***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 26, No. 13
March 30, 2007
***************
IN THIS EDITION:
* +Ham radio volunteers ready for tornado
* +League, NPSTC sign Memorandum of Agreement
* +ARRL EXPO 2007 to feature visit by ham-astronaut
* +Suni Williams, KD5PLB, delights Ohio, New York students
* +Amateur Radio exhibition in Europe a hit
* +Astronaut will Run Boston Marathon in space
* Solar Update
* IN BRIEF:
This weekend on the radio
ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration
+Do not follow instructions in bogus e-mails
ARRL announces card checking program changes
+ARRL, ham radio to be represented at NAB convention
South African radio amateurs ready to monitor distress calls
Maine ham radio EmComm volunteer credentialing bill dead
Swains Island DXpedition set to go
DXCC Desk approves operations for DXCC credit
+Available on ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>
===========================================================
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NOTE: ARRL Headquarters will be closed, Friday, April 6. The ARRL Letter and
ARRL Audio News for April 6 will distribute one day early. ARRL Headquarters
will reopen Monday, April 9, at 8 AM Eastern Daylight Time. Have a safe and
enjoyable holiday!
===========================================================
==>HAM RADIO READINESS PROVIDES SAFETY MARGIN IN NEW MEXICO TORNADO OUTBREAK
Dozens of Amateur Radio volunteers in New Mexico did what they do best
Friday, March 23, when nasty weather threatening eastern New Mexico
eventually spawned 13 tornados, from Tatum to Logan. A day before the
storms, SKYWARN Coordinator and National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologist
Keith Hayes, KC5KH, at the Albuquerque NWS office (WX5ABQ) warned New
Mexico's Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) district emergency
coordinators and county emergency managers of the potential for severe
weather. ARES teams and SKYWARN weather spotters consequently were already
in the field and ready for action when the string of tornados struck. The
early warning, aided by trained spotters' accurate minute-by-minute reports
to the NWS and local authorities, provided an additional margin of safety
for residents.
"The teamwork by the ARES teams, support from the surrounding county
emergency managers, the NWS forecasts and real-time radar support, WA5IHL's
Mega-Link [repeater system] and numerous SKYWARN observations saved lives,"
Jay Miller, WA5WHN, observed. During the weather emergency, Amateur Radio
volunteers relayed real-time weather information to NWS offices in
Albuquerque and in Midland, Texas.
After Chaves County District Emergency Coordinator Alf Lindsey, W5ALL, took
note of darkening skies early Friday afternoon, he opened a SKYWARN net.
More than 30 hams in southeastern New Mexico and West Texas relayed their
weather observations through the net to the Albuquerque NWS office. Robert
Tice, W5TIC, reported in with a tornado spotting west of Tatum at about 5
PM. Jim Morrison, KM5BS, observed a large tornado on the ground just south
of Roosevelt County at about 5:45 PM. That prompted the first of many
tornado warnings for the counties along the Texas-New Mexico state line.
The city of Clovis was especially hard hit. "We have always trained for a
single tornado, but not eight of them at the same time," Blaine Smith,
KB5UOT, in Clovis commented afterward. The NWS issued the first tornado
warning for Clovis at about 7:30 PM, and a tornado struck the city about 15
minutes later. Saundra Creiglow, KC5EGP, handled net control duties in
Clovis as the storms approached. The Eastern New Mexico Amateur Radio Club
had three teams operating in and around Clovis before and after the
twisters.
Using the KK5OV EchoLink node, hams in Clovis established a backup
connection with Jory McIntosh, KJ5RM, at the Fort Worth National Weather
Service Office. McIntosh was able to pinpoint the exact course destructive
tornados that hit the city.
The New Mexico State Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and the Bernalillo
County EOC activated. During the tornados, however, the state EOC lost
contact with Clovis, Logan, Texico, Carlsbad, and Portales. Sandoval County
DEC Mike Scales, K5SCA, was able to relay information from hams in
tornado-stricken areas to the state EOC via the state-wide Mega-Link
repeater system. Scales also kept the state EOC up to speed on localized
flooding in Carlsbad.
The American Red Cross requested Amateur Radio assistance to staff shelters
in Logan and Clovis. John English, WB6QKF, was on the air from the
Albuquerque Red Cross office to assist in setting up those shelters.
The tornados carved a 4.5 mile swath across Clovis. Thirty-five residents
were injured badly enough to need hospitalization. In Logan, two-dozen
mobile homes were destroyed. Tatum experienced four tornados in the span of
a half-hour. Electrical power and telephone outages were reported.
Interstate 70 was shut down between Portales and Clovis.
More severe weather popped across eastern New Mexico and western Texas over
the weekend. Spotters were active early March 25 near Lubbock, Texas, as
possible tornados were reported. Showers and thunderstorms were in this
week's forecast for West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. -- New Mexico
PIO Charlie Christman, K5CEC, and other reports
==>ARRL, NATIONAL PUBLIC SAFETY TELECOMMUNICATIONS COUNCIL INK PACT
ARRL and the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC)
<http://www.npstc.org/> have signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA). The
League is an NPSTC member organization, and the MoA culminates efforts begun
in 2003 to formalize the relationship between the two organizations.
"This agreement promotes the concept of strength in unity," the MoA says.
"Speaking with one unified voice provides a clear and strong message from
the public safety community." The MoA also aims "to promote a consensus
input decision-making process." The NPSTC has been among the organizations
that have asked the FCC to thoroughly explore the potential of broadband
over power line (BPL) technology to interfere with public safety and other
licensed radio systems.
A federation of public safety organizations, NPSTC serves as a forum for the
exchange of ideas and information for effective public safety
telecommunications in the US and abroad.
Under the ARRL-NPSTC pact the ARRL designated Chief Technology Officer Paul
Rinaldo, W4RI, to be its primary representative to the Council (ARRL
Atlantic Division Vice Director Tom Abernethy, W3TOM, is the alternate
representative). Rinaldo will participate in NPSTC meetings and serve on
committees and working groups. The League also has agreed to provide "other
expertise, advice and resources" to further the goals of the MoA and in
support of the NPSTC Charter and to promote NPSTC as "the collective voice
of public safety telecommunications."
NPSTC agrees to provide a National Support Office that will, among other
things, coordinate its outreach activities and provide "national level
technical assistance to the public safety telecommunications community."
In addition to the ARRL, the Council's 13 member organizations include the
American Red Cross, the Association of Public-Safety Communications
Officials -- International (APCO), the International Association of Chiefs
of Police and the National Association of State Telecommunications
Directors.
NPSTC celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. The Council will mark "10
Years of Progress" during its Committee & Governing Board Meetings June
11-13 in Denver, Colorado.
==>HAM-ASTRONAUT TO BE LEAGUE'S HONORED GUEST AT ARRL EXPO 2007 IN DAYTON
NASA Space shuttle veteran and International Space Station Expedition 12
commander Bill McArthur, KC5ACR, will be the League's guest at Dayton
Hamvention <http://www.hamvention.org/> 2007 in May. Hamvention takes place
this year Friday through Sunday, May 18-20, at Hara Arena near Dayton, Ohio.
The first astronaut to work all states from space, McArthur has been
applauded for inspiring others through his ham radio activities from NA1SS.
He'll be featured speaker during a closed ARRL reception Thursday, May 17,
and will be on hand all day Friday, May 18, to greet and talk with visitors
to ARRL EXPO 2007 at Hamvention <http://www.arrl.org/announce/nc/2007/>.
ARRL also anticipates that McArthur will be able to lead an Amateur Radio on
the International Space Station (ARISS) forum at Dayton Hamvention for
first-day visitors.
A showcase of exhibits and activities aimed at enhancing your ham radio and
Dayton Hamvention experience, ARRL EXPO will take place in the Ballarena of
Hara Arena. Open to members and nonmembers, ARRL EXPO will display a
sampling of what the League has to offer, including mini-forums on various
topics and a Youth Lounge. The ARRL retail counter will be stocked with
popular publications and products, and visitors can join or renew ARRL while
there.
A graduate of the US Military Academy at West Point, McArthur, 55, holds a
master's degree in aerospace engineering from Georgia Tech. As the keynote
speaker at the 2006 AMSAT Space Symposium banquet and participant in the
ARISS International conference last October in the San Francisco Bay area,
McArthur enjoyed the opportunity to meet many radio amateurs during his
stay, including some he'd worked from NA1SS.
During his six months aboard the ISS -- from October 2005 until April 2006
-- McArthur became the most active ham-astronaut ever to serve in space,
logging more than 1800 QSOs and picking up several honorary operating
awards, including Worked All States (WAS) and Worked All Continents (WAC).
He told his AMSAT audience last fall that the tremendous enthusiasm of the
radio amateurs and students he talked with via ham radio helped him to focus
on why he was aboard the ISS.
Over the course of his ISS duty tour, McArthur, a veteran of four
spaceflights and spacewalks, also established an impressive new milestone of
37 ARISS school contacts. In addition, he put 130 DXCC entities into the
NA1SS log and is continuing to collect the necessary QSL cards to qualify
for an honorary DXCC.
While in space, McArthur managed to contact all continents, including
Antarctica, on both VHF and UHF. He and Expedition 12 Flight Engineer Valery
Tokarev also released SuitSat-1 into orbit. An astronaut since 1990,
McArthur now serves as safety and mission assurance manager for the shuttle
program at Johnson Space Center.
==>SUNI WILLIAMS, KD5PLB, A BRIGHT, CHEERY VOICE FROM SPACE
An upbeat Suni Williams, KD5PLB, continues to delight students with her
unfailingly enthusiastic responses to their questions about life aboard the
International Space Station. The Expedition 14 Flight Engineer doesn't even
seem to mind when the question is one she's already heard several times
already from other youngsters. ISS crew members, many of whom hold Amateur
Radio licenses, take time out of their off-work hours to speak with students
as part of the educational outreach. During a contact March 16 with students
at University School in Shaker Heights, Ohio, Williams talked about some of
the things she's missing in space.
"Of course, I miss my dog, and I've talked about that already," Williams
told students at the private boys' school near Cleveland, "but secondly, I
just miss having a cup of whatever -- milk or coffee or something you can
take an Oreo and dunk it into. Just drinking out of a normal cup, rather
than drinking out of a bag and a straw, is something that I really miss."
What Williams enjoys, among other activities, is being able to float in
microgravity. "It's better than it looks," she told one questioner.
Scheduled to remain aboard the ISS until this summer, Williams said there's
always something to do aboard the ISS. "It's hard to get bored up here," she
allowed. She said she's enjoying taking photos of Earth, enjoying the view
from space and keeping in touch with her family and friends via e-mail.
Bob Morgan, K8RBV, loaned his call sign and served as control operator for
the direct VHF contact with NA1SS. The Shaker Heights school has a full-size
space shuttle simulator that includes the flight and mid-decks of the
transporter, as well as a mission control area and a module of the ISS.
On March 19, she chatted about life aboard the space outpost with grade 6-8
students at East Aurora (NY) Middle School. Youngsters there were interested
in any precautions the ISS crew took in the event of a solar storm.
"If there are solar storms that are going to have a big effect on us, we
will go to a part of the space station that's a little bit more protected --
some of the node areas that have different modules on different sides that
would be a little more protected," Williams explained. "And that's tracked
on the ground and predictions are made, and they will give us enough time so
we'll be able to take cover as needed." Responding to another question,
Williams noted that a "solar wind" can actually change the attitude of the
ISS.
George "Buff" Hoffman, a retired US Air Force officer whom Williams knows,
addressed the students prior to the event. Hoffman's son, Sam, attends the
school and took part in the contact. "It was great to hear her voice, and
the connection was superb," LTC Hoffman said afterward. "Kudos to ARISS."
Gerald Klatzko, ZS6BTD, in South Africa, served as the Earth station for the
East Aurora contact. A Verizon Conferencing teleconferencing link provided
two-way audio between ZS6BTD and the school. The event attracted media
attention from three TV stations and one newspaper.
ARISS is an international educational outreach with US participation by
ARRL, AMSAT and NASA.
==>EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT HOSTS AMATEUR RADIO EXHIBITION
Amateur Radio went on display in Brussels, Belgium, earlier this month,
thanks to the European Parliament, the International Amateur Radio Union
(IARU) and several Amateur Radio societies and organizations. IARU Region 1
EUROCOM Working Group Chairman Gaston Bertels, ON4WF, and his committee
prepared the "Amateur Radio -- a European Resource" exhibition at the
European Parliament. IARU Region 1 President Ole Garpestad, LA2RR, formally
opened the exhibit March 5 as more than 100 visitors looked on. In
introductory remarks, Bertels said the weeklong exhibition was designed to
present the many facets of Amateur Radio.
"Amateur Radio is the ideal preparation for a future career in a wide range
of science, technology and engineering roles," Bertels told the opening-day
audience. "Many young people who qualify as radio amateurs continue to
pursue higher education in science, technology and engineering disciplines.
Radio amateurs provide a valuable reservoir of skills for communications,
information and high-tech industries, and many amateurs are employed in
these areas."
Bertels singled out the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB), the Deutscher
Amateur Radio Club (DARC) and the Réseau des Emetteurs Français (REF-Union)
-- respectively the IARU member-societies of Germany and France -- for their
delegates' help in making the exhibition possible. He also cited the Amateur
Radio satellite (AMSAT) organizations of Italy, Germany, Great Britain and
France for providing "valuable input" to the event.
In her opening remarks, Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Mechtild
Rothe of Germany stressed the vital role Amateur Radio has played in
education and emergencies. National Institute of Amateur Radio (NIAR)
Chairman Shri Suri, VU2MY, presented a gold medal to Spanish MEP Fernando
Martin, EA8AK, for his support of Amateur Radio in India, and a silver medal
to Bertels. The NIAR sponsored the 2004 Andaman Islands DXpedition, which
turned into an emergency communication effort after the Southeast Asia
tsunami.
Exhibits and posters stressed emergency communication, space communication,
well-known radio amateurs, training young people, and careers directly
influenced by Amateur Radio. Displays included one on electromagnetic
compatibility that demonstrated HF interference from several sources,
including broadband over power line (BPL). Others touched on Morse code,
PSK31, and space communication. On exhibit were engineering models of
Sputnik 40 and the L/S-band antenna for the Columbus ISS module. Bertels,
who is also Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) vice
chairman, outlined the ham radio activities on the space station and noted
the fundraising effort now under way to provide and install the Columbus
Amateur Radio antennas.
All members of the European Parliament received exhibition flyers in
English, French and German. RSGB representatives also handed out brochures
to MEPs that explained the benefits of Amateur Radio. "The aim was to raise
the profile of Amateur Radio among Europe's politicians, and highlight the
important contribution the hobby has to offer in many areas of society,"
Bertels said.
The exhibition attracted "significant interest" from MEPs and visitors to
the European Parliament and proved to be a "huge success," Bertels said.
"One Polish MEP was so impressed that he pledged to become a radio amateur."
==>HAM-ASTRONAUT TO COMPETE IN MARATHON FROM SPACE
International Space Station Expedition 14 Flight Engineer Suni Williams,
KD5PLB, will go faster than anyone has ever gone when she "runs" the Boston
Marathon April 16. A native of the Boston suburb of Needham, she'll compete
as an official entrant in the annual Patriots Day event from 210 miles above
Earth. Williams will run on an ISS exercise treadmill, circling Earth at
least twice in the process and going as fast as 8 MPH while flying more than
5 miles per second. Williams hopes her unique run will be an inspiration.
"I encourage kids to start making physical fitness part of their daily
lives," she said. "I think a big goal like a marathon will help get this
message out there."
NASA says this will mark the first time an astronaut in space will be an
official marathon participant. An accomplished marathoner, Williams has been
aboard the space station since last December.
She won't be alone in her adventure. Her sister Dina Pandya and fellow
astronaut Karen Nyberg will run the race in Boston. Williams and Nyberg
qualified for the Boston race by finishing among the top 100 females in the
2006 Houston Marathon.
ISS crew members must exercise daily to counteract the effects of
long-duration weightlessness on their health. Williams adheres to a rigorous
workout routine on the treadmill, a stationary bike and a resistive exercise
machine to counter loss of bone density and muscle mass.
"In microgravity, both of these things start to go away because we don't use
our legs to walk around and don't need the bones and muscles to hold us up
under the force of gravity," Williams said.
Due to the crew's sleep schedule, Williams' run may not coincide precisely
with the earthbound race, but mission control is working to sync the events
as closely as possible.
NASA will have an exhibit in Boston during the marathon. Nyberg and ISS
Expedition 13 crew member Jeff Williams, KD5TVQ -- no relation to Suni
Williams -- will be available for interviews. -- NASA
==>SOLAR UPDATE
Solar swami Tad "I Got my Mojo Workin'" Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington,
reports: The daily sunspot number ended its stretch of zeroes Friday, March
23, after 10 days of totally blank sun. Since then the daily sunspot number
has ranged from 11 to 23. The daily sunspot number is not the same as the
number of sunspots but represents the number of spots and individual groups
of spots. The minimum non-zero sunspot number is 11, when one sunspot is
visible.
Geomagnetic activity came a little earlier than predicted, with the active
day on Saturday, March 24. The latest forecast puts the next period of
higher geomagnetic activity on Monday, April 2. The sunspot numbers and
solar flux should remain about the same, with no more than one or two spots
visible.
Geophysical Institute Prague predicts quiet geomagnetic conditions for March
30 and 31, unsettled activity on April 1 and 2, quiet to unsettled on April
3, and quiet again on April 4 and 5.
Sunspot numbers for March 22 through 28 were 0, 14, 11, 11, 17, 11 and 23,
with a mean of 12.4. The 10.7 cm flux was 72.5, 72.5, 72.8, 73.7 , 73.8,
73.3, and 74.6, with a mean of 73.3. Estimated planetary A indices were 2,
10, 21, 10, 11, 12 and 7, with a mean of 10.4. Estimated mid-latitude A
indices were 1, 7, 16, 8, 7, 9 and 6, with a mean of 7.7.
For more information concerning radio propagation, visit the ARRL Technical
Information Service Propagation page
<http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html>.
__________________________________
==>IN BRIEF:
* This weekend on the radio: The QCWA Spring QSO Party is the weekend of
March 31-April 1. The RSGB RoPoCo 1 is April 1. The RSGB 80-Meter Club
Championship (CW) is April 2. The ARS Spartan Sprint is April 3. The YLRL
DX-YL to NA-YL Contest (CW) is April 3-5. The SARL 80-Meter QSO Party is
April 5. JUST AHEAD:
The ARLHS Annual Spring Lites QSO Party runs April 7-15. The ARCI Spring QSO
Party, the SP DX Contest, the EA RTTY Contest, the Missouri QSO Party, the
FeldHell Spring Sprint, the UBA Spring Contest (SSB), the SARL Hamnet
40-Meter Simulated Emergency Contest are the weekend of April 7-18. The Low
Power Spring Sprint and the 144 MHz Spring Sprint are April 9. The YLRL
DX-YL to NA-YL Contest (SSB) runs April 10-12. The NAQCC Straight Key/Bug
Sprint and the RSGB 80-Meter Club Championship (SSB) are April 11. 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:
Registration remains open through Sunday, April 22, for these ARRL
Certification and Continuing Education (CEC) program
<http://www.arrl.org/cce/> online courses beginning on Friday, May 4: The
ARRL Ham Radio License Course (EC-010), Amateur Radio Emergency
Communications Level 1 (EC-001), Radio Frequency Interference (EC-006),
Antenna Design and Construction (EC-009), Analog Electronics (EC-012) and
Digital Electronics (EC-013). These courses will also open for registration
Friday, April 20, for classes beginning Friday, June 1. To learn more, visit
the CCE Course Listing page <http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html> or
contact the CCE Department <cce@arrl.org>;.
* Do not follow instructions in bogus e-mails: The ARRL is alerting members
-- and especially users of the ARRL E-Mail Forwarding Service
<http://www.arrl.org/members-only/emailfwd.html> -- about bogus e-mails that
claim to be from the "arrl.net user support team." There is no such entity,
and the messages do not originate with ARRL but appear to be coming from
outside the US. Recipients should not follow the instructions in the e-mail,
which reads, "We have received reports that your e-mail account has been
used to send a large amount of unsolicited commercial email messages during
this week. We suspect that your computer had been infected by a recent virus
and now contains a hidden proxy server. We recommend you to follow our
instructions in order to keep your computer safe." Following the
instructions will have the opposite effect, however, infecting your computer
with the MyDoom Trojan worm and making it part of a spamming network. The
League urges all members to invest in and use anti-virus software.
* ARRL announces card checking program changes: The ARRL has announced some
changes in the DXCC, WAS and VUCC card checking program rules. Effective
immediately, the 10-year rule has been dropped for DXCC
<http://www.arrl.org/awards/dxcc> card checking. ARRL DXCC card checkers now
have been authorized to check cards *for current entities only*, dating back
to November 15, 1945. Card checkers still may not verify cards for 160-meter
contacts nor cards confirming contacts with deleted entities. In addition,
DXCC card checkers now may check applications for Worked All States Award
(WAS) <http://www.arrl.org/awards/was> and The VHF/UHF Century Club Award
(VUCC) <http://www.arrl.org/awards/vucc>, if they agree to do so. For more
information, contact DXCC Manager Bill Moore, NC1L, <dxcc@arrl.org>;.
* ARRL, ham radio to be represented at NAB convention: ARRL will again
sponsor a display at this year's National Association of Broadcasters (NAB)
Convention, April 14-19 in Las Vegas <http://www.nabshow.com/>. The
gathering annually attracts more than 100,000 broadcasting and electronic
media industry representatives. Las Vegas volunteer Stan Perkins, W7SLP,
ARRL Pacific Division Director Bob Vallio, W6RGG, and other volunteers from
near and far will staff the League's exhibit and inform attendees about
Amateur Radio's service to the public. "We received offers from ham
attendees living in other areas to help with the booth," Perkins says. "The
distance record this year is held by John Goran, K1JJS, attending the NAB
from Maine." On Wednesday, April 18, Heil Sound Ltd
<http://www.heilsound.com/> will host the Amateur Radio reception at the NAB
Convention -- a standing-room-only event with door prizes and refreshments
that Perkins calls "the highlight of the week" for radio amateurs. Kent
Johnson, W7AOR, will sponsor the annual IRLP voice over Internet protocol
(VoIP) conference April 13-15. Perkins suggests hams attending the NAB
Convention bring a handheld transceiver. Several clubs operate repeaters in
the area.
* South African radio amateurs ready to monitor distress calls: Hamnet
<http://www.sarl.org.za/public/hamnet/hamnet.asp> Amateur Radio emergency
communication volunteers in South Africa have offered take over the
monitoring of maritime emergency calls should workers at Milnerton Maritime
Radio in Cape Town, a subsidiary of telephone service provider Telkom, go on
strike. "The strike was called off, so Hamnet stood down," Hans van de
Groenendaal, ZS6AKV, told ARRL. "They, however, remain on high alert and
would be ready to take action when and if required." He speculates the
company and the union are still talking. Hamnet members regularly monitor
Amateur Radio frequencies used by the cruising community in South African
waters, van de Groenendaal has explained, and listening for emergency calls
from ships would be an extension of that activity. Telkom says it's made
contingency plans in the event of a strike by the Solidarity trade union but
also may attempt to get a court injunction. The company has a contract with
the South African government to monitor maritime distress calls. The labor
dispute involves work scheduling.
* Maine ham radio EmComm volunteer credentialing bill dead: A bill in the
Maine Legislature that would have required credentials for Amateur Radio
emergency communications volunteers is dead. Sponsored by State Rep Stanley
Gerzofsky of Brunswick, LD 696 received an "ought not to pass"
recommendation March 14 from the Maine Senate Committee on Criminal Justice
and Public Safety. The committee's action followed a March 7 public hearing.
On March 21, the measure was placed in the legislative files, effectively
killing it. The bill would have included registered and credentialed
emergency communications volunteers among individuals the Maine Emergency
Management Agency (MEMA) could call upon to help in an emergency or
disaster. Before they could be issued a valid MEMA identification card,
Amateur Radio EmComm volunteers would have had to meet certain training
criteria and other requirements, including certifications from the ARRL and
the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The measure also would have
required EmComm volunteers to undergo criminal history and driving record
background checks. Maine Gov John E. Baldacci is KB1NXP.
* Swains Island DXpedition set to go: The Swains Island DXpedition
<http://www.yt1ad.info/n8s/index.html> will be on the air as N8S from April
3 until April 15 on all HF bands (including 60 meters -- 5403.5 kHz) as well
as moonbounce on 6 and 2 meters. The international team includes YT1AD,
K3LP, K1LZ, N6TQS, K6SRZ, RK3AD, RA3AUU, SV2BFN, UR0MC, YZ7AA, YZ1BX,
UA4HOX, YU7NU, RU4SU, YU1AU, JT1CO and Z32ZM. The same team plans to operate
from Samoa as 5W5AA from April 17 to April 24. YT1AD will handle cards for
N8S; YZ7AA will handle QSLs for 5W5AA. Swain's Island is among the
most-wanted DXCC entities. -- The Daily DX
* DXCC Desk approves operations for DXCC credit: The ARRL DXCC Desk has
approved these operations for DXCC credit: DX0JP (Spratly Islands, 2007
operation), 9M4SDX (Spratly Islands, 2007 operation), 9U9Z (Burundi, 2007
operation), YW0DX (Aves Island, 2007 operation) and 1A4A (Sovereign Military
Order Of Malta, 2007 operation). For more information, visit the DXCC Web
page <http://www.arrl.org/awards/dxcc>.
===========================================================
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Radio Relay League: ARRL--the National Association For Amateur Radio, 225
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delivery of The ARRL Letter--registered members should click on the "Member
Data Page" link (in the Members Only box). Click on "Modify membership
data," check or uncheck the appropriate boxes and/or change your e-mail
address if necessary. (Check "Temporarily disable all automatically sent
email" to temporarily stop all e-mail deliveries.) Then, click on "Submit
modification" to make selections effective. (NOTE: HQ staff members cannot
change your e-mail delivery address. You must do this yourself via the
Members Only Web Site.)
The ARRL Letter also is available to all, free of charge, from these
sources:
* ARRLWeb <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>. (NOTE: The ARRL Letter will be
posted each Friday when it is distributed via e-mail.)
* The QTH.net listserver, thanks to volunteers from the Boston Amateur Radio
Club: Visit Mailing Lists@QTH.Net
<http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/letter-list>. (NOTE: The ARRL
cannot assist subscribers who receive The ARRL Letter via this listserver.)
