ARRL News
April 2021 Volunteer Monitor Program Report Released
The Volunteer Monitor (VM) Program is a joint initiative between ARRL and FCC to enhance compliance in the Amateur Radio Service.
A General class renewal applicant withdrew his application after FCC notice that the renewal application would be held up pending review of Volunteer Monitor complaints. As a consequence, the Quakertown, Pennsylvania, applicant has no operating privileges.
Twenty-one ...
“Geomagnetic Storm Season” is Over
June and July bring frequent 6-meter DX openings via long-distance sporadic-E propagation and persistent quiet geomagnetic conditions. These 2 months are well known to North American 6-meter DXers as the most productive time of year for DX up to 8,700 miles.
“The quiet geomagnetic season during June and July typically has only about half as many geomagnetic storms compared to March and April,” s...
The VP2VB Danny Weil Memorial DXpedition is JIDXM 2020 DXpedition of the Year
The Japan International DX Meeting (JIDXM) has designated the 2020 VP2VB Danny Weil Memorial DXpedition as the recipient of the 2020 DXpedition of the Year Award. The DXpedition was organized to bring story of amateur radio DXpedition pioneer Danny Weil, VP2VB, to today’s amateur radio community.
The VP2VB Yasme Memorial Expedition Team consisted of Adrian Ciuperca, KO8SCA; Martti Laine, OH2BH; ...
SEDCO W4DXCC Co-Founder, Noted DXer Lynn Lamb, W4NL, SK
ARRL Life Member Lynn Lamb, W4NL, of Maryville, Tennessee, died on May 10 following a lengthy illness. He was 83. Lamb co-founded SEDCO W4DXCC DX and Contest Convention in 2005.
Licensed in 1954, Lamb retired from a career with the US Department of Defense (US Navy and Air Force). He was a founding member of the National Capitol DX Association (NCDXA) and belonged to Potomac Valley Radio Club, t...
Tuesday, May 11, is Puerto Rico Amateur Radio Operator Day
Tuesday, May 11, is Puerto Rico Amateur Radio Operator Day, which falls within National Radio Month on the island. The operator of Puerto Rico’s first radio broadcasting station in 1922, WKAQ, was Joaquín Agusty, who held the ham radio call sign 4JE. A proclamation signed by Governor Pedro Pierluisi highlights the value of amateur radio in times of emergency and gives special mention to ARRL. T...
Workshop for Attorneys Under Consideration for 2022 ARRL National Convention in Orlando
The Amateur Radio Legal Defense and Assistance Committee (ARLDAC) is considering hosting a half-day workshop for attorneys at the ARRL 2022 National Convention in Orlando. This would be for attorneys only, and attendees would be eligible to earn continuing legal education (CLE) credit in their respective states. It would be held on the afternoon of February 10, as part of the Thursday training ...
The K7RA Solar Update
Tad Cook, K7RA, Seattle, reports: Our sun seems to have fallen back into a very quiet phase, far different from the way it looked in November 2020. That was 6 months ago, and we assumed that since we were emerging from a solar minimum, by now we would be seeing much more solar activity. It hasn’t happened. More recently, sunspots disappeared after May 1, and solar flux naturally declined as wel...
IEEE Committee Webinar “RF Exposure in the Time of Conspiracies” Set for May 12
The IEEE Committee on Man and Radiation (COMAR) has issued an invitation to its webinar, “RF Exposure in the Time of Conspiracies.” The 1-hour event is set to get under way at 1800 UTC on Wednesday, May 12. COMAR is a group of experts on health and safety issues related to electromagnetic fields, from power line through microwave frequency ranges. Its primary focus is on biological effects of n...
First-Time Exam Applicants Must Obtain FCC Registration Number before Taking Exam
Beginning May 20, 2021, all amateur examination applicants will be required to provide an FCC Registration Number (FRN) to the Volunteer Examiners (VEs) before taking an amateur exam. This is necessary due to changes the FCC has made to its licensing system.
Amateur candidates who already have an FCC license, whether for amateur radio or in another service, already have an FRN and can use the sa...
Spring Radio Club of America QSO Party is Saturday, May 8
The semiannual Radio Club of America (RCA) QSO Party takes place on May 8. “Band conditions are still not their best but we still expect plenty of QSOs,” RCA Executive Vice President Chip Cohen, W1YW, said. “Come join the fun and contact other club hams and the club’s station, W2RCA. All are welcome.” The QSO party is open to RCA members and non-members and is SSB only. Activity begins at 1800 ...
Very High Speed Club Special Event is Active During May
Special event call sign OZ60VHSC will commemorate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Very High Speed Club (VHSC) on May 1, 1961. Leading the group at its founding were PA0LXL, DL1XA, and DJ4KW, who sought operators who could copy at 40 WPM solid for at least 30 minutes, encouraging CW traffic in general and QRQ (high-speed) traffic in particular. Members sponsor new membership candidat...
Intrepid-DX Group Adds a Second Physician to Bouvet Island DXpedition Team
“Bouvet is like the Mount Everest of DXCC entities,” 3Y0J DXpedition co-leader Paul Ewing, N6PSE, said. “It is among the most challenging entities to activate due to significant transportation costs and personal sacrifices required by the team to make the 42-day round trip. Fortunately, Bouvet is not our first mountain.”
Ewing reports that Mike Crownover, AB5EB, a veteran emergency room physicia...
Nationwide Spring Drill Set for May 8, World Red Cross Day
The Red Cross Emergency Communication Training Group is holding its nationwide Spring Drill on World Red Cross Day, Saturday, May 8, 2021. Individuals are invited to participate. Last year, more than 1,000 participated in the initial spring drill.
The bar has been raised to Winlink proficiency for this year’s drill. Red Cross forms are integrated as templates in Winlink Express, and hams using W...
Russian Robinson Club Announces Activation of Rare IOTA Islands in the Aleutians
The Russian Robinson Club (RRC) has resumed its plans to activate rare Kiska Island (IOTA NA-070) and Adak Island (IOTA NA-039) in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands chain in July for Islands on the Air (IOTA) enthusiasts. Plans to activate these islands in 2020 were called off because of COVID-19 concerns.
The uninhabited Kiska Island (52.06° N, 177.57° E) lies in the North Pacific’s treacherous Bering...
ARRL Executive Committee to Meet May 3 in Virtual Session
The ARRL Executive Committee will meet in virtual session on Monday, May 3. Topics on the agenda include FCC Counsel’s report and FCC matters; Volunteer Monitor Program report, and Legislative Advocacy Committee report. The agenda has been posted on the ARRL website.
North American QSO Parties to Recognize Young Contester Entries
To encourage young radiosport participants, National Contest Journal (NCJ) will recognize their entries in the North American QSO Party (NAQP), starting with the August 2021 NAQP CW and NAQP SSB events. Following the lead of Youth on the Air (YOTA) in International Amateur Radio Union Region 1 (IARU), operators 25 years old and younger will be highlighted in the results.
The NAQP log upload app ...
ARRL Executive Committee Nominates Joel Harrison, W5ZN, to be Next IARU Secretary
At its April 5 meeting via Zoom, the ARRL Executive Committee (EC) nominated past ARRL President Joel Harrison, W5ZN, to become the next Secretary of the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU). The incumbent Secretary, David Sumner, K1ZZ, has announced his intention to step down on July 1. ARRL International Affairs Vice President Rod Stafford, W6ROD, explained that ARRL, as IARU Secretariat,...