthquake and how to develop and
implement national communications policies and emergency procedures to
respond to an earthquake's potential impact on communications networks
and services. The forum will also highlight those practices that best
prepare the public and the communications sector for a catastrophic
earthquake.

The venue for this gathering is the Commission Meeting Room at FCC
Headquarters in Washington, D.C.. This workshop will be open to the
public; however, seating and registration will be limited.

But if you cannot be there in person - and its very unlikely most hams
involved in emergency preparedness can -- audio and video coverage of
the meeting will be broadcast live with open captioning over the
Internet from the FCC's web page at www.fcc.gov/live. The FCC's web
cast is free to the public, and unlike being there in person, it does
not require you to pre-registrar.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Burt Hicks, in Los Angeles.

--

Again the URL is www.fcc.gov/live. If you miss it live, the forum will
eventually be available for replay at beta.fcc.gov/videos. More is
on-line at tinyurl.com/3av7m9o (FCC)

**

RADIO POLITICS: SENATORS ASK CONGRESS TO PROTECT GPS FROM INTERFERENCE
BY LIGHTSQUARED PROPOSED HIGH SPEED NETWORK

Senators Pat Roberts of Kansas and Ben Nelson from Nebraska have sent
an open letter to colleagues asking them to join together in asking the
FCC to take all necessary steps to protect the Global Positioning
System. This from any harmful effects of the FCC International
Bureau's grant of a conditional waiver allowing LightSquared
Corporation to build tens of thousands of high power broadband ground
stations which some claim could cause widespread interference to the
Global Positioning System.

LightSquared is building a state-of-the-art open wireless broadband
network in spectrum directly adjacent to that in which the Global
Positioning System operates. Experts seem divided on the impact such a
system will have on GPS operations. Some claim that terrestrial
interference could render GPS useless while others claim it will be
minimal or not exist at all.

In their letter, Roberts and Nelson noted that the full Commission must
be involved in this effort to fully protect the Global Positioning
System. As such that it must require that LightSquared objectively
demonstrate non-interference to GPS signals as a condition prior to
operation of the company's proposed wireless broadband service.

The letter from the two Senators also stated that anything less than
this is an unacceptable risk to public safety. It described how vital
GPS is for public safety, national defense and the nation's economic
recovery. The document ends with a request for members of Congress to
join Senators Roberts and Nelson in requesting that the FCC make
certain that GPS is not compromised in any way. (TV Technology)

**

HAM RADIO IN SPACE: WHY THE ARISSAT ONE APRIL 12th DEMO FAILED

The planned operation of ARISSat One from the International Space
Station to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first manned
spaceflight likely failed due to an uncharged battery. At least that's
the impression one gets reading the latest report about the incident
published by the AMSAT News Service. Amateur Radio Newsline's Norm
Seeley, KI7UP, is here with the details:

--

Lou McFadin, W5DID, is the ARISS US Hardware Manager. He says that a
teleconference was recently held with the ARISSat team in Russia at
which time the situation concerning the failed early April operation
was described by them in this way.

It seems that the The Russian space suit battery that was intended to
be used on ARISSat was used during testing both on the ground and
onboard ISS when it first arrived. When it was tested prior to the
planned April 12th operation, it was discovered that the battery was
low on charge.

These space suit batteries are specified for only five cycles of
charge. It was decided to not recharge the battery at this time in
order to keep the number of cycles as low as possible in order to save
the battery for the actual ARISSat One deployment mission that is
currently scheduled for July 26th.

McFadin added that they are still trying to get more information on the
storage status and the battery health from the Russian team. He says
that he and his people will keep everyone informed as they prepare for
the eventual deployment of ARISSat One.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, Im Norm Seeley, KI7UP, in Scottsdale,
Arizona.

--

The abortive attempt to operate ARISSat One from on board the ISS would
have commemorated the 50 years since Russian Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin
became the first terrestrial being to venture into space. (ANS, W5DID)

**

RESTRUCTURING: RUSSIA JOINS CEPT LICENSING

Russia has become the latest nation to sign onto the pan-European CEPT
licensing agreement. According to the IARU Region 1 website, the
Russian State Radio Frequencies Commission decided on March 10th that
the Russian Federation would join both the CEPT and ECC Recommendation.
This makes it possible for every CEPT license holder to operate on the
territory of the Russian Federation.

There are a few caveats. Among them is that Russia will only permit
such CEPT operation by a foreign station for a limit of three months,
without any additional permission needed. Also, the call sign to be
used in CEPT operations will be RA followed by the foreign hams
personal call letters. (IARU Region 1)

**

BREAK 1

From the United States of America, We are the Amateur Radio Newsline,
heard on bulletin stations around the world including the W9QVE
repeater of the Argonne Amateur Radio Club serving Elmhurst, Illinois.

(5 sec pause here)


**

BREAKING NEWS: HAM RADIO OPERATOR ONE OF NINE AMERICANS MURDERED IN
KABUL

Some sad news to report. Word that James McLaughlin, WA2EWE who also
held the call T6AF, was one of the nine Americans that lost their lives
in a shooting at Kabul airport on Wednesday, April 27th. According to
Voice of America reporter and fellow amateur Steve Herman, W7VOA/T6AD,
all were killed when an Afghan military pilot opened fire in an
operations room of the Afghan Air Corps.

Reporting from Seoul, Korea, where he is chief of the Voice of America
bureau, Herman said McLaughlin, who was also his friend as well as
being a career U.S. military officer working as a contractor training
Afghan pilots.

According to Steve Herman, he first met Jim McLaughlinin August, 2009,
when they were the only two radio amateurs operating from Kabul. Herman
said that McLaughlin had put together a fine radio shack in his
quarters. He said that it was obvious from spending time with
McLaughlin that ham radio was an important morale booster and pastime.
As such, T6AF usually spent a couple of hours a day on the air.

So far this April, fourteen Americans have been killed by members of
the Afghan military. An Afghan officer on the compound identified the
shooter of McLaughlin and the others as one Ahmad Gul.

According to Steve Herman, this attack was the worst single episode of
an Afghan turning against his coalition partners. (W7VOA, other
published reports)

**

WORLDBEAT: RSGB DECIDES NOT TO LIVE STREAM ITS AGM THIS YEAR

The Radio Society of Great Britain's Annual General Meeting on
Saturday, May 14th will not be streamed live to the Internet this year.

For the past several years the British Amateur Television Club and the
RSGB have cooperated in making this event available world-wide. But an
RSGB statement published on the British Amateur Television Club's
website, the organization says that while the club has once again
offered to do it again this year that the RSGB has decided to decline.

While no specific reason was given for the sudden cancellation there's
speculation that it has something to do with the recent resignation of
the Society's former General Manager Peter Kirby who the RSGB's says
left its employ after the discovery of what national society termed as
financial irregularities on his part.

The statement goes on to say that RSGB has considered its position and
has reluctantly reached the decision that this year it would not be
prudent to go ahead with live streaming.

In its own statement, the British Amateur Television Club says that it
has accepted the Society's position on this but hopes to be able to
offer the Society the facility again in 2012. More is on-line at batc
dot tv. (Southgate)

**

ENFORCEMENT NEEDED: SCAMMERS TRYING TO RIP OFF HAMS WITH BOGUS E-MAILS

The Radio Society of Great Britain is reporting on a ham radio version
on an old Internet scam. This as it advises its members to be on the
look-out for bogus e-mails purporting to be from other radio amateurs
and asking for financial help.

The scam works this way. An e-mail, purporting to be from a well known
amateur and signed with that ham's first name, claims that they have
been mugged in some foreign city. It says that the ham has lost his
passport and money in the attack. I then requests financial support to
get the amateur out of difficulties and back home.

The RSGB says that several different prominent callsigns have been used
by the scammers. And unless the perpetrators are caught, its likely
only a matter of time before this scam goes world-wide including here
in the United States. (GB2RS)

**

RADIO LAW: FEMA TO REQUIRE MANDATORY EAS TRAINING

FEMA will require that emergency alert originators take training before
accessing its Integrated Public Alert and Warning System to deliver
next generation Emergency Alert System warnings using the Common
Alerting or CAP Protocol. At least that is how EAS consultant and
broadcast engineer Gary Timm characterized remarks by Damon Penn,
assistant administrator for National Continuity Programs at FEMA, at
the recent National Association of Broadcasters Convention held in Las
Vegas. In blog updates at www.awareforum.org, Timm writes as part of a
series on EAS that the FEMA Emergency Management Institute will conduct
the mandatory training in the same manner as other National Incident
Management System courses that first responders must complete. (RW)

**

RESTRUCTURING: BROADCASTERS VS THE WHITE HOUSE CLASH OVER SPECTRUM

The broadcast community is saying no to a White House demand that they
give up some of their spectrum to create more broadband frequencies for
mobile phones and the like. Jeff Clark, K8JAC, is here with the
details:

--

It could soon be an open war of words between the Obama administration
and the over-the-air broadcast community over who is going to keep the
current broadcast spectrum and what purpose it will be used for. This
as the deadline dot com website reports that National Association Of
Broadcasters chief Gordon Smith told station owners at the
organization's annual convention in Las Vegas that the trade group is
in full battle mode. This, to protect the broadcast spectrum it now
has from being reallocated to broadband wireless.

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski has already promised that no
broadcaster will be forced to offer up spectrum for auction.
Genachowski says that those who do will know exactly what the deal is
before relinquishing any rights. But even that position is at odds to
some degree with that of the White House which wants TV stations to
give up some of their spectrum so it can be redeployed to offer
Internet services. That's something that broadcasters are adamantly
refusing to do even if the government offers some form of monetary
compensation.

Regardless of what Chairman Genachowski might say, the National
Association of Broadcasters biggest concern is that the government
might simply seize spectrum without a broadcaster's consent if they do
not voluntarily surrender it. This is a possible scenario if
broadcasters do not comply willingly which at this point in time
appears unlikely to happen.

I'm Jeff Clark, K8JAC.

--

And at the same convention, CBS chief Leslie Moonves echoed the NAB's
position when he said that as long as the government's plan remains
voluntary, we're fine with that. This is because we're not going to
volunteer. You can read more about this situation on-line at
tinyurl.com/3fyt5p4 (RW)

**

PUBLIC SERVICE: SOUTHERN OHIO HAMS NEEDED FOR IRONTON PARADE

The Southern Ohio Amateur Radio Association Amateur Radio Emergency
Service is looking for additional operators to assist in communications
for the Ironton Ohio Memorial Day Parade on May 30th. Amateurs will be
used to call for help in case of an accident, to call for law
enforcement or fire departments if needed, to help people find their
parade division, to help parents find a lost child and a host of other
situations. Any ham with a two-meter handheld transceiver who is
interested in helping should contact Ken Massie by e-mail to hamwn8f
(at) yahoo (dot) com. Between 25 and 30 operators are needed. So far
18 have signed up. (Ironton Tribune)

**

HAM HAPPENINGS: LIVERMORE CA LARK SWAPMEET FOLDS

The Livermore Amateur Radio Klub in northern California closed the
doors on its famed LARK Swapfest. The sponsors blame declining
attendance by both sellers and buyers, rising costs and the difficulty
in recovering from the loss of the swap being held at Los Positas
college among the reasons that led to this decision.

Its announcement notes that it takes an enormous amount of work and
resource to make these swaps successful. It says that as a club it has
witnessed a steady decline in both revenue and manpower to make the
swap a worthwhile venture.

But all might not be lost. The announcement also notes that the club
is looking at the possibility of a bi-annual event that may look more
like a hamfest including a swap meet. For that reason it is keeping its
Yahoo swap list alive. (W6OMF)

**

HAM HAPPENINGS: AMATEUR RADIO AND SPACE DAY

Dave Taylor, W8AAS, says that, The Smithsonian National Air and Space
Museum has invited AMSAT to organize displays and activities at Space
Day to be held this Saturday, May 7th from 10:30 to 3:00 at the Air &
Space Museum on the National Mall. ARISS is already slated to have
various flight-type hardware on hand and also expects a radio contact
with International Space Station. However Dave would like to hear from
anyone who has other space-related amateur radio artifacts, posters,
activities or anything else they'd like to display. Also needed
volunteers who can staff the tables, help with setup and tear down, and
various other tasks. To sign up contact Dave Taylor via e-mail to w8aas
(at) amsat (dot) org (W8AAS, AMSAT)

**

NAMES IN THE NEWS: A HAPPY 220 TO SAMUEL F. B. MORSE

And a very happy 220th birthday to Samuel F. B. Morse, who introduced
telegraph communications in the United States.

Morse was born on April 27th 1791 in Charlestown, Massachusetts. On
24th of May 1844, he famously sent the message "What hath God wrought"
by telegraph from Washington D.C to Baltimore, Maryland and there-by
ushering in the electronic information age that has continued to grow
and become the world-wide broadband systems of today.

But the telegraph Morse code used in Morse's days differed in a number
of respects from the International Morse code used in later times. A
description of the differences can be found at tinyurl.com/4e9mxk
(Southgate)

**

BREAK 2

This is ham radio news for today's radio amateur. From the United
States of America, We are the Amateur Radio Newsline with links to the
world from our only official website at www.arnewsline.org and being
relayed by the volunteer services of the following radio amateur:

(5 sec pause here)

**

EMERGING TECHNOLOGY: MAKING LEDS THE ALL PURPOSE ROOM LIGHT

New technology may make Light Emitting Diodes practical boor everyday
home and even hamshack Jim Damron, N8TMW, reports:

--

Researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara, say they've
figured out the cause of a problem that's made light-emitting diodes
impractical for general lighting purposes.

Chris Van de Walle is a professor in the Materials Department at the
University of California at Santa Barbara. He heads the research group
that carried out the work. They investigated a phenomenon referred to
as the drop in efficiency that occurs in these LEDs when they're
operating at the high powers required to illuminate a room. The cause
of this decline has been the subject of considerable debate, but the
U-C Santa Barbara researchers say they've figured out the mechanism
responsible for the effect by performing quantum-mechanical
calculations.

Van de Walle says that identifying the root cause of the problem was an
indispensable first step toward devising solutions.

Im Jim Damnron, N8TMW.

--

More is on-line at tinyurl.com/3ey7fuc (Science OnLine)

**

HAM RADIO IN SPACE: AO-51 INTO ECLIPSE PERIOD - OPERATION LIMITED

Amsat Oscar 51 has recently experienced a few shutdowns due to a low
battery voltage trip. This is because of increasing eclipses now at 20
minuets per orbit and increasing, poor sun angles and a weak battery.

The transmitter power is down to about 550 milliwatts and AO-51 is now
using the 67 Hz P-L tone required mode in order to turn the
transmitters off when not in use.

The AO-51Command Team will continue adjusting various parameters,
including transmitter power, trigger voltages, and the like in order to
keep the battery temperatures reasonable. Keep in mind that the power
management feature keeps the transmitters off during eclipses, so you
can't bring it up even with a PL tone during those periods. (ANS)

**

ON THE AIR: THE INTERNATIONAL POLICE ASSOCIATION HG15IPA

On the air, keep an ear open for Hungarian special event station
HG15IPA to be active through December 31st to celebrate the 15th
anniversary jubilee callsign of the International Police Association.
The station is expected to be on 160 through 10 meters using CW, SSB,
RTTY, PSK31 and SSTV. For more information please visit
www.qrz.com/db/hg3ipa or www.qrz.com/db/ha3jb on the World Wide Web.
QSL via HA3JB.

**

ON THE AIR: CELEBRATING THE BATTLE OF NASEBY

The United Kingdom's Welland Valley Amateur Radio Society will operate
special event station GB0BON on June 19th. This to commemorate the
366th anniversary of the Battle of Naseby which was the decisive battle
of the English civil war.

The Battle of Naseby took place on the June 14th 1645 in the small
hamlet of Naseby just south of the town of Market Harborough. In June
2010 members of the Welland Valley Amateur Radio society decided to put
a special event amateur radio station on air to commemorate the
historic event. It was deemed such a success that they are doing it
again this year as well. If you contact GB0BON please QSL to G4XEX at
the address on qrz.com. (DX Today)

**

RADIOSPORTS: THE 7TH HST CHAMPIONSHIP CUP OF NATIONS

The 7th International High Speed Telegraphy championship Cup of Nations
will take place in Mogilev, Belarus from July 7th to the 11th. This is
a traditional event and at airtime planners report that several top
high speed telegraphy teams have already confirmed their participation.
For more information on this event please contact Andrei Bindasov by
e-mail to andrew_eu7ki (at) hotmail (dot) com. (Southgate)

**

DX

In DX, PD9DX, ON8AK and ON5UR will be active as OJ0UR from Market Reef
between August 13th and the 20th. Their operation will be on the HF
bands using a Stepp-IR Big Vertical and a Stepp-IR 2 element beam. QSL
via M0URX, direct, via the bureau, or electronically using Logbook of
the World.

Members of the Camb-Hams will be activating the Isle of Arran through
May 8th. They will be operating as GS3PYE/P and GS6PYE/P. Operation
will be on all bands from 160 through 2 meters, and on 70 cm on various
ham radio satellites. WSL as directed by the operator that you
contact.

IZ3ESV, I2VGW and IZ2LSC will be active stroke HB0 from Lichtenstein
between June 2nd and 5th. The trio is planning a micro-light and
holiday-style operation using CW, SSB and RTTY. The main focus will be
on the 30, 17 and 12 meters and the upper High Frequency bands
depending on the propagation. They will also try 6 meters. QSL via
their home callsigns.

ON4LO will be active on 40 through 10 meter SSB as F slash ON4LO stroke
P until June 4th. He plans to operate from a few lighthouses during
his trip. QSL via his home callsign, direct or via the bureau.

**

THAT FINAL ITEM: SEND YOUR NAME AND CALL TO MARS

And finally this week, there may not be any ham radio station on the
planet Mars, but there may soon be a lot of ham radio callsigns making
their way across the surface of the red planet. Amateur Radio
Newsline's Michael Grebert, KJ4ZZV, has the details:

--

NASA is collecting names to be put on a microchip that'll be onboard
the Mars Science Laboratory rover heading to Mars in the fall of 2011.
Some Radio Amateurs have been adding their call sign to last name
field. As well as having your call sign traveling around the Martian
surface you also get a electronic commemorative certificate to print
out.

The rover has an unusual connection with radio. As previously reported
here on Amateur Radio Newsline, this second generation robber has
special indentations on its wheels that will spell out the initials JPL
in Morse as it travels around Mars. And for the few of you who might
not be aware. JPL stands for Jet Propulsion Laboratory located in
Pasadena, California, which is the NASA branch that builds of the
rovers.

You can add your name and call on the Mars microchip at
tinyurl.com/marsham. From what we are hearing, a whole bunch of hams
already have.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Michael Grebert, KJ4ZZV, reporting
from Music City, Nashville, Tennessee.

--

Again the URL to add your name and call to the microchip headed to Mars
is tinyurl.com/marsham. More on the Mars Science Laboratory project
can be found at mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/. (NASA)

**

NEWSCAST CLOSE

With thanks to Alan Labs, AMSAT, the ARRL, the CGC Communicator, CQ
Magazine, the FCC, the Ohio Penn DX Bulletin, Radio Netherlands, Rain,
the RSGB, the Southgate News and Australia's W-I-A News, that's all
from the Amateur Radio Newsline(tm). Our e-mail address is
. More information is available at Amateur
Radio Newsline's(tm) only official website located at www (dot)
arnewsline (dot) org. You can also write to us or support us at
Amateur Radio Newsline(tm), 28197 Robin Avenue, Santa Clarita
California, 91350

And a reminder that the nominating period for the year 2011 Amateur
Radio Newsline Young Ham of the Year Award is now open. Created by
Newsline back in 1986, this award is offered to recognize one young
United States or Canadian radio amateur age 18 or younger for his or
her contributions to society through Amateur Radio.

As in years past, the 2011 recipient will receive an expense paid trip
to the Huntsville Hamfest in Huntsville Alabama courtesy of
Vertex-Standard Corporation which produces Yaesu brand amateur radio
gear. Vertex-Standard will also present this years winner with a
special ham radio related gift. CQ Magazine will again treat the
recipient to a week at Spacecamp-Huntsville. We at Amateur Radio
Newsline will present the winner with a plaque honoring his or her
achievements.

All nominations and materials required by the official rules must be
received by ARNewsline before June 30, 2011. A downloadable nominating
form is at our website at www.arnewsline.org. A nominating form can
also be obtained by sending a request along with a self addressed
stamped envelope to the Young Ham of the Year Award in care of Amateur
Radio Newsline, Inc. 28197 Robin Avenue, Santa Clarita California
91350.

Again, the cutoff date for this year's Young Ham of the Year Award
nominations is June 30th. We ask you to do your part by nominating a
young ham who has done something special related to ham radio. The
nomination form is at www.arnewsline.org

For now, with Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, at the editors desk, I'm Don
Wilbanks, AE5DW, saying 73 and we thank you for listening.

Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2011. All rights reserved.