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 ARRL Requests Support for Senate Bill 1755 (Mar 10, 2010) -- Senate Bill 1755 -- The Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Enhancement Act of 2009 introduced in October 2009 by Senators Joe Lieberman (ID-CT) and Susan Collins (R-ME) -- has unanimously passed the US Senate and has been sent to the US House of Representatives for consideration and now sits in the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. The ARRL is asking its membership to contact the leadership of the Energy and Commerce committee, requesting support and action on moving S 1755 through the committee. S 1755 accomplishes the same things as HR 2160; HR 2160 was introduced in April 2009 by Rep Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX-18). Since S 1755 has already been approved by the Senate, moving it forward in the House will simplify the process.Full Story |
 The K7RA Solar Update (Mar 19, 2010) -- On March 6-9, we got a taste of the bad old days from 2008-2009 when there were frequent stretches of 0 sunspots. After March 9, activity picked up and we hope there is no end in sight to the much-welcome sunspots. This week -- March 11-17 -- the average daily sunspot numbers increased from the previous period, from 12.4 to 29.4. Thursday March 18, had a repeat of Wednesday's sunspot number of 28. Sunspot numbers for March 11-17 were 31, 36, 32, 30, 28, 21 and 28, with a mean of 29.4. The 10.7 cm flux was 84.2, 89.6, 91.8, 89.4, 86.4, 85.2 and 86.7, with a mean of 87.6. The estimated planetary A indices were 9, 9, 4, 6, 3, 4 and 7, with a mean of 6. The estimated mid-latitude A indices were 9, 6, 2, 2, 2, 3 and 5, with a mean of 4.1.Full Story |
 Feature: Surfin': Hodgepodge Is Just Another Word for Mishmash (Mar 19, 2010) -- This week, the Web surfers update past installments of Surfin' to bring you the latest and greatest concerning a hodgepodge/mishmash of radio-related topics.Full Story |
 FCC Proposes to Eliminate Spread Spectrum APC Requirement, Reduce Spread Spectrum Power Limit; Cleans Up Portions of Part 97 (Mar 18, 2010) -- In response to a 2006 ARRL Petition regarding spread spectrum issues, the FCC released a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) on March 16 (WT Docket No 10-62), proposing to amend Part 97 to facilitate the use of spread spectrum communications technologies by eliminating the requirement that amateur stations use automatic power control (APC) to reduce transmitter power when the station transmits a spread spectrum (SS) emission and reducing the maximum transmitter power output when transmitting a SS emission. Through an Order attached to the NPRM, the Commission also made "certain non-substantive revisions" to the Amateur Service rules.Full Story |
 Baby Blindness Pioneer Dr Arnall Patz, ex-WA3EVC (SK) (Mar 17, 2010 [REVISED Mar 18, 2010 09:43 ET]) -- Dr Arnall Patz, ex-WA3EVC -- an ophthalmologist who discovered and eliminated a major cause of blindness in premature infants -- passed away from heart disease on March 11. He was 89. In 1954, Patz proved that treating premature babies with pure oxygen could destroy their eyesight. At the time, this was the most common cause of blindness in premature infants.Full Story |
 ARRL Introduces Understanding Basic Electronics, second edition (Mar 17, 2010) -- ARRL's Understanding Basic Electronics, second edition -- your gateway into the exciting world of electricity and electronics -- is written in a friendly, easy-to-understand style that beginners and nontechnical readers will enjoy. This introductory guide is ideal for students with basic math skills, as well as radio amateurs and experimenters interested in gaining a more complete understanding of basic electronic principles -- anyone eager to unlock the mysteries of electronic circuits.Full Story |
 ARRL Continuing Education Online Course Registration (Mar 17, 2010) -- Registration remains open through Sunday, April 25, 2010, for these online course sessions beginning on Friday, May 7, 2010: Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Level 1; Antenna Modeling; Radio Frequency Interference; Antenna Design and Construction; Propagation; Analog Electronics, and Digital Electronics.Full Story |
 FCC Releases National Broadband Plan (Mar 16, 2010) -- This morning, the FCC held an Open Meeting to introduce its report Connecting America: The National Broadband Plan (NBP) that will be delivered to Congress today. Calling it "an ambitious agenda for connecting all corners of the nation while transforming the economy and society with the communications network of the future -- robust, affordable Internet," the Commission found the nearly 100 million Americans lack broadband at home today and 14 million Americans do not have access to broadband.Full Story |
 Companion Bill Introduced in US House to Provide Technical Resources to FCC Commissioners (Mar 16, 2010) -- Following the Senate's lead, Representative Jerry McNerny (D-CA-11), introduced HR 4809 -- the FCC Commissioners' Technical Resource Enhancement Act -- in the House of Representatives on March 10. Copying the exact language from S 2881 (a bill with the same name) introduced by Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) in December 2009, the bill seeks to provide greater technical resources to FCC Commissioners.Full Story |
 Feature: The Radio Amateur’s Hand Book by Archie Frederick Collins (Mar 16, 2010) -- In his 1923 review, S. Kruse, 1OA, has some harsh words for this book. It “is written down to the small boy, the absolute beginner...” It has “well-conceived diagrams and figures,” but “weak draughtsmanship.” “In these pages are preserved the well-nigh forgotten ...spark sending sets that have wholly disappeared.” Kruse thought Collins was woefully behind the times.Full Story |
 The K7RA Solar Update (Mar 12, 2010) -- We experienced a bit of a scare this week when four days went by without sunspots. That's right -- for the first time in three months, we saw more than a single day with a sunspot number of 0, and that last period was back during November 23-December 8. Until March 6, there were just three days since then without sunspots, each a bit less than two weeks apart: December 25, January 6 and January 19. Sunspot numbers for March 4-10 were 40, 35, 0, 0, 0, 0 and 12, with a mean of 12.4. The 10.7 cm flux was 81.3, 79.5, 78.3, 76.6, 76.3, 77.9 and 80.3, with a mean of 78.6. The estimated planetary A indices were 6, 2, 3, 4, 3, 2 and 7, with a mean of 3.9. The estimated mid-latitude A indices were 4, 1, 3, 3, 1, 2 and 6, with a mean of 2.9.Full Story |
| Feature: Surfin': Do You Hear What I Hear? (Mar 12, 2010) -- This week, Surfin' visits The DX Zone to find out what else you can hear on the Internet. Full Story |
| Administrative Law Judge Says Washington State Licensee Can Keep Ham License (Mar 10, 2010) -- In January 2007, the FCC issued an Order to Show Cause to David L. Titus, KB7ILD, of Seattle, Washington, to justify why his General class Amateur Radio license should not be revoked and initiated a hearing process to determine whether Titus “is qualified to remain a Commission licensee” in light of a 1993 felony conviction at the age of 18 for “communicating with a minor for immoral purposes.” According to the FCC order, Titus received a 25-month prison sentence for this act, and the Seattle Police Department has identified him as a registered sex offender. On March 9, Administrative Law Judge Richard L. Sippel issued his Initial Decision -- saying that Titus “has been a law-abiding member of his community for many years” and ordered that Titus’ license should not be revoked based on the evidence presented by the defendant and witnesses on his behalf, as well as the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau failure to meet the burden of proof necessary for revocation. The FCC has said that The Communications Act of 1934, as amended provides that the Commission may revoke any license if conditions come to its attention that would warrant a denial of the licensee’s original application. In the past, the Commission has said that felony convictions, “especially those involving sexual offenses involving children,” raise questions regarding a licensee’s character qualifications. Sippel’s Initial Decision shall become effective and this proceeding shall be terminated 50 days after its release if exceptions are not filed within 30 days thereafter, unless the Commission elects to review the case on its own motion. Link to this item |
| FCC Amateur Radio Enforcement Correspondence Posted (Mar 10, 2010) -- The FCC has posted new Amateur Radio enforcement correspondence on its "Amateur Radio Service Enforcement Actions" Web page. Laura Smith, Special Counsel in the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau, sent a letters to the Sacramento (California) Municipal Utility District and to Northwestern Energy of Helena, Montana; Northwestern Energy also received letters voicing these same concerns in March and September 2009. These letters concerned complaints that equipment operated by these utilities may be causing harmful radio interference to Amateur Radio operators. Direct all questions concerning the Amateur Radio Service Enforcement Actions Web postings via e-mail only to the FCC Enforcement Bureau. Link to this item |
 Bob Schroeder, N2HX, Awarded 2009 Bill Orr, W6SAI, Technical Writing Award (Mar 8, 2010) -- H. Robert "Bob" Schroeder, N2HX, of Ewing, New Jersey, has been named the winner of the ARRL Foundation's 2009 Bill Orr, W6SAI, Technical Writing Award for his article "Electromagnetic Pulse and Its Implications for EmComm" that appeared in November 2009 issue of QST. The editorial staff commented on Schroeder's article, saying that "the topic of nuclear EMP is somewhat esoteric by itself, let alone discussing its impact on Amateur Radio, yet the author did an outstanding job of making the subject matter understandable even to the relatively non-technical ham. His writing is clear and to the point, offering practical advice not only for EMP mitigation as it applies to the unlikely event of a nuclear burst, but also extending the same principles to mitigation for lightning damage."Full Story |
| The ARRL is a member-society and International Secretariat of the International Amateur Radio Union. |  |
