NOVEMBER 3 2019 - VK NATIONAL NEWS BROADCAST ON VK1WIA ---------------------------------------------------------------------* 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 TWITTER http://twitter.com/VK1WIA Please... If you are only submitting text and not audio, NEVER send just links & url's but write your story as you would expect to hear it being read back and then when you upload audio also email us the txt version. ---------------------------------------------------------------------* NATIONAL NEWS FOR WEEK COMMENCING NOVEMBER 3 2019 IN OUR 24th YEAR OF NON STOP NEWS WIA Secretary Peter VK8ZZ and Aidan VK4APM Director join the news this week THIS & MORE IN THIS EDITION OF NEWS FROM THE WIRELESS INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA AND FOR WEEK OF NOVEMBER 03 2019 Next Generation Triple Zero is coming Australia’s long-awaited Next Generation Triple Zero (000) service will be introduced in stages, beginning in 2020. Australia’s Triple Zero is a well-known, long-established and very reliable emergency contact capability, which has served the country well for many years. However, in the modern era it is somewhat handicapped, in that it is a voice-only service provided via telephone. This is preventing both the public and emergency service organisations from utilising and leveraging the latest technologies and applications that now exist since the introduction of smart devices. Australia’s Next Generation Triple Zero (NG000) strategy has been developed to enable the service to accept data and information from modern devices and applications, enabling callers to provide information such as location data and imagery, and access Triple Zero via other means such as messaging services and social media. NG000 isn’t here yet, but it’s not too far away. criticalcomms.com.au/content/public-safety/article/next-generation-triple-zero-is-coming-618678434#ixzz63LxQT7mB WIA Not a WIA Member? details email nationaloffice@wia.org.au OR the link on bottom right of wia.org.au https://wia.memnet.com.au/MemberSelfService/NewMemberForm/WIA/NewMemberForm.aspx WIA board minutes can be found on wia.org.au click WIA Information. WIA FRONT PAGE NEWS If you would like to find out more behind some of our WIA News Broadcast stories over the past few weeks the front page of wia.com.au has them, along with an item by Australians for Australians whereby the Department of Communications (DOCA) have had a rethink about the proposed Radiocommunications reforms. Rather than completely re-writing the legislation, modernising Australia’s spectrum management framework will now be pursued through staged approach to amending the Radiocommunications Act 1992. The first stage of amendments to the Act will deal with a number of priority issues to deliver tangible benefits to industry and consumers. The changes will be designed to remove unnecessary constraints in spectrum allocation and reallocation processes. Spectrum licence terms will be extended to a maximum of 20 years, with clearer licence renewal processes. The arrangements for apparatus licences are also being aligned with spectrum licences to the extent possible. There will also be changes to improve technical regulation, streamline device supply schemes and introduce graduated enforcement mechanisms for breaches of the Act. To minimise disruption to spectrum users, existing licence types and planning arrangements will be retained at this time. The DOCA are working towards the introduction of a draft amendment bill into the Australian Parliament in early 2020. A second stage of amendments to further improve efficiency and flexibility will be considered following passage of the first package and in consultation with stakeholders. Next our WIA Secretary Peter VK8ZZ and Aidan VK4APM Director Howdy, this is VK4APM with this weeks board comment. Following the decision by the ACMA to release digtal modes for foundation holders the WIA, AR Victoria, ALARA, AR NSW and RASA sought to collaborate on a poll of Australian Operators with a view to establishing a new callsign structure for Foundation operators that is compatible with all digital protocols. On Saturday the 26th of October, RASA made the unilateral decision to set aside negotiations on the form and distribution of this poll and sought to release this poll publically via social media and other channels (Including QRZ) This poll was not endorsed or approved by the WIA. It is the WIA's view that, as a representative body for all amateurs, a poll on a critical issue as call sign structure must: Withstand scrutiny Provide sufficient educational information for operators to make an informed decision Must be directed towards Australian operators rather than a global audience. The process of releasing the "survey" in an uncontrolled manner on social media completely invalidates this results of the survey. The board of the the WIA is extremely disappointed in the behaviour of RASA in seeking to undermine this collaborative process that was for the benefit of all operators. The WIA is of the view that RASA's actions in passing off this "survey" as something approved by the WIA misrepresents the views of the WIA and those we represent. RASA has been issued a with a "cease and desist" notice with regards to the use of the WIA's name and marks. We would like to remind all operators that our hobby is under sustained attack on a global basis, from parties wishing to dilute our spectrum rights and regulators. To resolve these existential issues we must work together, for the common cause of ensuring that our service remains accessible for generations to come. With that, that is all from me... Aidan, VK4APM (aidan@mountford.org) THE WIA APPOINTS a new Director to the Board At a meeting of the Board of the WIA this month, the Board appointed John VK4JJW as a director of the WIA. This appointment is from now up until May 2020 when John will retire. John will be well known to you all from the time he recently took up the role as Broadcast operator when VK4BB was on leave, and has been an occasional WIA News reporter over the last 15 years or so. John has Licensed since 1965 and a WIA member since 1975. He has been active on most bands up to 70cm While still a teenager, John had a shot at higher education in Melbourne at RMIT, however Communications Engineering didn't look to be anywhere as much fun as talking on the commercial wireless. John spent a lot of time earning a living from broadcasting in the days when it was exciting, and even dabbled in TV for a while until they realised he had a better head for radio. In more recent times John, set up and ran an ISP business for 21 years. John still does some commercial voice work from time-to-time, however he is currently undergoing therapy and getting used to the idea that time is marching on and we all have a use-by date. This has been peter VK8ZZ (secretary@wia.org.au) DISCUSSION POINT - (EXTRACTED FROM THIS WEEKS QNEWS) Hello, I’m Geoff Emery, VK4ZPP, and I’ve been thinking. I have heard people declare that they are not interested in the politics of amateur radio - but it is part of the process of co-ordination and governance that melds and meshes all the different needs to the providers and users of the radio spectrum. We have the people who involve themselves and represent amateur radio locally and nationally and negotiate activities from crewing the fund raising activity to sitting with the national regulator to promote the position of the hobby in matters that need definition. This is all part of the politics of amateur radio and a necessary part in amateur radio remaining viable. At times club rivalries and personal antipathies intrude to the mix and divert talent and waste time from what should be a relaxed and enjoyable pursuit. These are the times to recall the Amateurs Code and practice the consideration and courtesy that is implicit in that reminder of our standards. I’m Geoff Emery and that’s what I think....how about you? Hear VK4ZZP's COMPLETE and unabridged comment by tuning to http://wiaq.org.au/ (qnews@wia.org.au) ---------------------------------------------------------------------* INTERNATIONAL NEWS With thanks to IARU, RSGB, SARL, Southgate AR Club, ARRL, RAC, NZART AMATEUR RADIO NEWSLINE & the World Wide sources of the WIA. WRC-19 OPENED The World Radiocommunication Conference 2019 opened in Egypt Monday 28 October. The meeting, which lasts four weeks, is attended by three thousand delegates from most of the countries around the world and is discussing changes to the ITU Radio Regulations. The IARU and its member societies are there, representing the amateur and amateur satellite services with a team of 14 people from 10 countries. Of particular interest to the IARU are the positions on: Agenda Item (AI) 1.1:- To allocate spectrum in the 50 - 54 MHz Region in Region 1 to the amateur service 1.13 to consider new spectrum of International Mobile Telecommunications, which potentially might impact amateur spectrum at around 47 GHz 1.16 which could impact the 5 GHz amateur spectrum 9.1.6 on Wireless Power Transmission, where harmonics of WPT systems can impact the MF/HF radio spectrum 10 - where it is possible that future agenda items at WRC-23 could impact the amateur service, including the 1 240 - 1 300 MHz band. This meeting is the culmination of four years' work by IARU in ITU and regional telecommunications organizations to protect and enhance amateur service frequency allocations. The IARU team will provide updates as the Conference progresses. The WRC has a wide-ranging agenda of which the amateur issues are but a small part. itu.int/en/ITU-R/conferences/wrc/Pages/default.aspx. PHILLIPINES HELPING PREP THE NEXT CLASS OF PHILIPPINE HAMS Candidates hoping to sit for their amateur license test in the Philippines are getting ready for a seminar that's required first. The Philippine Amateur Radio Association is getting ready to host another orientation seminar for prospective licensees on Saturday November 9th. Attendance at the seminar is required and a certificate of attendance is mandatory for anyone wishing to sit for an examination. Orientation sessions are free and are held every 2nd Saturday of the month. Those attending are required to bring two pieces of identification and be prepared to purchase the orientation handbook. EUROPE AM Amateur Radio Europe announce the AM QSO Party 2020 AM Amateur Radio Europe is a growing Facebook community of European radio amateurs to create a place to discuss the use of the Amplitude Modulation voice mode on HF and VHF. To promote the use of AM on homebrew or commercial equipment, as a place to arrange skeds, organise nets and share circuits. Plus any other ideas on how to promote the use of the AM mode. facebook.com/groups/656582541370211/ They are about to hold their FIRST on air operating event so get ready to 'net' in. AM QSO PARTY 2020 Saturday 25th January 2020 - 0600 UTC until Sunday 26th January 1200 UTC. AM on the 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 12 and 10 metre amateur bands. This is not a 5/9 contest but an and aim to encourage conversation, however points can be gained and certificates awarded. Radio Luxembourg Back in 1933 the station started broadcasting. Often mistakenly referred to as a ‘Pirate Radio Station’, Radio Luxembourg offered an English speaking commercial service for more than 60 years and it shaped the radio landscape for future commercial broadcasting in Britain. A 'blue' plaque was been unveiled 25th October at 38 Hertford Street, London W1 to celebrate this broadcasting history. BRAZIL, RADIO CONTACT WITH FUNCUBE Launched in 2013, the FUNCube, also known as AO-73, is a CubeSat with the primary mission of teaching and outreach. It recently fulfilled that mission, again, this time in Brazil at a science fair in Brazil. On the 16th October, students were first tutored in the basics of amateur radio by Paulo PV8DX and Alisson PR7GA as they prepared to build antennas and get ready for the contacts they would be having later that day. At the request of Paulo, a special short text-like message was transmitted from the satellite. Back at the school, the students were then able to copy and have what was for most, their first on-air reception and a taste of what it's like being a ham. ARGENTINA The Argentine Institute of Radio Astronomy’s 30-meter dish antenna is active on 1296 MHZ EME until November 3 running an effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP) of 10 megawatts on SSB, CW, and JT65 (the dish provides 50 dB of gain). Operation will focus on 1296.1 MHz. Novembers Operation schedule: November 1 and 2, 1800 – 2200 UTC then November 3, 1950 – 2350 UTC. USA A new antenna that uses saltwater and plastic instead of metal could make it easier to build VHF and UHF networks, an IEEE Spectrum article asserts. Being able to focus the energy of a radio signal toward a given receiver means you can increase the range and efficiency of transmissions. According to the article, beam-steering or beamforming on a large scale is one of the key underlying mechanisms behind the rollout of 5G networks. The configuration of the saltwater antenna allows 360° beam-steering and works for frequencies between 334 and 488 MHz. The attractive feature of using water monopoles is that both the water height and activating status can be dynamically tuned through microfluidic techniques, which has a higher degree of design flexibility than metal antennas. One limitation is that that the permittivity of salt water -- i.e., how it interacts with electrical fields -- is sensitive to temperature variations. (sourced to arrl letter) --------------------------------------------------------------------* HAM RADIO OPERATIONAL NEWS - IT'S A CONTACT SPORT All major Australian contests, rules and results, are on the Contest Section of the WIA website. wia.org.au/members/contests/about -------------- The Board of Directors of The Yasme Foundation has approved a supporting grant of $4,000 to Club Log and Club Log Author Michael Wells, G7VJR. The grant will support capital improvements needed to take the system into the future with improved resiliency, enhanced performance and the hardware needed for continued innovation. Club Log caters to DXers and DXpedition hosting. Yasme’s association with Club Log began with a grant in 2012, when the system hosted 67 million contacts with 7,300 users. Today, Club Log boasts some 70,000 active users and some 590 million contacts. The Yasme Foundation is a not-for-profit corporation organized to support scientific and educational projects related to amateur radio, including DXing and the introduction and promotion of amateur radio in developing countries. (ARRL) -------------- Members of the UK National Health Service Emergency Care Improvement Support Team (E.C.I.S.T.) will launch a special event operation starting tomorrow, Monday, October 28, from the Radio Society of Great Britain’s National Radio Centre at Bletchley Park. GB1NHS and GB1CFR will recognize the life-saving role of community first responders. The date corresponds with National Community First Responder Day in the USA. The event will be opened by the Crowborough Community First Responder team, which received the Queen’s Award for voluntary services earlier this year. Both stations will be on the air between 1000 and 1400 UTC Frequencies and modes of operation will be posted on Twitter @GB1NHS on Monday, or email paul.devlin@nhs.net for further information. (ARRL) -------------- NOVEMBER Willi DJ7RJ is workin' on the wireless again as FH/DJ7RJ from Mayotte Island in the Indian Ocean until the 4th of November. He is all banding but as usual will concentrate on the low bands, in particular 160m. QSL to his home call, DJ7RJ -------------- Not long to log this one! Celebrating its 50th anniversary, Sweden's National Society for the Active Visually Impaired is active as SF 50 CG throughout 2019. QSL via SM 0 BYD. (RSGB) -------------- NEW CALEDONIA, FK. QRV is FK 8 CJ from Noumea, IOTA OC-032, until the end of 2019 on 30, 20 and 17 meters. QSL to F 6 EYB. (arrl) -------------- The very first ever News Line U.S. based broadcast approximately 20 minutes to Dstar Reflector 91 C on Wednesday night the Dstar Broadcast will be at 7:30 Melbourne Australian Time (8:30 UTC) comments about or to New line whether inside or outside Australia all welcomed. It must be remembered that Clayton VK7ZCR the Reflector 91 C Co-coordinator in Hobart Tasmania which is the owner of Reflector 91 C isthe very first in Australia to put these Broadcast`s to Dstar not for getting also the DMR services broadcast interlink in Tasmania which he runs at the same time as Dstar Broadcast`s 73 VK3PG (text only) ---------------------------------------------------------------------* WORLD WIDE SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP NEWS WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - FINAL FRONTIER AMSAT Goal: "Amateur Radio in Every CubeSat" AMSAT wants to see Amateur Radio in every CubeSat and it's partnering with non-Amateur Radio partners to make that happen. In the "Apogee View" editorial for the September/October issue of The AMSAT Journal, Executive Vice President Paul Stoetzer, N8HM, wrote, "[W]e continue to support a stream of LEO satellites. RadFxSat-2/Fox-1E is ready for launch no earlier than December 1, on the ELaNa XX mission. The linear transponder and telemetry system carried aboard Fox-1E was designed for use in different CubeSats by merely adding an interface adapter for connection to the host bus." N8HM said CubeSat programs interested in launching an Amateur Radio payload may partner with AMSAT to carry a Fox-1E module on their spacecraft. "By providing Amateur Radio capability, the CubeSat program gets a worldwide ground station network to receive their telemetry and experiment data while the Amateur Radio community gets a transponder to use in orbit," he pointed out. ARISS Proposal Window is Open Until November 30, 2019 The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program is seeking formal and informal education institutions and organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur Radio contact with a crew member on board the ISS. ARISS anticipates that the contact would be held between July 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020. Crew scheduling and ISS orbits will determine the exact contact dates To maximize these radio contact opportunities, ARISS is looking for organizations that will draw large numbers of participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed education plan. The deadline to submit a proposal is November 30, 2019. Proposal information and documents can be found at https://www.ariss.org/ [ANS] SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS - LOW DOWN Sub 9 kHz Yahoo Group:- https://groups.yahoo.com/group/sub9khz/ New 630-Meter Distance Record Claimed Eric, NO3M, and Roger, VK4YB, are claiming a new world distance record on 630 meters. They worked each other on October 14 using JT9 mode. NO3M said the contact represented the culmination of 2 years of effort around every equinox since September 2017. “Hopes were wearing thin as we were moving away from the recent equinox on September 23,” he said. “Even when the path may have been open over the past 3 weeks, either end would be plagued with QRN.” He said that while the opening that facilitated the record-breaking contact was not comparably as strong as past openings, “something special was obviously at play.” The contact covered 14,979 kilometres) topping the previous record set by VK4YB, and K5DNL, by nearly 1,000 miles. (sourced to arrl) WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- MILITARY £26m Institute of Technology for Bletchley Park Bletchley Park is well known as the home of the RSGB National Radio Centre and the site played a key role in code breaking during the 2nd World War Plans have been announced to transform the Block D buildings into spaces for seminars, events, student support and a cafe. Block D was built in 1942-1943 and was used by codebreakers to crack Nazi Enigma codes. In its prime, Block D held a thousand people working around the clock to crack the thousands of encrypted messages being sent by the German forces and internal agencies in a bid to win the war. A pneumatic tube system and conveyor belt sped up communication, while the building itself was built for secrecy, both inside and out. Even today, although the building, hut D can be seen it does NOT appear on the official hand out map given to visitors. Its layout, with spurs off a single corridor, was designed to keep different departments separate, so that staff knew only what they needed to. Many of its staff thought it was a tunnel system. WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- RADIO AMATEUR OLD-TIMERS http://www.raotc.org.au Hallo everyone. This is Clive VK6CSW reminding you that the Radio Amateurs Old Timers Club of Australia’s November bulletin goes to air tomorrow, Monday 28. This month we have for you all the latest Club news plus 2 articles, namely, Part 2 of the story of Captain H J Round, pioneer of the thermionic valve and light emitting diode, amongst his many other achievements. AND No Easy Fix for Alzheimer’s - by Ian VK3JS Full details of morning and evening broadcast times and frequencies are published on the Club website, www.raotc.org.au, where you will also find information about the RAOTC and membership. Everyone is most welcome to tune in and to join in the call backs afterwards. Experimental transmission. In addition to our normal relays, there is an experimental transmission from VK3ADM tomorrow afternoon at 1600 hours Melbourne time, 0500 UTC, on 7.146 MHz. Signal reports would be much appreciated to determine the viability of this transmission on a permanent basis. Once again, 7.146 MHz at 0500 UTC or 4 pm Melbourne daylight saving time. If none of the broadcast times suit you, you can download the audio file from our website at any time as from today 27TH. If you do listen via the internet, would you please email your feedback to us. Once again, check the website www.raotc.org.au for your local transmission schedule, tune in tomorrow or download the file for the November bulletin, and we look forward to hearing your call sign in the call backs afterwards. 73 from Clive VK6CSW. WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- RESCUE RADIO IARU REGION 3 Emergency Centre of Activity (CoA) frequencies 3.600, 7.110, 14.300, 18.160 and 21.360 MHz IARU Region 1 3760 7110 14300 18160 21360 kHz IARU Region 2 3750 3985 7060 7240 7275 14300 18160 21360 kHz USA MARS Members to Work with Radio Amateurs during SET and DOD COMEX 19-4 During October and corresponding with the ARRL Simulated Emergency Test (SET), Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) members will be reaching out to the amateur radio community to continue building working relationships and improving interoperability. As part of this effort, MARS will be promoting the use of a serial phase-shift keying protocol, Military Standard 188-110 (M110), on the 60-meter interoperability channels. Radio amateurs are authorized to use this digital mode on the five 60-meter interop channels in the USA, although M110 exceeds the allowable symbol rate that radio amateurs may use on all other HF bands. Starting on November 2 and continuing until November 17, the MARS community will be executing Department of Defence (DOD) Communications Exercise (COMEX) 19-4. MARS members will use the exercise to continue training and refining their operator skills to provide situational awareness information, such as county status reports and weather observations. To announce the kick-off of the exercise, WWV and WWVH will broadcast voice announcements starting on or about October 31. WWV will transmit the announcements at 10 minutes past the hour, while WWVH will transmit them at 10 minutes before the hour. The communication exercise will culminate on the evening of November 16 with military stations sending M110 messages to the amateur community on 60-meter channel 1 (5330.5 kHz USB). (ARRL LETTER) ---------------------------------------------------------------------* 2019 Social Scene VK5 - AHARS Buy and Sell Marion RSL Nov 3rd (vk5srp) VK4 - GOLD COAST HAMFEST NOV 16 ( unconfirmed by GC, taken from Lismore News ) VK3 - ROSEBUD RADIOFEST November 17 (wia) 2020 Social Scene Sunday 23rd February 2020, still the largest meeting of radio amateurs in the southern hemisphere - The WYONG FIELD DAY 2020 at Wyong Racecourse 1hr north of Sydney NSW - details at www.fieldday.org.au DD5LP VK4 - SEQ Amateur Radio Field Day Sunday March 10, 10am at Landsborough Sports Complex 15 Tunnel Ridge Rd. (vk4an) ALARAMEET 2020 Bendigo (vk5yl) October 2 - 5 in Bendigo Victoria. Submitting news items If you would like to submit news items for possible inclusion in the VK1WIA broadcasts, please email your item in text to nationalnews@wia.org.au and don't JUST send url's links or posters, but take the time to pen YOUR contribution. To submit audio email nationalnews@wia.org.au and ask for the current password then read "how to submit items" in the weekly news page on http://www.wia.org.au/members/broadcast/contribute/ We would appreciate items certainly no longer than 2 minutes in length as we only have a half hour. 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' and always if the news room is to read your item --- write it in the 3rd person. A reminder when supplying HamFest info we obviously can't plug DEALS from commercial traders "on air", but we at the WIA will put your supporters 'goods' in this text edition "no worries." We cannot give blatant 'plugs' to raffles. (new Jan 2019) ---------------------------------------------------------------------* ===================================================================== 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. Who and where are they? http://www.wia.org.au/members/broadcast/where/ The purpose of "WIANews" is to rapidly provide news of interest to WIA affiliated clubs and 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 IF broadcast, are done so 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... If you have call-backs to contribute to the National News call back tally then please send through your call-backs to callbacks@wia.org.au How do I join this National News List? (subscribe for an automatic weekly feed.) Email to vk1wia-news-join@lists.wia.org.au from the email account that you wish the emails to go to. How do I leave this National News List? (unsubscribe your weekly feed) Open mail program which sends mail from the address you want to unsubscribe from. Send unsubscribe to the list unsubscribe address vk1wia-news-leave@lists.wia.org.au You will be sent a confirmation mail and must follow the instructions given in that mail to complete the unsubscription. Once your unsubscription has been processed, you will probably receive another message confirming your unsubscription from the list, and at that point you should stop receiving messages. ---------------------------------------------------------------------*