Podcasts about vhf

In Episode 2 of the Prep Comms MURS Mini-Series, Caleb Nelson dives deep into what really determines your performance on MURS. Spoiler: it's not power. It's your antenna, your coax, your terrain—and how well you understand what you're working with. This isn't theory. These are real-world setups from real users—from the hills of Pennsylvania to the silence of Utah. You'll learn exactly what works and why, including gear recommendations that Caleb personally uses on his family farm and in mobile scenarios. Topics Covered: Real listener feedback on MURS performance The truth about 2 watts and how far it can really go VHF vs. UHF performance in rural terrain Coax cable explained (RG8X vs LMR-400) Legal antenna height and why it matters Why MURS is not private—and why that's still okay Mentioned in this Episode:

This is the VIC 4 VETS, Weekly Honored Veteran. William “Bill” Sabastian Salfen SUBMITTED BY: A regular listener _____________________________________________________________ Hi Vic and Ken! I hope this veteran will fit nicely into you and Vic's wonderful daily/soon-to-be-weekly tribute to veterans. I hope you can offer some acknowledgement of a local hometown hero from the past. As I stated before, I neither need nor desire recognition for offering his story - if you use it, can you just say a regular listener brought him to your attention? I worked in Bridgeton, Mo for 16 years, which was where I met Bill Salfen. He was a close, longtime friend of the business owner, and was around quite frequently in all of my years working there, dying the same year I left the business in 2014. Bill showed me multiple official documents regarding his service time, his capture and imprisonment, and eventual release. I have no reason to question his words. I spoke with Bill often about his WWII escapades as a B-24 Bomber Pilot who was shot down and captured by Nazis, then imprisoned at Stalag 1 as a POW. There are a couple different articles I've found stating his age (either 20 or 21) at capture, but Bill personally told me he was 20 when he was shot down - according to him (as well as other sources I've seen over the years) he was the youngest bomber pilot (NOT Co-Pilot) in the US Army Air Forces at the time. Regardless...he was just out of his teens, and Captaining (piloting) a US B-24 Bomber against an enemy force! After his war experiences, Bill became very active in Food Search type programs, and had a specially insulated van he would collect groceries in to distribute to the homeless, and to the food banks in the St. Louis area. In his own words, he told me that he did so because during his time in captivity, he found out all about real hunger, and knew firsthand the pain experienced from it. Bill told me that he had wires holding his jaw together from a German soldier "knocking his face loose" with the buttstock of a rifle during his capture, and true to his nature (as I knew him, anyway) he also said that he didn't blame the German soldier; "after all I (we, the US) was killing Germans and their families." Bill had visible scars all over both arms from German Shepard attacks he sustained during both his initial capture and his multiple escape attempts from Stalag 1. He told me he tried 3 times to escape, and was recaptured each time. The tip of one of his fingers was missing up to past the nail where, he told me, they put it in a bench vise and tortured him by squeezing it, then releasing it, then squeezing the damaged fingertip again the next day and the next, until, as he told me, he finally talked and they pinched the damaged fingertip completely off. He was unashamed about talking, and he had nothing to be ashamed of, in my opinion. I feel very honored to have met and known for years this man that I personally consider to be a true American Hero from WWII. He is a 69 year Founding member and first Captain of VFW POST 5077, O'Fallon MO, a 33 year volunteer at Operation Food Search St. Louis MO and St. Mary's Parish Bridgeton, MO, retired Teamster, union negotiator and 17 year subject of Wash U Memory and Aging Study. He donated his remains to that Study and to Washington University School of Medicine. -"William “Bill” Sabastian Salfen was born 16-Sept 1922 in Dardenne, St. Charles County Missouri. -His parents were Sebastian J "Boss" Salfen (1886–1961) and Josephine "Phinnie" Sattler (1893–1974). -He had one brother, Harold. William attended St. Charles High School. According to the Federal Census, the family lived on Main Street in O’Fallon in 1940. -William Salfen joined the Army Air Corps in June 1942. In September 1942, Bill completed a 12-week Flight Training course at Missouri University. " -"On 27-Jun 1943, William arrived at Corsicana Field from the San Antonio Aviation Cadet Center. -William Received his Army Air Corps Silver Wings and 2nd Lieutenant commission at Frederick Field in Oklahoma on 11-Jan 1944. -William Salfen was assigned to the 44th Bomb Group, 506th Bomber Squadron (Heavy) of the 8th Air Force in England. -They were the first 8th Air Force Bomb Group to be equipped with B-24 Liberators. -On 7-Oct 1944, William Salfen’s plane was damaged, and the crew was forced to bailout. The U.S. Army's 44th Bomber Group Crash Report of the bombing states that his aircraft, #789, was last seen in vicinity of Kassel at 1224 hours. #1 and #2 engines had been knocked out by flak and it fell out of formation, under control. It was last heard from at approximately 1239 hours calling on VHF for fighter support." The following is a first-hand report from Lt. Donald B. Iden, the Co-Pilot: “Our plane was nicknamed "LAKANOOKIE", model B-24 (serial #42-50789), and it took flak which disrupted two of its engines. The bombing raid was on a German tank factory. We had just closed the bomb bay doors after releasing bombs over Kassel when our plane took two bursts of flak. One hit the left wing and the other went into the tail section. The hit in the wing took out the #1 and #2 engines, so that made it impossible to keep a heading without complete cross control of ailerons and rudders. Needless to say, loss of altitude was very rapid. We rode it down to 1,500 feet, at which time we bailed out and soon were captured. After Salfen and I bailed out, the aircraft entered a flat spin, crashed and burned. We were told that Robert Doherty's parachute failed to open and the seven-surviving crew of nine were captured by the Nazis.” William Salfen had been missing in action since 7-October 1944 and was a prisoner of war for 188 days. The St. Charles Weekly Banner reported on 24-May 1945, William Salfen in Stalag Luft 1 was liberated by the Russians. Thanks again to you and Vic for doing this for veterans! ________________________________________________________________ This Week’s VIC 4 VETS, Honored Veteran on NewsTalkSTL. With support from our friends at: Alamo Military Collectables, H.E.R.O.E.S. Care, Monical’s PizzaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the VIC 4 VETS, Weekly Honored Veteran. William “Bill” Sabastian Salfen SUBMITTED BY: A regular listener _____________________________________________________________ Hi Vic and Ken! I hope this veteran will fit nicely into you and Vic's wonderful daily/soon-to-be-weekly tribute to veterans. I hope you can offer some acknowledgement of a local hometown hero from the past. As I stated before, I neither need nor desire recognition for offering his story - if you use it, can you just say a regular listener brought him to your attention? I worked in Bridgeton, Mo for 16 years, which was where I met Bill Salfen. He was a close, longtime friend of the business owner, and was around quite frequently in all of my years working there, dying the same year I left the business in 2014. Bill showed me multiple official documents regarding his service time, his capture and imprisonment, and eventual release. I have no reason to question his words. I spoke with Bill often about his WWII escapades as a B-24 Bomber Pilot who was shot down and captured by Nazis, then imprisoned at Stalag 1 as a POW. There are a couple different articles I've found stating his age (either 20 or 21) at capture, but Bill personally told me he was 20 when he was shot down - according to him (as well as other sources I've seen over the years) he was the youngest bomber pilot (NOT Co-Pilot) in the US Army Air Forces at the time. Regardless...he was just out of his teens, and Captaining (piloting) a US B-24 Bomber against an enemy force! After his war experiences, Bill became very active in Food Search type programs, and had a specially insulated van he would collect groceries in to distribute to the homeless, and to the food banks in the St. Louis area. In his own words, he told me that he did so because during his time in captivity, he found out all about real hunger, and knew firsthand the pain experienced from it. Bill told me that he had wires holding his jaw together from a German soldier "knocking his face loose" with the buttstock of a rifle during his capture, and true to his nature (as I knew him, anyway) he also said that he didn't blame the German soldier; "after all I (we, the US) was killing Germans and their families." Bill had visible scars all over both arms from German Shepard attacks he sustained during both his initial capture and his multiple escape attempts from Stalag 1. He told me he tried 3 times to escape, and was recaptured each time. The tip of one of his fingers was missing up to past the nail where, he told me, they put it in a bench vise and tortured him by squeezing it, then releasing it, then squeezing the damaged fingertip again the next day and the next, until, as he told me, he finally talked and they pinched the damaged fingertip completely off. He was unashamed about talking, and he had nothing to be ashamed of, in my opinion. I feel very honored to have met and known for years this man that I personally consider to be a true American Hero from WWII. He is a 69 year Founding member and first Captain of VFW POST 5077, O'Fallon MO, a 33 year volunteer at Operation Food Search St. Louis MO and St. Mary's Parish Bridgeton, MO, retired Teamster, union negotiator and 17 year subject of Wash U Memory and Aging Study. He donated his remains to that Study and to Washington University School of Medicine. -"William “Bill” Sabastian Salfen was born 16-Sept 1922 in Dardenne, St. Charles County Missouri. -His parents were Sebastian J "Boss" Salfen (1886–1961) and Josephine "Phinnie" Sattler (1893–1974). -He had one brother, Harold. William attended St. Charles High School. According to the Federal Census, the family lived on Main Street in O’Fallon in 1940. -William Salfen joined the Army Air Corps in June 1942. In September 1942, Bill completed a 12-week Flight Training course at Missouri University. " -"On 27-Jun 1943, William arrived at Corsicana Field from the San Antonio Aviation Cadet Center. -William Received his Army Air Corps Silver Wings and 2nd Lieutenant commission at Frederick Field in Oklahoma on 11-Jan 1944. -William Salfen was assigned to the 44th Bomb Group, 506th Bomber Squadron (Heavy) of the 8th Air Force in England. -They were the first 8th Air Force Bomb Group to be equipped with B-24 Liberators. -On 7-Oct 1944, William Salfen’s plane was damaged, and the crew was forced to bailout. The U.S. Army's 44th Bomber Group Crash Report of the bombing states that his aircraft, #789, was last seen in vicinity of Kassel at 1224 hours. #1 and #2 engines had been knocked out by flak and it fell out of formation, under control. It was last heard from at approximately 1239 hours calling on VHF for fighter support." The following is a first-hand report from Lt. Donald B. Iden, the Co-Pilot: “Our plane was nicknamed "LAKANOOKIE", model B-24 (serial #42-50789), and it took flak which disrupted two of its engines. The bombing raid was on a German tank factory. We had just closed the bomb bay doors after releasing bombs over Kassel when our plane took two bursts of flak. One hit the left wing and the other went into the tail section. The hit in the wing took out the #1 and #2 engines, so that made it impossible to keep a heading without complete cross control of ailerons and rudders. Needless to say, loss of altitude was very rapid. We rode it down to 1,500 feet, at which time we bailed out and soon were captured. After Salfen and I bailed out, the aircraft entered a flat spin, crashed and burned. We were told that Robert Doherty's parachute failed to open and the seven-surviving crew of nine were captured by the Nazis.” William Salfen had been missing in action since 7-October 1944 and was a prisoner of war for 188 days. The St. Charles Weekly Banner reported on 24-May 1945, William Salfen in Stalag Luft 1 was liberated by the Russians. Thanks again to you and Vic for doing this for veterans! ________________________________________________________________ This Week’s VIC 4 VETS, Honored Veteran on NewsTalkSTL. With support from our friends at: Alamo Military Collectables, H.E.R.O.E.S. Care, Monical’s PizzaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

GB2RS News Sunday the 27th of July The news headlines: RSGB confirms more speakers for its Convention in October Get involved with the RSGB LoRa high-altitude balloon challenge The RSGB releases a high-contrast logbook to improve accessibility  The RSGB has shared details of more presentations that you can enjoy at its Convention in October. If you'd like to broaden your technical knowledge, you'll enjoy presentations by Bob Burns, G3OUU, on ‘Getting the most from an oscilloscope' and ‘Ladder crystal filter design'. As part of the Society's focus on supporting modern amateur radio operating practices, Paul Galwas, M0WLG, will be discussing ‘Can we ‘DX' over an IoT mesh?'. The comprehensive programme of speakers also includes Dr Marcus Walden, G0IJZ, who will explain the numerical modelling of the historical Grimeton VLF antenna, and Paul Beaumont, G7VAK, who will take ‘A brief look at Number Stations: 1950 to the present'. With even more captivating and thought-provoking speakers already confirmed, you'll need to purchase a ticket to guarantee attendance. Buy your tickets before Monday, the 11th of August, to ensure you receive early-bird ticket pricing. Tickets are available to purchase via rsgb.org/convention National Coding Week takes place in the third week of September, and the RSGB is once again dedicating a whole month to amateur radio and coding activities. As part of the Society's strategy to encourage practical skills development, it is inviting you to take part in its LoRa high-altitude balloon challenge. The project has been developed by the RSGB Outreach team and takes place on Saturday, the 20th of September. The balloon will be equipped with a LoRa digipeater, and your challenge is to follow the instructions provided and build a LoRa tracker. If your tracker build is successful, it will beam up packets to the airborne relay, which will transmit them to a local i-gate. Your goal is to get your signal the furthest distance from the launch. Anyone can enter, but to win one of the prizes, you need to be an RSGB member. Get involved as a single operator or as a team in your RSGB-affiliated club. The RSGB is delighted that Moonraker is sponsoring this event and will award a £200 Moonraker voucher to the winner of each category. Find out how to get involved with this exciting LoRa event by going to rsgb.org/lora-balloon The RSGB is proud to announce the release of a new high-contrast logbook designed to support amateur radio operators with visual impairments or learning difficulties. Responding to feedback from members and accessibility advocates, the RSGB developed the logbook with wider spacing and a high-contrast black-and-yellow design to improve ease of use. This release reflects the RSGB's wider commitment to improving accessibility across all areas of the Society and amateur radio as a whole. The organisation continues to explore ways to make the hobby more inclusive and user-friendly for all participants. This version will be available through Amazon and is expected to be a useful addition for both seasoned operators and newcomers looking for a more accessible logging option. As part of its long-term vision, the RSGB is looking to recruit a dedicated team to assess and enhance accessibility throughout the Society and help shape a more inclusive future for amateur radio. If you're interested in contributing to this important initiative, please email RSGB Board Director Nathan Nuttall, 2M0OCC, via 2m0occ@rsgb.org.uk Since the launch of its DMR project in May, the RSGB Outreach team is delighted that four schools and one homeschool have signed up. The project aims to help young people get on the air and build their confidence in making QSOs. Each of the successful applicants will be loaned a TYT DMR handheld radio and a Pi-Star-based hotspot. The RSGB Youth Chair and Youth Champion for Schools, Chris Aitken, MM0WIC, is supporting two new school amateur radio clubs that have chosen this as an entry-level activity for their club members. DMR is particularly useful in a school club scenario where antenna placement is a challenge and can be easily deployed, giving young people access to the world. During the summer holidays, the DMR handsets will be used at the West Sussex International Jamboree with Regional Representative 10, Simon Harris, G4WQG, attending the event and Wick High School Radio Club member Jacob, MM7IFL, supporting remotely via DMR. Listen out for further updates after the summer when the RSGB plans to get a youth net operational on Brandmeister Talk Group 23554. The net aims to encourage young operators to get on the air and become comfortable with QSO structure and general rag-chewing. If you want to start a school club or are interested in being part of the DMR project, email Chris via youthchampion.school@rsgb.org.uk The prospect of a USA constellation of 240 commercial satellites that would use 430 to 440MHz for wideband control and telemetry has prompted an unprecedented response from the amateur radio community to a Federal Communications Commission, or FCC, consultation. FCC Proceeding 25-201 would see AST SpaceMobile utilise much of 430 to 440MHz for downlinks, as well as a series of ground stations around the world. The RSGB and several other IARU member societies, along with the ARRL and over 2,000 individuals, have submitted comments to this consultation. The IARU itself has also issued a statement on the matter. Links for this, including the RSGB response, can be found on the RSGB website. Go to rsgb.org/spectrumforum and then choose the ‘Papers and consultations' option in the right-hand menu. Following the main submission deadline of the 21st of July, the FCC process has further phases to go through. Amateur radio operators are invited to take part in a special operating event in August, celebrating the rich history of the UK's wartime and Cold War airfield bunkers. AFB25 – that's Airfield Bunkers 2025 – is a nationwide activity taking place from Friday the 1st to Sunday the 31st of August. Organised by UK Bunkers on the Air, or UKBOTA, the event encourages amateurs to activate historic airfield sites with known bunker installations. All bands and modes are welcome. Special recognition awards will be given for activators, hunters and shortwave listeners' efforts. To learn more, including how to participate and which locations qualify, visit tinyurl.com/AFB-2025  And now for details of rallies and events Wiltshire Radio Rally is taking place today, Sunday the 27th, at Kington Langley Village Hall, Church Road, Kington Langley, SN15 5NJ. The doors open for traders at 7 am and 9 am for visitors. Refreshments are available on site. You can find out more by visiting chippenhamradio.club Part 1 of the BATC Convention for Amateur TV 2025 is taking place on Sunday, the 3rd of August at Midland Air Museum in Coventry. The doors will be open from 10 am to 4 pm. The Convention will include show and tell, test and fix-it, and bring and buy. Also, on Sunday, the 3rd of August, King's Lynn Amateur Radio Club Rally is taking place at Gaywood Community Centre, PE30 4EL. The doors will open at 9 am and the entrance fee will be £2.50. An outdoor trader's stall costs £8, and an indoor one is £10. To book, email rally.klarc@gmail.com or call 07709 074 951. Now the Special Event news Special callsign 5P0TA will operate from Bornholm Island, EU-030, from the 31st of July to the 3rd of August in connection with this year's European Ham Radio Show meet-up event. Both presenters and viewers of The European Ham Radio Show on YouTube will gather with the goal of activating all of the POTA parks on Bornholm Island within four days. Both 5P0TA and the participants' own call signs will be used. They are aiming to use as many modes and bands as conditions allow. Attending from the UK are Charlotte, 2M0LVY and Steve, M1SDH. If you hear them on the air, give them a call! Throughout 2025, José, HP2AT, is using the special callsign H82AT to celebrate his 35th anniversary in amateur radio. Recently, the station has been spotted on the HF bands using CW, FT4 and FT8. All QSOs will be uploaded to QRZ.com, Club Log, eQSL and Logbook of the World. Paper cards will not be available. Now the DX news Today, the 27th, is your last chance to catch the IP1X team, which is active from Gallinara Island, EU-083. The team is using CW and SSB on the 80 to 10m bands. QSL via OQRS, via the Bureau or directly to IU1JCZ. More information is available at QRZ.com Red, DL1BUG is active as TY5FR from Cotonou, Benin, in West Africa until the 6th of August. He is operating using CW and SSB on the 80 to 10m bands. QSL via Club Log's OQRS, Logbook of the World or via Red's home call. Now the contest news Today, the 27th, the UK Microwave Group 5.7 and 10GHz Contest runs from 0600 to 1800UTC. Using all modes on 5.7 and 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. The RSGB IOTA Contest started at 1200UTC on Saturday, the 26th and ends at 1200UTC today, Sunday, the 27th of July. Using CW and SSB on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report, serial number and IOTA reference. On Monday, the 28th, the RSGB FT4 Series Contest runs from 1900 to 2100UTC. Using FT4 on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is your report. On Saturday, the 2nd of August, the EU HF Championship runs from 1200 to 2359UTC. Using CW and SSB on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report, serial number, locator and the last two digits of the year you were first licensed. Also on Saturday, the 2nd of August, the RSGB 4th 144MHz Backpackers Contest runs from 1400 to 1800UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number, locator and two-letter postcode. On Saturday, the 2nd, the 144MHz Low Power Contest runs from 1400 to 1800UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Sunday, the 3rd, the 432MHz Low Power Contest runs from 0800 to 1200UTC. Using all modes on the 70cm band, the exchange is signal report, serial number, locator and two-letter postcode. The UK Six Metre Group Summer Marathon started on Saturday, the 3rd of May and ends on Sunday, the 3rd of August. Using all modes on the 6m band, the exchange is your four-character locator. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 24th of July It was a bit of a mixed bag last week. The first half saw settled geomagnetic conditions, but from the 22nd of July, we had a disturbance thanks to output from a solar coronal hole. This saw the Kp index rise to 4.67 and ultimately 5. The stream from the Sun reached around 730 kilometres per second, while the Bz component of the interplanetary magnetic field, or IMF, was mostly neutral with a few brief periods when it pointed slightly south. So, its effects were perhaps not as bad as they could have been. The coronal hole has now rotated out of view, so we may have some better days. Meanwhile, the solar flux index has been in the range of 140 to 150, which is pretty good. There were no M-class or higher solar flares over the past week, which is unusual. So overall, HF propagation was humming, at least until the Kp index hit 5. Maximum useable frequencies, or MUFs, over a 3,000km path during daylight continue to be around 21MHz, but often dip to 18MHz at times. Nighttime conditions can be variable. If the 14MHz band isn't open for you, try 10MHz. Earlier in the week, some daytime tests with WSPR on the 20m band saw stations logged from Australia and the far west of Canada. DP0POL, the Polarstern research vessel doing work in the Artic, was also logged. Next week, NOAA predicts that the solar flux index may decline slightly to be in the range of 130 to 135. Geomagnetic conditions are predicted to be settled until the 1st of August, when the Kp index could rise to 4. This period of unsettled conditions, with reduced MUFs, could last until the 4th of August. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO We will see the return of a weak ridge of high pressure today. This will last until the middle of the coming week. The second half of the week will be a little more unsettled with some occasional spells of rain. This suggests that some Tropo is possible, before a gradual swap over to rain scatter. However, high pressure near the Azores may still influence the western side of Britain. This week will see the peak of two meteor showers, the Alpha Capricornids and Delta Aquariids. These are worth checking out, if only to get your practice time in before one of the major showers of the year – the Perseids on the 12th and 13th of August. Barely a day passes without some auroral alert, and this can be an exciting mode. Several good indicators are available, such as when the Kp index is above 5, or watery-sounding signals on the 40 and 20m bands. If you hear these, try looking north on the 6, 4 or 2m bands. Sporadic-E continues to be mentioned on the clusters somewhere in Europe on most days. But remember that it's a very localised mode and is rarely available for everyone at the same time. The best way to track it down is to use the clusters and a good list of beacons, to see who your ‘locals' are working on FT8. It's a very hit-and-miss mode. Meteor activity is a good indicator, whereas a high Kp index is a bad one. Whether it happens is often a balance between many opposing components. So, even a potentially good day may not be good where you are. The good news is that the last openings of the summer can occur into the first week of September. Moon declination is still positive but going negative again on Tuesday, the 29th. Moon windows and peak elevation will reduce. Path losses are rising now as we are past perigee. 144MHz sky noise starts the coming week low but will rise to moderate by the weekend. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

Most people don't even know what MURS is—and that's exactly why it works so well. In this first episode of the Prep Comms MURS Mini-Series, Caleb breaks down the quiet power of the Multi-Use Radio Service: a license-free, analog-only VHF service with just five channels and a lot of practical potential. You'll learn about its roots in the old business band, what the “Color Dot” frequencies mean, why MURS is legal without a license, and how it fits into a low-key family comms plan. Privacy, power limits, antenna rules, and gear you can actually use—it's all covered here. Listen in, and discover why MURS might be the perfect base layer in your emergency communications setup. In this episode: The FCC origin of MURS and its roots in the Business Band (DOT and STAR channels) What MURS can and can't do legally (no digital, no repeaters) Antenna height limits and the truth about privacy tones How MURS works around barns, homes, driveways, and family outings Why VHF still outperforms UHF in open terrain My own family's use of MURS as part of the Cascade Protocol Mentioned in this episode: Free MURS + Business Band Frequency Guide PDF: MURS Frequency PDF Recommended MURS radios & antennas (Caleb's gear list): Caleb's Amazon Store: Search MURS Want to go deeper? Watch the free on-demand webinar (Coming August 2025): How to Build a Family Communication Plan in Less Than 30 Minutes—Without Expensive Gear or Tech Confusion www.familyradiowebinar.com

Foundations of Amateur Radio In the community of radio amateurs scattered around the planet we have a habit of getting together with others to have fun in whatever shape that takes. The obvious ones are HAMfests, car boot sales, raffles and other amateur adjacent pursuits, but we also do things like licence training, weekly on-air nets, contesting, portable activations, climbing mountains, or hills, setting-up in parks, or lighthouses, we set-up on a field day, just for fun, and find excuses, sorry, reasons, for any number of other activities. Some of these are solitary affairs, but many are best enjoyed shared with multiple friends, both old and new ones. Having been a member of this community since 2010 I've come to observe an aspect of this community that is odd, to say the least. We organise all these events, but rarely promote it beyond a single email to three people, if that. It's almost as-if the average organiser thinks that their event permeates the community by magic osmosis. Even if there is any form of promotion, there's sometimes a date and time, but hardly ever does it show that time in UTC, even if it's a radio event, it's like we've forgotten that radio waves pass through time zones, or there is a misconception that everyone on the planet knows what your local timezone is, let alone if it's summer or winter time at the time of the event. So, what does promoting your event look like if you actually want people to know about it? For starters, you should consider who you want to have as a participant. A local HAMfest is unlikely to attract people from around the globe, but Friedrichshafen and Dayton are examples that contradict that notion. A VHF-only event might be intended for local amateurs, but what if it allows for satellite or digital contacts, like say via Allstar, IRLP or Echolink? Similarly, you might run a weekly on-air net, but have visitors from around the planet. The point being, that your audience might not be exactly what you initially think. In other words, there might be people playing from further afield. Consider that when you announce what time the event starts, and finishes. Speaking of finishing, adding an expected closing time is helpful for participants where only one member of the family lives and breathes amateur radio and the rest just want to get on with their respective lives, so consideration is welcome. Aside from telling your audience when and for how long the event goes, adding a location is not optional. You'd be surprised how many events say things like: "it's again in the usual location", or "we're at the community hall" without ever publishing an address. I can tell you, it's fun discovering that the name of the hall isn't unique. Now, for the big one. After putting the information together about the event itself, where and how do you announce it? For starters, on your own website, in whatever form that takes. It serves two purposes, announcing to the world what is happening, but it's also the definitive place where the right information is published. This is important because things change, get cancelled, moved, updated, whatever. Life isn't static, so you need to define a place where the official announcement lives. At this point I'd like to mention that this is often where promotion stops. It's easy to think that in your universe everyone you know is aware of your website, but that's just not true. A single place to publish is not the end of the process, it's the start. Then you need to use things like the local news broadcast, the national news broadcast, the international news broadcasts, contesting websites and calendars, social media, fediverse and whatever else you can get your hands on. You need to include it in your own club news, in club newsletters from other clubs, on the local amateur notice board, you need to talk about the event on-air, share it during on-air nets and if it's recurring, tell the world that it's going to happen again next year. Nothing here is revolutionary, it's not like launching a rocket into space, this is basic common sense and you too can do this. If you need help, ask. So, if you have an event that you want to have participants for, you need to make noise. Publishing the announcement at the local planning department in Alpha Centauri 50 years before the event is going to cause issues, as will defining the date for an annual event as: When the June solstice is on a weekday (Monday through Friday), the weekend following shall be the weekend of the event. When the June solstice falls on a Saturday or Sunday, that weekend shall be the weekend of the event, but only for the Winter field day, the Summer one requires you to count back four weekends, or forward, depending on if you're talking about the Spring or Summer event, and add one if it falls on the weekend. In case you're wondering. No, I didn't make that up. It's real. I'll leave you to ponder how you'd add such an event to your family calendar. I'm Onno VK6FLAB

Welcome aboard another episode of Sailing and Cruising the East Coast of the United States! I'm your host, Bela Musits, and in this episode, we continue our journey north aboard a Hunter 44DS, as we relocate the boat from Brunswick, Georgia to Burlington, Vermont.Joined by sailor, good friend, and boat owner Mike Maloff, we share real-life stories, challenges, and logistics of moving a cruising sailboat through the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) and beyond. In this installment, we dive into a major topic for East Coast cruisers: navigating bridges.Whether you're a seasoned sailor or a dreamer planning your own voyage, this episode is packed with helpful insights:

GB2RS News Sunday the 20th of July 2025 The news headlines: The RSGB launches GB70RS awards to celebrate 70 years of GB2RS New volunteer RSGB STEM Champion announced Visit the RSGB National Radio Centre during the summer holidays The RSGB's weekly news broadcast, GB2RS, is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year. To mark the occasion, the Society is inviting you to collect awards for listening and logging GB2RS News broadcasts between Friday, the 1st of August and Tuesday, the 30th of September. There are four categories, including a basic listener award and a regular listener award. Full details of the programme, the rules and how to apply for your certificate are available by searching GB70RS at QRZ.com. To read about the awards and wider celebrations that are taking place for the 70th anniversary of GB2RS, go to rsgb.org/gb70rs RSGB Board Director, Ben Lloyd, GW4BML, has appointed Ian Stevenson, G3YNU, as the volunteer RSGB STEM Champion. This new role fits with the RSGB's strategy to bring amateur radio to new audiences and to highlight the link between amateur radio and science, technology, engineering and maths. Ian brings a wealth of experience to this role, having been a mathematics teacher for ten years, with a further 23 years in Higher Education as a Senior Lecturer in ICT and Education. Ian also played a pivotal role in establishing the RSGB School Links Project, which introduced classroom activities that connect amateur radio with the school curricula. The project was established following Tim Peake's Principia mission to the International Space Station, which included ten UK ARISS school contacts during Tim's time in space. In his new RSGB role, Ian is enthusiastic about fostering close ties with STEM organisations and STEM ambassadors across the UK, including those already engaged with the RSGB. If you'd like to contact Ian to share suggestions that may enhance the RSGB's STEM outreach programme, you can contact him via stem.champion@rsgb.org.uk If you are looking for an activity to keep the children busy during the summer holidays, why not plan a visit to the RSGB National Radio Centre at Bletchley Park? The knowledgeable and welcoming volunteers will be on hand to give an introduction to radio technology, how it works and why it is still relevant today. There are interactive displays as well as the opportunity to get a certificate for sending your name in Morse code. There will also be three more of the successful Spy Transmitter events during the summer, so keep an eye on the Bletchley Park website and the RSGB comms channels if you'd like to take part. Start planning your visit by going to rsgb.org/nrc. Don't forget that as a membership benefit, RSGB members can visit the world-famous Bletchley Park estate, including the RSGB National Radio Centre, for free. Download your voucher by going to rsgb.org/bpvoucher Did you know that the Radio Communications Foundation offers funding to young people who need help with the Foundation licence exam fee? They need to be under the age of 21 and in full-time education. If you know someone who may be eligible, help spread the word and promote this programme. To find out more and submit an application, go to commsfoundation.co.uk  and select ‘RCF Grants' from the sub-menu. This year marked the centenary of the unique mechanical Alexanderson Alternator transmitter at Grimeton near Varberg in Sweden. GB2RS Newsreader and NRC volunteer Brian Hardy, G4BIP, travelled to Sweden for a special 70th birthday trip with his partner Hilary, G7SOI. On the 2nd of July, they were able to watch SAQ being operated on a frequency of 17.2kHz as part of the celebration. Brian was even allowed to key up the station in advance of the formal transmission and send some test messages. Despite SAQ having a power output of 80kW, nobody came back to his CQ call! However, it was a big tick on his 'bucket list'! The station is usually fired up twice a year and is well worth a visit. You can discover much more, including a fascinating YouTube video of the centenary event, via alexander.n.se The UK Six Metre Group's AGM will be held via Zoom on Sunday, the 27th of July 2025 at 17:00 UTC. The AGM will include receiving the Group's financial report, presentation of officers' reports and elections. For more information about the Group, visit uksmg.org Don't forget that 145 Alive is taking place today from 12 to 3 pm. According to the organisers, there will be 47 individual nets on the air from diverse high points all over the UK and Ireland with over 1,000 participants! To take part, all you need to do is call into a local net and make contact with others on the 2m band. You can find more information on the 145 Alive Facebook page. Alternatively, you can email 145aliveuk@gmail.com And now for details of rallies and events Bury St Edmunds Radio Rally is taking place today, the 20th, at Rougham Tower Museum, IP32 7QB. The doors open at 7 am for traders and at 9.30 am for visitors. Refreshments are available from the Museum's cafeteria. Admission for visitors and car-booters costs £3 and is £10 for traders. For more details, email secretary@bsears.co.uk The Lincoln Short Wave Club Summer Radio Rally is taking place today, the 20th, at The Festival Hall, Caistor Road, Market Rasen, LN8 3HT. The doors are open from 10 am and admission costs £3. This is an indoor event, and ample free parking is available. For more information, phone Steve, M5ZZZ on 07777 699 069 or email m5zzz@outlook.com Wiltshire Radio Rally will take place on Sunda,y the 27th of July at Kington Langley Village Hall, Church Road, Kington Langley, SN15 5NJ. The doors open for traders at 7 am and at 9 am for visitors. Refreshments will be available on site. You can find out more by visiting chippenhamradio.club Now the Special Event news Special callsign DL0SOP is active until the 31st of July for the 67th edition of the Sea of Peace Award. More details about the award are available via tinyurl.com/seaofpeace  QSL via Club Log's OQRS, Logbook of the World and eQSL. Celebrating the 60th anniversary of Singapore becoming an independent republic on the 9th of August 1965, Singapore Amateur Radio Transmitting Society's members are allowed to replace their normal prefix, 9V1, with the special prefix S60 until the 9th of August. So if you want to put some S60 calls in your log, now is the time! Now the DX news Michael, VE2XB is active as TF/VE2XB from Olafsvik, Iceland, EU-021, until the 25th of July. He is operating CW and SSB on the 80 to 10m bands. QSL via Michael's home call. The IP1X team will be active from Gallinara Island, EU-083, on the 26th and 27th of July. The team will operate CW and SSB on the 80 to 10m bands. QSL via OQRS, via the Bureau or directly to IU1JCZ. More information is available at QRZ.com. Now the contest news Today, the 20th, the RSGB International Low Power Contest runs from 0900 to 1600 UTC. Using CW on the 80, 40 and 20m bands, the exchange is signal report, serial number and transmitter power. On Tuesday the 22nd, the RSGB SHF UK Activity Contest runs from 1830 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on 2.3 to 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Thursday the 24th, the RSGB 80m Club Championship Data Contest runs from 1900 to 2030 UTC. Using RTTY and PSK63 on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number. The RSGB IOTA Contest starts at 1200 UTC on Saturday, the 26th and ends at 1200 UTC on Sunday, the 27th of July. Using CW and SSB on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report, serial number and IOTA reference. On Sunday the 27th, the UK Microwave Group 5.7 and 10GHz Contest runs from 0600 to 1800 UTC. Using all modes on 5.7 and 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 17th of July. Space weather has been a bit like our terrestrial weather this week. We have had sunspots, some C-class solar flares, some coronal mass ejections and a large coronal hole – unsettled, you could say! Luckily, the coronal mass ejections were not Earth-directed, but the Kp index did rise to 5 on the 15th of July and again late on the 16th of July. The large coronal hole, which may have been responsible, is well south on the Sun's surface and should rotate out of Earth's view by the beginning of the coming week. Meanwhile, the Sun appears to have woken up, spot-wise, with 11 groups on the 17th of July, four of which are classed as growing, while two are stable and three are declining. Two groups are unclassified at this time. This resulted in an increase in the solar flux index to 152 on Thursday, the 17th. Overall, this means quite reasonable HF conditions considering the time of year. Recent DX spots included the JW0V DXpedition to Svalbard on both SSB and FT8, and C93RRC in Mozambique on 17m CW, plus 30, 20 and 10m FT8. Conditions have been up and down, with daytime maximum usable frequencies, or MUFs, over a 3,000km path reaching 28MHz at times, but then quickly declining to 18 or 19MHz ten minutes later. All we can advise is to keep listening! Nighttime MUFs over a 3,000km path have generally been exceeding 10MHz, and occasionally reaching 14MHz. We may start to see nighttime 14MHz openings tailing off as we head into late July. Next week, NOAA is a little pessimistic with a predicted solar flux index in the range of 118 to 130. Unsettled geomagnetic conditions, with a possible Kp of 4, are forecast for Tuesday, 22nd of July. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO The unsettled weather over this weekend will continue through the first part of the coming week. Some of the rain will be heavy and possibly thundery, so there is a good chance of rain scatter on the GHz bands. After mid-week, the pattern may change enough for a weak ridge of high pressure to build close to the UK and this may offer some Tropo opportunities. It may not be strong enough for it to persist through the warmth of a July day. Thus, most places will have better Tropo prospects overnight. The solar conditions have recently fired off a steady stream of aurora alerts, and we should probably expect similar in the coming week. Meteor scatter is often on people's minds during late summer since we have two showers towards the end of this month and, of course, next month's Perseids. This month, both the Delta Aquariids and the Alpha Capricornids peak around the 30th of July, but we are already in the broad spread of dates for activity. Sporadic-E is still happening on most days somewhere within Europe, but even UK stations can expect regular FT8 activity and a fair chance of CW or SSB paths for stronger events. Last Wednesday saw another early afternoon opening into the USA. These stronger events need a low Kp index, below 3, and some jet stream activity to generate turbulence that can spread upwards to the E region. In the coming week, we will certainly have some jet stream activity, so it should be worth monitoring your favourite beacons for activity. It's always helpful to have a list of favourite beacons at the ready to cover a range of directions. For example, one in Finland, Poland, Hungary, Italy and Spain should cover it. Moon declination is positive again, reaching maximum on Tuesday, the 22nd, with associated long Moon windows and high peak elevation. Path losses continue to fall until perigee today, Sunday, the 20th. 144MHz sky noise is moderate, but Thursday the 24th sees the Moon and Sun close in the sky until early the following day. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

ハムのラジオ第654回の配信です。 (2025/7/13 ラジオ成田から放送) 今回の特集は「いま、VHFが、面白い！」です。 夏のコンディション真っ只中の2mと6mの各バンド。とても賑わっています。 思わぬ所とQSOで […]

GB2RS News Sunday, the 13th of July 2025   The news headlines: The RSGB announces speakers for its annual Convention in October Get involved with chasing awards this summer RSGB Regional Representatives elect a new Regional Forum Chair The RSGB is delighted to announce that the Keynote Speaker for its 2025 Convention will be Professor Lucie Green. She is a Professor of Physics and a Royal Society University Research Fellow at the Mullard Space Science Laboratory of the University College London. She has also presented many TV and radio programmes, including The Sky at Night and Stargazing Live. During her talk, Professor Green will provide an update on the proposed Moon-Enabled Sun Occultation Mission, which she is working on with fellow UK researchers. The project will enable the team to study the conditions that create solar storms, leading to improvements in forecasts of space weather on Earth. As well as releasing details of the Keynote Speaker, the RSGB has published a teaser of its Convention programme. This includes Neil Smith, G4DBN, who will share his experience of taking complex ideas and turning them into stories that connect with wider audiences. Many of you will be familiar with Neil from the popular BBC series “The Secret Genius of Modern Life”, for which he recreated a device invented by Leon Theremin. Bill Rothwell, G0VDE, will show you that DXpeditions don't always need to involve masses of equipment, and that one person can make a successful trip with only the luggage they carry. RSGB Propagation Studies Committee member Gwyn Griffiths, G3ZIL, will explore Travelling Ionospheric Disturbances, whilst Brian Coleman, G4NNS, will give you the latest update on the UK Meteor Radar System. Read the full list of confirmed speakers by going to rsgb.org/convention  and selecting the “RSGB 2025 Convention speakers” option from the right-hand menu. The RSGB 2025 Convention is taking place at Kents Hill Conference Centre between the 10th and 12th of October. Book your ticket now and join like-minded people for a fun-filled weekend. Set yourself a challenge this summer and get involved with awards chasing. The RSGB awards are open to everyone, whatever your age, licence level and personal interests. They encourage you to push yourself further, learn something new and can even help you to make tweaks to your station to maximise performance. If HF is your mode, then visit rsgb.org/awards  and get involved with the IARU Region 1 Award, which encourages you to make contacts with member countries. If VHF or UHF is your preference, then challenge yourself to the 50MHz Continents and Countries Award. Several Foundation awards are aimed at getting new licensees on the air and helping build confidence. For younger RSGB members, there are two awards designed to show the breadth that amateur radio offers. The RSGB Scouts, Cadets and Girlguiding Youth Champion, Samuel McCutchion, 2E1UEL, recently completed the Radio Surfer Award and shared his experience with us. Read how he got on by going to rsgb.org/award-stories  At a recent meeting of the RSGB Regional Forum, the RSGB Regional Representatives elected George Crawford, MM0JNL, as the Regional Forum Chair. George represents Scotland South and Western Isles as the Representative for Region 1. He got involved in amateur radio in 2020 and gained his Full licence by March 2021. George has also been a GB2RS Newsreader. Along with the rest of the Regional Team, George is keen to continue to help RSGB members and the wider amateur radio community, and to promote amateur radio and the Society at public events. He will be attending Kirriemuir Show on the 19th of July to showcase amateur radio to the agricultural and rural communities. You can hear more details about that in the Special Event News section of this week's GB2RS News. Last week, senior RSGB staff and some members of the RSGB Board met for two days to discuss the next implementation phase of the Society's strategy. The discussions covered several topics, including how to ensure the Society stays relevant to the modern radio amateur. Those discussions led to some initial plans for the next six months that focus on one or two clear goals. More details of the plans will be shared over the coming weeks, including in strategy updates and at the ‘Meet the Board' session at the RSGB Convention in October. Following the RSGB's attendance at Dayton and Friedrichshafen, it was also noted that the Society is held in high esteem around the world and that many other national societies are keen to learn from the RSGB's achievements. Ben, M7FRS and John, G0JDL, are hoping to be operating aeronautical mobile in a Cessna 172 for about an hour tomorrow, Monday the 14th, over the skies of Norfolk and Suffolk. The pair will be departing from Beccles Airfield at around midday. They will initially be on the 2m band FM calling frequency of 145.500MHz before changing frequency. As per the new licensing arrangements, they will be using less than 500mW. Listen out for them, as they'd love to get you in their log!  During this weekend's IARU HF World Championship, five stations will be active on the 80 to 10m bands using SSB and CW and tested under field conditions. They will be using the exact planned equipment for the WRTC 2026 event as a trial. The operating location will be a cluster of sites within the grounds of the Euston Estate in Suffolk. QSL via M0OXO's OQRS. There will be two awards available for chasers during this event, so listen out for the following callsigns: GB0WR, GB2WR, GB5WR, GB8WR and GB9WR. For more information, visit tinyurl.com/wrtctest The next in the popular 145 Alive series will take place on Sunday, the 20th of July, from 12 pm to 3 pm. The event will have over 40 stations and 1,000 participants from all over the UK and Ireland. To take part on the day, simply call into a local net and make contact with others. You can find more information, including details of the nets, the operators, their locations and operating frequencies on the 145 Alive Events Facebook page. And now for details of rallies and events The McMichael Radio and Electronics Rally and Car Boot Sale is taking place today, the 13th, at Oak Trees Event Field, Cocks Lane, Warfield, Bracknell, RG42 6JE. Traders are welcome from 8 am. The doors will be open for visitors from 9 am to 3 pm. The entrance fee is £4 per person. A trader's table costs £15 and this includes admission for two people. Humber Fortress DX Amateur Radio Club Rally will take place on Saturday, the 19th of July at Welwick Village Hall, North Lane, Welwick, HU12 0SH. The doors will be open from 10 am to 3 pm, and visitor entrance costs £3. Indoor tables are fully booked, but there is still outdoor space available at £5 per table. Please bring your own table. For more information, email rally@hfdxarc.com Bury St Edmunds Radio Rally will take place on Sunday, the 20th of July at Rougham Tower Museum, IP32 7QB. The doors open at 7 am for traders and 9.30 am for visitors. Refreshments are available from the Museum's cafeteria. Admission for visitors and car-booters costs £3 and £10 for traders. For more details, email secretary@bsears.co.uk The Lincoln Short Wave Club Summer Radio Rally will take place on Sunday, the 20th of July at The Festival Hall, Caistor Road, Market Rasen, LN8 3HT. The doors will be open from 10 am and admission costs £3. This is an indoor event, and ample free parking will be available. Over 50 tables of traders and special interest groups will be present. Booking a table costs £10. For more information, phone Steve, M5ZZZ on 07777 699 069 or email m5zzz@outlook.com Now the Special Event news On Saturday, the 19th of July, RSGB Region 1 Representative George, MM0JNL, will be hosting special event station GB4KAS at the Kirriemuir Show in Angus, Scotland, from 10 am to 5 pm. This new venture is intended to showcase the RSGB and amateur radio to the agricultural and rural community. It will also allow unlicensed guest operators to have some supervised radio operating time and, hopefully, have their first international radio contact. The station will be operating using SSB on the HF bands and FM on the 2m band. If you hear the operators on the air, give them a call! GB70RS is the special callsign helping to celebrate 70 years of the RSGB's News Service, GB2RS. This coming week, the callsign is being aired by Dave, G4IDF, on all bands from 80 to 6m, plus 4m and 2m, using SSB and FT8. If you hear Dave, give him a call! A special QSL card is available. See QRZ.com for more details. Now the DX news Eric, KV1J is active as FP/KV1J from Miquelon Island, NA-032, until tomorrow, the 14th. He is operating using CW, FT4, FT8 and SSB on the 80 to 6m bands. QSL via Logbook of the World, Club Log's OQRS, eQSL or via Eric's home call, directly or via the Bureau. For more information visit QRZ.com Pierre, VK3KTB, is active as VY0ERC from the Eureka Amateur Radio Club station on Ellesmere Island, NA-008, until the 24th of July. He operates using CW, FT8 and SSB on various bands when time permits. QSL via M0OXO's OQRS and Logbook of the World. Now the contest news The IARU HF Championship started at 1200 UTC on Saturday, the 12th and ends at 1200 UTC today, Sunday, the 13th of July. Using CW and SSB on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and ITU Zone. The UK is in Zone 27. The GR2HQ Challenge also started at 1200 UTC on Saturday, the 12th and ends at 1200 UTC today, Sunday, the 13th of July. Using CW and SSB on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and ITU Zone. The UK is in Zone 27. Today, the 13th, the UK Microwave Group 24, 47, and 76GHz Contest runs from 0900 to 1700 UTC. Using all modes on 24 to 76GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Tuesday the 15th, the RSGB 1.3GHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on the 23cm band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Wednesday the 16th, the RSGB 80m SSB Club Championship runs from 1900 to 2030UTC. Using SSB on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number. On Thursday the 17th, the RSGB 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. On Saturday the 19th, the RSGB 70MHz Trophy Contest runs from 1400 to 2000 UTC. Using all modes on the 4m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number, locator and the first two letters of your postcode. On Sunday the 20th, the RSGB International Low Power Contest runs from 0900 to 1600 UTC. Using CW on the 80, 40 and 20m bands, the exchange is signal report, serial number and transmitter power. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 10th of July 2025 Last week was characterised by settled geomagnetic conditions, but a relatively low solar flux index. The Kp index hit 5.33 on the 6th and 7th of July but was otherwise around 1 or 2 for the rest of the week. These settled conditions were helpful to HF propagation, although the maximum usable frequency over a 3,000km path didn't get much above 21MHz. This is likely to be due to the HF summer doldrums, and we are unlikely to see it rise much more until September, once the F2 layer has switched to autumnal propagation conditions. Meanwhile, the solar flux index remained steadfastly in the range of 115 to 120. This is enough to provide fair propagation, but not enough to set new DX records! But there was DX to be worked, including T30TT in western Kiribati, on the 20 and 15m bands using the FT8 Fox and Hounds mode. Also, ZD7FT was operating on St Helena Island on the 17m band using SSB, and C94RRC was active on the 10m band from Mozambique using FT8. Laurie, G3UML on the CDXC Slack group, commented that there was a lot of DX around, including FP/KV1J on the 17m band using SSB on Miquelon Island. Additionally, TY5AD was on the 17m band using CW from Benin. And FY4JI was on the 17m band using SSB from French Guiana. Now the bad news. A very large solar coronal hole will begin to face Earth this weekend. A solar wind stream flowing from this zone is expected to reach Earth with the main influence occurring today, the 13th, and tomorrow, the 14th. If the Bz of the plasma cloud points south, we can expect disturbed geomagnetic conditions and a reduction in the maximum usable frequency, or MUF for short. NOAA predicts unsettled conditions, with a Kp index of 4 between the 15th and 16th of July. The solar flux index is expected to be in the range of 105 to 125 for the next week. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO The hot weather continues to set the agenda in the short term. Something to note is that for VHF and UHF Tropo ducting, the ideal is for warm, dry air to sit on top of cool, moist air. These conditions are commonplace over the nearby seas as hot, dry air moves out across the coast to overlay the cool, moist air near the sea's surface. Think of the North Sea, English Channel, Irish Sea and Biscay as being very good Tropo paths in high summer. But the award goes to the Mediterranean, where very strong ducting conditions are pretty much a given if you happen to be sitting on an exotic holiday beach.  Back at home... if you live inland, then you will be out of luck during the heat of the day since there is no cool, moist surface air. But in the evening, as the ground cools and perhaps cool sea air moves inland, you could find yourself coupled into the Tropo conditions that those on the coast have been enjoying all day. In other words, for most of the country, Tropo will be better overnight and early morning. The other modes are worth checking of course, especially Sporadic-E, which is continuing to give some paths on most days, at least for digital modes, but also for those using SSB or CW.  Most days, there will be some direction available from the UK on the 10m band, and perhaps on the 6m band, with many online clusters to show you where the current paths are located. We really must get used to the idea that Sporadic-E can be very localised, and you will only know about it if someone calls CQ. If you do that, you may be surprised by how good conditions have been all along! Disturbed solar conditions should keep aurora as a possibility. Meteor scatter is often worth checking, with two showers peaking later in the month. The middle part of the coming week looks like turning more unsettled for a time, so rain scatter is also an option for the GHz bands. Moon declination is increasing again, reaching maximum on Tuesday, and path losses are falling. So, it's time to put the feeder back into the dish. 144MHz sky noise is moderate to start the week but decreasing to low after the weekend. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

GB2RS News Sunday, the 6th of July 2025 The news headlines: Don't miss tomorrow's RSGB Tonight@8 webinar on UK Bunkers on the Air Get involved with the GR2HQ challenge RSGB appoints a new CW Champion The next episode in the Tonight@8 series is tomorrow, Monday, the 7th of July. During the webinar, Tony Hodge, M0TNI and Jason Dale, 2E0JIV, will discuss their journey into amateur radio, what they enjoy about it and how they got involved in UK Bunkers on the Air. UKBOTA  is a programme and awards scheme that encourages radio amateurs to activate Royal Observer Corps and other types of bunkers in the United Kingdom. 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 The IARU HF Championship contest begins in less than a week, and the RSGB Contest Committee is encouraging both individuals and clubs to get involved. During the contest, Headquarters Stations represent their countries, with the RSGB's station GR2HQ being run by a network of about a dozen stations around the UK and islands. Get involved with the GR2HQ challenge and work the stations between 1200 UTC on Saturday, the 12th of July and 1200 UTC on Sunday, the 13th of July. Certificates of Achievement will be available for all stations, and those stations achieving high scores will receive Certificates of Merit. For the full rules, go to the GR2HQ Challenge page on the Contest Committee website via rsgbcc.org RSGB Board Director Mark Jones, G0MGX, is delighted to announce that Laura Robertson, MM7BFL, has agreed to take on the volunteer role of the RSGB CW Champion. Laura will head up the RSGB's Morse-related activities and become an advocate for the use of CW. In her role, Laura will also help the Society to take CW to new audiences, with an emphasis on learning and development to further the skills of its members. Laura is a member of CWops and volunteers in the CW Academy team as a co-advisor, primarily assisting EU-based amateurs who are enrolled on the courses. She is often active on the HF bands using CW in POTA and SOTA activities, as well as from her home station. You can contact Laura via cw.champion@rsgb.org.uk. The RSGB has received a lot of interest in supporting this role, and in due course, it will be in contact with those who have said they would like to join a Morse support team. When was the last time you revalidated your licence? Ofcom notes that whilst it is a requirement to revalidate your licence every five years, it is recommended to do it annually. Put a reminder in your diary to revalidate your licence soon, as Ofcom has stated that it intends to implement phases two and three of the planned updates to the amateur radio licensing framework later this year. These phases include changes to new and Intermediate callsigns and rules for special event stations. You can find guidance on the process by going to the RSGB website and searching ‘licence revalidation'. As well as FAQs, you'll also find a link to a step-by-step video by Ofcom, which shows you the process of revalidating your licence using the online licensing portal. Bawdsey Radar Trust will be holding an event to commemorate the world's first airborne radar experiments. The event on Friday, the 15th of August, will take place at Adastral Park, the home to BT's research and innovation labs at Martlesham Heath in Suffolk. Presentation topics will include Radar Early Days, Airborne Radar and Family Histories. There will be two sessions open to members of the public. The morning session is aimed at people with little technical knowledge, and the afternoon session is for those with some technical knowledge. To find out more and book your ticket, go to bawdseyradar.org.uk  and click on ‘Radar in the Air'. If you're unable to attend this event, why not learn about radar history with a visit to the Bawdsey Radar Museum? Don't forget, as an RSGB member, you can save 20% on the ticket price. Visit rsgb.org/partner-museums  to download your voucher. This year, International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend will run from 0001 UTC on the 16th of August to 2400 UTC on the 17th of August. The event usually attracts more than 500 lighthouse entries located in over 40 countries. Registration for the event is open at illw.net 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 Saffron Walden Radio Ham and CB Club Rally is taking place today, the 6th, at Lovecotes Farm, Chickney Road, Henham Village, Bishop's Stortford, CM22 6BH. Booking a table for today costs £10, and you can arrive from 8 am onwards. For more information, email g8swr1.5@gmail.com Barford Norfolk Radio Rally is taking place today, the 6th, at Barford Village Hall and Green, Barford, Norwich, NR9 4AB. The doors open at 9 am for visitors. The event features trade stands, car boot sales, bring and buy, a charity raffle, repeater groups, catering and free car parking. Entry costs £3 per person, but under 16s will be admitted free of charge. Outside pitches cost £8 and are available from 8 am. For more details visit tinyurl.com/Barford2025  or email David, G7URP at radio@dcpmicro.com The McMichael Radio & Electronics Rally and Car Boot Sale will take place on Sunday the 13th of July at Oak Trees Event Field, Cocks Lane, Warfield, Bracknell, RG42 6JE. Traders are welcome from 8 am. The doors will be open for visitors from 9 am to 3 pm. The entrance fee is £4 per person. A trader's table costs £15 and this includes admission for two people. Now the Special Event news Special callsign GB70RS is in use to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the RSGB's weekly news service GB2RS, which has been running continuously since the 25th of September 1955. A team of amateurs is using the callsign on a variety of bands and modes. QSL via the Bureau, Logbook of the World and eQSL. For more information, visit rsgb.org/gb70rs Members of Central Uusimaa Radio Amateurs Association, OH2AP, are active throughout 2025 as OF60AP to celebrate their club's 60th anniversary. QSL via Club Log's OQRS. For details of a certificate that is available for working the station, see tinyurl.com/oh2ap25 Now the DX news Don, KW7R, is active as V73KW from the Marshall Islands. He is there on a work assignment until September 2025. In his spare time, he operates CW and FT8 on various bands. QSL via Logbook of the World. George, VU2DGR, is active as AT44I from Bharati Research Station. He is a member of the 44th Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica. The station was spotted recently on the 20m band using SSB. QSL via home call. Now the contest news Today, the 6th, the 3rd 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. RSGB VHF National Field Day started at 1400 UTC on Saturday, the 5th and ends at 1400 UTC today, Sunday, the 6th of July. Using all modes on the 6m, 4m, 2m, 70cm and 23cm bands, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. The RSGB VHF Fixed Station Contest started at 1400 UTC on Saturday, the 5th and ends at 1400 UTC today, Sunday, the 6th of July. Using all modes on the 6m, 4m, 2m, 70cm and 23cm bands, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Tomorrow, the 7th, the RSGB 80m CW Club Championship runs from 1900 to 2030 UTC. Using CW on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number. On Tuesday, the 8th, the RSGB 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 8th, 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 9th, the RSGB 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 9th, the RSGB 432MHz FT8 Activity two-hour Contest runs from 1900 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 70cm band, the exchange is a report and four-character locator. Stations entering the four-hour contest may also enter the two-hour contest. On Thursday, the 10th, the RSGB 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. The GR2HQ Challenge starts at 1200 UTC on Saturday, the 12th and ends at 1200 UTC on Sunday, the 13th of July. Using CW and SSB on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and ITU Zone. The UK is in Zone 27. The IARU HF Championship starts at 1200 UTC on Saturday, the 12th and ends at 1200 UTC on Sunday, the 13th of July. Using CW and SSB on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and ITU Zone. The UK is in Zone 27. On Sunday, the 13th, the UK Microwave Group 24, 47, and 76GHz Contest runs from 0900 to 1700 UTC. Using all modes on 24 to 76GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 3rd of July 2025 It looks like the Space Weather Prediction Centre, which supplies the forecasts for NOAA, were overly cautious last week. Despite predicting geomagnetic disturbances, we had quite a calm week. The Kp index rose to 3.33 on a few occasions, but that was it. We ended up with settled geomagnetic conditions and a solar flux index in the 120s to 130s. A warning about the impact of a coronal mass ejection, or CME, which left the Sun on the 28th of June, appeared to come to nothing. This made a much-needed change to the unsettled conditions of previous weeks. As a result, maximum usable frequencies, or MUFs for short, over a 3,000km path have been above 21MHz at times. At night, MUFs over the same path have been consistently above 14MHz, which is normal for this time of year. In the summer, we can expect to see nighttime MUFs being consistently higher than in the winter, due to a change in ionospheric chemistry. Unfortunately, this also means that daytime MUFs are lower than in winter, leaving 28MHz open to Sporadic-E instead. According to DXMaps.com, it appears that most Sporadic-E openings on the 10m band have favoured the southeast of the UK towards Italy, Turkey and Greece. Back to F2-layer propagation now. On the 20m band, E51JD, operating from the South Cook Islands, was spotted on SSB by Laurie, G3UML, on Thursday morning. KH7AL/KH9 on Wake Island, and T30TTT on Kiribati, have also been worked on the 20m band using FT8. Next week, NOAA predicts that the solar flux index will be in the 125 to 145 range. Geomagnetic conditions are predicted to be quiet, apart from the period around the 11th and 12th of July, when the Kp index may rise to 4. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO This hot weather has provided some nice marine Tropo around the coasts recently as hot, dry air advects across the cooler, moist surface layer. We have also been able to see the duct move inland in the evenings. The hybrid weather pattern of low pressure to the north of Britain and high pressure to the south will continue to produce some Tropo paths, particularly across the Channel, Biscay and North Sea.  Northern areas of Britain will see occasional fronts and active weather systems, together with breezier weather, making Tropo unlikely here. The higher pressure to the south means that rain scatter may not feature much unless isolated thunderstorms develop when weak weather fronts eventually reach these southern areas. In the north, it's a different matter, and there could be some heavier rain that might produce some rain scatter on the GHz bands. Meteor scatter did well during June with several important showers to boost chances. July offers two showers. The first is the low-hourly-rate Alpha Capricornids, and the second is the Delta Aquariids. Both of these peak around the 30th of July, so we have a while to wait. There have been some minor auroral events recently, and it's always possible that solar activity could lift the Kp index high enough, but we are not expecting great things. Keep a check on the Kp index at spaceweather.com  to see if anything is happening. The Sporadic-E season has had occasional good days, but for much of the time, the focus of activity has been too far into Europe for the whole country to take advantage of it. To begin the coming week, the position of the jet streams suggests paths to northern Europe and the Baltic will offer best results. Later in the week, the emphasis shifts to the Balkans and Italy, and then to Iberia. The Moon reaches apogee tomorrow, the 7th, where path losses are at their highest. Moon declination is negative all week, with the lowest, or the most negative, on Wednesday, the 9th. 144MHz sky noise is moderate but increasing to a high of around 2,300 Kelvin on Wednesday. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

Elvis and Barb are back (once again) with more amazing conversations that they got at the exocad (https://exocad.com/) booth during the 4 days at IDS 2025 in Cologne, Germany (https://www.english.ids-cologne.de/). First up is two gentlemen out of Columbia that their lab 70 years ago decided that it was easier if they just started manufacturing their own materials. Juan David Jaramillo and Luis Diego Monsalve talk about the history of New Stetic (https://www.newstetic.com/en/), the regulation of getting it into 65 different countries, the world of making dental anesthesia, and how they use IDS as a way to connect with customers from around the world. Then we bring back the wonderful Steve Campbell from Nexus Dental Laboratory (https://nexus.dental/)in the UK. Steve is at IDS speaking for exocad and the new exocad ART (https://exocad.com/our-products/exocad-art). He talks about how with exocad, AI, and a video of a patient talking, we can create a video of the patient talking with their new teeth that haven't even been made yet. Steve also updates on Nexus since the last recording and the importance of encouraging your technicians to do better then you. Lastly we talk to Dr. Nicolas Rohde from VHF Milling Machines (https://www.vhf.com/en-us/). Dr. Rohde started with a business degree and a PhD in Organizational Practices. While in Maryland during school, he meets his wife and takes a job with a implant company and that's how he into dental. That company was a reseller for VHF mills and that is how he found them Dr. Rohde talks about moving back to Germany to run the US division, what sets their mills apart from others, and why they take the time to have their own CAM software to run their mills. Take it from Jennifer Ferguson from Ivoclar. If you have a PM7 (https://www.ivoclar.com/en_us/products/digital-equipment/programill-pm7) or are thinking about getting a PM7 (Take it from Barb, you should), on July 1st Ivoclar is launching the "Ivoclar Block Module" that can speed up milling emax (https://www.ivoclar.com/en_us/products/digital-processes/ips-e.max-cad) by 45%!! The best part is that you can try it for FREE for 90 days. All you have to do is send them a message on Instagram at Ivoclar.na (https://www.instagram.com/ivoclar.na/) or send a email to jennifer.ferguson@ivoclar.com. Now go mill emax faster! Special Guests: Dr. Nicolas Rohde, Juan David Jaramillo Gómez, Luis Diego Monsalve Hoyos, and Steve Campbell RDT.

GB2RS News Sunday the 29th of June 2025 The news headlines: Royal Signals Museum offers discounted entry to RSGB members Watch two more 2024 Convention videos and then book for this year's event A reminder about the RSGB Band Plans  Don't forget that the RSGB has partnered with some fantastic museums to offer its members discounted entry in 2025. The Society has recently added the Royal Signals Museum in Dorset to the list of museums offering reduced prices for RSGB members. The interactive Museum is located within an active Army camp and brings to life the vital role of military communications. Visit rsgb.org/partner-museums  for more information and to download your personalised discount voucher for six exciting partner museums. Whether you're heading to West Wales, Cornwall, West Sussex, Suffolk, Dorset or Milton Keynes, you'll be able to save between 20% and 50% on standard admission prices. Start planning your summer adventures now! Are you thinking about attending the RSGB's Convention this year? Be inspired to book your place by watching two videos released by the RSGB from its 2024 Convention, which provide comprehensive updates on EMC and EMF. The first video is a presentation from members of the RSGB Electromagnetic Compatibility Committee. EMC Chair Dr John Rogers, M0JAV, together with Peter Zollman, G4DSE and Ian White, GM3SEK, summarise reports to the EMC helpdesk and highlight two of the most commonly raised topics. This includes advice on how to find and minimise the impact of the sources of RFI. In the second video, RSGB General Manager Steve Thomas, M1ACB, interviews the trio as they explain how the work they have been doing has helped not only RSGB members but the wider amateur radio community. They also explain how their work has supported the new power levels in the latest licence conditions. Watch both videos by going to youtube.com/thersgb The RSGB Band Plans for 2025 were published in the March 2025 issue of RadCom and are also available on the RSGB website in a variety of formats. The RSGB would like to remind all radio amateurs to consult the Band Plans before operating and to refer to the master files on the Society's website. To ensure you are using the correct data, please do not copy it onto other websites or use versions that you find elsewhere. You can find the Plans at rsgb.org/bandplans The Board has appointed Will Richardson, 2E0WYA, as the new Nominations Committee Chair. If you are interested in joining the Board as a Nominated Director and have the skills and experience to help move the Society forward into its next chapter, please contact Will via nominations.chair@rsgb.org.uk  The Society would like to increase the diversity of its Board, and is also looking particularly for radio amateurs who have knowledge of the science and technology of amateur radio, and the spectrum it uses. The International Amateur Radio Union is engaging with member societies to explore potential changes to its future structure. The RSGB has contributed to this consultation by raising several concerns and offering constructive suggestions across a range of topics. Throughout these discussions, the Society has prioritised the development of amateur radio and the interests of its members. Further updates will be shared with members in due course. The famous Grimeton Radio Station will be celebrating its 100th anniversary on Wednesday, the 2nd of July. The unique Alexanderson alternator, with the callsign SAQ, is scheduled for two transmissions on 17.2kHz using CW. At 0830UTC, the alternator will be started up, and at 0900 UTC, the first transmission will take place. A second transmission is scheduled for 1300UTC. You can read more about the event and the historic transmitter at alexander.n.se Finally, advance notice that the popular Churches and Chapels on the Air event will take place on Saturday, the 13th of September, between 10 am and 4 pm. If you are planning to put a station on the air, please let John, Wresdell, G3XYF know by emailing jhwresdell@gmail.com And now for details of rallies and events The Cornish Radio Amateur Club Rally is taking place today, Sunday the 29th of June, at Penair School, St. Clement, Truro, TR1 1TN. The doors open at 10.30 am. For more information, contact Ken, G0FIC on 01209 821 073. Saffron Walden Radio Ham and CB Club Rally will take place from Friday, the 4th to Sunday, the 6th of July. The venue will be Lovecotes Farm, Chickney Road, Henham Village, Bishop's Stortford, CM22 6BH. You can camp on the field from Friday to Sunday and have a table for £15. If you are camping, you can arrive from 6 pm on Friday. To book a camping pitch or arrange tables, email g8swr1.5@gmail.com Barford Norfolk Radio Rally will take place on Sunday, the 6th of July at Barford Village Hall and Green, Barford, Norwich, NR9 4AB. The doors open at 9 am for visitors. The event features trade stands, car boot sales, bring and buy, a charity raffle, repeater groups, catering and free car parking. Entry costs £3 per person, but under 16s will be admitted free of charge. Outside pitches cost £8 and are available from 8 am on the day. Inside tables cost £10 and must be pre-booked. For more details visit tinyurl.com/Barford2025  or email David, G7URP at radio@dcpmicro.com Now the Special Event news Tomorrow, the 30th of June, the 2458 RAF Cadets Air Training Corps will be on the air from the Cadet Centre in Baildon, West Yorkshire. The squadron will have the opportunity to operate an HF and Low Earth Orbit satellite amateur radio station under the supervision of Simon, M0YKS. The Cadets already have experience operating their own VHF radio equipment and will now be able to expand their knowledge and experience within the world of radio communication and amateur radio. The callsign used by the cadets during the evening event will be GB0ATC. The station will be active between 7 and 9 pm. The operators are hoping to contact as many radio amateurs as possible during the event. So, listen out for activity which will mainly be on the 40m band and any FM satellites in range during the event. A series of special event stations is on the air to celebrate the Deutsche Amateur Radio Club's 75th anniversary. Four special call signs are active until the 31st of October. You can find details about the stations, as well as information on a diploma that is available for working them, at tinyurl.com/DARCIS75. An English version of the information can be found by scrolling down the web page. QSL via the Bureau or directly to DL2VFR. Durham and District Amateur Radio Society is participating again as one of the bonus stations in the popular 13 Colonies event. Special callsign GB13COL has been issued for the occasion and will run from the club station at 1300UTC on the 1st of July until 0400UTC on the 8th of July. Listen out for the station on the HF, VHF and UHF bands, and on the amateur satellites. Operators will be using SSB, CW, FM and various digital modes. And finally, don't forget to listen out for all the amateur stations that will be on the air today, Sunday the 29th, for Museums on the Air. Find out more by visiting tinyurl.com/IMOTA2025   Now the DX news Aldir, PY1SAD is active as 8R1TM from Guyana until the 8th of July. He operates CW, SSB and digital modes on the 160 to 6m bands and via satellite. During weekdays, he is available between 2300 UTC and 0200 UTC. QSL via Logbook of the World, eQSL, QRZ.com Logbook or directly to Aldir's home call. Domenico, IK1MNF, is active as IK1MNF/IA5 from Isola d'Elba, EU-028, until the end of September. He is mainly using SSB on the 20 to 6m bands. QSL via Domenico's home call. QSOs will be uploaded to Logbook of the World and Club Log. Now the contest news Today, the 29th, the UK Microwave Group 5.7 and 10GHz Contest runs from 0600 to 1800 UTC. Using all modes on 5.7 and 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Also, today, the 29th, the RSGB 50MHz CW Contest runs from 0900 to 1200 UTC. Using CW on the 6m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Tuesday the 1st, the RSGB 144MHz FM Activity Contest runs from 1800 to 1855 UTC. Using FM on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Also, on Tuesday the 1st, the RSGB 144MHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Wednesday the 2nd, the RSGB 144MHz FT8 Activity four-hour Contest runs from 1700 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 2m band, the exchange is report and a four-character locator. Also, on Wednesday the 2nd, the RSGB 144MHz FT8 Activity two-hour Contest runs from 1900 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 2m band, the exchange is report and a four-character locator. Stations entering the four-hour contest may also enter the two-hour contest. RSGB VHF National Field Day starts at 1400 UTC on Saturday, the 5th and ends at 1400 UTC on Sunday, the 6th of July. Using all modes on the 6m, 4m, 2m, 70cm and 23cm bands, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. The RSGB VHF Fixed Station Contest starts at 1400UTC on Saturday, the 5th and ends at 1400 UTC on Sunday, the 6th of July. Using all modes on the 6m, 4m, 2m, 70cm and 23cm bands, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Sunday the 6th, the 3rd 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.  Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Wednesday the 25th of June. Last week was good from a geomagnetic disturbance point of view. Up until Wednesday the 25th, the Kp index had not been higher than 3.67 and had mostly been in the ones and twos. This helped HF propagation to a great extent. Sunspots have been present with the solar flux index sitting at 120 on Wednesday, the 25th. A look at the visible disk at solarham.com  shows five sunspot groups facing Earth. None are ground-breaking, but they are at least helping to keep the solar flux index relatively high. Daytime F2 MUFs over a 3,000km path have been reaching 18MHz and even 21MHz at times, with 14MHz being more reliable. Sporadic-E continues to make 28MHz a useful band for short-skip, with much of Europe being workable mid-morning on the 25th, at least using FT8. Estonia, Germany, Poland, and Finland were all easily worked on FT8, but nothing was heard on the usual 10m CW and SSB frequencies. Next week, NOAA predicts that the solar flux index will be in the 140 to 150 range. Unsettled geomagnetic conditions are forecast for the 1st to the 3rd of July, when the Kp index could reach 4. And conditions may become unsettled again on the 6th and 7th, again with a predicted Kp index of 4. But in the meantime, make the most of the Sporadic-E on the 10m band, as it won't last forever! And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO The more traditional summer weather, with patchy rain and showers, is likely to continue for a bit longer. The more persistent rain is likely in the north, closer to low pressure near Iceland, whereas the rain may be more intermittent in southern areas, closer to high pressure over France. This probably rules out any significant Tropo in northern Britain over the coming week but does allow for the occasional enhancement in the southern half of the country. Most areas will have some rain scatter opportunities for the GHz band operators, although perhaps fewer in the south than in the north. The solar conditions have quietened down a little in terms of aurora recently but as we said last week, don't forget to look north in the twilight sky for signs of the pale noctilucent cloud. This is a high-summer phenomenon. See if you can detect any wave patterns, like ripples on a sandy beach, in the cloud. The month of June tends to be quite good for meteor input, and the last of the set, the June Bootids, peaked on Friday the 27th. So, there should be some good chances for hearing the odd ping or two or even seeing one in the evening sky after dusk. The primary mode of interest is still Sporadic-E, which is in full swing and doubtless being topped up by the Bootids meteors, which produce the main ingredient of Sporadic-E propagation – long-lived ions as they ablate, or burn up, upon entering the atmosphere. In terms of the usual search for the placement of Sporadic-E events geographically, the main jet stream interest is likely to be across the northern part of Europe for the coming week. This suggests trying paths to Scandinavia and the Baltic states, whereas for triggers due to upper air ridge patterns, use the more southern routes. The Moon has passed perigee for this month, so path losses are rising. Moon declination is still high, not going negative until Tuesday, the 1st of July. 144MHz sky noise is low, increasing to moderate by next weekend. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

Esta semana volvemos a calzar las botas para hablar del evento SOTA en VHF FM, que ha vuelto a llenar de actividad las cumbres de nuestra geografía. Escuchamos la experiencia de varios participantes: EA5U, EA4HLP, EA3GRW, EA3HIG y EA9ADD, que nos cuentan cómo vivieron la jornada desde sus respectivas cimas. También hablamos con EA1FTW, sobre el compañero que tuvo que abandonar su activación tras la intervención de agentes forestales debido al riesgo de incendio, y nos explica lo ocurrido, desde su experiencia, con todo detalle. Además, como cada mes, traemos el informe de radioescucha y diexismo de la AER, con las señales más interesantes que se podrán captar en las bandas durante las próximas semanas. Un episodio centrado en la banda de VHF, que con la llegada del buen tiempo y la propagación veraniega, vuelve a dar tantas alegrías. ¿Nos apoyas para que podamos seguir haciendo este podcast? Puedes apoyarnos en QRP con 1,99€ al mes o un poco más de potencia en QRO, con 5,99€ al mes aquí: https://cqenfrecuencia.com/apoyar/ Notas del episodio: - Video resumen de EA3GRW https://www.youtube.com/shorts/2GzUG8MvmSA - Video resumen de EA9ADD https://www.youtube.com/shorts/IyGspLNJ6aw - Y más... https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=vhf+fm+sota+2025 Envía tus preguntas, propuestas de temas o lo que quieras: https://cqenfrecuencia.com/contacto/ O en nuestro canal de Telegram: https://t.me/cqenfrecuencia Y no olvidéis de visitar nuestra web: https://cqenfrecuencia.com No olvides el like, subscribirte y/o darle a la campanita para no perderte ningún episodio de nuestro podcast! Nos encontrarás también en Spotify y Youtube.

GB2RS News Sunday, the 22nd of June 2025 The news headlines: Introducing the RSGB's team of young radio amateurs for YOTA Paris The RSGB celebrates International Women in Engineering Day The RSGB Exam Standards Committee publishes its annual report The RSGB has announced the team of young members who will be representing the Society at this summer's Youngsters on the Air camp. The event, hosted by the French national amateur radio society and the IARU, will take place at the historic Château de Jambville near Paris between August 18th and 25th. The team is comprised of team leader Leon, 2E0VUF, and team members Sophie, M7IJG, and Emily, M7HPU. You can read more about the camp and the team on the RSGB website at rsgb.org/yota-camp The RSGB knows that amateur radio is a great foundation for careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, or STEM as it is often known. That's why, for International Women in Engineering Day tomorrow, Monday the 23rd of June, the Society is sharing stories of female radio amateurs involved with STEM. From a young radio amateur who was inspired by an ARISS contact, through to a Professional Transmitting Engineer at Woofferton Transmitting Station, each one of them has a love for amateur radio and STEM activities and the career opportunities they present. Read more about them on the RSGB website at rsgb.org/inwed. The Society will also be sharing the profiles on its X and Facebook pages throughout the day tomorrow, the 23rd. Get involved by liking and sharing these motivational stories. The RSGB Examinations Standards Committee, or ESC, has published its annual report, relating to activities in 2024. The report shows that overall candidate numbers have increased to above pre-pandemic levels and are well above the extrapolation of the declining trend over the decade before the pandemic. The ESC believes that this is probably due to the availability of remote invigilation for online examinations taken at home and the increase in provision of distance learning courses, making the hobby much more accessible than in the past. You can read the full report on the RSGB website by going to rsgb.org/esc  and choosing the ‘Minutes, papers and reports' option in the right-hand menu. Whether you are just starting to learn Morse code or are already an experienced operator, the GB2RS Morse Practice web page is just what you need to brush up on your skills! Created by GB2RS Newsreader Graham, G4JBD, you can select different sections of the latest RSGB news, which are then played in Morse code at the pitch and speed of your choosing. What makes this resource unique is that you can also add in different degrees of man-made noise and natural band noise, which gives you a very realistic experience of copying Morse code under poor propagation or contest conditions. Graham has recently updated the page with more options. One of these is the Farnsworth timing, which can play the individual characters at a selectable speed while allowing separate adjustment of the gap between the characters. The new version works well on smartphones and displays the text with a real-time pointer as the Morse code is sent. The GB2RS Morse Practice page can be found at tinyurl.com/gb2rsmorse Bath Based Distance Learning's next Full licence course runs from August to December, with exams in January. There is no charge for the training, but applicants must work through some pre-course material and complete a quiz to be eligible for a place. To request full details and an application form, email Bath Based Distance Learning's Team Leader, Steve, G0FUW via g0fuw@bbdl.org.uk           The next in the popular 145 Alive series will take place on Sunday, the 20th of July. The event will run from 12 pm to 3 pm. There will be nets on the 2m band operating in most Maidenhead Squares across England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. To take part on the day, all you need to do is call into a local net and make contact with others. The organisers are looking for more net controllers. If you are interested, email 145aliveuk@gmail.com. You can find more information, including details of the nets, the operators, their locations and operating frequencies on the 145 Alive Events Facebook page. Today, the 22nd,  is the last chance to take part in Gateways on the Air 2025. Whether you're a seasoned operator or just love the thrill of the chase, Gateways on the Air is your invitation to step outside, power up your gear, and connect via simplex gateways from a park bench, hillside, or anywhere that captures your sense of adventure. To find out more, visit gota.org.uk Don't forget to listen out for all the amateur stations that will be on the air during Museums on the Air today, the 22nd. Remember that the fun doesn't stop today as the event continues on Saturday, the 28th and Sunday, the 29th of June. For more information, visit tinyurl.com/IMOTA2025 And now for details of rallies and events The Cornish Radio Amateur Club Rally will take place on Sunday, the 29th of June at Penair School, St. Clement, Truro, TR1 1TN. The doors open at 10.30 am. For more information, contact Ken, G0FIC on 01209 821 073. Saffron Walden Radio Ham and CB Club Rally will take place from the 4th to the 6th of July. The venue will be Lovecotes Farm, Chickney Road, Henham Village, Bishop's Stortford, CM22 6BH. You can camp on the field from Friday to Sunday and have a table at a cost of £15. If you are camping, you can arrive from 6 pm on Friday. To book a camping pitch or arrange tables, email g8swr1.5@gmail.com Barford Norfolk Radio Rally will take place on the 6th of July at Barford Village Hall and Green, Barford, Norwich, NR9 4AB. The doors open at 9 am for visitors. The event features trade stands, car boot sales, bring and buy, a charity raffle, repeater groups, catering and free car parking. Entry costs £3 per person, but under 16s will be admitted free of charge. Outside pitches cost £8 and are available from 8 am on the day. Inside tables cost £10 and must be pre-booked. For more details visit tinyurl.com/Barford2025  or email David, G7URP at radio@dcpmicro.com Now the Special Event news Special event station 9A2025HWC is active until the 30th of June to celebrate the 29th World Men's Handball Championship. The station was spotted recently on the 80 and 40m bands using SSB. QSL via Logbook of the World. QSOs are also uploaded to QRZ.com, Logbook and Club Log. As part of International Museums on the Air Weekend 2025, the Grampian Hilltoppers Contest Group is operating special event station GB2KDR from the Keith and Dufftown Heritage Railway in Moray, Scotland. The station is active on the HF bands using SSB and digital modes, as well as via the amateur satellites when conditions permit. QSL via OQRS. For more information, visit the GB2KDR page at QRZ.com  Now the DX news Nobby, G0VJG, is active as FO/G0VJG from Bora Bora, OC-067, in French Polynesia until Thursday, the 26th of June. He is operating using CW, FT8 and SSB on the 80 to 6m bands. QSL via M0OXO's OQRS and Logbook of the World. Bob, ZL1RS is active as YJ0RS from the island of Efate, OC-035, until Saturday, the 28th of June. Bob is mainly operating on the 6m band using FT8. There may also be some activity on 10m when the 6m band is closed. QSL via Logbook of the World, Club Log, or via Bob's home call. More information is available on the YJ0RS page at QRZ.com Now the contest news The All Asian DX Contest started at 0000UTC on Saturday, the 21st and ends at 2359UTC today, Sunday, the 22nd of June. Using CW on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and your age. The RSGB 50MHz Trophy Contest started at 1400UTC on Saturday, the 21st and ends at 1400UTC today, Sunday, the 22nd of June. Using all modes on the 6m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Today, the 22nd, the Worked All Britain 6m Phone Contest runs from 0800 to 1400 UTC. Using SSB on the 6m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and Worked All Britain square. On Tuesday the 24th, the RSGB SHF UK Activity Contest runs from 1830 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on 2.3 to 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Wednesday the 26th, the RSGB 80m SSB Club Championship runs from 1900 to 2030 UTC. Using SSB on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number. On Sunday the 29th, the UK Microwave Group 5.7 and 10GHz Contest runs from 0600 to 1800 UTC. Using all modes on 5.7 and 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Sunday the 29th, the RSGB 50MHz CW Contest runs from 0900 to 1200 UTC. Using CW 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 19th of June 2025. Last week, we mentioned a large coronal hole on the Sun that might cause problems. The hole is so large that it is still Earth-centric seven days later. We had expected the hole to increase the Kp index due to the solar wind emanating from it. However, as of Thursday, the 19th of June, conditions remained quiet with a Kp index of 2. As geomagnetic conditions have remained calm this past week, it has been quite good for HF. 15m has been one of the better bands, with openings to both the east and west, depending on the time. As is the way nowadays, most of the activity has been on FT8, but it has opened up opportunities to work the Far and Middle East, as well as South America. The solar flux index has generally been in the range of 130 to 150, with a peak of 161 on the 15th of June. The Sun has been active, with a near X-class solar flare being observed around sunspot region 4114. This peaked at 1805 UTC on the 15th of June. There was also an X-class solar flare at 21:49 UTC on the 17th of June. This latter event was late in the evening, so it had little impact on the UK, other than to potential paths to the west. Maximum usable frequencies, or MUFs for short, declined a little during the past week, with openings on 21MHz becoming a little scarcer. It is useful to operate as close to the MUF as possible to minimise the effects of D-layer absorption and maximise the chances of working DX. Next week, NOAA predicts the solar flux index will be in the range of 125 to 145. Unsettled geomagnetic conditions are forecast for the period from the 24th to the 27th of June, with a maximum predicted Kp index of 5. If the Kp index is low, then we have a good chance of 21 MHz openings to South America in the evening. As we pass the summer solstice, we may even expect 14 MHz to remain open to DX throughout the night. We can also expect Sporadic-E to continue to provide short-skip openings on 28 MHz, and even the lower HF bands, such as 14, 18, 21, and 24 MHz. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO After a week of high pressure, this weekend returns to something more normal with showery rain and a series of weather fronts and showery interludes in the coming week. This will mean that rain scatter on the GHz bands is worth considering. Also, since we are into the summer season, the chances of some rain being heavy and thundery is a good signal for rain scatter. This sequence of low-pressure weather suggests that high pressure and Tropo will be less likely to make a big impact on the coming week's operating log. Any sign of high pressure will tend to be towards the south of the UK and over the continent. In very hot weather, the conditions can be good for low-level surface ducts across cooler seas. So, if you are tempted, then go for coastal or maritime paths up the east coast or across Biscay, for example. Meteor scatter may benefit from the late June Bootids, which peak on Friday, the 27th of June and the daytime Beta Taurids, which peak on the 28th of June. These are small showers, but they can also be important for contributions to long-lived metallic ions, which are the building blocks of Sporadic-E propagation. Aurora continues to appear with occasional radio events, but there is too much daylight for anything visual. As an alternative, you might see glimpses of noctilucent clouds low down on the northern horizon. These form in the mesosphere, at about 80km, as ice crystals form on meteor dust and can exhibit complex wave patterns. These are both good omens for Sporadic-E. The summer Sporadic-E season is well underway now. It is advisable to check the usual cluster maps and the propquest.co.uk  website for daily updates. It's also worth making use of the longer daylight and weather patterns over the polar regions for paths to the Far East. The Moon reaches perigee, its closest point to Earth, tomorrow, the 23rd, so path losses are low. Moon declination also reaches a maximum positive value on the 25th of June. This will mean that there are long Moon windows. 144MHz sky noise is moderate, increasing to high by tomorrow, the 23rd. The New Moon is on the 25th of June, so expect high noise levels due to its proximity to the Sun. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

GB2RS News Sunday, the 15th of June 2025 The news headlines: Book now to secure your place at the RSGB 2025 Convention The RSGB launches the “SES Cookbook” The RSGB Operating Advisory Service issues advice The RSGB annual Convention is a fantastic opportunity for radio amateurs to meet, learn and share experiences. Whether you're newly licensed or have years of experience, there is always more to discover. That's why the Society is excited to introduce this year's theme: “Discover, Learn, Progress”. Whether you want to discover something new, learn more about a particular aspect of amateur radio, or progress and develop your skills, you'll find something at the Convention to explore and enjoy. The prestigious event will take place between October 10th and 12th at Kents Hill Conference Centre in Milton Keynes. Book now to secure your place in joining like-minded people for what is also one of the best social events in amateur radio. Take advantage of the early-bird prices by going to rsgb.org/convention. The Society is delighted that the event will be sponsored again by Martin Lynch and Sons. Special event stations are popular around the world and a great source of fun and excitement for organisers and QSO chasers. They can also be a fantastic tool for outreach, allowing you to demonstrate amateur radio and encourage people to find out more. But how do you organise an event to achieve all those objectives? The RSGB has just launched a new web section that focuses on special event stations. For RSGB members and Affiliated Clubs, there is an online guide called the SES Cookbook, which offers a wide range of practical guidance to help you deliver the best experience for your visitors and the organisers. The guide covers a wide range of topics, including how to apply for a special event station callsign, the stages of the planning process, publicising your event to attract visitors and how to make a good number of contacts. For non-RSGB members, there is a simple guidance document that outlines the main things to consider when planning this type of event. The new section also draws together existing information about permanent special event stations as well as QSL guidance. If you're planning an event for this year, or even for next year, now is the time to make the most of this comprehensive guide. Go to rsgb.org/ses  to find out more. The RSGB Operating Advisory Service, or OAS, provides advice to members on dealing with situations that are not within the spirit of amateur radio. From time to time, this activity goes beyond what is classed as acceptable behaviour and requires action to be taken. In these circumstances, the OAS recommends reporting the matter directly to Ofcom and to the police in the case of issues which could be classed as harassment, stalking or hate crimes. Experience has shown that this carries more weight coming directly from the people hearing or suffering the problem rather than a third party, such as the RSGB. If you hear anything that is not acceptable behaviour, contact the RSGB OAS first, and the team will suggest the correct course of action. Once Ofcom and the police have issued reference numbers, these should be passed to the Operating Advisory Service. You can contact OAS via oas@rsgb.org.uk The RSGB has submitted responses to a pair of Ofcom consultations. The first considered a series of licence exemption updates, including arrangements for some visiting radio amateurs to the UK. The second concerned filing procedures for the growing number and variety of satellites. Both replies were developed by the RSGB Spectrum Forum, drawing on its members' wide breadth of expertise. The Spectrum Forum expects that there will be further updates to both topics. Find the full replies by going to rsgb.org/spectrumforum  and selecting the ‘Papers and Consultations' option from the right-hand menu. The RSGB recently announced two new volunteering opportunities. The RSGB CW Champion will help the Society in taking Morse code to new audiences. Tasks will vary from developing the CW content on the RSGB's website through to developing and supporting a team of enthusiastic individuals who can support CW-related activities. The second role requires an individual with experience in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The RSGB STEM Champion will help the Society to reach new audiences, build relationships with related organisations and encourage more young people into STEM careers. Go to rsgb.org/volunteers  to read the full role descriptions and learn how to apply. And now for details of rallies and events The East Suffolk Wireless Revival, also known as ‘The Ipswich Radio Rally', is taking place today, the 15th, at Kirton Recreation Ground, Back Road, Kirton, IP10 0PW. The doors open at 9.30 am and the entry fee for visitors is £3. The venue has free car parking. Visitors can enjoy trade stands, a car-boot sale, a bring-and-buy area and special interest groups. An HF station is operating with the callsign GB4SWR. Catering and an RSGB bookstall are available on site. For more details, contact Kevin, G8MXV, on 07710 046 846 and visit eswr.org.uk Bangor and District Amateur Radio Society's Annual Radio Rally is due to take place on Saturday, the 21st of June, at Ballygilbert Presbyterian Church Hall. The doors will open at 11.30 am and admission costs £5. The Cornish Radio Amateur Club Rally will take place on Sunday, the 29th of June at Penair School, St. Clement, Truro, TR1 1TN. The doors open at 10.30 am. For more information, contact Ken, G0FIC on 01209 821 073. Now the Special Event news Special callsign HS30DXA is active until the 21st of June to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Thailand DX Association. Look for activity on all HF bands and the amateur radio satellites. QSL via HS6MYW. The Amateur Radio Society of India, VU2ZH, is celebrating the centenary of the International Amateur Radio Union by activating special callsign VU1IARU until the 29th of June. The Indian Society has been a member society of IARU Region 3 since 1958. The station has been spotted recently using CW and FT8 on the HF bands. QSL via VU2ZH. And finally, don't forget to listen out for all the amateur stations that will be on the air during International Museums on the Air weekend on the 21st and 22nd of June. For more information about the event, visit tinyurl.com/IMOTA2025 Now the DX news Gerry, G3WIP is active as VP8DPD from Port Stanley, in the Falkland Islands, until the 12th of July. Recently, the station was spotted on the HF bands using FT8. QSL via EA5GL and Logbook of the World. Don, KW7R, is active as V73KW from the Marshall Islands. He is there on a work assignment until September 2025. In his spare time, he operates CW and FT8 on various bands. QSL via Logbook of the World. Llanelli Amateur Radio Society is operating with special callsign GB1BAF during June to honour the British Armed Forces. Look for activity on the HF, 6 and 2m bands using CW, FT8 and phone. For more information, visit the GB1BAF page at QRZ.com  Now the contest news Today, the 15th, the RSGB 2nd 144MHz Backpackers Contest runs from 0900 to 1300 UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Also today, the 15th, the Practical Wireless 2m QRP Contest runs from 0900 to 1600 UTC. Using AM, FM, SSB and CW on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Note that 5W is the maximum power allowed in this contest. On Monday the 16th, the RSGB FT4 Series Contest runs from 1900 to 2100 UTC. Using FT4 on the 80 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is your report. On Tuesday the 17th, the RSGB 1.3GHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on the 23cm band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Thursday the 19th, the RSGB 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. The All Asian DX Contest starts at 0000 UTC on Saturday, the 21st and ends at 2359 UTC on Sunday, the 22nd of June. Using CW on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and your age. The RSGB 50MHz Trophy Contest starts at 1400 UTC on Saturday, the 21st and ends at 1400 UTC on Sunday, the 22nd of June. Using all modes on the 6m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Sunday the 22nd, the Worked All Britain 6m Phone Contest runs from 0800 to 1400 UTC. Using SSB on the 6m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and Worked All Britain square. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 12th of June 2025 Propagation was a mixed bag last week, with occasional Kp index rises but a solid solar flux index, which hit 141 on Thursday, the 12th. We also had some sporadic-E short-skip conditions on the HF bands, which brought some surprises. We are now in June, so the summer HF doldrums are well underway. But that doesn't mean that the fun has gone from the HF bands. Daytime maximum usable frequencies over a 3,000km path have been around 18 to 20 MHz, so the main active band has been 20m. Paul, GM4ULS, reports that there was a spectacular inter-G event on the morning of Tuesday, the 10th of June. Whilst activating special event station GB70RS from Perth, he worked a mini pile-up of English stations from anywhere between Southampton and Manchester. This was between 0949 and 1022 UTC on 14.210 MHz. He said it sounded like the 40m band at times! We think this was probably a Sporadic-E event, which often creates strong but short-lived paths across the UK on the HF bands in the summer. We normally think of Sporadic-E as affecting the 10m band, but the lower bands are also often implicated. Have you worked anything unusual via Sporadic-E? If you have, please send your reports to radcom@rsgb.org.uk Otherwise, DX on the HF bands has been a little sparse, with paths opening to South Africa and South America on the 20 and 17m bands at times. Perhaps this is a good time to work some Summits on the Air or World Wide Flora and Fauna stations in Europe. These are usually QRP stations that appreciate your contacts. Next week, NOAA predicts the solar flux index will be in the 120 to 130 range. Unfortunately, geomagnetic conditions are predicted to be unsettled, thanks mainly to the return of a massive coronal hole on the Sun. Disruption was due to start around the 14th, but due to the hole's size, this could continue for at least three days with a maximum Kp index of 6. Expect the HF bands to be disrupted with lower maximum usable frequencies as the plasma in the solar wind hits the Earth. It may be a good time for visible aurora hunting, though. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO The high summer conditions have brought an increasing chance of Sporadic-E, particularly on digital modes, with DXmaps.com  plots showing plenty of paths on most days. Many of these are possibly associated with turbulence generated by jet streams in the weather part of the atmosphere. These send atmospheric gravity waves upwards to affect the E region. It's this association with specific weather features that makes Sporadic-E sporadic in a geographical sense. If so, in the coming week, the jet streams are mainly over the northern fringe of Europe. These suggest a better chance of paths to Scandinavia with fewer options to the south to support paths to the Mediterranean and the Balkans. In any event, June is high season for Sporadic-E, so remember to check the 6m band either mid-morning or late afternoon. The early thundery weather at the end of last week was useful for rain scatter on the GHz bands, and it is just possible it will return for the end of the coming week. In between times, it will be a high-pressure story that will dominate and may well produce some useful Tropo conditions. However, note that in the hot days of summer, inversion conditions and Tropo will be better at night and tend to weaken by the middle of the morning. Meteor scatter will have been boosted by two showers on the 7th and 8th of June, and, since they were broad peaks, there should be some meteor input left to see us through the coming week. For EME, sky noise is dropping. Low declination is now starting to decrease. So, Moon windows and peak elevation are improving. EME conditions are classed as poor to moderate today, the 15th of June, but are then good on the 21st and 22nd of June. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

GB2RS News Sunday, the 8th of June 2025   The news headlines: The RSGB releases a video to celebrate Volunteers' Week Get involved with the GR2HQ contest challenge Join the RSGB Regional Team   As Volunteers' Week comes to a close, the RSGB would like to thank its volunteers once again for all they do. As part of the week-long event, the Society released a video about the volunteer team at the RSGB National Radio Centre. These volunteers welcome over 80,000 visitors to the Centre every year and share amateur radio with them. Watch the video to discover the variety of things that they do as well as what they enjoy most about their role. You'll find the video at rsgb.org/volunteers-week, and on that web page, you'll also be able to read about several volunteers in other RSGB roles. If their stories have inspired you and you would like to give some time to support the RSGB and amateur radio, look at the vacancies on the RSGB website at rsgb.org/volunteers The RSGB Contest Committee is looking forward to the IARU HF Championship contest on the 12th and 13th of July. This is a great opportunity for both individuals and clubs to get involved. During the contest, Headquarters Stations represent their countries, and the RSGB's station GR2HQ will be run by a network of about a dozen stations around the UK and its islands. Building on the success of last year's GR2HQ Challenge, the RSGB Contest Committee has made some changes to encourage individual stations to work the GR2HQ station on each band-mode slot. Sharing your QSOs for scoring has also been made easier. The contest is open to both individuals and clubs, so why not encourage your club members to take part, whether they are regular contesters or not? Last year, thanks in part to those entering the GR2HQ Challenge, the RSGB Contest Committee improved its position from third to second and would like to improve that result even further. Could you take part and make a difference? For the full rules, go to the GR2HQ Challenge page on the Contest Committee website via rsgbcc.org The RSGB has several volunteer vacancies within the Regional Team. If you are passionate about the future of amateur radio and support the work of the Society, then apply now. These rewarding roles are an opportunity to support fellow radio amateurs in your area. Vacancies include District Representative positions in Staffordshire, Oxfordshire and Dorset. To view the full list of regional team volunteering vacancies, go to rsgb.org/volunteers. If you have questions about the District Representative roles, contact the Regional Representative in that region, or you can contact Board Liaison Nathan Nuttall, 2M0OCC, for a chat via 2m0occ@rsgb.org.uk A special interactive spy event is taking place on Father's Day, Sunday the 15th of June, at the RSGB National Radio Centre. You'll have the opportunity to become a spy hunter and, using your special gadget, will be tasked with finding hidden transmitters located around Bletchley Park. You'll need to decode Morse signals and uncover the location of the secret spy base. Two time slots are available, however, spaces are limited to 12 groups for each. Secure your place and treat your Dad, Grandad, or a father figure to a fascinating day out by going to bletchleypark.org.uk  and selecting the ‘What's on' option in the main menu. The activity is free to take part in, however, entry to Bletchley Park is required. Don't forget that RSGB members get free access to the historic site as a membership benefit. Download your voucher via rsgb.org/bpvoucher  BunkerFest 2025 is taking place on the 14th and 15th of June. This exciting international festival will bring together amateur radio operators from over 13 national Bunkers on the Air schemes. For rules and activation details, visit wwbota.org/bunkerfest25 The British Inland Waterways on the Air event will take place between Saturday, the 23rd and Monday, the 25th of August. The event is open to amateurs who use canals, towpaths, rivers, lakes or reservoirs for work or recreation. Registration for the event is now open. To sign up, visit Nunsfield House Amateur Radio Group's website at nharg.org.uk  and follow the ‘BIWOTA 2025' link. Are you called Nigel? If so, you can join other amateur Nigels who are making plans to operate a special event station at what is hoped to be the largest ever gathering of Nigels in the world. The event will run from the 20th to the 21st of September in Worcestershire. Details on how to get involved are on the GB1NN page at QRZ.com And now for details of rallies and events Mendips Radio Rally is taking place today, the 8th of June, at Farrington Gurney Memorial Hall, Church Lane, Farrington Gurney, BS39 6UA. The doors open at 9.30 am and refreshments and free parking are available on site. For more details, contact Luke on 07870 168 197 or email luke@mymixradio.co.uk On Saturday, the 14th of June, Rochdale and District Amateur Radio Summer Rally will take place at St. Vincent de Paul's Hall, Norden, Rochdale, OL12 7QR. The doors open at 10 am and entry costs £3. The usual traders and caterers will be on site, and plenty of free parking will be available. For more information, contact Martin Shore on 07587 709 006 or email rally.radars@hotmail.com The East Suffolk Wireless Revival, also known as ‘The Ipswich Radio Rally', is due to take place on Sunday, the 15th of June at Kirton Recreation Ground, Back Road, Kirton, IP10 0PW. The doors open at 9.30 am and the entry fee for visitors is £3. The venue has free car parking. Visitors will be able to enjoy trade stands, a car-boot sale, a bring-and-buy area and special interest groups. An HF station will be operating with the callsign GB4SWR. Catering and an RSGB bookstall will be available on site. For more details, contact Kevin, G8MXV, on 07710 046 846 and visit eswr.org.uk Now the Special Event news The A.R.I. Fidenza Radio Club is operating today, the 8th, as IY4RXO. The station is active to raise awareness of the historical value of Guglielmo Marconi's steam yacht ‘Elettra'. A number of important radio communication experiments were conducted on board the vessel. For more information, visit IY4RXO at QRZ.com Members of The James Clerk Maxwell Radio Society will be active with special callsign GB2JCM, from Parton Kirk near Castle Douglas in Dumfriesshire, on the 14th and 15th of June. The station will be active to commemorate the birth of the Society's namesake. Operators will be waiting for your call on the 40 and 20m bands. For more information, visit the GB2JCM page at QRZ.com Now the DX news Martin, MW0BRO, is active again as ZC4GW from Dhekelia on Cyprus until tomorrow, the 9th.  He is operating using CW and some SSB on the 40 to 6m bands. QSL via M0URX's OQRS. Remo, HB9SHD is active as V51/HB9SHD while touring Namibia until the 15th of June. He is using SSB and digital modes on the 40 to 6m bands. QSL via Logbook of the World. Now the contest news RSGB National Field Day started at 1500 UTC on Saturday, the 7th and ends at 1500 UTC today, Sunday, the 8th of June. Using CW on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and serial number. Today, the 8th, the UK Microwave Group Low Band Contest runs from 0900 to 1500 UTC. Using all modes on the 23, 13 and 9cm bands, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator.  On Tuesday the 10th, the RSGB 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 10th, the RSGB 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 11th, the RSGB 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 11th, the RSGB 432MHz FT8 Activity two-hour Contest runs from 1900 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 70cm band, the exchange is a report and four-character locator. Stations entering the four-hour contest may also enter the two-hour contest. On Wednesday the 11th, the RSGB 80m CW Club Championship runs from 1900 to 2030 UTC. Using CW on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number. On Thursday the 12th, the RSGB 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. The IARU ATV Contest starts at 1200 UTC on Saturday, the 14th and ends at 1800 UTC on Sunday, the 15th of June. Using TV on the 70cm band and up, the exchange is picture quality, serial number, four-digit code and locator. On Sunday the 15th, the 2nd 144MHz Backpackers Contest runs from 0900 to 1300 UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Also, on Sunday the 15th, the Practical Wireless 2m QRP Contest runs from 0900 to 1600 UTC. Using AM, FM, SSB and CW on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Note that 5W is the maximum power allowed in this contest. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 5th of June Last week's HF propagation was heavily influenced by unsettled geomagnetic conditions. This was caused by a combination of coronal mass ejections and a strong solar wind from a coronal hole. The coronal mass ejection, or CME for short, followed a solar flare from sunspot 4100 on the 31st of May at 0005 UTC. The explosion lasted more than three hours. Type 2 radio emissions from shock waves within the CME cloud suggested it was travelling at 1,938 kilometres per second, or 4.3 million miles per hour! Eventually, the Bz swung south. This meant that the interplanetary magnetic field more easily coupled with the Earth's magnetic field. The result was that the Kp index got up to 7.67 on the 1st of June. The auroral effects were reported as being due to a co-rotating interaction region, or CIR – a region in space where fast and slow solar wind streams collide, creating a compressed area with enhanced plasma and magnetic fields. The Kp index was 7 or more for four three-hour periods. This pushed the maximum usable frequency over a 3,000km path below 14 MHz at times, which wasn't conducive to good DXing. On Thursday, the 5th of June, it looked like we were past the worst, and the Kp index was back to a more reasonable 2.33. Meanwhile, the solar flux index declined from a recent high of 164 on the 31st of May to a low of 134 on the 5th of June. HF propagation was being driven by the geomagnetic conditions, with a general lowering of the maximum usable frequency. Next week, NOAA predicts that the solar flux index will start the week at around 155 and remain around 150. More worryingly, geomagnetic conditions are again predicted to be unsettled after this weekend, with a maximum Kp index of 6 on the 13th of June. So, unsettled geomagnetic conditions, plus the HF summer doldrums, mean HF DX via F2-layer propagation may be hard to find. So, make the most of the 10m Sporadic-E short-skip openings instead! And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO Last week offered an example of what a good Sporadic-E season should look like. On Tuesday, the 3rd of June in particular, the 6m band sounded like the 20m band and, at its peak, activity extended all the way up to the 2m band. This coming week has an unsettled flavour with several areas of low pressure and weather fronts involved, together with heavy showers in between. This means rain scatter will be a supported mode on the GHz bands. There is a slight hint of a slow improvement during the week, but not really any high pressure showing up until right at the end of the coming week. So, there is a chance of Tropo propagation for the 2nd 144MHz Backpackers Contest on Sunday, the 15th. Meteor scatter is always interesting in June, with four showers to play with during the month. The early ones are the Arietids, which peaked on Saturday, the 7th of June – good news for the 50MHz UK Activity Contest on Thursday the 12th. The Zeta Perseids peak tomorrow, the 9th of June, and there will be a couple of other showers later in the month. This is probably also why the Sporadic-E prospects improve about now. Aurora has also been much in evidence recently. Despite the light summer evenings and short nights, the chances of radio aurora continue to be important, so monitor for high Kp values above about 5. The advice for some who have not yet worked Sporadic-E is to check the 6m band around teatime. There are, of course, usually two primary periods when Sporadic-E is more likely: one in the morning, and the second in late afternoon and evening. A morning opening may repeat in the afternoon in similar locations, although usually the weather trigger may have moved a little in the meantime. Check the jet stream charts at propquest.co.uk  by following the Sporadic-E blog tab. The daily commentary will highlight the important directions each day. You can hopefully test out the system on Thursday, the 12th of June, in the 50MHz UK Activity Contest. EME path losses were at their maximum with apogee, when the Moon is at its furthest from the Earth, on Saturday, the 7th of June. Declination reaches a minimum on Wednesday, the 11th, so Moon windows are short and peak elevation is low. 144MHz sky noise peaks around the 11th and 12th of June. EME conditions were classed as poor this weekend and are classed as poor-to-moderate on the 14th and 15th of June. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

GB2RS News Sunday the 1st of June The news headlines: Volunteers' Week begins tomorrow, Monday the 2nd of June Be part of the RSGB 2025 Convention and put the date in your diary now Don't miss tomorrow's Tonight@8 webinar on Morse code   Volunteers' Week 2025 begins tomorrow, Monday, the 2nd of June. As part of this national event, the RSGB will share a number of volunteers' stories on its website and social media channels to recognise their hard work and contribution. Go to rsgb.org/volunteers-week  to find out what inspires people to get involved and what they gain from volunteering. During the week, the Society will also release a video about the volunteer team at the RSGB National Radio Centre, where they welcome over 80,000 visitors every year. If there is a volunteer you would like to thank, or you'd like to share your own volunteering story, please add a comment on the daily social media content that the RSGB will be posting on Facebook and X. You can also read about a few of the RSGB's amazing volunteers in the July edition of RadCom. Whether a volunteer's involvement is behind the scenes or front and centre, the RSGB would like you to know that your work makes a real difference, not only to the Society, but to every radio amateur who benefits from your efforts. The RSGB is delighted to announce that its annual Convention will take place from the 10th to the 12th of October at Kents Hill Conference Centre in Milton Keynes. Whether you want to discover something new, learn more about an aspect of amateur radio, or progress and develop your skills, you'll find something at the RSGB 2025 Convention to explore and enjoy. The Society is giving you the chance to help shape this year's programme by suggesting a presentation, a topic, a practical session or a project. Are you involved in some new research or an interesting project that will take amateur radio to new audiences? Have you helped to make amateur radio more accessible to people with different abilities? Or have you heard a brilliant speaker who has inspired you? Get involved by sending your proposals to convention@rsgb.org.uk  If you've never been to an RSGB Convention, or you'd like a reminder of what happened in 2024, go to youtube.com/thersgb  and choose from the wide selection of presentations and videos from last year. The Society is pleased that AMSAT-UK will, once again, be holding its Colloquium at the Convention. Don't forget to join the RSGB for the next Tonight@8 webinar, which will be going live tomorrow, Monday the 2nd of June. The presentation will include an introduction to Morse code, how to start learning it, the different types of Morse keys and the Achilles heel that can occur when learning this mode. 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 The RSGB National Radio Centre will be involved in a radio sked as part of the opening ceremony for the ENTER Technology Museum in Switzerland on Saturday, the 7th of June. The museum is opening a radio room that will operate the amateur radio station HB9E. Volunteers from the NRC will be operating GB3RS to deliver the first radio message in the sked, which is scheduled for 1145 CET on the 40 or 20m bands using SSB. Find out more about the ENTER museum by going to enter.ch Radio amateurs have long been interested in the mystery and phenomenon of spy communications, and many will be aware of number stations. If you'd like to discover more on the topic, you can attend a talk at Bletchley Park on Saturday, the 28th of June. RSGB National Radio Centre volunteer Paul Beaumont, G7VAK, will be delivering the engaging session on ‘Number Stations, 1950 to the Present'. He will look at modes used, the different styles of sending and will present several examples where number stations were used and stated in the prosecution of the recipients. The session is being delivered as part of the RSGB's ongoing strategy to promote amateur radio to wider audiences. RSGB members who would like to attend the talk can benefit from a 10% discount, reducing the price to £14.40. To find out more, go to the Bletchley Park ‘What's on' web pages via bletchleypark.org.uk The May 2025 edition of RadCom Basics is now available. RadCom Basics is aimed at new amateurs and those who wish to refresh their skills and knowledge. Among others, this edition contains articles to help you learn about getting the maximum signal to an antenna, constructing an 80m band receiver and making an audio amplifier. To access RadCom publications, visit rsgb.org/radcom 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 Spalding and District Amateur Radio Society's annual radio rally is taking place today, Sunday, the 1st of June. The venue is Spalding Rugby and Football Club, Centenary Park, Drain Bank North, Spalding, Lincolnshire. Free car parking is available, as well as traders, on-site catering and a bar. For more information, visit sdars.org.uk Mendips Radio Rally will take place on Sunday, the 8th of June at Farrington Gurney Memorial Hall, Church Lane, Farrington Gurney. The doors will be open from 9.30 a,m and free parking and refreshments will be available on site. For more detail,s contact Luke on 07870 168 197. On Saturday, the 14th of June, the Rochdale and District Amateur Radio Summer Rally will take place at St Vincent de Paul's Hall, Norden, Rochdale, OL12 7QR. The doors will open at 10 am and entry will cost £3. The usual traders and caterers will be in attendanc,e and plenty of free parking will be available. For more information contact Martin Shore on 07587 709 006 or email rally.radars@hotmail.com Now the special event news Special callsign HS30DXA is active until the 21st of June to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Thailand DX Association. Look out for activity on all HF bands, the 2m band and the amateur radio satellites. QSL via HS6MYW. In celebration of this year's German World Heritage Day, special callsign DM0LIMES is active until the 1st of July. The Limes was the border line of the Roman Empire at its greatest extent. In 2005, the remnants of the Upper German-Raetian Limes were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list as ‘Frontiers of the Roman Empire'. The station was spotted recently on the 40m band using SSB. QSL via the Bureau and eQSL. Now the DX news Morten, LA9GY is active as 3DA0GY from Eswatini until tomorrow, the 2nd. He will operate CW and some SSB with a focus on the 20, 15 and 10m bands. There may also be activity on the 80, 40, 30, 17 and 12m bands. QSL via Logbook of the World or directly to Morten's home call. Roland, F8EN, has extended his stay in Gabon and now expects to be operating as TR8CR until the middle of June. He operates CW only. QSL via F6AJA. Now the contest news Tomorrow, the 2nd, the RSGB 80m Club Championship Data Contest runs from 19 00 to 2030 UTC. Using RTTY and PSK63 on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number. On Tuesday the 3rd, the RSGB 144MHz FM Activity Contest runs from 1800 to 1855 UTC. Using FM on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Also on Tuesday the 3rd, the RSGB 144MHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on the 2m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Wednesday the 4th, the RSGB 144MHz FT8 Activity four-hour Contest runs from 1700 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 2m band, the exchange is report and a four-character locator. Also on Wednesday the 4th, the RSGB 144MHz FT8 Activity two-hour Contest runs from 1900 to 2100 UTC. Using FT8 on the 2m band, the exchange is report and a four-character locator. Stations entering the four-hour contest may also enter the two-hour contest. The IARU ATV Contest starts at 1200 UTC on Saturda,y the 7t,h and ends at 1800 UTC on Sunda,y the 8th of June. Using TV on the 70cm band and up, the exchange is picture quality, serial number, four-digit code and locator. The UK Six Metre Group Summer Contest starts at 1300 UTC on Saturday, the 7th, and ends at 1300 UTC on Sunda,y the 8th of June. Using all modes on the 6m band, the exchange is signal report, serial number, locator and Group member number. RSGB National Field Day starts at 1500 UTC on Saturda,y the 7t,h and ends at 1500 UTC on Sunda,y the 8th of June. Using CW on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and serial number. The ARRL International Digital Contest starts at 1800 UTC on Saturday, the 7th, and ends at 2359 UTC on Sunday, the 8th of June. Using digital modes on the 160 to 6m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is your four-character locator. On Sunday the 8th, the UK Microwave Group Low Band Contest runs from 0900 to 1500 UTC. Using all modes on the 23, 13 and 9cm bands, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 29th of May 2025 Last week's high-speed solar wind, from a massive coronal hole on the Sun, took its toll on the HF bands. However, this week has been little better. Another coronal hole running diagonally across the Sun has been emitting particles that have pushed the Kp index up to a maximum of 6.67 w,hich puts us into visible aurora territory. Nevertheless, some DX has been worked, including CP4BT in Bolivia, ZP5KP in Paraguay and V44KAI in St Kitts and Nevis. These were reported by Karl, G0SKW on the CDXC Slack alerting system. BA100IARU, a special event station celebrating the 100th anniversary of the International Amateur Radio Union, has been active from Beijing, China and has been worked on 20m CW. The station's QRZ.com page provides real-time updates on which band the operators are working on. Most of the DX has been worked on 21, 18 and 14 MHz, with the 10m band mostly closed due to the summer doldrums. There have not been too many Sporadic-E openings on the 10m band. Instead, most of the Sporadic-E reports have been on the 6m band. The solar flux index has increased, standing at 144 on Thursday, the 29th of May, which is always a good sign. The solar disk is looking quite healthy at the moment with spots in both hemispheres. As of last Thursday, the 29th of May, there had been 43 C-class flares over the previous five days, as well as six more potent M-class events and one X-class flare. So, the Sun is still very active. Next week, NOAA predicts that the solar flux index will reduce again, perhaps going as low as 110 by Wednesday, the 4th of June. It does look like we are in for a rough ride with unsettled geomagnetic conditions forecast for the coming week. Looking further ahead, the 13th and 14th of June seem to be the worst days, when a Kp index of five is forecast. As usual, a high Kp index can result in lowered maximum usable frequencies and aurora-like conditions, with a slow recovery. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO The weather continues to be unsettled into the coming week, especially for northern areas, but with some drier and warmer spells in the south. There do not appear to be strong signs for any Tropo success, but there should be a chance of occasional rain scatter on the GHz bands. Some models suggest we are on the edge of high pressure over the North Sea. Others drive a deep low right across the country. This will resolve itself next week, but for now, it's not at all clear which forecast will win through. The prospects for meteor scatter are mostly random meteors, but towards the end of this wee,k the daytime Arietids will peak to enhance chances further. The solar auroral alerts keep coming, so it's reasonable to expect the chance of some radio response, such as watery-sounding signals on HF, even if we don't go to the full effects on VHF. It's certainly worth watching for those increasing Kp values. The Sporadic-E prospects often burst into life about now. So, after a few reasonable 6m band openings, like the one into southeast Europe on Wednesday the 28th, make sure you are ready for the first week in June – one of the prime weeks for Sporadic-E opportunities. This is partly due to meteor input and the fact that the tidal winds in the E region are taking on their summer pattern. The long polar days mean that the low-pressure weather patterns are also beginning to affect the northern polar routes to China and Japan across northern Russia, with their possible weather triggers, like jet streams. EME path losses are increasing again. Moon windows shorten, and peak elevation is falling as the Moon's declination goes negative again on Wednesday, the 4th of June. 144MHz sky noise is low and remains low as the week progresses. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

GB2RS News Sunday, the 25th of May 2025 The news headlines: Apply to become the RSGB's new CW Champion The Tonight@8 series continues in June with Morse code Could you be the RSGB's new STEM Champion? As part of the RSGB's ongoing strategy to take amateur radio to new and diverse audiences, it is seeking to appoint a volunteer CW Champion. Whilst the need for a CW test has been removed from the licensing requirements, there is still a strong interest in the mode. Recent communications and activity involving Morse have received high levels of interest, and the Society would like to do all it can to encourage and promote CW within the hobby. This new role will take the lead with activities including managing RSGB web content relating to Morse code and contributing to the GB2CW broadcasts. The volunteer will also be tasked with building a team of enthusiastic individuals who can support CW-related activities undertaken by the Society. This role is intended to help take Morse to new audiences with an emphasis on learning and development to further the skills of RSGB members. Read the full role description, as well as details of how to apply, by going to rsgb.org/volunteers The next webinar in the Tonight@8 series is on Monday, the 2nd of June. The RSGB's Morse Test Coordinator, Eric Arkinstall, M0KZB, will lead the webinar and will be joined by a panel of Morse experts, including RSGB Morse Assessor and GB2CW broadcaster Michael Topple, GM5AUG. The presentation will include an introduction to Morse, how to start learning the code, the different types of Morse keys and the Achilles heels that can occur when learning Morse. There will also be a panel discussion on how they each became interested in the mode and how they overcame any problems they have encountered along the way. Find out more about this and future webinars on the RSGB website at rsgb.org/webinars Would you like to become the RSGB STEM Champion? This new volunteer role is part of the Society's strategic plans to encourage more young people into STEM careers and to demonstrate the contribution that amateur radio can make to those careers. The focus of the role will also be to develop and strengthen the Society's relationship with the STEM Learning organisation. The Champion will need to work closely with licensed STEM Ambassadors, attend STEM events to promote amateur radio, and support radio amateurs who would like to become STEM Ambassadors. The STEM Champion will work closely with the Board Liaison, Ben Lloyd, GW4BML and members of the RSGB Outreach team. To make the most of the role, you will need to have the right skills and experience. This includes being a STEM Ambassador with involvement in the STEM sector, and also being proactive, enthusiastic, organised and willing to find new ways to achieve the role's objectives. For full details of this challenging but rewarding role and how to apply, see the RSGB website at rsgb.org/volunteers Staff and volunteers from the RSGB had a successful time at the Dayton Hamvention last weekend. The event was a brilliant opportunity to engage with radio amateurs from around the world and resulted in 134 people joining the RSGB or renewing their membership. These included ARRL First Vice President, Kristen McIntyre, K6WX and ARRL CEO, David Minster, NA2AA, as well as Phil Karn, KA9Q and many more who took advantage of the new RSGB Digital Membership. Members of the RSGB team are always delighted to hear how much the Society's publications, videos and other content are appreciated by radio amateurs in other countries. 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 Durham and District Amateur Radio Society Rally is taking place today, the 25th, at Bowburn Community Centre, Bowburn, County Durham. The doors are open from 10.10 am to 2.30 pm, with disabled visitors gaining access at 10 am. Entry costs £3. There is a bring-and-buy sale, trade stands, special interest groups, an RSGB bookstall and catering available on site. For more information, phone Michael, G7TWX, on 07826 924 192 or visit the sdars.org.uk  website. Spalding and District Amateur Radio Society's annual radio rally is set to take place on Sunday, the 1st of June. The venue will be Spalding Rugby and Football Club, Centenary Park, Drain Bank North, Spalding, Lincolnshire. There will be free car parking available, traders, on-site catering and a bar. For more information, visit sdars.org.uk Mendips Radio Rally will take place on Sunday, the 8th of June at Farrington Gurney Memorial Hall, Church Lane, Farrington Gurney. The doors will be open from 9.30 a,m and free parking and refreshments will be available on site. For more details, contact Luke on 07870 168 197. Now the Special Event news Special event station YO160ITU is active throughout the month of May to celebrate the 160th anniversary of the ITU. See QRZ.com for details of diplomas that are available for working the station. The North West Group, MN0NWG, is running special event station GB0AEL until the 31st of May to commemorate the anniversary of Amelia Earhart's transatlantic flight. In May 1932, Earhart became the first woman to fly nonstop and alone across the Atlantic. She left Harbor Grace in Newfoundland and landed 15 hours later in Northern Ireland. QSL via MI0HOZ directly or via the Bureau. Now the DX news Frank, PH2M is active as PJ4M from Bonaire, SA-006, until the 29th of May. He is operating mainly FT8 and some SSB on the 80 to 10m bands. There may also be some 6m band work, if conditions allow. QSL via Logbook of the World, Club Log's OQRS, or Frank's home call. Remo, HB9SHD is active as V51/HB9SHD, while touring Namibia, until the 15th of June. He is operating using SSB and digital modes on the 40 to 6m bands. QSL via Logbook of the World. Don, KW7R, is active as V73KW from the Marshall Islands. He is there on a work assignment until September. In his spare time, he operates using CW and FT8 on various bands. QSL via Logbook of the World. Now the contest news The CQ World Wide WPX CW Contest started at 0000 UTC on Saturday, the 24th of May and ends at 2359 UTC today, Sunday, the 25th of May. Using CW on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and serial number. Today, the 25th, the UK Microwave Group High Band Contest runs from 0600 to 1800 UTC. Using all modes on the 3 and 6cm bands, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Tuesday the 27th, the SHF UK Activity Contest runs from 1830 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on the 3 and 13cm bands, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Thursday, the 29th of May, the RSGB 80m Club Championship runs from 1900 to 2030 UTC. Using CW on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number.    Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 22nd of May 2025 A high-speed solar wind, originating from a massive coronal hole, took its toll on HF this past week. During the weekend of the 17th and 18th, the Kp index was above four for nine of the three-hourly recording periods. Unfortunately, the feed from the Dourbes Digisonde failed over this period, so we can't comment on what effect this had on maximum usable frequencies, or MUFs for short. Later in the week, geomagnetic conditions improved, despite the coronal hole still being Earth-centric, and the Kp index fell to more reasonable levels, sometimes in the ones and twos. An M3.2 solar flare was observed at 08:21 UTC on the 19th of May. The source was located off the northeast limb, so perhaps we can expect more as it turns to become more Earth-facing. Unfortunately, the solar flux index also fell to lower levels, reaching 119 by Thursday, the 22nd. In fact, on that day, it had been below 120 for more than seven days. But all is not lost, as a solar flux of more than 100 is usually enough to keep the HF bands open. MUFs over a 3,000km path have generally reached 21 MHz and have often peaked at 24 MHz at times. It is quite normal for the F2-layer MUF not to reach 28MHz due to a change in the ionospheric chemical make-up in the summer – the so-called summer doldrums. However, Sporadic-E may keep 10m alive, so don't write the band off. Propagation, at the moment, favours paths into the southern hemisphere, although each band can have different characteristics at different times. A quick play with the propagation tool at tinyurl.com/propcharts  will show you what we mean. Next week, NOAA predicts that the solar flux index will remain around 120 until the 27th of May, after which it could rise to 140 by the end of the month. Unsettled geomagnetic conditions are forecast for the period from the 28th of May to the 2nd of June. This could see the Kp index peak at five or six with corresponding drops in the MUF and DX. As we are now on the downward portion of this solar cycle, we may expect more geomagnetic disturbances from coronal holes and coronal mass ejections. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO The long run of fine settled weather seems to have drawn to a close. We have a period of changeable and, at times, wet and windy weather to deal with over the coming week. I doubt we will see much, if any, Tropo except perhaps towards the end of the week as some models show a new high building as we move into June.  Before then, the various fronts and showers will bring several spells of rain and a much greater chance of rain scatter on the GHz bands than recently. The solar conditions have again provided weak auroral events, with fluttery signals on the HF bands being a good indicator, since the bright evenings and early dawns leave little chance of any visual clues. As usual, the measure to follow is the Kp index. So, look out for values of Kp going above five to generate interest. Meteor scatter is declining as the last of the Eta Aquariids play out, following a long tail from the peak on the 6th of May. Meteors also make up the content of Sporadic-E because, as they burn up, they produce long-lived metallic ions that can be focused into thin layers of Sporadic-E. There are some less well-known meteor showers in June. So, next week there may be more to say. In the meantime, random meteors and declining Aquariids will have to suffice. Now, on to Sporadic-E. This is beginning to be the primary mode in these summer weeks. It is sensible to check during main operating windows in the morning, late afternoon and early evening. Ideally, we require meteor input, a low Kp index, plus some weather triggers to set up atmospheric gravity waves which produce the right wind shear in the E region. Jet streams are usually the best clues for where Sporadic-E might form.  Use the daily Sporadic-E blog on the Propquest website to get an insight of the current day's weather patterns – see propquest.co.uk   If you have very limited time and have still not worked Sporadic-E, just checking 50MHz in the late afternoon will ensure that you make a start this year. EME path losses are still falling as the Moon reaches perigee, its closest point to Earth, on the 26th of May. Moon windows and peak elevation are again rising, reaching a maximum on the 29th of May. 144MHz sky noise is low and remains low as the week progresses. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

GB2RS News Sunday, the 18th of May 2025   The news headlines: The RSGB announces new Convention Chair for 2025 RSGB members can now read over 300 RadCom editions in the RSGB web app Become a volunteer at the RSGB National Radio Centre RSGB General Manager, Steve Thomas, M1ACB, is delighted to announce the appointment of Pete Joyce, M0OFM, as the new volunteer RSGB Convention Chair. Pete is a regular attendee at RSGB Conventions and has a keen interest in balancing the different needs of attendees through a varied programme. He also understands the importance of making the Convention accessible to everyone, both in person and online. Pete brings to the role a range of experience in planning and managing events for other organisations. The RSGB Convention planning team look forward to supporting Pete as he takes on this challenging and important role. The RSGB is excited to announce that more RadCom editions have been added to its web app. RSGB members are now able to browse back to January 2000, which is over 300 magazines! Go to rsgb.org/radcom to explore all the RadCom content from this millennium. You'll need your RSGB membership portal details to access the editions. If your RSGB membership is due for renewal soon, why not swap to a digital membership? You'll still get all the great benefits of being a member, and you'll save money as well as RadCom storage space. If you're not yet an RSGB member, there's never been a better time to join the Society. Take out a digital membership and choose to read RadCom via our app, and you'll have easy access to 25 years of RadCom editions. The RSGB will be releasing mobile versions of the app soon, so you'll be able to download copies of its publications and read them on the go.   Volunteering at the RSGB National Radio Centre is a wide-ranging and highly rewarding role. Thanks to the variety of visitors and the number of events and activities that the Centre is involved with, no two days at the NRC are the same. If you'd like to join the friendly and dedicated team, the NRC is currently looking for new volunteers. Full training is given, including the operation of the GB3RS radio station. NRC volunteers also enjoy numerous benefits associated with volunteering at Bletchley Park. If all of this sounds like something you'd like to be a part of, and you can volunteer for one or two days per month, please email NRC Coordinator Martyn Baker, G0GMB, via nrc.support@rsgb.org.uk. You can find out more about the RSGB National Radio Centre by going to rsgb.org/nrc The RSGB Outreach Team is offering qualified amateur radio operators under the age of 18 the opportunity to take part in a new DMR project. The project's aim is to help young people get on the air and build their confidence in making QSOs. The Team has nine DMR handheld transceivers and hotspots available to borrow for three months, completely free. As part of the offering, the Outreach Team will be hosting regular youth nets that you would be welcome to join. You can apply for the DMR kit as an individual or as a school group, as long as one member of the group is licensed. Another part of the project is to support teachers who would like to take their amateur radio licence and set up a school club. In collaboration with the Radio Communications Foundation, the RSGB is offering to pay the licence exam fee for nine teachers to help get them and their school club started. If you're a teacher who is interested in discovering more about amateur radio and sharing that excitement with your students, get in touch. Once you have your licence, you can apply for the free DMR kit on loan for three months to help set up your club. If you are interested in applying for a DMR kit, fill out the application form by going to tinyurl.com/DMRyouth. If you are a teacher interested in starting your own radio club, please email RSGB Youth Chair Chris Aitken, MM0WIC, via youthchampion.school@rsgb.org.uk As we come to the end of Mental Health Awareness Week 2025, let's remember to show the very best of amateur radio and make sure we are there for one another. Let's listen to each other, share our appreciation for our fellow radio amateurs and celebrate kindness within our community. You can read how amateur radio helped Lee Aldridge, G4EJB, in the July 2023 edition of RadCom. You can access mental health support by going to mentalhealth.org.uk 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 East Midlands Ham and Electronics Rally is taking place on Saturday, the 24th of May at Beckingham Village Hall, Southfield Lane, Beckingham, DN10 4FX. Traders can set up from 7 am, with doors open to the public between 9.30 am and 3 pm. There will be hot food and refreshments available. Free parking is located behind the hall. For more information and to book, please go to emerg.uk/rally The Durham & District Amateur Radio Society Radio Rally is taking place on Sunday, the 25th of May at Bowburn Community Centre, Bowburn, County Durham, DH6 5AT. Doors will be open from 10.10 am to 2.30 pm, with disabled visitors gaining access at 10 am. Entry is £3. There will be a bring-and-buy sale, trade stands, special interest groups and an RSGB bookstall. Catering will be available on-site. For further information, please call Michael Wright, G7TWX, on 07826 924192 or email dadars@gmx.com Now the Special Event news Special event station GB0SAR is active until the 30th of May in support of SOS Radio Week. The station will mostly be 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 is once again raising awareness for men's mental health through amateur radio. Club members will be operating special callsign GB0MMH. Other special call signs will also be active. The station is active today, Sunday the 18th of May, as well as the weekend 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 men's mental health. If you would like further information, please contact secretary@hfdxarc.com The International Amateur Radio Club will be active as 4U0ITU until the end of 2025. The club is celebrating the 160th anniversary of the International Telecommunication Union. QSL is available via Logbook of the World, Club Log, or direct to P.O. Box 6, 1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland. Now the DX news Antonio, DL4EA, will be active as FY/DL4EA from French Guiana between the 19th and 21st of May. Antonio plans to be active on QO-100 and RS-44 and maybe some HF QRP. Emir, E77DX will again be active as D4DX in Cape Verde on the 24th and 25th May for the CQ World Wide WPX CW Contest. He'll be operating as Single Operator All Bands in the high-power category. QSL is available via E73Y and Logbook of the World.  Morten, LA9GY will be active from Eswatini between the 22nd of May and the 2nd of June. He plans to be operating holiday-style as 3DA0GY mainly on CW but also some SSB. QSL is available via his home call LA9GY. Now the contest news Tomorrow, Monday, the 19th of May, 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 Tuesday, the 20th of May, the 1.3GHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130 UTC. Using all modes on 1.3GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Wednesday, the 21st of May, the 80m Club Championship data leg runs from 1900 to 2030 UTC. Using data modes on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number. The CQ World Wide WPX CW Contest starts at 0000 UTC on Saturday, the 24th of May and ends at 2359 UTC on Sunday, the 25th of May. Using CW on the 160 to 10m bands, where contests are permitted, the exchange is signal report and serial number. On Sunday, the 25th of May, the UK Microwave Group High Band Contest runs from 0600 to 1800 UTC. Using all modes on 5.7 and 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 15th of May 2025 This week, you could be forgiven for thinking that the Solar Cycle 25 maximum is now over. With a reduced solar flux index and an almost blank Sun, there was little to get excited about. By Thursday, the 15th of May, the SFI was 122, but previously, on the 12th, it had been down to 116, which is the lowest it has been for some time. There is still a lot of solar activity going on, but most of it is not conducive to good HF propagation. Over the past week, we have had two X-class solar flares and five M-class events. The X-class events were associated with coronal mass ejections, but these appear to have been directed away from Earth. A fast solar wind has resulted in the Kp index standing at four for a lot of the time, namely on the 9th and 10th of May and again on the 14th and 15th. Unfortunately, this is not uncommon at this point in the solar cycle and adds some evidence that we are now in the declining phase of Cycle 25. Next week, NOAA predicts that things may improve with the SFI set to rise from the 19th of May. It forecasts the SFI will start the week around 115, but then will climb steadily, reaching 145 by the 1st of June. After a brief rise on the 19th with a Kp of four, things then become more settled with a Kp of two between the 22nd and the 28th of May. A large elongated coronal hole became Earth-facing on 16th May, which could cause raised K indices and lower MUFs from today, the 18th of May, onwards. It looks like the best HF F2-layer conditions may occur between the 22nd and 28th of May. And don't forget, despite the HF doldrums, we are now well into Sporadic-E season with short-skip occurring, predominantly on 10m. But more of that shortly. And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO The prolonged spell of high pressure is likely to remain until near the end of this week, so there is plenty of time to get some more Tropo in the log. Cloudier and cooler air over eastern Britain at the end of last week may enhance the Tropo by adding moisture under the inversion. For most places, the strongest Tropo conditions will be overnight and early morning, then they will degrade as the daytime heating destroys the surface temperature inversion. Meteor scatter is declining a little, apart from a few stragglers from early May showers, so it's probably better to keep to the early morning period as your go-to time for meteor scatter to focus on any random input. Rain scatter is unlikely until next weekend, but it might be worth thinking about the GHz bands from this Friday, the 23rd of May, onwards. Aurora is a different matter, and the solar activity is likely to keep things interesting as a large sunspot group rotates into an Earth-facing position. Strong Es opened on Wednesday, the 14th of May, so it's definitely the season to be checking the upper HF and lower VHF bands for Sporadic-E. In this recent opening, the Dourbes ionosonde peaked at an Es critical frequency of 14 MHz, which is a very high value, even for mid-season. There were strong signals from the central Mediterranean on 6m CW, and some may have even got some 2m digital mode action from the brief opening. Check the Propquest NVIS tab for the day to see the details of this event. Although weak jet streams were present, the opening may well have been helped by some very intense, slow-moving thunderstorms over France. Remember to start checking on 10m and, if it's open, look to the higher bands of 6m, 4m, up to 2m. EME path losses are still falling. Moon declination ended last week at minimum but goes positive again this Thursday, the 22nd of May. Moon windows and peak elevation are again rising. 144MHz sky noise is high this weekend, falling back to low as the week progresses. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

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.  

T3B - Electromagnetic wave properties: wavelength vs frequency, nature and velocity of electromagnetic waves, relationship of wavelength and frequency; Electromagnetic spectrum definitions: UHF, VHF, HF. 52:25

T3B - Electromagnetic wave properties: wavelength vs frequency, nature and velocity of electromagnetic waves, relationship of wavelength and frequency; Electromagnetic spectrum definitions: UHF, VHF, HF. 52:25

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.

  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.

Foundations of Amateur Radio Over the years I've talked about different ways of using our license to transmit. I've discussed things like modes such as voice AM, FM, and SSB, and digital modes like FT8, WSPR, RTTY, FreeDV, Hellschreiber, Olivia and even Morse code. Recently it occurred to me that there is something odd about how we do this as a community. Now that I've realised this it's hard to unsee. Let me see if I can get you to the same place of wonder. Why is it that we as amateurs only use one such mode at a time? Let me say that again. With all the modes we have available to us, why do we only use one mode at a time, why do we get our brain into the mindset of one activity, stop doing that in order to move to another mode? It's weird. Amateur radio is what's called "frequency agile". What I mean by that is we are not restricted to a fixed number of channels like most, if not all other radio users. We can set our transmission frequency to whatever we want, within the restrictions imposed by our license conditions, and start making noise. There's agreement on what mode you can use where, but within that comes a great deal of flexibility. We have the ability to find each other. Call CQ and if the band is open and your station is transmitting a signal, the chance is good that someone somewhere on planet Earth will respond. We change frequency at will, almost without thought, but why don't we do this with modes? The closest I've seen is local VHF and UHF contests where you get different points depending on which mode you're using, and even that seems hard fought. It's weird. We have an increasing range of Software Defined Radios, or SDR, where your voice, or incoming text, can be transformed to a different mode at the touch of a button, but we rarely if ever actually use this ability. In case you're thinking that the restriction relates to the availability of SDR in the average amateur radio shack, most amateur modes fit within a normal audio stream and that same flexibility could be applied to the vast majority of transmitters scattered around the globe, but to my knowledge, it isn't. Why is that? Better still, what can we do about it? Can we develop procedures and processes to make us more, let's call it "mode agile", giving us the ability to change mode at the same ease as we change frequency? What would a "mode and frequency agile" amateur look like? What processes would you use? Right now the best we have is to QSY, or announce that we're changing frequency, but I've never heard anyone use that to describe a change of mode. Of course it's possible that I've led a sheltered life and not been on-air enough, but if that's the case, I'd love to hear about it. So, what is stopping us from becoming even more flexible? Do we need to practice this, develop better tools, teach new amateurs, have multimode nets, invent new modes that share information across different modes simultaneously, build radios that can transmit on different frequencies, or something else? I'm Onno VK6FLAB

Hello, I'm Geoff Emery, VK4ZPP, and I've been thinking. Well the space weather is jostling us about with interesting solar activities over the past week. This is a great challenge for the DX chaser on the shortwave bands as conditions can vary in short order with coronal mass ejections causing ionising effects in the atmosphere. The next couple of days could be amazing as we get the benefits of solar flares which continue in this cycle. This is a rare happening when we have two consecutive long weekends, an occurrence which stirs the embers in many an Aussie chest. It seems that the gods of weather are being kind for Easter allowing people to enjoy their preferred activities with sunshine for a change. Whether the following weekend will be so fortunate as thousands gather to participate in the Anzac memorials, we will have to wait and see. One thing that has been filtering through my thinking is how little we seem to consider amateur radio and modern housing solutions. With more and more people living in apartments and suburban homes being erected on postage stamp sized allotments, the opportunity to maintain a reasonable working HF station is getting more limited. When we could look at a yard of 810 square metres as being the average, there was enough space to generally have some sort of antenna system. Whether it was horizontal such as the once ubiquitous G5RV, a doublet or a modest tower with a commercial beam, the options were available. Now many of the people who had these facilities have moved into smaller residences, maybe granny flats, apartments a few stories high and even supported accommodation. Each of these situations has its own set of limitations for a once active ham. Yes there is internet linked means and VHF and UHF repeaters but for the died in the wool HF operator it can be like losing an arm or a leg when they can no longer make the skeds with people they have known over the air. For the youthful person juggling study, work and perhaps romance, the proverbial dance card is already close to full and even although they may have enjoyed amateur radio when circumstances were different, they find themselves effectively isolated from the hobby. Mobile operations have always been an option for those fortunate enough to have access to a vehicle but many people don't have that option so home based operation is their only opportunity to stir the aether again. What I see is many people who could be more active but who are functionally denied access. The value of video sharing sites is good but I don't see much material aimed at the so-called house bound amateur. I don't get to see much of the current overseas magazines as they have disappeared from the newsagent shelves but from our own publication it seems authors aren't engaged is this side of the hobby. Perhaps clubs could think this over and find some ways forward. I'm Geoff Emery VK4ZPP and that's what I think…. how about you?

GB2RS News Sunday the 20th of April 2025   The news headlines: Take advantage of new RSGB membership benefits for 2025! The RSGB Board has announced Directors' liaison roles The RSGB has released a 1925 bulletin containing the original announcement of the formation of the IARU As a new benefit, the Society has teamed up with several museums to offer RSGB members discounted entry for 2025. Members can receive between 20% and 50% off admission fees at Amberley Museum, Bawdsey Radar Museum, Internal Fire Museum of Power, PK Porthcurno Museum of Global Communications and The National Museum of Computing. So, whether you're into engines, radar, transport, computers or communications there's sure to be something for you. To find out more, visit rsgb.org/partner-museums Following the RSGB 2025 AGM on Saturday the 12th of April, a brief Board meeting was held. The Board elected Stewart Bryant, G3YSX to continue in the role of Board Chair and Peter Bowyer, G4MJS to continue as Vice Chair. Both will remain in these roles until the 2026 AGM. The Board liaison roles with RSGB committees, Honorary Officers and areas of RSGB strategy have also been agreed. To find out more or to see contact details for each Board Director, go to rsgb.org/board World Amateur Radio Day was on Friday the 18th of April. It was also on that day in 1925 that the International Amateur Radio Union was formed in Paris. In celebration of this, the RSGB has shared a T & R Bulletin from 1925 that details the original announcement about the IARU's formation. This unique document has been made publicly available for all radio amateurs to be able to enjoy. To start reading, simply go to rsgb.org/radcom then click on the image to enter the web app and select the ‘RadCom Sample' option in the header. The RSGB website has a wealth of information available to you, and the search function is a useful tool to find what you are looking for. However, to make things as straightforward as possible, the Society has updated the contacts page on its website. If you need to get in touch about something specific, you'll be able to find the correct contact details at a glance. Each Headquarters department is listed with the range of services they offer. For example, you'll see that the Sales Team can also help with club insurance, Membership Services will help with any issues logging into its online membership portal, and that GB2RS news items should be sent to the RadCom Team. Whatever your query, the Team is there to help. If you need more local help, please contact your Regional Team representatives. Head over to rsgb.org/contact  to find out how to get in touch. Professor Gwyn Griffiths, G3ZIL is a well-known member of the RSGB Propagation Studies Committee, as well as someone involved with Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation, also known as HamSCI. In celebration of Citizen Science Month during April, the RSGB has shared Gwyn's HamSCI presentation from the RSGB 2024 Convention on its YouTube channel. In the talk, Gwyn outlines the organisation's activities, particularly during the 2023 and 2024 eclipses. Go to youtube.com/theRSGB  to watch the talk now. If you'd like to find out more, join the RSGB for May's Tonight@8 webinar when HamSCI lead Nathaniel Frissell, W2NAF presents ‘Space weather we can do together'. Both Gwyn and Nathaniel recently won awards in the RSGB 2025 AGM Trophy Presentation. You can also get involved with HamSCI's preparations for a series of meteor scatter experiments in August and December. You can find further details via hamsci.org/msqp Have you ever wondered about the origins of the smart doorbell? Although a modern phenomenon, it has a history dating back over 100 years. During the latest series of The Secret Genius of Modern Life, Hannah Fry explores its early origins with a device created by Leon Theremin. During the episode radio amateur Neil, G4DBN, re-creates Leon's device. The episode will air on BBC2 at 20.00 on Wednesday the 23rd of April. Many of you will know Neil from Season One, Episode One of the series when he re-created the Great Seal Bug. Both episodes are available to watch now via BBC iPlayer. 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 Cambridge Repeater Group Rally is taking place on Sunday the 27th of April at Foxton Village Hall, Hardman Road, Foxton, Cambridge, CB22 6RN. Doors open at 7.30am for traders and 9.30am to the general public. The entrance fee is £4. The event will include a car-boot sale, trade stands, a bring-and-buy area, catering, disabled facilities, an RSGB Bookstall and a free, marshalled car park. A cash and card burger van will open at 8am. The venue rules state strictly no dogs except assistance dogs on the field. Go to cambridgerepeaters.net for further details and bookings. 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, trader stands and refreshments. Doors open at 10am and admission is £3. For further details, please contact Roger by phone on 07854 088882, or email 2e0rph@gmail.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 Portuguese national society, REP, is also activating a number of special callsigns as part of celebrations for the 100th anniversary of the IARU. This includes CR1IARU from the Azores, CR3IARU from Madeira and CR5IARU from mainland Portugal. Members will be active on multiple bands and modes. Look out for activity until the 24th of April. Full details can be found via tinyurl.com/CR1IARU 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. Ten teams of radio amateurs from around the world are commemorating 80 years since Operation Manna and Operation Chowhound. The two operations were humanitarian food drops that helped to relieve the famine in the Netherlands behind Nazi lines late in World War Two. The teams will be active between the 25th and 27th of April on HF, VHF and the DMR Brandmeister Talk Groups unique to this event. A number of the teams are also welcoming visitors and arranging activities at their locations. To find details of Talk Groups for this event, the teams involved, as well as how to collect a commemorative award, go to manna80.radio Now the DX news Aldir, PY1SAD is active again from Georgetown in Guyana as 8R1TM until the 26th of April. Aldir will be operating on all bands using CW, SSB, digital and satellite. QSL via eQSL and Logbook of The World. Arno, DK1HV is active from Greenland as OX/DK1VK until Sunday the 27th of April. He'll be QRV on 160m to 10m mainly SSB using wire antennas and 100W radio. QSL available via his home callsign. 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 Silent Key. QSL via Club Log's OQRS and Logbook of The World. Now the contest news On Tuesday the 22nd of April, the SHF UK Activity Contest runs from 1830 to 2130UTC. Using all modes on 2.3 to 10GHz frequencies, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Thursday the 24th of April, the 80m Club Championship runs from 1900 to 2030UTC. Using PSK63 and RTTY, the exchange is signal report and serial number. The UK and Ireland DX CW Contest starts at 1200UTC on Saturday the 26th of April and ends at 1200UTC on Sunday 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 starts at 1200UTC on Saturday the 26th of April and ends at 1200UTC on 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.   Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA and G4BAO on Thursday the 17th of April 2025 Last week was characterised by increased Kp index numbers and severe geomagnetic storms, peaking at G4. These drove down maximum usable frequencies and disrupted DX contacts, especially on the higher HF bands. The solar wind speed increased from 380 kilometres per second to around 500 kilometres per second on the 15th and an increase in plasma density was noted as well. Subsequently, the Kp index peaked at 7.67 on Wednesday the 16th, causing visible aurora alerts in the UK. This was caused by a pair of CMEs that left the Sun on Sunday the 13th of April. We had a total of 22 M-class solar flares over four days, so a CME event was inevitable. Unsettled geomagnetic conditions are a feature on the declining side of a solar cycle, so we could unfortunately be in for many more. According to Propquest, MUFs over a 3,000km path fell to below 18MHz for long periods on Wednesday the 16th, before climbing to around 21MHz at the end of the day. Meanwhile, the solar flux index fell from a high of 170 on Friday the 11th of April to a low of 148 on Wednesday the 16th of April. Next week, NOAA predicts that the SFI will start the week around 145 but could increase to 165 as the week progresses. Unsettled geomagnetic conditions are forecast for the 22nd to the 24th of April, with a predicted maximum Kp index of four. As always, keep an eye on solarham.com for daily updates, but more importantly, get on the bands, which are a much more effective guide to HF propagation! And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO The current period of unsettled weather looks likely to continue into the coming week. This does not mean rain every day, but periods of rain or showers with some intervening drier spells. These drier interludes are not really dominated by high pressure, just gaps between the wetter periods, so it's unlikely to produce much significant Tropo. In terms of propagation, there may be some rain scatter, although it won't be very reliable. However, the prospects for meteor scatter are more promising with the peak of the Lyrids due on Tuesday the 22nd of April. It is worth checking up on procedures for meteor scatter working if you've not done it before and you may find a new part of the hobby to add to your operating schedule. The prospects for aurora continue to be raised by what seems like an almost daily supply of aurora alerts. Continue to monitor the Kp index for signs of elevated values, where Kp is above five, for radio activity. Early signs such as fluttery signals on the LF and HF bands may suggest it's worth looking on the VHF bands for auroral activity. As we move towards the new season it is good to get into the habit of looking for Sporadic-E. The Propquest website www.propquest.co.uk shows several useful components for analysing the Es prospects. If you look at the position of the jet streams shown on the Es blog tab, these can produce favourable conditions geographically to give a hint of the right direction in which to listen. The opening season typically favours 10m or 6m. EME path losses are now decreasing towards perigee on Sunday the 27th of April. Last Friday, the 18th of April, saw minimum Moon declination, so Moon windows will lengthen along with peak elevation. 144MHz sky noise starts this week very high but decreases to low as the week progresses. And that's all from the propagation team this week.

Ralph speaks to Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank about the Trump Administration's path of destruction in our federal government. Then, Ralph welcomes legendary public interest lawyer Alan Morrison to discuss the President's authority to impose tariffs and other constitutional questions.Dana Milbank is a nationally syndicated op-ed columnist for the Washington Post. He also provides political commentary for various TV outlets, and he is the author of five books on politics, including the New York Times bestseller The Destructionists and the national bestseller Homo Politicus. His latest book is Fools on the Hill: The Hooligans, Saboteurs, Conspiracy Theories and Dunces who Burned Down the House.I shouldn't be amazed, but Mike Johnson never ceases to amaze me with the rapidity with which he'll just drop to his knees whenever Trump says something.Dana MilbankWe're going to know this shortly, but it does appear that Trump's honeymoon may be over in the House as the conservatives finally seem to be finding their backbones. But I've thought that might happen before and then only to find out that they, in fact, they could not locate their backbones. So I don't want to be premature.Dana MilbankTrump seems to be gambling (and the administration seems to be gambling) that ultimately the Supreme Court is going to a wholesale reinterpretation of the Constitution to grant these never-before-seen executive powers, and it's possible that he's right about that. We're not going to know that. There have been a couple of preliminary rulings that seem friendly to Trump, but none of those is final, so we can't really be sure of it.Dana MilbankMy guess is that Chief Justice Roberts is seeing his legacy heading toward the ditch after his decision of Trump v. United States, where he said that Presidents cannot be criminally prosecuted….My guess is he's going to unpleasantly surprise Trump in the coming months.Ralph NaderAlan Morrison is the Lerner Family Associate Dean for Public Interest & Public Service at George Washington Law School. He currently teaches civil procedure and constitutional law, and previously taught at Harvard, NYU, Stanford, Hawaii, and American University law schools. He has argued 20 cases in the Supreme Court and co-founded the Public Citizen Litigation Group in 1972, which he directed for more than 25 years.It's inevitable that even for a non-economist like myself to understand that [the costs of tariffs] are going to be passed on. Other than Donald Trump, I don't think there's anybody who believes that these taxes are not going to be passed on and that they're going to be borne by the country from which the company did the exporting.Alan MorrisonIt's an uphill battle on both the statutory interpretation and the undue delegation grounds, but our position is rather simple: If the Congress doesn't write a statute so that there's something that the government can't order or do, then it's gone too far. In effect, it has surrendered to the President its power to set policy and do the legislative function. Interestingly, Trump has trumpeted the breadth of what he's doing here. He calls it a revolution. Well, if we have revolutions in this country, my copy of the Constitution says that the Congress has to enact revolution and the President can't do it on its own. So we think we've got a pretty strong case if we can get it to court.Alan MorrisonOne of the things that I've been struck by is that laws alone cannot make this country governable. That we can't write laws to cover every situation and every quirk that any person has, especially the President. We depend on the norms of government—that people will do things not exactly the way everybody did them before, but along the same general lines, and that when we make change, we make them in moderation, because that's what the people expect. Trump has shed all norms.Alan MorrisonNews 4/9/251. Our top story this week is the killing of Omar Mohammed Rabea, an American citizen in Gaza. Known as Amer, the BBC reports the 14-year-old was shot by the Israeli military along with two other 14-year-old boys “on the outskirts of Turmus Ayya” on Sunday evening. Predictably, the IDF called these children “terrorists.” According to NJ.com – Rabea formerly resided in Saddle Brook, New Jersey – Rabea's uncle sits on the board of a local Palestinian American Community Center which told the press “The ambulance was not allowed to pass the checkpoint for 30 minutes, a denial in medical treatment that ultimately resulted in Amer's death…[his] death was entirely preventable and horrifically unjust. He was a child, a 14-year-old boy, with an entire life ahead of him.” The Rachel Corrie Foundation, founded in honor of the American peace activist killed by an Israeli bulldozer while protesting the demolition of a Palestinian home, issued a statement reading “Rabea's death…was perpetuated by Israeli settlers who act with impunity…We believe that if our own government demanded accountability…Rabea would still be alive.” The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has sent a letter to Attorney General Bondi demanding an investigation, but chances of the Trump administration pursuing justice in this case are slim.2. Meanwhile, President Trump seems to be driving the U.S. economy into a deep recession. Following his much-publicized tariff announcement last week – which included 10% tariffs on uninhabited Heard and McDonald Islands – the S&P dipped by 10.5%, among the largest drops in history, per the New York Times. Far from making Trump back off however, he appears dead set on pushing this as far as it will go. After the People's Republic of China responded to the threat of a 54% tariff with a reciprocal 34% tariff, Trump announced the U.S. will retaliate by upping the tariff to a whopping 104% on Chinese imports, according to the BBC. Reuters reports that JP Morgan forecasts a 60% chance of a recession as a result of these tariffs.3. In more foreign affairs news, on Friday April 4th, South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol was officially removed from office by that country's Constitutional Court, “ending months of uncertainty and legal wrangling after he briefly declared martial law in December,” per CNN. The South Korean parliament had already voted to impeach Yoon in December of 2024. The court's decision was unanimous and characterized the leader's actions as a “grave betrayal of the people's trust.” Upon this ruling being handed down, Yoon was forced to immediately vacate the presidential residence. A new election is scheduled for June 3rd. Incredible what a political and judicial class unafraid to stand up to lawlessness can accomplish.4. Speaking of ineffectual opposition parties, one need look no further than Texas' 18th congressional district. This safe Democratic district – including most of central Houston – was held by Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee from 1995 until her death in 2024. According to the Texas Tribune, Lee planned to run yet again in 2024, triumphing over her 43-year-old former aide Amanda Edwards in the primary. However, Lee passed in July of 2024. Edwards again sought the nomination, but the Harris County Democratic Party instead opted for 69-year-old former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, per the Texas Tribune. Turner made it to March of 2025 before he too passed away. This seat now sits vacant – depriving the residents of central Houston of congressional representation and the Democrats of a vote in the House. Governor Gregg Abbot has announced that he will not allow a special election before November 2025, the Texas Tribune reports. This is a stunning Democratic own-goal and indicative of the literal death grip the gerontocratic old guard continue to have on the party.5. One ray of hope is that Democratic voters appear to be waking up the ineffectual nature of the party leadership. A new Data for Progress poll of the 2028 New York Senate primary posed a hypothetical matchup between incumbent Senator Chuck Schumer and Democratic Socialist firebrand Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez – and found AOC with a staggering lead of 19 points. This poll showed AOC winning voters under 45 by 50 points, over 45s by eight points, non-college educated by 16 points, college educated by 23 points, Black and white voters by 16 points, and Latinos by 28. Schumer led among self-described “Moderates” by 15 and no other group. It remains to be seen whether the congresswoman from Queens will challenge the Senate Minority Leader, but this poll clearly shows her popularity in the state of New York, and Schumer's abysmal reputation catching up with him.6. Another bright spot from New York, is Zohran Mamdani's mayoral candidacy and specifically his unprecedented field operation. According to the campaign, between April 1st and April 6th, volunteers knocked on 41,591 doors. No mayoral campaign in the history of the city has generated a grassroots movement of this intensity, with politicians traditionally relying on political machines or enormous war chests to carry them to victory. Mamdani has already reached the public financing campaign donation cap, so he can focus all of his time and energy on grassroots outreach. He remains the underdog against former Governor Andrew Cuomo, but his campaign appears stronger every day.7. Turning to the turmoil in the federal regulatory apparatus, POLITICO reports Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has eliminated the Freedom of Information Act offices at the Centers for Disease Control, and other HHS agencies. An anonymous source told the publication that HHS will consolidate its FOIA requests into one HHS-wide office, but “Next steps are still in flux.” In the meantime, there will be no one to fulfill FOIA requests at these agencies. This piece quotes Scott Amey, general counsel at the Project on Government Oversight, who said this “sends a wrong message to the public on the administration's commitment to transparency.” Amey added, “I often say that FOIA officers are like librarians in knowing the interactions of the agency…If you don't have FOIA officers with that specific knowledge, it will slow down the process tremendously.”8. At the Federal Trade Commission, Axios reports the Trump administration has “paused” the FTC's lawsuit against major pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, related to “the drug middlemen…inflating the price of insulin and driving up costs to diabetes patients.” The case, filed against CVS Caremark, OptumRx and Express Scripts was halted by the FTC in light of “the fact that there are currently no sitting Commissioners able to participate in this matter.” That is because Trump unlawfully fired the two remaining Democratic commissioners Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Slaughter. In a statement, former FTC Chair Lina Khan called this move “A gift to the PBMs.”9. One federal regulatory agency that seems to be at least trying to do their job is the Federal Aviation Administration. According to the American Prospect, the FAA has “[has] proposed [a] rule that would mandate Boeing update a critical communications malfunction in their 787 Dreamliner plane that could lead to disastrous accidents.” As this piece explains, “very high frequency (VHF) radio channels are transferring between the active and standby settings without flight crew input.” The FAA's recommendation in is that Boeing address the issue with an update to the radio software. Yet disturbingly, in one of the comments on this proposed rule Qatar Airways claims that, “[they have] already modified all affected…airplanes with … [the recommended software updates] …However … flight crew are still reporting similar issues.” This comment ends with Qatar Airways stating that they believe, “the unsafe condition still exists.” Boeing planes have been plagued by critical safety malfunctions in recent years, most notably the 2018 and 2019 crashes that killed nearly 350 people.10. Finally, on a somewhat lighter note, you may have heard about Bryan Johnson, the tech entrepreneur dubbed “The Man Who Wants to Live Forever.” Johnson has attracted substantial media attention for his unorthodox anti-aging methods, including regular transfusions of plasma from his own son. But this story is not about Johnson's bizarre immortality obsession, but rather his unsavory corporate practices. A new piece in New York Magazine focuses on the lawsuits filed against Johnson by his all-too-mortal workers, represented by eminent labor lawyer Matt Bruenig. This piece relays how Johnson “required his staffers to sign 20-page NDAs,” and an “opt-in” document which informed his employees they had to be comfortable “being around Johnson while he has very little clothing on” and “discussions for media production including erotica (for example, fan fiction including but not limited to story lines/ideas informed by the Twilight series and-or 50 Shades of Grey.)” Bruenig says, “That stuff is weird,” but his main interest is in the nondisparagement agreements, including the one Johnson's former employee and former fiancée Taylor Southern entered into which has further complicated an already thorny legal dispute between Johnson and herself. Now Bruenig is fighting for Southern and against these blanket nondisparagement agreements in a case that could help define the limits of employer's power to control their workers' speech. Hopefully, Bruenig will prevail in showing that Johnson, whatever his pretensions, truly is a mere mortal.This has been Francesco DeSantis, with In Case You Haven't Heard. Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

GB2RS News Sunday the 13th of April 2025   The news headlines: Apply to be in the RSGB team for YOTA Camp 2025 Be part of the RSGB Exam Tutors Review Panel Catch up with the RSGB 2025 AGM on YouTube If you are aged between 16 and 25 and are passionate about amateur radio, then this news is for you. This year's Youngsters on the Air Summer Camp will take place between the 18th and 25th of August at the historical Château [SHA-TOW] de Jambville [ZHOM-VIL] near Paris in France. The event is being organised by the French national amateur radio society, REF, and the IARU. It is a chance of a lifetime for young RSGB members to represent their country and their national society. If you are ready for exciting experiences, would like to make new friends and want to help shape the future of amateur radio, then the RSGB would love to hear from you. If you'd like to find out more about what's involved and to submit an application, go to rsgb.org/yota-camp The closing date for applications is the 2nd of May for Team Leader and the 16th of May for Team Members. Apply today and don't miss out on this fantastic opportunity. The RSGB is looking to recruit volunteers from the exam tutor community to help pre-screen documentation prior to public release as part of the process of improving the quality of documents issued by the Exam and Syllabus Review Group (ESRG). The Exam Tutors Review Panel is intended to be an informal group of approximately six tutors who are currently involved in providing training for amateur radio licence exams at any of the three current levels. Panel members will be asked to use their skills to help improve the quality of the syllabus, the questions in the published question bank and other published documentation. They will receive advance copies of documents that are due to be published, and they will be expected to return any comments within an agreed timescale, which typically will be two weeks. The ESRG is not obliged to accept the recommendations from panel members, but if they do not accept a recommended change, they will explain why. All documents and additional correspondence sent to panel members will be under an embargo until the final versions are released to the public. The Exam Tutors Review Panel is intended to run for an initial six months and will then be reviewed. If you are interested in becoming a member of this panel, please email Board Director Len Paget, GM0ONX via GM0ONX@rsgb.org.uk The RSGB would like to thank everyone who joined the RSGB 2025 AGM which was held yesterday, the 12th of April. If you missed the live event, you'll still be able to watch the full livestream on the Society's YouTube channel. As well as the formal AGM business, the Board answered questions from RSGB members on a wide range of topics. You'll also be able to watch the President's review of 2024, delivered by John McCullagh MBE, GI4BWM, who was the RSGB President at the time. The AGM also included a presentation about the Society's strategy. Led by Board Director Mark Jones, G0MGX, there were contributions from Board Director Ben Lloyd, GW4BML; Spectrum Forum Chair Murray Niman, G6JYB; and the current President Bob Beebe, GU4YOX. Timestamps will be available in the video summary on YouTube, allowing you to skip to any particular section you may want to watch. Go to rsgb.org/agm to find out more about every aspect of the AGM, including personal statements from the new President, Board Directors and Regional Representatives. Don't forget that as part of the celebrations of the centenary of the International Amateur Radio Union, the RSGB will be activating the callsign GB0IARU throughout this month. A Commemorative QSL Card is available for QSOs made during the period from the 1st of April to the 30th of April 2025. On qrz.com you can find full details of the special event station, how to apply for your commemorative card, and a spreadsheet showing who is activating the callsign. World Amateur Radio Day 2025 is taking place on Friday the 18th of April, and coincides with the centenary of the International Amateur Radio Union. This year's theme is “Entering the Next Century of Amateur Radio Communications and Innovation”. All radio amateurs are invited to take to the airwaves to show their skills and capabilities to the public. You can read more about the event on the IARU website via iaru.org 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 Moray Firth Amateur Radio Society Surplus Equipment Sale is taking place on Saturday the 19th of April at Roseisle [ROSE-ISLE] Village Hall, near Burghead. Doors open to traders at 10am, and to the general public between 11am and 4pm. There is ample parking on site and catering will be available. Entry is £5, and tables for sellers are £10. Find out more by going to mfars.club The Cambridge Repeater Group Rally is taking place on Sunday the 27th of April at Foxton Village Hall, Hardman Road, Foxton, Cambridge, CB22 6RN. Doors open at 7.30am for traders and 9.30am to the general public. The entrance fee is £4. The event will include a car-boot sale, trade stands, a bring-and-buy area, catering, disabled facilities, an RSGB Bookstall and a free marshalled car park. A cash and card burger van will open at 8am. The venue rules state strictly no dogs except assistance dogs on the field. Go to cambridgerepeaters.net for further details and bookings. Now the Special Event news The Experimental Danish Radioamateurs association, also known as EDR, will be celebrating World Amateur Radio Day on the 18th of April with special event station 5P0WARD. The group is also operating special callsign OZ100IARU between the 19th of April and the 27th of April to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of the IARU. More information can be found at QRZ.com The Polish Amateur Radio Union is celebrating 95 years since its founding, as well as the centenary of the International Amateur Radio Union. To mark the occasion, ten special event stations are active until the 25th of April. Full details of the event, as well as available awards, can be found via Hamaward.cloud The Spanish national society, URE, will also be on the air to mark the 100th anniversary of the IARU. Members will be active on 160m to 6m between the 15th of April and 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. Now the DX news Paul, GW0NGA will be active from Jamestown in St Helena as ZD7PG from the 12th of April until the 19th of April. He will be active on the HF bands during his spare time. QSL via his home callsign and possibly eQSL. Aldir, PY1SAD is active again from Georgetown in Guyana [GAI-AA-NUH] as 8R1TM until the 26th of April. Aldir will be operating on all bands using CW, SSB, digital and satellite. QSL via eQSL and Logbook of The World. DA1DX, DK9IP, DM6EE and DL8LAS will be active from Anegada [A-NE-GA-DA] Island in the British Virgin Islands as VP2VI from the 10th to the 27th of April. Full details via QRZ.com Now the contest news On Tuesday the 15th of April, the 1.3GHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130UTC. Using all modes on the 23cm band, the exchange is signal report, serial number and locator. On Wednesday the 16th of April, the 80m Club Championship runs from 1900 to 2030UTC. Using SSB on the 80m band, the exchange is signal report and serial number. On Thursday the 17th of April, the 70MHz UK Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2130UTC. 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 10th of April 2025 A fast solar wind caused some disruption last week, often sending the Kp index up to five, with many three-hour periods in excess of four. The solar wind speed was in the 600-700 kilometres per second range, which caused a moderate, G2, geomagnetic storm and visible aurora at higher latitudes mid-week. Glancing CMEs that left the Sun on the 9th of April brought a small chance of enhanced geomagnetic activity at the end of the week. Meanwhile, the solar flux index declined slightly from a high of 184 on the 5th of April to 167 on Thursday the 10th. There have been quite a few C-class solar flares, but only two M-class flares and no X-class events over the past seven days. This geomagnetic activity has taken its toll on HF propagation, with lower critical frequencies at times and lower MUFs. This, coupled with the start of a change to summer ionospheric conditions, has meant that MUFs over a 3,000km path have often struggled to get past 19.7MHz at times. We have probably seen the best of the long-range 10m propagation until the autumn. But we will have Sporadic-E and its associated short skip from next month to make up for it. Next week NOAA predicts that the solar flux index will fall further, perhaps to between 135 and 140 by the 15th of April. Geomagnetic conditions are also likely to improve with a Kp index of two to three, forecast for the period after tomorrow, the 14th of April. We may expect more problematic geomagnetic conditions, with a predicted Kp index of four, from the 21st to the 24th of April.   And now the VHF and up propagation news from G3YLA and G4BAO The long spell of fine settled weather and strong Tropo is leaving us for a while, starting this weekend, and the high pressure is giving way to slow-moving areas of low pressure with cloud and rain for the coming week. Although it won't rain all the time it will be considerably wetter than recent weeks, with some heavy spells of rain at times and good prospects for rain scatter on the GHz bands. It is possible that there could be some thunder in the heavier rain, so it's now the season to be aware of lightning risk. The meteor scatter prospects are staggering towards the 22nd of April Lyrids, which peak on Tuesday of the following week, so we're still probably relying on random activity for most of this coming week, but with improving chances. The solar conditions have been feeding low-level auroral activity and it remains a good time of the year when some effective auroral conditions can appear - so stay alert to the state of the Kp index, just in case. The good news at this time of the year is that Sporadic-E will eventually make an appearance, usually on 10m or 6m, and is quite often first picked out on the digital modes. It will be into late April before we need to get too excited about this, but there is no harm in getting a set of beacons in mind for tracking an opening. Remember the main characteristic of Es is that it starts on the lower frequencies like 10m, and works up through 6m to 4m and then finally 2m in a high-summer opening. EME path losses are at their maximum at apogee this evening, the 13th, and Moon declination is negative and falling further. Moon windows will continue to shorten with peak elevation reaching only eight degrees at the end of next week. 144MHz sky noise starts the week low but will increase during the week to more than 2300 Kelvin on Friday. And that's all from the propagation team this week.  

http://www.mofpodcast.com/www.pbnfamily.comhttps://www.facebook.com/matteroffactspodcast/https://www.facebook.com/groups/mofpodcastgroup/https://rumble.com/user/Mofpodcastwww.youtube.com/user/philrabhttps://www.instagram.com/mofpodcasthttps://twitter.com/themofpodcasthttps://www.instagram.com/cypress_survivalist/https://www.facebook.com/CypressSurvivalistSupport the showMerch at: https://southerngalscrafts.myshopify.com/Shop at Amazon: http://amzn.to/2ora9riPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/mofpodcastPurchase American Insurgent by Phil Rabalais: https://amzn.to/2FvSLMLShop at MantisX: http://www.mantisx.com/ref?id=173*The views and opinions of guests do not reflect the opinions of Phil Rabalais, Andrew Bobo, Nic Emricson, or the Matter of Facts Podcast****NOTE*** You may benefit from watching the stream on YouTube, Facebook, or Rumble (linked above) to see the software in action for the full experience. Phil's recent Commo class for Cypress Survivalist left him wondering what else he could fit into a topic, for show attendees and for his faithful audience. Down the rabbit hole he went into the land of SDR, or Software Defined Radio. The magical crossection of abandonware, software geek passion projects, and radio nerdism left him with a few more nuggets to add to his Signals Intelligence repetoire, and will make for a chaotic (but hopefully informative) show and tell. More info at https://www.rtl-sdr.com/Matter of Facts is now live-streaming our podcast on our YouTube channel, Facebook page, and Rumble. See the links above, join in the live chat, and see the faces behind the voices. Intro and Outro Music by Phil Rabalais All rights reserved, no commercial or non-commercial use without permission of creator prepper, prep, preparedness, prepared, emergency, survival, survive, self defense, 2nd amendment, 2a, gun rights, constitution, individual rights, train like you fight, firearms training, medical training, matter of facts podcast, mof podcast, reloading, handloading, ammo, ammunition, bullets, magazines, ar-15, ak-47, cz 75, cz, cz scorpion, bugout, bugout bag, get home bag, military, tactical 

http://www.mofpodcast.com/www.pbnfamily.comhttps://www.facebook.com/matteroffactspodcast/https://www.facebook.com/groups/mofpodcastgroup/https://rumble.com/user/Mofpodcastwww.youtube.com/user/philrabhttps://www.instagram.com/mofpodcasthttps://twitter.com/themofpodcasthttps://www.instagram.com/cypress_survivalist/https://www.facebook.com/CypressSurvivalistSupport the showMerch at: https://southerngalscrafts.myshopify.com/Shop at Amazon: http://amzn.to/2ora9riPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/mofpodcastPurchase American Insurgent by Phil Rabalais: https://amzn.to/2FvSLMLShop at MantisX: http://www.mantisx.com/ref?id=173*The views and opinions of guests do not reflect the opinions of Phil Rabalais, Andrew Bobo, Nic Emricson, or the Matter of Facts Podcast****NOTE*** You may benefit from watching the stream on YouTube, Facebook, or Rumble (linked above) to see the software in action for the full experience. Phil's recent Commo class for Cypress Survivalist left him wondering what else he could fit into a topic, for show attendees and for his faithful audience. Down the rabbit hole he went into the land of SDR, or Software Defined Radio. The magical crossection of abandonware, software geek passion projects, and radio nerdism left him with a few more nuggets to add to his Signals Intelligence repetoire, and will make for a chaotic (but hopefully informative) show and tell. More info at https://www.rtl-sdr.com/Matter of Facts is now live-streaming our podcast on our YouTube channel, Facebook page, and Rumble. See the links above, join in the live chat, and see the faces behind the voices. Intro and Outro Music by Phil Rabalais All rights reserved, no commercial or non-commercial use without permission of creator prepper, prep, preparedness, prepared, emergency, survival, survive, self defense, 2nd amendment, 2a, gun rights, constitution, individual rights, train like you fight, firearms training, medical training, matter of facts podcast, mof podcast, reloading, handloading, ammo, ammunition, bullets, magazines, ar-15, ak-47, cz 75, cz, cz scorpion, bugout, bugout bag, get home bag, military, tactical 

Music: Spark Of Inspiration by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.comLicensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licensehttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com

There are a variety of antennas that a ham can use on the VHF and UHF bands, from simple whips, all the way up to directional beams. This month's podcast walks you through the various types and their use cases.

The Kenai Peninsula Borough School District on Monday published a list of nine schools it's thinking about closing as a way to balance its budget for the upcoming fiscal year. For several years the U.S. Coast Guard's emergency VHF radio system has experienced outages across Southeast and the Gulf of Alaska. Nine rural fire departments on the Kenai Peninsula are getting more than $80,000 in grants to boost firefighting efforts.

The latest ENA Podcast takes a look at the rare, but potentially dangerous, threat of viral hemorrhagic fevers in the emergency department. Mary Choi with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention talks about what ED nurses and emergency departments need to consider when it comes to identification, treatment and mitigating the spread of VHF.

Foundations of Amateur Radio The other day I noticed a flurry of QSL card designs come across my screen and it sparked me into action on actually creating such a card for myself. I've previously talked about what I think of the current offerings in terms of validating contacts, but having a QSL card design is step one of confirming a contact, well, technically step two, since you have to make the contact first. I'm intending to use SVG as the design platform, since it's a text file that describes an image, so I can use my favourite command line tools, like "grep", "sed", "cut" and "awk" to replace parts of the file, so I can make a personal card for every contact, but that's a story for another day. Accompanying the rush of new card designs was an intriguing hash tag, #hamchallenge. Looking into this further I discovered a project by Fabian DJ5CW with an accompanying website, hamchallenge.org. When you go there, and you should, you'll discover 52 challenges with varying levels of difficulty that you can use as inspiration to do something with your hobby. The usual suspects are there, things like week 42, receive an SSTV image, or week 50, receive an APRS message or beacon. Then there are those like week 38, make a contact on Morse code, and week 19, simulate an antenna. It goes well beyond those essential skills into important stuff like, week 14, implement and describe a backup solution for your ham radio log, and week 24, make a contribution to an Open Source ham radio software package. Not all challenges require an amateur license either. For example, week 32, listen to a broadcast station from another country, is open to anyone with a sense of wonder. The difficulty level is included in a challenge, so week 17, which VHF or UHF repeater is closest to you, is marked as easy, where week 3, work another continent on 80m or 160m, is marked as hard. There's also helpful information about a challenge, for example week 6, take part in a contest, includes a link to the contestcalendar.com website where you'll find most if not all amateur radio contests. Of course this is your hobby and it's not up to me to tell you what to do, but I have to say that the items in this list are exciting, they speak to me and I have to say that I'll be taking inspiration from this list and I recommend that you do too. Not all of the challenges will be something new to everyone. I've already built an antenna, participated in a contest, worked a 10m FM repeater and several other things on this list, but if I'm going to make a Morse Code contact, I'm sure going to have to find some time to actually, you know, learn Morse. I know this will come as music to the ears of several of my amateur friends. There will be challenges that speak to you more than others, week 21, create a GNU radio flowgraph, is right up my alley, but that might not be the case for you. If you feel inspired, week 47 encourages you to submit an idea for the Ham Challenge next year. So, thank you to Fabian for the efforts and many amateurs who have already contributed to this adventure. What a beauty. I'm off to finish my QSL card. I'm Onno VK6FLAB

Music: Spark Of Inspiration by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.comLicensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licensehttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com

Special thanks to  @VE6LK  for sending me this info. Yaesu has revealed 3 new radios, 2 are VHF only, 1 is a dual band. Let's take a look at see what they're all about.This video is sponsored by M&P Coax - save 10% all on coax, connectors and tools with code HR2CABLES at this link - https://hr2.li/cablesVince's Twitter Post - https://x.com/VE6LK/status/1856896082153718224/photo/3Vince's YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/@VE6LKBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/ham-radio-2-0--2042782/support.

What happens when communication channels falter in the face of global tensions reminiscent of the Civil War era? Join Scott Townsend and executive producer Ben Townsend as they unpack the critical role of communication during these turbulent times. Discover how to navigate the maze of biased media to seek out objective truths amid international conflicts involving China, Taiwan, Russia, and Ukraine. This episode promises to offer insights into the essence of journalism today, highlighting the struggle to discern factual reporting amidst the noise of sensationalism and various agendas, especially in an election year.In the second half of our conversation, Ben shares his personal journey into the empowering world of ham radio. Motivated by the need to communicate without conventional infrastructure, he explores the basics of ham radio, from regional interactions to essential gear like Yaesu HF and VHF radios. Learn why ham radio is an indispensable tool in emergencies and a means to stay connected across distances. Ben invites aspiring operators to start their journey by obtaining a technician license, using resources like hamstudy.org to prepare. Tune in to see how ham radio offers a reliable communication alternative when traditional methods fail.Support the show► Subscribe to The Scott Townsend Show YouTube channel --- https://bit.ly/3iV8sOTThe Scott Townsend Show Merchandise https://teespring.com/stores/tsts-2Resources and Links--------------------------------------------My contact info:LinkedIn https://bit.ly/2ZZ4qweTwitter https://bit.ly/3enLDQaFacebook https://bit.ly/2Od4ItOInstagram https://bit.ly/2ClncWlSend me a text: 918-397-0327Executive Producer: Ben TownsendCreative Consultant: Matthew Blue TownsendShot with a 1080P Webcam with Microphone, https://amzn.to/32gfgAuSamson Technologies Q2U USB/XLR Dynamic Microphone Recording and Podcasting Pack https://amzn.to/3TIbACeVoice Actor: Britney McCulloughLogo by Angie Jordan https://blog.angiejordan.com/contact/Theme Song by Androzguitar https://www.fiverr.com/inbox/androzguitar

Music: Spark Of Inspiration by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.comLicensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licensehttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com

This is The DX Mentor podcast. I hope to help those hams trying to move up the DXCC ladder as well as those that at on the DXCC Honor Roll. As fast as technology is moving, no one can keep up on it all. I am here to help. #DX #Hamradio Hello and welcome to episode 55 of The DX Mentor and our discussion of Geography and DX. Thank you for joining us. I'm Bill, AJ8B.     If this is the first time you are with us, Welcome! We have a back catalog of over 50 episodes covering many aspects of DX in both podcast and YouTube format. Please check us out. If you are new to DXing, I would really recommend episode 1 as it was recorded with several world class DXers. You will get a feel of the excitement that goes with chasing DX!     Remember, if you like what you find, please subscribe, like, and share!  Our guest today is Ralph Bellas, K9ZO. Here is a bit of bio on Ralph “My interests include technology, entrepreneurship, contesting, DXing, CW, VHF, propagation, and being very active on the HF bands. DXpeditions really excite me!  I'm an Assistant Director, 50 Year Member, and Life Member with the ARRL. I'm a past President, State Coordinator, and former Board member of the Society of Midwest Contesters (SMC) - W9SMC.  I am the former "Contesting on a Budget" column editor for the National Contest Journal, NCJ.  I'm a former member of the Metro DX club. I have earned 10BDXCC, 10 Band WAS, and the Triple Play Award.  I am active with DXCC Challenge with 2911 slots.  For DXCC Honor Roll I have 358 Mixed, 353 CW, 358 Phone, and 319 Digital countries.  I earned 5BWAZ.  I've been fortunate to have been part of DX teams which were awarded "DXpedition of the Year." Joe, W8GEX, an accomplished DXer in his own right will also be with us.  Resources mentioned include: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bir_Tawil https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morokulien https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baikonur_Cosmodrome Southwest Ohio DX Assoc. https://www.swodxa.org Daily DX https://www.dailydx.com/ DX Engineering https://www.dxengineering.com/ Icom https://www.icomamerica.com/ IC-905 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-905/ IC-9700 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-9700/ IC-7610 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-7610/ IC-7300 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-7300/

This is The DX Mentor podcast. I hope to help those hams trying to move up the DXCC ladder as well as those that at on the DXCC Honor Roll. As fast as technology is moving, no one can keep up on it all. I am here to help. #DX #Hamradio Today we will be discussing the upcoming DXPedtion to Sao Tome & Principe, S9Z. The following is from their website: “The Dateline DX Association (DDXA), a world-wide DX organization, is pleased to announce to the amateur radio DX community the activation of Sao Tome & Principe, a small island nation off the coast of Gabon from November 11 through November 20, 2024. The license, issued by The General Regulatory Authority (AGER) in Sao Tome and Principe, authorized the call sign S9Z. The international team is comprised of all highly experienced DXers, DXPeditioners, Contesters and Activators. The team will activate all HF bands from 10 through 160m on SSB, CW and Digital modes using stations with amplifiers, hex beams, tall verticals and wires; Will also operate EME on VHF 6m and UHF 432. Our guests today are Ralph, K0IR, Kimo, KH7U, Max, I8AHJ/N5AHJ, and Joe, W8GEX. Resources mentioned include: S9Z Info https://www.qrz.com/db/S9Z S9Z Website https://s9z.org/ Southwest Ohio DX Assoc. https://www.swodxa.org Daily DX https://www.dailydx.com/ DX Engineering https://www.dxengineering.com/ Icom https://www.icomamerica.com/ IC-905 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-905/ IC-9700 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-9700/ IC-7610 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-7610/ IC-7300 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-7300/ 

A new project to improve VHF radio coverage and cell phone service on Māhia Peninsula is hoped to prevent tragedies at sea after the death of three Gisborne fishermen in the area. The bodies of Elwood Higgins, Taina Sinoti and Damien Macpherson were found along the eastern Māhia Peninsula coastline in June, after they'd gone missing in an area of ocean with notoriously bad communications, Hawke's Bay Tairawhiti reporter Alexa Cook reports.

Adam Kimmerly, K6ARK, discovered amateur radio almost by accident through his participation in the San Diego Mountain Rescue organization.  Adam's ham radio interests evolved from VHF to HF SOTA, or Summits on the Air, learning CW, and reaching SOTA Mountain Goat status.  The need for light weight kits to carry to the most difficult to reach summits demanded new expertise in antenna design and construction with 3D printing.  K6ARK tells his ham radio story in this QSO Today.

On this episode Steve Tobis joins us from his home in Maui to talk about: The downwind race season in Hawaii - Including the Voyager race, Paddle Amoa, the Maui to Molokai and Molokai to Oahu races.The key to success in these racesThe physical conditioning and mental tenacity are crucial for endurance and focus during the races.Safety equipment such as PFDs, VHF radios, and EPIRBs are essential for emergencies.Self-sufficiency and preparedness are important in case of equipment failure or unexpected situations.Downwind foiling requires skill, experience, and the ability to adapt to changing conditions. Learning to foil is challenging but rewarding, with incremental success driving motivation.Dry land training, including biking and weight training, is important for building physical strength and stamina in foiling.Recovery strategies, such as stretching and using ice baths, can enhance performance and reduce strain on the body.His favourite foods --- like chicken nuggets and french fries.The advancements in wing design and materials, particularly with the new flash wings from ON Kiteboarding.The new foiling disciplines like prone downwinding and his goals of riding bigger waves in the future.Visit: https://www.instagram.com/steve_tobis/ This episode is brought to you by the Wing Foil Expedition in La Ventana, Baja California Sur. Are you looking for an all-inclusive wing foiling adventure this January with oceanfront accommodations? Visit https://winglifepodcast.com/wing-foil-trips to learn more. ★ Support this podcast ★

A new season is kicking on our door. Are you seeing the Signs, Are you ready? Whirlwind episode covering the latest news, as well as highlighting a poaching hunting story and a kayak fishing adventure that you need to know about. Plus the Rut is On, for Buffalo. Beware. Join radio hosts Rebecca Wanner aka 'BEC' and Jeff ‘Tigger' Erhardt with The Bend Radio Show & Podcast, your news outlet for the latest in Outdoors & Western Lifestyle News! Episode 199 Details Epic Struggle: Kayak Angler's 11-Mile Battle and Poacher's 24-Year Hunting Ban   Latest News: Outdoors & Western Living Marlin Tows Across Ocean Kayak Angler  Listen to this story - How far would you go?? In early August, California fisherman Kei Vang embarked on a fishing trip with two friends, targeting tuna off the coast of California. They were about six miles out when Vang hooked a massive striped marlin, leading to a dramatic five-hour battle.  The marlin towed Vang's 12-foot kayak approximately 11 miles over 5 hours time across the Pacific Ocean before the striped marlin began to tire, beginning to circle underneath the kayak. It was then the angler was able to grab the leader and finally able to get a good look at the billfish which was longer than his kayak, having him believe it to be 13 feet long and estimated to weigh around 200 pounds. He then managed to cut the line and release the fish. An Epic Struggle! Vang and his friends had to use GPS units mounted on their kayaks to map the distance the striped marlin had taken them, which totaled about 20 miles from shore. They were carrying extra batteries along with VHF radios and other safety gear. As night fell, realizing it would take hours to paddle back, they called a friend with a power boat who rescued them and towed their kayaks back. Vang said every kayak angler's dream is to catch a big fish and have a photo made of it holding it up next to their kayak… That wasn't possible with his Striped Marlin, who didn't get a photo with the marlin, considered having a replica mount made instead. FACEBOOK AIDES IN CATCHING POACHER In December 2023, photos of a famous nontypical Virginia buck, known as the "Hollywood Buck," posted on Facebook led to accusations against Virginia resident Jason Walters for poaching. Walters, who initially claimed to have killed the deer in Prince Edward County, was identified as having illegally hunted the buck and two other whitetails from Richmond, Virginia. Following a thorough investigation by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR), Walters pled guilty to 20 wildlife violations. He was sentenced to six months in jail (with three months suspended), fined $2,500, and ordered to pay $11,000 in restitution. His hunting privileges were revoked for 100 years, but with 76 years suspended, leaving an effective ban of 24 years. Walters' accomplice was also found guilty and received a $1,250 fine, 30 days of house arrest, and a six-year suspension of his hunting privileges. The DWR emphasized that these penalties are among the harshest ever imposed and aim to deter future wildlife crimes. Investigations revealed that Walters had previously posted photos of the Hollywood Buck and other deer on Facebook, which were linked to the poaching incident. This case highlights the critical role of social media in wildlife law enforcement. Reference https://dwr.virginia.gov/media/press-release/dwr-statement-on-the-court-resolution-of-the-illegal-killing-of-three-deer-including-the-hollywood-buck/ https://www.outdoorlife.com/conservation/hollywood-cemetery-buck-poaching-investigation/ Alert! Bison, Buffalo The Rut Is On  For those heading to ANY United States park with Buffalo, Bison… Take this as "You've been warned"… The Yellowstone National Park rangers have a statement for everyone: The bison rut is in full swing. You may see mature males with their mouth open, tongue out and upper lips pulled back. This is how bull bison sniff pheromones and determine whether a female is ready to breed. Bulls will also display their dominance by bellowing, wallowing, and engaging in fights with other bulls. The winners earn the right to mate with receptive females. Bison are unpredictable and can run three times faster than humans. Use extra caution and give them additional space during this time. So let us add this, we hit on the topic last week; Please DO NOT become a Touron… A Tourist that is a Moron. A Touron. Don't Be That Guy. Reference https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touron https://www.facebook.com/YellowstoneNPS   FIELD REPORTS & COMMENTS Call or Text your questions, or comments to 305-900-BEND or 305-900-2363 Or email BendRadioShow@gmail.com FOLLOW Facebook/Instagram: @thebendshow https://www.facebook.com/thebendshow SUBSCRIBE to The Bend YouTube Channel. Website: TheBendShow.com https://thebendshow.com/ #catchBECifyoucan #tiggerandbec #outdoors #travel #cowboys The Outdoors, Rural America, And Wildlife Conservation are Center-Stage. AND how is that? Because Tigger & BEC… Live This Lifestyle. Learn more about Jeff ‘Tigger' Erhardt & Rebecca Wanner aka BEC here: TiggerandBEC.com https://tiggerandbec.com/   WESTERN LIFESTYLE & THE OUTDOORS Jeff 'Tigger' Erhardt & Rebecca 'BEC' Wanner are News Broadcasters that represent the Working Ranch world, Rodeo, and the Western Way of Life as well as advocate for the Outdoors and Wildlife Conservation. Outdoorsmen themselves, this duo strives to provide the hunter, adventurer, cowboy, cowgirl, rancher and/or successful farmer, and anyone interested in agriculture with the knowledge, education, and tools needed to bring high-quality beef and the wild game harvested to your table for dinner. They understand the importance in sharing meals with family, cooking the fruits of our labor and fish from our adventures, and learning to understand the importance of making memories in the outdoors. Appreciate God's Country. United together, this duo offers a glimpse into and speaks about what life truly is like at the end of dirt roads and off the beaten path. Tigger & BEC look forward to hearing from you, answering your questions and sharing in the journey of making your life a success story. Adventure Awaits Around The Bend.  

This is The DX Mentor podcast. I hope to help those hams trying to move up the DXCC ladder as well as those that at on the DXCC Honor Roll. As fast as technology is moving, no one can keep up on it all. I am here to help. #DX #Hamradio In this episode of The DX Mentor, our Ralph, K9ZO, will share many ways that he has improved his DXing. Ralph is very accomplished as his bio states "My interests include technology, entrepreneurship, contesting, DXing, CW, VHF, propagation, and being very active on the HF bands. DXpeditions really excite me! I'm an Assistant Director, 50 Year Member, and Life Member with the ARRL. I'm a past President, State Coordinator, and former Board member of the Society of Midwest Contesters (SMC) - W9SMC. I am the former "Contesting on a Budget" column editor for the National Contest Journal, NCJ. I'm a former member of the Metro DX club. I have earned 10BDXCC, 10 Band WAS, and the Triple Play Award. I am active with DXCC Challenge with 2911 slots. For DXCC Honor Roll I have 358 Mixed, 353 CW, 358 Phone, and 319 Digital countries. I earned 5BWAZ. I've been fortunate to have been part of DX teams which were awarded "DXpedition of the Year." Here are some of the links that we mention during the discussion: QRZ https://www.qrz.com/ DX Summit http://www.dxsummit.fi/#/ DXCC Country List https://www.arrl.org/files/file/DXCC/2020%20DXCC%20Current%20.pdf Clublog Most Wanted https://clublog.org/mostwanted.php N1MM https://n1mmwp.hamdocs.com/ DXLabs https://dxlabsuite.com/ Southwest Ohio DX Assoc. https://www.swodxa.org DX Code of Conduct : https://www.dx-code.com/ Daily DX https://www.dailydx.com/ DX Engineering https://www.dxengineering.com/ Icom https://www.icomamerica.com/ IC-905 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-905/ IC-9700 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-9700/ IC-7610 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-7610/ IC-7300 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-7300/

This is The DX Mentor podcast. I hope to help those hams trying to move up the DXCC ladder as well as those that at on the DXCC Honor Roll. As fast as technology is moving, no one can keep up on it all. I am here to help. #DX #Hamradio In this episode of The DX Mentor, our Ralph, K9ZO, will share many ways that he has improved his DXing. Ralph is very accomplished as his bio states "My interests include technology, entrepreneurship, contesting, DXing, CW, VHF, propagation, and being very active on the HF bands. DXpeditions really excite me! I'm an Assistant Director, 50 Year Member, and Life Member with the ARRL. I'm a past President, State Coordinator, and former Board member of the Society of Midwest Contesters (SMC) - W9SMC. I am the former "Contesting on a Budget" column editor for the National Contest Journal, NCJ. I'm a former member of the Metro DX club. I have earned 10BDXCC, 10 Band WAS, and the Triple Play Award. I am active with DXCC Challenge with 2911 slots. For DXCC Honor Roll I have 358 Mixed, 353 CW, 358 Phone, and 319 Digital countries. I earned 5BWAZ. I've been fortunate to have been part of DX teams which were awarded "DXpedition of the Year." Here are some of the links that we mention during the discussion: QRZ https://www.qrz.com/ DX Summit http://www.dxsummit.fi/#/ DXCC Country List https://www.arrl.org/files/file/DXCC/2020%20DXCC%20Current%20.pdf Clublog Most Wanted https://clublog.org/mostwanted.php N1MM https://n1mmwp.hamdocs.com/ DXLabs https://dxlabsuite.com/ Southwest Ohio DX Assoc. https://www.swodxa.org DX Code of Conduct : https://www.dx-code.com/ Daily DX https://www.dailydx.com/ DX Engineering https://www.dxengineering.com/ Icom https://www.icomamerica.com/ IC-905 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-905/ IC-9700 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-9700/ IC-7610 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-7610/ IC-7300 https://www.icomamerica.com/lineup/products/IC-7300/

Greetings Dead Freaks!BrokedownPod returns with new music, a great guest, and some good old Grateful Dead. Andy Logan, founder of the Grateful Guitars Foundation and steward of Jerry Garcia's Alligator guitar joins me to discuss the mission of the foundation, the magic within these special instruments, a new benefit album, and the upcoming show to support the foundation. The new album, which benefits Grateful Guitars, is called "Grateful: The Music Plays The Band" and features Oteil Burbridge, Dave Nelson Band, Dark Star Orchestra, Afro Dead and more. It's out now and can be found in physical and streaming outlets via this link.The benefit concert is on August 13 at the Great American Music Hall (an auspicious date to be in that room) and features Melvin Seals, John Kadlecik, Pete Sears, Barry Sless, Dave Hidalgo and a bunch of other great players. Tickets are on sale now and you can learn more at the Grateful Guitars website. Please do check out the mission of the Grateful Guitars foundation and consider offering your support.Also in this episode, I spoke about a few new albums that I'm enjoying. From Elkhorn, I raved about the fuzzed out explorations on their album "Other Worlds", out now from Sunrise Ocean Bender/Feeding Tube/Cardinal Fuzz/Deep Water Acres. I didn't mention that the joint release is a tribute to the founder of SOB, Kevin McFadin who passed last year. I had some interactions with McFadin myself and enjoyed a number of SOB releases. He will certainly be missed.You can grip "Other Worlds" via Sunrise Ocean Bender's Bandcamp Page.You can grip the other Elkhorn release, "The Red Valley" from VHF records; also on Bandcamp.If you're on the hunt for some more new music, take a minute to peruse my Bandcamp collection. This is just stuff that I have picked up on the site over the years and I don't get anything from it other than the satisfaction that I've helped someone find something awesome.Last but far from least, the latest from Seawind of Battery, "East Coast Cosmic Dreamscaper" is available for your own dreamscape accompaniment via Warhen records. Note that the CD has a bonus track not on the LP! Check it out on Bandcamp. You can also grab my latest album, "So Below" from my Bandcamp page: JMHart.bandcamp.com and it you would like a BrokedownPod t-shirt or sticker or other merch in that vein, please head over to my Redbubble virtual merch table. All proceeds go straight toward hosting costs and are much appreciated.The Brokedown Podcast is part of Osiris Media. Osiris is creating a community that connects people like you with podcasts and live experiences about artists and topics you love. Check out osirispod.com for more!The Brokedown Podcast is on Mastodon! My account can be found @rowjimmy@shakedown.social. I still have an Instagram account under the handle, @brokedownpod. If you like pictures of things, you can find that here: BrokedownPod Instagram. Also, if you use Apple Podcasts, please consider posting a review as it really help get the word out.Also, please keep sending your metaphorical cards and letters. Leave a comment on the blog or hit me up on any of the above social media. Let me know what I'm doing right, wrong, or horribly wrong.