SOUTH AFRICAN RADIO LEAGUE NEWS SUNDAY 15 MAY 2016

Good morning and welcome to the weekly news bulletin of the South African Radio League read by ................ [your name, call sign and QTH]
You may tune in to the South African Radio League news bulletin on Sunday mornings, at 08:15 Local Time in Afrikaans and at 08:30 Local Time in English, on HF as well as on many VHF and UHF repeaters around the country. Echolink listeners may connect to ZS0JPL for a relay.
This audio bulletin may be downloaded from the League website at www.sarl.org.za where you will find this as well as previous bulletins in text format under the news link on the left-hand side of the web page. While you are there, you may sign up to receive future bulletins by e-mail.
IN THE NEWS TODAY
NEXT WEEKEND SEES THE SARL AGM
HAMNET BREAKING GROUND IN THE VAAL TRIANGLE
SANSA EXECUTIVE TO DELIVER KEYNOTE AT AMSAT SA SYMPOSIUM

*** By this time next week the 2016 SARL Convention and the AGM will be a thing of the past. Time is running out for you to register for this very important annual amateur radio event, which takes place between 20 and 22 May 2016. After Saturday morning’s AGM there will be an afternoon program which includes items by, AMSAT SA, BAKAR, HAMNET, 4x4 Megaworld and much more.

Please note if you are a SARL member your spouse does not have to pay the R450 NON MEMBER FEE.

Please visit www.sarl.org.za for more information

Sasolburg radio club can't wait to be your host.

PLEASE NOTE: Next week’s SARL news might be later than normal in order for us to accomodate the latest news from the AGM.
**** "The benefits of investing in Space Technologies: A look at the South African National Space Agency and the role it plays in South Africa" will be the subject of the keynote address by Amal Khatri. Executive Director: Space Programme of the SANSA Space Programme Division. The symposium will be held at the Innovation Hub, in Pretoria on Saturday 28 May 2016

The Innovation Hub is close to the N1 highway and offers lots of secure parking close to the building. The full programme, details of how to get to the Innovation Hub and the full programme are available on www.amsatsa.org.za. . Make use of the early bird discount option which is available. Early bird booking was to end today but has been extended until Tuesday 17 May to allow for the weekend. Accommodation is available at the City Lodge Hotel at Lynwood Bridge at special rates. To make a booking or to receive the programme and booking form by email send a request to saamsat@intekom.co.za

*** The Vaal HAMNET team provided communications during a local church organized fun run on the 7 May 2016. The event was preceded by a day of training and preparation on the 27 April 2016. During this training the team collected the JOC trailer from the Gauteng South HAMNET team. Other training focussed on radio procedure, and the identification of high risk points along the route.

The Vaal HAMNET team consisted of Frik ZS6FZ, Imile ZS6IDB, Frans ZS4FD, Koos ZS6KDL, Jaco ZS6KJ, Gideon ZS4GJA, Riaan ZS4PR, Chané ZS4CG, Friedrich ZS4WJ, Erich ZS4VW, and two new RAE candidates for the current May 2016 exam, Jaco and Nico.

Non HAMNET members were paired with members allowing the deployment of two persons per check point. Allen ZS6HWG of HAMNET Vaal participated in the actual event visiting all the checkpoints along the route. Allen kept tabs on the team by means of a 2 meter handie talkie.

**** Look out for the Vaal and Gauteng South HAMNET teams who will join forces during next weekend's SARL National Convention in Sasolburg.

The Sasolburg radio club is happy to release the results of the ZS4 Sprint held on the 24 April 2016. 14 logs were received, one being a check log by ZT4T. First place with 78 points was ZS5MAX. Second place was taken by ZS2JV with 67 points and third goes to ZS4DZ with 58 points. Thank you for all the entries. The complete list is published on the forum and HF Happenings. The certificates will be sent via e-mail within the next couple of days.

**** According to Selim Alpuva, M0XTA, in his discussion on the SARL VHF Forum, there are currently signs in the United Kingdom, Europe and beyond where interest in amateur radio on VHF and above is decreasing. If this is true and if the trend should continue then amateur radio would be in real trouble in the future, and could ultimately end up like the dodo. Unfortunately, some outsiders only view amateur radio as a glorified form of CB radio and a hobby, and do not know anything about its real history. But it is not all doom and gloom and radio amateurs could fight back as they have done in 1919 to survive, when amateur radio was banned worldwide after World War I.

Amateur Radio should have a good look at itself and discard all those old ideas that are no longer relevant in this modern world, such as the label of only being a hobby and nothing else, and redefine itself. It should present a new PR face to the world under the banner of the Amateur Radio Service as designated by the ITU. Amateur Radio could be further enhanced by widening the field of its radio activity to cover the latest developments in radio science and technology, such as radio astronomy and space communications etc. Bear in mind that it was a radio amateur, Grote Reber, W9GFZ, who pioneered radio astronomy in 1936, he was the first person to map the radio sky, and became a professional radio astronomer after WWII in the new science of radio astronomy. A new look Amateur Radio should promote its multi facet nature, become more attractive to young people, and also make a greater appeal to technical and scientifically orientated students.

*** The ZS3 Sprint is on the air from 14:00 to 15:00 UTC this afternoon and you have an opportunity to make phone and CW contacts with radio amateurs in the Northern Cape. The exchange is RS(T) and provincial or country abbreviation. Activity will take place between 7 000 to 7 040 kHz for CW and 7 063 to 7 100 and 7 130 to 7 200 kHz for phone. Contacts with stations in ZS3 are worth 2 points and all other contacts are worth 1 point. Contacts with the Northern Cape ARC, ZS3NC, Namaqualand Aero Sport Association, ZS3FLY, the Kalahari Karoo ARC, ZS3ARK, and the Sutherland ARC, ZS3OBS, are worth 5 points each. Only one contact per station is allowed. Logs, labeled "your call sign ZS3 Sprint," must be sent by e-mail to zs3nc@qsl.net by 22 May 2016. The 2016 Blue Book contains all the details.
PROPAGATION REPORT

Hannes Coetzee, ZS6BZP, reports that the solar activity is expected to remain at low levels. All the visible sunspots are currently stable with very little chance for serious solar flares.

If you want to do your own frequency predictions, the expected effective sunspot number for the week will be around 37.

The 20 to 15 metre bands will provide lots DX fun with some 10 metre openings also possible on sunlit paths.

Please visit the website spaceweather.sansa.org.za for further information.


Before we end this mornings bulletin let us have a look at some upcoming events:

Next weekend, Friday 20 to Sunday 22 May sees the SARL National Convention and AGM taking place in Sasolburg
23 May – Deadline for the June Radio ZS Articles
29 May – SARL Digital contest, and
12 June - The HAMMIES sprint as well as the youth net

To end this bulletin a reminder that next weekend sees the SARL AGM in Sasolburg. Please hurry to register for this very important annual amateur radio event.
And that brings us to the end of this bulletin
** Clubs and individuals are invited to submit news items of interest to radio amateurs and shortwave listeners, if possible, in both English and Afrikaans, by following the news inbox link on the South African Radio League web page. News items for inclusion in the bulletin should reach the news team no later than the Thursday preceding the bulletin date.
You are welcome to join us every Sunday morning for the weekly amateur radio magazine programme 'Amateur Radio Today' at 10:00 Central African Time. The programme can be heard on VHF and UHF repeaters countrywide and on 7 082 kHz lower side-band and on 7 205 kHz and 17 760 kHz AM. There is also a podcast available from Dick Stratford, ZS6RO. A rebroadcast can be heard on Monday evenings at 18:30 Central African Time on 3 230 kHz AM.
We welcome your signal reports, comments and suggestions; please send these by e-mail to artoday@sarl.org.za. Sentech sponsors the radio transmissions on the non-amateur frequencies.
You have listened to a news bulletin compiled and edited by Dawie Conradie, ZR6DHC, proofread by Dick Stratford, ZS6RO, and read by ..............
From the news team, best wishes for the week ahead.
/EX