AUG 20 2017 - VK NATIONAL NEWS BROADCAST ON VK1WIA
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THE BEST NEWS YOU'LL GET ALL WEEK
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NATIONAL NEWS FOR WEEK COMMENCING AUGUST 20 2017.
IN OUR 22nd YEAR OF NON STOP NEWS.
WIA Director Phil Wait VK2ASD. -
WIA Spectrum Strategy Committee's Roger Harrison VK2ZRH.-
WIA (RSGB and ARRL) Digital sign of the times. -
THESE STORIES AND MORE IN THIS EDITION OF NEWS FROM THE WIRELESS INSTITUTE
OF AUSTRALIA 2017 AND FOR WEEK OF AUG 20
AROUND VK
Australian senate rejects bill to restore ABC shortwave
Australia's senate has rejected proposed legislation to restore the
international radio service of the country's public broadcaster.
Many remote communities in Pacific island countries rely on shortwave radio.
The bill would have required the ABC to restore its shortwave transmission
services which the broadcaster ended in January this year.
This move was described in the bill as having deprived communities in
Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and other parts of the Pacific of access
to reliable emergency broadcasting.
Submitters of the bill questioned the ABC's assertions that very few listeners
accessed Radio Australia's shortwave service.
Concerns of the submitters included perceived neglect of remote communities
in the Pacific, and the loss of capacity for emergency warning broadcasts.
(SouthGate)
AND SPEAKING OF EMERGENCY WARNING BROADCASTS:-
Times are tense on Guam right now. They got a lot more tense just after
midnight local time on Tuesday when a pair of radio stations on the island
conducted an unscheduled test of the Emergency Alert Broadcast System,
triggering a temporary ripple of panic throughout the Pacific US territory.
But CNN says there was no emergency -- or missiles flying through the air for
that matter.
Guam Homeland Security/Office of Civil Defence said the stations, KTWG and KSTO,
had simply made a mistake.
"The unauthorized test was NOT connected to any emergency, threat or warning,"
the agency said in a statement posted to its Facebook page.
ON THE HI-WAY TO HELL
In Rio the penalty for speeding is having to listen to the worst radio on earth
Radio today said that those in RIO call it the "Sound Penalty."
It takes listeners from Paradiso to Inferno in an instant.
If the app on your phone detects you going over the speed limit it switches
from the smooth sounds of Rio de Janeiro's Paradiso FM to the Government Hour
which for most Brazilians is pure "inferno" - the Portuguese word for "hell."
Rio's traffic is ranked 8th worst in the world.
https://radioinfo.com.au/news/rio-penalty-speeding-having-listen-worst-radio-earth Radioinfo.com.au
Ham radio for breakfast
The ABC 97.3 FM Illawarra breakfast program recently heard about Amateur Radio.
The audience was spread across Wollongong, Shoalhaven and Sydney.
ABC presenter Melinda James interviewed the Illawarra Amateur Radio Society's
Secretary, Keith VK2KQB, and its Vice President Rob VK2MT. Pre-recorded in the
Keith VK2KQB shack it covered many diverse activities of radio amateurs and
included a 20 metre band contact.
Well done in promoting the Illawarra Amateur Radio Society, and what we can do.
(Jim Linton VK3PC)
Digital sign of the times
The move towards the use of digital modes for entry level licences is being
considered in at least three major countries as a means of making Amateur Radio
more relevant and attractive.
Reviews of the Foundation licence in the UK, Australia, and the USA Technician
licence, include talk and proposals that some digital modes should be included.
A number of European countries are considering entry level licences, with
proposed inclusion of digital modes. The UK Foundation licence has permitted
some digital modes since the outset.
WIA Secretary , Jim Linton VK3PC, told us while past entry level or beginner
licences have initially given a taste of Amateur Radio, technology has moved on
in the past decade and beginner licences are no longer reflective of current
practice, or society generally.
Of course, the incentive to upgrade to a higher level with more operating power,
bands and privileges, must be retained. Differences between Entry, Middle and
Advanced licences exist.
The Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) is looking at the syllabus of its
Foundation Licence, while the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL) is considering
adding some digital modes to the Technician Licence, among other changes.
The Wireless Institute of Australia (WIA) is preparing an updated submission
for its regulator, reviewing the current and out-dated regulations that cover
Amateur Radio licensing, based on responses to recent online consultations via
the WIA website.
Let's face it, the majority of people aged over 15 years already use a
smartphone and communicate digitally in voice, text and vision. For Amateur
Radio to be attractive to experimenters and to future generations it needs to
seriously look at increasingly embracing or catching-up with the digital age.
However, a degree of relativity between each level of licence will need to be
maintained - and this may mean some improvement, while still meeting
international standards.
WIA Director Phil Wait, VK2ASD.
My introduction to amateur radio was pretty typical. I started listening to
short-wave radio as a youngster, and had often heard a heavily distorted voice
which sounded like it was pretty close-by.
It turned out to be Muriel Eagles, VK2AIA, and although quite elderly at the
time, she was an avid DXer.
I knocked on her door and very quickly found myself sitting in front of a
Swan 350 with a microphone thrust into my hand. I froze but that chance
introduction to Amateur Radio lit the spark for a life-long hobby, and a career
in electronics and telecommunications.
It's a story that I hear repeated many times over.
In the early 1960's the short-wave spectrum was dominated by the constant
pounding of cold-war propaganda from Radio Peking, Radio Moscow and the
Voice of America. I wrote to them all. One day the postman would deliver a
package from Moscow, the next day one from Washington. He must have been very
confused.
The radio spectrum was mainly full of broadcasters, teletype, and two-way
radios. There were only a couple of satellites, no cell-phones, and only three
Sydney television channels. Spectrum seemed like an inexhaustible resource.
The contrast today is vast.
The pressure on spectrum from areas such as entertainment, broadcasting and
telecommunications services is enormous, and the impending introduction of
5G services, and the "Internet of Things", is taking it all to the next level.
The aim of 5G is to create a more 'hyper connected' society, where, in the
words of the ACMA's 5-year spectrum outlook 'anytime, anywhere, anyone and
anything' is connected.
5G is expected to support significantly faster mobile broadband speeds and
increasingly extensive mobile data usage - as well as the full potential of
the Internet of Things. From virtual reality and autonomous cars, to the
industrial internet and smart cities, 5G will be at the heart of the future of
communications.
The rules for 5G are still being developed, but It is expected the total
spectrum required for 5G will be vast. The Federal Communications Commission
(FCC), has recently agreed plans to make 3.85 GHz of licensed spectrum
available for 5G services. In Australia, the ACMA is looking at options for
making spectrum available at 1.5GHz, 2GHz, 3.6 GHz, and above 24GHz.
All this was unimaginable in 1960, but perhaps Dick Tracey's watch should have
given us a hint. The pace of technology, and the regulatory change necessary
to control it, is simply enormous.
In the first three weeks of this month alone, the WIA lodged two major
submissions to Government and the ACMA on behalf of Australian Radio Amateurs:
the first on the draft radiocommunications legislation, and the second
responding to the ACMA's Options paper on the "Future approach to the 3.6 GHz
band" which would see another 25 MHz carved out of the 9 cm amateur band.
These submissions were the work of a number of experienced volunteers in the
WIA's Spectrum Strategy Committee.
The ACMA also announced this month that it will be undertaking a review of the
current Interference Management Principles, under which it investigates
complaints of interference to radiocommunications services, and has asked
stakeholders to comment. The WIA is seeking comments from the amateur radio
community on the ACMA's Proposed Principles, but time is again short. Please
refer to the news item on the WIA website. ( wia.org.au )
Yes, it's a very different world. Australian radio amateurs have right of
access (primary and secondary) to the second-largest slice of spectrum, only
beaten by defence, but our bands above 400MHz are now under severe pressure,
and there will be some compromises necessary. The Spectrum Strategy Committee
is working hard to achieve the best outcome for Australian Radio Amateurs.
This is Phil Wait, VK2ASD for the WIA.
Roger Harrison VK2ZRH from the Spectrum Strategy Committee.
There are no amateurs alive today who witnessed the making of the Wireless
Telegraphy Act 1912, which introduced licensing for those who wished to use
the spectrum for communications over a distance without wires connecting them.
However, there are many amateurs on-air today who, having obtained a licence
under that 1912 Act - yours truly included - witnessed the making of the
Radiocommunications Act 1992, which introduced three new concepts in licensing,
Spectrum licensing, Class licensing and Apparatus licensing.
Now - in 2017 - EVERY licensed radio amateur, clutching that hard-won Apparatus
licence - is able to witness the making of a new radiocommunications act, which
will introduce a single licensing system - parameters-based licensing.
There is an old saying generally attributed to the 19th century Chancellor of
Germany, Otto von Bismarck, which goes QUOTE . . . to retain respect for
sausages and laws, one must not watch them in the making . . . END QUOTE.
For almost two decades, my day job as a public servant has involved watching
laws "in the making". Up close and personal.
I had never thought about it in terms of my diet, until now, but these days I
rarely eat sausages.
In a past career as a journalist editing a manufacturing industry publication,
I once went on a tour of a meat processing factory. Yep. Among other things,
making sausages. My interest was in the production technology, not the product.
Reflecting on it now, perhaps Bismarck was right. Or whoever made the original
observation.
The Radiocommunications Bill 2017 - the draft legislation for public comment,
was published in late May on the eve of the WIA AGM in Hahndorf, South
Australia, a location famed for its wine . . . food . . and gourmet sausages.
The WIA's Spectrum Strategy Committee members wasted no time in downloading the
exposure draft of the Bill and the 20 related papers setting out details on key
aspects of the Bill.
Discussions that ensued between committee members drew out the many key points
and issues that would need to be addressed in the WIA's response.
The structure of the response was devised by the WIA's Regulatory Counsel,
Peter Young VK3MV, now retired after more than 20 years with the ACMA.
With more than 20 parts and running to over 200 pages, a comprehensive response
to the Bill was never going to be covered by a short, sharp series of dot-points.
Guided by Peter's wise counsel, the WIA's submission had many authors and
editors. It was shaped by consideration of the audience it had to reach - senior
officers in the Department of Communications and the Arts who would likely have
little or no knowledge of the Amateur Service, or amateur radio as a hobby, let
alone the WIA or its history dating back to the time before the Wireless
Telegraphy Act 1912.
Content for use in the submission was drawn from a wide array of sources,
including material used in past submissions to the government's spectrum review
program since it was launched in 2014. This material was reviewed, revised and
rewritten as necessary, or discarded for new material written 'from scratch'.
The process for developing and producing the WIA's submission is very similar
to that involved in my day job. A team of producers, reviewers and editors,
devise, review and revise a document until agreement is reached. There's
nothing cursory about it. That's how the professionals do it.
It works for them. It works for the WIA.
I shall end with a quote from a textbook on the workings of government.
With reference to the laws, a knowledge of how they are made may increase our
respect for them and their makers; and if it does not, we are at least able to
express our dissatisfaction in an intelligent manner.
This is Roger Harrison VK2ZRH for VK1WIA News.
Interference Management Review
In the first week of August, the ACMA announced that it will be undertaking
a review of the current Interference Management Principles, under which it
investigates complaints of interference to radiocommunications services. These
principles were first set down in 2004 and later updated in 2010. They are used
to guide the Priority Compliance Area (PCA) program that takes a strategic
approach to addressing identified high-risk compliance issues.
You can read about the program here.
acma.gov.au/Industry/Suppliers/Product-supply-and-compliance/Priority-compliance-areas
The review has been undertaken in light of future developments related to the
Radiocommunications Bill 2017, released in May. The WIA has made a submission
to the Department of Communications on the proposed Bill. The ACMA has released
a Consultation paper, which you can download from the link below.
Four questions have been posed by the ACMA, set out here, for which it is
seeking responses from the radiocommunications community.
1 Do you consider that the Proposed Principles would operate effectively,
and encourage the more timely resolution of interference cases now and
under the future communications environment?
2 Do the Proposed Principles create any barriers to resolving cases of
interference using the most appropriate approach; that is, cooperative,
private rights of action or enforcement action?
3 Are there principles other than these that the ACMA should use to guide
its interference management decisions?
4 Are there any other matters the ACMA should consider when revising the
2004 Principles?
Have Your Say!
To assist in developing a response, the WIA is seeking comments from the
amateur radio community on the ACMA's Proposed Principles.
Now is the time for you to help the WIA and have your say via our online
consultation process, by clicking this Link.
wia.org.au/joinwia/wia/InterferenceManagementConsultation/
The deadline for submitting your comments to the WIA is 1 September 2017.
(text edition only)
EDUCATION
Foundation Licence training plus a Standard Bridging course
Amateur Radio Victoria has training for the entry level Foundation Licence
and those already qualified at that level can join a Standard Licence Bridging
Course.
Both in September at 40G Victory Boulevard, Ashburton, in Melbourne's inner
east.
The Foundation Licence session is on the weekend of September 9-10.
A targeted Standard Licence Bridging Course runs on six Wednesday evenings
starting September 6, with assessments on Sunday 15 October.
To obtain further information and enrol please contact Barry Robinson VK3PV
the Education Team Leader vk3pv@amateurradio.com.au or phone 0428 516 001.
(text edition only)
INTERNATIONAL NEWS With thanks to IARU, RSGB, SARL, Southgate AR Club, ARRL,
Amateur Radio Newsline, NZART, WIA Local News Service VK7, VK3PC and the WW
sources of the WIA.
IARU promotes Amateur Radio to administrators
At selected opportunities the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU), working
with local member societies, raises awareness and understanding of Amateur
Radio.
It has raised awareness with stakeholders in telecommunications and shows the
flag at each International Telecommunication Union (ITU) World
Radiocommunications Conference.
The latest major IARU promotion was on August 7-9 2017 at the Mexico City World
Trade Centre, where it held a very successful Amateur Radio Administration
Course.
The IARU Region 2, together with the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) and the
Federacin Mexicana de Radio Experimentadores (FMRE), delivered the course for
a second time.
This course was for public servants from Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica and
Honduras.
Those taking part are in charge of administering the Amateur Radio and the
Amateur Radio Satellite services and responsible for communications and
spectrum regulation. The course included the legal framework for Amateur Radio
in the ITU, our spectrum, reciprocal licenses, emergency communications, the
IARU and its member societies.
There were also presentations to explain how we operate including DXpeditions,
contests, digital communications and moon bounce.
The event ended with a visit to a radio station where participants could better
understand everything they learned and had the opportunity to make some
contacts.
Still with the IARU and the Region One Monitoring System newsletter reports
Radio Eritrea and Radio Ethiopia are still operating in the 40m band on
7150 and 7175 kHz.
Making it easy here in VK to report intrusions, the WIA IARU Monitoring System
Intruder Report Form is to be used to report intrusions into exclusive HF
amateur bands by non-amateur stations
You'll find it at wia.org.au in the members area.
http://www.wia.org.au/members/protecting/intruderreport/
BBC to switch off AM local radio transmitters
It is reported the BBC will be closing a number of AM local radio stations
from January 2018
A516Digital reports:
Following a number of trials over the past few years, the BBC has confirmed
that from January 2018, Medium Wave transmissions of a number of BBC Local
Radio stations will either cease or be reduced.
The plans will result in BBC Radio Sussex, Surrey, Humberside, Wiltshire,
Nottingham, Kent, and Lincolnshire no longer being broadcast on Medium Wave
and reduced MW coverage for BBC Devon, Lancashire and Essex.
The reduction of Medium Wave services was first considered as part of the BBC's
2011 "Delivering Quality First" programme. Trial switch-offs in subsequent years
provided the BBC the chance to find out how many listeners were listening on AM.
Most switch-offs took place without much public reaction, although a trial
affecting BBC Radio Merseyside's signal provoked a strong reaction from
listeners and national newspaper headlines. BBC Radio Merseyside's Medium Wave
signal has been left off the current closure list.
Read the full story at
http://www.a516digital.com/2017/08/bbc-starts-medium-wave-switch-off.html
AMSAT Phase 4 Ground station at DEFCON
Amateur Radio and AMSAT were prominently featured this year at
DEFCON Hacking Conference. In addition to the license exam session
run by one of the many local DEFCON Groups, there were amateur radio
demonstrations of software defined radio, Phase 4 Ground, and GNU
Radio flow graphs at Wi-Fi Village, one of the many subject-specific
subcategories at DEFCON. The amateur satellite service was of great interest!
At an estimated 30,000 attendees, outreach was highly successful.
Participants were diverse, technical, curious, and came ready with
the questions! A very high fraction were already licensed or
interested in getting their license.
Amateur radio was also part of the Wi-Fi Village Capture the Flag
competition. Word on the street is that next year we expect to see a
lot more ham content in this exciting signal intelligence competition.
AMSAT Phase 4 Ground will next present at the GNU Radio Conference
in September, in San Diego, CA.
Who and Where are our broadcast stations?
http://www.wia.org.au/members/broadcast/where/
HAM RADIO OPERATIONAL NEWS - IT'S A CONTACT SPORT
All major Australian contests, rules and results, are on the
Contest Section of the WIA website.
wia.org.au/members/contests/about
2017
Jan 1 - Dec 31 The Victorian Local Government Award 2017 Challenge
Aug 19-20 ILLW the 3rd full weekend in August since 1998 and it's on NOW!
Aug 26 ALARA Contest Start Time 1600 this is a 24 hour Contest for YL's
Aug 26 FISTS CW Contest 1000 - 1159 UTC
The 2017 DATV QSO Party is scheduled for Friday the 26th August and Saturday
27th August.
73 Peter VK3BFG
IARU High Speed Telegraphy world championships are 8th to 12th September.
October CQ WW DX / SSB CONTEST (always Octobers Last full weekend)
November CQ WW DX / CW CONTEST (always Novembers Last full weekend)
The SSB weekend is October 29-30. The CW weekend is November 26-27.
Running ALL year 'til Dec 31 Victorian Local Government Award 2017 Challenge
DX News
Two South African operators will be in the Sani Pass area of Lesotho from
18th - 21st August. They will use the callsigns 7 P 8 VRR and 7 P 8QM.
Look for them on 40, 20 and 15m.
Bert CX3AN will visit Samoa from 19th - 26th August.
His callsign will be 5 W 0 HA and he plans to be on 40 and 30m CW and 20 and
17m SSB. QSLs go via his home call, CX3AN.
Masato JA 0 RQV is returning to Tonga and will be QRV as A35JP/P from
Niuatoputapu Island from 17th - 22nd August. He plans to be on all bands
80 - 6m CW and SSB.
The IOTA reference for this island is OC-191.
QSL to the home call, JA0RQV.
VI4ALARA to September 30 to gain recognition for the ALARAMeet in
Cairns, VK4.
Until the end of September, VK4's Sunshine Coast Amateur Radio Club is
operating Special Event Call sign, VI 4 SC 50 to commemorate the 50th
anniversary of the official naming of the Sunshine Coast on 1st August 1967,
Indian Ocean 6M EME DXpeditions
Lance, W7GJ, will be active from the Indian Ocean to focus on 6 meters EME QSOs.
West Island/Cocos Island as VK9CGJ between September 12-28th.
Christmas Island as VK9XGJ between October 2-18th.
Franz Josef Land
Members of the Russian Robinson Club (RRC) are planning their next Arctic
operation.
Look for RI 1 F to be active from Victoria Island (EU-190) sometime late
September (26th or 27th was mentioned). This island group has never been
activated.
Activity will be on various HF bands. They plan to have up to 12 operators.
QSL via the Bureau.
Hong Kong celebrates with VR 20 prefix
Commemorating the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong's reunification with China,
Hong Kong licensed radio amateurs are being allowed to use the special prefix
VR20 on a voluntary basis from 1st July 2017 to 30th June 2018.
WIRELESS WEATHER
NASA announces television coverage for Aug. 21 solar eclipse
On Monday, Aug. 21, all of North America will be treated to an eclipse of the
Sun, and NASA Television will carry it live from coast to coast from unique
vantage points on the ground and from aircraft and spacecraft, including the
International Space Station. Coverage will be featured during the live
four-hour broadcast Eclipse Across America: Through the Eyes of NASA.
Programming begins at noon EDT with a preview show hosted from Charleston,
South Carolina. The main show begins at 1 p.m. and will cover the path of
totality the eclipse will take across the United States, from Oregon to
South Carolina.
The program will feature views from NASA research aircraft, high-altitude
balloons, satellites and specially-modified telescopes. It also will include
live reports from Charleston, as well as from Salem, Oregon; Idaho Falls,
Idaho; Beatrice, Nebraska; Jefferson City, Missouri; Carbondale, Illinois;
Hopkinsville, Kentucky; and Clarksville, Tennessee.
The Toshiba Vision screen in New York's Times Square will broadcast the
program live in its entirety to give the public a big-screen view of the
eclipse. Viewers in Times Square can listen to NASA coverage while observing
it on the big screen by downloading the NASA app or going to
https://www.nasa.gov/eclipselive
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- DIGITAL
THE 2017 D-STAR QSO PARTY
The dates for the 2017 D-Star QSO Party has been announced.
The QSO Party will run from 22 to 24 September, visit icom.co.jp
( www.icom.co.jp/world/dqp/ )
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- FINAL FRONTIER
Astronaut has his own stage show
After being in charge of the International Space Station and many other
previous exploits the Canadian born Astronaut Chris Hadfield, callsigns VA3OOG
and KC5RNJ now has his own entertainment show.
Who can forget the space antics performed to the tune of David Bowie's
'Space Oddity' song?
(fade up music)
First they became a big hit through YouTube, then his book 'An Astronaut's
Guide to Life on Earth', now a touring stage show.
(music up and out)
Chris spent decades training as an astronaut and logged nearly 4,000 hours
in space, orbiting Earth 2,600 times. During his multi-faceted career, he has
intercepted Soviet bombers in Canadian airspace, lived on the ocean floor,
been NASA's Director of Operations in Russia, broken into a Space Station with
a Swiss Army Knife! , disposed of a live snake while piloting a plane, and been
temporarily blinded while clinging to the exterior of an orbiting spacecraft.
The 'Chris Hadfield live, a stage show' is in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne
this week.
An MP3 of Chris Hadfield is at:
http://www.indiemuse.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Space%20Oddity.mp3
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- ILLW
Aussie lighthouses galore on air
There are more than 50 Australian registrations in the 20th International
Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend - that is this Saturday and Sunday.
These range from Dirk Hartog Island in the west, Tipara Reef South Australia,
Lady Elliot Island on the Great Barrier Reef, Gabo Island off eastern Victoria,
to Table Cape in Tasmania's south.
The 400th registration is the Gollwitz lighthouse DL 1 SWB in Germany that
defines the proper approach to Poel Island and Wismar for ships arriving from
the Baltic.
The building was in poor repair when East and West Germany reunified, but is
now renovated.
Among the latest registered are those from India, Sri Lanka, Taiwan,
Malaysia and an old favourite since it all began, Fire Island in New York.
" The Great South Bay Amateur Radio Club W2GSB has activated the Fire Island
Lighthouse since the beginning of the International Lighthouse and Lightship
Weekend in 1997.
This weekend, the suburban New York club is getting a friendly neighbour
operating less than a thousand feet away from their setup at the lighthouse.
The Fire Island Lighthouse Radio Annex Memorial Club W2NMY will be on the
air in the nearby annex building used as the park rangers' official
residence.
While W2GSB will operate on single sideband, W2NMY will be sending CW.
The lighthouse club was created about two months ago by Howard WB2UZE
so that its annex activation could call attention to the role the building
played in naval communications right up through 1973. Walter KA2CAQ, who
also works as a volunteer at the lighthouse, said both clubs will be
operating until 6 p.m. local time on both days.
The two clubs won't just be sharing space at the beach - they also share
some of the same members and a purpose:
To keep lighthouses out there in the spotlight."
That was editor of our Sister Outlet, Amateur Radio Newsline, Caryn Eve Murray
KD 2 GUT
Have a listen; give them a call - many can tell you the history of their
location and also have a special QSL card.
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP -- PARACHUTE MOBILE
Parachute Mobile is a unique combination of skydiving and ham radio.
The group conduct about 4 missions a year where skydivers make as many contacts
as they can throughout Central California.
Next mission is August 26, 2017.
For this mission they have added an HF 20 meter jump and are curious to see how
well they do starting from 12,000 feet above Tracy, California.
You can watch them 'live' as they stream all the action from the ground and
from the air. APRS tracking as well.
Get the details at parachutemobile.org
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- QRP and WEAK SIGNAL COMMUNICATION
Dedication to QRP a daily ritual
When you think about achievements you cannot but wonder at the feat of
John Shannon K3WWP who uses QRP, Morse code and simple wire antennas.
He has had a contact every day since August 1994 making 67,000 contacts to
91 DX entities.
This is despite the solar cycles, bad weather, equipment mishaps and personal
circumstances.
John K3WWP has written about the feat on his website and in FISTS North America
Keynote newsletter articles - the URLs are to be found in the broadcast text
edition.
Personal website: k3wwp.com
FISTS NA website: www.fistsna.org
SOCIAL SCENE 2017
Aug 27 VK2 SACRCfest SHOW, TELL & SELL day. (vk2zdr)
Sep 9 VK4 SunFest held at the Woombye School of Arts building 09:00.(vk4vp)
Sep 9-10 VK4 ALARAMEET Cairns. Listen for VI4ALARA from July (vk4swe vk3pc)
Sep 10 VK3 Shepparton HamFest St Augustine's Hall, Orr St. (vk3fnqs)
Sep29-Oct2 VK4 Cardwell Gathering (tarc)
Oct 29 VK3 Yarra Valley Amateur Radio Group HAMFEST 10:00am at the
Gary Cooper Pavilion, Yarra Glen.
Nov 5 VK3 BARG Hamvention greyhound racing track, Ballarat. (wia events)
Nov 12 VK5 Adelaide Hills Amateur Radio Society HamFest 8am (vk5kc)
Nov 12 VK3 Rosebud's annual celebration of all things Amateur Radio (wia)
2018
Feb 25 VK2 Wyong Field Day (VK2AOR)
March 25 VK3 EMDRC HamFest - Great Ryrie Primary School, Heathmont. (VK3BQ)
May 4 -7 VK4 Clairview Gathering ( between Rockhampton and Mackay ) (TARC)
GET YOUR HAM LICENCE
Visit the WIA website, wia.org.au
To find A Club And Course Near You
http://www.wia.org.au/licenses/foundation/learningorganisers/
To make a general enquiry
https://www.wia.org.au/discover/sendinfo/publicenquiry/
AMATEUR RADIO NEW SOUTH WALES:-
ARNSW 63 Quarry Rd Dural, email for details on education@arnsw.org.au
Bookings can be made by phoning the office on 02 9651 1490
and leaving contact details.
AMATEUR RADIO VICTORIA CONTACT:-
Amateur Radio Victoria 40G Victory Boulevard, Ashburton,
vk3pv@amateurradio.com.au or phone Barry on 0428 516 001.
Submitting news items
A reminder when supplying HamFest info we obviously can't plug commercial
traders "on air", but we at the WIA will put your supporters in this text
edition "no worries."
If you would like to submit news items for inclusion in the
VK1WIA broadcasts, please email your item in text to nationalnews@wia.org.au
and don't JUST send url's links but take the time to pen YOUR contribution.
To submit audio read "how to submit items" in the weekly news page on
http://www.wia.org.au/members/broadcast/contribute/
We would appreciate items no longer than 2 minutes in length as we only have
a half hour time slot window.
Remember the sooner you submit material the more the likelihood of it being
broadcast in the very next edition of WIA National News. Each item will only
be broadcast once, if you want a couple of mentions, please submit different
slants to keep your event 'fresh 'and always if the news room is to read your
item write in the 3rd person.
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WIANews - we've reported...YOU decide.
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The purpose of "WIANews" is to rapidly provide news of interest to
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We strongly encourage membership in the Wireless Institute of Australia
and participation in the activities of local clubs. Opinions expressed in
"WIANews" are those of the writers who submit material and do not necessarily
reflect those of the rebroadcasters, nor the National WIA, but are broadcast
in the spirit in which they were submitted."
Material may be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form, a credit to
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Who listens to radio? A weekly 'tally sheet' is sent to all rebroadcasters
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Put the word subscribe in the title or subject field
How do I join this National News List? (subscribe for an automatic weekly feed.)
Email to vk1wia-news-join@lists.wia.org.au
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Open mail program which sends mail from the address you want to unsubscribe.
Send mail to the list unsubscribe address vk1wia-news-leave@lists.wia.org.au
You will be sent a confirmation mail and must follow the instructions given
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Once your unsubscription has been processed, you will probably
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and at that point you should stop receiving messages.
National News compiled by VK4BB on behalf of the National WIA.
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