Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2409 for Friday December 29th, 2023

[Amateur Radio Newsline]

Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2409 for Friday December 29th, 2023

Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2409 with a release date of Friday
December 29th, 2023 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. Set your sights on some most-wanted DX
contacts. Straight Key Month gets under way - and listen to the winning
Ham Radio Haiku for 2023. All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline
Report Number 2409 comes your way right now.

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BILLBOARD CART

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PLANNING BEGINS FOR DXPEDITION TO PETER THE 1ST ISLAND

DON/ANCHOR: As the new year dawns, we bring you a top story that looks
to the future: We tell you about two big DXpeditions happening Down
Under -- and both take plenty of planning and resources. We hear the
details from Graham Kemp VK4BB.

GRAHAM: The year 2024 is a big year of planning for a DXpedition to
Peter I Island, which ranks eighth in ClubLog's most-wanted DXCC list.
Like Bouvet Island, this remote volcanic island is one of three
Norwegian territories in the subAntarctic and Antarctic region. The
DXpedition of 19 operators is being led by Ken LA7GIA, Cezar VE3LYC,
Dave WD5COV and Adrian KO8SCA. It's planned for 14 days in February
of2026.

Dave and Ken are also part of another high-profile DXpedition taking
place a year before Peter I Island: that is the 3Y0K DXpedition in
January 2025 for Bouvet Island, the 11th most wanted on the ClubLog
list. This expedition will reuse much of the equipment from the
previous year's trip to Bouvet and is also sharing the website being
used by 3Y0K.

As fundraising for Peter I Island gets under way in just a few weeks,
the group is concentrating on securing a landing permit from the
Norwegian Polar Institute. The team has reported that it has found a
ship and it has two on-board helicopters. In addition to being a
coveted DX, Peter I Island carries the IOTA designation of AN-004.

This is Graham Kemp VK4BB

(M0OXO WEBSITE)

**
CQ MAGAZINE SUSPENDS PUBLICATION

DON/ANCHOR: CQ Magazine, which has been a resource for the active
amateur radio community for seven decades, has suspended publication
until sometime in 2024. CQ has been a valuable supporter of Newsline's
Bill Pasternak WA6ITF Memorial Amateur Radio Newsline Young Ham of the
Year Award. It is renowned for its CQ World Wide array of contests and
operating awards and for its hall of fame.

The magazine's editor, Richard Moseson W2VU, told Newsline in a recent
email: [quote] "As all of our loyal readers know, 2023 has been a very
challenging year for us. We continue to pursue all options for getting
things moving again. At this moment, the November and December issues
are delayed but we plan to get them out to the readership as soon as
circumstances permit. We appreciate everyone's patience and
understanding." [endquote]

The widely read magazine, which produces both a print and digital
edition, has been a staple in amateur radio shacks, starting with its
first issue in January 1945.

**
STRAIGHT KEY MONTH CELEBRATES A TRADITION

DON/ANCHOR: This year marks the 18th year for Straight Key Month, a
celebration of traditional communication from the Straight Key Century
Club. Don't have a straight key? You can get in on the action anyway.
Kevin Trotman N5PRE tells us how.

KEVIN: Just as some CW operators think they can rest their fists
following the conclusion of the ARRL's Straight Key Night on the 1st of
January, others are preparing for Straight Key Month. The popular event
from the Straight Key Century Club is a leisurely and friendly
activity. The goal is to contact as many other operators as you can via
CW, not just throughout the United States but around the world. There
are various categories in which operators can set their goals.

You don't need to be an SKCC club member to participate. In fact, you
don't even need to use a Straight Key. Will you get a basic sweep, a
full sweep or a grand sweep? See the SKCC website at skccgroup dot com
(skccgroup.com) and click on the link for SKCC Straight Key Month,
which appears under the heading of "Activities."

Each year club members compete to produce a design for the event's
official QSL card. This year's winning card will also mark the 18th
anniversary of the SKCC.

This is Kevin Trotman N5PRE.

(SKCC)

**
ARIZONA DESERT COMES ALIVE WITH QUARTZFEST

DON/ANCHOR: The next big thing in ham radio in the US is the first big
convention of 2024. It's known as Quartzfest and it is one of its kind
in Arizona's Sonoran desert. It features recreational vehicles,
portable and mobile EMCOM systems and off-the-grid living all near
Quartzsite. Activities and seminars are all free. Operators will also
have a special event station W7Q throughout the week. Other hams will
be participating in an HF Distance Challenge, Pico Balloon Launches and
POTA activations and hikes. Quartzfest takes place between the 21st and
the 27th of January. For a schedule of seminars and activities visit
quartzfest dot org (quartzfest.org)

(QUARTZFEST, AMATEUR RADIO DAILY)

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HAMSCI ADVISOR BECOMES DIRECTOR OF HAYSTACK OBSERVATORY

DON/ANCHOR: A noted observatory in New England has just chosen its new
director - an amateur radio operator who is also an advisor to HamSCI
and its various projects. We hear more from Sel Embee KB3TZD.

SEL: Congratulations to Philip Erickson, W1PJE, a member of the
advisory board of the citizens science group HamSCI, who is starting an
important new role in January as director of the Haystack Observatory
at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he has been on staff
in various capacities since 1995. His most recent role has been as
associate director.

The observatory has been involved in a number of projects that share
some of HamSCI's own priorities, conducting studies of the ionosphere
and other parts of the atmosphere with the use of electromagnetic
frequencies. Philip notes on his QRZ.com page that Haystack has been
involved since the late 1950s in remote-sensing research into the
properties of the ionosphere, neutral atmosphere, overlying
plasmasphere, and magnetosphere.

Philip belongs to the Nashoba Valley Amateur Radio Club, which often
conducts activities in collaboration with the Haystack Observatory. He
is also a big fan of working with vintage radios.

This is Sel Embee KB3TZD.

(HAMSCI, QRZ.COM)

**
GET READY FOR HAM RADIO KIDS' DAY

DON/ANCHOR: Just as Youth on the Air month ends on the last day of
December, Ham Radio Kids Day is just getting warmed up. The annual ARRL
event takes place on Saturday the 6th of January as a way of showing
youngsters the kind of fun they can have on the air - and to interest
them in science and technology. Plans are already being made across the
country: One such group, The New Providence Amateur Radio Club in New
Jersey. is operating the event with the youngsters at the Salt Brook
School on Saturday, January 6, 2024 from 1:30 PM to 4:30 PM.

During the event, youngsters will be on the air under the supervision
of licensed hams. Kids will be calling "CQ Kids Day" and the
kid-friendly exchange will be name, age, location and favorite color.

(ARRL, PATCH.COM)

**
FRENCH AMATEUR'S SPECIAL EVENT HONORS POLISH MARTYR

DON/ANCHOR: Several special event stations go on the air from around
the world each year in August, coinciding with the anniversary of the
death of St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe. He was born, however, in January
and an event is coming up to mark the 130th anniversary of that day.
Here's Randy Sly W4XJ with the details.

RANDY: The Polish priest, Maximilian Maria Kolbe, was martyred in
Auschwitz during World War II. Hams often hold special event stations
in August to mark the date of his death. One ham in France -- Jeff,
F4IIQ (F 4 EYE EYE Q) -- has chosen to mark his birth on January 8th.
He will be going on the air with the callsign TM130SMK from the 5th to
the 9th of January. The Franciscan priest, who was canonized in 1982,
is considered the patron saint of amateur radio for having founded a
monastery in Poland dedicated to communications. The monastery housed a
short-wave radio station with the callsign SP3RN. When the monastery
was shut by the Nazis in 1941, Maximilian Maria Kolbe was arrested and
sent to Auschwitz where he volunteered to take the place of another man
who was marked to die. The priest was executed by lethal injection
after having been placed in a starvation bunker.

Father Kolbe is also the inspiration for the Saint Maximilian Kolbe
Net, which was founded by two amateurs in the US in 1998. It meets on
80 metres and 20 metres on Sundays.

This is Randy Sly W4XJ.

(QRZ.COM)

**
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.

**

SOTA ACTIVATORS PREPARE FOR YEAR-LONG 10M CHALLENGE

DON/ANCHOR: SOTA activators, get ready to aim high in the new year.
It's already a fact that SOTA ops aim high or they wouldn't be climbing
all those summits to make contacts, but now the awards scheme is asking
everyone to aim high on the band and accept a year-long 10-meter
challenge. This event is timed to coincide with what is expected to be
the peak of Solar Cycle 25.

The SOTA 10m Challenge is not a contest, but the organisers do plan to
post results on its challenge page and hope the activity will encourage
as many ops as possible to make use of the b and. In announcing the
activity, Andy, MM0FMF, compared this challenge to the event conducted
on the 12m band in 2013 and 2014. Unlike 12m, 10m is open to all
classes of amateurs in most countries and so this event is considered
more inclusive.

(AMATEUR RADIO DAILY, EI7GL BLOG)

**
ARISS CONFERENCE TO CELEBRATE 40 YEARS OF HAM RADIO

DON/ANCHOR: Amateur Radio on the ISS is collecting stories and videos
that help tell the story of ham radio in space during the past four
decades. Dave Parks WB8ODF brings us that report.

DAVE: If you've ever had contact with Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station, get ready for Florida in February. The
ARISS organization is reaching out to educators and former students and
asking them to send in stories and videos explaining the impact that
important QSO with the orbiting astronauts has had on their lives.

The stories will become a part of the 40th anniversary Educational
Contact conference taking place at the Center for Space Education near
the Kennedy Space Center's Visitors' Center from February 22nd to the
24th. Both educators and former students are being asked to fill out a
form online providing details.

ARISS is celebrating the occasion, which marks 40 years since astronaut
Owen Garriott, W5LFL, made the first amateur radio contact from space
on board the Space Shuttle Columbia. ARISS writes on its website
[quote] "The historic 40th anniversary conference will be a
retrospective of what has been accomplished and will highlight our
exciting amateur radio human spaceflight plans on the horizon."
[endquote]

To share your story, follow the link that appears in the text version
of this week's newscast at arnewsline.org

This is Dave Parks WB8ODF.

[DO NOT READ: http://tinyurl.com/2p87y7f9 ]

(ARISS, YOUTH ON THE AIR)

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WORLD OF DX

In the World of DX, there's still time to get a coveted DX for your
logbook: The Rebel DX Group's T32TT operation from Kiritimati/Christmas
Island, IOTA number OC-024 in East Kiribati will be extended until the
12th of January. See QRZ.com for QSL and other details.

Be listening for special event station AT24GSM from West Bengal, India,
between January 9th through to the 16th. Members of the West Bengal
Radio Club will be activating Sagar Island, IOTA Number AS-153 and the
Gangasagar Island Beach, BOTA Number 60572. The activation will also
include the Sagar Island Lighthouse, World Lighthouse Number 2262. The
occasion for the activation is the annual pilgrimage known as the Ganga
Saga Mela. See QRZ.com for details.

Members of ARI Padova will be on the air with the callsign II3PUP from
the 7th to the 14th of January. The suffix of the callsign is an
acronym for the Latin words connoting Padua the Painted City. This is a
reference to the series of 14th-century frescoes that are on the UNESCO
World Heritage list, where they were added in 2021. QSL via IQ3WW. Find
other QSL information on QRZ.com.

If you are planning ahead for February, be listening for VK5MAV
operating as VK5MAV/4 from Magnetic Island, IOTA number OC-171. They
will be on the air from the 6th to the 11th of February. He will be
using mainly CW but may include some SSB. Listen on 40, 20, 15, and 10
metres. See QRZ.com for QSL details.

(425 DX BULLETIN)

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KICKER: A TREASURED TRANSMITTER'S ENDURING MESSAGE

DON/ANCHOR: As we leave December and step across the threshold of a new
year, it's a comfort to know that some things endure. They were built
to last - and in fact, they DO last. One example is the tradition of a
message of Christmas peace, transmitted from a historic transmitter in
Sweden. Jeremy Boot G4NJH concludes this newscast with this report.

JEREMY: On Christmas Eve morning, the World Heritage Grimeton Radio
station carried a message to the world that is older than the
100-year-old transmitter itself. It was a message of peace sent via
Morse Code. Hams and non-hams alike from around the wor ld tuned in via
SDR or other means to hear the code being sent via the Alexanderson
Alternator SAQ signal on 17.2 kHz long wave. Others simply witnessed
the event on YouTube, where spectators from Poland, Belgium, Colombia,
Brazil and Australia left words of support and appreciation in many
languages.

The history behind this transmitter is as cherished as the message it
carries several times each year: With every transmission it underscores
the progress we have made over the years in wireless communication
--while affirming the progress the world still needs to make in so many
other areas.

This is Jeremy Boot G4NJH.

(YOUTUBE)


DON/ANCHOR: You can see this year's December 24th event in Grimeton by
following the link in the text version of this week's newscast at
arnewsline.org

[DO NOT READ: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33B5j7rnBnI ]

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SEND US NEWS - AND HERE'S OUR HAIKU WINNER

DON/ANCHOR: If you have a piece of Amateur Radio News that you think
Newsline would be interested in, send it on! 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.
Meanwhile, if you're feeling even a little bit poetic, visit our
website to learn more about the Amateur Radio Newsline haiku challenge
in 2024.

Speaking of all things poetic, as promised, our crew has chosen the
Newsline Haiku of 2023 from all of this year's weekly top entries. We
are proud of this winner, who received 43% of the vote. We were
unfortunately unable to contact the author in time for him to read it
for inclusion in this newscast. So it's my honor to present the winning
haiku, submitted by Greg Smith, N6NYX, that was featured on December
8. It was a touching and poetic comment on the potential future of
amateur radio. It reads:

The past is prologue, When the radio captures, The love of youngsters

We congratulate Greg Smith for his winning haiku and encourage all of
our listeners to submit their own creations at the website. Look for
the "Ham Radio Haiku" link at the top right portion of the menu on the
website. We look forward to another year of you flexing your poetic
license as well as your ham radio license.


**

NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Amateur Radio Daily; ARRL; ARISS; CQ
Magazine; David Behar K7DB; 425DXNews; HamSCI; M0OXO website;
Patch.com; QRZ.com; Quartzfest; Radio World; shortwaveradio.de;
Straight Key Century Club; Wireless Institute of Australia; YouTube;
Youth on the Air; 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 Don Wilbanks AE5DW in Picayune, Mississippi saying 73
and wishing you all the very best in 2024. As always we thank you for
listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2023. All rights
reserved.