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Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2370 for Friday March 31st, 2023

Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2370 with a release date of Friday
March 31st, 2023 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. Hams step up for storms in the US Southeast.
The first 3-D printed rocket crashes after launch -- and our
once-a-year correspondent Piere Pullinmyleg has some news about Bouvet
Island. All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2370
comes your way right now.

**
BILLBOARD CART

**
HAMS STEP UP IN SOUTHEASTERN US STORMS

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: We begin this week with the deadly storms and tornadoes
that pounded southeastern states in the US. Randy Sly W4XJ tells us
that If hams could get to their radios, they did. Here's his report.

RANDY: At least 26 people have died in the wake of powerful storms and tornadoes that swept through the southeastern United States on Friday
evening, March 24. Mississippi was hardest hit as an EF-4 tornado
carved a 100-mile path of deadly destruction, leaving the towns of
Rolling Fork and Silver City in ruins, along with several others.

Robert Hayes, KC5IMN, Amateur Radio Emergency Service section emergency coordinator for Mississippi, told Amateur Radio Newsline that the
Jackson Amateur Radio club activated a SKYWARN net early in the
afternoon as did the Central Mississippi ARES Group with their linked
repeaters covering the periphery of the Jackson metro area. In
addition, Vicksburg/Warren County ARES was also up and running as were
several non-ARES affiliated nets across the state. He summarized the
weather event by saying that after the initial reports of the three
major impacts, almost every operator who could get on the air was on
the air if they were in a coverage area.

Hayes noted that just prior to the storm, the section was about to
initiate a request from the three NWS offices that cover the state to
talk about SKYWARN requirements and standards in order to be more
effective as spotters. This storm, he believes, provides even greater motivation to accomplish this.

This is Randy Sly W4XJ.

(AMATEUR RADIO EMERGENCY SERVICE)

**

FIRST 3D-PRINTED ROCKET CRASHES AFTER BRIEF FLIGHT

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: The launch of the first 3-D printed rocket didn't
result in the successful flight that was envisioned by the company that
created it but they are still encouraged. Paul Braun WD9GCO has those
details.

PAUL: When the first rocket to be created by 3D printing lifted off
from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on March 22nd it was a successful launch
but a failed flight. The creators of Terran 1, however, are encouraged
by the late March blastoff, which was intended to send the rocket 200 kilometers, or 125 miles, into orbit for a few days. The California
company known as Relativity Space had printed 85 percent of the
rocket's metal components, including its engines, as a means of making
the costs of space travel less prohibitive.

After three minutes of flight, however, the uncrewed Terran 1 crashed
into the ocean after one of its nine engines appeared to lose ignition.
In an interview with National Public Radio conducted prior to the
launch, the company's CEO Tim Ellis had said that he would still
consider the mission a success if the rocket were simply capable of
surviving the rigors of a launch. A company executive said during the
launch webcast that she believed enough data had been gathered to
demonstrate that 3D-printed rockets can be viable in space.

According to the NPR report, yet another rocket is already in the
design stages for launch next year and the company ultimately hopes to
create a rocket in which 95 percent of its parts are created through 3D printing. The startup venture has entered the market hoping to be able
to help send even more satellites into orbit around the Earth.

This is Paul Braun WD9GCO.

(SPACE.COM, NPR)

**
CYCLONE DRILL PREPARES INDIAN HAMS FOR THE WORST

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: It's not yet cyclone season in India but for amateurs
on the east coast of that nation, it's always a good season to be
prepared. As you'll hear in this story from Graham Kemp VK4BB, the West
Bengal Radio Club was prepared.

GRAHAM: The tropical cyclones that have struck eastern India over the
years have been deadly. However, none of those cyclones could compare
to the one that hams responded to on March 23rd in the state of West
Bengal. This was a mock cyclone and so at 9 'clock that morning, when
the region went into high alert and hams responded, it was only a
drill. The drill had been organised by the National Disaster Management
Agency and arranged by the government of West Bengal's Disaster
Management Department. The club station quickly established
communications throughout the villages and 25 licenced hams from the
club kept the lines of communication open.

This kind of readiness remains critical in India but especially in the
eastern coastal area, where states like West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh,
Tamil Nadu and Odisha feel the brunt of the damage and share the
difficult cyclone season with nearby Bangladesh.

This is Graham Kemp VK4BB.

(WEST BENGAL RADIO CLUB, AMBARISH NAG BISWAS, VU2JFA)

**
NEW AUSTRALIAN LICENSE PUT ON HOLD

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: The long-awaited new amateur license class is coming to Australia - but not as quickly as many had hoped. John Williams VK4JJW
brings us up to date.

JOHN: Hams in Australia who have been waiting for the introduction of
the new amateur class licence on July 1st are going to have to wait a
little longer. The Australian Communications and Media Authority has
announced that it must make certain determinations concerning the
licence's operational policy arrangements and to further clarify the implementation of higher power authorisation. According to the ACMA
website, that includes call sign administration, public register
options, amateur operating procedures, arrangements for amateur club
and international reciprocity for Advanced amateurs traveling overseas.

The ACMA's review also includes, among other things, its proposed
access for standard-level amateur licensees for the 50-52 MHz band.

The ACMA said it will provide an update in the second quarter of
thisyear.

This is John Williams VK4JJW.

(AMCA)

**
ANOTHER VOICE WEIGHS IN TO KEEP AM RADIO IN US CARS

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Another voice has weighed in on the battle to keep AM
radio in cars used in the United States. Kent Peterson KC0DGY has that
update.

KENT: A New Jersey lawmaker has added his voice to the growing call in
the United States asking that AM radio become a required safety feature
for all automakers including electric cars being manufactured in the US
market.

Congressman Josh Gottheimer said he believes that some carmakers' plans
to discontinue AM radio in cars and trucks will post an unnecessary
danger during national emergencies when many alerts are transmitted
over broadcast AM frequencies. He compared AM radio to other minimum
safety requirements provided in cars, including seatbelts, airbags and
brakes.

The lawmaker said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
has an obligation to put AM radio on that list of minimum standards. He
spoke at a press conference in late March in New Jersey, accompanied by
Jordan Walton, the executive director of the New Jersey Broadcasters Association.

A number of carmakers have said that AM radio transmissions are
disrupted by noise generated by electric vehicles, making signal
reception poor.

There has been a growing call recently to keep AM radio for motorists
in the US. The most recent voices have been those of seven former
officials of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

This is Kent Peterson KC0DGY.

(RADIO WORLD)

**
SILENT KEY: EMERGENCY RESPONDER DANIEL RAYMOND, KC1PGR

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Hams and firefighters alike are mourning the death of a colleague in Caribou, Maine. Daniel Raymond, KC1PGR, became a Silent
Key on March 23rd following an automobile accident. Dan had been
involved in rescue and firefighting for much of his adult life. In
1995, he became a career firefighter for the Caribou Fire and Ambulance Department, eventually attaining the rank of captain. A devoted public
servant on many levels, Dan was active in community life and taught public-safety education. He was charter member of the Caribou Emergency
Amateur Radio Service and an active operator with the Caribou Radio
Amateur Civil Emergency Service.

Dan was 57.

(T.H. MERRITT, KL5YJ)

**
THE ART OF ANTENNA EXPERIMENTATION

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Imagine an antenna that stands seven stories tall, is
30 feet wide and contains 110 tons of stainless steel, bronze and
steel. Well, it's not really an antenna - it's a sculpture on the
campus of a university in New York State - but for just one day in
March, it helped log a contact on 20 meters. Sel Embee KB3T Zed D
explains.

SEL: The sculpture is called "The Sentinel" and by all accounts it is
the largest sculpture to stand on any university campus in the United
States. It recently morphed into a 20m antenna that helped log a
successful contact using FT8 on 5 watts. Experiments are a way of life
at the Rochester Institute of Technology in upstate New York and so
members of the amateur radio club, K2GXT, couldn't resist giving in to
their long-simmering temptation to turn "The Sentinel" from a symbolic
campus guardian into a somewhat artful messenger. The hams first
checked the setup with a NanoVNA and then let those 5 watts loose,
keeping onlookers at a safe distance while they transmitted. A report
by one of the club members on Reddit said: [quote] "With help from our university's health and safety team, we did this today.....We were able
to be heard almost across the entire eastern half ot the US, at least
according to PSKReporter, despite some less-than-amazing band
conditions." [endquote]

While this is the first such attempt by the club - and happily a
successful one - the story doesn't end here. The club members wrote:
[quote] "We're really impressed with the results and we hope to do this
again with better band conditions." [endquote]

The sculpture cost $800,000 when it was installed 20 years ago. It
might be more cost-effective next time to just toss a wire into the
trees,

This is Sel Embee KB3TZD.

(HACKADAY, AMATEUR NEWS WEEKLY, RIT, REDDIT)

**
BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur
Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world, including
the W4HPL repeater in Cookeville, Tennessee on Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m.
local time.
**
COME TO OUR TOWN HALL FORUM AT HAMVENTION

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: If you're heading to Hamvention in Xenia, Ohio, here's something to put on your calendar for that weekend: The Amateur Radio
Newsline Town Hall Forum is back. This popular and lively 90-minute
session was discontinued after the death of Newsline co-founder Bill
Pasternak WA6ITF in 2015. It returns on Friday May 19th from 11:30 a.m.
to 1 p.m. local time with Mark Smith, N6MTS, cohost of the Ham Radio
Workbench podcast who will discuss the proposed Open Headset Interface Standard; Riley Hollingsworth, K4ZDH, former FCC amateur radio
enforcement director who oversees the ARRL's Volunteer Monitor Program.
We will also be hosting IARU president Timothy Ellam, VE6SH, who will
give an overview of issues the IARU is reviewing that affect hams
worldwide. See you there!

**
TEMPORARY UK CALLSIGN PREFIX OK'D FOR CORONATION

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Hams in the UK have already planned a variety of events
to mark the King's coronation in May. They've just received approval
for yet another way to mark the occasion. Jeremy Boot G4NJH has those
details.

JEREMY: Ofcom has approved the use of the letter "R": as a regional
secondary locator prefix for callsigns used during the Coronation of
the King and the Queen Consort. Hams will need to apply for a Notice of Variation, known as an NoV, and can do so through the Radio Society of
Great Britain website. Use of this special prefix is approved for use
during May and June. To apply, hams must provide their callsign and
their email address as well as the number of their amateur radio
licence. The application form is available at rsgb dot org. The
Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla will take place at
Westminster Abbey on Saturday the 6th of May.

(RSGB)

**
IN PURSUIT OF STOATS AND QSOS ON SECRETARY ISLAND

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: New Zealand's Secretary Island is traditionally a haven
for native wildlife, especially birds, and is prized for having a
splendid ecosystem. One amateur radio operator recently combined his
work as a conservationist there with his pursuit of QSOs. Jim Meachen
ZL2BHF tells us of his adventures.

JIM M: For five days, Matt Briggs, ZL4NVW, was both the hunter and the
hunted. He spent five days on Secretary Island, helping the Department
of Conservation trap stoats, predators that made it across the sound to
invade this pristine island ecosystem. But Secretary also carries the
island designation of ZLI/SL-253, (Pronounced: Zed Ell Eye Slash Ess
Ell 253) in the ZL-On-The-Air_scheme, so not all of the gear Matt
carried was used for trapping these carnivorous mammals. He was looking
to catch some QSOs -- and he did, on several SOTA summits. He started
with SOTA summit ZL3/FL-728, known as The Hub and went on to hut, Mount
Grono Biv, designated ZLH/SL-142. He wrote on the SOTA Reflector that
his first day on the island was a productive one: He brought in 10 SOTA contacts and - oh yes - four stoats. It was a good beginning. Later he
was to tackle SOTA summit Mount Grono, ZL3/FL-616. In between checking
the stoat traps, he made good contacts from this 4-point summit, which
is the island's highest. Despite some weather challenges, his good
fortune continued right up to the final day on the island. Matt didn't
just leave with a log; he has pictures too. You can share his
experience virtually by going to the SOTA Reflector. The link appears
in the text version of this week's script at arnewsline.org

This is Jim Meachen ZL2BHF.

[FOR PRINT, DO NOT READ: https://reflector.sota.org.uk/t/secretary-island-conservation-and-radio -do-mix/31910 ]

(SOTA REFLECTOR)

**

WORLD OF DX

In the World of DX, a DARC team has activated the special event
callsign DA23WARD in celebration of World Amateur Radio Day. The
station will be on the air through to the 18th of April. The bureau
will automatically confirm all contacts. Direct QSLs should be sent via
DL2VFR. Another station marking World Amateur Radio Day is the UBA
special event station in Belgium using the callsign OT23WARD. This
station will be on the air from the 1st through to the 30th of April.
QSL via Club Log's OQRS, LoTW, eQSL. A certificate will be available.

Be listening for 3A8AB from Monaco between April the 1st and the 30th.
The activation commemorates the 100th anniversary of the first
transatlantic two-way contact via amateur radio between Leon Deloy,
F8AB, and Fred Schnell, 1MO. Leon became a Silent Key in 1969 in Monaco
and bequeathed his fortune to a variety of philanthropic organizations.
QSL via LoTW.

(425 DX BULLETIN)

**
KICKER: FOR PIERRE PULLINMYLEG, BOUVET ISLAND IS FOR THE BIRDS

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Our final story of this week tells about a very new
club. In fact, it's one of the most remarkable clubs to ever come into
being. It's based in a most unlikely - and very remote - location:
Bouvet Island. Our April Fool's Day correspondent, Pierre Pullinmyleg,
tells Newsline listeners about the new Bouvet Island Amateur Radio Club
and its highly unusual members. Remember you heard this story first on
Amateur Radio Newsline. Pierre?

PIERRE: After saying goodbye to ze 3Y0J DXpedition only a few weeks
earlier, ze local residents were inspired. They knew it was time for
Bouvet Island to have its own amateur radio club. So one was hatched,
just like so many of its members. Yes, hatched - because zeese members
you see, zay are zee penguins native to this South Atlantic Island.
Zese birds are so very intelligent and zey had very carefully watched
from afar as ze team of operators called CQ. Zey learned just enough CW
along the way to try and operate! AHA! So just maybe did you bust one
of zose pileups? Maybe you ended up working a penguin -- and you didn't
know it? Well, now zese birds, zay have developed zere own digital mode
of operating to make things easier. It is called Pen-Gweeno. Pen-Gweeno
is good because ze birds found zat CW, she is nice enough but is too
hard: ham radio operators with wings, mes amis, cannot possibly hope to
have a good fist.

So be listening for low-power, highly efficient transmissions of
Pen-Gweeno on ze HF bands. Listen for ze club callsign 3Y2PENG. Please
remember too that just because zese birds cannot fly, it does not mean
they can't get on zee air.

Zis has been Pierre Pullinmyleg saying "au revoir, mes amis."

**

NOMINATE OUR NEXT 'YOUNG HAM OF THE YEAR'

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: We remind our listeners that young hams who live in the continental United States have an opportunity to make news, if they
aren't already doing so, by being a recipient of this year's Amateur
Radio Newsline Bill Pasternak Memorial Young Ham of the Year Award.
Consider nominating an amateur radio operator 18 years of age or
younger -- someone who has talent, promise and a commitment to the
spirit of ham radio. Find application forms on our website
arnewsline.org under the "YHOTY" tab. Nominations are now open and
close on May 31st.

**
DO YOU HAVE NEWS?

STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Do you have a piece of Amateur Radio News that you
think Newsline would be interested in? We are not talking about
advertising your club's upcoming hamfest or field day participation,
but something that is out of the ordinary. If so, send us a brief
overview via the contact page at arnewsline.org. If it's newsworthy and
we would like to cover it, we'll get back to you for more details.

NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Amateur News Weekly; ARRL; Australia Communications and Media Authority; CQ Magazine; David Behar K7DB; DX-World.net; FCC; 425 DX News; Hackaday; National Public Radio;
QRZ.COM; Radio Society of Great Britain; Radio World; Reddit; Rochester Institute of Technology; SOTA Reflector; shortwaveradio.de; Space.com;
West Bengal Radio Club; Wireless Institute of Australia; World Wide
Flora & Fauna; and you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. We remind our listeners that Amateur Radio Newsline is an all-volunteer non-profit organization that incurs expenses for its
continued operation. If you wish to support us, please visit our
website at arnewsline.org and know that we appreciate you all. We also
remind our listeners that if you like our newscast, please leave us a
5-star rating wherever you subscribe to us. For now, with Caryn Eve
Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and our news team
worldwide, I'm Stephen Kinford N8TMW in Wadsworth Ohio saying 73. As
always we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is
Copyright 2023. All rights reserved.

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