At the February 3 Plenary Session of the 2012 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-12), delegates heard the first reading and approved a worldwide exclusive allocation to Maritime Mobile of 495-505 kHz. There will need to be a second reading to finalize the allocation. According to ARRL Chief Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ, discussion of this allocation [...]
Here are some yearly averages that we have neglected at the beginning of the year. These are the average daily sunspot numbers for whole calendar years, from 1994-2011: 48.1, 28.7, 13.2, 30.7, 88.7, 136.3, 173, 170.3, 176.7, 109.2, 68.6, 48.9, 26.1, 12.8, 4.7, 5.1, 25.5 and 29.9. You can see from these numbers that the [...]
By Rod Stafford, W6RODIARU Secretary The procedures used by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) before and during a World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) seem complicated. They are somewhat complicated, but they are understandable with a bit of background. Each Agenda Item that will be decided at a WRC has been studied for at least three or [...]
While two hurdles still remain to be cleared, the effort to gain a new amateur medium frequency (MF) allocation reached a major milestone on Thursday, February 2 at the 2012 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-12) in Geneva, Switzerland. According to ARRL Chief Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ, a Sub Working Group dealing with Agenda Item 1.23: [...]
On November 18, the FCC released a Report and Order (R&O), defining new rules for the 60 meter (5 MHz) band. These rules are in response to a Petition for Rulemaking (PRM) filed by the ARRL more than five years ago and a June 2010 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). In the February 3 edition [...]
By Stan Horzepa, WA1LOUContributing Editor This week, Surfin’ tries to determine the best place to just get the facts (Ma’am) about new countries. Before Wikipedia, there was the Central Intelligence Agency. A decade ago, if I wanted to look up information about the new country I just worked on 10 meters, I would consult the [...]
Armond Noble, N6WR — the founder of WorldRadio magazine and its publisher for 37 years — passed away February 1 in Sacramento, California after a short illness. He was 77. WorldRadio was published monthly from July 1971 until the end of 2008, when Noble sold the magazine to Hicksville, New York-based CQ Communications Inc. With [...]
It’s that time of year again — time to start gearing up for ARRL Field Day, June 23-24, 2012! ARRL’s flagship operating event — always held the fourth full weekend in June — brings together new and experienced hams for 24 hours of operating fun. Field Day packets are now available for download and include [...]
Compiled by S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFAARRL News Editork1sfa@arrl.org This feature — including convenient Web links to useful information — is a concise monthly update of some of the things ARRL is doing on behalf of its members. This installment covers the month of January. IBEC — the last of the Access BPL providers using the [...]
Join W1AW Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, on a virtual tour of W1AW, the Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Station, the Amateur Radio station at ARRL Headquarters in Newington, Connecticut. Carcia will lead this tour via a live webcast on Sunday, February 12 at 5 PM EST (2200 UTC). Anyone with an Internet connection will be [...]
By Rod Stafford, W6RODIARU Secretary The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) 2012 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-12) began January 23 in Geneva, Switzerland. This is the “big show” for spectrum allocation matters and a very important meeting if you are an Amateur Radio operator anywhere in the world. Every 4 or 5 years a WRC takes place. [...]
According to Colin Thomas G3PSM, CEPT Coordinator for Agenda Item 1.23, WRC-12 delegates are progressing with what he calls a “compromise proposal” for an MF secondary allocation to the Amateur Radio Service. Agenda Item 1.23 calls for WRC-12 delegations to consider an allocation of about 15 kHz in parts of the band 415-526.5 kHz to [...]
By Sterling Coffey, N0SSCARRL Youth Editorn0scc@arrl.net After celebrating the New Year and holiday festivities with some well-deserved rest — and lots of time spent on the air — I look back at the break, and like all of you in school, I always think it was too short. During my free time, I finished several [...]
The freak snow storm in late October wreaked havoc on the ARRL HQ antenna farm. According to W1AW Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, both of W1AW’s M-Squared 40 meter Yagis were severely damaged, as was the 80 meter cage antenna, and an element on the north tower’s 10 meter Yagi was twisted vertically. The antennas [...]
When you visit ARRL Headquarters in Newington, Connecticut, the first smiling face you’re likely to see is a tour guide. ARRL’s Tour Guide program now includes 19 volunteers who donate thousands of hours of their free time per year, giving tours to hundreds of visitors. ARRL’s tour guides are an integral part of the ARRL. [...]