 June 1, 2023 John E. Ross, KD8IDJ, Editor
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ARRL Elected to Serve on SAFECOM ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio® has been elected to serve on SAFECOM®. SAFECOM sets the standards of interoperability procedures. As a part of the group, ARRL solidifies the Amateur Radio Service as a robust resource before and during times of crisis. A letter from the SAFECOM Chair, Chief Gerald R. Reardon, stated, "On behalf of the SAFECOM Executive Board, it is with great pleasure that I inform you of our offer to join SAFECOM as a member association. ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, "Gaining a seat at the table is a major step in strengthening the role and capability of amateur radio with emergency communication agencies. Johnston will serve as the Representative for ARRL on SAFECOM and will be meeting with leadership over the coming days to begin the process of better understanding the roles and responsibilities that come with being a member association. "I look forward to working with the SAFECOM leadership as we move forward and with the ARRL leadership to better serve the ham community, our served agencies, and our partners," Johnston said. For more information about ARES and other ARRL emergency programs and training, check out our web page at http://arrl.org/public-service. For more information about SAFECOM, visit https://www.cisa.gov/safecom. Gear up for 2023 ARRL Field Day! 2023 ARRL Field Day is just 3 weeks away, on June 24 - 25. It's the most popular on-the-air event held annually in the US and Canada. More than 40,000 hams throughout North America set up temporary There is still time to get ready for Field Day, and all you'll need to participate can be found on ARRL's Field Day web page. You can also join the ARRL Field Day Facebook Group, which is a great place to share your plans, tips, and tricks for a successful Field Day. Remember, when posting content from Field Day, be sure to include #ARRLFD on all social media posts to receive 100 bonus points! Field Day is ham radio's open house. It can be a picnic, a campout, a way to practice for emergencies, an informal contest, and most of all, it's fun! It's a time when many aspects of amateur radio come together to highlight the many roles the hobby offers. While some treat it as a contest, other groups use the opportunity to practice their emergency response capabilities. It's an excellent opportunity to demonstrate how amateur radio might serve in an emergency, as well as how in can help the general public with special events. For many clubs, ARRL Field Day is highlights on their calendar. Field Day is open to all amateurs in the areas covered by the ARRL/RAC Field Organizations and countries within IARU Region 2. DX stations residing in other regions may be contacted for credit and may submit entries as check logs. The main focus of Field Day is to contact as many stations as possible on the 160-, 80-, 40-, 20-, 15-, and 10-meter HF bands, all bands on 50 MHz and above, and to learn to operate in abnormal situations in less-than-optimal conditions. Remember to check out arrl.org/field-day for the official rules. To find a participating amateur radio club in your area, use the Field Day Locator. Also, gear up for the big weekend with official merch from ARRL. Museum Ships On-the-Air Weekend If you like ships and are an amateur radio operator, 100 ships will be on the air from June 3 - 4 for the annual Museum Ships Weekend event.
While operation on any amateur frequency is allowed, most ships will be operating in the general portion of the bands. Other possible modes and frequencies include: PSK31: 14.070 MHz, 10.142 MHz, 18.100 MHz, 21.070 MHz, and 28.120 MHz FT8: 3.573 MHz, 5.357, 7.074 MHz, 10.136 MHz, 14.074 MHz, 18.100 MHz, 21.074 MHz, 24.915 MHz, 28.074 MHz, and 50.313 MHz FT4: 3.575 MHz, 7.047 MHz, 10.140 MHz, 14.140 MHz, 18.105 MHz, 21.140 MHz, 24.919 MHz, 28.180 MHz, and 50.318 MHz Some ships may also operate at 3880 - 3885 kHz as well as7290 kHz amplitude modulation with either their original or modern equipment. All stations that contact at least 15 different participating ships can receive a certificate if they send a copy of their log entries to each individual ship with two exceptions to acceptable contacts:
New this year, DX stations contacting at least 10 different ships will be eligible to request a certificate (this does not include the US states or Canada). For more on the event and frequencies used, contact The Battleship New Jersey Amateur Radio Station. Amateur Radio at the 2023 Area Wide Ripley Rendezvous The St. Cloud Amateur Radio Club, W0SV, will be supporting the Central Minnesota Council of the Boy Scouts of America by participating in the 2023 Area Wide Ripley Rendezvous from June 1 - 4, 2023, at Camp Ripley. This is the 5th year that W0SV has been active in The Ripley Rendezvous is one of the largest Scouting events in the upper Midwest and includes Scouts from councils across the US and Canada. Camp Ripley is a 53,000-acre military and civilian training facility operated by the Minnesota National Guard near the city of Little Falls. Camp Ripley makes its extensive facilities available for this unique Scouting event. All amateur radio operators are invited to help with this event. W0SV will be operating from Camp Ripley and using the unique 1 × 1 call sign, W0N. New this year will be HF operations. The website, http://ku5mc.ddns.net:8888, will be available Saturday, June 3, with a list of frequencies and modes. Rick Collins, KU5MC, Assistant EmComm Manager for W0SV, said 4,000 - 6,000 Scouts are expected at the event and there will be 11 - 12 operators on site. There will also be eight - nine operators making contacts from their home location. "Last year, we had almost 800 Scouts participate," said Collins. "This year, we again expect a great turnout and will have a special tent for the HF contacts, including three museum ships in New York." More information about the event is available on the W0SV website. W0SV is an ARRL Affiliated Club. Chip Margelli, K7JA (SK) "He Touched So Many Lives" The airwaves are markedly dimmer this week, social media is filled with heartfelt tributes, and industry leaders are mourning. Longtime fixture of amateur radio Charles "Chip" Margelli, K7JA, passed away after a brief illness. Margelli was an ARRL Life Member.
"The light and love of my life is gone," Margelli's widow Janet, KL7MF, posted on Facebook. "He enjoyed 60 wonderful years as a ham and 45 happy years with me. Between DXing, contesting, ragchewing, moonbounce, satellite, writing, designing, building antennas, and Field Day, there was never a dull moment," she wrote. Margelli was well known in the amateur radio industry. His friendly approach and love of customer service marked his professional career. He served for 29 years at Yaesu Musen until becoming the Director of Sales and Marketing for Heil Sound Communications Inc. in 2006. In 2010, he joined CQ Communications Inc. as the Director of Advertising Sales. Later in his career, he worked with InnovAntennas before retiring from Ham Radio Outlet as an I.T. Specialist in 2022, according to his biography. "Chip was a great contester," said ARRL Director of Operations Bob Naumann, W5OV. Margelli held first place in many national radiosport contests. "He never had anything bad to say about anyone. He was a fixture at all [of] the big events and was just a great guy to be around," said Naumann. His love of people took him around the world on DXpeditions and missions of goodwill related to amateur radio.
In 1984, he was instrumental in helping the Chinese Radio Sports Association re-establish amateur radio in China. He served a similar role in Albania and operated from Cuba. In 1990, Margelli and his teammate Mike Wetzel, W9RE, won a silver medal at the first-ever World Radiosport Team Championship, held in conjunction with the Goodwill Games in Seattle. His operating prowess spanned modes, cultures, and languages. "Chip was a real DXer who could be eating an ice cream sandwich while sending CW at 50 WPM, all while watching his smartphone for DX spots and carrying on a conversation with a visiting ham," said instructor Gordon West, WB6NOA.
"When working phone, he would speak Japanese when the band was open to the west and speak Russian [to] an early morning 20-meter contact, and [then] Spanish when working stations to the south - plus, more languages [than] I could ever figure out, with a perfect accent," West added. Margelli was genuinely curious about many subjects. "If someone brought up a topic about who knows what, he would just go with it.," said Janet Margelli.
"There didn't seem to be anything that did not interest him," she said. Margelli is remembered as someone who "just loved people [and] loved entertaining them," she said. In May 2005, Margelli took amateur radio to global late-night TV. On an episode of The Tonight Show, host Jay Leno pit Morse code against SMS text messaging to see which was a faster way to communicate. Margelli went up against the US champion cell phone text messenger. Long time friend Katie Allen, WY7YL, said that Margelli didn't feel pressure to perform for the global audience nearly as much as he did for fellow hams. "He always told me that it was kind of thrown together at the last minute, the biggest pressure was that Dayton Hamvention was right after and if he blew it, he didn't want to show his face at the event," said Allen. He didn't blow it - Margelli and his partner Ken Miller, K6CTW, beat the speed of the text messengers. Margelli is a 2018 inductee of the First Class CW Operators' Club (FOC), a 2021 recipient of the E.T. Krenkel Medal, and was inducted into the CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame in 2006. He was a life member of AMSAT and the Quarter Century Wireless Association.
More than his impressive career as a radio amateur, those closest to Margelli are mourning the loss of a man they describe as caring and compassionate - always willing to help creatures big and small. "Chip and Janet have a beautiful yard. I remember one time he ran out in a pouring rainstorm to cover a bush that had monarch butterfly larvae in it," said Allen. "Who else would get soaking wet just to make sure butterflies make it through a rainstorm?" she said. Allen once was in need of a kidney transplant, and Margelli offered up his own. "He called my husband - before they even met and said, 'If Katie needs a kidney, I have an extra,'" recounted Allen. There has been an outpour of messages and remembrances of Margelli circulating on social media. While reaching out for this article, ARRL received many thoughtful comments about Margelli that cannot fit within one story. We have assembled some of the photos and writings on the ARRL Facebook page and YouTube channel, where users are encouraged to share their memories to honor the impact Margelli had on them. As Margelli was privately battling cancer, he was spending time building cables and other equipment for ham clubs to use in the upcoming 2023 ARRL Field Day. His final acts of service will be put to good use in the operating event. Janet Margelli said a memorial service is not planned. "If Chip were here, he'd say the best way to honor him is 'just go kick butt on Field Day.'" ARRL Hudson Division has New Vice Director Ed Wilson, N2XDD, of Shirley, New York has been appointed Vice Director of the ARRL Hudson Division by ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR.
Wilson succeeds Nomar Vizcarrondo, NP4H, who was appointed Director of the ARRL Hudson Division in March. Wilson will serve in the position for the remainder of the 3-year term that ends December 31, 2024. Having developed an interest in radio as a child, Wilson has been active in projects that developed new digital protocols for amateur radio. Wilson has served as an Emergency Coordinator and Public Information Officer and is accredited as a Volunteer Examiner. The ARRL Hudson Division is comprised of the ARRL Sections of Eastern New York, New York City - Long Island, and Northern New Jersey. ARRL Foundation Accepting Applications for Grants in June The ARRL Foundation is now accepting grant applications from amateur radio organizations for eligible amateur radio-related projects and initiatives, particularly those focused on educating, licensing, and supporting amateur radio activities. The ARRL Foundation is celebrating its 50th anniversary. The Foundation carefully manages a portfolio of endowments where donors have provided specific goals for their gifts, and that portfolio is invested and managed in a way that it can continue to support those goals for many years to come. Additional information and a link to the grant application can be found at http://www.arrl.org/amateur-radio-grants Amateur Radio in the News ARRL Public Information Officers, Coordinators, and many other member-volunteers help keep amateur radio and ARRL in the news. "RRV ham radio club notes 50th anniversary" / The Paris News (Texas), May 18, 2023 - The Red River Valley Amateur Radio Club is an ARRL Affiliated Club. "Ham radio operators continue to support county" / El Defensor Chieftain (New Mexico), May 18, 2023 - The Socorro Amateur Radio Association is an ARRL Affiliated Club. "No cellphone? No problem! The vintage radio enthusiasts prepping for disaster" / The Guardian (New York), May 27, 2023 -- The Desert Radio Amateur Transmitting Society. "Public invited to watch ham radio operators in action" / Columbus Messenger (Ohio), May 30, 2023 -- The Madison County Amateur Radio Club is an ARRL Affiliated Club. ARRL Podcasts On the Air With this year's ARRL June VHF Contest fast approaching on the weekend of June 10, seasoned VHF operator Bob Witte, KØNR, joins the podcast to talk about how to prepare yourself and your station to join in the fun of this beginner-friendly event. ARRL Audio News The On the Air podcast is available on iTunes (iOS) and Stitcher (Android). The On the Air podcast and ARRL Audio News are also on blubrry -- On the Air | ARRL Audio News. Announcements June 6, 2023, is the 79th anniversary of D-Day, also known as the Normandy landings of June 6, 1944, that signaled the end of World War II. The South Flanders DX Activity Group will operate the special event station, F/ON6JUN/P, from the Pegasus Bridge in Ranville, Normandy, France. The station will transmit CW, phone, and digital mode operations on all HF bands from June 5 at 12:00 UTC to June 7 at 01:00 UTC. This includes several modulation modes, such as SSB, RTTY, and PSK. A QSL card is available for F/ON6JUN/P by contacting the QSL manager, Jos Lampaert, ON5SD. In Brief... Two contrasting web articles about amateur radio are going viral this week. The Guardian published a well-researched article by Amanda Ulrich about radio amateurs in the Coachella Valley of California. Director of ARRL Southwestern Division Dick Norton, N6AA, is quoted in the piece. It's a good read and portrays ham radio operators well. Another article, to which ARRL will not link, got it all wrong. Many rightfully enraged readers sent the link to QST and ARRL News editors. The article was about selecting the correct ham radio for your business. It featured extreme technical blunders, such as a claim that a handheld VHF transceiver can reach long distances because of skywave propagation. "It appeared to have been written by artificial intelligence," said ARRL Public Relations and Outreach Manager Sierra Harrop, W5DX. "Fortunately, ARRL members are quick to spot technical errors, [and] they flooded the publisher with messages. It appears to have been taken down," she said. ARRL is always willing to assist content creators and writers with technical matters related to amateur radio. An investigation by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) resulted in a large fine against a California amateur radio license holder. A Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture (NALF) of $24,000 has been filed against Philip J. Beaudet, N6PJB, of Burney, California. According to the filing, the penalty is due to Beaudet "willfully and repeatedly interfering with the radio communications of the Western Amateur Radio Friendship Association (WARFA) while it was attempting to hold a regularly scheduled net, and for failing to provide station identification on amateur radio frequencies." FCC agents used direction-finding techniques during November and December 2022 to track the interfering signals to Beaudet's home station. Agents "heard him playing recordings on 3.908 MHz that caused interference to the ongoing WARFA net, while failing to provide his assigned amateur call sign," the document stated. The K7RA Solar Update Tad Cook, K7RA, of Seattle, Washington, reports for this week's ARRL Propagation Bulletin, ARLP022:
Average daily solar flux values dropped over the past week, but comparing May 25 - 31 to the previous week, sunspot numbers were nearly the same. Average daily solar flux declined from 161.2 to 155.3. Geomagnetic indicators were quieter, with the average daily planetary A index declining from 17.1 to 7.3, and middle latitude numbers declining from 14.4 to 7.9. Predicted solar flux is 160 on June 1 - 2; 150 on June 3 - 7; 130 on June 8 - 11, 135, 140, 143, 145, and 150 on June 12 - 16; 155 on June 17 - 20; 150 on June 21 - 25, tand 145, 140, and 135 on June 26 - 28. Predicted planetary A index is 5, 15, 12, 10, and 8 on June 1 - 5; 5 on June 6 - 17; 22, 15, 12, and 10 on June 18 - 21; 5 on June 22 - 24; 12 and 10 on June 25 - 26, and 5 on June 27 - 28. Read about a sunspot larger than Earth at: https://www.fox9.com/news/giant-sunspot-ar3310-visible-earth. Sunspot numbers for May 25 through 31, were 121, 127, 125, 119, 153, 144, and 147, with a mean of 133.7. The 10.7-centimeter flux was 152.1, 149, 156.9, 151.3, 154.4, 162, and 161.4, with a mean of 155.3. Estimated planetary A indices were 11, 6, 4, 11, 4, 5, and 10, with a mean of 7.3. Middle latitude A index was 11, 6, 5, 11, 5, 6, and 11, with a mean of 7.9.
A comprehensive K7RA Solar Update is posted Fridays on the ARRL website. For more information concerning radio propagation, visit the ARRL Technical Information Service, read "What the Numbers Mean...," and check out the Propagation Page of Carl Luetzelschwab, K9LA. A propagation bulletin archive is available. For customizable propagation charts, visit the VOACAP Online for Ham Radio website. Share your reports and observations. A weekly, full report is posted on ARRL News. Just Ahead in Radiosport Yearlong -- ARRL Volunteers On the Air (VOTA). See the State Activations Schedule for weekly W1AW Portable Operations, including:
Upcoming Contests:
Visit the ARRL Contest Calendar for more events and information. Upcoming Section, State, and Division Conventions
Search the ARRL Hamfest and Convention Database to find events in your area. Have News for ARRL? Submissions for the ARRL Letter and ARRL News can be sent to news@arrl.org. -- John E. Ross, KD8IDJ, ARRL News Editor
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SAFECOM is a group of national thought leaders and officials within the emergency communications and response space that works to set standards at every level. The program is managed by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), an agency of the US Department of Homeland Security.
SAFECOM aims to improve multi-jurisdictional and intergovernmental communications interoperability through collaboration with emergency responders and policymakers across federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, and international partners. SAFECOM recognizes the organization's dedication to emergency communications and interoperability, and therefore is pleased to extend a membership offer.".jpg)
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transmitting stations in public places to demonstrate ham radio's science, skill, and service to our communities and our nation. It combines public service, emergency preparedness, community outreach, and technical skills, all in a single event. Field Day has been an annual event since 1933.
Organizers stress that this is not a contest, but a fun event that begins at 0000Z on June 3, 2023, and runs through 2359Z on June 4, 2023.
the event.
To grow amateur radio's future, youth-based projects and initiatives are especially encouraged. The ARRL Foundation grants program accepts proposals on a cyclical model three times a year: in February, June, and October. Proposals for the June grant period are accepted through June 30. Awardees will be notified approximately 1 month after the closing of each cycle..jpg)
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