The ARRL Letter
October 29, 2020
* ARRL Urges Members to Join in Strongly Opposing FCC's Application
Fees Proposal
* It's a Wrap for Hurricane Watch Net, ARES Teams Stand Down
* ARRL Podcasts Schedule
* Guidelines Issued for ARRL DX Contest Multioperator Stations
* The K7RA Solar Update
* Just Ahead in Radiosport
* New Zealand Radio Amateurs Lose Access to 60 Meters
* ARRL Learning Network Webinars
* Fldigi Could be a Tool in the November Frequency Measuring Test
* Announcements
* Radio Amateurs in Western Pennsylvania to Commemorate KDKA
Broadcasting Centennial
* Oldest Known US Radio Amateur, Cliff Kayhart, W4KKP, SK
* In Brief...
* Upcoming ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions
ARRL Urges Members to Join in Strongly Opposing FCC's Application Fees
Proposal
ARRL will file comments in firm opposition to an FCC proposal to impose
a $50 fee on amateur radio license and application fees. With the
November 16 comment deadline fast approaching, ARRL urges members to
add their voices to ARRL's by filing opposition comments of their own.
The FCC Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) MD Docket 20-270 appeared
in the October 15 edition of The Federal Register and sets deadlines of
November 16 to comment and November 30 to post reply comments, which
are comments on comments already filed. ARRL has prepared a Guide to
Filing Comments with the FCC which includes tips for preparing comments
and step-by-step filing instructions. File comments on MD Docket 20-270
using the FCC's Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS).
"We encourage all members to use the ARRL Guide to file comments
opposing the imposition of the proposed $50 application fee," ARRL
President Rick Roderick, K5UR, said. "Let's highlight amateur radio's
long history of public service."
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From Our Members...
Please accept my thanks for the October 27, 2020, special edition of
The ARRL Letter, "ARRL Urges Members to Join in Strongly Opposing FCC's
Application Fees Proposal." I appreciate ARRL notifying members of the
proposal and especially the guidance on submitting a comment. --
Charles F. Gottlieb, KM4NTD, Miami, Florida
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Under the proposal, amateur radio licensees would pay a $50 fee for
each amateur radio application for new licenses, license renewals,
upgrades to existing licenses, and vanity call sign requests. The FCC
has also proposed a $50 fee to obtain a printed copy of a license.
Excluded are applications for administrative updates, such as changes
of address, and annual regulatory fees. Amateur Service licensees have
been exempt from application fees for several years.
The FCC proposal is contained in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM)
in MD Docket 20-270, which was adopted to implement portions of the
"Repack Airwaves Yielding Better Access for Users of Modern Services
Act" of 2018 -- the so-called "Ray Baum's Act." The Act requires that
the FCC switch from a congressionally-mandated fee structure to a
cost-based system of assessment.
The FCC NPRM proposes application fees for a broad range of services
that use the FCC's Universal Licensing System (ULS), including the
Amateur Radio Service. The 2018 statute excludes the Amateur Service
from annual regulatory fees, but not from application fees. The
proposal affects all FCC services and does not single out amateur
radio. As the FCC explained in its NPRM, Congress, through the Ray
Baum's Act, is compelling regulatory agencies such as the FCC to
recover from applicants the costs involved in filing and handling
applications. Read more and visit ARRL's summary page for the
proceeding.
It's a Wrap for Hurricane Watch Net, ARES Teams Stand Down
After an activation that lasted more than 9 hours, the Hurricane Watch
Net (HWN ) suspended operations on October 29 at around 0130 UTC.
"Although Zeta was still a hurricane just east of Hattiesburg,
Mississippi, moving to the northeast at about 30 MPH, we hated to close
operations, but propagation on 20 and 40 meters was totally gone," HWN
Manager Bobby Graves, KB5HAV, said. "The turnout of reporting stations
was great, but we can always use more. Meteorologists love weather
data. So, we do our best to collect and forward as much as we can."
Zeta left some 2 million
customers without power. [City
of New Orleans Twitter photo]
ARES teams in Louisiana went on standby status on October 27, ready to
activate at the request of local emergency management officials or
served agencies. At midday on Wednesday, the Louisiana Emergency Net
was placed on active standby status on 3.878 and 7.255 MHz, concluding
operations at 2100 UTC on Wednesday.
The Northern Florida ARES Net convened October 28 on 3.950 MHz for
about 12 hours in anticipation of tropical storm winds and a risk of
tornado activity. "Our HF net shut down this morning," Northern Florida
Section Emergency Coordinator Karl Martin, K4HBN, said. "The counties
closed shelters and had their ARES groups stand down soon after."
Martin said operators did cover three shelters. "We had challenges due
to HF conditions, and one of the ARES groups lost a repeater and had to
go to a back-up plan."
In George County, Mississippi, ARES Emergency Coordinator General
Dailey, KD4VVZ, suspended routine net traffic to take storm-related
reports such as weather data, property damage, and power status. Daily
said repeater net would remain active for 12 hours, and the information
would be relayed to weather forecasters. The net prepared to carry
occasional digital traffic.
"As the sun comes up, damage assessments are still ongoing," the George
County Sheriff's office announced on the George County ARES Facebook
page. "Currently a majority of the county is without power." The
sheriff reported many downed trees and power lines and advised against
nonessential travel.
WX4NHC at the National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami activated at
1600 UTC on October 28, monitoring HWN's frequencies of 14.325 and
7.268 MHz as well as the VoIP Hurricane Net (VoIP WX) and other
resources. The net funnels "ground truth" reports to NHC forecasters.
Ham Aid emergency communication kits from ARRL had been pre-positioned
in Louisiana in preparation for this event. Read more.
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ARRL Podcasts Schedule
The latest episode of the On the Air podcast (Episode 10) includes an
interview with ARRL Lifelong Learning Manager Kris Bickell, K1BIC,
about ARRL's new "Learning Network" webinars.
The latest edition of Eclectic Tech (Episode 19) discusses radiosondes
and how hams can receive their telemetry, in addition to a discussion
about power supplies with Bob Allison, WB1GCM, of the ARRL Lab.
The On the Air and Eclectic Tech podcasts are sponsored by Icom. Both
podcasts are available on iTunes (iOS) and Stitcher (Android), as well
as on Blubrry -- On the Air | Eclectic Tech.
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Guidelines Issued for ARRL DX Contest Multioperator Stations
ARRL has issued guidelines for multioperator stations competing in the
ARRL DX Contest (CW and phone). With the global pandemic continuing to
impose restrictions on social gatherings, multioperator contest
stations may not be able to operate normally while still adhering to
local social distancing guidelines. ARRL has decided to make temporary
accommodations for a multioperator station to participate in these
popular ARRL contests, under these guidelines:
* Team members may operate from their home stations in conjunction
with the multioperator station.
* Their home station must be located within a radius of 100
kilometers (62 miles) of the multioperator contest station.
* Their home station must be located within the same DXCC entity as
the multioperator contest station. In the case of US and Canadian
stations, all team member stations must be in the same US state or
Canadian province.
* All team member stations must use the same call sign and exchange
as the multioperator contest station for the duration of the
contest.
* Logging software must be networked, so that all team member
stations are using a common log.
* Individual operators may not work the multioperator contest station
or other team member stations using a personal call sign or other
call sign.
* All multioperator rules, such as band changes and number of signals
on a band, still apply. See the full contest rules for details.
* The team must determine and control band assignments, ensuring that
no more than one team station is transmitting on any given band at
a time.
The multioperator contest station may be staffed at less than full
capacity while maintaining safe practices, so operating with a
combination of team members at home stations and team members at the
contest station is permissible.
The CW contest takes place on the third full weekend in February
(February 20 - 21, 2021). The phone contest takes place on the first
full weekend in March (March 6 - 7, 2021).
For questions, contact the ARRL Contest Branch.
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The K7RA Solar Update
Tad Cook, K7RA, Seattle, reports: Our sun is finally waking up. The
average daily sunspot number rose from 15 to 17, which is nothing
remarkable, but the reporting week ended on Wednesday with a daily
sunspot number of 36. Average daily solar flux rose from 74.5 to 76.9.
Predicted solar flux is 88 on October 29 - 31, which is remarkable; 82,
78, 75, and 72 on November 1 - 4; 74 on November 5 - 7; 75 on November
8 - 12; 72 on November 13; 70 on November 14 - 21; 74 and 72 on
November 22 - 23; 70 on November 24 - 26; 72 on November 27; 74 on
November 28 - December 4; 75 on December 5 - 9; 72 on December 10, and
70 on December 11 - 12.
Predicted planetary A index is 8 on October 29; 5 on October 30 - 31;
12 and 8 on November 1 - 2; 5 on November 3 - 6; 10 on November 7; 5 on
November 8 - 16; 10, 8, and 12 on November 17 - 19; 18, 15, and 20 on
November 20 - 22; 15, 10 and 8 on November 23 - 25; 5 on November 26 -
27; 8 on November 28; and 5 on November 29 - December 12.
Sunspot numbers for October 22 - 28 were 11, 11, 11, 11, 17, 22, and
36, with a mean of 17. The 10.7-centimeter flux was 74.9, 72, 72.1,
74.2, 75, 82.4, and 87.6, with a mean of 76.9. Estimated planetary A
indices were 6, 12, 17, 15, 15, 9, and 12, with a mean of 12.3. Middle
latitude A index was 3, 10, 16, 9, 15, 7, and 9, with a mean of 9.9.
A comprehensive K7RA Solar Update is posted Fridays on the ARRL
website. For more information concerning radio propagation, visit the
ARRL Technical Information Service, read "What the Numbers Mean...,"
and check out K9LA's Propagation Page.
A propagation bulletin archive is available. For customizable
propagation charts, visit the VOACAP Online for Ham Radio website.
Share your reports and observations.
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Just Ahead in Radiosport
* November 1 -- North American SSB Sprint Contest
* November 1 -- Silent Key Memorial Contest (CW)
* November 1 -- High Speed Club CW Contest
* November 1 - 4 -- Classic Exchange (CW)
* November 2 -- K1USN Slow Speed Test CW
* November 2 -- RSGB 80-Meter Autumn Series (Digital)
* November 3 -- Worldwide Sideband Activity Contest
* November 3 -- ARS Spartan Sprint (CW)
* November 4 -- VHF-UHF FT8 Activity Contest
* November 4 -- UKEICC 80-Meter Contest (Phone)
* November 5 -- NRAU 10-Meter Activity Contest (CW, phone, digital)
* November 5 -- SKCC Sprint Europe CW
New Zealand Radio Amateurs Lose Access to 60 Meters
Radio amateurs in New Zealand no longer have access to 60 meters,
effective on October 24. Use of the band by radio amateurs in New
Zealand was provisional, allowing hams there to use two frequencies in
the band -- 5353.0 kHz and 5362.0 kHz -- as part of a "trial."
New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters (NZART), the national
amateur radio organization, said the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF)
advised the organization that it was not willing to approve another
renewal of the 5 MHz trial allocation. NZART has indicated that it will
continue to work with telecoms regulator RSM to see if other ways may
be available to provide access to 5 MHz.
As in the US, the federal government and military are primary on the 5
MHz band. According to NZART, the decision was not made lightly by
NZDF, but said access to that part of the HF spectrum is necessary to
support NZDF's new platforms, tactical radio equipment, and updated HF
site equipment in the delivery chain.
"ditionally, access to HF is a key part of their communications plans
both in New Zealand and to support our forces overseas," NZART
explained. "While this is a disappointing outcome, NZART would like to
thank NZDF for allowing us to take part in the trial, and we look
forward to working with them in the future on matters of common
interest." -- Thanks to Paul Gaskell, G4MWO/The 5 MHz Newsletter
ARRL Learning Network Webinars
Visit the ARRL Learning Network website (a members-only benefit) to
register for upcoming sessions and to view previously recorded session.
The schedule is subject to change.
How to Get Started in Amateur Radio Contesting: Anthony Luscre, K8ZT
Why do hams participate in on-air contests? How would I benefit from
contesting? What do I need to get started in contesting? What are good
contests for beginners? Where can I learn more? This session will
answer all of these questions and more.
Tuesday, November 3, 2020, 10 AM PST / 1 PM EST (1800 UTC)
Amateur Radio's Role at the Boston Marathon Bombing: Steve Schwarm,
W3EVE
Amateur radio has played a significant role in public service
communications for the Boston Marathon for several decades. That role
was put to the test in 2013, when two bombs were exploded near the
finish line. This presentation will describe the role that ham radio
played at the marathon and how that role changed due to the bombing.
Tuesday, December 8, 2020, 10 AM PST / 1 PM EST (1800 UTC)
Learn and Have Fun with Morse Code: Howard Bernstein, WB2UZE, and Jim
Crites, W6JIM
Morse code, or "CW," is a popular ham radio operating mode. Learning CW
does not have to be an arduous or lonely experience. Learn, practice,
and enjoy CW with the methods used by the Long Island CW Club.
Thursday, December 17, 2020, 5 PM PST / 8 PM EST (0100 UTC on Friday,
December 18)
Fldigi Could be a Tool in the November Frequency Measuring Test
A new frequency-measuring test mode added to the digital communication
program Fldigi -- developed by Dave Freese, W1HKJ -- makes the program
useful for the Frequency Measuring Test (FMT) on November 13. The new
test mode replaces frequency analysis mode, making Fldigi useful for
FMT participants. Fldigi can still measure an unknown frequency to
three decimal places (i.e., to 1 mHz), but it can also use a reference
frequency to correct the unknown calculation for inaccuracies of the
receiver. (An article by Bob Howard, VE3YX, details the use of Fldigi
in the FMT.)
Very little equipment is necessary to participate in the FMT. A
software-defined radio (SDR) accessed by the internet will work; check
out the GPS-stabilized SDRs Kiwi SDRs. A hardware cable or a virtual
cable can connect SDR audio to the Fldigi input. Calibration will be
required.
While older rigs can be used, Fldigi works best with a rig that can be
controlled by a serial or USB connection from the PC to set the VFO
with 1 Hz resolution. Some rigs display frequency to 1 Hz. Others only
display to 10 Hz but can be set by the PC to 1 Hz. Most rigs dating
from about 1995 and later will work well. Fldigi needs to know the
frequency that the radio thinks it is tuned to or the frequency that
you think it is tuned to.
The new FMT modem works best with a reference signal injected along
with the FMT transmitted signal -- the FMT's unknown signal. The
reference signal must have some accurately known frequency that can be
set near the unknown frequency (within 1 kHz or so). The reference can
be a signal generator stabilized by a GPS Disciplined Oscillator
(GPSDO) that can easily be set to output a useful frequency. Using
Fldigi's new FMT modem without a reference can still provide good
results, but requires careful calibration.
ARRL sponsored earlier FMTs. The first ARRL FMT took place in 1931.
Back then, it was required that Official Observers participate and meet
certain standards.
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Announcements
* The CW weekend of the ARRL November Sweepstakes (SS) takes place
November 7 - 9. The hallmark of this very popular operating event
is its challenging and lengthy exchange, which has its origins in
the National Traffic System (NTS) message format. The ARRL November
Sweepstakes SSB weekend is November 21 - 23.
* CQ Magazine has announced that Ohio Section Emergency Coordinator
Stan Broadway, N8BHL, has been named as the magazine's Emergency
Communications Editor. Licensed for more than 40 years, Broadway
first was attracted to ham radio by listening to a VHF severe
weather net in Ohio and to the Hurricane Watch Net, for which he
currently serves as a board member and net control operator.
* Organizers of the 2021 Jan Mayen JX0X DXpedition have announced the
cancellation of the operation, due to "too many uncertainties
involved in this project." The JX0X team said it will refund all
PayPal donations.
* "Pre-pre Frequency Measuring Test" (ppFMT) practice sessions will
be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays on 30 and 40 meters.
[IMG]Schedule and frequency information is on the FMT-nuts page on
Groups.io. The FMT takes place on November 13.
* The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) are reminding those who took part
in the recent Jamboree on the Air (JOTA) to complete the feedback
form. Photos and videos are welcome via the content portal.
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Radio Amateurs in Western Pennsylvania to Commemorate KDKA Broadcasting
Centennial
Pittsburgh radio station KDKA will celebrate 100 years of radio
broadcasting in November, and Pennsylvania radio amateurs will honor
that milestone in a multi-station special event. KDKA dates its
broadcasting history to the airing of the Harding-Cox presidential
results on November 2, 1920, and the station has been on the air ever
since. The special event, which will involve the operation of four
stations, will run through the entire month of November.
"More than 100 years ago, many experimenters started delving into a new
technology known as wireless, or radio," said Bob Bastone, WC3O, Radio
Officer for the Skyview Radio Society in New Kensington, Pennsylvania.
Bastone explained that many of those early pioneers were radio
amateurs. "One hundred plus years later, many amateur radio operators
are still contributing to wireless technology, while also serving their
communities and enhancing international goodwill. Congratulations to
KDKA Radio, also known in the early years as amateur radio stations
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