SARL NEWS - SUNDAY 12 FEBRUARY 2012
You are listening to ZS6SRL, the official radio station of the South African Radio League, the national body for amateur radio in South Africa, with a news bulletin every Sunday at 08:15 CAT in Afrikaans and at 08:30 CAT in English. To listen to a web stream, visit www.sarl.org.za, click on 'Amateur Radio Today' and follow the links for details. PLEASE NOTE: for audio via Echolink, connect to ZS0JPL-R.
You can download this bulletin and previous ones from www.sarl.org.za and also subscribe to receive future bulletins by e-mail.
Your newsreader this morning is (name), (call sign), on 145,725 and 7,066 MHz from Pretoria, with relays on 3,695 MHz SSB. (Other news readers change to suit).
SILENT KEY
It is with regret that we have to announce that the keys of two radio amateurs became silent recently. They are:
The key of Walter Arnold, or Art, ZS5SU, went silent on the 10th January 2012 after a short illness. Art had been living in London, UK for the past decade or so. His other interest was astronomy and he was also an amateur magician.
The key of Janse van der Merwe, ZS4IQ, on Monday 6 February. Janse was 92 years old. He leaves his YL Annie behind.
We extend our condolences to the families and friends of the deceased.
(PAUSE)
In the news today:
AMATEUR RADIO ALLOCATION AROUND 500 kHz ANOTHER FEW STEPS CLOSER
DISCOUNT FOR RAE STUDENTS UNDER 26
CQ SAYS MORSE IS ALIVE AND WELL
SARL NATIONAL CONVENTION BOOKING NOW OPEN
You are listening to ZS6SRL. Stay tuned for more details on these and other important and interesting items.
AMATEUR RADIO ALLOCATION AROUND 500 kHz ANOTHER FEW STEPS CLOSER
There was a good deal of support for Agenda item 1.23 at WRC12 among administrations at the SWG level for a secondary allocation to Amateur Radio just below 500 kHz; however, there was strong resistance by several administrations to the allocation, based upon a stated concern that amateur operation in that portion of the spectrum could cause interference to Non-Directional Beacons.
SWG 4C3 (the SWG dealing with Agenda Item 1.23) met 12 times over a period of ten days trying to arrive at a consensus. Finally, a consensus was achieved on the issue by adding various footnotes dealing with the allocation that satisfied most of the administrations opposing the allocation. At the end of the day, there were still a couple of administrations opposing the allocation. As a result, the SWG elevated the issue to the Working Group level with two options to satisfy the agenda item.
A secondary allocation to the amateur service in the band 472-479 kHz with certain operating conditions set forth in footnotes to the allocation, or
No Change (in other words, no amateur allocation).
The proposal that has been agreed to by most administrations that support the amateur allocation calls for a worldwide secondary allocation to the Amateur Service at 472-479 kHz with a power limit of 1 W EIRP, but with a provision for administrations to permit up to 5 W EIRP for stations located more than 800 km from certain countries that wish to protect their aeronautical radio navigation service (non-directional beacons) from any possible interference. Proposed footnotes provide administrations with opportunities to opt out of the amateur allocation and/or to upgrade their aeronautical radio navigation service to primary if they wish to do so. In addition to these protections for aeronautical radio navigation, the Amateur Service must avoid harmful interference to the primary maritime mobile service.
At the Working Group meeting, there was no shifting of positions, so the matter was elevated to the next level: to Committee 4 with the same two options.
DISCOUNT FOR RAE STUDENTS UNDER 26
Students under 26 planning to write the class A Radio Amateur examination will get a discount off the examination fee of R100. The fee will be R350 which includes the license application fee and license fee to 31 March the following year. For details visit www.sarl.org.za.
CQ SAYS MORSE IS ALIVE AND WELL
Five years after the USA dropped the Morse code requirement, CQ Magazine Editor Rich Moseson, W2VU, has published a very pointed editorial where-in he notes that both amateur radio and use of the Morse code are alive, well and growing. This despite the ney-sayers who predicted the abandoning of Morse testing would bring a sudden end to the hobby.
In his editorial titled "No-Code Plus Five Years: An Assessment", W2VU, states that amateur radio is still here. CW is still here and despite the fears of many CW supporters the universe did not implode on February 23, 2007.
Rather his article was prepared based on research that checked on signs of the state use of Morse by today's amateur radio community. It did this by asking manufacturer of keys and paddles about sales, talking to the FISTS Morse preservation group, looking at CW contest results and overall United States licensing statistics.
CW was dropped as a license requirement in South Africa on 1 April 2011 when the ZR license was converted to a full class A license on a par with ZS.
ARRL & CQ SIGNED AGREEMENT
ARRL & CQ Signed an agreement to provide ARRL's Logbook of The World support for CQ's awards and ARRL - the national association for Amateur Radio, have signed an agreement to begin providing support for CQ-sponsored operating awards by the ARRL's Logbook of the World (LoTW) electronic confirmation system.
CQ's awards will be the first non-ARRL awards supported by LoTW and will be phased in, beginning with the CQ WPX award. Additional CQ awards will follow. The ARRL's LoTW system, an interactive database recording contacts between radio amateurs was created in 2003 and has been adopted by 47 500 radio amateurs worldwide. It already has records of 400 million contacts and grows weekly. The target date for beginning LoTW support for WPX is April 1, 2012. Amateurs will be able to use LoTW logs to generate lists of confirmed contacts to be submitted for WPX credit. Standard LoTW credit fees and CQ award fees will apply.
ARRL Chief Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ, observed that this step gives radio amateurs throughout the world an inexpensive and convenient means of gaining credits toward CQ's popular operating awards. "LoTW has significantly increased interest and participation in the ARRL's DXCC, Worked All States and VUCC awards programs. We anticipate a similarly positive response to the addition of the CQ WPX award. Amateurs will be able to spend more time operating and less time chasing QSL cards."
SARL NATIONAL CONVENTION BOOKING NOW OPEN
Book now for the SARL National convention which will be held in Pinetown from 20 22 April 2012. Get all the details at www.sarl.org.za and link from the home page.
SAAMSAT TO UPDATE ON KLETSKOUS CUBESAT ON SUNDAY
Listen to Amateur Radio Today for an interview with Hannes Coetzee, ZS6BZP, reporting on the progress made on SA AMSAT's KletsKOUS CubeSat project, or download the audio mp3 version from www.amsatsa.org.za.
CLUB NEWS
With reference to last week’s item about the ZS6KTS repeater, this repeater was put on the air by the Kempton Park Amateur Radio Technical Society on 145,162 5/145,762 5 MHz in Birchleigh for a test period.
Please comments/reports to vubandplanning@sarl.org.za and also to vivdold@bestwebs.co.za.
PROPAGATION REPORT
Hannes Coetzee, ZS6BZP, reports that the solar activity is at low levels. Fortunately a new sunspot is rapidly growing in the south-eastern quadrant of the sun.
If you want to do your own frequency predictions the expected effective sunspot number for the week will be around 47.
All the bands from 20 to 10 m and especially 15 m will provide lots of DX fun with 10 m only opening sporadically due to the low solar activity.
Please visit www.spaceweather.co.za for further information.
DIARY OF EVENTS
11 – 12 February – SARL Field Day contest
19 February – last day for submitting logs for SARL field day contest
20 February – Last day for submission of logs for Antique Wireless Association CW activity day.
29 February – Leap year Challenge from 00:01 till 23:59.
21 March – ZS6ERB construction day.
20 – 22 April SARL Convention in Pinetown.
Remember, nominations for SARL awards, which will be presented at the gala dinner which will take place over the weekend of the 2012 SARL AGM may still be submitted. Send nominations to secretary@sarl.org.za.
SARL News invites clubs and individuals to submit news items of interest to radio amateurs and shortwave listeners. Submit news items - if possible - in both English and Afrikaans to www.sarl.org.za/newsinbox.asp, not later than the Thursday preceding the bulletin date.
The SARL also invites you to listen to Amateur Radio Today every Sunday morning at 10:00 CAT on 145,750 MHz in the Pretoria area, with relays on 7 082, 7 205 and 17 760 kHz. There is also a podcast by ZS6RO. For a web-stream and Echolink by ZS6FCS, visit www.sarl.org.za, click on 'Amateur Radio TODAY', go down the green column and click on 'LISTEN ON THE WEB'. A repeat transmission can be heard on Mondays at 17:30 UTC on 4 895 kHz. Sentech sponsors the ARMI transmissions on the non-amateur frequencies.
You have listened to a bulletin of the South African Radio League, compiled by George, ZS6NE.
Thank you for listening, 73.
/EX
