RSGB GB2RS News Bulletin for November 10th 2019.

GB2RS NEWS

Sunday 10th November 2019

The news headlines:

Volunteer as GB2RS Manager

News from WRC-19

Train the Trainers in July

The GB2RS News Service is looking for a new volunteer Manager following the sad passing of Ken Hatton, G3VBA, earlier this year. The position involves appointing and liaising with GB2RS Newsreaders, managing schedules and Notices of Variation, and working closely with the editorial staff at HQ. For more information please contact the RSGB General Manager Steve Thomas, M1ACB, via email to [email protected].

The World Radiocommunication Conference 2019 opened in Egypt on the 28th of October. Daily reports of proceedings can be found on the RSGB’s social media and special focus page at www.rsgb.org/wrc-19. These reports are prepared by the RSGB volunteers attending the Conference. WRC-19 has a wide-ranging agenda, of which the amateur issues are but a small part. IARU President Tim Ellam, VE6SH is also tweeting photos and notes from the meetings and you can find his feed at https://twitter.com/IARU_President.

Advance notice now that Hilderstone Radio Society will host an RSGB Train the Trainers event on Saturday the 11th of July 2020. This free event takes place in Margate and is open to all amateurs interested in helping new amateurs acquire or progress to a higher licence. It is essential you pre-book. For more information, or to register your interest, email [email protected],

The 2019 YOTA winter camp is taking place in the Netherlands from 12 to 15 December 2019. You can meet the RSGB team who will be taking part at www.rsgb.org/yota.

The RAIBC has an Audio Library that includes manuals for all three licence levels. Updated versions for Syllabus 2019 are available on audio disk, but not for download. See the RSGB’s Audio and Braille resources web page for further details about these and other useful resources, at www.rsgb.org/audio-braille-resources

Nevada Radio is holding an Open Day at their Portsmouth premises on Sunday the 17th of November. RSGB representatives will be in attendance.

Martyn Lynch & Sons is holding a Hog Roast at their showroom in Staines on Saturday the 30th of November. The date shown on page 12 of the November RadCom is incorrect, for which we apologise.

The latest edition of the 5MHz Newsletter is now available for free pdf download from the RSGB 5MHz page, www.rsgb.org/5mhz. This edition includes 5MHz news from nine countries, features the World of 5MHz 2019 and a report on Exercise Blue Ham.

And now for the details of rallies and events for the coming week

The Rochdale & District ARS Winter Rally takes place on Saturday the 16th of November at St Vincent de Paul’s, Caldershaw Road, off Edenfield Road, Norden, Rochdale, OL12 7QR. Doors open to the public at 10.15am, with disabled visitors gaining access 15 minutes earlier. Admission is £2.50, with those under 12 free. Pitches are £5 if you have your own table or £10 with a table provided. Guest speaker Keiran Wilkinson, IT Director at Hack:Oldham, will speak at 11am and noon on Make It, Don’t Buy It, an explanation of how you can use computer aided design, 3D printing and laser cutting to create project enclosures and casings. Refreshments are available including bacon and sausage butties. Further details from Robert, M0NVQ, on 0777 811 3333.

Please send details of your 2020 rally and event plans as soon as possible to [email protected].

And now the DX news from 425 DX News and other sources

Alan, G3XAQ and Don, G3XTT will be active from The Gambia from the 12th to the 26th of November as C56XA and C56DF respectively. Main activity will be during the CQ WW DX CW Contest, with casual operating outside the contest. QSL C56XA via LoTW or G3SWH’s OQRS, QSL C56DF via LoTW, Club Log’s OQRS, or via G3XTT.

HA7RY, HA8KW, KN4EEI and AA7JV will be active as C6AGU from Wood Cay in the Bahamas, IOTA reference NA-001, starting around 15 November and running until the 9th of December. They will be testing some new DXpedition equipment, with a focus on 160 and 80 metres. They will also participate in the CQ WW DX CW Contest and the ARRL 160 Meter Contest. QSL via HA7RY.

Keith, GM4YXI and Chris, GM3WOJ will again be active as VK9CZ from Cocos Keeling island, OC-003, from the 12th until the 29th of November. Activity will be on all bands 160 to 10m, except 60m, on SSB, CW and FT8. VK9CZ will try to work as many UK stations as possible. Activity will also include a Multi-Two entry in the CQ WW CW contest on the 23rd and 24th of November. QSOs will be uploaded, daily if possible, to LoTW and ClubLog. Paper QSLs can be requested via the QSL Manager Steve, N3SL after the DXpedition. More details are at www.vk9cz2019.com.

Mats, RM2D / SM6LRR will be active again as XV9D from Vietnam on the 17th to the 30th of November. This year he will concentrate on 160-40 metres; he will also participate in the CQ WW DX CW Contest. QSL via LoTW, preferred, or direct to EA5GL.

Pierre, HB9AMO will be active again as 5U9AMO from Niger on the 15th to the 25th of November. He will operate CW on 160 to 10 metres, including participation in the CQ WW DX CW Contest. QSL via M0URX’s OQRS and LoTW. More info at www.hb9amo.net.

Tommy, DL8KX will be active holiday style, hopefully as 8Q7KX, from the Maldives, AS-013, from the 10th to the 17th of November. He will operate CW only on 40, 30, 20, 15 and 10 metres. QSL preferably via Club Log’s OQRS or via home call, direct or bureau.

Now the special event news

Coventry Amateur Radio Society is putting GB1BNF on the air today and on Monday in Bedworth for Remembrance Sunday.

The Royal Air Force Amateur Radio Society has announced that its permanent special event callsign GB2RAF will be off the air until May 2020. This is due to the winter recess at the museum in RAF Neatishead, Norfolk, which hosts the station.

Please send special event details to [email protected] as early as possible so we can give you free publicity. It is a licensing condition that stations using a UK special event callsign must be open to the public.

Now the contest news

The WAE DX RTTY contest runs for 48 hours this weekend, ending at 2359UTC on the 10th. Using the 3.5 to 28MHz contest bands, the exchange is just your signal report and serial number.

On Monday the 80m Autumn Series Data contest takes place from 2000 to 2130UTC. Using data modes only on the 3.5MHz band, the exchange is signal report and serial number.

On Tuesday the 432MHz FM Activity Contest takes place from 1900 to 1955UTC, with the exchange of signal report, serial number and 6-digit locator. It is immediately followed by the all-mode 432MHz UK Activity Contest from 2000 to 2230UTC. The exchange for this contest is signal report, serial number and locator.

On Thursday the 50MHz Machine Generated Mode Activity Contest runs from 1900 to 2000UTC. The exchange is signal report and your 4-character locator. It is immediately followed by the 50MHz UKAC, which runs from 2000 to 2230 UTC. Using all modes on the 6m band, the exchange for this one is signal report, serial number and locator.

Saturday sees the Second 1.8MHz CW contest, running from 1900 to 2300 UTC. The exchange is signal report, serial number and District code.

Finally for this week next Sunday sees the UK Microwave Group Low Band contest. Running from 1000 to 1400UTC, all modes can be used on the 1.3 to 3.4GHz bands. The exchange is signal report, serial number and locator.

Now the radio propagation report, compiled by G0KYA, G3YLA & G4BAO on Friday the 8th of November.

We had a more settled week, geomagnetically speaking. The Sun was a lot calmer, with a lack of coronal holes and fast solar wind to disrupt the ionosphere. We also had a sign again that Solar Cycle 25 is on its way. A tiny sunspot, numbered 2750 and belonging to Cycle 25, appeared in the Sun’s south-east quadrant. It didn’t last long before vanishing, but it is a sign that the minimum may be coming to an end. Another tiny spot also appeared, this time belonging to outgoing Cycle 24, but it too was short lived. Solar activity should remain at very low levels in the short term.

The solar flux index was in the range 69-71, but there was HF activity to be had if you searched hard enough. VP6R, on Pitcairn Island, D68CCC on Comoros and VK9NG on Norfolk Island were all active, and Guam, Oman, Mauritania, The Philippines and Japan were all spotted on 20m FT8.

Propquest.co.uk showed that the maximum useable frequency often exceeded 21MHz over a 3,000km path during daylight hours, often getting close to 24MHz.

Next week NOAA predicts the solar flux will continue to be around 67. Geomagnetic conditions are predicted to remain settled with a maximum Kp index of two. Quiet conditions should continue until the 20th of November, when a fast solar wind from a returning coronal hole should push the Kp index to a maximum of five.

And now the VHF and up propagation news.

It’s another unsettled look to the charts for the coming week, with a general low pressure feel to things. This means that rain scatter should be on the list for those on the GHz bands.

High pressure is very hard to pin down next week with a large high near the Azores, so according to the present charts Tropo won’t be much in evidence. Sometimes these unsettled patterns can produce very rapid development of lows and one such model run does indeed show the potential for a deep low over the country at the end of next week from Thursday night into Saturday. If this remains the plan as we get nearer, then it's worth keeping up to date with the forecasts from midweek, especially regarding wind speed.

There are two meteor showers to look out for this week. The Northern Taurids tomorrow, then one of the major meteor showers of the year, the Leonids, peaking overnight from the 17th to the 18th. The Leonids is well known for producing meteor storms, the last one being in 2001. These storms are best seen when the parent object, comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, is near perihelion, its closest approach to the sun. Unfortunately it appears that the Earth will not encounter any dense clouds of debris until 2099 so don’t expect fireworks!

Visible peaks of around 15 meteors per hour can be expected and there will be much improved meteor scatter conditions.

Moon declination is increasing, reaching maximum a week today, so there’s plenty of EME time this week. The Moon is not long past apogee so losses will be high but falling. 144 MHz sky temperature reaches a peak of 500K on Friday.

And that’s all from the propagation team this week.