***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 24, No. 36
September 16, 2005
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IN THIS EDITION:
* +ARRL President's testimony attests to Amateur Radio's value in disasters
* +Hams, donated radio equipment making a difference in Katrina response
* +Astronaut hopefuls speak with ISS via ham radio
* +"Ham Aid" reimbursement procedure for volunteers detailed
* +Question Pool Committee shifts schedule
* Emergency Power Operating Event is September 17
* +Hugh A. Cassidy, WA6AUD, SK
* +Solar Update
* IN BRIEF:
This weekend on the radio
ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration
Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Course registration
Correction
+ARRL graphic designers win national award
ESA announces SSETI Express telemetry download competition
+Available on ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>
===========================================================
==>Delivery problems (ARRL member direct delivery only!):
letter-dlvy@arrl.org
==>Editorial questions or comments: Rick Lindquist, N1RL, n1rl@arrl.org
===========================================================
==>ARRL PRESIDENT SUBMITS CONGRESSIONAL TESTIMONY ON HAMS' KATRINA RESPONSE
ARRL President Jim Haynie, W5JBP, has provided written testimony on Amateur
Radio's response in the Hurricane Katrina disaster to the US House
Government Reform Committee. Haynie submitted the testimony to the
congressional panel September 15 "on the successful efforts of Amateur Radio
operators providing communications for first responders, disaster relief
agencies and countless individuals in connection with the Hurricane Katrina
relief effort" on behalf of the League.
"As has been proven consistently and repeatedly in the past, when
communications systems fail due to a wide-area or localized natural
disaster, Amateur Radio works, right away, all the time," Haynie's statement
said. "This report is not, therefore, a statement of concern about what must
be changed or improved. It is, rather, a report on what is going right, and
what works, in emergency communications in the Gulf Coast and what can be
depended on to work the next time there is a natural disaster, and the times
after that."
The congressional committee, chaired by Virginia Republican Tom Davis, is
holding hearings on the Hurricane Katrina response. Haynie told the panel
that upward of 1000 Amateur Radio volunteers were or have been serving in
the stricken area to provide communication for served agencies such as the
American Red Cross and The Salvation Army and to facilitate interoperability
among agencies.
"Trained volunteer Amateur Radio operators are also providing
health-and-welfare communications from within the affected area to the rest
of the United States and the world," Haynie said. "In the past week, the
Coast Guard, the Red Cross, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency all
put out calls for volunteer Amateur Radio operators to provide
communications, because phone lines and cell sites were inoperative, and
public safety communications facilities were overwhelmed due to loss of
repeater towers and the large number of first responders in the area."
Haynie pointed out that the main reason Amateur Radio works when other
communication systems fail during natural disasters is that it's not
infrastructure-dependent and is decentralized. "Amateurs are trained in
emergency communications. They are disciplined operators, and their stations
are, in general, portable and reliable," he told the panel.
The ARRL President also put in a good word for the FCC's Enforcement Bureau
for what he called "its efficient and successful efforts" during the
hurricane response in monitoring HF nets to minimize incidents of
interference.
"The Committee should be aware that this vast volunteer resource is always
at the disposal of the federal government," Haynie concluded. "The United
States absolutely can rely on the Amateur Radio Service. Amateur Radio
provides immediate, high-quality communications that work every time, when
all else fails."
Haynie's complete testimony is available on the ARRL Web site
<http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2005/09/15/100/#statement>
==>AMATEUR RADIO EARNING PRAISE, RESPECT IN HURRICANE KATRINA RELIEF
Amateur Radio is continuing to earn praise and respect as the Hurricane
Katrina relief effort moves forward. Donated Amateur Radio equipment and
supplies arriving at the American Red Cross Hurricane Katrina relief staging
area in Montgomery, Alabama, have been turned around as quickly as possible
to accompany volunteers into the field. A team headed by Alabama ARRL
Section Manager Greg Sarratt, W4OZK, now has been on duty for some three
weeks, overseeing Amateur Radio volunteer intake and registration and trying
to satisfy the ever-changing requirements of the Red Cross and other served
agencies.
"The American Red Cross and other served agencies are very thankful and
appreciative that we are helping them out," Sarratt said this week. "I have
talked with several ARC folks who said they could not operate without us!"
ARES and MARS member Matt Hackman, KB1FUP, was among a Rhode Island
contingent processed through the Montgomery marshaling center. The New
England volunteers were able to take advantage of the newly donated handheld
transceivers, HF transceivers and antennas for use in and around Ocean
Springs, Mississippi. Hackman said Red Cross personnel were using VHF
simplex to keep in contact with each shelter.
"We still have no potable public water and no land-line telephones," Hackman
said this week, adding that cell phone service was intermittent. "I hope I
am helping in some small way," he went on to say. "People further west still
have no power, no water--even for flushing toilets--and the emergency
workers are in tents with no washing facilities, living on MREs. I have it
good."
Sarratt said his staging area has been slowing down the pipeline of
available Amateur Radio volunteers because the need for operators is
decreasing. He reports the Montgomery marshaling center has registered more
than 100 Amateur Radio volunteers. Those still in the pipeline will replace
operators already on the ground in affected areas when they rotate out, he
said. Sarratt rescinded an urgent call for operators put out over the
September 10-11 weekend.
The best estimate is that some 1000 Amateur Radio volunteers have helped out
or are still serving in hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast communities and at
evacuee centers there and in other states. While prospective volunteers have
been told to stand by for now, that situation could change as restricted
areas are reopened and as replacement operators are needed.
Amateur Radio has been the primary means of contact with the outside world
for shelters that still lack reliable communication. An HF station at the
Montgomery Red Cross staging area, N4AP, has been frequenting 3.965 and
7.280 MHz to keep in touch with other Red Cross shelters and kitchens
throughout the region.
"We have deployed many great Amateur Radio operators to the field," Sarratt
remarked. "Guys have traveled from all over the USA on their own dime to do
the right thing and help others. I'm very proud of them." Sarratt said
several "shining stars" in the field have made the volunteer effort work
well and "kept Amateur Radio looking great."
ARRL Louisiana Acting Section Emergency Coordinator Al Oubre, K5DPG, reports
that telephone and cell service around the state is slowly being restored,
and Louisiana does not need additional help at this time. A Red Cross
marshaling center remains open in Covington. Oubre said when St Bernard and
Jefferson parishes dry out sufficiently, the Red Cross will then be able to
move into that area and set up support services. At that point, he
anticipates that more Amateur Radio volunteers may be needed.
Radio amateurs from Florida have been helping at the temporary Hancock
County, Mississippi, emergency operations center at Stennis Airport. The
county lost its EOC in the hurricane. Randy Pierce, AG4UU, said radio
amateurs are serving as communicators and dispatchers for all the services
at the EOC--including the fire department and emergency medical services.
County officials and agencies have been very complimentary about Amateur
Radio, he said.
South Texas Section Emergency Coordinator Jerry Reimer, KK5CA, reports
Amateur Radio is continuing to support sheltering operations at the Houston
Astrodome, but other shelters in Houston have closed or been consolidated.
In Rains County, Texas, some 60 miles east of Dallas, ARES/RACES member T.W.
Ivey, K5IJT, reported his team has been keeping in contact with the county
EOC via VHF repeater.
In Tullahoma, Tennessee, Jimmy Floyd, NQ4U, has been among a group of
operators helping to staff a communications/command center for an operation
housing 170 evacuees. "We have also been active in communicating with other
shelters on HF and attempting to locate family and friends of the evacuees,"
Floyd said.
Amateur Radio operators concluded a shelter support operation at Oklahoma's
Camp Gruber. "We were the communications backbone between responding
agencies," said Mark Conklin, N7XYO. "We also passed tons of traffic,
ranging from requests for water and food, supplies and bedding. In fact,
Amateur Radio was the 911 system on Camp Gruber for many days."
Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN) Liaison Officer Jeff
Schneller, N2HPO, says TSA canteens are holding with their present
complement of ham radio volunteers and may not rotate them out of service.
"As operators need to leave, we may just scale down," he told ARRL. "We
thank all those who are assisting and were willing to assist." He also
thanked the American Red Cross for referring radio operators to SATERN.
SATERN volunteers Steve Hicks, N5AC, and John Beadles, N5OOM, are supporting
a canteen operation in Waveland. "We drove up and down several streets, and
everyone we talked to said they had not had a hot meal in a while," Hicks
said in a PACTOR dispatch to Schneller. Hicks said they continue to ask
about H&W traffic, "but based on what we have seen, I think it unlikely that
we will have any traffic to run."
SATERN has continued monitoring 7.288 MHz and 3.965 MHz each half hour
throughout the day and evening. In addition, the SATERN Net activates daily
at 1400 UTC on 14.265 MHz.
Jim Aylward, KC8PD, just returned to Ohio this week from volunteering in
Ocean Springs, Mississippi. "Even though we all prepare for events we hope
never occur, the hams I worked with from all over the country demonstrated
that 'When all else fails, Amateur Radio is there' is a lot more than a
slogan," he said. "It was the reality for thousands of people who needed
effective emergency communication. When my shelter manager, who had never
worked with hams before, told me that I had been a godsend, I was moved."
==>YOUNG JAPANESE ASTRONAUT HOPEFULS DISCUSS ET, OTHER TOPICS
Thirteen Japanese youngsters had the opportunity earlier this month to speak
via Amateur Radio with NASA International Space Station (ISS) Science
Officer John Phillips, KE5DRY. The contact was arranged via the Amateur
Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program. The contact
between NA1SS aboard the ISS and 8J9YAC, at the Japan Red Cross Radio Corps
in Wakasa took place September 9. Putting the questions to Phillips were
members of the JRC Radio Corps-Wakasa branch and the Wakasa Branch of the
Young Astronauts Club-Japan. One youngster asked Phillips whether the ISS
crew could see the center of large storms on earth.
"If we fly near a hurricane or typhoon, yes, we can see the center very
easily. In fact, I saw and photographed Typhoon Nabi about four days ago,"
Phillips replied. The crew this past week also took photographs of Hurricane
Ophelia.
Another youngster wanted to know what Philips would do if he met an
extraterrestrial. "I hope we can find some method of communication, so I can
tell him we are friendly, we mean him no harm, and that we can start to
build a friendly relationship," he responded.
Asked about the time difference between the ISS and the Earth, Phillips
responded: "Some scientists predict that there is a very small slowing of
time due to the effect of relativity in fast moving objects, but at our
speed this would be a change in time of only a fraction of a second during
our six months onboard."
Masayuki Tsuda, JR9INQ, was the control operator for the contact. A crowd of
about 100 onlookers included several members of the news media, parents of
the participants and others. The Expedition 12 crew of Commander Bill
McArthur, KC5ACR, and Flight Engineer Valery Tokarev is set to launch from
the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan October 1 in a Soyuz transporter.
They'll arrive at the ISS October 3.
ARISS is an international educational outreach with US participation by
ARRL, AMSAT and NASA.--Photos and information courtesy Satoshi Yasuda,
7M3TJZ
==>ARRL SPELLS OUT "HAM AID" REIMBURSEMENT PROCEDURES
The ARRL has established a set of "Ham Aid" reimbursement procedures so
radio amateurs volunteering to provide emergency communication in the field
during the Hurricane Katrina disaster can recover some of their
out-of-pocket expenses. The procedures are on the ARRL Web site
<http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/forms/cncs/>. The Corporation for National
and Community Service (CNCS) has provided a $100,000 grant supplement to
ARRL to help fund Ham Aid, a new League program to support Amateur Radio
volunteers deployed in the field in disaster-stricken areas. Ham Aid also
has benefited from some individual donations. ARRL Chief Development Officer
Mary Hobart, K1MMH, says the Ham Aid reimbursement program for the Katrina
disaster will be limited.
"In an effort to distribute funding to as many hams as possible, expense
reimbursement will be $25 per day for a maximum of four days for a total
reimbursement per radio amateur of $100," Hobart said. "Hams will only be
permitted one expense reimbursement during Katrina operations."
The CNCS grant funds will go toward helping volunteers defray such expenses
as gasoline, meals, lodging and other necessities while they're in the
field. Hobart says the money should not be misconstrued as compensation for
operating, however. For now, the program only covers per-diem reimbursements
between September 1 and December 31, 2005. The period may be extended based
on the availability of funds.
Besides providing emergency communication within and outside the affected
areas, Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) members and individual radio
amateurs are supplementing the communication needs of emergency management
and relief agencies, including the American Red Cross and The Salvation
Army. Hobart said it's only due to the scope of the unprecedented and tragic
Katrina disaster that CNCS agreed to help support dedicated Amateur Radio
volunteers.
Hams seeking expense reimbursement must complete an on-line application form
with the required information. The form also solicits some optional
information, such as license class, whether the applicant has completed any
of the ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Communications courses and if the
applicant is an ARES and/or RACES member. The Section Manager or Section
Emergency Coordinator on site during the radio operator's service in the
field then will review and e-mail validated electronic forms to ARRL
Headquarters.
Hobart says the League will accept reimbursement request applications on a
first-come, first served basis for as long as funds are available.
Reimbursement checks will be mailed to the address the radio amateur
provides on the form.
The CNCS grant is an extension of ARRL's three year Homeland Security
training grant, which has provided certification in emergency communication
protocols to nearly 5500 Amateur Radio volunteers over the past three years.
This grant extension does not cover additional ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency
Communications training program reimbursements, however.
==>NCVEC QUESTION POOL COMMITTEE ANNOUNCES NEW SCHEDULE
The National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (NCVEC) has
announced that the Question Pool Committee (QPC) has adjusted its schedule
for revising Amateur Radio examination question pools. This decision was
prompted by recent FCC announcements, changes in radio communication
technology and recommendations from VECs.
"The QPC feels it is imperative to produce a new Technician class pool now
to better position the Amateur Radio Service for growth in the years ahead,"
the QPC said in a statement released September 9. "The new schedule impacts
previously announced release dates for all three question pools."
The new Technician class (Element 2) pool now tops the schedule and is due
for release January 1, 2006, effective July 1, 2006. General class (Element
3) pool updates, previously scheduled to become effective on July 1, 2008,
will be released December 1, 2006, and become effective July 1, 2007. The
Extra class (Element 4) pool originally scheduled for 2005, will be released
on December 1, 2007, and will become effective July 1, 2008.
Barring any major rules changes, subsequent updates to all pools will follow
the traditional four-year cycle, the QPC said. Selected by representatives
of the 12 VECs attending the NCVEC's annual conference, the QPC consists of
Chair Jim Wiley, KL7CC, Anchorage VEC; Perry Green, WY1O, ARRL VEC, and
Larry Pollock, NB5X, W5YI VEC.
A team of associates representing various VEC organizations as well as
experts selected from the amateur community will assist the QPC.
Interested persons are encouraged to submit questions to the NCVEC QPC via
the NCVEC Web site <http://www.ncvec.org/>.
==>REMINDER: EMERGENCY POWER OPERATING EVENT IS SEPTEMBER 17
To mark Amateur Radio Awareness Day, Saturday, September 17, the ARRL is
sponsoring an Emergency Power Operating Event (EPOE) to highlight Amateur
Radio's ability to communicate worldwide without commercial mains, the
Internet or a cellular telephone system. The EPOE is especially pertinent in
light of Amateur Radio's response in the Hurricane Katrina disaster.
"When we planned this event we couldn't have imagined that it would be so
timely in the aftermath of Katrina," said ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ. "I've
seen publicity from other parts of the country about groups' plans to
participate. I hope their experience will include a contact with W1AW."
The ARRL invites home stations to operate from generator or battery power or
other emergency power source. Portable and mobile stations also may
participate. ARRL Maxim Memorial Station W1AW will be on the air for the
event, running from its 60-kW emergency backup diesel generator.
An announcement in September QST (page 49) spells out the details. The event
kicks off at 1300 UTC on Saturday, September 17, and wraps up at 0400 UTC on
September 18.
The EPOE dovetails with the Department of Homeland Security's designation of
September as National Preparedness Month. The 15-hour EPOE is not a contest
but a demonstration of what Amateur Radio can do without having to rely on
the commercial mains, and what Amateur Radio does whenever the need arises.
A special QSL will be available to stations contacting W1AW while running
from an emergency power source during the EPOE. Include a self-addressed,
stamped envelope with all QSL card requests, and indicate on your card the
emergency power source used. (Address cards to W1AW, 225 Main St, Newington,
CT 06111.)
==>HUGH A. CASSIDY, WA6AUD, SK
Past ARRL Pacific Division Vice Director and San Francisco Section
Communications Manager Hugh "Cass" Cassidy, WA6AUD, of San Rafael,
California, died September 9. He was 88. Cassidy, who coined the expression
"DX IS," was perhaps best known as editor of the West Coast DX Bulletin
(WCDXB), which he published from 1968-1979.
A World War II veteran and US Postal Service employee (he once served as
postmaster of San Rafael), Cassidy established the Marion DX Club Audio and
soon renamed it the West Coast DX Bulletin. Throughout his 11 years of
publishing the bulletin Cassidy, with the help of his wife Virginia,
created, edited, typed, printed, circulated advertised and more. The WCDXB
quickly became one of the leading DX bulletins in an age before the Internet
and e-mail.
Noted Finnish DXer Jarmo Jaakola, OH2BN, called Cassidy "a truly towering
figure in DX, a source of great inspiration." ARRL Midwest Division DXCC
Advisory Committee member Cliff Ahrens, K0CA, recalls that Cassidy's
bulletin vignettes were "not only fun to read, but taught us much about the
qualities necessary to be a good DXer."
Many of Cassidy's stories and poems were collated into a book in the early
1980s called "DX IS! The Best of the West Coast DX Bulletin," now out of
print.
Cassidy served as Pacific Division Vice Director from 1970 until 1973 and
was San Francisco SCM (now SM) from 1964 until 1970. He has been inducted
into the CQ DX Hall of Fame. Survivors include his wife and a daughter.
==>SOLAR UPDATE
Propagation maven Tad "(The mornin' sun is shining like a) Red Rubber Ball"
Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington, reports: This week the sun has given us a
tremendous amount of activity in the form of large solar flares. A
geomagnetic storm is still in progress, and the planetary A index from
Saturday through Thursday, September 10-15, was 30, 105, 66, 51, 25 and 43.
These are high numbers.
The average planetary A index for this week more than doubled to 43.1.
Compared with week-earlier statistics, average daily sunspot numbers more
than quadrupled to 71.1.
Next week is the Northern Hemisphere's autumnal equinox. This period could
be a good one for HF propagation, but only if solar flares quiet down and
the sunspot count doesn't sink back toward zero. The sunspot number rose
above 100 on Sunday, September 11, the first time it's done that since
August 3.
The source of all this excitement is the large sunspot group 798, which, by
September 14-15, was aimed squarely at our planet. Although not aimed at
Earth at the time, it produced an X17 solar flare on September 7, and over
the next week it produced eight more flares--each causing HF radio
blackouts.
Over the next few days look for declining geomagnetic numbers, but fairly
good sunspot and solar flux values. Predicted solar flux for Friday through
Monday, September 16-19 is 115, 110, 110 and 105. Predicted planetary A
index for those same days is 25, 15, 10 and 10.
Sunspot numbers for September 8 through 14 were 36, 59, 59, 101, 62, 95 and
86, with a mean of 71.1. 10.7 cm flux was 94.1, 99, 116, 109.7, 118, 114,
and 116.6, with a mean of 109.6. Estimated planetary A indices were 8, 17,
30, 105, 66, 51 and 25, with a mean of 43.1. Estimated mid-latitude A
indices were 5, 12, 15, 53, 32, 26 and 13, with a mean of 22.3.
__________________________________
==>IN BRIEF:
* This weekend on the radio: The Emergency Power Operating Event, the North
American Sprint (SSB), the ARRL 10 GHZ and Up Contest, the SARL VHF/UHF
Contest. the Scandinavian Activity Contest (CW), the South Carolina QSO
Party, the Washington State Salmon Run, the QCWA Fall QSO Party are the
weekend of September 17-18. The 144 MHz Fall Sprint is September 19. JUST
AHEAD: the CQ Worldwide DX Contest (RTTY), the Tesla Cup (SSB+CW), the
Scandinavian Activity Contest (SSB), the Texas QSO Party, the AGCW VHF/UHF
Contest (144+432 MHz) and the UBA ON Contest (6 m) are the weekend of
September 24-25. The Fall QRP Homebrewer Sprint is September 26. The 222 MHz
Fall Sprint is September 27. See the ARRL Contest Branch page
<http://www.arrl.org/contests/> and the WA7BNM Contest Calendar
<http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for more info.
* ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration: Register
is open through Sunday, September 18, for these ARRL Certification and
Continuing Education courses: Antenna Modeling (EC-004); VHF/UHF Beyond the
Repeater (EC-008); Propagation (EC-011), and HF Digital Electronics
(EC-013). All classes begin Friday, September 30. To learn more, visit the
ARRL Certification and Continuing Education (CCE) Web page
<http://www.arrl.org/cce> or contact the ARRL C-CE Department
<cce@arrl.org>;.
* Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Course registration: Registration
for the ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Level III on-line course
(EC-003) opens Monday, September 19, 1201 AM EDT, and remains open until all
available 56 seats have been filled. Please note: Students must have
completed Level I and II before registering for Level III. During this
registration period, seats are being offered to ARRL members on a
first-come, first-served basis. Mail-in registrations cannot be accepted.
Classes begin Friday, October 7, and Friday, November 4. Thanks to a grant
from United Technologies Corporation, the $45 registration fee paid upon
enrollment will be reimbursed to students who complete the course
requirements and are upgraded by their mentors to "Passed" within the
eight-week course period. To learn more, visit the ARRL Certification and
Continuing Education (CCE) Web page <http://www.arrl.org/cce>. For more
information, contact Online Course Coordinator Jean Wolfgang, WB3IOS
<cce@arrl.org>;; 860-594-0200.
* Correction: The In Brief item ""When All Else Fails" graphic available" in
The ARRL Letter, Vol 24, No 35 (Sep 9, 2005) contained an error. The correct
URL to obtain this graphic is <http://www.arrl.org/logos#waef>.
* ARRL graphic designers win national award: A nationwide panel of judges
has selected ARRL Headquarters graphic designers Sue Fagan and Diane
Szlachetka as winners of the 2005 American Graphic Design Award. The award
was a result of their design contributions to a special advertising section
in May 2005 QST. The award sponsor, Graphic Design USA is entering its 43rd
year, and this competition is considered among the most prestigious, as well
as open and democratic. Fagan and Szlachetka were among the 10 percent of
nominees honored this year. The award-winning piece will appear in the
300-page Graphic Design Annual, which will circulate in December to a
national audience of influential creative decision makers, with thousands
more distributed through the year at events, shows and conferences. "We're
all proud of Sue and Diane," said ARRL Marketing Manager Bob Inderbitzen,
NQ1R. "Having such talent in-house is invaluable for producing quality
material enjoyed by ARRL members." Earlier this year, Fagan and Szlachetka
collaborated on the design elements depicted in the graphic themes for ARRL
EXPO at the 2005 Dayton Hamvention. Inderbitzen says the exhibits earned
high praise from convention attendees.
* ESA announces SSETI Express telemetry download competition: The European
Space Agency (ESA) education department has announced an award to the radio
amateur who submits the largest number of valid telemetry and payload
packets from the student-built SSETI Express satellite. Telemetry may be
received on any band to qualify for the award. SSETI Express is scheduled
for launch September 27 from Plesetsk in northern Russia. It will downlink
telemetry and payload data in AX.25 format at 9k6 bps on 437.250 MHz and at
38k4 bps on 2401.835 MHz. The satellite later will also be available as a
single-channel Amateur Radio FM transponder All radio amateurs interested in
competing for this award are encouraged to download the necessary software
from the SSETI Express Web site <http://www.sseti.org/express> and to use
the SERACC system to forward the telemetry and payload data to SSETI Express
Mission Control. Submissions will be automatically recorded, and the Web
site will display a leader board, and the winner will be the amateur at the
top of the leader board at 0000 UTC on January 1, 2006. The winner will be
offered the opportunity to visit the Student Technology Education Conference
and Exhibition next spring in Germany. The three day event is similar to the
AMSAT-NA Symposium and the AMSAT-UK Colloquium. In addition, the winner will
be invited to visit ESA's Mission Operations Centre (ESOC) near Darmstadt,
Germany, for a private escorted tour of the facilities. ESOC currently
controls many orbital and deep-space missions and will be responsible for
the European Columbus module when it joins the International Space Station.
The prize includes economy-class travel, accommodations and a modest daily
subsistence allowance.
===========================================================
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Radio Relay League--The National Association For Amateur Radio--225 Main St,
Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259;
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