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GB2RS News Sunday, the 11th of May 2025   The news headlines: The RSGB EMC Committee has updated leaflets on mains wiring and earthing requirements Last chance to apply and be part of the RSGB team at YOTA in Paris Help the RSGB celebrate International Women in Engineering Day The RSGB EMC leaflets on mains wiring and earthing requirements have been updated by the EMC Committee to reflect the latest version of “Part P” of the Building Regulations for England and Wales. Part P deals with electrical safety in domestic homes. There are two leaflets, a basic version and an advanced version, and both are available to download from the RSGB website. Go to rsgb.org/emc and select ‘EMC Leaflets' from the menu located on the right-hand side. Choose the “EMC Leaflet 7: Earthing and the radio amateur” links. You will also find many other resources on the same web page that will help you deal with a wide range of EMC problems. Time is running out to apply and be part of the RSGB team going to France for this year's Youngsters On The Air Summer Camp. The camp takes place between the 18th and 25th of August near Paris and is a chance of a lifetime for young RSGB members to represent their country and their national society. If you are aged between 16 and 25 and are passionate about amateur radio, then the RSGB would love to hear from you. The deadline to apply is Friday, the 16th of May. Don't delay, apply now by going to rsgb.org/yota-camp The RSGB is celebrating International Women in Engineering Day on the 23rd of June. The day celebrates the amazing work of women engineers across the globe. We know that amateur radio is a great foundation for careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths. This year, the Society would love to share stories of how amateur radio has helped female engineers in their careers, as well as being an enjoyable part of their lives. If you are a woman working in any engineering sector, or know someone who is, the RSGB would like your help to inspire future generations of girls and young women. It doesn't matter whether you are established in your career, just starting out or even still studying. Stories, along with a photo, should be sent to comms@rsgb.org.uk  by the 26th of May. This event contributes to the RSGB's Growth strategic priority by helping to reach new audiences. Members of the RSGB HQ Team and RSGB volunteers will be attending the Dayton Hamvention between the 16th and 18th of May. Held at the Greene County Fairground in Xenia, Ohio, USA, the event is one of the world's largest amateur radio gatherings and attracts radio amateurs from around the world. If you are attending, make sure you pop along to stand numbers 2305 and 2405 to say hello and ask the RSGB about digital membership. Find out more about the Dayton Hamvention by going to hamvention.org Don't forget that the next RSGB Tonight@8 webinar is tomorrow, Monday, the 12th of May. Dr Nathaniel Frissell, W2NAF and RSGB Propagation Studies Committee membe,r Gwyn Griffiths, G3ZIL, will present “Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation: Space Weather We Can Do Together”. The talk will cover some of the key findings of recent HamSCI research, what's next for the organisation, as well as how you can take part. The webinar will be livestreamed on the Society's YouTube channel and special BATC channel, allowing you to watch and ask questions live. Find out more by going to rsgb.org/webinars Please send details of all your news and events to radcom@rsgb.org.uk  The deadline for submissions is 10 am on Thursdays before the Sunday broadcast each week.   And now for details of rallies and events The Barry Amateur Radio Society Rally is on Saturday, the 17th of May at Sully Sports and Social Club, South Road, Sully CF64 5SP. There is a large free car park on site. Admission is £3. Doors open to traders at 8 am and to the public from 9.30 am. Traders and exhibitors can call Nigel, GW1CUQ via 02920 892580 for further information. For general enquirie,s please ring Steve, GW5VOG, on 07900 560080 or email s.cawsey@sky.com The Dunstable Downs Radio Club will be holding its Annual National Amateur Radio Car Boot Sale at the usual venue, Stockwood Park in Luton, on Sunday, the 18th of May.  Excluding a break for Covid-19, this is the 40th consecutive year that the event has been run. For further information, go to ddrcbootsale.org The West of Scotland Braehead Radio Rally is on Sunday, the 18th of May at Braehead Arena, 150 Kings Inch Road, G51 4BN. The venue is just off the M8 and has free parking all day. It also has great bus links with Glasgow, Paisley and Inverclyde. Entry is £4. Doors are open between 10 am and 4 pm. There will be hot food and drinks available, and a licensed bar. There will be over 50 tables of traders and club stands as well as a Bring-and-Buy and an RSGB Book stand. For further information, go to braeheadradiorally.com  The Lough Erne Amateur Radio Club's 41st Annual Radio Rally is taking place on Sunday, the 18th of May at Share Discovery Village, 221 Lisnaskea Road, Lisnaskea, Enniskillen, BT92 0JZ. There will be the usual facilities, food and drink, and a Bring-and-Buy. Doors open at 9 am to traders and 11 am to the general public. Entry is £5 and includes a draw ticket. To arrange a table, please contact Alan via argault91@gmail.com Now the Special Event news Special event station GB0SAR is active until the 30th of May to support SOS Radio Week. The station will mostly be working using FT4 on the 20m band, but you might also catch it on the other HF bands using phone. For more information, visit Qrz.com Humber Fortress DX Amateur Radio Club will be operating special callsign GB0MMH to raise awareness of men's mental health. Other special call signs will also be active. The station will be active throughout the weekend of the 17th and 18th of May, and also of the 21st and 22nd of June. Please listen out for the operators and give them a call. Your support will help raise awareness of the important issue of men's mental health. If you would like further information, please contact secretary@hfdcarc.com Now the DX news Roberto, IW7DEC will be active as PJ2/IW7DEC from Curacao, IOTA reference SA-099, until Wednesday, the 14th of May. He'll be active on 40m to 20m, FT8 and SSB. QSL available via his home call and Logbook of the World. Yuris, YL2GM continues to be active as ZS8W from Prince Edward and Marion Island, IOTA reference AF-021, until Friday, the 16th of May. Yuris will be on Marion Island as a radio engineer and member of the SANAP station communication equipment maintenance team, and he hopes to find good periods of time to be operational.  A team of five Italian operators is active in the Republic of Kosovo until Saturday, the 17th of May. The operators will be active as Z68TT on CW, SSB and RTTY, and as Z68ZZ on FT8. QSL is available via OQRS and Logbook of the World. Now the contest news Today, Sunday, the 11th of May, the UK Microwave Group Millimetre-wave Contest runs from 0900 to 1700 UTC. Using all modes on 24, 47 and 76 GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Also on Sunday, the 11th of May, the 70MHz CW Contest runs from 0900 to 1200 UTC. Using CW on the 4m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. UK stations also send their postcode. Tomorrow, Monday the 12th of May, the 80m Club Championship runs from 1900 to 2030 UTC. Using SSB on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number. On Tuesday, the 13th of May, the 432MHz FM Activity Contest runs from 1800 to 1855 UTC. Using FM on the 70cm band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Also on Tuesday, the 13th of May, the 432MHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on the 70cm band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Wednesday, the 14th of May, the 432MHz FT8 Activity Four-Hour Contest runs from 1700 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 70cm band, the exchange is a report and four-character locator. Also on Wednesday, the 14th of May, the 432MHz FT8 Activity Two-Hour Contest runs from 1900 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 70cm band, the exchange is a report and a four-character locator. Stations entering the four-hour contest may also enter the two-hour contest. On Thursday, the 15th of May, the 70MHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on the 4m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 8th of May 2025 Active region 4079 turned out to be not quite so bad as we had predicted. The sunspot was large, about ten times the width of our Earth, so we expected it to be more active. It was regions 4081 and 4082 that produced most of the flare activity last week. Two filament eruptions also occurred within two hours of each other. The first event began at 16:20 UTC on the 6th of May in the southern hemisphere and was responsible for a plasma wave across the surface of the Sun. The second filament eruption began in the northern hemisphere around 17:50 UTC to the northeast of AR 4079. A large amount of plasma was flung to the north. The filament eruptions on Tuesday, the 6th of May, did produce coronal mass ejections, but an Earth-directed component was not apparent. So we dodged a bullet! The solar wind speed remained high for most of last week which didn't help propagation. It did help to push the Kp index to five across the weekend of the 3rd and 4th of May. Things were more settled later in the week. On Thursday, the 8th of May, the solar wind speed was down to around 500 kilometres per second, the Kp index was three, but MUFs over a 3,000km path were still down at about 20 MHz. An Earth-facing coronal hole may add to the solar wind this weekend, the 10th and 11th of May. It looks like summer HF propagation is kicking in, with lower MUFs during the day but higher ones at night. Next week, NOAA predicts that the SFI will be in the range 155 to 165. Settled geomagnetic conditions are forecast for the beginning of this coming week, but unsettled geomagnetic conditions are expected for the 16th to the 19th of May. At that point, we could see the Kp index rise to five again, coupled with poorer propagation and reduced MUFs. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO Tropo has been a key propagation mode during the previous couple of weeks, but there have been variations in the location and timings of these conditions. Sometimes this will be due to increased moisture below the temperature inversion, so although the cloudier areas have been cool, they have probably done better for Tropo. This is due to the improved quality of the inversion, which performs better when there is a big moisture contrast across it, as you find with these layers of cloud.  Otherwise, we find that the better conditions are driven by night-time cooling, forming a low inversion near the ground which tends to disperse during the morning as the Sun warms it away. This should still be beneficial for the 70cm UK Activity Contest on Tuesday, the 13th of May, over eastern areas, but perhaps less so farther west. Good conditions will last into next week, but not everywhere. The main change will see an area of showery rain, possibly thundery, moving north into western Britain this weekend and perhaps some central areas early next week. This raises the prospect of some GHz band rain scatter in the west. The Eta Aquariids meteor shower peaked last week. In the decaying tail of activity, together with other lesser showers, this should keep an enhanced meteor input for the coming week. The Sporadic-E season typically runs from May to mid-September and the daily jet stream blogs have started on www.propquest.co.uk.  As usual, the main season offers two periods of activity, one in the morning and the second from late afternoon to the evening. Remember, Es is not guaranteed since it depends upon many factors, but jet streams help, and these are shown on the website maps. Use the map clusters to find out where any activity is starting on 10m and then follow it up in frequency through the lower VHF bands. EME path losses are at their maximum but falling after apogee on Friday, the 9th of May. Moon declination is negative, reaching a minimum this coming Thursday, so we'll have very short Moon windows and low peak elevation. 144MHz sky noise is moderate, increasing to high by next Friday. And that's all from the propagation team this week.  

GB2RS News Sunday the 4th of May 2025 The news headlines: The RSGB's Tonight@8 series continues with HamSCI Learn about radar through an RSGB Convention presentation and a new members' benefit RSGB club insurance and beacon and repeater insurance have been renewed On Monday the 12th of May, Dr Nathaniel Frissell, W2NAF and RSGB Propagation Studies Committee member Gwyn Griffiths, G3ZIL will be delivering a Tonight@8 webinar on “Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation: Space Weather We Can Do Together”. Since the 2017 Solar Eclipse QSO Party, HamSCI has been bringing together amateur radio operators and professional space scientists. They have been developing new and innovative ways to study space weather and its impacts on the ionosphere and radio propagation. In the presentation, Nathaniel will show results from the 2023 and 2024 HamSCI Festivals of Eclipse Ionospheric Science. Gwyn will explain why he enjoys the HamSCI experience, from exchanges with scientists to learning from students while pursuing his studies on HF propagation. They'll also talk about what's next for the organisation and how you can participate. Find out more by going to rsgb.org/webinars In the latest RSGB 2024 Convention video to be released by the Society, Graham Murchie, G4FSG presents “Radar - the eyes of the few”. In the talk Graham gives a brief history of early radar, events leading up to the development of a viable system and the establishment of the world's first operational radar station at Bawdsey. Watch the video by going to youtube.com/@theRSGB  If you're interested in learning more about Bawdsey Radar Museum then check out the new benefit for RSGB members, which offers a 20% discount off the usual entrance price. Go to rsgb.org/partner-museums  to find out more! RSGB club insurance, and beacon and repeater insurance have now been renewed for the year to April 2026. Club insurance certificates can be downloaded via rsgb.org/repeaterinsurance. You will need to log in to obtain your certificate. Beacon and repeater insurance certificates are available for an admin fee of £15 from the RSGB shop.  Please allow a couple of days after renewal for your certificate to be dispatched. The RSGB Contest Club has recently exceeded one million QSOs. These have been made by RSGB members activating historic RSGB callsigns and special event callsigns, either in contests or in radio marathon activations. The QSOS have all been uploaded to Logbook of the World. The most prolific callsign has been G6XX with over 154,000 QSOs, and the most recent has been GB0IARU which was active in April to celebrate 100 years of the International Amateur Radio Union. Find out more about the RSGB Contest club, including how to join, by going to the RSGB website and selecting Contest Club from the ‘on the air' menu. Celebrations for the 70th Anniversary of GB2RS are well underway. To find out how you can get involved with special event stations and awards go to rsgb.org/gb70rs . The RSGB has recently updated the web page to add a selection of newsreader stories, which you can access by clicking ‘GB2RS Newsreader Stories' from the menu on the right-hand side. If you've ever wanted to learn more about the voice behind your weekly GB2RS broadcast, this is your chance. More stories will be added throughout the year. On Saturday the 10th of May, RSGB volunteers will be attending a regional Girlguiding event at Ardingly in West Sussex. Amongst other activities, Girlguiding members will have the opportunity to operate special event callsign GB25MAY via the QO-100 satellite. The volunteers would welcome contacts via QO-100 between 10.30 am and 3.30 pm on the day. Put the date in your diary and make time to encourage these youngsters as they try amateur radio! The German amateur radio society, DARC, is once again hosting the traditional HamCamp for youngsters during the HAM RADIO fair in Friedrichshafen  between the 26th and 29th of June. It is open to participants under 27 years old and includes three nights at HamCamp, three breakfast vouchers and a three-day ticket for the HAM RADIO fair. The package price is €80 and the deadline for registration is the 8th of June. You can find further information via tinyurl.com/hamcamp25 Please send details of all your news and events to radcom@rsgb.org.uk  The deadline for submissions is 10am on Thursdays before the Sunday broadcast each week. And now for details of rallies and events The Dartmoor Radio Rally is taking place tomorrow, Monday the 5th of May, at the Yelverton War Memorial Hall, Meavy Lane, Yelverton, Devon, PL20 6AL. Free parking is available. There will be the usual Bring and Buy as well as trader stands and refreshments. Doors open at 10am and admission is £3. For further details, please call Roger on 07854 088882 or email him via 2e0rph@gmail.com The popular Mills on the Air event is taking place on the weekend of the 10th and 11th of May. There are currently 35 stations taking part, with registrations still being accepted. Find out more by going to tinyurl.com/millsontheair or by visiting the Mills on the Air Facebook page. Now the Special Event news The Ramsbury Amateur Radio DX Group will be active on the 3rd, 4th and 8th of May using special callsign GB1VE to celebrate VE day. The group will be operating on 20m and 40m using CW, SSB and digital modes. The Vintage and Military Amateur Radio Society will be commemorating VE Day on Thursday the 8th of May. Members will be controlling a number of nets on varying frequencies between 7 am and 2 pm. They will be using vintage military equipment dating from the WWII period and beyond. The full programme of events can be found via vmars.org/news Worthing Radio Events Group are planning to operate GB8OFP for the anniversary of VE Day on the 8th of May. Operation will take place on the seafront at the Ferring Pillbox, Patterson's Walk, West Sussex. Members will be active between 10 am and 2 pm on the 40m and 20m bands using SSB. The East Midlands Electronics and Radio Group will be on the air between the 8th and 11th of May to celebrate the 80th anniversary of VE Day. Using the callsign GB1BK, the group will operate from the former RAF Binbrook in Lincolnshire. Members expect to be operational on at least 40m, 20m and 2m, using SSB and possibly some FT8 and SSTV. Guernsey Amateur Radio Society will be operating special event radio station GU80LIB between the 9th and the 11th of May in celebration of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Guernsey at the end of World War Two. See QRZ.com for more information. Special event station GB0SAR will be operating between the 3rd and the 30th of May to support SOS Radio Week. The station will mostly be working using FT4 on the 20m band but you might also catch it on the other HF bands using phone. For more information, visit QRZ.com  Now the DX news A team of radio amateurs is active as TX9A from Tubuai in the Austral Islands, IOTA reference OC-152, until Wednesday the 7th of May. The group will operate on the HF bands. QSL is available via DK8ZZ. For all direct requests, use Clublog OQRS. Further information is available via austral2025.com Yuris, YL2GM is active as ZS8W from Prince Edward and Marion Island, IOTA reference AF-021, until Friday the 16th of May. Yuris will be on Marion island as a radio engineer and member of the SANAP station communication equipment maintenance team, and he hopes to find good periods of time to be operational.  Now the contest news The ARI International DX Contest started on Saturday the 3rd of May and ends at 1159UTC today, Sunday the 4th of May. Using CW, RTTY and SSB on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and serial number. Italian stations also send their province. The 432MHz to 245GHz Contest also started on Saturday the 3rd of May and ends at 1400UTC today, Sunday the 4th of May. Using all modes on 432MHz to 245GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. The 10GHz Trophy runs today, Sunday the 4th of May, from 0800 to 1400 UTC. Using all modes on 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. The May 144MHz Contest also runs today, Sunday the 4th of May, from 0800 to 1400 UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Also today, the 144MHz Backpackers Contest runs from 1100 to 1500 UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. UK stations also send their postcode. Today, Sunday the 4th of May, the UK Microwave Group Low Band Contest runs from 0800 to 1400 UTC. Using all modes on 1.3 to 3.4GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. The Worked All Britain 7MHz Phone Contest runs today, Sunday the 4th of May, from 1000 to 1400 UTC. Using SSB on the 40m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and Worked All Britain Square. On Tuesday, the 6th of May, the 144MHz FM Activity Contest runs from 1800 to 1855UTC. Using FM on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Also on Tuesday, the 6th of May, the 144MHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Wednesday, the 7th of May, the 144MHz FT8 Activity four-hour Contest runs from 1700 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 2m band, the exchange is a report and a four-character locator. Also on Wednesday, the 7th of May, the 144MHz FT8 Activity two-hour Contest runs from 1900 to 2100UTC. Using FT8 on the 2m band, the exchange is report and four-character locator. Stations entering the four-hour contest may also enter the two-hour contest. On Thursday, the 8th of May, the 50MHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on the 6m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 1st of May 2025 After the previous week's geomagnetic disturbances, as described in last week's GB2RS, the last seven days have been relatively quiet. The Kp index has mostly been in the ones and twos, however the rise to a Kp value of four on Thursday the 1st of May could herald a return to unsettled conditions. The solar flux index peaked at 170 on the 24th of April, before declining to 148 at the end of the month. HF conditions have been acceptable rather than outstanding and many stations struggled to work DX at times during International Marconi Day on the 26th of April. Nevertheless, there is DX about including ZS8W Marion Island, TX9A Austral Islands and HD8G Galapagos Islands. A look at the Proppy propagation prediction tool will help you work out the best times for making a contact with each station and on each band. You can find it by going to rsgb.org/propagation-tools Looking ahead, a large sunspot has rotated into view. Now designated 4079, this region has returned and was previously sunspot region 4055. It has already emitted an M-class solar flare, and we may expect greater activity as it becomes more Earth-centric over the next week. NOAA predicts that the solar flux index will climb again in the coming week, perhaps rising to between 160 and 165. Geomagnetic disturbances are also due to rise, with the Kp index forecast to reach five on the 5th and 6th of May. If this becomes a reality, expect lowered MUFs and poorer HF paths, especially over the poles as the Kp index rises. And finally, this week traditionally marks the start of the Sporadic-E season so keep an eye on 10m and 12m for short- and medium-range openings to Europe. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO The current spell of high-pressure Tropo weather weakened a little as last week ended and we'll see the return of unsettled conditions with showery rain, perhaps even the odd thunderstorm. This is unlikely to lead to a total removal of high pressure and Tropo will still be worth looking for, especially over the western side of the UK. Some models place a new high just west of Britain during the coming week. This means that the rain prospects are not great, although probably just enough for a hint of rain scatter in any isolated heavier showers. The HF bands sounded a bit ‘watery' at times last week, which is a classic sign of potential aurora to explore on the higher bands. Look out for aurora in the coming week if the Kp index climbs above five. Meteor scatter is worth thinking about and, after last week's Lyrids, we now have the Eta Aquariids shower peaking in the early hours of the 6th of May. Remember that Sporadic-E ionisation is largely composed of long-lived meteor ions, so be on watch for Es openings. From now onwards through to mid-September, Sporadic-E will dominate the lower VHF bands, so check the clusters for signs of activity. Remember that Es starts on 10m and moves HF as an opening develops, even reaching 2m in the peak summer. Unlike Tropo, Es events are often fleeting, so the best you can do is monitor conditions as the Es intensifies and be ready when it reaches the band you want. Don't forget to check the daily Es blogs on www.propquest.co.uk which discuss the potential links between location of jet streams and Es formation. EME path losses are increasing, but apogee is still a week away. Moon declination passed maximum last Thursday so Moon windows are shortening along with reducing peak elevation. 144MHz sky noise is low all week. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

Kennedy Warne  on parachuting spiders, mice attacking albatross on Marion Island and  Pope Francis -  a voice for the Earth.

  GB2RS News Sunday, the 27th of April 2025   The news headlines: RSGB delegates attend special IARU Region 1 Interim Meeting in Paris Join the RSGB in celebrating World Morse Day Be part of the RSGB's team at the Youngsters on the Air summer camp The RSGB is participating in the International Amateur Radio Union Region 1 Interim Meeting in Paris this weekend. The event is of particular historical significance as it coincides with the centenary of the founding of the IARU in 1925, as well as the 75th anniversary of the establishment of IARU Region 1 in 1950. The French host society, REF, is also marking its 100th anniversary. This year's meeting in Paris reflects a broader scope than in previous years and, for the first time, includes ‘Youth Matters' on the agenda. It also covers the usual focus areas of HF, VHF, UHF and Microwave, as well as Electromagnetic Compatibility. The RSGB has been a key contributor to the meeting, submitting papers that include future options for the 23cm band and the harmonisation and protection of HF bands. Three delegates from the RSGB are attending the meeting in person, including the newly appointed RSGB President Bob Beebe, GU4YOX. There will be eight other RSGB representatives attending remotely. The meeting serves as both a celebration of amateur radio's rich heritage and a forward-looking forum to address the challenges and opportunities facing the global amateur radio community. You can view meeting documents at conf.iaru-r1.org  In celebration of the centenary of the IARU the RSGB has created a web page to share information about its part in the celebrations. This includes a link to an RSGB archive video from the IARU meeting in Paris in 1950, as well as the RSGB's July 1925 T & R Bulletin that contains an announcement detailing the formation of the IARU. Go to rsgb.org/iaru-centenary for further details. Today, Sunday the 27th of April, is World Morse Day. The day honours the birthday of the inventor of Morse code, Samuel Morse, who was born on this day in 1791. To celebrate the occasion, the RSGB has released a video with a question in Morse code for you to answer. Once you have used your Morse skills to decipher the question, get involved by leaving your answer in the comments section under the post. You can view the video on the RSGB YouTube channel via youtube.com/theRSGB or search for @theRSGB on Facebook or X. The deadline to apply to be the Team Leader for this year's Youngsters On The Air Summer Camp is Friday, the 2nd of May. This year's camp takes place between the 18th and 25th of August near Paris and is a chance of a lifetime for young RSGB members to represent their country and their national society. If you are an RSGB member, aged between 21 and 30, and are able to motivate a team of young people, then the RSGB would love to hear from you. Download an application form and apply for this exciting opportunity by going to rsgb.org/yota-camp.  Applications to be a Team Member will remain open until the 16th of May. The RSGB Exams Quality Manager would like to remind everyone that clubs can still run exams if they are a Registered Exam Centre. Exams will be conducted online unless a candidate has a special requirement for a paper exam. The introduction of remote invigilation to allow people to take an amateur radio licence exam in their home does not affect this. If clubs have any queries about delivering exams, they should contact the   RSGB Examinations Quality Manager, Dave Wilson, M0OBW, via eqam@rsgb.org.uk. If anyone has special requirements for an exam, they should contact the RSGB exams team via exams@rsgb.org.uk As part of the IARU centenary celebrations, the RSGB has been activating callsign GB0IARU throughout April. On Wednesday, the 30th of April, the RSGB President Bob Beebe, GU4YOX, will be activating GB0IARU from 2 pm on 40m SSB, and then from 5 pm on 80m SSB. Frequencies will be spotted on the day, and times may vary to suit propagation. Please send details of all your news and events to radcom@rsgb.org.uk. The deadline for submissions is 10 am on Thursdays before the Sunday broadcast each week. And now for details of rallies and events The Dartmoor Radio Rally is taking place on Monday, the 5th of May at the Yelverton War Memorial Hall, Meavy Lane, Yelverton, Devon, PL20 6AL. Free parking is available. There will be the usual Bring and Buy as well as trader stands and refreshments. Doors open at 10 am and admission is £3. For further details, please call Roger on 07854 088882 or email him via 2e0rph@gmail.com RetrotechUK is taking place on Sunday, the 11th of May at Sports Connexion, Leamington Road, Ryton-on-Dunsmore, Coventry, CV8 3FL. The annual event is organised by the British Vintage Wireless Society and will include nearly 200 stalls of dealers, clubs and private sellers. Doors open at 10.30 am and entry is £10. Early doors entry is available from 9 am for £25. Full details are available from Greg Hewitt via info@retrotechuk.com or by going to retrotechuk.com Now the Special Event news The Spanish national society, URE, is on the air to mark the 100th anniversary of the IARU. Members are active on 160m to 6m until the 30th of April with ten different special event stations, including AO100IARU. Special awards will be available, as well as medals for the top participants from each continent who achieve the highest number of contacts with the stations on different bands and modes. Go to ure.es  for further details. The Amateur Radio Society of Moldova is operating special event station ER100IARU until Wednesday, the 30th of April, in honour of the IARU centenary. Full details can be found via qrz.com The Kuwait Amateur Radio Society is pleased to announce its participation in the IARU centennial celebrations. Members of the Society will be operating special event station 9K100IARU until Wednesday, the 30th of April. Now the DX news Dom, 3D2USU is active again as 3D2AJT from Nadi in the Fiji Islands until the end of April. The call sign is in memory of JH1AJT, now a Silent Key. QSL via Club Log's OQRS and Logbook of The World. Yuris, YL2GM plans to operate as ZS8W from Prince Edward and Marion Island, IOTA reference AF-021, until Friday, the 16th of May. Yuris will be on Marion Island as a radio engineer and member of the SANAP station communication equipment maintenance team, and he hopes to find good periods of time to be operational. For further details, go to lral.lv/zs8w   Now the contest news The UK and Ireland DX CW Contest started at 1200 UTC on Saturday, the 26th of April and ends at 1200 UTC today, Sunda,y the 27th of April. Using CW on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and serial number. UK and Ireland stations also send their district code. The SP DX RTTY Contest started at 1200 UTC on Saturday, the 26th of April, and ends at 1200 UTC today, Sunday, the 27th of April. Using RTTY on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and serial number. SP stations also send their province code. On Monday, the 28th of April, the British Amateur Radio Teledata Group Sprint 75 Contest runs from 1700 to 2100 UTC. Using 75 baud RTTY on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is your serial number. Also on Monday, the 28th of April, the FT4 Series Contest runs from 1900 to 2030 UTC. Using FT4 on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is your report. On Wednesday, the 30th of April, the UK and Ireland Contest Club 80m Contest runs from 2000 to 2100 UTC. Using CW on the 80m band, the exchange is your six-character locator. On Thursday, the 1st of May, the 144MHz FT8 Activity four-hour Contest runs from 1700 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 2m band, the exchange is a report and the four-character locator. Also on Thursday, the 1st of May, the 144MHz FT8 Activity two-hour Contest runs from 1900 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 2m band, the exchange is a report and the four-character locator. Stations entering the four-hour contest may also enter the two-hour contest. On Saturday, the 3rd of May, the 432MHz to 245GHz Contest starts at 1400 UTC and ends at 1400 UTC on Sunday, the 4th of May. Using all modes on 432MHz to 245GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. The UK Six Metre Group's Summer Marathon starts at 0000 UTC on Saturday, the 3rd of May and ends at 2359 UTC on Sunday, the 3rd of August. Using all modes on the 6m band, the exchange is your four-character locator. The ARI International DX Contest starts at 1200 UTC on Saturday, the 3rd of May and ends at 1159 UTC on Sunday, the 4th of May. Using CW, RTTY and SSB on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and serial number. Italian stations also send their province. The Worked All Britain 7MHz contest will take place on Sunday, the 4th of May, from 1000 to 1400 UTC. All entries need to be with the contest manager by the 14th of May. Please note that all Worked All Britain contests use SSB only. Full details of the contest rules can be found on the Worked All Britain website.   Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 24th of April 2025 We had yet another week of unsettled geomagnetic conditions. The Kp index peaked at 5.33 on the 21st of April as the solar wind speed hit just above 600 kilometres per second, and active geomagnetic conditions were observed. This was caused by a massive coronal hole on the Sun's surface, which measures nearly 700,000km in length. At the time of writing, part of it is still Earth-facing, but the Bz or interplanetary magnetic field is facing North, so its negative effects are not being felt. The Kp index was down to 3.67 on the morning of Thursday, the 24th of April, but it wouldn't take much for the Bz to swing southwards and for the Kp index to rise again. Meanwhile, the solar flux index has risen from a recent low of 148 up to 168. This has meant MUFs over a 3,000km path have reached 25 MHz at times, but have usually been slightly lower. If the Kp index can stay low, there is a good chance of higher MUFs being attainable, but we have probably seen the best of 10m propagation until the autumn. Much of the recent DX has been worked on slightly lower frequencies, such as VP2VI British Virgin Islands on 40 and 20m, C5R The Gambia on 20 and 12m, and HD8G Galapagos Islands on 20, 17, and 12m. There is still the chance of DX on 10m, but it may be fleeting. Next week, NOAA predicts that the solar flux index will stay high, perhaps reaching 170 to 175. We may get a slight respite from unsettled geomagnetic conditions from the 26th to the 30th of April, when the Kp index is forecast to be around two to three. However, unsettled geomagnetic conditions are forecast for the beginning of next month, with Kp indices of five or six on the 1st and 2nd of May. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO Next week, high pressure should dominate, meaning a chance of Tropo for much of the time which will probably favour paths to the east, to Scandinavia or northern Europe.  Rain scatter won't have featured much other than over northwest Britain in recent days, and meteor scatter is reducing back to random activity, which tends to be better in the early hours before dawn. The solar conditions have continued to keep the Kp index up, and there was a fine auroral opening last week on the 16th of April, so for more aurora, it's still worth checking for when Kp values nudge above five. As the end of April moves into May, we can start to give serious thought to the coming Sporadic-E season. Hesitant beginnings often show up on 10m and 6m, and, as usual, the digital modes will be best for any weak events. CW and SSB are just possible in the stronger openings, especially on 10m.  The background rule is that there are usually two preferred activity periods, one in the morning and a second in late afternoon and early evening. However, at the start of the season, there can be a lot of spread in the timings. EME path losses are at their lowest with perigee today, Sunday the 27th, and the Moon declination is positive and rising. Moon windows will lengthen along with peak elevation, and 144MHz sky noise starts the week low but increases to moderate as the week progresses. From late Sunday to early Monday, the Sun and Moon are close. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

Recorded on board the Flock to Marion Cruise, I had the incredible opportunity to speak with two field researchers, Danielle Keys and Leandri de Beer — women who've spent months living and working on Marion Island, one of the most remote and wild places on Earth.They share what life is like on the island, from preparing for a 13-month stay to navigating extreme weather, and the highs and lows of field research in such an isolated environment. But more than that, they offer an honest and heartbreaking look at the devastating impact invasive mice are having on Marion's seabirds — and why this matters.Their first-hand experiences bring to life the urgent need for the Mouse-Free Marion Project, one of the most important island restoration projects in the world today. This is a cause that needs your support — not just for the birds, but for the sake of preserving one of the last truly wild places for future generations.Visit our online store to get your birding related merchandise at great prices https://www.thebirdinglife.com/online-storeIntro and outro music by Tony ZA https://soundcloud.com/tonyofficialzaLinks from show:Visit the Mouse-Free Marion Website - https://mousefreemarion.org/

As with many of this season's episodes, this one was recorded on the Flock to Marion cruise. So far, we've heard from many of the older folk who joined the cruise — but today, it's all about the youth! In this episode, we hear from four inspiring young birders. They'll share their experiences on the cruise, their own birding journeys, and why they believe Marion Island must be restored.We kick things off with Caleb de Beer, followed by Matteo Risch, Nicolas Hopkins, and finally, super-achiever Jurie Blignaut. To wrap up the episode, we hear from BirdLife South Africa's Avitourism Project Manager, John Kinghorn.One episode, four incredible young voices!Visit our online store to get your birding related merchandise at great prices https://www.thebirdinglife.com/online-storeIntro and outro music by Tony ZA https://soundcloud.com/tonyofficialzaLinks from show:BirdLife South Africa - https://www.birdlife.org.za/

BirdLife South Africa hosted the Flock to Marion cruise in January to fundraise for the Mouse-Free Marion project, an effort to eradicate house mice from Marion Island that are attacking albatross chicks and threatening the species.This was our second time on this incredible cruise!  We even saw some new birds!Main Story Begins at: 15:00 Show notes Buy me a Coffee Spring ChirpThe Residence mini-series Terra ListensMSC Cruiseline BirdLife South AfricaMouse-Free MarioneBird Trip ReportBirds/Animals mentionedPintado Petrel Salvin's Prion Sooty Albatross Support the showConnect with us at... IG: @Hannahgoesbirding and @ErikgoesbirdingFacebook: @HannahandErikGoBirdingEmail us at HannahandErikGoBirding@gmail.comWebsite: http://www.gobirdingpodcast.comVenmo: @hannahanderikgobirdingGet a discount at Buteo Books using code: BIRDNERDBOOKCLUB

What preparations, training & screening do scientists that spend months isolated on SA’s research bases? Geomorphologist David William Hedding, has overwintered on Marion Island and done multiple expeditions to all three bases run by South Africa (SANAE, Marion and Gough) & has previously carried out research from the frozen continent, he joins us now to talk about the work researchers do in Antarctica, what conditions are like and why it matters.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, I sit down with Rogen Machin from Canon South Africa to talk about the incredible role photography plays in birding and conservation. We discuss Canon's involvement in the cruise, the evolution of bird photography, and how new technology is changing the game for birders and photographers alike. Rogen also shares his personal journey back into birding and what it's been like experiencing the seabirds of the Southern Ocean firsthand.Beyond the cameras and lenses, this episode is also about conservation. The seabirds of Marion Island face a dire threat from invasive mice, which attack and kill chicks and even adult birds. BirdLife South Africa is leading vital efforts to protect these birds and their breeding colonies. If you're passionate about seabirds and conservation, please consider supporting their work.Visit our online store to get your birding related merchandise at great prices https://www.thebirdinglife.com/online-storeIntro and outro music by Tony ZA https://soundcloud.com/tonyofficialzaLinks from show:BirdLife South Africa https://www.birdlife.org.za/

In this episode, I'll be interviewing Hans Larsson, one of the world's leading bird illustrators. We'll talk about his first experience birding in the Southern Ocean, what it was like guiding on the cruise, and his incredible work illustrating Seabirds: The New Identification Guide alongside Peter Harrison MBE.Joining me as a co-host is Josua Wenzel, one of South Africa's most talented young bird artists. Later in the show, Josua will have his own segment, where he chats artist-to-artist with Hans about the craft of bird illustration, the challenges of painting seabirds, and how first-hand experience influences their work.Beyond the art, this episode is also a reminder of what's at stake. The seabirds of Marion Island are under serious threat from invasive mice, which attack and kill chicks and even adult birds. The Mouse Free Marion Project is working to remove these threats and restore this critical breeding ground. If you love seabirds, please consider supporting this essential conservation effort.Visit our online store to get your birding related merchandise at great prices https://www.thebirdinglife.com/online-storeIntro and outro music by Tony ZA https://soundcloud.com/tonyofficialzaLinks from show:Mouse-Free Marion Project website - https://mousefreemarion.org/Hans Larsson Website - https://www.hanslarssonbirdart.com/Josua Wenzel Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/the_scribbleworks/

In this episode, I have the privilege of chatting with Dr. Stuart Butchart, the Chief Scientist at BirdLife International. But before we dive into that conversation, we'll hear from Mark Anderson, the CEO of BirdLife South Africa, who will share his reflections on the success of the cruise and the vital work being done to protect Marion Island.Marion Island is home to some of the world's most iconic seabirds, including the magnificent Wandering Albatross. However, invasive mice have had a devastating impact on these birds, threatening their survival. BirdLife South Africa is leading the charge to address this crisis through the Mouse-Free Marion Project. For just R1000, you can sponsor a hectare and directly support the efforts to eradicate these mice, ensuring a safer future for the island's precious birdlife. To get involved, visit the BirdLife South Africa website.Visit our online store to get your birding related merchandise at great prices https://www.thebirdinglife.com/online-storeIntro and outro music by Tony ZA https://soundcloud.com/tonyofficialzaLinks from show:Mouse-Free Marion Website - https://mousefreemarion.org/

Professor Peter Ryan, Director of the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, joins John Maytham on air to shed light on how Marion Island's ecosystem could be impacted by the bird flu and what measures are underway to address this ecological crisis.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, I'm thrilled to welcome back Dr. Anton Wolfaardt, Project Manager at the Mouse-Free Marion Project. Anton has dedicated his career to seabird conservation, and today, he takes us deep into the story of Marion Island—one of the most unique and ecologically important places on the planet. We'll dive into the challenges and triumphs of restoring this remote island to protect its incredible birdlife, from the iconic albatrosses to lesser-known yet equally remarkable species.Visit our online store to get your birding related merchandise at great prices https://www.thebirdinglife.com/online-storeIntro and outro music by Tony ZA https://soundcloud.com/tonyofficialzaLinks from show:Mouse-Free Marion Project https://mousefreemarion.org/Order your Vortex binoculars or scope here

South Africa's Marion Island is being overrun by more than a million house mice. And as the growing population runs out of their normal food, they're increasingly turning to the island's seabirds as an alternative source of nourishment. In this week's edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Dr Anton Wolfaardt of Mouse-Free Marion about its project to rid the island of the rodents.

Ever since moving to Christchurch I have been trapping pests: stoats and possums, rats and mice. Think Predator-Free New Zealand!  Mice are quite common here on the Port Hills; rather rural with heaps of herbage, seeds, and grasses, plus good seed crops in the gardens.  Mice are an important food source for rats and stoats. They also eat heaps of Native New Zealand Invertebrates (caterpillars, beetles, weevils).  In summer the mice have a great time, breeding like mice.  In autumn the wusses get a bit cold and look for shelter in people's homes and ceilings as well garages.  I have about 10 mouse traps employed and they're going off regularly. Big populations at the moment, be warned!  A few weeks ago, I attended a lecture by Pete McClelland, one of New Zealand's unsung heroes when it comes to pest eradication. Pete has been managing huge projects on Subantarctic Islands and Tropical islands for many years.  Fascinating stuff and very much one of the inspirational tools to create a Predator-Free Aotearoa.  Of course, he was always dealing with the famous exotic pests that somehow gained entrance to an ecosystem that never had those pests before. From Donkeys to Deer and from Ferrets to Rodents, Feral Cats to Foxes and Rats to Mice.  Mice are often seen as the small (almost cute) creature that is probably the least impactful pest on the world list.  Many people would be surprised to learn that these ubiquitous mice (Mus musculus) are a complete pain on many isolated islands in Hawaii (Midway atoll), Gough Island (in the south Atlantic), Marion Island (in the Southern part of the Indian Ocean), to name just a few important Nature reserves with Albatrosses and other ornithological gems.  The mice on these islands have climbed up the ladder of the ecosystem so cleverly that they can attack huge albatrosses at night (while they are incubating their eggs). They do this by chewing open the tops of the birds' heads, eating the brains and simply keep on extending the damage, which ultimately becomes fatal for those birds.  Should you wish to see the horrific pictures of these massacres, caused by, simply google the names of these islands and the words “mice”  Summing up:  Not uncommon on islands, those adaptable mice, causing ecological damage, and oh yes, New Zealand is an island too, remember!  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

"All of us involved in the project are driven by the opportunity to make a real difference for this special part of the planet." Eradicating giant mice from South Africa's Marion Island, a vital haven for seabirds. The vast, wild Southern Ocean is home to albatrosses, petrels and other remarkable seabirds which wander for years on end in search of food. Only to breed do the seabirds of the Southern Ocean need land, of which there are just a handful of tiny specs. One of these is South Africa's distant Marion Island, which has become overrun by invasive mice, introduced inadvertently by sailors at least two centuries ago. The mice eat the eggs, young and even the adult seabirds. Now Anton Wolfaardt of BirdLife South Africa and his team have a wild plan to eradicate the mice, with the hope that it will allow seabirds to surge back to their historic abundance. This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach. 

An albatross versus a mouse might not sound like a fair fight, but on a remote South African island it's the mice who are winning. We hear about an ambitious project to eradicate one million invasive mice on Marion Island, where the rodents are slaughtering seabirds at an alarming rate.

Guest: Dr. Sue Tonin | The assistant project manager for the Mouse Free Marion project.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Marion Island is cold, windy, and remote—about half way between Antarctica and the southern tip of Africa. That makes it a great spot for studying the Southern Ocean—from the weather to the seas to the abundant life. In fact, a dozen or more hardy souls spend 13-month stretches doing just that.Marion Island is owned by South Africa. It's the peak of a volcano, which last erupted in 2004. It measures about 10 miles wide by 15 miles long.The island is packed with life, including three species of seals. There are also lots of birds. In addition, killer whales are common in the waters around the island. And about 30 species of seabirds nest there, while others hang out for parts of the year—millions of birds in all. The list includes four species of penguin, five species of albatross—all of them threatened or endangered—and 14 species of petrel.South Africa established a weather station on Marion in 1948, and has kept it going ever since. Over the decades, the research base has expanded to study the ocean and its life.A ship visits once a year—usually in April—bringing a new crew of scientists, engineers, and support staff. It also drops off work teams to repair and upgrade the base and stage supplies for the coming year. The ship then carries marine scientists out to sea for a few weeks of research before returning to the island to pick up the departing crew—beginning another year of work on this remote outpost in the Southern Ocean.

We hear about an amazing plan to rescue the seabirds of Marion island from mice in the week's Green Scene with Dr. Ruth Freeman, Director of Science for Society at Science Foundation Ireland.

US President Joe Biden is visiting Canada today to meet with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and address Canada's Parliament in Ottawa. US-Canada border relations are at the top of the agenda. And, mice are plaguing tiny, uninhabited Marion Island located southeast of South Africa in the Indian Ocean. The invasive mouse population is threatening the birds, and conservationists say they need to go. Also, Israel's Knesset has passed a law limiting the ways a sitting prime minister can be declared unfit for office. Critics see it as a shield to protect Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from fallout amid an ongoing corruption trial. Plus, the late-Malian master of the desert blues, Ali Farka Touré, left behind many recordings.

Gugu Mhlungu and CSI & Nature Conservationist, Tim Neary speaks to CEO of BirdLife South Africa, Mark D. Anderson on what to expect from the African Bird Fair 2022 and on Their Mouse-Free Marion Project which aims to save Marion Island's Seabirds.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mouse-free Marion is an upcoming project to eradicate house mice from Marion Island, part of the Prince Edward Islands between South Africa and Antarctica.  Hannah and Erik interview Dr. Anton Wolfaardt, the project manager of the Mouse-free Marion Project.  Listen in for more about Marion Island, the project, and how you can help.Interview Begins at: 12:07Show notesSan Diego Bird FestivalMouse Free MarionMouse Free Marion FacebookMouse Free Marion InstagramChampions of the FlywayWomen in Steppe Fundraising PageGlobal BirdFairIntro Bird Call: Four-colored Bushshrike (Recorded: South Africa January 2022)Outro Bird Call: Mouse-colored Sunbird (Recorded: South Africa January 2022)Connect with us at...IG: @Hannahgoesbirding and @Erikgoesbirding Twitter: @WeGoBirding Facebook: @HannahandErikGoBirding Email us at HannahandErikGoBirding@gmail.com Website: http://www.gobirdingpodcast.com

In this week's show we have two incredible guests – first we chat to Hans Larsson. Hans is one of the world's best bird artists – and was involved in Peter Harrison's ‘Seabirds – The New Identification Guide'. He tells us all about his journey and what went into painting plates for this epic field guide. We then chat to Dr. Anton Wolfaardt from the Mouse Free Marion project – in the interview he gives us insights into why this project is so important, how the mouse eradication is undertaken, and he gives us a glimpse into the amazing biodiversity found on Marion Island. To support the work that we do: https://my.captivate.fm/buymeacoffee.com/TheBirdingLife (buymeacoffee.com/TheBirdingLife) Visit our online store to get your birding related merchandise at great prices https://www.thebirdinglife.com/online-store (https://www.thebirdinglife.com/online-store) Show Links Mouse Free Marion Project - https://mousefreemarion.org/ (https://mousefreemarion.org/) Hans Larsson - https://www.hanslarssonbirdart.com/ (https://www.hanslarssonbirdart.com/) To order your copy of ‘Seabirds – The New Identification Guide' https://www.lynxeds.com/product/seabirds/ (https://www.lynxeds.com/product/seabirds/) All music by Tony ZA https://soundcloud.com/tonyofficialza (https://soundcloud.com/tonyofficialza)

Leonie Joubert studied journalism at Rhodes University after giving up art school at the same campus. She got into science writing after sailing to Marion Island on the South African research vessel SA Agulhas in 2003. Her first book Scorched, which looked at climate change in South Africa, was published in 2006. Today she writes about science, climate change, urban development, food production and mental health. We touch on some of these issues during our conversation. The main focus of her writing however is on climate change, the psychological impact of climate change on individuals and society and the emergence of psylocibin, a psychedelic, as a means to alleviate the impact of certain mental health issues such as depression. And perhaps even the anxiety bought about by climate change. We chatted about her journey into science writing, her recent crisis of confidence and how she has rediscovered her strength of purpose, and the current global research into psylocibin. Find out more about Leonie here (http://leoniejoubert.co.za) . Listen to the Psychonauts audio book episodes here (https://psychonauts.co.za) .

Mice on the sub-Antarctic Marion Island are out for blood, and they're feasting, zombie-style, on living, immature albatrosses. Turns out, these tiny mammals are a very big threat to these huge seabirds. One photographer says it was more intense than watching the first four seasons of The Walking Dead. For more information on this episode visit nationalgeographic.com/overheard

di Vincenzo Venuto | Con Storielibere abbiamo deciso di fare un podcast che parlasse di animali per scoprire in realtà chi siamo noi, cosa vuol dire essere umani, perché l'umanità, ricordarsi di essere umani gli uni con gli altri è il sentimento, la differenza, che può renderci davvero liberi. Dal 25 di giugno puoi investire anche tu su Storielibere, in modo da poter essere ancora di più “Liberi Insieme”. | Info e condizioni https://mamacrowd.com/ | Tra i germani reali è stato riportato un caso di omosessualità necrofila. Bande di delfini rapiscono giovani femmine e le costringono a subire rapporti sessuali indesiderati di gruppo. L'hihi, un piccolo uccelletto della Nuova Zelanda, vive in coppia ma non disdegna di violentare altre femmine, rovesciandole con la forza a pancia in su. Le tenere lontre marine rapiscono, stuprano e uccidono i cuccioli di foca. A Marion Island, gli scienziati hanno osservato ben quattro casi in cui un enorme leone marino maschio costringeva ad una copula un pinguino reale. Perché? Hanno un significato evolutivo queste devianze sessuali, questi comportamenti di estrema violenza? Lo scopriamo in questa puntata, insieme a Telmo Pievani.

Download Episode! Don has traveled to 851 places of the 875 places listed on the Most Traveled People list.  He is number one on the list, making him the most traveled person using this benchmark.     Don has been traveling and discovering the world since the 1960s when he worked in a factory in Germany on an exchange program.  He has an incredible passion for history and connecting events and people throughout time.  He has traveled to the Soviet Union in the 1960s as well as traveling to each 83 political subdivisions.  He has been traveling to China for over four decades witnessing the changes in the rising dragon.  He shares with us some of his favorite places to visit including Socotra Island, Iguazu Falls, the Panama Canal, Ayers Rock, and the Grand Canyon.  The MTP contains incredibly remote islands in the Pacific and the Atlantic which are only reachable via chartered boats.  He has made over 60 of these challenging and risky trips, including places like the Pitcairn Island, with less than 50 residents, Marion Island, and Bouvet Island.  Please listen in on this fascinating conversation with Don. Subscribe on iTunes today! Check out our partner and sponsor: Chasing 193, Volume II: The Quest To Visit Every Country In The World. Explore the unique stories from 20 more world-class travelers from various backgrounds and nations and from all walks of life who have tirelessly pursued visiting every country in the world and have filled their lives with a virtually endless amount of adventure. More about Don Parrish:   Born in: Washington, DC Passports from: USA Favorite travel book: Richard Halliburton's "Book of Marvels" -- which I got for Christmas in 1955. It changed my life. Favorite travel site: Google -- this is the universal way to get started Must carry: My pillow. It makes long flights in coach that much easier, and avoids neck problems when sleeping in hotels. Favorite food: I enjoy most foods and cuisines, e.g., Greek food, Peking Duck, Shabu Shabu, mediterranean food, Salmon. Favorite drink: Water, regular coke, glass of red wine. Favorite Airline: It doesn't matter because I am often traveling on no-name airlines to remote places in economy. Favorite Hotel: Dwarika's hotel in Kathmandu, Nepal. Website: Don Parrish Map: Most Traveled People Subscribe on iTunes today!! About Counting Countries Counting Countries is the only podcast to bring you the stories from the dedicated few who’ve spent their lives on the singular quest of traveling to every country in the world. Less people have traveled to every country in the world than have been to outer space. Theme music for this podcast is Demeter’s Dance, written, performed, and provided by Mundi. About GlobalGaz Ric Gazarian is the host of Counting Countries. He is the author of three books: Hit The Road: India, 7000 KM To Go, and Photos From Chernobyl.  He is the producer of two travel documentaries: Hit The Road: India and Hit The Road: Cambodia.   Ric is also on his own quest to visit every country in the world. You can see where he has traveled so far and keep up with his journey at GlobalGaz.com How Many Countries Are There? Well… that depends on who you ask! The United Nations states that there are 193 member states. The British Foreign and Commonwealth office states that there are 226 countries and territories. The Century Club states that there are 325 sovereign nations, territories, enclaves, and islands. The Most Traveled Person states that there are 875 unique parts of the world. The Best Traveled states that there are 1281 unique places in the world. Me? My goal is the 193 countries that are recognized by the UN, but I am sure I will visit some other places along the way. Check out our partner and sponsor: Chasing 193, Volume II: The Quest To Visit Every Country In The World. Explore the unique stories from 20 more world-class travelers from various backgrounds and nations and from all walks of life who have tirelessly pursued visiting every country in the world and have filled their lives with a virtually endless amount of adventure. Disclaimer: I will earn a fee if you order from Amazon/Agoda.

What use is an F-call? Over the past two years I've talked about amateur radio resources on the Internet, sometimes referring to one or other web-site in passing, encouraging you to find information that is pertinent to your situation. Last week I talked about logging and discussed some of the issues you'll come across. One of the things you'll likely want to do, is to actually put your logs online to make it possible for others to do the same and in doing so, matching up your contact with theirs and thus validating the contact. When you start investigating this, you'll find that there are many different sites that offer this service, from Logbook Of the World, or LoTW which is maintained by the ARRL, through QRZ.com, eqsl.cc and many others. Before I start talking about one specific site today, I thought I'd point out that you'll quickly find out that your chosen online log isn't going to be the same as the station you just contacted 15,000 km away, so in this case, at least at the moment, the more you register with, the higher your chances of having your contacts confirmed. One such service is Club Log, located at clublog.org. It has a very clean interface, offers log matching, a DX cluster that indicates stations in countries that you don't yet have, league tables and other amazing tools. One such tool deals with Propagation. It uses actual contacts from all the logs submitted to determine the best time to be on air to get contacts between two stations, what band, what directions, etc. All built-in with the aim to help you make the next contact. It's the best tool I've found so far that helps you get actual results, rather than propagation forecasts, it was the tool I used to let you know recently that the best chance of making a contact is on the weekend, Saturday, Sunday, then Friday, in order of decreasing amounts of traffic. Of course, that's not to say you won't get amazing contacts on other days, I spoke with Marion Island on a Monday afternoon one day, so you really can't beat being on-air. The service is free, though donations are encouraged and every time you upload a log file, the upload is brought to you by another donating amateur, so good will all round. I know that there are other aspects to Club Log that I've not discussed, or am even aware of, but if you're going to start somewhere, you won't do worse than starting there. clublog.org, check it out. I'm Onno VK6FLAB

What use is an F-call? Every day Amateur Radio adds a little something to my life in fun and unexpected ways. I know that's a big call, but it's true. This morning whilst preparing to participate in a contest I was looking for a map that shows which direction to point an antenna in order to have the best chance of your signal ending up where you intend. Over the past few years I've seen lots of maps around, but none of them really did what I wanted from them, namely be readable, helpful and contain specific Amateur Radio information. I've got a wonderful Ham Radio Map on my wall [hamradiomap.com] and it contains many useful bits of Amateur Radio Information. Soon it will have pins on it for every country I've contacted, but it doesn't contain things like beam headings, or ITU zones. So, I googled my way around the 'net and found a great circle mapper. It is intended for flying, that is, you want to fly from this airport to that one, what heading and distance is that? Funnily enough, those two numbers are pretty useful for Amateur Radio too. Now I have a much better understanding on which way Europe is, what direction Dallas Texas is and on what heading I'll mange to contact Cape Town and why when I did, I made a QRP contact with Marion Island on the way. Amateur Radio, blows me away, every day. I'm Onno VK6FLAB

A CBC “Off the Beaten Track” episode in which I talk about what happens when you bring in cats to eradicate mice. Originally aired on September 22, 2000 on CBC Radio’s Mainstreet program in Prince Edward Island. The Marion Island Cat Eradication Program Introduction: In 1949, five domestic house cats were introduced to Marion Island to help control a problem with house mice.  By 1977, these five cats had multiplied to 3,400 cats and had eaten several bird species to extinction.  This situation begat the “Feral Cat Eradication Program,” which, over the course of 19 years eliminated all of the cats from the Island.  This is their story.  WARNING TO AUDIENCE: This feature contains discussion of the killing of house cats.  Sensitive viewers and cat lovers may wish to go away for 5 minutes. The House Mouse Problem The word mouse has no scientific meaning – it’s used generically to describe small rat-like rodents. The house mouse is one of a greater family of rodents that includes mice, rats, voles, gerbils and hamsters. Your average house mouse is brown or gray, can be up to 8 inches long, including their tail.   House mice mature quickly, and can mate 2 to 3 months after birth; gestation takes about 3 weeks, and litters can include up to 12 young. The house mouse is native to Eurasia, but has been spread around the world. If you do the math, you can see that two mice can produce many millions of ancestors in rather short order – two mice mating can result in 2000 mice six months later. Sometime around 1818, sealers using Marion Island as a base inadvertently introduced house mice to the Island. House mice feed on invertebrates, which are otherwise an important part of the Island’s food chain. And house mice seek the food and shelter of human dwellings, so the mice became a problem for the people manning the South African weather station on Marion Island. The House Cat “Solution” The house cat is a member of a family of animals that includes leopards, cougars, and pumas. Your average house cat weighs 6 to 10 pounds, and is 21 to 28 inches long. Cats reach puberty at 9 or 10 months, can have up to 3 litters a year, and an average litter contains 4 kittens. We humans, it is said, first domesticated cats about 3,500 years ago when Egyptians used them to protect their granaries from mice. And in 1949, the South African residents of Marion Island decided to introduce house cats to the Island for the same reason – to rid the island of the house mice that had been there for almost 150 years. And so five cats (a neutered orange male tabby cat, a black and white female, and 3 kittens) were brought to Marion Island in 1949. How naïve they were… Two unexpected things happened: The cats liked eating birds more than they liked eating mice – and were eating some species of birds to extinction The cats multiplied (maybe not so unexpected!) A feral cat is simply a sort of cat that, once domesticated, has returned to the wild. The result was that by 1977, there were 3,405 feral cats on Marion Island, and the cats were causing far more ecological damage than the mice they were brought to control. A Note about Feral Cat Eradication The problem of feral cats is one we see all over the world – a world where people don’t spay or neuter cats, and where they thoughtlessly abandon their domestic cats on the edge of town. In many cities, their any colonies of feral cats, and these colonies are blamed – rightly or wrongly – for everything from spreading rabies, spreading disease, and eating birds. There are two strong factions in the “feral cat problem” world: The eradicators think that we should gather up feral cats and kill them. The trap-neuter-vaccinate-release people advocate trapping cats, spaying or neutering them, vaccinating them against disease and then releasing them back to the wild. In 1977, it was decided to take the eradication route, and thus began the “Marion Island Cat Eradication Program.” Marion Island Cat Eradication Program Step one was to introduce feline panleucopenia into the cat population. Feline panleucopenia, commonly known as distemper, is an extremely contagious virus that is, roughly, “the flu for cats.” The symptoms are similar to those of the flu in humans: coughing and sneezing, vomiting, and diarrhea. It rarely lasts for more than a week, but it has a very high mortality rate. Feline panleucopenia was introduced into the cat population on Marion Island, and it killed a lot of cats: by 1982, the population was estimated to have shrunk from 3,400 to 615. Then the cats developed immunity to the virus, and with less competition for food, cats with immunity survived and multiplied. In 1986, with the population on the rise again, it was decided to hunt the cats as a secondary measure: eight 2-man teams using spotlights and 12-bore shotguns killed approximately 803 cats this way. Hunting proved not effective enough to eradicate all of the cats. In 1989 and 1991, traps were used to try and capture the remaining cats. In April 1991, only 8 cats were trapped. It’s now believed that cats have been completely eradicated from Marion Island… 19 years later! The Situation Today Now that the cat problem has been solved, researchers are turning again to the problem of house mice. Biologist Charl Louw is on Marion Island this year doing research on the house mouse problem, looking at population size and growth, trapping, marking, and releasing mice. And the Marion Island Cat Eradication Program is held up by the anti-eradication advocates as an example of why cat eradication won’t work in urban areas (if it took 19 years in a closed system like Marion… etc.)

A CBC “Off the Beaten Track” episode in which I talk about the other Prince Edward Island, in the southern Indian ocean. Originally aired on September 8, 2000 on CBC Radio’s Mainstreet program in Prince Edward Island. Introduction: There is another Prince Edward Island, or rather “Prince Edward Islands,” located in the southern Indian Ocean and part of South Africa since 1949.  Marion Island, one of the two Prince Edward Islands is current home to a meteorological station, and former home to some 3,400 feral cats.  Prince Edward Island, the other of the two, is uninhabited and, indeed, people aren’t allowed on it without a special permit.  This is their story. Imagine a Prince Edward Island where… …it’s cool and stormy most of the year, with an average temperature of  4 degrees. …there are gale force winds 100 days of the year. …the soil isn’t red and soft, but craggy and volcanic. …the dominant vegetable isn’t the potato, but the cabbage. …there’s so much concern for the environment, and a fear of mice, that you need a special permit from the government just to visit. …chief impediments to tourism are danger from aggressive male seals and the possibility of having your boat smashed on the rocks while landing. This is the “other” Prince Edward Island… This is the “other” Prince Edward Island, and could very well be the “Bizarro” Prince Edward Island in for “Bizarro Superman” it is so opposite to ours. In fact they are located at 46 degrees south while we’re located at 46 degrees north and are called “the jewel of the Southern Ocean” (rather than the “Garden of the Gulf”). Located about 1900 km off the coast of South Africa in the southern Indian Ocean, the “other” Prince Edward Island is one of a pair of sister Islands – the other is Marion Island – collectively called, oddly enough, “the Prince Edward Islands.” Prince Edward Island, South Africa, is 45 square kilometers in size, while it’s sister Marion Island is 290 square kilometers.   They’re both craggy volcanic islands, windswept, cold, rainy and quite unlike the Prince Edward Island we know and love. Lost, then Found… In 1663, Dutchman Barent Lam discovered the two islands on his way east; he named them Dina and Maerseveen (after his ship). Some time after this, the Dutch tried to find the islands again, but couldn’t (Lam had recorded the wrong latitude) and they were given up for lost. 100 years later in 1772 the islands were rediscovered by a French naval officer Marion du Fresne, who named them le de la Caverne and le de l’Esperance In 1776, explorer Captain James Cook – only a decade after he spent five years based in Halifax, and three years before he died – visited the islands, and renamed them collectively the Prince Edward Islands. Over the following 175 years the larger of the two islands came to be known as Marion Island by sealers who used the islands as a base. In 1949 South Africa annexed the islands, and the weird Prince Edward Island / Prince Edward Islands / Marion Island naming scheme stuck. Prince Edward Island Today Since 1949, South Africa has had a presence on the Island when it established a permanent weather office. I exchanged email with Chris de Wet, who is the team leader of “Marion 57,” which is the 57th expedition from South Africa. They’re a motley group of 10 people, meteorologists, biologists, a radio technician, a diesel mechanic and a medic. They’ve got a fully stocked hospital, complete with dentist’s chair and x-ray machine, telephone and Internet hookups, laboratories, and a gymnasium. In addition to the weather station, which is staffed 24 hours a day, there’s research monitoring seal populations, sea bird populations, the effects on longline fishing on birds, and the impact of feral house mice on the Island. I asked Chris what inspired him to take such a remote posting and he said he jumped at the opportunity – he says he’s an outdoor fanatic, and welcomed the opportunity to get away from the “rat race.” Tourism on the Islands During my research, I found an interesting paper called “Environmental impact assessment of possible tourism at Marion Island,” published by the South African Government, which looked at how tourism on the Islands would affect the environment. I asked Chris about the possibility of tourism, and he suggested that because of the hard environment and lack of infrastructure, he didn’t think there’s was much chance of this happening, and if it did, it would be more of a “friendly outdoor laboratory” for scientists as opposed to something for “holiday makers.” I also asked Chris is the members of his team had ever heard of “our” Prince Edward Island and I was surprised to find they hadn’t – but they found us on the globe! He added that he doesn’t think that most people in South Africa have never heard of “his” Prince Edward Island, so we shouldn’t feel so bad if we haven’t. Next Time on “Off the Beaten Track” Remember I mentioned that there’s research going on about the “impact of feral house mice” on the Island? That’s a longstanding problem: house mice aren’t native to the Islands — sealers introduced them sometime over the last century. In 1949, in an attempt to rid the islands of house mice, five house cats were introduced. By 1977 these five cats had multiplied to some 3,400 cats. Next time we’ll hear their story, and the story of the “Marion Island Cat Eradication Program.”