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Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2366 for Friday March 3rd, 2023

Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2366 with a release date of Friday
March 3rd, 2023 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. Caribbean island communities strengthen their
emergency networks. Hams are asked to join a solar-eclipse study -- and Hamvention organizers announce this year's award winners. All this and
more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2366 comes your way
rightnow.

**
BILLBOARD CART

**
ISLANDS RECEIVE RADIO DONATION FOR EMERGENCY RESPONSE

NEIL/ANCHOR: An Australian company's donation of HF radios and antennas
is moving amateurs in St. Vincent and the Grenadines closer to the
development of improved islandwide HF emergency response -- an
important element in an area often battered by hurricanes. Graham Kemp
VK4BB brings us that report.

GRAHAM: When emergency radio equipment from Barrett Communications
arrived from Australia on the 14th of February, the director of the
Rainbow Radio League/Youlou (YOO LOO) Radio Movement noted that the
date was Valentine's Day and declared the delivery [quote] "a gift of
love." [endquote] Donald DeRiggs, J88CD, said he was grateful for the
donation - the third of its kind provided by Barrett for emergency use
in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The equipment is not only a useful
way to bolster communications during hurricane season but a way to
safeguard areas such as those that were left vulnerable during the
eruption of the volcano, La Soufriere in 2021.

The Australian company has taken an active role in helping the island communities. Previous donations by Barrett were used to assist the
island of Dominica in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in 2017. Donald
said that as soon as this new equipment can be programmed and deployed
there will be drills in May or early June to prepare for the coming
hurricane season.

The latest shipment was transported to Kingstown from the air cargo
facility by Leslie Edwards J88LE. It included HF radios, portable solar
panels, spare microphones, a portable antenna mast and broadband
dipoles.

This is Graham Kemp VK4BB.

(DONALD DE RIGGS, J88CD)

**
SENSORS ON BOARD ISS TO STUDY IONOSPHERE

NEIL/ANCHOR: The US military is getting ready to do some intense
testing on the ionosphere, via the ISS. We have those details from Kent Peterson KC0DGY.

KENT: Two ionospheric sensors will be tested on board the International
Space Station this spring in an experiment designed to ultimately
improve HF radio communications for the US Department of Defense. The
website, Breaking Defense, reported that the sensors are to be sent to
the ISS in March. The US military has been revisiting the importance of
HF radio as an alternative to satellites, having realized that US
satellites could become compromised or destroyed by enemy attack. HF
bands are already being used by the three branches of the US military
for some long-range communications.

Andrew Nicholas, one of the lead researchers on the sensor project,
told the Breaking Defense website that the sensors will be measuring ionospheric particle density and its impact on the radio waves passing
through it.

He said the data from the tests will help in the development of better ionspheric monitoring models. Eventually the military might even
consider creating satellites that would constantly monitor such
important ionospheric changes to assist in the performance of HF
communication.

This is Kent Peterson KC0DGY.

(BREAKING DEFENSE.COM)

**
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR HAMSCI STUDY OF SOLAR ECLIPSES

NEIL/ANCHOR: As any ham knows, signal reports matter. Well, they're
about to matter even more for those radio enthusiasts who are
participating in a citizen science project taking place during two
solar eclipses, this year and next year. For that story, we turn to our
newest correspondent Patrick Clark, K8TAC, who was also Newsline's
Young Ham of the Year in 2001.

PATRICK: There will be a little bit of competition and a whole lot of
research going on later this year for participants in a QSO party
organized by Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation, or HamSci.
Volunteer radio operators and shortwave listeners will join researchers
at a number of US universities sending, receiving and recording signals
during the October 14th solar eclipse. The data will be collected and
used for testing computer models of the ionosphere to assess its
variability. This is the first of two eclipses over North America that
HamSci will be studying. The second one is on April 8, 2024.

Both Solar Eclipse QSO Parties encourage the use of CW, SSB and digital
modes on 160-6 meters. At the same time, hams who operate CW and
digital beacons, WSPR and FST4W, will be able to take part in the
Gladstone Signal Spotting Challenge.

Registration starts in July. Organizers stress the importance of this opportunity. As they say on the project's website [quote]: "If we miss
the chance to collect meaningful data in 2023 and 2024, it will be
decades before North American hams and researchers get another
opportunity." [endquote] For details, visit hamsci dot org [hamsci.org]

This is Patrick Clark K8TAC.

(HAMSCI)

**
SILENT KEY: FORMER FCC CHIEF ENGINEER RAY SPENCE, W4QAW

NEIL/ANCHOR: A noted contester and DXer who had once been the chief
engineer for the Federal Communications Commission has become a Silent
Key. We learn more about him from Jim Damron N8TMW.

JIM: Raymond Spence, W4QAW, was so devoted to contesting and DXing that
a 1984 newspaper interview with him described the traffic-stopping view
his collection of towers provided to motorists who would see them from
a nearby highway. The Washington Post article noted that much of the
six and a half acres of Raymond's property in Virginia served him well. Raymond, who was retired from the post as chief engineer for the FCC in
nearby Washington, DC, became a Silent Key on February 18th, due to
heart failure.

Born in 1929, he was an active ham for much of his life. His basement
radio room served as his main contest station and he was a top
performer in many major contests. He is listed on the DXCC Honor Roll
and was a member of the National Capitol DX Association and the Potomac
Valley Radio Club.

This is Jim Damron N8TMW.

(WASHINGTON POST, DX NEWS.COM, QRZ.COM)

**
HAMVENTION AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED

NEIL/ANCHOR: If you want to know who's REALLY looking forward to
Hamvention this year, consider this list of amateurs who'll be coming
to Dayton to receive some awards. Paul Braun WD9GCO has the details.

PAUL: Hamvention has announced this year's award recipients. I spoke
with awards committee chair Michael Kalter, W8CI, about them.

KALTER: First is the special achievement winner, Dr. Jason McDonald,
N2TPA. He's just been instrumental in promoting international
friendship and community through amateur radio by forming scouting
clubs in Canada, Philippines, and Florida. Right now there are more
than 500 youth in these clubs that have been licensed and are on
theair.

KALTER: This year's Technical Achievement Award goes to Dr. James
Breakall, WA3FET, and his work's been so instrumental in amateur radio
antenna technology development for decades. He's teamed with experts in
the field to develop state-of-the-art advancements with a wide range of applications including the Numeric Electromagnetic Code,NEC.

KALTER: Amateur of the Year goes to Carsten Dauer, DM9EE. He's been
active in European amateur radio through WRTC and YOTA for 30 years.
But more recently, he has spearheaded a group called DM9EE-Helping
Hands, a movement to provide amateur radio equipment to war-torn
Ukraine by collecting donations and delivering them personally to
communities in Ukraine.

PAUL: Amateur Radio Club of the Year goes to The Delaware Valley Radio Association, formed in 1930 to serve the Trenton, New Jersey
metropolitan area.

To read more, visit Hamvention's website, hamvention.org.
Congratulations to the winners from all of us at Amateur Radio
Newsline.

**

MAJOR INDIAN BROADCASTER HONORS WEST BENGAL HAM

NEIL/ANCHOR: Congratulations to Ambarish Nag Biswas VU2JFA, secretary
of the West Bengal Radio Club in India, who were Newsline's
International Newsmaker of the Year for 2019 and 2022. At a recent
ceremony in Kolkata, he was given the Ananya Samman award from Zee
News, a Hindi broadcast channel that is part of one of India's largest
media companies. He told Newsline this was a special honor for him as
the first amateur radio recipient. The award is in recognition of the
club's life-saving work during cyclones, the pandemic and in other
areas of public concern. Newsline joins him in celebrating this
achievement.

(YOUTUBE)


**

IN SEARCH OF 'YOUNG HAM OF THE YEAR'

NEIL/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.

**

BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur
Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including
the WA7ABU repeater in Willamette Valley Oregon on Saturdays at 6 p.m.
local time.

**
FIRST-TIME PARTNERSHIP FOR WORLD AMATEUR RADIO DAY

NEIL/ANCHOR: The theme of World Amateur Radio Day this year is a
recognition of the vital role ham radio has played in a number of world
crises. John Williams VK4JJW tells us what's planned.

JOHN: In an unprecedented partnership, the International Amateur Radio
Union is being joined by the United Nations Trust Fund for Human
Security and the World Academy of Art and Science to mark World Amateur
Radio Day on the 18th of April. The organisations have declared the
theme of the day to be Human Security for All, or HS4A.

The theme arises out of the partners' shared belief that hams have a
unique means to fulfill the United Nations' mission of providing human
security for individuals around the world. The campaign the partnering
groups have launched together honours ham radio's proven track record
in responding to natural disasters, the pandemic, climate change and
even armed conflicts - the many things that undermine individual
security without regard to national boundaries. This important concept
was declared a priority by the United Nations in 1994.

Ham radio gains its advantage as a responder by providing technical
knowledge, practical skills and backup systems that provide a security
net in times of crisis.

The IARU, which has membership societies in more than 150 nations
around the world, made the announcement on its webpage for Region 1. A
two-week event will be held on the air from April 11th through to the
25th highlighting the HS4A campaign for World Amateur Radio Day.

This is John Williams VK4JJW.

(IARU REGION 1)

**
PARKS ON THE AIR INTRODUCES 48-HOUR CONTEST

NEIL/ANCHOR: Operating portable in the park just gained a little more
of a competitive edge. Dave Parks WB8ODF explains.

DAVE: A new activity being introduced this June by the Parks on the Air organizers is going to be different from the casual portable outdoor
operating experience activators and hunters enjoy. This is a contest.
For 48 hours, hams will collect contacts and points as part of the new
Parks on the Air Plaque Event, which is intended to become an annual competition. In a YouTube interview with Kevin Thomas W1DED, POTA
president Jason Johnston, W3AAX, explained the different categories
available to both hunters and activators and explained that anyone who
made their first POTA contact after June 2, 2022, is eligible for the additional category of rookie. Participants must be registered with
POTA and can use CW, SSB and the digital modes. Hams will not be
permitted to use the WARC bands.

As for multipliers, there are none. This keeps the playing field level
so that everything - even multiple reference areas - will be worth a
single point.

This is Dave Parks WB8ODF.

NEIL/ANCHOR: The contest will be held on HF, VHF, UHF and SHF. For a
look at the rules and other details for the event, see the link in the
text version of this week's Newsline report at arnewsline.org

[FOR PRINT ONLY: https://docs.pota.app/docs/award_events/plaque_event/plaque_event.html]

**
LONGTIME 40M NET IN INDIA AVAILABLE AS LIVE STREAM

NEIL/ANCHOR: One of the oldest nets held among radio amateurs in India
has begun a live stream. Jim Meachen ZL2BHF has those details.

JIM: The origins of the Belgaum Hambel Net predate the internet by
several decades, when a group of young shortwave enthusiasts in the
city of Belgaum would get together to study for their ASOC examination
in the physics lab of a local college where Pal, VU2PAL, was a
professor. By 1973, the group - now licensed hams - had grown. In 1973
they formed the Hambel Amateur Radio Club. By 1988, the hams had agreed
to have regularly scheduled QSOs with one another on 7.052.5 MHz - and
little by little the on-air circle of friends grew to include those
living outside the immediate area. The net was formally launched by
Professor Pal in November 1989. He moved it to 7.050 MHz and gave it a
name - the Hambel Belgaum Net. He was also its first and most active
net control. According to the club's website, by the time he became a
Silent Key in 2016, he had logged tens of thousands of QSOs via the
netalone.

The group's well-established 40-metre net tradition continues today
from 7 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. Indian Standard Time, but the world has
recently begun listening in. The net now uses YouTube to livestream its check-ins, with net controllers Bebu, VU2PNU, Omprakash, VU2KOC, Joshi,
VU2BRJ, and Yaseen, VU3PMY.

You can listen too. See the link to one of the more recent nets in the
text version of this week's script at arnewsline.org

This is Jim Meachen ZL2BHF.

[FOR PRINT, DO NOT READ: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRw9qluW9WY ]

(HAMBEL NET WEBSITE, YOUTUBE)

**
WORLD OF DX

In the World of DX, Phil, VA3QR, is operating from Panama throughout
March, using various call signs depending upon his location. Those call
signs include HP1/VA3QR, HP3/VA3QR and HP8/VA3QR. He will be using SSB
and the digital modes. QSL to his home call.

Listen for Matt, ZL4NVW, who will be activating several SOTA summits on Secretary Island off the Fiordland coast from the 7th to the 13th of
March. He will be on 40m through 10m, SSB only. Secretary Island uses
the IOTA designation OC-203 for the South Coastal Islands of New
Zealand. QSL to his home call.

Listen for Robert, OK2PYA, operating as EA6/OK2PYA from various World
Wide Flora & Fauna areas on Mallorca in the Balearic Islands, IOTA
EU-004 until the 7th of March. He is using CW on 40-10 metres. QSL via
Club Log's OQRS and LoTW.

(425 DX BULLETIN, DX-WORLD.NET)

**
KICKER: THE HEIGHT OF GRATITUDE FOR A SUMMIT RESCUE

NEIL/ANCHOR: For our final story, we visit with a SOTA activator who is recovering from serious injuries after a fall on a summit. While he is
healing, he plans to active a campaign of gratitude for his rescuers.
Here's Jeremy Boot G4NJH with that story.

JEREMY: It was just a few weeks ago that Alan 2E0JWA had hopes of
scoring 4 points plus a 3-point winter bonus for activating the largest
summit in his immediate area, G/SP-001 Kinder Scout in the Peak
District National Park.

His goal on that day in January came crashing down with him when he
fell on a piece of black ice on the well-marked summit path, shattering
his left leg. He expects that after two surgeries, he will be back on
his feet by mid-May - perhaps even back on the air for a summit by
summer.

As he tells colleagues on the SOTA Reflector, however, he might not be
making those plans at all were it not for the kind souls who first
rushed to his aid on the trail to stabilise him -- and then for the
welcome arrival of the volunteer team he describes in his blog as
"angels in red coats," the Glossop Mountain Rescue Team. It was a
complicated rescue but they moved him safely off the hill just as snow
showers were threatening to arrive.

Alan is now asking others on the SOTA Reflector and the ham community
to help inspire some kind of special event or thank-you gesture for
helping to keep this SOTA activator alive. To Alan, the winter bonus
for that summit truly belongs to the angels in red coats.

This is Jeremy Boot G4NJH.

(SOTA REFLECTOR, 2E0JWA BLOG)

**

DO YOU HAVE NEWS?

NEIL/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 Breaking Defense.com; CQ magazine; David
Behar K7DB; Donald De Riggs, J88CD; DX-World.net; FCC; 425 DX News;
Hambel Net; HamSCI; Parks on the Air; RadioWorld SOTA Reflector; the
2E0JWA Blog; shortwaveradio.de; Washington Post; YouTube 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. We also wish a happy 21st anniversary to the Summits
on the Air awards scheme, created March 2nd, 2002. For now, with Caryn
Eve Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and our news team
worldwide, I'm Neil Rapp WB9VPG in Union Kentucky saying 73. As always
we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright
2023. All rights reserved.

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