ARRL

Most hams know a little about Guglielmo Marconi’s work in bringing radio into the realm of practical use. This book tells the tale of Marconi’s invention in a thrilling way that you will enjoy, as well as the contemporary — and converging — tale of the man who has been called the second most gruesome murderer in the history of British crime. The author, Eric Larson, a skilled literary detective, provides exhaustive end notes to assure us that the tale has been told as it actually happened, rather than being embellished by his imagination.

ARRL Audio News--OPEN--In this edition . . .; ARRL Board Adopts Guidelines and Recommendations on the Appropriate Use of Amateur Radio; The 2010 ARRL Handbook: Our Biggest -- and Best -- Ever!; ARRL Audio News ID--Satellite Update--BREAK:; Nominations Now Being Accepted for 2009 ARRL Humanitarian Award; Ham Appointed Chief of Army MARS; IRCs: Out with the Old, In with the New; ARRL Audio News--News Briefs--CLOSE

With more than 60 authors and reviewers contributing over 70 percent of new or completely revised content, The 2010 ARRL Handbook for Radio Communications is the biggest Handbook ever. Since it was first published in 1926, the Handbook has been a mainstay for the radio electronic experimenter. A core resource for radio amateurs, hobbyists, engineers and scientists, the Handbook is the single most authoritative reference on practical communications topics. It is both reference book and tutorial, woven together with practical applications and solutions. The 2010 Handbook -- the 87th edition -- is both a useful introduction to radio communication and features the most current material on electronics and Amateur Radio.

When you earn an Amateur Radio license you join a global community of more than two million people who share your interest in radio communication as an avocation.

It is now time to start dumping your old International Reply Coupons (IRCs): The "Beijing Model No 2" must be redeemed before December 31, 2009.

Registration remains open through Sunday, October 25, 2009, for these online course sessions beginning on Friday, November 6, 2009: Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Level 1; Antenna Modeling; Radio Frequency Interference; Antenna Design and Construction; Ham Radio (Technician) License Course; Propagation; Analog Electronics, and Digital Electronics.

It all started because Chuck, N0EIS, told me to set up a SSTV (slow scan television) station.

The ARRL’s main Web server is scheduled to be down for system maintenance starting for approximately 3 hours, beginning at 2 AM (EDT) on Wednesday, September 30. During this time, the arrl.net e-mail forwarding service will continue as usual. Logbook of The World (LoTW) will not be affected and can be accessed during that time via its direct link.

Nominations are open for the 2009 ARRL International Humanitarian Award. The award is conferred upon an amateur or amateurs who demonstrate devotion to human welfare, peace and international understanding through Amateur Radio. The League established the annual prize to recognize Amateur Radio operators who have used ham radio to provide extraordinary service to others in times of crisis or disaster.

To celebrate the 64th General Assembly of the United Nations, 4U1UN -- the Amateur Radio station at the UN -- began operating as 4U64UN on September 22. According to The Daily DX, 4U64UN will be on the air for 64 days on all bands and modes. QSL via Logbook of The World (LoTW) or direct to Herbert Aeby, HB9BOU. Logs will be uploaded to LoTW once the event is over. QSL cards will be mailed out starting in December 2009.

On Friday, September 25, veteran Army communicator Jim Griffin, KE7LJA, became Chief of the Army Military Affiliate Radio System (MARS). Major General Susan Lawrence, Commanding General of the 9th Signal Command (Army), named Griffin to succeed Stuart Carter; Carter has held the Chief's post since December 2006. MARS, the Defense Department-sponsored organization of Amateur Radio operators who volunteer for communications support in emergencies, is a component of the 9th SC(A).

Stepping into a time machine set on "just out of sight" is always an adventure. It's important that we have a sense of our technological history if for no other reason than to enjoy the fun as old becomes new again. This month, see if some of these references don't tickle some long-disused neurons, some from books and some from personal experience! Questions of inventors and discoverers may tread some grey areas of historical priority, but the answers reflect the most widely accepted reading.

This week we had a double-dose of good news: Right at the time of the autumnal equinox on Tuesday, September 22, sunspot 1026 -- a new Solar Cycle 24 sunspot -- came into view over the Sun's eastern horizon. We watched this emerge a week ago on the Sun's far side via the STEREO project.

On Friday, September 25, the ARRL Board of Directors adopted guidelines on the appropriate use of Amateur Radio on behalf of commercial, non-profit and government entities, as well as recommendations for additional steps to be taken by the ARRL to educate radio amateurs and others on how to prepare and train for public service and emergency communications while complying with the current FCC Rules.

Aurora and the quest for that phenomena is the topic of this week's installment of Surfin'.

As mentioned in a previous article, the Force C-3S is a very robust Yagi and its design is ideal for extending coverage up to five bands by application of linear resonator techniques. One of the attractive design features is that the Force 12 antenna uses no traps, a buzz word for quite a while among serious DXers. From a mechanical and RF point of view the manufacturers deserve a lot of applause. A few of us in this area have had our C-3S Yagis survive the regular strong and gusty storms that are typical of winters near the most southern tip of Africa.

ARRL Audio News--OPEN--In this edition . . .; Preparations Underway for WRC-12; Changes in Store for The ARRL Letter; ARRL Audio News ID--Satellite Update--BREAK:; Call for Nominations: The ARRL's Bill Leonard, W2SKE Professional Media Award; Newly Elected Section Managers Converge on Newington; ARRL Membership Newsletters, Bulletins and Notifications; ARRL Audio News--News Briefs--CLOSE

This weekend, 12 Section Managers who are new -- or returning after a long absence -- to their post are in Newington for an orientation. The primary purposes of the Workshop sessions are to share ideas and to provide basic administrative, management, leadership and motivational training.

Early this morning (UTC), an Indian PSLV-C14 rocket carried the Oceansat-2 satellite to orbit, along with four CubeSats and two RubinSats. The RubinSats are 8 kg research modules that will remain attached to the PSLV-C14 booster.

Next month -- October 12-16 -- the ARRL will welcome students from various countries from all over the world who want to learn how to administer and regulate Amateur Radio programs in their home countries. This course, offered by the United States Telecommunications Training Institute (USTTI), will help participants create, administer and foster an Amateur Radio Service in their countries.