Volume 16, Number 42 (October 24, 1997)

ARRL Audio News from this edition is available at http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/ for two weeks after publication.

Address Changes: Kathy Capodicasa, N1GZO, e-mail kcapodicasa@arrl.org.

Editorial: Rick Lindquist, N1RL, e-mail elindquist@arrl.org.

IN THIS EDITION:

FCC ISSUES NEW FORM 610 -- OLD VERSIONS OBSOLETE

The FCC announced this week that as of January 1, 1998, Amateur Radio applicants may only submit FCC Forms 610, 610 A and 610B that carry an edition date of September 1997. After the first of the new year, previous editions of Form 610 will not be accepted for filing by the FCC or by Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (VECs). Amateurs may begin using the new Form 610s now.

The major change on the new form is a certification that says the applicant has "read and will comply with Section 97.13(c) of the Commission's Rules" regarding RF radiation safety and the amateur service section of OST/OET Bulletin No 65, Evaluating Compliance with FCC-Specified Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Fields. But, Amateur Radio Supplement B of Bulletin 65, which has additional information on how to conduct a routine RF safety evaluation and explains other aspects of RF safety, is still in the draft stages and not yet available to the ham radio community.

ARRL Executive Vice President David Sumner, K1ZZ, says the League is concerned that that the new Form 610 could be in the hands of hams before Amateur Radio Supplement B is complete. Sumner says it's essential that the FCC make Supplement B available in time for hams to complete their evaluations to meet the deadlines in the rules.

ARRL Lab Supervisor Ed Hare, W1RFI, who's been involved in reviewing the draft supplement, said he expects the FCC to release it sometime in November. The ARRL will release a book on the new RF safety regulations near the end of the year. "Above all, it is important that the required station evaluation be as easy as possible for hams," Hare said. "The FCC has pretty much met that goal. Additionally, most hams, by virtue of their power levels, will not need to do an evaluation at all."

Section 97.13(c) reads: Before causing or allowing an amateur station to transmit from any place where the operation of the station could cause human exposure to RF electromagnetic field levels in excess of those allowed under §1.1310 of this chapter, the licensee is required to take certain actions.

  1. The licensee must perform the routine RF environmental evaluation prescribed by §1.1307(b) of this chapter, if the transmitter PEP exceeds the following limits: 160-40 meters, 500 W; 30 meters, 425 W (legal limit is 200 W --Ed); 20 meters, 225 W; 17 meters, 125 W; 15 meters, 100 W; 12 meters, 75 W; 10 meters, 50 W; VHF (all bands), 50 W; 70 cm, 70 W; 33 cm 150 W; 23 cm, 200 W, 13 cm 250 W, SHF/EHF (all bands) 250 W.

  2. If the routine environmental evaluation indicates that the RF electromagnetic fields could exceed the limits contained in §1.1310 of this chapter in accessible areas, the licensee must take action to prevent human exposure to such RF electromagnetic fields. Further information on evaluating compliance with these limits can be found in the FCC's OET Bulletin 65, Evaluating Compliance with FCC-Specified Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Fields.

The new Forms 610 may be obtained from the FCC' Web site via the Internet at http://www.fcc.gov/formpage.html, at ftp://ftp.fcc.gov/pub/Forms/ or by fax at 202-418-0177 (request index, or for Form 610 use form code 000610, for Form 610A use form code 006101, for Form 610B use form code 006102). The FCC Forms Distribution Center will accept FCC forms orders by calling 800-418-3676.

ARRL VEs and VE teams will be able to obtain a supply of the new Forms 610 in mid to late November--once the ARRL/VEC has had time to obtain a supply of the new forms.

Individual amateurs may obtain a copy of the new Form 610 by sending a self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) to: ARRL/VEC, 225 Main St, Newington CT 06111. Include 32 cents postage for each Form 610 requested (this is a four page form).

For general information, contact the FCC, 1270 Fairfield Rd, Gettysburg, PA 17325-7245, or call the FCC's National Call Center at 888-225-5322 (CALL FCC). --FCC

ARRL TO CONTINUE PUSH FOR FEDERAL PREEMPTION

The ARRL Executive Committee has voted to have the League continue to urge adoption of the antenna regulatory preemption policies contained in its petition, RM-8763. The action came on a motion from ARRL Vice President Steve Mendelsohn, W2ML, as the Executive Committee met October 11 in Philadelphia.

The League's petition, filed in February 1996, seeks enhancement of the PRB-1 limited federal preemption of state and local regulation of Amateur Radio antennas. However, the FCC appears to have made no progress with regard to the petition, which asked the FCC to declare that localities must find the least restrictive means to deal with ham radio. Among other things, the petition called on the Commission to amend Section 97.15(e) of the rules to say that any state or local antenna restrictions limiting ham radio antennas to heights below 70 feet would be "presumed unreasonable," unless the state or local authority could show its restrictions were necessary for health, safety or aesthetic reasons.

It was also announced at the Executive Committee meeting that the League will submit comments in Mass Media Bureau Docket 97-182 supporting a comprehensive antenna facilities siting policy, including amateur antenna structures.

The ARRL also continues to pursue FCC preemption of local and state attempts to regulate in the area of RF radiation safety.

The Committee also was told that numerous comments, most of them supportive, were filed on the ARRL's petition (RM-9150) seeking to improve the FCC's handling of private-sector complaints of serious amateur rules violations. The League has filed reply comments in the matter.

In other matters, the Executive Committee

  • responded to a request from Southwestern Division Director Fried Heyn, WA6WZO, that the ARRL study a possible expansion of the existing special event call sign program to include call signs other than the 1x1 format now available. ARRL Executive Vice President David Sumner, K1ZZ, told the Committee that demand for 1x1 special event call signs has been low. Just 54 call signs were coordinated during the first six weeks of the new program that lets clubs or individuals reserve 1x1 special event call signs for temporary use via the Internet. Sumner noted, however, that there is some demand for special event call signs outside of the 1x1 block.

  • will recommend to the ARRL Board of Directors the creation of the category of International member that would encompass present Associate members who are licensed but are not eligible for Full membership. In addition, the Board will hear a recommendation to have the International Affairs Vice President "bring to the Board the concerns of members in other countries."

  • will recommend to the Board that the Technical Excellence Award be renamed the Doug DeMaw Technical Excellence Award, as requested by several members who have earned this award.

  • agreed that the League will file in opposition to a waiver request and petition for rulemaking by Sierra Digital Communications Inc. Sierra Digital Communications seeks increased power for its product -- an unlicensed point-to-point data communications link operating under Part 15 rules at 24 GHz.

  • voted that the President and Executive Vice President shall develop a plan to reinitiate the strategic planning process.

SPUTNIK MODEL LAUNCH NOW SET FOR EARLY NOVEMBER

The latest information about the launch of that working model Sputnik 1 from the Russian Mir space station is that it will take place in early November. According to information received October 17 from Sergei Sambourov, chief of the cosmonaut Amateur Radio department for Russia's Energia space agency, the Sputnik 1 model will be launched November 3 during a spacewalk, although he cautioned that schedule could change. Two identical copies of the model Sputnik, assembled by students in Russia and equipped with a 2-meter transmitter by students in France, now are aboard Mir. They were carried to the space station earlier this month by a Progress supply rocket. Program sponsors initially intended to have the working Sputnik model launched from Mir on October 4, the 40th anniversary of the original Sputnik 1 satellite.

One of the working models of the Sputnik-40, as it's called, is to be hand-released by the Mir crew during the space walk. Latest information indicates the mini-satellite will transmit a "beep-beep" signal on or about 145.82 MHz (FM) from its 200-mW onboard transmitter. The batteries are expected to last a month or two. A QSL card will be available for those who receive the signal.

Guy Pignolet, secretary of the Aero-Club of France and an engineer with the French Space Agency said the project still needs financial support. "We have a lot of unpaid bills (we had to go ahead), and we still need about nine sponsors at $6000 each," Pignolet said. He says the program would very much like to have US companies or even individuals "share the adventure together with the Russian and the French sponsors." A Brazilian company, TECSAT, this week signed on to sponsor the Sputnik 40 Years school satellite program.

For more information, contact Pignolet at 2 place Maurice Quentin, 75039 Paris Cedex 01, France; e-mail pignolet@francenet.fr. For additional details and photos see http://www.oceanes.fr/~fr5fc/spoutnik.html.

4U1WRC TO MARK WRC-97

The International Amateur Radio Club in Geneva will operate 4U1ITU under the call sign 4U1WRC to mark the Radiocommunication Assembly (RA-97) and the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-97) that get underway there later this month. A commemorative QSL card will be available for contacts between October 20 and November 21, 1997.

4U1WRC will be operational in all modes, including PACTOR and CLOVER.

4U1ITU is maintained by the IARC for the use and benefit of club members and by other licensed radio amateurs. It's intended "to serve as a model of amateur radio operation at its highest standard." The station is located at ITU headquarters. QSL to IARC, Box 6, CH-1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland.

For more information, see http://www.itu.int/radioclub. -- Philippe Capitaine, HB9RKG/IARC

FCC SETS PUERTO RICO RADIO ASTRONOMY COORDINATION ZONE

Ham radio installations will be largely unaffected by a new radio astronomy "coordination zone" that the FCC established late last month in Puerto Rico. The FCC agreed to exclude all amateur stations except new or modified beacon and repeater stations within 10 miles of the Arecibo Radio Astronomy Observatory near Arecibo, Puerto Rico. "We believe that the observatory is a unique scientific tool and find that harmful interference to the observatory's operations is a serious concern," the FCC said in rendering its decision, released October 15.

In comments filed with the Commission, the ARRL and the Puerto Rico Amateur Radio League, had said that including hams in the coordination zone would be inconsistent with the exclusion of CAP repeaters. Both organizations also argued that including some ham operations would "ruin a good informal working relationship between the amateur community and the observatory."

Cornell University, which runs the observatory, requested that new beacons and repeaters should not be exempted because of their interference potential. The FCC concluded that ham beacons and repeaters have a greater potential than CAP or MARS service repeaters and encouraged informal coordination among amateurs and the observatory.

The new rules do not apply to beacons or repeaters operating at 1.2 cm or shorter wavelengths (15 GHz and higher). The rules require new or modified (ie, change in frequency, power, antenna height, or antenna directivity) beacons or repeaters to notify the observatory in writing of the technical parameters of the proposal. The observatory has 20 days to object to the FCC, which will "consider all aspects of the problem and take whatever action is deemed appropriate." --FCC

FCC SEQUENTIAL CALL SIGN UPDATE

The following is a list of FCC sequentially assigned call signs issued as of October 1, 1997.

DistrictGroup A ExtraGroup B AdvancedGroup C Tech/GenGroup D Novice
0AB0GHKI0KE++KC0CAA
1AA1SSKE1IPN1ZSQKB1CFD
2AB2EHKG2MP++KC2CLQ
3AA3QIKF3AJN3ZXIKB3BVI
4AF4FSKU4LB++KF4UEF
5AC5NXKM5MG++KD5CIQ
6AD6DFKQ6RZ++KF6NMB
7AB7WMKK7KB++KC7ZHD
8AB8BGKI8DU++KC8IOH
9AA9UYKG9LK++KB9RLN
N Mariana IslandNH0BAH0AYKH0GTWH0ABI
Guam++AH2DEKH2SLWH2ANV
HawaiiAH7VAH6PDKH7GUWH6DEI
American SamoaAH8PAH8AHKH8DKWH8ABF
AlaskaAL0FAL7QUKL0KKWL7CUM
Virgin Islands++KP2CMNP2JTWP2AIJ
Puerto RicoNP3OKP3BCNP3REWP4NMM

++ All call signs in this group have been issued in this district.

KB7LPW GIVES UP HAM SHOW FOR PING PONG

Len Winkler, KB7LPW, says he's giving up his weekly Ham Radio & More radio program to concentrate on his new table tennis club in Phoenix, appropriately called Table Tennis & More. "October 26 will be the final live Show for Ham Radio & More," Winkler announced recently, citing "the lack of financial sponsors" for his decision. "I wish the best to Amateur Radio and will continue to enjoy using the bands and the excitement it creates."

Winkler, who has sounded the death knell for HR&M before, is sticking to his October 26 sign-off date "unless a minor miracle occurs by then, which I am not pursuing." The Ham Radio & More Show was on the air for nearly seven years. For much of that time, the program was syndicated by KFNN -- a Phoenix AM station -- to local broadcast outlets. More recently, it has been available only via shortwave broadcaster WWCR and via RealAudio on the Internet.

Winkler says table tennis has always been one of his passions and he recently opened up his public club and pro shop in Phoenix. "It will take time to build, but I really enjoy playing and coaching," he said.

For more information, see http://www.goodnet.com/~lenwink/ttm.htm.

AMSAT-NA BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETS, ELECTS OFFICERS

Bill Tynan, W3XO, will continue as president of AMSAT-NA for another year. Tynan was re-elected during a meeting of the AMSAT-NA Board of Directors during the recent 1997 AMSAT-NA Annual Meeting and Space Symposium in Toronto, Ontario. Also re-elected was Executive Vice President Keith Baker, KB1SF, and Vice President, Operations Keith Pugh, W5IU. Stan Wood, WA4NFY, succeeds Dick Jansson, WD4FAB, as vice president, engineering . Jansson had previously indicated he intended to step down but has agreed to complete all of the remaining engineering tasks on his schedule up through and including the launch of Phase 3D. Martha Saragovitz was elected secretary.

The Board named Perry Klein, W3PK, as founding president emeritus. He joins Tom Clark, W3IWI, as an AMSAT-NA president emeritus.

Newly elected board members Joe Holman, AD7D, and Wood joined their colleagues Clark, Tynan, Baker, Dick Daniels, W4PUJ, and Andy MacAllister, W5ACM during the meetings October 19 and 20. Wood and Phase 3D Integration Laboratory Manager Lou McFadin, W5DID, presented a complete rundown of the status of the Phase 3D spacecraft. Significant progress has been made on upgrading the spacecraft structure since last summer, and those structural modifications are now nearing completion. While work on several systems remains, the spacecraft is becoming flight-ready.

The Board also agreed -- in cooperation with Tucson Amateur Packet Radio (TAPR) -- to help an ongoing effort to minimize the impact of moving current APRS users off 145.79 MHz. The Board agreed to donate up to $500 to help defray needed expenses of various fixed-frequency APRS node operators to find new homes for their operations. If it proves acceptable to the APRS community, the frequency shift would contribute to an effort to clear 145.80 MHz for worldwide use by Mir, SAREX and the International Space Station.

Tynan also welcomed former ARRL New England Director Bill Burden, WB1BRE, as AMSAT-NA's new vice president for strategic planning. "Bill brings a wealth of experience in both engineering project management as well as in planning corporate strategic initiatives to the AMSAT team," AMSAT-NA said in a news release. "His skill and experience will prove invaluable as AMSAT contemplates future projects beyond Phase 3D."

The board also selected a team headed by AMSAT Journal Editor Russ Tillman, KC5JVB, to host next year's AMSAT Annual Meeting and Space Symposium in Vicksburg, Mississippi. The date for that convention has not been set.

Details of the Ontario meeting and conference proceedings will appear in an upcoming edition of AMSAT Journal. --AMSAT News Service/Keith Baker, KB1SF

SOLAR UPDATE

Solar seer Tad Cook, K7VVV Seattle, Washington, reports: Unfortunately, solar activity is continuing a downward drift, which was unexpected following the recent hopeful signs from solar cycle 23. Average solar flux was off about one point last week referenced to the previous week, and sunspot numbers are down as well.

Solar flux on the last four days of this week has been below the average for the previous 90 days--never a good sign. The only consolation has been stable geomagnetic conditions with low K and A indices, but this may change, since on Tuesday there was a coronal mass ejection from the Sun. This might produce some unstable conditions for the CQ WW contest this weekend, but forecasters are not certain. Based on the 27.5 day solar rotation, solar flux is expected to drift around the low 80s over the next few weeks. On the day that this bulletin was written, the solar flux even dipped just below 80. The solar flux has not been this low in about two months.

Sunspot numbers for October 16 through 22 were 45, 52, 45, 37, 25, 27 and 13 with a mean of 34.9. The 10.7-cm flux was 87.5, 88.2, 86.6, 85.3, 82.8, 85 and 80.7, with a mean of 85.2, and estimated planetary A indices were 3, 5, 3, 3, 6, 4, and 5, with a mean of 4.1.

Contesters: Here's additional information from the University of Lethbridge, provided by Cary Oler, relating to coronal mass ejections from the sun during the past week:

HF propagation conditions were normal over the last 24 hours. Approximately one more day of near-normal propagation is expected to dominate before conditions become more disturbed. HF propagation conditions are expected to become degraded on October 25 and 26 in response to the arrival of several coronal mass ejections observed over the last three to four days.

Night-sector transpolar and transauroral circuits are expected to be the most heavily impacted, with periods of poor to very poor propagation expected in response to strong fading, multipathing and enhanced absorption levels. There will also be a chance for VHF backscatter-type communications during disturbed intervals. There may be an interval of approximately 12 to 18 hours after the arrival of the main disturbance on October 25 where activity may appear to improve, but this is expected to be fairly short-lived as the latest observed coronal mass ejection impacts the Earth and poor propagation resumes over these middle and high latitude circuits. No significant improvements are expected until October 27 or 28--barring further solar outbursts.

ROBERT M. MORRIS, W2LV, SK

Inventor, researcher and radio pioneer Bob Morris, W2LV, of Sparta, New Jersey, died October 15. He was 95. Morris was first licensed in 1922 as 2CQZ. He became 2LV (later W2LV) in the late 1920s. Early in his amateur career, Morris' 2CQZ (running a spark gap transmitter) was among the stations heard in Great Britain and in Europe during the ARRL's Third Transatlantic Tests (see QST, Feb 1923). He later worked with Edwin H. Armstrong, the man credited with inventing FM, and he is credited with developing FM radio as well as VU meters and early TV standards. He retired in 1966 after a 42-year career as an inventor, researcher, and broadcast engineer.

Among other citations, he received the Engineering Achievement award from the National Association of Broadcasters and the Jack Poppele Award from the Radio Club of America. A noted broadcasting historian and storyteller, Morris appeared in Ken Burns' documentary Empire of the Air--the Men who Made Radio. He was a member of the ARRL for 75 years, a founding member of the Antique Wireless Association and of the New Jersey DX Association, and a member of the Sussex County Amateur Radio Club.

Survivors include his wife, Dorothy, a son and daughter, and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Services were October 18. The family has asked that donations in Bob Morris' memory be made to the Antique Wireless Association, c/o Dexter Deeley, Treasurer, 8 Briar Cir, Rochester, NY 14618.--thanks to Deb McKay, N2TTP

IN BRIEF:

  • This weekend on the radio: One of the big ones, the CQ WW DX Contest (SSB), is on tap, plus the Ten-Ten International Net Fall CW Contest.

  • Mir PMS is QRX: Because of his heavy workload aboard Mir, US astronaut Dave Wolf, KC5VPF, has not had any spare time to read or respond to the mail on the Mir's packet system (PMS or personal message system). The packet mailbox is full, however, so Wolf has shut down the packet system until he has some spare time to read and respond to the mail there. He expects to be back on the air soon. --Miles Mann, WF1F

  • ARRL debuts 160-meter book: The ARRL will introduce DXing on the Edge--the Thrill of 160 Meters, by Jeff Briggs, K1ZM, in late November. DXing on the Edge gives an insider's view at what it takes to make it on 160 meters and includes lots of interesting Topband history. See http://www.arrl.org/catalog/6354/ for a preview and ordering details.

  • W3XO elected Radio Club of America fellow: AMSAT-NA President Bill Tynan, W3XO, has been elected a fellow of the Radio Club of America. He's scheduled to receive his award at the club's annual dinner on November 21 in New York. The Radio Club of America, founded January 2, 1909, is the world's oldest radio communications society. The Club provides grants in aid to educational institutions and other worthy causes related to radio communications, as well as sponsoring technical meetings and publishing a journal, Proceedings. --AMSAT News Service/Ray Soifer, W2RS

  • Congratulations! Joseph L. Simon III, KF6ACO, of Alamo, California, passed his Extra class exam this week. His upgrade was issued the day before he turned 11!

  • First China-EME QSO: BY1QH, the Tsinghua University Amateur Radio Club station in Beijing, made three successful EME QSOs last weekend, October 18. So says David Zhang, the club's president and a third-year engineering student. BY1QH was running 200 W into a 36-element antenna. Zhang says the group got major technical assistance from Lars, SM0KAK, who currently works and lives in the Chinese capital. When all was said and done, BY1QH had worked three stations in Sweden. --Rick Niu, BD1QL via Moon-Net

  • NYC Marathon volunteers sought: The New York City Marathon is an annual event that affords Amateur Radio operators a chance to provide a needed public service. Every year in November, approximately 4000 runners embark on a 26-mile run. This year's event, held on November 2, will need at least 400 communicators. You'll need a dual-band (2 meters/70 cm) hand-held transceiver. Interested volunteers should contact Steve Mendelsohn, W2ML, at w2ml@arrl.org as soon as possible. The message subject should be "Marathon Volunteer." The message body should include your name, address, area code and phone number, your call sign, and your T-shirt size. All who volunteer will receive a phone call and a marathon packet that includes all the needed official items. Your role will be explained to you, and you will receive everything you will need to gain access to your post in the race. --The Hudson Loop

The ARRL Letter

The ARRL Letter is published by the American Radio Relay League, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259. Rodney J. Stafford, KB6ZV, President; David Sumner, K1ZZ, Executive Vice President.

Circulation, Kathy Capodicasa, N1GZO, e-mail kcapodicasa@arrl.org.

Editorial, Rick Lindquist, N1RL, e-mail elindquist@arrl.org.

Visit the ARRLWeb page at http://www.arrl.org.

The purpose of The ARRL Letter is to provide the essential news of interest to active, organizationally minded radio amateurs faster than it can be disseminated by our official journal, QST. We strive to be fast, accurate and readable in our reporting.

Material from The ARRL Letter may be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form, including photoreproduction and electronic databanks, provided that credit is given to The ARRL Letter and The American Radio Relay League.

How to Get The ARRL Letter:

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  • The ARRLWeb page (http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/). This version of The ARRL Letter includes any photographs.

  • The HIRAM BBS: 860-594-0306.

  • The ARRL Technical Information Server (Info Server): Send an e-mail message to info@arrl.org. The subject line should be blank. In the message body, type send ltrmmdd.txt, where mm represents two digits for the month and dd represents two digits for the day (The ARRL Letter is published every Friday). For example, to request The ARRL Letter file for Friday, January 3, 1997, you'd type send ltr0103.txt. Then, on a separate line, type quit.

  • CompuServe and America Online subscribers, as a downloadable text file in the services' ham radio libraries

  • The Netcom server, run by the Boston Amateur Radio Club and Mike Ardai, N1IST: Send e-mail to listserv@netcom.com (no subject needed). The body of the message should say subscribe letter-list.