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G4TNU > NEWS 22.10.23 00:31z 257 Lines 12808 Bytes #14 (0) @ EU
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Subj: RSGB Main News - 22 Oct 2023
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GB2RS Main News for Sunday the 22nd of October 2023
The news headlines:
* RSGB 2023 Convention
* ARISS contact with St Peter-In-Thanet CE Junior School
* Tonight@8 webinar
The RSGB's 2023 Convention took place last weekend and brought
together hundreds of amateurs in person as well as many more across
the world who watched the livestream. RSGB General Manager and
Convention Chair, Steve Thomas, M1ACB said that in addition to the
usual varied programme of lectures, he was delighted as Convention
Chair to have led the team who introduced new aspects to the weekend,
such as the all-day drop-in Buildathon on Saturday which encouraged
people to enjoy making something for themselves, and also to learn
how to run a similar event at their local club or group to help
others develop practical skills. The RSGB Convention saw
presentations about taking amateur radio into schools, young radio
amateurs travelling to YOTA camp, as well as the usual mix of
fascinating technical talks about many aspects of amateur radio
today. There were also more RSGB Committees and Groups at the
Convention to highlight the important work that the RSGB does through
its volunteers. Steve said that the Convention planning team is
already receiving an overwhelming amount of positive feedback, but he
encourages anyone who attended the Convention to complete the
feedback form if they haven't already done so - go to
rsgb.org/feedback and share your thoughts. The Society will share a
small number of Convention presentations on YouTube over the coming
weeks and will provide many more for members to view as part of the
benefit of RSGB membership. In addition, you will be able to watch a
series of special interviews that were recorded over the weekend. The
interview with the RSGB and IRTS Presidents has been released this
week and you can see it on the RSGB YouTube channel and also on the
RSGB Convention web page at rsgb.org/convention
Children at St Peter-In-Thanet CE Junior School in Broadstairs, Kent
had an ‘out of this world' experience this week, with an ARISS
contact between the school and NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli
[MOG-BELLY], KI5WSL on board the International Space Station. It was
an exciting and inspiring day for all involved. RSGB Board Chair
Stewart Bryant, G3YSX attended the event and met ESA reserve
astronaut Meganne Christian, who encouraged the children to ‘dream
big'. The event, which featured on local BBC and ITV news programmes
that evening as well as BBC Radio Kent, can be watched on the ARISS
YouTube channel.
The RSGB carried out a poll in its Facebook group for new and
returning licensees, which showed that basic introductions to
contesting and antennas were the top two topics of interest. In
October the RSGB ran a Tonight@8 webinar which covered an
introduction to contesting, and in November it is focusing on
antennas. On Monday the 6th of November, Colin Summers, MM0OPX will
give an entry-level introduction to antennas generally, including a
focus on end-fed half-wave antennas, transformers, construction and
performance. Join the presentation and ask questions live on the
RSGB YouTube channel or special BATC channel. To find out more about
this, and other RSGB webinars, go to rsgb.org/webinars
Today is the last day of Jamboree on the Air, also known as JOTA. The
event promotes friendship and global citizenship and is a brilliant
celebration of amateur radio among the Scout Association. There are
many stations active over the weekend so please listen out for the
young operators on the air. Some groups have shared details of
callsigns that are active over the weekend and the RSGB has compiled
a list on its website – go to rsgb.org/jota and choose the "JOTA
Stations on the Air" link on the righthand side of the page. The RSGB
would love to see your photos of Scouts getting involved with JOTA,
so tag the RSGB and also use the hashtag JOTAJOTI to be involved in
the conversation on social media. There will be a report in RadCom so
please send details and photos from your event to
radcom<at>rsgb.org.uk by the 14th of November.
A reminder that the RSGB National Radio Centre will be closed to the
public from Saturday the 28th of October until Sunday the 5th of
November inclusive because Bletchley Park will be hosting the first
global summit on Artificial Intelligence. Please note that this
closure period includes an additional two days than was previously
announced by Bletchley Park. For information about the closure,
please see the Bletchley Park website at bletchleypark.org.uk
Today, the 22nd, is the second day of the RAF Air Cadets Blue Ham
Radio Communications Exercise. Cadets are contacting radio amateurs
on the shared section of the 5MHz band. A Blue Ham participation
certificate is available to those who contact 15 or more special
Cadet callsigns during the exercise. Just search online for
‘Exercise Blue Ham' to find out more.
There is just over one week of UK Bunkers On The Air 2023 to go, and
what a month it has been so far! Activators have reported multiple
pile-ups and higher-than-expected levels of hunters. Due to the
popularity of the event, the organisers have decided to continue with
a rolling programme from the 1st of November. Look out for new bunker
references and challenges in the New Year. All activators who submit
an activator tracker will be entered into a prize draw. To view the
rules and information visit bunkersontheair.org
And now for details of rallies and events
The Galashiels Radio Rally is taking place today, Sunday the 22nd of
October at the Volunteer Hall, St Johns Street, Galashiels, TD1 3JX.
The doors open at 11am. Entrance is GBP 2.50, although under-16s will
be admitted free of charge.
Carrickfergus Amateur Radio Group Rally will take place on Saturday
the 28th of October. The venue will be Elim Pentecostal Church, North
Road, Carrickfergus, County Antrim. The doors will open for vendors
at 9am and for everyone else at 11.30am. Refreshments will be
available. There will be a bring-and-buy stall, and everyone is very
welcome to attend.
The Essex CW Boot Camp will take place on Saturday the 28th of
October. The venue will be 3rd the Witham Scout & Guide HQ, Powers
Hall End, Witham, Essex, CM8 2HE. The doors open at 8.30am for
registration. Entrance is GBP 10 and this includes free drinks and
cakes. Advance registration is advised as places are limited. For
more information email g0ibn1<at>yahoo.com or phone 0745 342 60 87
Now the Special Event News
Members of ARI Pordenone [POUR-DAY-NO-NEH] and ARI Belluno
[BEH-LOO-NO] will be active as II3RDV
[INDIA-INDIA-THREE-ROMEO-DELTA-VICTOR] until the 31st of October. The
special callsign is active to mark the 60th anniversary of the Vajont
[VAI-YONT] Dam disaster. On the 9th of October 1963 a massive
landslide plunged into the reservoir, causing a 250m-high
mega-tsunami. QSL via IV3EHH [INDIA-VICTOR-THREE-ECHO-HOTEL-HOTEL].
"Amateur Radio" magazine, the official journal of the Wireless
Institute of Australia, will reach 90 years of continuous publication
this month. To mark this milestone, the Wireless Institute of
Australia has obtained the special event callsign VK90AR. The
callsign will be in use until the 31st of December and may be used by
any member of the Wireless Institute of Australia as well as any
affiliated club. QSL via Logbook of the World and OQRS.
Now the DX news
Today, the 22nd, is the last chance to work The Radio Club de Provins
[PROV-ON], F6KOP which is active as TO8FH from Mayotte [MAA-YOT],
AF-027. A large team is operating CW, SSB and digital modes, as well
as QO-100, on the 160 to 6m bands. QSL via Logbook of the World,
OQRS, or via F5GSJ. See the TO8FH Facebook page for more information
and updates.
Harald, DF2WO is active as XT2AW from Ouagadougou [WAA-GUH-DOO-GOO]
in Burkina Faso until the 26th of October. He operates all modes on
the HF bands, the 6m band and via QO-100. QSL via M0OXO's OQRS.
Now the contest news
Today, Sunday the 22nd of October, the 50MHz Affiliated Societies
Contest runs from 0900 to 1300UTC. Using all modes on the 6m band,
the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator.
The Worked All Germany Contest started at 1500UTC on Saturday the
21st of October and ends at 1500UTC today, Sunday the 22nd of
October. Using CW and SSB on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are
permitted, the exchange is signal report and serial number. German
stations also send their DOK reference.
On Tuesday the 24th of October, the SHF UK Activity Contest runs from
1830 to 2130UTC. Using all modes on 2.3 to 10GHz frequencies, the
exchange is signal report, serial number and locator.
On Wednesday the 25th of October, the UK and Ireland Contest Club 80m
Contest runs from 2000 to 2100UTC. Using CW on the 80m band, the
exchange is your six-character locator.
On Thursday the 26th of October, the Autumn Series SSB Contest runs
from 1900 to 2030UTC. Using SSB on the 80m band, the exchange is
signal report and serial number.
The CW World Wide DX SSB Contest starts at 0000UTC on Saturday the
28th of October and ends at 2359UTC on Sunday the 29th of October.
Using SSB on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the
exchange is signal report and CQ Zone. The UK is in Zone 14.
Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA, and G4BAO
on Thursday the 19th of October 2023
We had a quieter week, with both lower sunspot numbers and better
geomagnetic conditions. The Solar Flux Index was at 135 on Thursday
the 19th, down from 156 the week before. Let's hope this is a
temporary lull in Solar Cycle 25's progression.
We had no M-class or higher flares to contend with and the Kp index
was generally below 3 all week. Only on Thursday did things start to
become a little more unsettled as the Kp index climbed to 3.67 in the
morning, with warnings that worse may be to come due to a coronal
mass ejection on the 16th of October.
So, the earlier part of the week was best for HF propagation with
many stations reporting DX contacts including T2C, a German
DXpedition to Tuvalu [TWO-VUH-LOO], and YL2GM's one-person DXpedition
to Tristan da Cunha [TRIST-UHN-DUH-KOO-NUH].
It's nice to see DX opening up, especially on the higher bands.
Propquest.com reports that, generally, the maximum useable frequency
over a 3,000km path remains above 28MHz during daylight hours so make
the most of the 10 and 12m bands. The maximum usable frequency, or
MUF, is the highest radio frequency that can be used for transmission
between two points on the Earth by reflection from the ionosphere.
Next week NOAA predicts that the Solar Flux Index will rise to around
145 all week while geomagnetic conditions are predicted to be stable
with a Kp around 2 to 3. But, as always, watch out for coronal mass
elections and their impact.
And now the VHF and up propagation news
We are struggling to find anything optimistic regarding Tropo in this
unsettled spell of weather and again it may well be down to rain
scatter to provide the entertainment.
Once out of the summer thunderstorm season, the results are rarely as
good, even though you'll be spoiled for choice! There will be a
transient weak ridge over some eastern areas on Tuesday, but only
acting as a separator between the lows and not expected to be
effective for Tropo.
Incidentally, in this fairly typical spell of unsettled autumnal
weather, strong winds and heavy rain can be a notable feature and
puts stress on antennas and coax, so make a note of any weak points
and use the next fine spell to put things right!
What propagation remains is the usual stop-gap pair of modes –
meteor scatter and aurora – both of which could be worth checking
during the coming week.
A reminder that the Orionids shower, active from the 2nd of October
to the 7th of November, peaks today, the 22nd, with an average
Zenithal Hourly Rate, or ZHR, of around 20.
For EME operators, Moon declination reached minimum on Friday the
20th so the following week will see lengthening Moon windows. Next
Thursday's perigee means path losses are at their lowest this week.
144MHz sky noise starts high but falls throughout the coming week
remaining low to moderate.
And that's all from the propagation team this week.
And that's the end of the main news for this week prepared by the
Radio Society of Great Britain. Items for inclusion in subsequent
bulletins can be emailed to radcom<at>rsgb.org.uk to arrive by
10:00 on the Thursday before transmission.
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