WIANEWS - April 8 - VK NATIONAL NEWS ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE BEST NEWS YOU'LL GET ALL WEEK Oh... and to contact us with your news because If It Matters To You It Matters To Us! Email nationalnews@wia.org.au http://www.wia.org.au (click news in member area) Submit your audio news TWITTER http://twitter.com/VK1WIA Please... If you are only submitting text and not audio, write your story as you would expect to hear it being read back and NEVER send just links & url's. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ THE FOLLOWING STORIES IN THIS EDITION OF NEWS FROM THE WIRELESS INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA FOR WEEK COMMENCING APRIL 8 2012. Now we seldom report on virus's or Trojans, believing that the emails about such things can be almost more intrusive than the 'bug themselves' and let's face it if you are not running an auto updating virus scanning program you deserve what may happen! Hihi. BUT Is your computer infected with DNSChanger? ACMA put out a note about DNSChanger which is malicious software (malware) that may have been installed on your computer without your knowledge. Approximately 10,000 Australian internet users are currently infected with this malware. If your computer is infected you need to remove it. If you don’t remove it by 9 July 2012, you won’t be able to connect to the internet. The Australian Communications and Media Authority, CERTAustralia (the federal government’s computer emergency response team) and the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy have collaborated to develop a diagnostic website that, in most cases, shows you whether or not you are infected with DNSChanger. This website is dns-ok.gov.au If you are infected, dns-ok.gov.au provides links to tools and detailed documentation that may help you remove the infection. (ACMA) MyMP Improved reception of the commercial radio service 3MP in northern and western Melbourne as the Australian Communications and Media Authority allows an increase to the maximum transmitting power of Melbourne commercial radio broadcasting service 3MP–from 1225 volts to 2140 volts (equivalent to 5 kilowatts to 8.2 kilowatts) and change the direction of its radiation pattern. This will allow expanded coverage of northern and western Melbourne. 3MP has been previously known by the on-air identities, 3MTR and MTR1377. This follows public consultation on the proposal, released in November 2011, to vary the Licence Area Plan – Melbourne Radio – June 2000 (the Melbourne LAP). WIA President Michael Owen VK3KI president@wia.org.au Vice President Phil Wait VK2ASD vk2asd@wia.org.au Secretary Sarah Thompson VK3AUD secretary@wia.org.au Treasurer John Longayroux VK3PZ vk3pz@wia.org.au TARC AND TASSIE do WIA National Field Day The WIA National Field Day will be happening next Saturday and Sunday April 14th and 15th theTARCinc will be running displays about the different aspects of Amateur Radio at the front door of Jaycar Electronics Townsville store in Ingham Road West End Saturday April 14th from 7-30am. Hams need to help with this activity to publicise the worthwhile hobby of Amateur Radio to the wider community. Get along to wave the flag and have some fun as well ! Those listening in VK7 REAST will hold a display again this year as part of the WIA National Field Day. It's on NEXT weekend April 14th and 15th. Have you got some equipment such as an outdoor marquee or gazebo to help set up a display? It's a few DAYS away but please give it some thought as to how you can help make this event a success for the club and the hobby in general. WIA CONFERENCE I’m Bob, VK6POP, reminding you that the Wireless Institute’s Annual Conference is coming up fast. It’s now next month instead of sometime in the future. The Conference dates are Friday 25th to Sunday 27th May. The weekend program is centred around the Mildura Grand Hotel. The weekend will commence on Friday evening at the historic Settlers Club with a buffet dinner. On Saturday morning the WIA Annual General Meeting will be followed by the Open Forum. I can assure you that the AGM will be brief and to the point, and should serve as a model for club agms. The open forum gives Amateur an opportunity to ask Questions of the Board, or to raise issues of interest and concern. Lunch is provided for all registered attendees. On Saturday afternoon there is a technical symposium at which several items of interest will be presented. On Saturday evening the Annual Dinner will be held in the Grand Ballroom at the Mildura Grand Hotel. Sunday will feature a cruise and lunch on the famous Paddleboat Mundoo. For those remaining in Mildura on Sunday night, a casual BBQ has been arranged at the home of Noel Ferguson VK3FI, Fergus Park, Nichols Point. Accommodation is available at the Mildura Grand Hotel, as well as in several other hotels and caravan parks. So how about it? Still thinking about going? Or maybe you never gave it any thought until now? Well give it a go. These annual conferences are great weekends, where you get to catch up with old friends and make new ones. Information about the weekend and an online booking form are on the WIA website, www.wia.org.au HAMS ACROSS AUSTRALIA. VK4 - QNEWS Send your stories for news. SCRIPT to qnews@wia.org.au send audio to http://www.wia.org.au/members/broadcast/upload/ get local audio news www.wiaq.org.au/ftp/vk4_qnews_64.mp3 get local news emailed qnews-vk-subscribe@yahoogroups.com VK4 SILENT KEYS @ 2011 - 2012 QAC YEAR VK4MUJ Jean Bowden passed away 2nd January 2012 advised by VK4ZZ VK4BAY Roy Mahoney January 2012 advised by VK4BSH VK4AFW Frank Alloway 15th January 2012 advised by VK4FABR VK4KEL Geoff Sanders 4th April 2012 advised by VK4OD Welcome to QNews from VK4WIA. I’m Geoff Emery, VK4ZPP and I’ve been thinking. When computers first entered the consumer electronics market, software soon became available for the original “digital” mode, Morse Code. Soon followed RTTY, Slow Scan TV and Fax. Derivatives of other modes such as TOR, Teletype over Radio and Packet came along. Today there is a plethora of software especially written for the amateur operator. Nobel prize winner, Joe Taylor, has put his skills to work in developing programs optimised for the weak signal operator. There is so much more work being done in this part of the hobby. In an attempt to utilise the features of the internet to provide greater diversity of contact types, our sister society, the JARL, sponsored the development of the D-Star modes. For the translation between digital and analogue voice, a firmware codec was chosen. The catch is that the codec is a commercial product which attracts a licence fee for each device in which it is used. The challenge for the amateur programmers is to successfully develop a freeware alternative. This would allow many of the digital commercial radios coming out service to join the amateur ranks as their analogue antecedents have done. I’m Geoff Emery and that’s what I think....how about you? CLUBBING Submitting news items If you would like to submit news items for inclusion in the QNEWS broadcasts, please email your item in text to qnews@wia.org.au Submit audio, read "how to submit items" on the weekly WIA news page. http://www.wia.org.au/members/broadcast/upload/ Remember the sooner you submit material the more the likelihood of it being broadcast in the very next edition of QNEWS. BARC http://www.qsl.net/vk4ba or, by E-mail to vk4ba@qsl.net This is Stuart, VK4MSL with news from the Brisbane Amateur Radio Club. BARCfest will take place *two weeks later* than usual, at 9:30AM Saturday, 26th May 2012, at the usual venue, 1600 Logan Road, Upper Mt. Gravatt. There will be the usual displays of equipment and parts for sale, tech talks, and of course, an opportunity to catch up with old friends at Cafe-de-BARC. Admission is $7.00. For further information, see the BARC website: http://www.qsl.net/vk4ba/ Redcliffe and District Radio Club www.redclifferadioclub.org.au/ I’m Ray, VK4CF with news from Redcliffe & Districts Radio club. The year just seems to be getting busier and busier. After a successful Moyle, and more about that later, the activities for the club this month are:- 9th April General Business Meeting. Please note Roger, VK4ZLQ will not be present for the meeting and has requested you bring your copy of the minutes to ensure that the they are correct. From the 11th till the 16th April, the Wednesday group will be involved in assembling the portable station and equipment for the Titanic anniversary, setting up the station at Maritime Museum, Stanley Street, South Bank, Brisbane, participating in the activity and finally packing up and returning all equipment to the club. 16th April Technical Talk with evening Kevin VK4UG – Meteor Scatter Propagation, and to end the month:- 23rd April Fox Hunt Well the Moyle has come and gone for another year. This year we had the rain. It was the first time in some 5 years that the club had to stop transmitting for a period of about of 6 hours as it was just too dangerous to the equipment to continue. 2 stalwarts of the club and of the Moyle were Andy, VK4KY and Glenn, Vk4FZ who were back again this year. Antennas were set up on the afternoon of Friday in fine conditions and by 3.30 pm on the Saturday, RAIN. Heavy “Brisbane type” rain for the next 6 hours. Too dangerous to operate in and with the possible damage to the equipment and nothing else to do but to enjoy a few cordials and resume when conditions improve. Despite all this the field day was a success, many contacts made. Many thanks to the stream of helpers who were there to set up, bringing food and other supplies and for the clean-up who had the site totally cleared by 2 pm on Sunday afternoon. WIA Queensland Centenary. Kevin VK4UH advised that this year is the centenary celebration of the WIA in Queensland. The club has decided to participate and will apply for the use of the special call sign. Grace Lutheran College. Kevin VK4UH advised the club that he had approached Grace Lutheran College enquiring about access to the large steerable dish that they have on their grounds. The dish is currently used by senior physics classes and is operational. The College was most receptive to interacting with the club and Kevin believes that the dish could be used for EME activities on 2 metres and higher frequencies. Just a reminder that James, VK4TJF, conducts CW courses at the club on Thursday evenings from 7.00pm until 9.00pm and about the regular trivia contest conducted on the 70 cm repeater each Wednesday night starting about 7.30 pm. If we don’t use the frequency allocation we will lose it! Well this is about all at the moment and so it’s 73 until next time from Ray, VK4CF, from the Redcliffe club. News from Townsville As local VK listeners heard in QNEWS last weekend there is to be a 2012 WIA-QAC Presidents Lunch and 100th Anniversary of organized Amateur Radio in Queensland. We now have the venue, Presidents Lunch, hosted by Hervey Bay Amateur Radio Club will be at the Hervey Bay RSL Club starting at 10am on Saturday 21st July. That’s at the lower, or Eastern end of the Bay. WIA President Michael VK3KI will be special guest speaker and attendees will include WIA Directors and members of the WIA-QAC along with committee and members of various QLD Amateur Radio Clubs. The Centenary Celebration BBQ will also be hosted by the Hervey Bay Amateur Radio Club on Sunday 22nd July. What use is an f-call? (Past editions of What use is an f-call can be found online at harg.org.au under F-troop.) Recently I was sitting on a plane talking to a person whom I had just met. We were discussing our interests and experience and the subject of Amateur Radio came up. There was the obligatory CB radio comment and some discussion about marine radio, but the discussion boiled down to this: "What's the point?" I eased into the subject by observing that as a hobby I found it to be technically challenging without it having a direct relationship to my day-job in IT. We discussed the ideas that embody the hobby, non-commercial use, experimentation, discovery, camaraderie. We talked about the natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina, the Boxing Day Tsunami, the Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan and the subsequent issues with their nuclear power plant. I explained about making contacts and exchanging information, call-signs, signal reports, dealing with electricity and backup batteries and the like. The conversation went for about an hour, we talked about the SES, about HF long distance contacts, the solar cycle, the ionosphere, experiments and the development of technologies like the mobile phone. The thing that struck me during this conversation, looking at the topics we discussed, some in passing, some in-depth (well, to the depth of my eclectic knowledge at least), that Amateur Radio touches a lot of aspects of society. I used to think that IT was the only field that impacted the world every where in every which way. Now I'm not so sure. Amateur Radio to me appears to have dibs on a large chunk. I supposes I'm saying that Amateur Radio has a public relations issue, people don't know it exists, yet it affects their lives in ways that most never even notice. Perhaps all this just relates to my better understanding of the Radio Frequency spectrum and my personal part in the puzzle, but I think society would benefit from at least a smidgen of the understanding that comes with having an Amateur License. If you have thoughts on the matter, I'd love to hear from you. I'm Onno VK6FLAB SILENT KEY Geoffrey Allan Sanders VK4KEL has gone silent key following a VERY long battle with various forms of cancer. He was but 62 , born in September of 49 in Horsham VK3. Geoff was a past President of the Sunshine Coast Amateur Radio Club, Past President of the Wireless Institute of Australia Queensland Division, a former VK4 Federal Councillor and Alternate Federal Councillor of the Wireless Institute of Australia. MORE IMPORTANTLY - Geoff VK4KEL will be remembered for his support for we VietNam Vets. Geoff, 217459 served with 104 Signal Sqn Vietnam IN 1969. Geoff was given just 2 hours as he lay in the Prince Charles Hospital Sunday yet fought on until he passed 4th April being kept comfortable during his last days with Jen and his children by his side. His loss will leave a huge hole in our lives as he has been a friend of ours since commencing QNEWS back i 94-5. Geoff was President and Secretary of the old WIAQ and when we first started QNEWS on packet radio was the first WIA Official who started to tell it's members "what was what".. thanks to Geoff the walls of WIA secrecy started to be broken... It wasn't again and not since the late Chris Jones that we knew week to week what our society was doing for us. I know Geoff will be sadly missed by many others who knew by QSO, WIA work, and his work with the Vet community, knew him well. More in local QNEWS bulletins as it comes to hand. INTERNATIONAL NEWS With thanks to IARU, RSGB, SARL, Southgate AR Club, ARRL, Amateur Radio Newsline, NZART, ARVictoria and the WW sources of the WIA. JOE WALSH, WB6ACU, IS AN ANALOG MAN Grammy Award-winning rock-and-roll legend Joe Walsh, WB6ACU, returns with Analogue Man, set to be released June 5. This is Walsh's first solo album since 1992's Songs for a Dying Planet. Walsh -- best known for his powerful guitar licks -- joined the Eagles in 1976 and is credited for bringing a harder rock sound to the band with the acclaimed Hotel California, The Long Run and Eagles Live. No stranger to the analogue way of life, Walsh -- an ARRL Life Member -- enjoys operating on 80 metres AM. Check out Analogue Man -- the title track of Walsh's new album and details of his South African tour starting on 4 April in Cape Town http://www.joewalsh.com/ (SARL) World Amateur Radio Day On April 18, 2012 we will celebrate the World Amateur Radio Day on the 87th Anniversary of the founding of the International Amateur Radio Union. This year´s theme for the World Amateur Radio Day is “Amateur Radio Satellites: Celebrating 50 Years in Space" and we will have much more on this world event shortly in our special interest group segment. 50 watts for Foundation holders in Belgium The UBA reports on plans to allow Belgian Foundation licence holders to run 50 watts on HF instead of the previous 10 watts. Belgian Foundation holders are currently permitted 50 watts on 144 and 430MHz and 10 watts in the bands from 3.5 to 52 MHz The new proposal means they would be able to run 50 watts on the HF and 6m bands. The website of the national radio society the UBA says that taking into account the 3dB rule this would permit the use of a standard 100W transceiver. See the proposals in Google English at http://tinyurl.com/Belgium50wFoundation Lightning strike survivor feels lucky to be alive K.A.K.E. News reports that radio amateur Bill Isles KD 0 IIF is recovering after he survived a lightning strike and used his ham radio to call for help. Seems the volunteer storm spotter was standing in his backyard and thought the lightning was far away! "In the distance, I would hear thunder and see lightning. I didn't think anything was quite that close," said Bill. "And it came as quite a shock." That shock knocked Bill to the ground. The only thing nearby was his amateur radio. When Bill called for help through the ham radio, Mike KD 0 IJO, heard his call and phoned 911. Read the full KAKE News story at http://www.kake.com/news/headlines/Wichita_Man_Struck_By_ Lightning_During_Thursday_Storms_145019845.html ============================================================================= JAPAN TO LAUNCH AMATEUR RADIO SATELLITES Big news on the ham radio space scene. This with word that the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency has announced the upcoming launch of five amateur radio satellites. This, on two launches taking place this spring and summer. Amateur Radio Newsline’s Stephen Kinford, N8WB, is here with more: The first launch is the H2A that takes place on May 17th. It will carry the amateur radio satellite HORYU-2. This will be followed on July 21st when the HTV3 mission. It will deliver the JEM-Small Satellite Orbital Deployer or J-SSOD to the International Space Station. That unit will enable small satellites to be deployed from the ISS using the Japanese Experiment Module robot arm. The Japanese amateur radio satellites WE-WISH and FITSAT-1, along with San Jose State University’s TechEdSat and Vietnam’s F-1 will also be delivered to the I-S-S on this mission. Plans are for them to be deployed to orbit on September 20th. For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I’m Stephen Kinford, N8WB, in Wadsworth, Ohio. ARRL SPONSORING WEBINAR TO HELP YOU PUBLICIZE FIELD DAY The ARRL Public Relations Committee will be holding a free Webinar on Thursday evening April 12 for Public Information Officers, radio club officers and anyone else wanting to join in. This, to teach the easiest and most effective way to write a press release for Field Day and actually get it noticed by the mass media in your home region. The webinar will begin at 9 pm Eastern Daylight Time and will run for about 90 minutes. Several experts in mass media communications will be on hand to teach the tricks of the trade in dealing with radio, television and print publications. Pre-registration is required. To reserve a spot simply take your web browser to tinyurl.com/arrl-field-day-webinar or directly at https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/278619454. Space is limited so if you want to take part you need to sign up today. ESPN EMPLOYEES CREATE THE WORLDWIDE AMATEUR RADIO CLUB Current and former employees of the Entertainment and Sports Network, better known to the public as ESPN, have formed the Worldwide Amateur Radio Club. Located on the grounds of the ESPN facility in Bristol, Connecticut, the group has now been granted the club call WE1SPN . At present the club has about 40 members. Inaugural operations were to take place on 7.177 MHz at 21:00 UTC on March 29th. This opening gala was to include trying to contact as may radio clubs at Disney theme parks as possible. The Worldwide Amateur Radio Club is the latest bin a long series of broadcast industry based employee recreation entities. It joins similar employee groups at the CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox networks as well as at a number of broadcast stations nationwide and world-wide. More about WE1SPN can be found by checking the listing page for their callsign on QRZ.com ANDY SENNITT TO RETIRE FROM RNW END OF APRIL Andy Sennitt who edited the now closed Radio Netherlands Media Network weblog says that he will be retiring from that international broadcaster at the end of April. Sennitt says that during his last weeks at Radio Netherlands that he will be writing a series of articles reflecting on the changes in international broadcasting since he started appearing on the Media Network radio show in 1981 as well as looking ahead to the coming decade. This perspective will be published on the Radio Netherlands English language website. Sennitt asks that if you have any memories of Radio Netherlands or any other international broadcasters that you would like to share, please e-mail them to him. He can be reached at MediaNetwork (at) rnw (dot) nl. Sennitt adds that he will try to include them in the articles as is possible. NASA ANNOUNCES ISSLIVE! APP NASA has announced the release of the ISSLive! app for iPhone, iPad and Android devices. Amateur Radio Newsline’s David Black, KB4KCH, has the details: The ISS Live! app delivers live streaming data from the International Space Station. Users can take a virtual 3-D tour of the Mission Control Centre and the space station, and view mission control console displays with real-time data. Interactive educational lessons using the data, as well as crew and science timelines with individual crew member, social media and international science experiment details are also available via the app. The space agency calls ISSLive! an innovative, interactive application that provides a novel way to learn about the International Space Station while on the go. To learn more and find links to download the ISSLive! app, visit spacestationlive.jsc.nasa.gov. That’s where you will find the icons for the iPhone App Store and the Android Market. I’m David Black, KB4KCH, from the South-East bureau in Birmingham, Alabama. NASA CONSIDERING LAGRANGE POINT OUTPOST NASA is pressing forward on assessing the value of a human-tended outpost near the far side of the moon. One that would embrace international partnerships as well as commercial and academic participation, According to SPACE.com, William Gerstenmaier is NASA's Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and operations. And in a February 3rd memo Gerstenmaier says that a team is being formed to develop a cohesive plan for exploring a spot in space known as the Earth-moon Lagrange point. Lagrange points sometimes called liberation points, are places in space where the combined gravitational pull of two large masses roughly balance each other out. This would allow a spacecraft or other object to essentially park in that spot without being pulled toward either one of the masses. A pre-memo NASA appraisal of Lagrange Point EML-2, which is near the lunar far side, has spotlighted this destination as the leading option for a near-term space study. EML-2 could serve as a gateway for exploration of multiple destinations including near-lunar space, our own moon, asteroids, the moons of Mars and ultimately, the red planet itself. ============================================================================= WEIRD AND WONDERFUL Around the World 28 MHz Balloon A long duration balloon mission that is using 6 Party Balloons to carry a 50 gram amateur radio 28.223 MHz CW beacon, is hoping to go around the world. The balloon was released from Annapolis in Maryland and started its journey heading SE at 6 knots finally reaching 96 km/h. It has no APRS, just the 28.223 MHz CW telemetry system and it is hoped to locate it by signal strength and beam headings only. The mission is to give an insight into constant-pressure balloons and especially the use of common mylar party balloons as a fixed volume envelope. Unfortunately, these balloons have a high mass and so the theoretical maximum altitude no matter how many balloons are used is only about 26,000 feet and that is with no payload other than the fixed balloon mass. The payload weighs about 50 grams. The team are targeting 6 party balloons 3' in diameter which should give a float altitude around 16,000 feet. The Telemetry will be in CW on 28.223 MHz (USB DIAL) and will contain Battery voltage, inside and outside temperatures, and surface luminosity of the ocean/clouds. It has no GPS. The team will rely entirely on DF bearings and signal reports. SPECIAL EVENTS AND ON AIR CONTEST COLUMN - D A T E L I N E 2012 WW FISTS TITANIC SPRINT April 15 VK/ZL AM/CW on ANZAC DAY April 25 VK/ZL Trans Tasman Contest 80metres Phone May 12 VK Shires Contest June 9-10 ZL NZART Memorial Contest July First full weekend VK/ZL Trans Tasman Contest 80+160metres July 21 VK Remembrance Day Contest August 11-12 WW International Lighthouse Lightship Wknd August 18-19 T.C.S.W.A.T. active again at Gallipoli for AM and CW on ANZAC Day Tevfik TA1HZ has confirmed with Mike VK4MIK that the Turkish Portable Operations team TCSWAT will be active again as TC57A from Gallipoli for AM and CW on ANZAC Day. They will arrive at the site of operations on Saturday 21st April and finish operations there on Thursday 26th April. TCSWAT hope to operate SSB, CW, PSK31 and maybe even SSTV from the Gallipoli. Is your station going to be involved with AM and CW on ANZAC Day ? Contact Mike VK4MIK now on email vk4mike@yahoo.com.au SPECIAL EVENT STATIONS, DX and BEACON AND NET ADVICE DXCC Country/Entity Report According to the Amateur Radio Cluster Network for the week of Sunday, 25th-March, through Sunday, 1st-April there were 235 countries active. ZD8, Ascension Island The ZD8, Ascension Island bureau has closed. A full list of countries that do not have a bureau is available on the http://www.irts.ie/cgi/qsl.cgi "DX Code of Conduct" Audio by John VK2JJW I will listen, and listen, and then listen again before calling. I will only call if I can copy the DX station properly. I will not trust the DX cluster and will be sure of the DX station's call sign before calling. I will not interfere with the DX station nor anyone calling and will never tune up on the DX frequency or in the QSX slot. I will wait for the DX station to end a contact before I call. I will always send my full call sign. I will call and then listen for a reasonable interval. I will not call continuously. I will not transmit when the DX operator calls another call sign, not mine. I will not transmit when the DX operator queries a call sign not like mine. I will not transmit when the DX station requests geographic areas other than mine. When the DX operator calls me, I will not repeat my call sign unless I think he has copied it incorrectly. I will be thankful if and when I do make a contact. I will respect my fellow radio amateurs and conduct myself so as to earn their respect. AWARDS RSGB Commonwealth Century Club Jubilee Award 2012 Of course this year is the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and mindful that the Queen is the head of the Commonwealth of Nations we remind you of that new operating award To qualify for this attractive certificate all you need to do is to work as many different countries and call areas on the Commonwealth Century Club list during 2012. Certificates will be awarded for working 60 and 100 different call areas. Use any mode or bands you like and QSL cards are not required. Score sheets and full details can be downloaded from www.beru.org.uk/CCCaward/CCCindex.html G3PJT@btinternet.com WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- FINAL FRONTIER AMSAT-VK UNOFFICIAL HF Net. 2nd Sunday each month. April through October 1000 UTC 3.685 MHz November through March 0900 UTC 7.068 MHz MicroThrust Motor for Nanosats Imagine reaching the Moon using just a tenth of a litre of fuel. With their ionic motor, MicroThrust, EPFL scientists and their European partners are making this a reality, ushering in a new era of low-cost space exploration. The goal is to provide efficient propulsion systems for nanosatellites (1-100 kg), which are currently stuck in whatever orbit they were initially placed: the plan is to free them to allow nanosatellites to perform orbital manoeuvring, and missions to the Moon, to Near Earth Objects, or even to Mars. World Amateur Radio Day - April 18 On April 18, 2012, radio amateurs will be celebrating World Amateur Radio Day on the 87th Anniversary of the founding of the International Amateur Radio Union, IARU. This year´s theme for the World Amateur Radio Day is “Amateur Radio Satellites: Celebrating 50 Years in Space” in remembrance the launching of OSCAR 1 on December 12, 1961 and the launch of OSCAR 2 on June 2, 1962. For this reason there will be several special event stations from IARU’s Member Societies active on different dates during April: 6H6IARU by the Federación Mexicana de Radio Experimentadores who has commissioned this operation to Grupo DXXE. This station will be active from 13 to 18 April in all modes and bands. QSL via LoTW and N7RO, direct or bureau. Daily logs uploads will be available in ClubLog. 3G87IARU by the Radio Club de Chile. This station will be active throughout the month of April. QSL via CE3AA. LZ1WARD by the Bulgarian Federation of Radio Amateurs also will be active throughout the month of April. QSL via bureau. EL2RL by the Liberia Radio Amateur Association will be active on April 18 on 10, 15, 17 and 20 meters. Direct QSL to EL2BA. HB9WARD by Union Schweizerischer Kurzwellen-Amateure to be active also on April 18. This first time callsign will be on the air by HB9JOE and a group of radio amateurs from Bern. QSL via HB9JOE. HF87WARD by members of the SP-CFF (SP0CFF). This station will be active from April, 17 to 30. QSL via eQSL.cc and WFF LogSerach. For those who want to send card direct, please send SASE to: Polish Club Flora & Fauna, Suchacz, Wielmozy 5b, 82-340 Tolkmicko, Poland. They will even have an award for this operation. IARU Region 2 http://www.iaru-r2.org/ SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- STAMP COLLECTING AMATEURS radiostamps@yahoogroups.com LUXEMBOURG ISSUES STAMP TO CELEBRATE 75 YEARS OF AMATEUR RADIO Founded in 1937, the Réseau Luxembourgeois des Amateurs d'Ondes Courtes (RL ) -- that country's IARU Member-Society -- is celebrating its 75th anniversary. In honour of this milestone, Luxembourg's Entreprise des Postes et Télécommunications (P&TLuxembourg) has issued a .60 € postage stamp (about 80 cents in US currency); P&TLuxembourg is that country's government owned corporation for mail and telecommunications. This is one of three commemorative stamps issued by Luxembourg in 2012 . (ARRL) LOW DOWN IN THE NEWS NZ4O MF (300-3000 KC) Radiowave Propagation Forecast The NZ4O MF (300-3000 KC) Radiowave Propagation Forecast #2012-14 has been published at 0000 UTC on Friday March 30, 2012, valid 0000 UTC Saturday March 31, 2012 through 2359 UTC Friday April 06, 2012. http://www.mwfrequencypropagation.org . 73 & GUD DX, Thomas F. Giella, NZ4O Lakeland, FL, USA SOCIAL SCENE 2012 APR 14-15 VK WIA National Field Day. MAY 3-18 VK5 YL International 2012 Australia (vk5tmc@bigpond.com) MAY 5- 6 VK4 RADAR and MARC Clairview Gathering MAY 25-27 VK3 WIA Annual Conference Mildura JUN 8-11 VK4 FNNQARG! QLD Cassowary Coast JUN 9-10 VK5 South East Radio Group Convention, Mt Gambier. JULY 14 VK4 Wide Bay Hamfest. West Maryborough Scout Hall JULY 21 VK3 Gippsland Gate Radio & Electronics Club Hamfest @ Cranbourne November 15TH IARU REGION 3 CONFERENCE hosted by V.A.R.C. in Ho-Chi-Minh City, Vietnam. NOV 25 VK3 SPARC HAMFEST AT ROSEBUD WIA Annual Conference Mildura May 25th, 26th and 27th 2012 Details for the WIA 2012 Annual Conference being held in Mildura are on wia.org.au Host club is Sunraysia Radio Group, led by Garry Briant VK3KYF and Noel Ferguson VK3FI. WIA Members who register for the event will be able to participate in a range of fascinating and memorable activities. Submitting news items If you would like to submit news items for inclusion in the VK1WIA broadcasts, please email your item in text to nationalnews@wia.org.au to submit audio read "how to submit items" in the weekly news page on wia.org.au Remember the sooner you submit material the more the likelihood of it being broadcast in the very next edition of WIA National News. Each item will only be broadcast once, if you want a couple of mentions, please submit different slants to keep your event 'fresh'. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ============================================================================= WIANews - we've reported...YOU decide. TWITTER http://twitter.com/VK1WIA Societies and Club News Letter Editors can EXCHANGE a feed prior to the actual broadcast date, e-mail nationalnews@wia.org.au Call-backs follow the RF editions, but also for text readers you may lodge a quick reply to let us know you read it, who knows, you might even get a "cheerio call". Thanks to our dedicated band of broadcast volunteers who utilize their time and equipment in bringing you this weekly broadcast. The purpose of "WIANews" is to rapidly provide news of interest to active amateurs residing in Australia and the globe. We strongly encourage membership in the Wireless Institute of Australia and participation in the activities of local clubs. Opinions expressed in "WIANews" are those of the writers who submit material and do not necessarily reflect those of the rebroadcasters, nor the National WIA, but are broadcast in the spirit in which they were submitted. Material may be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form, a credit to WIANews wouldn't go astray... Compiled by VK4BB on behalf of the National WIA. ***************************************************************************** /ex