Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2449 for Friday October 4th, 2024
  
Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2449 with a release date of Friday, October 4th, 2024 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. Heroism among the devastation of Hurricane Helene. New life at the former site of the Arecibo radio telescope -- and the Wilderness Protocol helps with the dramatic rescue of a hiker in Idaho.  All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2449 comes your way right now.

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BILLBOARD CART

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HEROICS AMID HURRICANE HELENE'S DEVASTATION

NEIL/ANCHOR: Our top story is Hurricane Helene, which swept through the United States' southern states, bringing what is being called "unprecedented tragedy." Amateur radio can be at its best when times are at their worst, and Randy Sly W4XJ shares an example of that in one area of hardest-hit North Carolina.

RANDY: Since making landfall on the evening of September 26th, Hurricane Helene not only left a trail of devastation but also produced thousands of acts of heroism, especially in the remote areas of the United States impacted by flood waters. In addition to emergency personnel and first responders, those involved included helicopter pilots, teams with pack mules, and other volunteers, including hams providing emergency communications. 

Examples of live-saving communication could be heard around the clock on the W4HTP repeater at Mt. Mitchell North Carolina. On Saturday morning, September 28th, Dan Gitro, K2DMG, was in his ham shack and knew that the area was experiencing heavy rains. He got on the W4HTP repeater, which was surprisingly not busy, put out his call to see if anyone needed assistance and immediately received a number of responses from hams in the flooded areas. Since that time, he and the other net controls handled hundreds of health and welfare calls, maintaining continuous communications with the areas of Western North Carolina most seriously affected. 

Not only was the net professionally run as it passed health and welfare traffic but it maintained a personal touch, bringing news, hope and encouragement to those in the affected areas. Through the efforts of the repeater’s owner, Harold Perry, W4HTP, listeners from across the country were able to hear the repeater's traffic as it was re-broadcast through the web service, Broadcastify. Thomas Witherspoon, K4SWL, who was active on the repeater, also provided in-person coverage from Western North Carolina on his website QRPer.com

Hurricane Helene produced a path of destruction for nearly 800 miles from Florida’s Big Bend to Asheville North Carolina and farther north, leaving over 180 dead and hundreds more missing. The aftermath of this Category 4 hurricane brought flood waters of historic proportions and spawned more than 50 tornadoes in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, the Carolinas and nearby states. 

This is Randy Sly, W4XJ.

(ASSOCIATED PRESS; MT MITCHELL REPEATER W4HTP; QRPer.COM; NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER)

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BROADCAST STATIONS HIT HARD BY HURRICANE HELENE

NEIL/ANCHOR: Just as Hurricane Francine had done two weeks earlier in Louisiana, Hurricane Helene knocked numerous broadcast stations off the air -- this time, in a number of US southern states. Kent Peterson KCØDGY has that report.

KENT: Hurricane Helene, which had a death toll of over 180 and caused landslides, flooding and power outages, also knocked nearly 50 broadcast radio and TV stations off the air by Sunday, September 29th in a number of Southern states. Radio stations took the more severe  hit, cutting off one source of critical emergency broadcasts.

Based on outage data received after the storm made landfall in Florida on September 26th, the FCC's Disaster Information Reporting System looked at broadcast stations in Tennessee, Virginia, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, where the storm passed through. Forty-eight broadcast stations - both AM and FM - were knocked off the air while 6 TV stations were reported as having gone dark. Georgia took a particularly severe hit with 3 TV stations, 19 FM radio stations and 3 AM radio stations out of service. North and South Carolina also suffered major broadcast station outages.
According to The Desk, an industry website, most stations went off the air because they had lost power. Others reported transmitter damage as the cause.

The multi-state scene was a larger replay of what happened two weeks earlier in Louisiana, when at least five radio stations were knocked off the air after Hurricane Francine, a Category 2 storm, struck the region.

This is Kent Peterson KCØDGY.

(FCC; THEDESK.NET)

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WILDERNESS PROTOCOL AIDS RESCUE IN BACKCOUNTRY IDAHO

NEIL/ANCHOR: Hams' ability to follow the Wilderness Protocol proved lifesaving for one injured man in the hilly backcountry of Idaho. George Zafiropoulos KJ6VU has that story.

GEORGE: In January of 2023, Clearwater County Emergency Management's Don Gardner, W7PJ, gave a presentation to other members of the Clearwater Valley Amateur Radio Club about Wilderness Protocol, a method of monitoring frequencies outside repeater range in case emergencies occur in remote areas unserved by regular means of communication. That protocol was kicked swiftly into action for a group of hams on September 21st, after one of them found a severely injured man who had apparently suffered an accident on a gravel road with his four-wheeled off-road vehicle. According to a report in the Clearwater Tribune, Mac W7ENZ, found the man and while he tried to assist him, handed the ham radio he was carrying to Ed K7ELC. Ed called for assistance using 146.520 MHz, the VHF simplex radio frequency designated for Wilderness Protocol. Greg, WX7Z, heard the call and phoned 911. Don told Newsline that Greg knows the area well and was able to give specific directions for EMS and other responders to follow to reach the man. Greg also recommended a landing site for transportation by Life Flight.

Don told Newsline that the injured man, who had difficulty breathing, was in serious condition and transported by Life Flight to a hospital. He was determined to have suffered head injuries, a broken collarbone and broken ribs.

Don told the Clearwater Tribune: [quote] "The more that ham radio operators listen to the radio, the more the chance there is that someone will be listening to take your emergency call." [endquote]

This is George Zafiropoulos KJ6VU

(DON GARDNER, W7PJ; CLEARWATER TRIBUNE)

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MILESTONE: IARU HANDLES 1,000TH REQUEST FOR AMATEUR SATELLITE FREQUENCY

NEIL/ANCHOR: The International Amateur Radio Union, which coordinates the radio frequencies used by ham radio satellites, announced that it recently processed request number 1,000 for a satellite frequency. The IARU's Satellite Frequency Coordination Panel has faced new challenges in recent years with the increasing popularity and growth of CubeSats. With less onerous costs to launch these small satellites, the focus has been on carefully managing the spectrum and ensuring minimal interference with terrestrial services. The IARU issued a statement saying: [quote] "As Earth's orbit becomes more crowded, the IARU's work in frequency coordination will remain critical for future missions." [endquote]

(AMSAT NEWS SERVICE)

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SILENT KEYS: SRI LANKAN NOTABLES, VASANTH GURUGE, 4S7VG; SADEEPA SEPALA, 4S6SAD

NEIL/ANCHOR: The Sri Lankan amateur community has suffered the loss of two prominent, well-regarded amateurs, who became Silent Keys one day apart. We have that report from Jason Daniels VK2LAW.

JASON: It did not take long for Vasanth Guruge, 4S7VG, to make a name for himself among prominent DXers not long after receiving his licence in the mid-1970s. He was also devoted to making amateur radio better for all involved Sri Lankans. His devotion to that mission landed him twice in the role of president of the Radio Society of Sri Lanka - first from 2005 to 2007 and again from 2015 to 2016. The radio society referred to him as a [quote] "cornerstone of the Sri Lankan amateur radio community" [endquote] His many efforts included the establishment of key repeater stations at sites in Sri Lanka that improved communication and connectivity. The radio society statement said: [quote] "He was always willing to lend his time, knowledge, and resources, whether it was tuning duplexers or offering technical advice. Vasanth was not just a leader but a dear friend, mentor, and guiding force for many." [endquote] Vasanth, who died on the 15th of September, was 70.

Sri Lankan amateurs learned that one day earlier, on the 14th of September, Sadeepa Sepala, 4S6SAD, became a Silent Key. Sadeepa was a dependable mentor to operators utilizing the digital modes or the Automatic Packet Reporting System. He was, above all, a kind and respected mentor, according to the radio society website, which praised him for sharing his wide knowledge of astronomy, antenna theory, and radio science with hams and university undergraduates. He took a particular interest in encouraging young students to embrace radio science. The society said on the website: "His passing has left us all in shock."

This is Jason Daniels VK2LAW.

(RSSL; 425 DX BULLETIN)

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SILENT KEY: DEWAYNE HENDRICKS, WA8DZP

NEIL/ANCHOR: A well-known entrepreneur who had a lifelong fascination with all things wireless has become a Silent Key. We hear about him from Jack Parker W8ISH.

JACK: Dewayne Hendricks, WA8DZP, believed in the versatility of radios and the people who love to use them. A licensed ham since the age of 12, he enjoyed tinkering with wireless in its many forms starting in his teens. Much later in life - in business - he acquired the nickname, "The Broadband Cowboy," from Wired Magazine, in a nod to his work in helping bring wireless broadband networks to nations around the world where they were needed.

Dewayne became a Silent Key on the 20th of September. His longtime friend, Steve Stroh, N8GNJ, publisher of the "Zero Retries" weekly newsletter, said that his death came one month after he was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.

His activity in the wireless world was all-encompassing. He played a major role on the Grants Advisory Committee of Amateur Radio Digital Communications for three years, helping to ensure that a number of international projects received funding. According to the ARDC, he took particular pride in the Slippers2Sat project in Nepal which connected marginalized students with opportunities in space technology. Dewayne later followed up on the progress of many funded projects as an inaugural member of the Grants Evaluation Team.

His deep involvement in the wireless community also included posts he held with a number of nonprofit national amateur radio organizations. He had been a member of the FCC's Technological Advisory Council and a director of the Wireless Communications Alliance, an industry group representing companies making equipment for the license-free frequencies.

This is Jack Parker W8ISH.

(ARDC, ZERO RETRIES)

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BREAK HERE:

Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio Newsline heard on bulletin stations around the world including D-STAR Reflector 91C on Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. local time in Melbourne, Australia.


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RADIO TELESCOPE SITE TO REOPEN AS SCIENCE EDUCATION CENTER

NEIL/ANCHOR: In Puerto Rico, the site where the iconic Arecibo radio telescope once stood is being readied for a new role in the world of science. Andy Morrison K9AWM explains what's coming next.

ANDY: Arecibo C3, the US National Science Foundation's educational science center, is preparing for a full opening soon at the site where the legendary Arecibo Observatory reigned until damages suffered in 2020 compelled the radio telescope's dismantling.

The new facility in Puerto Rico is formally known as the NSF Arecibo Center for Culturally Relevant and Inclusive Science Education, Computational Skills, and Community Engagement. According to its website, the center is building on the legacy of the radio telescope, serving as an epicenter of STEM education research and skill building. Conferences, meetings and workshops will be held there along with public science programs.

An assistant director of the science foundation, James L. Moore III, said in a public statement that the center will embrace all ranges of science from astronomy and radio science to biology, computer science and natural science. Students and educators visited the center this past summer to attend some of the programs that were launched on a pilot basis.

This is Andy Morrison K9AWM.

(IFL SCIENCE, ARECIBO C3 WEBSITE)

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RUSSIA, BELARUS, ELIGIBLE AGAIN FOR CQ-SPONSORED CONTEST AWARDS

NEIL/ANCHOR: CQ World Wide contests have announced a return to a practice regarding award eligibility. We have those details from Sel Embee KB3TZD. 

SEL: Following meetings with contest directors and World Wide Radio Operators Foundation leadership, the organizers of CQ World Wide contests have restored eligibility for awards to qualifying amateurs from Russia and Belarus. That policy change took effect during the weekend of the CQ World Wide RTTY contest, which took place on the 28th and 29th of September.

CQ World Wide Contest Director John Dorr, K1AR, announced on the contest blog that the elimination of those operators' eligibility for award plaques -- a decision made two years ago -- was never formally incorporated into any contest rules; it was merely a policy statement. That policy is no longer in effect, bringing the contests into alignment with so many other competitions around the world.

This is Sel Embee K-B-3-T-Zed-D.

(CQ WW CONTEST BLOG) 

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WORLD OF DX

In the World of DX, listen for Markus, DJ4EL, operating as A5/DJ4EL from the islands of Benidorm, Escombreras, and Tabarca, all part of IOTA group number EU-093, from the 17th through to the 25th of October. See QRZ.com for QSL and operating details.

Find Aldir, PY1SAD, active as 8R1TM from Georgetown, Guyana between the 12th of October and the 24th of November. He will be using CW, SSB and digital modes on all bands. He will also be operating satellite. For QSL information, see QRZ.com.

Bo, OZ1DJJ [Oh Zed One Dee Jay Jay] is using the callsign OX3LX [Oh X Three L X] from Greenland until the 15th of October. For QSL and operating details see QRZ.com

(425 DX BULLETIN)

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KICKER: A QSO TO REMEMBER, 100 YEARS LATER

NEIL/ANCHOR: Our final story begins 100 years ago. In October of 1924, a young radio enthusiast in North London, England and a sheep farmer in New Zealand changed the shape of the world via radio with a remarkable on-air contact. Now, amateur stations are getting ready to celebrate that QSO's centennial. Jim Meachen ZL2BHF tells us what's going on.

JIM: Hams in the UK and New Zealand are getting ready to activate special callsigns to mark the first trans-global two-way radio communication and will be operating from the locations where it happened: the Mill Hill School in North London where young Cecil Goyder, G2SZ, made radio contact with Frank Bell, Z4AA, a ham in Shag Valley, Otago. The date of the hour-long CW contact was the 18th of October 1924. 

Here is the voice of the late Frank Bell, who in 1974 recalled that day on the occasion of the QSO's 50th anniversary: [insert clip starting at 1:29] "We were both a bit shocked I suppose, really, and Cecil Goyder, whom I was talking to in Mill Hill School near London, he said he was a bit skeptical about it, he said if you are really New Zealand 4AA, cable. Which we did and from then on pretty well every night, for several nights running, we kept in touch." [end clip]

Cecil's callsign will be back on the air in hopes of contacting hams around the world as operators call CQ from the school from the 14th through to the 20th of October. Frank's original callsign has been modified to ZL4AA for the New Zealand operation which will be on the air from the 12th through to the 20th of October.

The big day, of course, is the 18th of October, when hams will re-enact that first contact, using a frequency as close as possible to the 1924 original, which was around 92 metres).

Meanwhile, be listening as well for other stations taking part in the celebration: GB2NZ is on the air through the 26th of October 2024 throughout the UK. ZM100DX is on the air through the 26th of December throughout New Zealand. The New Zealand station will be using CW, SSB and a number of other modes. The QSL manager for all four special-event calls is MØOXO [M Zero Oh Ex Oh].

See GB2NZ dot com (GB2NZ.com) for further details.

This is Jim Meachen ZL2BHF.

(NZNET NEWS, RSGB)

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HAIKU FOR YOU

Don't forget the Amateur Radio Newsline haiku challenge. If you're not too busy tuning your antennas or chasing the latest DXpedition, pick up a pencil and share your experience by sending an original haiku to us here at Newsline. Use the entry form on our website, arnewsline.org and please follow the rules for writing your three-line haiku -- sorry but we cannot accept any entries that aren't written in traditional haiku form. Share with fellow listeners the poetry that is inspired by your ham radio experience!

NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Amateur Radio Weekly; AMSAT News Service; Arecibo C3 website; Associated Press; Amateur Radio Digital Communications; ARRL; Clearwater Tribune; CQ WorldWide Contest Blog; David Behar K7DB; TheDesk.net; Don Gardner, W7PJ; FCC; 425DXNews; IFL Science; Mt. Mitchell Repeater; National Hurricane Center; NZ Net Newsletter; QRZ.com; Radio Society of Great Britain; QRPer.com; Radio Society of Sri Lanka; shortwaveradio.de; Zero Retries; and you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline.  We remind our listeners that Amateur Radio Newsline is an all-volunteer non-profit organization that incurs expenses for its continued operation. If you wish to support us, please visit our website at arnewsline.org and know that we appreciate you all. We also remind our listeners that if you like our newscast, please leave us a 5-star rating wherever you subscribe to us. For now, with Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and our news team worldwide, I'm Neil Rapp WB9VPG in Union Kentucky saying 73. As always we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2024. All rights reserved.