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Mar 17 2019 - 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 Mar 17 2019
IN OUR 24th YEAR OF NON STOP NEWS
WIA calls for nominations for WIA MERIT AWARDS. -
WIA Director Harry Edgar VK6YBZ with Board Comment. -
WIA. John Moyle Memorial Field Day 16-17 March 2019.
THIS & MORE IN THIS EDITION OF NEWS FROM THE
WIRELESS INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA 2019
AND FOR WEEK OF MARCH 17 2019
LOCAL
Could this be a new Ham licence for VK ?
"Tyro" License Proposal Now Open for Public Comment
FCC in the USA has invited comments on a proposal asking the
FCC to create a "Tyro" license class that would require a minimal
online examination as well as mentoring by an Amateur Radio licensee
of Technician class or higher.
A "tyro" is a novice or a beginner.
The petition was filed way back in August of 2017 by Gary A. Hampton,
AD 0 WU.
Tyro licensees would earn operating privileges 99 channels in a
70-centimeter "TyroSubBand." Applicants would have to be at least
11 years old. Hampton said in his petition that one goal would be
"reliable, nationwide 70-centimeter interoperability" in the
exclusive 430 - 440 MHz segment of the band.
"The Tyro license is exceptionally important to FEMA's CERT program,"
Hampton's petition asserts.
The TyroSubBand technical specifications easily double the capacity
of typical 70-centiimeter repeaters"
Hampton maintained in his petition that Amateur Radio also
"should be used to further scientific research that is published
and quickly placed in the public domain."
Hampton expressed the belief that institution of the Tyro license
would spawn growth within Amateur Radio, making entry into the hobby
nearly as simple as obtaining a General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS)
license.
The window for comments on the Tyro license petition will be open
for 30 days, ending around April 2019.
Keyless chaos in Joondalup as drivers mysteriously locked out of
cars.
9 News in Perth say more than 100 have been stuck in recent days,
all within 150 metres of the Lakeside shopping centre.
Staff at the nearby Ultratune have tried to help where possible,
trying various creative methods to try to get people into their cars
and back on to the roads.
Authorities are trying to locate the disruptive signal.
Lakeside management have now put a security guard in the carpark
while they try to figure out the problem. It is not believed to be
a criminal act but rather an internet router or other wireless
device recently installed in the area that is causing disruption.
Centre management have now identified the signal but investigators
are still trying to locate the device it's coming from.
Australia Media and Communications Authority investigators were
walking around the car park on scanning shops, but believed the
signal was not actually coming from the Lakeside site.
They were doorknocking to ask who had installed a new device
recently and were hoping the issue would be fixed within hours
For the latest VK6AS from NewsWest
" Despite VK6 having no resident radio inspectors an ACMA team was
dispatched and were spotted prowling the centre as if on an amateur
fox hunt. Speculation was rife but it now seems, that the fox that
was causing the issues was an LIPD buzzer device being used at a
pharmacy. There is no direct confirmation of this but it does appear
that shoppers are no longer having any problems.
This is Andrew VK6AS. "
WIA
The WIA has already received a number of nominations for WIA MERIT
Awards.
The Board of the WIA are calling for final submissions for
WIA AWARDS to be considered for the 2019 AGM
Details of the WIA AWARDS are available on the web site.
http://www.wia.org.au/members/wiaawards/about/
The nomination form is also available on the Awards site.
Nominations for WIA Awards for this years AGM close at the end of
this month
(Peter Clee VK8ZZ WIA Secretary item in text edtions only)
Hi, my name is Harry Edgar VK6YBZ, newly nominated director to take
up a casual vacancy on the board of the Wireless Institute of
Australia.
I bring to the board experience in education, business management
and law. It is my intention to determinedly represent the interests
of all amateurs both federally and in my home state of Western
Australia.
Affiliated clubs are advised that the third edition of the popular
WIA publication "Your Entry Into Amateur Radio" the Foundation
Licence Manual is in stock and available free to affiliated clubs
for resale or give away. All you have to do is contact the Secretary
at secretary@wia.org.au pay the postage and the copies will be sent
to you. It's a great opportunity to make a little contribution to
the club and attract new members to the hobby.
Don't forget that the 2019 WIA Annual Conference and AGM is being
held at the Park Royal Hotel 150 Day St Sydney over the weekend
24th to 26th of May 2019. There is a packed agenda of interesting
technical presentations, visits and other events at the conference.
The WIA AGM is to be held on Saturday morning at the Park Royal Hotel
and the Conference Dinner is happening on the evening of Saturday
the 25th May after a busy afternoon of technical papers and is
expected to be a glittering affair.
Please visit the WIA website for the link to the conference and AGM
information. You can reserve your place at the conference and AGM,
or book at a range of selected hotels to meet your budget. Don't
miss this great opportunity to participate in the event and get the
latest on what is happening with your Institute.
There is still an opportunity to get your technical paper into the
conference committee and let us know about the exciting project that
you have been working on and are bursting to let us know of your
achievements or special interests. It's all on the WIA website so
visit the site and click on the link to get the latest information.
I will be attending the WIA AGM in Sydney over the weekend 24 to 26
of May 2019 along with other board members and will be available to
chat to anyone regarding the hobby, the WIA or any other matters
concerning amateur radio. I look forward to meeting as many of you
as possible.
Before I go, I have been requested to let you know that the board is
seeking expressions of interest for anyone wishing to join the
Standards, Interference and EMR group. Expressions of interest should
be forwarded to the WIA secretary at secretary@wia.org.au
Thank you. 73 This has been Harry
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INTERNATIONAL NEWS With thanks to IARU, RSGB, SARL, Southgate AR Club,
ARRL, RAC, NZART AMATEUR RADIO NEWSLINE & the World Wide sources of
the WIA.
Previously we had reported the University of Virginia's CubeSat
constellation due for launch next month will carry UHF packet repeaters.
However, due to licensing issues, the satellites will operate in
non-amateur spectrum at 401 MHz. KQ9P, from the UVA team reports that
they are hopeful that their next CubeSat project will carry an
AMATEUR payload.
GPS Network May Experience Errors in "Week Number" Rollback
The GPS network will encounter a small millennium bug of its own in
April when the network's "week number" rolls back to zero.
This known issue especially could affect those who use GPS to obtain
accurate Coordinated Universal Time. In the GPS network, the number
of the current week is encoded into the message the GPS receives
using a 10-bit field. This allows for weeks ranging from zero to
1023. The current period began on August 1, 1999.
On April 6, 2019, the week number rolls over to zero and starts
counting back up to 1023.
This should not affect later-model GPS receivers that conform to
IS-GPS-200 and provide UTC, but testing carried out by the
US Department for Homeland Security raised the possibility that some
units may misinterpret the rollover, shifting the date back to
January 6, 1980, or possibly to another incorrect date.
An affected GPS not only may report the incorrect date, but time
accuracy that is critical to precise location data could be
compromised. A nanosecond error in GPS time can equate to 1 foot of
position or ranging error, according to DHS-published guidelines
that explain the issue and suggest how to address it.
https://ics-cert.us-cert.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Memorandum_on_GPS_2019.pdf
USA
FCC Takes a New Tack in Combatting Unlicensed Radio Broadcasting
In what may be a first in the effort to crack down on unlicensed
broadcasters, the United States has filed a civil action to stop a
church-related pirate radio station from operating in Massachusetts.
The Massachusetts US Attorney's Office is seeking an injunction to
shut down the station, operating on 97.1 MHz.
"This ground-breaking step, for an injunction to stop a pirate radio
operator's illegal activities, is part of our continued efforts to
combat illegal broadcasting," FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief
Rosemary Harold said. "As we work with our law enforcement
colleagues to use every tool in our toolbox to combat pirate radio,
I welcome the Justice Department's renewed use of its Section 401(a)
injunction authority. Along with fines, equipment seizures, and
warnings, this action underlines our continued interest in
combatting this serious problem."
The FCC already has fined operator Vasco Oburoni and
Christian Praise International Church $15,000 for repeated
violations of its rules against unlicensed operation. The complaint
recounts that Oburoni and the church first began operating an
unlicensed station on 102.3 MHz. After issuing multiple warnings,
the FCC levied the $15,000 penalty, and Oburoni agreed to a payment
plan. But later, he began broadcasting again, this time on 97.1 MHz.
AMERICAS
ITU strengthening emergency communications.
In recent years, the increasing number of disasters like hurricanes,
earthquakes, tsunamis and floods has highlighted the urgency of
establishing strong telecommunication systems, which are essential
if medics, firefighters, police and others are to provide effective
relief during emergencies
In the aftermath of disasters, alternative telecommunication systems
are often needed to replace normal systems that have been damaged or
destroyed. ITU membership has recognized this need:
For many years, emergency telecommunications has been a priority in
the Americas Region.
In 2018, ITU teamed up with regional telecommunications bodies
such as la Comision Regional Tecnica de Telecomunicaciones, the
Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (CITEL) and the
International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) to set up an alternative
telecommunication system for use in times of emergencies. The system
does not rely on conventional means of communication such as the
Internet, but rather on amateur radio systems.
This alternative telecommunications system used is known as Winlink,
a worldwide email service that uses radio pathways and is capable of
operating completely without the Internet.
Winlink is well-known for its role in emergency and disaster relief
communications, providing its users email with attachments, position
reporting, weather and information bulletins. The system is built,
operated and administered entirely by licensed volunteers.
It has a proven track record for emergencies. As recently as 2017,
Winlink was extensively used in the aftermath of the high-impact
hurricane season in the Caribbean and also after the earthquake in
Mexico.
KOREA
The 5G Country Leadership Index has just been released, identifying
South Korea as number one.
Followed by the United States, other 5G leaders included Australia,
Qatar, Switzerland, Finland, Spain and United Arab Emirates.
Arthur D. Little (ADL) created the index, which benchmarks over
40 countries.
Regionally South East Asia is most advanced, with South Korea using
the Winter Olympics as an opportunity to showcase its leadership.
The US is among the first to launch commercial 5G services.
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are also ahead, while
Europe as a continent is lagging due to heterogeneous infrastructure
and fragmentation, as well as outstanding/ongoing spectrum allocation
processes in many countries.
Read: http://criticalcomms.com.au/content/industry/news/australia-3-for-5g-leadership-142421203#ixzz5huXsKU66
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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
2019
This weekend is the Russian DX Contest.
Running from 1200 UTC on the 16th to 1200 UTC on the 17th, it uses
CW and SSB only on the 1.8 to 28MHz bands.
The exchange is signal report and serial number, with
Russian stations also sending their Oblast code.
(rsgb)
Also this weekend, closer to home:-
W.I.A. John Moyle Memorial Field Day 16-17 March 2019
Its main purpose is to familiarise amateurs with working in the
field - that is away from the shack and commercial power on
all bands.
Having said that, there is also a need for field operators to have
stations to work.
So if you feel disinclined to set up a field station your
contribution is still valuable, and will attract points,
if you operate from the home QTH. Rules are available on the
WIA website under the tab 'For Members/contests'
CQ World Wide WPX SSB Contest over the March 30 - 31 weekend.
20th Harry Angel Memorial Sprint May 4
Trans-Tasman Low-Band Contest July 20
VK Remembrance Day Contest is August 17-18
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AIMING HIGH FOR SATELLITE HONORS
If you've made some memorable contacts using amateur radio satellites
here is a tangible way you can remember them.
If you like to be busy chasing satellite contacts, now you can chase
a little bit of satellite glory along with it as part of AMSAT's
50th anniversary awards program. Amateur Radio Newline's Skeeter Nash
says a number of special awards are being made available this year
to commemorate the formation of the Radio Amateur Satellite
Corporation on March 3, 1969.
They are the 50th anniversary AMSAT OSCAR Satellite Communications
Achievement Award; the 50th Anniversary AMSAT Satellite Friends of
50 Award; the AMSAT on HF 50th Anniversary Award and a limited
edition of the 50th Anniversary AMSAT OSCAR Satellite Communications
Achievement Award.
There will only be 20 original certificates available for this last
one. This award will be issued to the first 20 amateurs to complete
20 confirmed, qualifying contacts on any satellite. The certificate
itself is unique. It is on golden rod paper stock and signed by
AMSAT's founding president, Perry Klein, K3JTE, who now uses the
call sign W3PK. Contacts must be made this year between the 3rd of
March and the 31st of December.
For more details about any of the awards or to apply, send an email
to kk5do@amsat.org
DXCC Most Wanted list updated
The DXCC Most Wanted entities list has been updated on Club Log.
It contains 340 entities.
The top five most wanted are P5 North Korea, 3Y/B Bouvet Island,
FT5/W Crozet Island, BS7H Scarborough Reef and CE0X San Felix
Islands. Scarborough Reef and San Felix Islands switched places in
the 4th to 5th position.
The complete DXCC Most Wanted entities list is available at
https://secure.clublog.org/mostwanted.php
(RSGB)
THRU THE DX WINDOW
Hans-Martin will be on the air as E51HMK from Rarotonga, OC-013,
in the South Cook Islands until the 22nd of March.
He will operate SSB and FT8 on the 80 to 10m bands.
QSL via his home callsign DK 2 HM, direct or bureau.
(sourced to rsgb)
Somalian op
Ali, EP 3 CQ, who works for United Nations in African Union Mission
to Somalia, in Mogadishu, is once again active as 6 O 1OO between
now and March 24th.
40/30/20/17/15/10 meters using SSB and FT8.
QSL direct to: Ali Solhjoo, EP3CQ
(sourced to SouthGate)
Finally, if you've still got your hopes set on a Bouvet Island
DXpedition contact, check out the Rebel DX Group's webpage for
this latest update:
The 3-Y-Zero-Eye team reports it will be on-board during a two or
three-day "sea trial" of its ship, the Atlantic Tuna, which has
undergone a major refit for the trip. The website is posting
cautions to amateurs around the world:
Do not get too excited when you see the ship leave the harbor in
Cape Town. As the saying goes, this is just a test.
(ARNewsLine)
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WORLD WIDE SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP NEWS
-- BALLOONING
Radio amateurs to launch balloon at Young Researchers Congress
On March 21, an APRS balloon transmitting on 433.000 MHz, callsign
DL 9 II-11, will launch from the Youth Hostel Mnster on the occasion
of the 20th Young Researchers Congress
The weather balloon carries a probe with two cameras as well as
scientific measuring technology consisting of a pressure and a
temperature sensor as well as a Geiger-Mller counter tube.
The GPS data is transmitted in APRS format.
The mission is led by two students of the University of Heidelberg,
and supervised by OM Dietmar, DL9II.
Source DARC https://www.darc.de/ via SouthGate
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - FINAL FRONTIER
AMSAT has secured permission to redistribute orbital data provided
by the US Department of Defence Joint Force Space Component
Commander for another year.
The world's best source of orbital elements for amateur radio
satellites will continue via the KEPS mailing list and amsat.org/tle/
Out of This World Auction sponsored by ARISS
The ARISS-US team (Amateur Radio on the International Space Station)
will auction two very unusual items in its first-ever auction !
Picture yourself as the winning bidder and proud owner of a unique
JVC Kenwood TS-890S signed by astronauts!
Or, you could be top bidder on a special astronaut-signed 6-volume
boxed set 2019 ARRL Handbook !
Bidding starts April 8t at 12:00 UTC and ends April 14 at 22:00 UTC.
When you bid in this auction you could be the crucial person who
helps ARISS launch its new custom-built higher-power radio system
with its voice repeater and improved packet APRS and SSTV capability
that thousands of hams enjoy.
You may be the winning bidder who helps ARISS continue introducing
ham radio to thousands of students, teachers, parents, and whole
communitiesand inspiring students about science, technology,
engineering, math, and radio!
Don't forget; set yourself a reminder: bidding starts April 8th
and ends April 14th.
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- INTERNET, THE HAMS DOMAIN.
A known bug with the Apple version of the digital QST app may
prevent some users from downloading issues of the magazine.
ARRL has confirmed with the developer that version 5.0 of the app,
introduced in early February, may produce instances where the app
crashes on some devices when the user tries to download an issue of
QST for offline reading.
(ARRL LETTER)
WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- QRP and WEAK SIGNAL COMMUNICATION
The founder of the G-QRP Club and Amateur Radio author the
Rev. George Dobbs, G3RJV died on March 11. He was 75.
The good Reverend was reported to have been in ill health for some
time and had been living in a care facility, where his condition
deteriorated quite rapidly over the past few days. He was the
honorary secretary of the GQRP Club (G 5 LOW), which he founded in
1974 to cater to those interested in low-power Amateur Radio
communication.
He served as the editor for the club's quarterly SPRAT, was the
author of QRP Basics, The International QRP Collection
(co-authored with 9 M 6 DXX), and Making a Transistor Radio.
He was a frequent Hamvention attendee, and in 2015, he received the
Hamvention "Technical Excellence Award."
(arrl)
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REWIND
National VOA Museum of Broadcasting Director to speak on History of
VOA-Bethany Station. Event is second in the "The Voice of Truth in
America" series with MidPointe Library System.
If you've ever wondered why the VOA-Bethany Station needed a secured,
square mile of land surrounding its 1944 art deco building, Jack
Dominic has the answers.
National Voice of America Museum of Broadcasting director Jack
Dominic spoke on the "History of the VOA-Bethany Station and
the VOA Museum Today" this week.
The VOA museum hosts other free events this year in commemoration
of its 75th anniversary of the VOA-Bethany Station, which now houses
the Cold War-era history and broadcasting museum.
"From World War II through the Cold War, the Station played a vastly
important role in transmitting real news via shortwave radio to
people living in countries that lacked a free press," said Ken
Rieser, VOA museum board president. "And it all started in
Cincinnati, with two brothers who developed the technology that
evolved into the commercial radio industry."
The next two MidPointe Library series programs will be
"Ride the Radio Waves" a children's STEM event presented by the
West Chester Amateur Radio Association (WCARA).
For complete schedules of 2019 VOA museum events, "The Voice of
Truth in America," series, and WCARA events, visit
www.voamuseum.org; midpointelibrary.org; and www.wc8VOA.org.
(SouthGate
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2019 Social Scene
VK7 - Meet the Voice event at Ross March 23-24 (vk7news)
VK4 - Redfest 2019 April 13 (vk4tfn)
VK6 - HARGfest April 14 (vk6zms)
VK5 - BRL Radio Group Annual Gathering, Overland Corner, S.A
April 6 (vk5la)
VK3 - Moorabbin & District Radio Club HamFest 2019 Saturday 11th May.
VK
2019 WIA Annual Conference Sydney weekend 24-26 of May. (wia)
https://www.wia.org.au/joinwia/wia/2019agm/
VK5 - South East Radio Group 2019 Annual Convention and Australian
Fox Hunting Championships 8-9 June (vk5hcf)
VK3 - GippsTech 2019 13'14 July (vk3pf)
VK3 - Yarra Valley Amateur Group HamFest, 13th October (vk3cnw)
VK3 - Ballarat Amateur Radio Group, BARG Hamvention Oct 27 (vk3kqt)
2020 Social Scene
ALARAMEET 2020 Bendigo (vk5yl)
October 2020 in Bendigo Victoria.
Heidi VK3FHID and Jenny VK3WQ are leading the team who are planning
an eventful weekend. This team is meeting regularly and are looking
forward to seeing you in Bendigo.
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We cannot give blatant 'plugs' to raffles. (new Jan 2019)
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