Sat 31st December 2011

Bo OZ2M reports that all radio amateurs in The Netherlands will have access to the 4 metre band from 1 January 2012.

The frequency allocation is 70,0 to 70,5 MHz and with a maximum power of 50 W.

Cross band and duplex contacts are not permitted.

Regeling van de Minister van Economische Zaken

Sat 31st December 2011

Ofcom have issued the special callsign GB80PW to Practical Wireless magazine. This special callsign is to celebrate the publication's 80th year in print.

PW editor, Rob Mannion, G3XFD says:
We'll be operating GB80PW from my own home station once a month throughout 2012, on the PW publication day - the 2nd Thursday of the month.

Full details of the operation and QSL route (direct only to my QTH) are to appear in the February PW.

The other operator is due to be Phil Ciotti G3XBZ - great friend, PW author and Chairman of the Poole Club.

We'll be on 7MHz s.s.b and PSK31 mainly, with some operations on 14MHz s.s.b. and PSK31.

Rob, G3XFD

Practical Wireless Magazine
http://www.pwpublishing.co.uk

Fri 30th December 2011

AMSAT-UK will be demonstrating the potential of the FUNcube satellite as a teaching tool at the Association of Science Education Conference, January 5-7, 2012.

The ASE exists to provide support and ideas for school science teachers in the UK. AMSAT-UK will be having a small stand in the marquee (number AS28).

The event takes place at the University of Liverpool. Admission to the exhibition is free, but to avoid any queuing, you may wish to preregister on the ASE website.

Association of Science Education http://ase.org.uk/

FUNcube satellite http://www.FUNcube.org.uk/

AMSAT-UK: http://www.uk.amsat.org/

Fri 30th December 2011

A video by Michael VK5ZEA shows mobile reception of a D-STAR repeater at a distance of 274 km.

The YouTube description reads:

While driving to Adelaide from Port Lincoln, I was able to test the coverage footprint of the VK5REX 70cm D-Star repeater. This was following the update/modification to the duplexer that has allowed me to operate on a single antenna without de-sensing issues.

Not long after this video was taken, I was able to have a quick two-way QSO with John N3SBP.

Watch VK5REX D-Star Repeater Distance Test

D-STAR Digital Yahoo Group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dstar_digital/

Fri 30th December 2011

NASA's twin spacecraft to study the moon from crust to core are nearing their New Year's Eve and New Year's Day main-engine burns to place the duo in lunar orbit.

Named Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory (GRAIL), the spacecraft  are scheduled to be placed in orbit beginning at 1:21 p.m. PST (4:21  p.m. EST) for GRAIL-A on Dec. 31, and 2:05 p.m. PST (5:05 p.m. EST) on Jan. 1 for GRAIL-B.

"Our team may not get to partake in a traditional New Year's celebration, but I expect seeing our two spacecraft safely in lunar orbit should give us all the excitement and feeling of euphoria anyone in this line of work would ever need," said David Lehman, project manager for GRAIL at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif.

The distance from Earth to the moon is approximately 250,000 miles (402,336 kilometers). NASA's Apollo crews took about three days to travel to the moon. Launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Sept. 10, 2011, the GRAIL spacecraft are taking about 30 times that long and covering more than 2.5 million miles (4 million kilometers) to get there.

This low-energy, long-duration trajectory has given mission planners and controllers more time to assess the spacecraft's health. The path also allowed a vital component of the spacecraft's single science instrument, the Ultra Stable Oscillator, to be continuously powered for several months. This will allow it to reach a stable operating temperature long before it begins making science measurements in lunar orbit.

"This mission will rewrite the textbooks on the evolution of the moon," said Maria Zuber, GRAIL principal investigator from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge. "Our two spacecraft are operating so well during their journey that we have performed a full test of our science instrument and confirmed the performance required to meet our science objectives."

As of Dec. 28, GRAIL-A is 65,860 miles (106,000 kilometers) from the moon and closing at a speed of 745 mph (1,200 kph). GRAIL-B is 79,540 miles (128,000 kilometers) from the moon and closing at a speed of 763 mph (1,228 kph).

During their final approaches to the moon, both orbiters move toward it from the south, flying nearly over the lunar south pole. The lunar orbit insertion burn for GRAIL-A will take approximately 40 minutes and change the spacecraft's velocity by about 427 mph (688 kph).
GRAIL-B's insertion burn 25 hours later will last about 39 minutes and is expected to change the probe's velocity by 430 mph (691 kph).

The insertion maneuvers will place each orbiter into a near-polar, elliptical orbit with a period of 11.5 hours. Over the following weeks, the GRAIL team will execute a series of burns with each spacecraft to reduce their orbital period from 11.5 hours down to just under two hours. At the start of the science phase in March 2012, the two GRAILs will be in a near-polar, near-circular orbit with an altitude of about 34 miles (55 kilometers).

When science collection begins, the spacecraft will transmit radio signals precisely defining the distance between them as they orbit the moon. As they fly over areas of greater and lesser gravity, caused both by visible features such as mountains and craters and by masses hidden beneath the lunar surface. they will move slightly toward and away from each other. An instrument aboard each spacecraft will measure the changes in their relative velocity very precisely, and scientists will translate this information into a high-resolution map of the Moon's gravitational field. The data will allow mission scientists to understand what goes on below the surface. This information will increase our knowledge of how Earth and its rocky neighbors in the inner solar system developed into the diverse worlds we see today.

JPL manages the GRAIL mission. MIT is home to the mission's principal investigator, Maria Zuber. The GRAIL mission is part of the Discovery Program managed at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Denver built the spacecraft.

For more information about GRAIL, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/grail

Fri 30th December 2011

As the interference prone technology BPL has enough problems comes news that NETGEAR has withdrawn from sale its product, on safety grounds.

The Powerline AV+ Ethernet adaptor with pass-through power socket for additional devices, rated as 240 volts, has been removed from Australian sale.

It was the Model No. XAV2501 and the adaptor coloured white and is supplied as part of kit XAVB2504, which also contains an adaptor.

NETGEAR warns that the 240V AC will be present on the Earth terminal of the pass-through socket outlet, and the Active terminal will be grounded to Earth. This may present the danger of an electrical shock.

Affected products were sold nationally through Optus between June and November this year.

NETGEAR is investigating whether any products sold through other retailers may be affected. It was been marketed it as a solution to home networking.

For more information visit http://www.netgear.com.au

Jim Linton VK3PC

WIA

Fri 30th December 2011

The UK newspaper the Daily Mail reports on a solar storm that 'could knock out radio signals'.

Read the story "Massive solar storm 'could knock out radio signals' over next three days, warn scientists"
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2079352/Massive-solar-
storm-knock-radio-signals-produce-amazing-Northern-Lights.html

Wed 28th December 2011

A new promotional video has been released to attract Hackers, Makers and Innovators to ham radio.

The video features well known hacker and maker Diana Eng KC2UHB along with Ham Nation's Bob Heil K9EID and ISS Astronaut Doug Wheelock KF5BOC. It follows some of the innovative, imaginative and fun ways "hams" use radio technology in new and creative ways and points out that amateur radio clubs are similar to hacker groups.

Watch The DIY Magic of Amateur Radio in HD

Featured in the video is the Ham Radio HSMM-MESH™. A high speed, self discovering, self configuring, fault tolerant, wireless computer network that can run for days from a fully charged car battery, or indefinitely with the addition of a modest solar array or other supplemental power source. The focus is on emergency communications.
http://www.hsmm-mesh.org/

London Hackspace work on HackSat1
http://www.uk.amsat.org/2011/11/20/london-hackspace-work-on-hacksat1/

Hackers and Makers in AMSAT-UK are building the amateur radio satellite FUNcube.
AMSAT-UK publishes a colour A4 newsletter, OSCAR News, which is full of Amateur Satellite information.
Free sample issue at http://www.uk.amsat.org/on_193_final.pdf

Join online at http://tinyurl.com/JoinAMSAT-UK

Wed 28th December 2011

Since 2005 both ICOM and Kenwood have been producing comercial VHF/UHF rigs and repeaters using 4-FSK modulation now Yaesu has announced its support for 4-FSK (C4FM).

Yaesu's new publication 'A Digital Communication Guide for Amateur Radio operaators' can be seen at
http://www.yaesu.com/downloadFile.cfm?FileID=7146&FileCatID=151&
FileName=DigitalCommunicationsGuide%5FE%5B1%5D.pdf&File
ContentType=application/pdf

It is not widely realised that the D-STAR standard includes the spectrum efficient 4-FSK as well as GMSK.

Yaesu Musen

It appears that Vertex Standard Co. Ltd is transfering the Land Mobile Radio (LMR) business to Motorola and returning to the name of Yaesu Musen.

A letter dated Dec. 27. 2011 apparently from Jun Hasegawa President/ CEO Vertex Standard Co. Ltd addressed to "Dear Amateur, Marine and Air-band Valued Customers" says:

"After four years of joint venture with Motorola, we have decided to transfer the Vertex Standard LMR business to Motorola and focus on Amateur, Marine and Air-band business. The effective date for this reorganization will be January 1, 2012. Our company name will once again be YAESU MUSEN"

Read the letter at
http://tinyurl.com/YaesuMusen20111227

Wed 28th December 2011

The BBC Radio 4 interview with Professor Colin Pillinger about the UK Mars exploration mission Beagle 2 which landed on the Red Planet on Christmas Day 2003, is now available on the web.

Eight years ago, planetary scientist Colin Pillinger was still hopeful that the Beagle 2 Lander that he had spent years designing, building and publicising (with the help of Blur and Damien Hirst) might yet be found somewhere on the surface of Mars. But, as more time passed, it became clear that The Beagle 2 Lander would be forever lost in space.

Jim al -Khalili talks to Colin Pillinger about studying moon rock and meteorites from Mars whilst running a successful dairy farm; broken space dreams and why, even if a space project fails, useful scientific lessons can still be learned.

During the interview Colin Pillinger says that the biggest lesson learnt was not having had a radio beacon active during the decent phase and therefore not knowing what finally happened.

The interview was first broadacst on BBC Radio 4, at 9:00AM Tuesday, Dec 27, 2011 and the podcast of the show 'The Life Scientific' can now be heard at
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/radio4/tls/
tls_20111227-0930a.mp3

Beagle 2 : The UK led exploration of Mars
http://www.beagle2.com/

AMSAT-UK publishes a colour A4 newsletter, OSCAR News, which is full of Amateur Satellite information.
Free sample issue at http://www.uk.amsat.org/on_193_final.pdf
Join online at http://tinyurl.com/JoinAMSAT-UK

Tue 27th December 2011

Mike Clarke VP8DMH, at the Halley Research Station, Antarctica, has been using WSPR and video to produce a simple visualisation of HF propagation.

He's been running WSPR using my FT–817 at 5W connected to one of the base antennas; running on each band of interest for just over 24 hours.
A relatively straightforward Perl script then automates the process of merging the database downloaded from wsprnet.org into a single ‘virtual’ day and creating the video:

Watch his video and read his post at
http://clarkema.org/posts/2011-12/2011-12-12-propagation-videos.html

Tue 27th December 2011

The UK Microwave Group provide maps showing UK HF/VHF/UHF/uW beacons and a European beacon spotting service that also covers 50 MHz beacons world-wide.

See the UK HF/VHF/UHF/uW beacon maps at
http://www.beacons.org.uk/

Beaconspot.eu presents an accurate picture of microwave and VHF/UHF beacons in Europe, plus 6m beacons worldwide. Data may be retrieved for a particular beacon, for analysis. Maps show beacon distribution by band, and spots coverage of every beacon. DXCluster incoming real time spots are collected, and outgoing spots can be sent to the DXCluster.
http://www.beaconspot.eu/

The UK Microwave Group (UKuG) produce a newsletter Scatterpoint 10 times a year and you can join via their website at
http://www.microwavers.org/
(Scatter Point is free to students under 21)

Back issues of UK Microwave Group newsletter Scatter Point can be downloaded from http://www.scatterpoint.org/

Tue 27th December 2011

This video shows a 1937 Marconi EMI 405 line television, believed to be the oldest TV set still in working condition.

The YouTube description says:

Marconi EMI model 706 904. The Oldest television still in service.
Since 1937. Yes 1937. This old 5 inch television 405 lines, and combined 3 band radio has been preserved and still working well after 72 years. See it working. This set was purchased just after the trial period between the Marconi EMI system 405 line, and the John Logie Baird Mechanical system 220 lines on alternate weeks.

Watch The Oldest Television TV still in service. Marconi EMI model 706 904.

Sun 25th December 2011

It’s the Merry Christmas and Happy New Year show.
Tommy discusses installing Linux on an old PC. George shows us the Icom IC-718 and IC-7200 rigs, plus RS-BA1 remote control software. Peter builds another canntenna with increased gain. Jim tells us what he wants for Christmas.

[EDITORS NOTE: This video states incorrectly that DSP Noise Reduction is optional on the IC-718. DSP IS included in the IC-718 at no additional cost.]

1:02:17 of Holiday Cheer and fun stuff…

Now in HD where available!
Download

Sun 25th December 2011

The Association of Commercial Radio Stations (VCR) is satisfied with the higher penalty of up to 45,000 euros for radio pirates recently announced by Radiocommunications Agency Netherlands.

A specific category of radio pirates, especially in the provinces of Overijssel and Drenthe, use increasingly taller transmission towers and higher power. National and regional broadcasters are regularly disturbed by these ‘air guns’ says the VCR. “This is mainly because the pirates operate their transmission equipment on or around the FM frequencies of legal stations.”

“These pirates often consist of teams of 20, 30 or even more people. With such a large team, a small fine makes no impression,” says the VCR. “Commercial radio stations annually spend millions of euros on their broadcasting activities. An undisturbed FM reach is crucial for these stations. If their FM coverage is limited by an illegal broadcaster, the economic loss is significant.”

Source: Media Network, Radiofreak.nl

Related story:
Radiocommunications Agency gets tougher on pirates

Sat 24th December 2011

On the AMSAT bulletin board Masa JN1GKZ reports that the December 23 command test on the 15 year old amateur radio satellite FO-29 was successful.

FO-29 has been inoperative due to eclipse length and the poor condition of the batteries. It carries a 100 kHz wide 145/435 MHz linear transponder for SSB/CW contacts.

Masa wrote:
JTA was on at 1422z. Loud CW telemetry was heard. Unfortunately, the telemetry was shut off by UVC at 1426z.

I put the telemetry MP3 file on the following URL:
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/m-arai/gkz/sound/FO29-111223142200-142544z.mp3

The command station announced Dec. 24 sked as starting at 0405z. I guess this is typo. The correct time is 0505z. Transponder will operate until eclipse. East Asia, VK and southern South American stations will chat over FO-29.

FO-29 frequencies and tracking
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/satellites/satInfo.php?satID=5

John Heath G7HIA mentions FO-29 in his article ‘Getting started on amateur radio satellites’. Download the article via
http://www.uk.amsat.org/2011/05/09/getting-started-on-amateur
-radio-satellites/

Working the SSB satellites
http://www.uk.amsat.org/2011/12/04/working-the-ssb-satellites/

Sat 24th December 2011

30 years after the BBC Microcomputer, a new UK-developed low price home computer, the £16 ($25) Raspberry Pi, is about to go into production.

Its processing capability coupled with low price may appeal to radio amateurs.

The Pi is produced by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, a UK registered charity (Registration Number 1129409) which exists to promote the study of computer science and related topics, especially at school level, and to put the fun back into learning computing.

The Cambridgeshire developed Pi uses a 700 MHz ARM11 chip similar to that found in mobile phones and is intended to run a version of the Linux open source operating system.

The £16 ($25) Model A features 128 MiB of SDRAM and a USB socket, while the £22 ($35) Model B has 256 MiB SDRAM, two USB's and an Ethernet connector. Low-level peripherals are GPIO pins, SPI, I²C, I²S, UART. Video outputs are composite and HDMI.

The idea for Raspberry Pi came from video game veteran David Braben who was searching for a way to inspire young people to start a career in technology. He got his start in games thanks to the BBC Micro on which he, and school friend Ian Bell, created pioneering computer game Elite.

Read the full BBC story at
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16316439

Raspberry Pi Board
http://elinux.org/RaspberryPiBoard

Raspberry Pi
http://www.raspberrypi.org/

BBC Micro and AMSAT-UK Software Library
http://www.uk.amsat.org/2011/12/11/bbc-micro-and-amsat-uk
-software-library/

Sat 24th December 2011

The first student-built amateur radio CubeSats to be sponsored by ESA’s Education Office have passed their Final Acceptance Review and have been declared ready for launch on board the maiden flight of Vega, the new ESA launcher.

The launch window for this historic lift-off opens on 26 January and ends in the first week of February 2012.

The seven university-built picosatellites, each weighing only 1 kilogram, were integrated with the devices that will carry them during launch – the P-PODs, or Poly-Picosatellite Orbital Deployers – between late October and mid November. Before they could be cleared for launch, they had to pass a detailed technical examination known as the Final Acceptance Review.

The single-unit CubeSats, whose development represented a highly valuable, if not unique hands-on learning experience for the university students that were involved - were developed by teams from 6 different European countries:

- Xatcobeo (a collaboration of the University of Vigo and INTA, Spain)
- Robusta (University of Montpellier 2, France)
- E-St@r (Politecnico di Torino, Italy)
- Goliat (University of Bucharest, Romania)
- PW-Sat (Warsaw University of Technology, Poland)
- MaSat-1 (Budapest University of Technology & Economics, Hungary)
- UniCubeSat GG (Universitá di Roma ‘La Sapienza’, Italy)

As well as the CubeSats Vega will also carry the Amateur Radio microsatellite ALMASat-1.

Frequencies and links for the CubeSats can be found at
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/hamradio/je9pel/esa9cubf.htm

Read the full ESA story at
http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Education/SEMG1C8XZVG_0.html

Sat 24th December 2011

Astronauts onboard the International Space Station have seen sungrazing Comet Lovejoy from Earth orbit.

ISS commander Dan Burbank, KD5MDT describes the comet's green-glowing tail as "the most amazing thing I have ever seen in space."

Video from the ISS and updated images from Earth are highlighted on today's edition of Spaceweather.com.

Sat 24th December 2011

Several thousand people gathered in the Hungarian capital Budapest on Thursday to protest at what they see as the forced closure of a commercial radio station known for its critical stance towards the government.

Sympathizers for the liberal Budapest radio station Klubradio were joined by a group of hunger-striking state media reporters, at a rally outside the headquarters of state-owned Hungarian Radio.

Klubradio lost out this week in a bid to renew its broadcasting licence, in a tender process adjudicated by a regulatory media council set up last year by Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s conservative government. Supporters of the station say it was the only liberal political forum on Hungary’s airwaves.

The rights to its FM frequency were awarded instead to a previously unknown firm with just 4,250 dollars of registered capital.

Read more from Monsters and Critics

Source: Media Network

Thur 22nd December 2011

Holders of the Advanced Licence, the highest amateur radio licence available in Australia, will be able to apply for use of up to one-thousand watts PEP under a restrictive permit system that begins in March.

The change follows renewed representation by the Wireless Institute of Australia and the recent development in nearby New Zealand, where 1kW is now to be allowed, up from 500w PEP.

The higher limit has been routine in many overseas countries. The ACMA initial objection to the WIA a year ago concerned the Electro-Magnetic Emission issue which it believed should see Advance Licencees confined to 400w PEP.

The ACMA remains concerned about the risk of interference from the use of higher power and at the end of 12 months it will review the situation.

However, it has indicated that if any particular difficulties are identified and satisfactory solutions found, progress may be made to a permanent arrangement from early 2013.

Although the finer detail is still being worked out, it was known that Advanced Licence holders need to obtain a permit for the higher power, restrict such operation at a fixed location and confine themselves only to exclusive HF amateur bands.

The ACMA may specify a lower limit and through its website specify areas where it will not allow permits to be issued.

The WIA urges for the period of the trial to keep a full log of all transmissions on bands where the higher power is permitted, noting in each case the power in fact used. The full details are expected to be published next year.

All Advanced, Immediate and Foundation licence are reminded of their obligation to comply with the current Electro-Magnetic Emission regime.

Jim Linton VK3PC

Thur 22nd December 2011

David Rowe VK5DGR has received confirmation that the amateur radio Codec 2 is "not controlled under the Defence Strategic Goods List".

Concerns had been raised that the 1400 bps amateur radio Digital Voice Codec 2 might be subject to Goverment restrictions.

Some countries impose severe restrictions on certain aspects of amateur radio. For example the amateur radio satellite community has been particularly affected by US Federal Government ITAR regulations which threaten radio amateurs with jail sentences and six figure fines if they collaborate with radio hams in the rest of the world on amateur satellite pojects. It was feared that very low bit rate digital voice Codec's might also be affected.

On the Codec 2 reflector David VK5DGR writes:

I have just had an email response from the Australian agency that deals with export control:

"The goods have been assessed as not controlled under the Defence Strategic Goods List. DECO will issue a Control Status Advice stating this shortly."

Codec 2 at 1400 bits/s
http://www.rowetel.com/blog/?p=2255

Codec2 Email List

https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/freetel-codec2

Thur 22nd December 2011

The UK regulator Ofcom has published regulations that permit the use of a range of new devices on a licence-exempt basis.

These include the use of personal locator beacons on land; wireless road safety systems; wireless access terminals in the 3400 to 3800 MHz band; mobile satellite services operating in the 2 GHz band; and mobile terminals connecting to the 2012 London Games Tetra Network.

Read the statement at
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/
licence-exemption-candidates-11/statement

PDF at
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/consultations/
licence-exemption/statement/statement.pdf

Thur 22nd December 2011

The UK regulator Ofcom has published an interim statement on DAB coverage planning.

This follows a consultation in June 2011 on determining the current level of FM coverage in the UK and a range of options for increasing DAB coverage to match FM.

The purpose of this interim statement is to provide a summary of consultation responses. Ofcom will publish a final report in Q1 2012, which will inform the Government’s decision about whether to proceed with digital radio switchover.

An approach to DAB coverage planning – interim statement - Summary of responses and update on further work
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/
dab-coverage-planning/statement

PDF
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/consultations/
dab-coverage-planning/statement/statement.pdf

Thur 22nd December 2011

The BBC have launched a site to handle complaints of Radio and TV interference but appears to only be interested in bands above 88 MHz.

The new BBC Radio and Television Investigation Service site can be seen at http://www.radioandtvhelp.co.uk/

The website says it does not accept complaints of interference to broadcasters using Long Wave, Medium Wave or Short Wave services. This begs the question who deals with these ?

Ofcom would like you to report any PLT, Plasma TV or other interference to the Amateur Radio bands via this web form:
https://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/tell-us/abuse-amateur-radio-system

UKQRM is a group fighting PLT interference. Join the Yahoo group at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/UKQRM/

Ban PLT
http://www.ban-plt.co.uk/

Tue 20th December 2011

For the first time since the flooding in October-November, members of the Radio Amateur Society of Thailand (RAST) were able to get out to the HS0AC club station on the campus of the Asian Institute of Technology on December 10th, and entering their shack by forcing open a locked rusty door to get in.

The water had been some two meters deep at its peak and had submerged the AIT campus for five weeks.

The team entering the shack was RAST President Chaiyong/HS1QVD, Station Manager Finn/OZ1HET, Swen/HS0ZFZ, Thida/HS1ASC, Sonn/HS6NDK, Karl/HS0ZJL and his XYL, and Gerd/DK5FJ.

They spent eight hours sifting through the flood damage and and documented their visit:

Visit the following link to read and see photos of the damage at: http://bit.ly/9GztWh

Tue 20th December 2011

(Program for Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7)

Manfred, DF6EX, has written a program that helps in providing info on which QSL-Manager/DX-station you can expect a reply via the Bureau or which DX-stations you better not work or have to spend a lot of money to get a card.

The program has a growing database and it lets you know what stations do not QSL back or just take your green stamps.

Currently, there are 11500 managers/DX-stations listed, from information collected over the past 20 years. The best news is that it is free.

Read more about the program at: http://www.winqsl.com
Or load directly at: http://www.winqsl.com/winqsl/?page_id=74
No fee at all. Also, there will be further updates; you just have to register by mail.

OPDX

Mon 19th December 2011

ISAF report that a Virginia National Guardsman has found a new use for Near Vertical Incidence Skywave (NVIS) short wave radio in Afghanistan.

The song “video killed the radio star” was the first video played on MTV in 1981 and launched a music revolution. Soldiers of the Virginia Army National Guard’s 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team are deploying technology in a revolutionary way in Afghanistan using a short wave radio transmitter that can reach almost every radio in Zabul province.

This is the first time a province-wide transmitter has been used in Afghanistan. The transmitter allows the Zabul provincial and district government to send messages to rural Afghan homes.

“No other unit in the International Security Assistance Force has ever done this at any level,” said Master Sgt. Joel E. Fix of Fort Belvoir, Va. speaking of the novel application of the technology. “We have the ability to target the signal toward specific districts or the whole province.”

Radio and word of mouth are the primary means of spreading news and information in rural Afghanistan. Listening to the radio – thousands of which were distributed by NATO-ISAF - is a cultural norm for Afghans, many of whom follow both the BBC and Voice of America.

Fix, a 14-year veteran of the Guard on his third overseas deployment, came up with the transmitter solution in response to a problem raised in discussions with Afghan officials: “How could the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan communicate to their people in remote areas?”

It was a particularly timely dilemma. As GIRoA expanded its influence into every district, GIRoA’s continued legitimacy rested on the ability to reliably reach and involve ordinary Afghans in their parliamentary democracy. Specifically, the district governors of Mizan and Day Chopan in Zabul province each wanted to invite the elders of their districts to grand shuras in September 2011.

Day Chopan has the highest elevations of Zabul province with deep valleys unreceptive to radio signals.

The 116th “Stonewall Brigade”, in partnership with Romanian troops and Soldiers of the Alaska-based 1st Battalion, 24th Infantry Regiment, all members of Combined Team Zabul, came together to brainstorm a solution. Traditional options raised by CTZ such as leaflet drops, broadcasting radio transmissions from aircraft and even flying aircraft with loudspeakers attached were all denied.

“The government was looking for ways to communicate with people on a greater scale, but there were gaps in the coverage. Short wave radio is the solution we came up with,” said Fix.

Short wave radio is known in the U.S. as ham radio which allows two way communications. The Zabul transmitter is one way. Most radios used by Afghans are receive-only.

“I was soliciting for bids for a transmitter and was referred to Don Butler to assist with the project,” said Maj. William R. O’Neal a Smithfield, Va. native with the 116th.

Butler, an Air Force veteran from the ‘60’s, is a ham radio enthusiast from Gun Barrel City, Texas who provided design help for the transmitter. Butler’s call sign is N4UJW.

“Ham radio is two way communications over short wave. Our transmitter is one way,” said Fix. “With this configuration, no matter where they are, there’s no reason the Afghan’s can’t get a signal. The frequency is close to but not the same as the one for the BBC. That makes it easy to find and remember,” he added.

The transmitter owes its success to a technique called NVIS – Near Vertical Incidence Skywave – which involves bouncing radio signals off the ionosphere – a layer of the atmosphere. Two NVIS antennas are placed horizontal to the ground unlike a traditional vertical transmitter. The second part of the NVIS antenna is called a ground wire and helps to boost the signal by forcing it to go straight up instead of outward and limited by the curve of the earth.

“In a traditional short wave broadcast, you get your antennas up as high as you can go,” said Fix. “It bounces off the F2 layer of the ionosphere but gives you limited coverage with ‘skip points’. Using NVIS and our reflector wire, the signal goes up at a very steep angle and straight back down which can penetrate deeper into mountain valleys. When we were looking at this system, it was a no brainer,” he added.

The transmitter is operated and maintained by coalition forces including the U.S. and Romanian soldiers and broadcasts content from the local government. At first glance it doesn’t seem very impressive: two antennas, the ever-useful 550 cord, and some wire that feeds into a box with one port and an on/off switch.

“Our goal is to transfer the transmitter to the provincial government as part of the transition,” said O’Neal.

Unlike some new technologies developed and used as part of Operation Enduring Freedom, this transmitter is inexpensive and effective.

“It has resulted in a savings of around 3,100%,” said Fix. “It would take 30-32 FM systems to cover the same area.

 Source: Afghanistan International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)
http://www.isaf.nato.int/article/news/video-killed-the-radio-star-virginia
-national-guardsman-finds-new-use-for-old-radio-technology-in.html

Sat 17th December 2011

Thilo DL9KCE, reports a threat to amateur radio kits and modified equipment arising from changes to the EMC directive.

Currently amateur radio kits and modified equipment are specifically excluded from the directive but under the proposed changes they would be fully subjected to the EMC directive. The resulting high compliance costs could make it uneconomic to develop and sell kits so killing off the kit market. If radio amateurs wished to modify equipment it appears they would also incur additional costs and bureaucratic hassle.

On the IARU Region 1 site, Thilo, DL9KCE, writes:
As part of the New Legislative Framework (NLF) alignment package the European Commission is reworking some directives. One of the affected directives is the EMC directive including some major changes. Most of them are neutral or even good from an amateur radio operators perspective. However there are two slight changes, which very much affect radio amateurs. In short words:

1. The sentence “Kits of components to be assembled by radio amateurs and commercial equipment modified by and for the use of radio amateurs are not regarded as commercially available equipment.” is to be deleted in the new version. That would render kits and modified equipment to be fully subjected to the EMC directive!

2. The definition of the term ‘electromagnetic disturbance’ will include the wanted signal of a radio as a possible source. This is not in line with the radio regulation of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and not in line with the vocabulary of the International Electrotechnical Committee (IEC).

IARU Region 1 will respond to it with a letter soon.

However we strongly suggest, that you contact your local MEPs and tell them about those two changes in the EMCD, that are neither in line with the reasoning of the New Legislative Framework, nor does it help to improve protection of radio services or equipment.

Your can find out who your MEP is and write to them at
http://www.writetothem.com/

Directive 1999/5/EC see ANNEX I
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?
uri=OJ:L:1999:091:0010:0010:EN:PDF

Sat 17th December 2011

Southampton University are launching a High Altitude Balloon (HAB) at the end of January that can be received by radio amateurs on 434.075 MHz USB

The balloon-borne platform, dubbed ASTRA Atom, has been built to carry a payload containing atmospheric monitoring equipment into the upper atmosphere. The latex weather balloon, which will stretch from 1.5m in diameter to 5m as it ascends, will carry the Atom to heights of 30km.

The Atom was due to be launched on December 7 at the Imperial War Museum, Duxford, but could not take off due to strong surface winds.
The team now hopes to launch it at the end of January.

When discussing tracking possibilities Dr Steven Johnston of Southampton University said that the team is trialling two possible tracking strategies, a cell phone and Amateur Radio.

Radio amateurs can receive the balloon using the free dl-fldigi software in HAB mode and a receiver on 434.075 MHz USB.

Main transmitter: 434.075MHz RTTY 425Hz shift
Data Rate: 15 x 300 [bps] packets, followed by 1 x 50 packet. Approx. 20 packets per min.
Callsign: ASTRA1

Backup/test transmitter: 6.780MHz RTTY 425 Hz shift.
Callsign: ASTRA2
The data transmitted will the be same as the main 434

The temperature sensor is attached to the crystal of the NTX2 to measure drift against voltage
Packet format: packetCount,time,lat,long,alt,crystal_temperature,battery_voltage

Read The Engineer article at
http://www.theengineer.co.uk/sectors/aerospace/news/rapid-
prototyping-helps-create-aircraft-to-study-atmosphere/1011225.article

Download dl-fldigi software from
http://ukhas.org.uk/projects:dl-fldigi

UKHAS Upcoming Launches
http://ukhas.org.uk/general:upcoming_launches

UKHAS Mailing List
http://groups.google.com/group/ukhas?pli=1

Check Twitter for updates @SotonASTRA
http://twitter.com/SotonASTRA

Fri 16th December 2011

The ARRL reports on the record breaking flight of the amateur radio balloon K6RPT-11.

From http://www.arrl.org/news/amateur-radio-balloon-flight-crosses-atlantic-sets-records

Ron Meadows, K6RPT, and his son Lee - leaders of the California Near Space Project - successfully launched an Amateur Radio high altitude balloon on Sunday, December 11 at 4:43 PM PST.

The balloon reached a cruise altitude between 105,000 and 115,000 feet, where it continued its travel across the United States, the Atlantic Ocean and Spain and into the Mediterranean Sea.

For most of its trip, the balloon traveled at about 150 miles per hour and eventually covered 6236 great circle miles in just 57 hours 2 minutes. According to the CNSP, this is a new Amateur Radio balloon flight record for both distance and duration.

The balloon, which bore the call sign K6RPT-11 and could be tracked via APRS, traveled through California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey. “When the balloon left the New Jersey shore behind, it was received by coastal stations as far away as Nova Scotia,” explained CNSP Team Member Don Ferguson, KD6IRE. “When it exceeded the range of these stations, we lost track of it and feared that we would not hear from the balloon again.”

Ferguson told the ARRL that when they woke up the next morning, the CNSP Team learned that K6RPT-11 was still in the air and transmitting. CU2ARA -- the club station of the Amateur Radio Association of the Azores, located on the island of St Miguel -- reported that they had successfully copied K6RPT-11’s signal. That morning, the balloon reached a height of 111,503 feet and was traveling in excess of 160 miles per hour, headed east at 92 degrees. “The rest of the day on Tuesday was exciting, as more stations around the world took note of the little balloon form Silicon Valley that was heading for the European mainland,” Ferguson said.

“The APRS system of digital radio repeaters maintained reception of the data traffic from the balloon transmitter, which transmitted its location from the onboard GPS,” Ferguson noted. “In the US, this network is established on 144.39 MHz, but is on a different frequency in Europe. Radio amateurs across the world were able to quickly adjust the European receivers to the balloon’s frequency and provided continued tracking worldwide. This is yet another example of the response and flexibility of ham radio operators to meet a sudden challenge and provide communications when needed.”

According to the CNSP’s Twitter feed, the balloon burst on Wednesday, December 14 at 0946 UTC, off the coast of Algeria.

California Near Space Project (CNSP) on Twitter
http://twitter.com/k6rpt

CNSP Blog
http://blog.californianearspaceproject.com/

Launch announcements
http://www.arhab.org/ARHABlaunchannouncements.html

GPSL Yahoo group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GPSL

APRSISCE/32 The future of Amateur Radio APRS
http://aprsisce.wikidot.com/doc:ansrvr

Fri 16th December 2011

The proposal to allocate a part of the medium frequency band to the amateur service at the World Radio Conference in 2012 received a boost this week with the release of the Asia-Pacific Common Proposals that were developed at the 5th Meeting of the APT Conference Preparatory Group for WRC-12.

During this meeting the various nations of the Asia-Pacific region discussed many of issues that will be addressed at WRC12 and attempted to come to a regional consensus position.

The proposal of interest to the amateur service is "to consider an allocation of about 15 kHz in parts of the band 415–526.5 kHz to the amateur service on a secondary basis, taking into account the need to protect existing services" and this proposal was supported by a comfortable margin of Asia-Pacific administrations responding to the voting request.

The successful development of a regional position supporting an amateur MF allocation increases the chances that the proposal will be accepted at WRC-12.

The amateur radio service is represented at the APT meetings by delegates from the International Amateur Radio Union Region 3 and by members of national amateur radio organisations who are part of delegations from each national administration Dale Hughes VK1DSH was a member of the Australian delegation to this meeting and the earlier meeting in Hong Kong in December 2010, nominated and paid for by the Wireless Institute of Australia.

Dale will be representing the amateur service as a member of the Australian delegation to WRC-12, again nominated by the WIA.

Read the full story on WIA Front Page News
http://www.wia.org.au/newsevents/news/2011/20111214-2/index.php

Fri 16th December 2011

The French regulator the ARCEP looks set to permit French radio amateurs to use modern means of communication such as D-STAR.

On Wednesday, Dec. 14, the French ATV Association (ANTA), ATEPRA, DR@F, and REF-UNION URC received a draft amendment from ARCEP regarding the amateur and amateur-satellite services.

This text will replace the Decision No. 2010-0537, which currently governs these provisions. It will be available for a public consultation on the site of ARCEP and the sites of the participating associations.

A careful study of texts is already underway by a working group to formulate a joint response by January 20, 2012.

ARCEP has published a press release on this public consultation (in French) http://www.arcep.fr/index.php?id=26

http://www.arcep.fr/uploads/tx_gspublication/consult-frequences-service-amateur-151211.pdf

Digital Ham Radio France (DR@F) in Google English
http://tinyurl.com/FranceDRAF

The French ATV Association (ANTA)
(site appears to be resistant to translation tools)
http://www.anta-asso.fr/

REF French National Society in Google English
http://tinyurl.com/FranceREF

French Regulator ARCEP in Google English
http://tinyurl.com/FranceARCEP

Tue 13th December 2011

The Dutch team that produced Delfi-C3 (DO-64) are planning to launch a new amateur radio satellite, the Delfi-N3XT in September 2012.

It will be launched on a DNEPR rocket and carry a 435/145 MHz linear transponder for SSB/CW communications and a 2400 MHz telemetry beacon.

Two payloads onboard Delfi-N3XT are a micro-propulsion system developed by TNO in cooperation with TU Delft and University of Twente called T3µPS and an in-orbit configurable, high-efficient transceiver platform developed by ISIS BV, in cooperation with TU Delft and SystematIC BV called ITRX.

Delfi-N3XT will carry out an onboard experiment on hydrogenated amorphous silicon solar cells from the micro-electronics institute DIMES from the TU Delft. and additionally, an experimental very low frequency (VLF) receiver might be tested as precursor for the OLFAR program.

Watch Delfi-n3Xt

ITRX Configurable Transceiver
http://www.delfispace.nl/index.php?option=com_content&
view=category&layout=blog&id=15&Itemid=19

Delfi-n3Xt Launch Contract Signed
http://www.delfispace.nl/index.php?option=com_content&
view=category&layout=blog&id=1&Itemid=3

Further information and pictures available at Delfi Space
http://www.delfispace.nl/

Innovative Solutions In Space
http://www.isispace.nl/

Tue 13th December 2011

The Deutscher Amateur Radio Club (DARC) report that German CB stations can now run 12 watts ERP SSB.

The ECC Decision (11)03 of June 24, 2011, paved the way for 12 watts PEP SSB output in the frequency band 26.960 - 27.410 MHz throughout the European Union.

The UK regulator OFCOM has still not enacted the ECC Decision.

DARC in Google English
http://tinyurl.com/GermanyDARC

Tue 13th December 2011

The Golist QSL Manager Data Service is reviving its 'QSL Manager of the Year Award'.

The purpose of this award it to recognize the service of QSL Managers world wide for the service they provide to the World Wide Amateur Radio Community.

Nominations for this award will be accepted by the Golist from DX and Contest clubs, world wide, for the year of 2012.

Each DX club and Contest club is encouraged to poll their members for their nominations for the Top 5 QSL Managers for 2012. The definition of a QSL Manager for this award is any person that confirms contacts via QSL Card for any station other than their Primary Call Sign.

Each club should tabulate the votes of their members and submit to the Golist the Top 5 vote getters as voted by members of their club.

Votes should be tabulated and sent to the Golist by August 1st, 2012, to be eligible for the QSL Manager of the Year award. Each club world wide may only send one submission for voting purposes. Records of submission will be maintained by the Golist.

A plaque, donated by QRZ-DX / THE DX MAGAZINE, will be awarded to the QSL Manager of the Year selected at the W4DXCC Convention held in Pigeon Forge Tennessee in September 2012.

The recognized format for your clubs submission is as follows:
In the Body of the Message include:
Club Name
Club Officer (Name, Call Sign, club office and email address)
Top 5 QSL Manager Nominees (list name and callsign)
In the subject line of your official email: QSL Manager of the Year-2012.

Tue 13th December 2011

The BBC have announced an iPlayer App that will stream video to iPhones and iPads via the 3G mobile phone network.

A blog from the BBC's executive project manager for iPlayer on mobile, David Madden, said: "We have worked closely with the network operators to introduce 3G streaming so you can watch your favourite TV programme wherever you are or listen to the radio when you are out and about."

Users of other 3G video services have previously complained of stuttering pictures and poor sound quality. The BBC said it had implemented HTTP live streaming with adaptive bitrate technologies to get around this problem.

Read the full BBC News story at
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16144444

Tue 13th December 2011

Radio amateur Dr. Kim H. Manwaring N7DFU devised an instrument for brain surgery by using parts from a ham radio.

Tinkering in his basement with parts from a ham radio, he came up with the concept for the device and then came across a special alloy developed by a NASA engineer, which he used for the tip of the instrument.

The FMwand was used during three surgical procedures last week, twice for spine surgery and once for brain surgery.

It contains a special thin layer of deposited alloy on the tip that produces heat with no electricity. The alloy heats and cools instantly and the coating produces focused, precise energy, making it a viable tool for removing tumors in the brain or doing other delicate neurological work.

Read the Health Canal story University of Utah Surgeon Uses New "Bloodless Knife" for First time in Humans
http://www.healthcanal.com/surgery-rehabilitation/24425-University-
Utah-Surgeon-Uses-New-Bloodless-Knife-for-First-time-Humans.html

Tue 13th December 2011

Earth is passing through a stream of debris from near-Earth asteroid 3200 Phaethon, source of the annual Geminid meteor shower.

Forecasters expect meteor rates to reach 20-to-40 per hour when the shower peaks in bright moonlight on the night of Dec.13/14.

The best time to look, no matter where you live, is between 10 pm local time on Tuesday, Dec. 13, and sunrise on Wednesday, Dec. 14th.

Check http://spaceweather.com for more information and live audio from a meteor radar.

Mon 12th December 2011

The first amateur radio satellite OSCAR 1 was launched 50 years ago on December 12, 1961.

The AMSAT News Service is re-running the Project OSCAR Newsletters to commemorate the 50th anniversary of OSCAR 1.

The Newsletters were hand-
typed back in 1961. Thanks to Don Ferguson, KD6IRE for scanning the original documents announcing OSCAR 1.

This is from the newsletter produced on that historic day and reproduces the historic telegram sent by the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) bringing news that OSCAR 1 had been received.

O S C A R  N E W S L E T T E R
December 12, 1961

OSCAR SATELLITE IN ORBIT

At 2041 GMT, 12 December 1961 the Oscar satellite was hurled into orbit by the Discoverer XXXVI launching vehicle from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. The satellite immediately went into a North-South orbit and was picked up loud and clear by the hams at KC4USB (Marie Byrd Base) at the South Pole a few minutes after launch.

The word was quickly relayed back to the Oscar Tracking Station, K6QEZ, by W4ABY. Acquisition was also obtained by hams at Kodiak, Alaska and by KH6UK in Hawaii on the first pass.

Oscar is on a frequency between 144.990 and 145.008 and has tremendous c.w. signal strength on a direct, overhead pass! Tracking reports have begun to flow into the Center. W1AW heard the first pass S9 over the East coast.

The following telegram was received by the Center from the RSGB:

OSCAR HEARD 0055 GMT X KEYING OK X STRENGTH NINE PLUS X DOPPLER SEVEN KC X FURTHER DATA AIR HAIL X.

Orbit is being computed, but insufficient time has elapsed to permit predictions to be made of time Oscar will pass over your area. Listen to W1AW and the Voice of America for orbital predictions. Continuous 24-hour a day monitoring is essential until predictions are established. In fact, this monitoring is urged to check for unpredicted reception at times when the Oscar satellite is theoretically out of range! Our thanks to the Air Force and men of Vandenburgh AFB who helped to make this historic milestone possible!

Actual launch was attended by W6SAI, K6LFH, W6MLZ and W0TSN. Full Oscar story in February [1962] QST and CQ and more details in our next news letter!

Interview with OSCAR Pioneer Lance Ginner K6GSJ
http://www.dd1us.de/Downloads/The%20AMSAT%20
Journal%20SepOct%202006.pdf

Project OSCAR History
http://projectoscar.wordpress.com/project-oscar-history/

AMSAT News Service
http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/news/

AMSAT-UK
http://www.uk.amsat.org/

Mon 12th December 2011

The November issue of the IARU Monitoring System (IARUMS) newsletter reports that the Russian miltary have been transmitting on 7000.8 kHz using OFDM112

The International Amateur Radio Union Monitoring System (IARUMS) Region 1 November 2011 newsletter can be read at
http://www.iarums-r1.org/iarums/news2011/news1111.pdf

The Intruder-Logger, is open to all users worldwide. You can store your intruder observations in real time mode! Do not forget to use this system and read the entries from all parts of the world!
http://peditio.net/intruder/bluechat.cgi

Monitor the short wave bands on-line with a web based SDR receiver at
http://sdrspace.com/

http://www.websdr.org/

IARU Monitoring System
http://www.iaru-r1.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=category
&layout=blog&id=39&Itemid=87

Mon 12th December 2011

It is 30 years since the first 6502 based BBC microcomputers were produced. They proved popular with radio amateurs who used them for RTTY, Cambridge Packet Radio, SSTV and running the AMSAT-UK software library.

The Cambridge Packet Radio was popular in the years before the widespread adopton of the AX.25 standard. The free software enabled users to send and receive packet radio direct from the BBC Micros cassette tape interface without needing a seperate modem. Software for other modes required an additional modem interface such as the IGADUMA which was produced by radio amateurs in Hertfordshire.

The UK amateur radio satellite UOSAT OSCAR-11 used the BBC Micro tape interface standard for its telemetry downlink. This enabled the telemetry data to be easily decoded by radio amateurs and some 1500 schools on their BBC Micros.

One popular UOSAT receiver for the BBC Micro was the ASTRID produced by Steve G3TPW.
Over 800 ASTRID's were sold, most private schools bought one as well as many military training schools and Marconi Space and Defence Systems.

Maplin Electronics produced a crystal controlled receiver that could be connected to the BBC Micro to receive the UoSat's,  the DC generated by rectifying the discriminator output was fed to variable crystal oscillator (VXO) to compensate for Doppler shift.

In the 1980's AMSAT-UK used to distrubute satellite software for the BBC computers. Eventually PCs became more popular and AMSAT-UK stopped selling the BBC programs and passed the master copies to Roddy Clews G3CDK for distribution. Unfortunately when Roddy died the masters were lost.

In 1993 AMSAT-UK gave Clive Wallis G3CWV permission to distribute their BBC programs, and he set up the library, distributing the programs on receipt of a small donation, which he then forwarded to AMSAT-UK for the satellite building fund.  The library was restricted to satellite related software.

Clive included some of his own programs and was given various programs by AMSAT-UK members, thus recovering most of the programs that were lost with the passing of G3CDK.

In 1994 The Wakefield BBC User's group was closed down and four of their titles were transferred to the AMSAT library. Their Hints & Tips disk was very popular and in 1995 James Miller G3RUH added three of his software disks to the library.

Eventually demand for programs declined and the library was closed in 2005. Recently Greg Cook took over the library and is in the process of making it available on his website, see
http://regregex.bbcmicro.net/amsat-uk/

BBC Basic for Windows
http://www.rtrussell.co.uk/

G3CWV BBC Micro page
http://www.g3cwv.co.uk/bbcpage.htm

Amateur Radio (19xx)(-)(TBI-71).ssd for BBC Micro
http://nitroroms.com/show/file-info/20046/Acorn_BBC_Micro/Amateur
%20Radio%20%2819xx%29%28-%29%28TBI-71%29.ssd.html

PDF of The BBC Microcomputer User Guide
http://regregex.bbcmicro.net/

The BBC Lives!
http://bbc.nvg.org/

Steve G3TPW who produced the ASTRID UOSAT receiver now sells the Cobwebb antenna
http://www.g3tpw.co.uk/

An example of amateur radio on-air file transfer is shown near end of this ITN News report
http://www.itnsource.com/shotlist//ITN/1984/05/21/AS210584001/

BBC News on the 30th Anniversary
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-15969065

Mon 12th December 2011

Insatiable demand for wireless services means that, despite new technology, the airwaves are running out of room. Could making use of the space between signals be the solution to all our problems?, a BBC News report asks.

By 2014, global data traffic will increase by 39 times from current levels, reaching 3.6 exabytes (around 3.9 billion gigabytes) per month, according to wireless firm Cisco.

And this means that current wireless networks are approaching breaking point.

Every device that uses wireless technology - from remote-locking car keys and TV controls right through to the latest smart phones or tablets - uses a part of the spectrum.

While it is hoped that 4G and LTE technology will relieve some pressure on capacity, many see this as only a short-term solution.

"People are becoming more used to being connected, having elements of their homes or workplaces linked up to something - everything from your laptop to your wireless network," says Richard Traherne, of product development firm Cambridge Communications.

"The fact we're consuming more data means there is more pressure on this finite resource of radio spectrum."

Read the full BBC News article Can turning off analogue TV make broadband better?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/click_online/9658117.stm

Fri 9th December 2011

The inaugural launch of the ESA Vega rocket will carry the amateur radio microsatellite ALMASat-1 and at least 6 CubeSats.

The CubeSats will be launched from the ESA spaceport at Kourou in the Caribbean into an elliptical orbit of 1450 by 300 km at an inclination of 69.5 degrees. They are expected to have a lifetime before re-entry of 4 years.

ESA say the six CubeSats to be launched on Vega in late January 2012 comprise:
- Xatcobeo (a collaboration of the University of Vigo and INTA, Spain):
a mission to demonstrate software-defined radio and solarpanel deployment;
- Robusta (University of Montpellier 2, France): a mission to test and evaluate radiation effects (low dose rate) on bipolar transistor electronic components;
- e-st@r (Politecnico di Torino, Italy): demonstration of an active 3-axis Attitude Determination and Control system including an inertial measurement unit;
- Goliat (University of Bucharest, Romania): imaging of the Earth surface using a digital camera and in-situ measurement of radiation dose and micrometeoroid flux;
- PW-Sat (Warsaw University of Technology, Poland): a mission to test a deployable atmospheric drag augmentation device for de-orbiting CubeSats;
- MaSat-1 (Budapest University of Technology and Economics): a mission to demonstrate various spacecraft avionics, including a power conditioning system, transceiver and on-board data handling.

ESA indicate that a 7th CubeSat may be delivered in time to be flown.

PW-Sat carries an FM to DSB amateur radio transponder with an FM input on 435.020 MHz and DSB output on 145.900 MHz.

It is thought ALMASat-1 will be deployed in a similar orbit to the primary payload LARES - 1200 km × 1200 km with an inclination of 71 degrees.

ESA CubeSats delivered for first Vega flight
http://www.esa.int/esaMI/Education/SEM3L0WWVUG_0.html

ESA Education - CubeSats
http://www.esa.int/esaMI/Education/SEM3N03MDAF_0.html

The IARU amateur satellite frequency coordination pages hosted by AMAT-UK list the frequencies of the amateur radio satellites
http://www.amsat.org.uk/iaru/

ALMASat-1
http://www.almasat.org/

Fri 9th December 2011

The UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has published the responses, including the RSGB's, to its Communications Review.

A Government green paper for the next stage is due in 2012 Q1.

The RSGB response points out that:
"Ofcom, being heavily weighted with telecoms and media interests and with little knowledge of spectrum engineering requirements at its higher levels, has regarded spectrum as little more than just one delivery platform for the converged media."

The Society highlighted Ofcom's failing regarding PLT devices saying:
"One key example is Ofcom’s focus on the importance of broadband provision for all; pressure from the industry and having little understanding of the effect on the spectrum has led to permitting unrestricted use of Power Line Adapter devices to distribute broadband in domestic premises. Emissions caused by these devices have a growing detrimental effect on the spectrum. Yet our opinion is that Ofcom has refused to act against non-compliant devices placed on the market – to the extent of ignoring its own commissioned research and neglecting its statutory duty to act against such devices
(see http://www.rsgb.org/plt/ ) "

The RSGB raised concerns about the impact of staff cuts at Ofcom they say:
"The RSGB also believes that reductions in staff has led to withdrawal or reduced attendance at some CEPT and ITU committees. We consider that one person to cover CEPT ECC SRD/MG, WGFM, and WGSE, ITU-R SG1 and its Working Parties is totally inadequate, especially where there are parallel sessions"

Read the RSGB response is at
http://www.culture.gov.uk/images/consultation_responses/CR2011-RSGB.rtf

The other responses can be seen at
http://www.culture.gov.uk/consultations/8636.aspx

Communications Review Open Letter
http://www.culture.gov.uk/consultations/8678.aspx

Fri 9th December 2011

As of mid-December, Radiocommunications Agency Netherlands will increase the penalty for illegal use of the FM band to a maximum of €45.000. Also over the Christmas period, additional inspectors will be employed to prevent nuisance from radio pirates.

The penalty will vary from case to case depending on the severity of the offence. This is determined by the degree of interference that the pirate transmitter causes to legitimate broadcasts. Besides the higher penalty, the Radiocommunications Agency will adopt a policy of giving the offender a one hour warning to switch off the transmitter. If the offender fails to comply, an inspector will officially report the violation, and the offender will consequently risk a penalty.

The Radiocommunications Agency has recently noticed a change in the type of radio piracy, which has moved away from so-called “attic pirates” (hobbyists), and now increasingly involves larger pirates operating in conjunction with music events. They use powerful transmitters with higher antenna masts, which means they can cover a wider area and can cause more disruption. The Radiocommunications Agency also sees an increase in the number of mobile masts that can be controlled remotely from a studio. This type of mast is often used in broadcasts from restaurants, party tents and marquees.

Source: Media Network, Radiocommunications Agency Netherlands

Tue 6th December 2011

The amateur radio satellite STARS-II is being developed by students at Kagawa University and consists of Mother satellite and Daughter satellite connected by tether.

STARS stands for Space Tethered Autonomous Robotic Satellite.
The mission will include formation flight, tether deployment, attitude control and the mother and daughter satellites will take pictures of each other.

It is porposed to fly a 80mW CW beacon and a 800mW AX25 1200bps telemetry downlink. Total mass is 8 kg.

Coordinated frequencies for CW 437.245 MHz (mother) and 437.255 MHz (daughter). FM downlinks 437.405 MHz (mother) and 437.425 MHz (daughter).

Kagawa satellite development project STARS-II
http://stars1.eng.kagawa-u.ac.jp/english/index.html

The Google English translation of the Japanese language STARS-II page has additional information
http://tinyurl.com/JapanSTARS-II

STARS-II on the IARU Satellite Frequency Coordination pages hosted by AMSAT-UK
http://www.amsatuk.me.uk/iaru/formal_detail.php?serialnum=170

AMSAT-UK publishes a colour A4 newsletter, OSCAR News, which is full of Amateur Satellite information. Free sample issue at
http://www.uk.amsat.org/on_193_final.pdf

Join online here http://alturl.com/avuca

Tue 6th December 2011

The Sun Journal reports that aside from the latest smartphone, ham radio has become the newest trend in communication, reaching an all-time high of more than 700,000 licenses in the United States.

They say "For nearly 100 years, ham radios have been a reliable form of communication, allowing people to connect with others all around the world. They have come in especially handy in times of an emergency."

Read the report at
http://www.sunjournal.com/news/approved/0001/11/30/
ham-radio-licenses-hit-all-time-high/1122718

Tue 6th December 2011

In an article appearing in Monday's edition of the London Evening Standard, reporter James Ashton looks at the controversial plan to auction Britain's airwaves.

He writes:
It is always interesting to see what news spills out while the Chancellor of the day is standing at the dispatch box delivering his financial address. Last week was no different. Companies have long since realised they will be upbraided for trying to bury bad news, but Ofcom, the communications regulator, didn't seem to mind using the cover of George Osborne's autumn statement to secrete some thoughts into the public arena.

While the British public were being reminded of the economic grind they face over the next five years, Ed Richards, Ofcom's chief executive, was sounding off at a conference in Brussels. Normally unflappable, the source of his frustration was a controversial plan to auction Britain's airwaves.

When the analogue TV signal is switched off next year, the spectrum it frees up can be recycled by mobile phone operators to improve mobile internet access and connect rural areas at low cost.

Spectrum sounds like a subject that should only interest the kind of people who were radio hams in another life. But it is worth remembering they don't make it any more - hence the extraordinary scrap that has developed between Vodafone, Telefonica, Everything Everywhere (the owner of Orange and T-Mobile) and Three, who all have BlackBerry and iPad traffic clogging their networks. And all Osborne's talk of dynamic businesses being set up across the nation to generate economic growth can't get going without strong communication links.

You can read the full London Evening Standard article 'We must signal an end to this airwave auction mess' by James Ashton at:
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-business/article-24017860-we-must-signal-an-end-to-this-airwave-auction-mess.do

Sat 3rd December 2011

The Mid Cornwall Beacon and Repeater Group has obtained an NoV from Ofcom to operate an experimental D-Star repeater on the existing GB3HB repeater frequencies on 70cm.

It will have the callsign GB7MC and operation will commence Sunday, 4 December.

The output frequency will be 433.375MHz and the input frequency will be 434.975MHz.

The existing GB3HB voice repeater has now been closed down and removed for refurbishment and updating. The experimental D-Star repeater, GB7MC, will continue to operate during 2012 until the new GB3HB voice repeater is ready.

For more information, or to send a report, go to the group's website at www.mcbarg.co.uk.

GB2RS

Sat 3rd December 2011

More on the Russian OTHR. I thought I'd been to some interesting radio places, until Mike Barraclough pointed me in the direction of this video made in the Ukraine, the former home of the Russian over-the-horizon radar system that plagued shortwave reception in the 1980's. It was nicknamed the Woodpecker, which explains the jingle at the end of the video. The giant curtain is still there, although because it is so close to the old Chernobyl nuclear power station its within the exclusion zone.

Jonathan Marks, G8WGN

Fri 2nd December 2011

This weekend's Plasma Thrust space experiment using Amateur Radio has been postponed until after the delivery of a new rig next April.

On the AMSAT bulletin board Andy G0SFJ passes on the following information:

It was earlier announced that the timetable of SpEx “Shadow-beacon” sessions on November 26-27, 2011 was reduced because the crew are newcomers and need more time to gain experience. For the same reason previously announced sessions on December 2-5, 2011 are cancelled.

Sergey Samburov RV3DR, the employee of space-rocket corporation "Energia" who is responsible for amateur radio on ISS, explains that the onboard radio was accidentally switched on standard simplex 145.825 MHz not the required duplex 144.360 / 145.825 MHz digipeater mode because of the old age of the onboard gear. It has been in use more than 10 years. Sometimes Sergey has already observed malfunction like this.

A new radio is planned to be delivered to the ISS by cargo vehicle in April and Mission Control Center (TsUP) plans to hold new SpEx “Shadow-beacon” sessions in May-June 2012.

Again many thanks for those submitted reports and made other assistance! The results of data processing will be presented on our site. We wait for further cooperation!
http://knts.tsniimash.ru/Shadow/en/

Fri 2nd December 2011

This week's Tech Talk Radio show featured an interview with Robert Broomhead VK3DN talking about amateur radio.

Tech Talk Radio is a IT and technology show with a listening audience of thousands of technology enthusiasts and professionals, and is aired weekly across a network of over twenty broadcast stations Australia wide and around the world via the internet.

One myth dealt with during the interview was the cost involved which Robert VK3DN described as very affordable when compared to other hobbies.

Listen to the show at
http://files.ttr.net.au/TTR/TTR-2011-48-e.mp3

Tech Talk Radio
http://techtalkradio.com.au/

Wireless Institue of Australia (WIA)
http://www.wia.org.au/

Fri 2nd December 2011

UK intelligence agency GCHQ has launched a code-cracking competition to help attract new talent.

The organisation has invited potential applicants to solve the visual code posted at http://www.canyoucrackit.co.uk/

A spokesperson said the campaign aimed to raise the profile of GCHQ to an audience that would otherwise be difficult to reach.

"The target audience for this particular campaign is one that may not typically be attracted to traditional advertising methods and may be unaware that GCHQ is recruiting for these kinds of roles," the spokesperson said.

"Their skills may be ideally suited to our work and yet they may not understand how they could apply them to a working environment, particularly one where they have the opportunity to contribute so much."

The competition began in secret on 3 November and will continue until 12 December.

Read the full BBC story at
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-15968878

Fri 2nd December 2011

On Tuesday, Ofcom Chief Executive Ed Richards delivered a speech at the European Competitive Telecommunication Association Regulatory Conference, entitled 'Spectrum in an age of innovation'.

He said:
"We are supporting the government in identifying candidate bands and already, it looks likely that two high-value bands, at 2.3 GHz and 3.4 GHz, could be available for commercial use in the near future."

Read Ed Richard's speech at
http://media.ofcom.org.uk/2011/11/29/spectrum-policy-in-the-
dynamic-age/?utm_source=updates&utm_medium=email&utm
_campaign=spectrum-speech

DCMS - Enabling UK growth – Releasing public sector spectrum
http://www.culture.gov.uk/publications/7994.aspx

RSGB consultation response
http://www.culture.gov.uk/consultations/8297.aspx