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When Hara Arena -- home of the Dayton Hamvention® for the past 48 years -- opened its doors at 9 AM on Friday, May, 18, thousands of hams swarmed in, eager to see the latest and greatest that Amateur Radio has to offer. And they weren’t disappointed! With the introduction of three new transceivers this year, as well as hundreds of vendors -- both new ones and old friends within the giant Hara c...

Against the backdrop of the 2012 Dayton Hamvention® -- the largest gathering of radio amateurs in the US -- ICOM America announced a sponsorship agreement with the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) for the organization’s 2013 National Scout Jamboree. As the BSA’s official Amateur Radio transceiver supplier for the jamboree, ICOM will provide equipment and technical support for the K2BSA radio operati...

The average daily sunspot numbers for the past week rose nearly 25 points, or about 27 percent, to 117.3. The big day was Monday, May 14 when the daily sunspot number jumped to 156. This was the day after four new sunspot groups, numbered 1481 through 1484 arrived. Sunspot numbers for May 10-16 were 93, 102, 85, 138, 156, 125 and 122, with a mean of 117.3. The 10.7 cm flux was 130.7, 136.4, 129...

Have you ever wanted to see a photo of yours in QST, the annual ARRL Amateur Radio Calendar or another ARRL publication? Well, here’s your chance! If you’re among the winners, not only will your photographic skill be propagated far and wide, but we’re offering $100 as the First Prize. The winning photo and three runners-up will be published in QST. All submitted photos will also be considered f...

By Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU
Contributing Editor

This week, Surfin’ tries to unclutter the house and learns about more open source software.

Old Magazines Fill My House

I have copies of every issue of QST going back to the mid-1960s, when I first became interested in ham radio. In addition to QST, I also have mass quantities of QEX, NCJ, CQ, Ham Radio, 73, Popular Communications and numerous other radio...

CQ magazine announced its 2012 Hall of Fame inductees on May 18, welcoming 16 new members into the CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame, three new members of the CQ DX Hall of Fame and two new members of the CQ Contest Hall of Fame.

The CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame honors those individuals, whether licensed hams or not, who have made significant contributions to Amateur Radio, as well as those amateur...

The Japanese HORYU-2 research satellite was launched May 17 at 1639 UTC as part of a mission that included the JAXA climate observation satellite Shizuku.

HORYU-2 was built by students at the Kyushu Institute of Technology (KIT) and it carries the call sign JG6YBW. The satellite will conduct a variety of experiments including high-voltage power generation and space debris measurements.

Amateurs h...

On May 15, Ohio Governor John Kasich signed a bill into law granting comprehensive rights to Amateur Radio operators in that state. Several key players in the successful effort to enact a “PRB-1” law in Ohio were present for the signing, including Section Manager Frank J. Piper, KI8GW; Rick Swain, KK8O; Bill Carpenter, AA8EY; Steve Katz, N8WL, and Constance Barsky, WD8ODC. ARRL Great Lakes Div...

James M. Mozley, W2BCH, who served as Vice Director of the ARRL Atlantic Division from 1986-89, died May 13 at age 89 at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Syracuse, New York. A long-time resident of Camillus, New York, Jim was active in the ARRL Western New York Section as an Assistant Section Manager and as an Official Emergency Station. He also served as an Official Observer from 1991 ...

On Wednesday, May 16, 2012, the ARRL filed comments in response to the FCC’s Public Notice seeking comments on Emergency Communications by Amateur Radio and impediments to Amateur Radio communications. Known as Docket 12-91, the Commission is soliciting comments from the public as it writes the report they were directed to present to Congress as part of Public Law No. 112-96.

At the direction of...

By Gary Hoffman, KB0H
Contributing Editor

It was a matter of getting more metal into the air. That’s what started it all. I had hundreds of great ideas -- perhaps a dozen that I might actually be able to do -- but only three of four transceivers with which to do any of it. The real limitation, however, was that I only had two antennas up, and only one of those could see over the hill to my south....

Marconi has just built his third of a five circuit wireless network connecting America with Japan and Europe at Ryder’s Cove in Chatham, Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Just imagine being transported back to this exciting time almost 100 years ago when Marconi was still building his reputation as a pioneer of wireless telegraphy.

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On Monday, May 14, Jessica Rosenworcel, and Ajit Pai, were sworn in by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski as FCC Commissioners. For the first time in almost a year, the Commission is once again at full strength. Rosenworcel, a Democrat, fills the seat vacated by Michael Copps who retired from the Commission earlier this year; her term runs through June 30, 2015. Pai, a Republican, replaces Meredit...

The ARRL UHF-Microwave Band Plan Committee has released for comment its draft band plan for 13 cm (2.3/2.4 GHz) and welcomes comments on it. The amended draft band plan for 902-928 MHz (33 cm) has also been released.

13 cm

This is the third of four draft band plans released for comment. The Committee appreciates the initial suggestions and reports of the current and proposed activities on the ban...

The ARRL is now accepting nominations for the 2012 Philip J. McGan Memorial Silver Antenna Award. This annual honor goes to a radio amateur who has demonstrated success in Amateur Radio public relations and best exemplifies volunteer spirit of the award's namesake, Phil McGan, WA2MBQ (SK). As the first chairman of the ARRL Public Relations Committee, McGan helped to reinvigorate the League’s co...

The ARRL will celebrate its centennial in 2014, and is already making plans to commemorate the highlights of the League’s first century -- and looking forward to what the second century may bring. This is your League and your centennial and ARRL President Kay Craigie, N3KN, is inviting all ARRL members to provide suggestions to help make this once-in-a-lifetime event truly special.

“Centennial t...

The average daily solar flux for the past week rose slightly, 116.2 to 119, but the average daily sunspot numbers declined more than 14 points (about 13 percent), to 92.6. Sunspot numbers for May 3-9 were 107, 101, 88, 104, 79, 90 and 79, with a mean of 92.6. The 10.7 cm flux was 114, 114, 116, 117.3, 121.7, 122.8 and 127.3, with a mean of 119. The estimated planetary A indices were 8, 4, 4, 5,...

Due to staff travel to the Dayton Hamvention, there will be no ARRL Audio News on Thursday, May 17. The ARRL Audio News will return on May 24. The distribution of  The ARRL Letter will not change, and will be sent out on its regular schedule.

By Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU
Contributing Editor

This week, Surfin’ reviews what you need for traveling well to the Dayton Hamvention®.

I don’t travel well because I don't travel often enough to learn how to travel well (it’s a Catch-22). Because I don’t travel often enough to learn how to travel well, I make a list of things to take on my annual road trip to Hamvention. In fact, I save the list on my ...