Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) Report 1778 - September 9 2011

[William M. Pasternak]

Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) Report 1778 - September 9 2011


Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1778 with a release date of
Friday, September 9th, 2011 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a Q-S-T. ARISSAT One celebrates its first month in
space, IARU Region 1 adds two new repeater pairs on 2 meters, Canadian
hams on alert for hurricane Katia, an unlicensed broadcaster in
Brooklyn New York is hit with a $10,000 fine and on ham remembers 911
with an on line tribute to the New York City Fire Department. Find out
the details are on Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) report number 1778 coming
your way right now.


(Billboard Cart Here)


**

HAM RADIO IN SPACE: ARISSAT-1 CELEBRATES ITS FIRST MONTH ONORBIT

ARISSat One has celebrated its first month on-

orbit and it still p[utting out a mighty good

signal. Take a listen:

--

Actual ARISsat 1 here.

--

ARISSat One was deployed from the from the International Space station
on August 3rd by two space walking cosmonauts . Now, a month later
strong signal reports continue to be reported even though its internal
battery is almost depleted and the bird is totally dependant on power
from power from the sun.


In addition to hearing the bird live on 145.950 MHz, you can receive
ASISSat One data in near real time on your smart phone or mobile
device. Information on how to do this is online at
tinyurl.com/arissat-data-now (WA4SXM)

**

HAM RADIO IN SPACE: ISS COULD BE VACATED IF RUSSIAN LAUNCH VEHICLE
PROBLEM NOT RESOLVED QUICKLY

According to Space.com, the International Space Station may have to
start operating without a crew in November. This, if Russian engineers
cannot quickly figure out what caused a recent launch booster failure.
And this would indirectly impact on ham radio as well. Amateur Radio
Newsline's Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, has the details:

--

As widely reported, an unmanned Russian Progress cargo ship crashed
just after launch on August 24th. That flight was to deliver three
tons of supplies to the orbiting space station. The failure was caused
by a problem with the Progress' Soyuz rocket. One very similar to the
one Russia uses to launch its crew-carrying vehicle.

In an August 29th statement, NASA says that three members of the
current crew on the ISS are due to return to Earth this month, and the
rest are scheduled to come back in midNovember.

At the moment, Russia's Soyuz is the only way to get astronauts to and
from the station. So if the booster glitch isn't identified and fixed
quickly, a fresh crew won't be able to reach the orbiting lab before
the last three current crew members head for home.

One of the reasons for this is that the two Soyuz spacecraft that are
currently docked to the ISS are only rated to spend about 200 days in
space so they will have to depart before their time on-orbit ends.
Also, the lighting conditions at the Soyuz's landing site in Kazakhstan
is also an issue. Both NASA and the Russian space agency require that
landings occur between one hour after dawn or one hour before dusk.
This, to facilitate better search and rescue operations should any be
required.

The lighting window closes for about five weeks on September 19th for
the first crew and around November 19th for the second. Waiting for a
new window to open would stretch the Soyuz spacecraft beyond their 200
day on-orbit ratings in both cases.

The bottom line: NASA says that it will not put any crews on a Soyuz
until the rocket has had several successful unmanned launches. Russian
engineers are working to give Soyuz the best chance to meet that 200
day deadline. The next one is technically slated to blast off on
September 21st, but most experts seem to think that's almost certainly
not going to happen. So if Russia cannot find the failure cause of the
Soyuz and get it proofed for carrying human passengers, it could mean
that the ISS could be unmanned for the first time since 2001.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, in the
Newsroom in Los Angeles.

--

If the International Space Station were to be temporarily evacuated it
would mean at least a temporary hold with scheduled on-orbit astronaut
to classroom ham radio contacts. Obviously, random contacts by the ISS
ham radio crews with amateurs world-wide would cease as well.
(SPACE.com, Houston News, other published news reports)

**

RESTRUCTURING: IARU REGION 1 ADDS NEW 2 METER REPEATER PAIRS

IARU Region 1 has voted in favor of creating a pair of new 2 meter
repeater channels to relieve some of the on-the-air congestion in that
region of the world. The new frequency pairs are 144.9750 MHz and
144.9875 MHz as inputs with 145.5750 MHz and 145.5875 MHz as their
complimentary outputs.

And if those of you outside of I-A-R-U Region One are wondering about
the strange channel allocations, heres some background. In I-A-R-U
Region One, the 2 meter band is only two Megahertz wide running from
144 to 146 MHz. Only a small portion is allocated for FM repeater and
simplex operations. According to the bandplan posted on the Internet,
back in 1996 it was decided to change from 25 Khz inter system spacing
to 12.5 kHz with very narrow deviation to accommodate as many repeaters
in a given area as is possible.

The latest newly added frequencies were proposed by the South African
Radio League and approved by a vote of twenty seven in favor, fourteen
opposed and seven abstentions. No implementation of this modification
to the Region One bandplan was announced. (IARU Region 1)

**

RESCUE RADIO: CANADIAN HAMS ALERT FOR HURRICANE KATIA

Hams in Eastern Canada's Maritime Provinces went on alert on September
6th. This as Hurricane Katia had been tracking toward the northwest
for several days as a major category 3 storm.

Based on a suite of computer models and the expected evolution of
weather systems over Eastern Canada, Katia was forecast to make a sharp
eastward turn on Friday, September 9th. That would result in its impact
being limited to the offshore areas but also creating large waves that
would reach the southern coastlines of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.

According to the United States National Hurricane Center in Miami and
the Canadian Hurricane Center, Hurricane Katia is not expected to make
landfall anywhere in North America. However its projected path is
across the entire North Atlantic and map projections say it actually
may hit northern England early on Monday, September 12th, before
completely falling apart.

But before it makes its Atlantic crossing, Hurricane Katia does pose a
threat to Canada's eastern most area and Radio Amateurs of Canada
suggests that hams as well as the public stay tuned to updates
regarding the storms path. The Canadian Hurricane Center notes that
predicting the timing of sharp turns for a hurricane like Katria can be
particularly challenging. You can track Katia's progress yourself by
going to the National Hurricane Center web page at www dot nhc dot noaa
dot gov. (RAC, NOAA, Canadian Hurricane Center)

**

RESCUE RADIO: WASHINGTON HAMS AID HIKER

According to a report posted on QRZ dot com by Glen Ahlborn, KF7QLH,
several Washington State hams were responsible for the rescue of a
camper who had slid off a ledge near Emerald Lake. It went down on
Saturday, August 27th when John Myers, KD7AAT, of Spokane received an
emergency call over a local repeater from Todd Cady, K7PKT. Cady
informed Myers that a camper had fallen over the side of a ledge and
had suffered a major compound fracture of his femur.

Using a hand held GPS unit, Cady provided Myers with the exact
coordinates. Cady also told Myers that there was absolutely no way of
getting a stretcher in the area. Myers relayed this information to
emergency response personnel which dispatched an ambulance to the
scene.

As it turned out, Cady's assessment was correct. There was no way to
perform a ground rescue due to the terrain. The first responders could
only make sure the patient was stabilized, and also find an area for a
helicopter landing. Meantime, a rescue helicopter was launched from
Spokane. It picked up the injured man and transported him to a medical
facility where he is reported to be recovering from his injuries.
(KF7QLH)

**

BREAK 1

>From the United States of America, We are the Amateur Radio Newsline,
heard on bulletin stations around the world including the VE9BSQ
repeater serving St. John New Brunswick, Canada.

(5 sec pause here)


**

RESCUE RADIO: SIMULATED EMERGENCY TEST OCTOBER 1 and 2

This years national Simulated Emergency Test takes place on October 1st
and 2nd. Sponsored by the ARRL, the Simulated Emergency Test is a
nationwide exercise to assess ham emergency operating skills and the
readiness in an emergency like operation.

According to the ARRL, its Field Organization in association with a
variety of served emergency response agencies is busy developing
emergency like scenarios for this years S-E-T. To find out how you can
be a part of these activities, please get in touch with your ARRL
Section Manager. Contact information can be found on page 16 of any
issue of the Leagues monthly QST magazine. (ARRL)

**

RESCUE RADIO: FEMA TO TEST NATIONAL EAS SYSTEM IN NEVADA

Nevada will conduct a state-wide test of the national Emergency
Activation or EAS system later this month. Radio World reports that at
the recent annual meeting of the Nevada State Emergency Communications
Committee broadcasters learned that the Federal Emergency Management
Agency's Integrated Public Alert and Warning System office plans a
mini-national EAS test for the state before months end.

The test would be launched from FEMA to KKOH AM in Reno and KDWN AM in
Las Vegas and propagate from there to other stations in the Nevada EAS
Operational Area. Nevada State Emergency Communications Committee
Chair Adrienne Abbott told the meeting she would track results through
a conference call with station engineers and report results to the
Nevada Broadcasters Association.

Radio World says that similar tests are expected in at least some other
states. The Michigan Association of Broadcasters has already announced
that it is planning a statewide "soft test" of the monthly local test
on September 22nd. (RW)

**

RESCUE RADIO: ALERTFM TO BE INTRODUCED TO EUROPEAN MARKEWT

AlertFM which is the provider of an FM-based emergency alert system,
has announced that broadcast equipment manufacturer WorldCast Systems
is offering the Alert FM system in Europe.

The Alert FM system sends text-based messages over FM frequencies to
end users. Those end users can be anyone with an Alert FM receiver,
including radio stations, first responders, schools, municipalities or
citizens. More on this story is on-line at tinyurl.com/alert-fm-europe
(AlertFM)

**

ENFORCEMENT: UNLICENSED BROOKLYN NY BROADCASTERS DINGED $10000

The FCC has affirmed Forfeiture Order in the amount of ten thousand
dollars issued jointly to Andre Alleyne and Jessie White. This, for
operating an unlicensed radio station on the frequency 96.5 MHz in
Brooklyn, New York. Amateur Radio Newslines Jeff Clark, K8JAC, is here
with the story:

--

This story goes back to July 23 and 24, 2008. That's when acting in
response to a complaint of interference from a licensed FM broadcast
station; agents from the FCC Enforcement Bureau's New York Office
monitored 96.5 MHz in Brooklyn, New York. On each of those days, the
agent observed a radio signal on that frequency and used
directionfinding techniques to locate the source of the transmissions
to an apartment building on Flatbush Avenue in the borough of the city.

On July 24, 2008, after completing the field strength measurements,
agents from the New York Office conducted an investigation on the roof
of building where they observed an FM broadcast antenna with a coaxial
cable leading from the antenna into an apartment window in the
building. The agents learned from the building superintendent that the
coaxial cable went into the apartment jointly leased by Mr. Alleyne and
Ms. White.

When the agents attempted to inspect the station, the two women who
answered the door refused to allow the agents to enter the apartment.
However, one of the women, who was later identified as Ms. White,
stated that she resides in the apartment with her boyfriend. The agents
advised her that the radio station in the apartment was operating
without a license and requested that she turn off the station. After
returning to their vehicle, the agents monitored 96.5 MHz and noted
that the station was off the air.

On July 30, 2008, the New York Office issued a Notice of Unlicensed
Operation to Mr. Alleyne and Ms. White. The notice warned the pair
that operation of the unlicensed radio station violated section 301 of
the Communications Act and outlined the potential penalties for such a
violation. The Notice directed Mr. Alleyne and Ms. White to terminate
operation of the unlicensed station immediately and provided them ten
days to reply. The New York Office says that it did not receive a
response to the Notice.

On December 10, 2008, the New York Office issued a Notice of Apparent
Liability for Forfeiture in the amount of $10,000 to Mr. Alleyne and
Ms. White for operating an unlicensed radio station. In their
response, Mr. Alleyne and Ms. White did not dispute the findings in the
Notice of Apparent Liability, but requested that the FCC cancel the
proposed forfeiture for several reasons. This because of their claim
that they allowed a friend to operate the station from their apartment.
Also, that they believed the radio station complied with all FCC
regulations; that they ceased operating the station as soon as they
became aware that it was illegal and that they do not have the
financial resources to pay the forfeiture.

In denying all of these requests the FCC noted that Mr. Alleyne and Ms.
White did not dispute the circumstances of the stations operation and
that on examining all of the evidence that the Commission finds that
Alleyne and White are jointly liable for operating the unlicensed radio
station on 96.5 MHz. The FCC also turned down the request to cancel or
reduce the proposed forfeiture based on their inability to pay. This
is because neither Mr. Alleyne nor Ms. White submitted any supporting
documentation providing proof that they could not pay the fine. As
such the FCC concluded that the $10,000 forfeiture is warranted and
gave them the customary 30 days to pay or take the matter to appeal.

I'm Jeff Clark, K8JAC.

--

If Alleyne and White they fail to do either, the entire matter will
likely be handed over to the Department of Justice for collection.
(FCC)

**

ENFORCEMENT: CANADIAN TEEN UNLICENSED BROADCASTER GETS 15 MONTHS
PROBATION

A Canadian youngster described in news reports as an illtempered
teenaged unlicensed broadcaster has been put on 15 months probation.
This after threatening a pair of Ottawa radio personalities and an
Industry Canada radio inspector.

According to news reports, the now 15 year old had set up a radio
station out of his home using transmitting equipment he purchased with
money from an inheritance and began broadcasting without a license.
After repeated warnings Telecommunications regulator Industry Canada
shut him down and seized his equipment in January 201. At that time he
reportedly threatened and harassed one of the agency's investigators.

At trial, the unnamed young offender was convicted of violating the
Radiocommunications Act. He was also found guilty of threatening to
kill Hot 89.9 radio personality Ryan Lindsay. The court says that he
went as far showing up at the radio station with his father, and
threatening to harm another employee identified as John Mielke.

And heres the kicker. While news reports say that the teen's crimes
were serious, Justice Donald Ebbs sentenced him only to conditional
discharge and probation. The only conditions placed on the teen was
that he stay away from the people he threatened and not possess any
radio transmitters or other equipment that could allow him to broadcast
on federally regulated airwaves. The teen was also ordered to perform
60 hours of community service. More about this case is on-line at
tinyurl.com/canada-teen. (Adapted from the Ottawa Citizen)

**

NAMES IN THE NEWS: PAUL ROBINSON 2E1EUB AWARDED LOUIS VARNEY CUP

The 2011 Louis Varney G5RV Cup for Space Communications has been
awarded to Paul Robinson 2E1EUB of Stoke on Trebt, England. This in
recognition of his work in promoting and encouraging the use of amateur
radio satellites and perfecting the art of a portable ground station.
This years presentation was hosted by RSGB president Dave Wilson M00BW
and took place at the Telford Hamfest on Sunday, September 4. (GB2RS)

**

NAMES IN THE NEWS: ARNEWSLINET TO BE GUEST ON HAM NATION SEPTEMBER 13

Amateur Radio Newsline producer Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, along news
anchor Don Wilbanks, AE5DW, will be the guests of Bob Heil, K9EID, and
Gordon West, WB6NOA on the Tuesday, September 13th edition of Bob's Ham
Nation. This is the streaming video podcast seen live on Leo LaPorte's
TWIT.TV Internet Television Network.

Bill and Don plan to discuss a bit of the history of the news service
and talk about some of its ancillary projects including the Young Ham
of the Year Award. They also may have a surprise announcement as well.

Ham Nation airs live every Tuesday Night at live.twit.tv. If you miss
the show you can download the audio only or audio with video podcasts
about 24 hours later at www.twit.tv/HN, from iTunes, and many other
normal podcast sources. (ARNewsline(tm))

**

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)

**

CHANGING OF THE GUARD: UK COLOSSUS COMPUTER DESIGNER TONY SALE - SK

The Radio Society of Great Britain has announced the passing of Tony
Sale, the man behind the Bletchley Park Colossus computer rebuild
project.

During his rather illustrious career, Sale was the British intelligence
agency's principal scientific officer and later worked at the Science
Museum. He helped create the Computer Conservation Society and, more
recently, the National Museum of Computing at Bletchley Park, where his
Colossus remains today.

Considered to be a remarkable and skilled individual, Sale had a long
history in engineering that encompassed robotics, radar and computing.
In January 2008 Tony Sale and Colossus were featured on the cover of
the RSGB's RadCom magazine. (GB2RS)

**

EMERGING TECHNOLOGY: NEW HIGH EFFICIENCY SOLAR CELL

A photovoltaic cell that reaches record-breaking efficiency could make
solar energy competitive with fossil fuels according to the company
that created the cell.

Alta Devices of Santa Clara, California presented research at the 37th
IEEE Photovoltaic Specialist Conference that claims its thin-film
gallium-arsenide cell can convert 27.6 percent of the sunlight striking
the cell into electricity, under standardized conditions.

Since the paper was submitted, the company says it has upped the
efficiency to 28.2 percent. That beats the previous record of 26.4
percent for a solar cell with a single p-n junction, which was the
first improvement in years over 26.1 percent. Both numbers, according
to Alta, were independently confirmed by the National Renewable Energy
Laboratory. (Photo Voltaics)

**

RADIO FROM SPACE: PROSPERO MAY LIVE AGAIN

United Kingdom researchers say that they are planning to try to revive
a 1970's satellite on 137.560 MHz.

The Prospero spacecraft was the United Kingdoms first first satellite,
launched on a UK-built 40 years ago on a Black Arrow rocket. It was
put into orbit on October 28, 1971 carrying a series of experiments to
investigate the effects of the space environment.

The satellite operated successfully until 1973 and was contacted
annually until 1996. Its beacon on 137.560 MHz was last heard by radio
amateurs in 2006.

Now a team from the Mullard Space Science Laboratory in Surrey are
attempting to revive it. Audio recordings of the 0.3 watt phase
modulated signal at 2048 bit/s from Prospero on 137.560 MHz can be
heard on the Sounds from Space website of Matthias Bopp, DD1US. To
listen in, take your web browser to tinyurl.com/prospero-sound and then
scroll down the page to Prospero One. (Southgate)

**

HAM RADIO IN SPACE: STUDENTS GET NZART GRANT TO DEVELOP KIWISAT
SOFTWARE

A group of fourth-year Honors Students and a Masters student from New
Zealand's Massey University School of Engineering and Advanced
Technology have been awarded a $7,500 grant from the New Zealand
Association of Radio Transmitters' Radio Science Education Trust. This,
to develop the software for the new KiwiSAT amateur radio satellite.

KiwiSAT is being designed and built by a team of New Zealand radio
amateur volunteers supported by Massey and various corporate sponsors.
In addition to the usual repeater in space operations, KiwiSAT will
carry out experimental work in small satellite Attitude Determination
and Control. This is a low cost control system that works through
interaction with the Earth's magnetic field to position the satellite
at a specific attitude.

KiwiSAT is micro satellite is the size of a basketball. It will be
launched on a Russian orbital booster when the project is completed.
You can read the entire story on-line at tinyurl.com/kiwisat-software.
(NZART)

**

HAM RADIO IN SPACE: HAM RADIO SPACE HISTORY TALK ON THE WWW

A video dealing with the history of ham radio space communications is
now available on the World-Wide-Web. The program features a talk given
in English by Mario Lorenz, DL5MLO, from AMSAT Germany was recorded
this past summer as a part of the Hacker Space Program track at the
Chaos Communication Camp 2011.

Held near Berlin, Chaos Communication Camp attracted hackers and makers
from across Europe. Lorenz notes that building amateur radio satellites
involves using technology in creative ways and as such has great appeal
to the hacker community.

Lorenz talk is titled, "From OSCAR 1 to Mars and beyond Amateur Space
Exploration - The last 50 years, Now, and the Future." It runs just
about an hour and might make a good club meeting presentation. You can
find it on-line at tinyurl.com/amsat-sat-talk (Southgate)

**

HAM HAPPENINGS: CASTLES AND STATELY HOMES ON THE AIR

An interesting ham radio event out of the United Kingdom. The Castles
and Stately Homes On The Air organization will be holding a UK Heritage
Event during this month to coincide with the European Heritage Month.
For ham radio, this is a great opportunity to access locations that may
previously have been inaccessible or closed to the public. Details on
activations appear on line at www.cashota.co.uk. (GB2RS)

**

ON THE AIR: SPECIAL RUGBY WORLD CUP CALLSIGNS DOWN UNDER

On the air, keep your ears open for some New Zealand amateur radio
operators to replace their ZL prefix with a ZM prefix throughout
September and October. This, in celebration of the Rugby World Cup
which runs from September 9th through October 23rd.

Also listen out for two special event stations in celebration of the
Rugby event. The first has the unique call of ZL4RUGBY. It will be on
the air through October 31st. QSL via ZL4PW.

The other is ZL6RWC. It will be operated by various members of the
Papakura Radio Club, which will also be operational through October
31st. Please QSL ZL6RWC via ZL1VK, direct, via the bureau or
electronically using Logbook of the World. (NZART)

**

DX

In DX, listen out for Canadian special event station CJ3A to be active
during the entire month of October 2011 to celebrate the Centennial of
Parks in Canada. Operations will be on all High Frequency bands. QSL
via VE3LA.

The Wessex Contest Group will be active from the island of St Martin's,
Isles of Scilly, using the club callsign MX0WCB, between September 11th
to the 17th. Operation will be mainly QRP on the 40, 20, 17, 15 and
10m bands. QSL direct, by the Bureau, eQSL or via M0WAY.

K3GV stroke VY2 is on 15m and 20m from Prince Edward Island for one
month that began on September 1st. QSL via K3GV either via the bureau
or direct.

WB6OJB will be on the air as 7P8JK from Lesotho between September 15th
to the 22nd. While no other information was given, during his last
Lesotho operation he was on the High Frequency bands from 40 to 10
meters using mostly SSB with some CW. QSL direct to his home callsign
WB6OJB.

Lastly, N6NO will show up as VK9OL from Lord Howe Island from September
10th to the 18th. He is reportedly celebrating his 75th birthday and 60
years iun amateur radio. He plans to work mainly in CW on 40 through 10
meters listening especially for Europe. QSLs via bureau or direct to
N6NO or electronically using Logbook of the World.

(Above from DX news sources)

**

THAT FINAL ITEM: REMEMBERING 911 AND THE FIREFIGHTERS OF NYC

And finally this week, Mark Lacy, W5TXR, tells Newsline that he has
added the New York Fire Department logging tapes of 911 to his website.
The audio file contain transmissions of first responders as they
realized what was happening and began the work of trying to save lives
while not realizing that the buildings they were working in would soon
crumble around them:

--

Mobile: "Marine 6 to Manhattan, urgent." Dispatch: "Hazmat 1
stand-by. Marine 6 go." Mobile: "You have a second plane into the
other tower pof the Trade Center. (unintelligible) your fire."
Dispatch: ".Marine 6 advising a second plane into the World Trade
Center. Kay. Mobile: "Marine 6. That's the other tower." Dispatch:
"That's the second tower of the World Trade Center. Kay"

--

What you will hear is very graphic and Mark warns on the website that
as you listen to history unfold that it will send chills through your
body.

To hear these sad moments in United States history please take your web
browser to wwwW5TXR.net and click on the words "Historical Audio
Archives." The page also explains some of the radio codes and
terminology used by the firefighters in New York.

W5TXR adds that for him, as a volunteer firefighter of over 30 years
this really hits home. He says that the files will remain on line only
through September 15th. (W5TXR)

**

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 Newsline
(at) arnewsline (dot) org. More information is available at Amateur
Radio Newsline's(tm) only official website located at
www.arnewsline.org. You can also write to us or support us at Amateur
Radio Newsline(tm), 28197 Robin Avenue, Santa Clarita California, 91350

For now, with Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, at the editor's desk, I'm Jim
Damron, N8TMW, saying 73 from Charleston, West Virginia and we thank
you for listening.

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