December 1997
President's Message
Our November 6 meeting program was WARC's annual ARRL Night. Atlantic Division Director Kay Craigie (WT3P) and Eastern Pennsylvania Section Manager Al Breiner (W3TI) gave over 70 WARC members and guests an update on League and general ham radio happenings. We started the program by requesting questions from the attendees, and over an hour later, they were still coming! I'm glad there was so much interest from our members in getting feedback from out ARRL leadership. We all have a better understanding of what kinds of issues are best addressed at the national level by the League and those that are more appropriately handled at the local level by clubs like our own. Take another look at our club's mission statement and goals- the things WARC and its members can effectively do to insure the continued viability of amateur radio are very clear.For those members who would like to be an important part of amateur radio's cadre of volunteers, consider joining the ARRL Field Organization. EPA Section Manager Al Breiner (W3TI) has sent me application forms for those who would like to be designated an Official Relay Station, Official Emergency Station, Official Bulletin Station, Technical Specialist, Public Information Officer or Local Government Liaison. See me at a Board or General Meeting (or get in touch by repeater/telephone/e-mail) if you're interested.
Those who attended were treated to seeing the club recognized for it's approaching (December 17) 100th ARRL VE exam session. WARC was presented with a special plaque from ARRL, and VE Team Leader Tom Michaud (WA3TQJ) was presented with an ARRL certificate recognizing his leadership role since the inception of the VE testing program. Members who have served on the VE testing team were also recognized for their participation in this very important activity. Check out the club's WEB site for some pictures of the evening's activities.
Election for two club Directors will be held at the January 8, 1998 general meeting. This is an opportunity for any current WARC member to be part of the club leadership at the Board level- please contact Steve Larson (KA3ZLY) and Marty Squicciarni (NR3Z) if you would like to be on the slate of candidates. Ballots will be mailed with the January FEEDBACK and nominations from the floor will also be accepted at the January meeting.
We'll be honoring former club members who have become Silent Keys (SK's) at our December 4 meeting. Please see the listing of Silent Keys in this issue of FEEDBACK and let Burt Ludin (N3YVH) know if you think we've missed anyone (215-441-4483). We've tried hard to get information to make our listing complete.If you haven't already sent in your reservation (space available basis) for WARC's December 4 Holiday Family Dinner, contact Doug (N3RJE) or George (N3HBT) This is always one of the most enjoyable club activities we have and provides us with a great opportunity to socialize with club members and their families. I wish all members of WARC and their families a peaceful holiday season and a joyous and healthy New Year.
de Bill , K3MFI
WEB Watch:
FCC Compliance & Information Bureau Interference Handbook
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Compliance/WWW/tvibook.htmlQuarter Century Wireless Association
http://www.teleport.com/~qcwa/Shortwave/Radio Catalog
http://itre.ncsu.edu/radio/
WARC Seeks '98 Grange Fair Chairperson
The Warminster Amateur Radio Club is seeking a chairperson for its participation at the 50th annual Middletown Grange Fair in August, 1998. The successful candidate will be responsible for coordinating the club's message handling activities, seeing that updated display material about ham radio and the club is developed and selecting day captains who will oversee activities for each of the five days. This annual event attracts over 30,000 visitors and provides club members with annual training in message handling, an opportunity to increase the awareness of amateur radio in the general community, students for club sponsored licensing classes and prospective WARC members. Contact a Board member if you are interested in this challenging and important position.
UPDATED MEMBERSHIP LISTING
Available at the December 4 General Meeting- please check for accuracy and give additions and corrections to Membership Chairperson Don McCunney (KA3N) or reach him by e-mail dmmccunney@njaost.ml.com or by telephone (215) 364-7891. If you have a new or updated e-mail address, please let him know. An updated listing will be distributed at the January 8 general meeting.BATTERY BAGS
All sold!! We're putting together another order of "green bags" (which include 2.3 ah battery, charger and cigarette adapter and fused plug) at a cost of $15. Contact Stu Simon (N2QBU) at (215) 345- 9295 if interested.
Club to Elect Two Directors in January
In accordance with the club's constitution, the membership will elect two Directors who will serve one year terms on WARC's Board at the January 8 General Meeting. If interested, contact nominating committee co-chairpersons Steve (KA3ZLY) or Marty (NR3Z). Ballots will be in January'98 FEEDBACK; nominations will also be taken from the floor at the January 8 meeting.SCHEDULE CHANGES
It's hard to compete with Thanksgiving Day or Christmas, so the next two Board meetings will be held on the second to last Thursday of the month- Thursday, November 20 and Thursday, December 18. Ditto and Likewise for New Years Day so the January General Meeting will be held on Thursday, January 8.
The December ARRL VE License Testing session administered by the club will be held at 7 PM on Wednesday, December 17, 1996 (instead of the last Wednesday of the month) since the regular date is Christmas Eve! The normal testing schedule resumes on Wednesday, January 28, 1998.
WARC Silent Key Listing
At our December 4 meeting, we will be honoring the memory of former members of the Warminster Amateur Radio Club who have become Silent Keys . If you have any updated information to this listing, please contact Burt Ludin (N3YVH) at (215) 441-4483 immediately so we can update our records.
WA3ACB Ben Wilson
N3AQY Ed King
WA3BAQ Frank Kohler
WA3BIE Harry Penders
K2BPP Dave Porter
N3CCQ Frank Larkin
KD3CF Jack Martin
N3DKD Homer Grasberger
K3DN Pete Peterson
W3DOB Lee Decker
W3DVY Hank Lenz
W8DYK John Bizik
WB3EFO Ed Lee
W3ESH Edward Plesser
W3ETM Ken Richter
N3EWY Bill Louden
WB3FFK George Keis
W3GJC Bill Cusick
KA3HOF Doc Weiser
WA3HOW Robert Patton
WA3ICO Harold Taylor
W3ID Frank Borter
W3IOU Jack Yates
KB3JW Ray Gillespie
KD3MT Frank Mastrogiovanni
WA3OBI Joe Lutz
W3QFI Tom Foley
K3QJT Chuck Curtis
WA3QWO Earl Downs
K3QXC Bob Engelhardt
W3SLW Clate Greeninger
KB3UD Tom Teel
KA3UKO George Ferger
W3VHV Jack Remich
KA3VLD Al Cameron
KA3WZS William Whiddett
KB3XO Jan GoodmanSOLAR UPDATE
Sun watcher Tad Cook, K7VVV, Seattle, Washington, reports: Last week's major geomagnetic storm was really confined to Friday, when the global A index went clear to 45, and global K indices went as high as seven. This was from the Tuesday, November 4 solar flare, and the later flare on Thursday didn't seem to have an effect, indicating that the energy was probably aimed away from Earth. Protons from these disturbances produce an effect a few days later, and the Thursday event didn't seem to bother conditions over the weekend. On Saturday the global K index dropped down to 0.
Solar flux backed off also, and was soon below 90. It perked up again to the low 90s on Tuesday. Watch for solar flux to rise to 92 or 94 this weekend, then above 100 around November 26, above 110 by month's end, and below 100 by December 4. Unstable geomagnetic conditions may return around November 20-23 and December 3 and 4. This is based on the last solar rotation, and can change at any time. For instance, the last 27 day outlook from NOAA released on November 11 showed flux values around 80 from November 14-20, but then new regions 8106, 8107, and 8108 appeared on the solar surface, and now forecasts are looking up.
Expect good conditions during the ARRL Phone Sweepstakes this weekend.
Sunspot numbers for November 6 through 12 were 60, 60, 61, 40, 28, 28 and 26 with a mean of 43.3. The 10.7-cm flux was 105.3, 94.4, 89.6, 86.4, 89.4, 91.5 and 87.2, with a mean of 92, and estimated planetary A indices were 12, 45, 4, 9, 10, 6, and 3, with a mean of 12.7. Courtesy the ARRL NewsletterHAMVENTION INKS HARA DEAL THROUGH 2003
The Dayton Hamvention will be staying put for at least a few more years, and definitely through the year 2000, when it will be the site of the ARRL National Convention. Hamvention and Hara Arena officials this week announced a five-year contract to keep the Hamvention in Dayton. That's the longest contract in their business relationship. According to a report by Angela Townsend in the Dayton Daily News, there had been talk that the Hamvention might leave Dayton for Columbus, Indianapolis, or even Atlanta after its current contract expired in one year.
Hara Arena President Johnny Walker estimated that the Hamvention brings in $7 million in revenue each year to the Dayton area. Approximately 28,000 attended the 1997 Hamvention. The 1998 Dayton Hamvention will be held May 15-17. Advance tickets are on sale now for $15. Write Hara Arena Conference Center, 1001 Shiloh Springs Rd, Trotwood, OH 45415. -- thanks to Bev Priest, N8VZV
Courtesy the ARRL NewsletterAT&T FUNDS KENTUCKY HAM RADIO REPEATERS
There was a silver lining to the clouds that brought heavy flooding to Northern Kentucky earlier this year. Ham radio's role in providing emergency communication in the flooding's wake has resulted in a windfall for that region's hams -- courtesy of AT&T. Seventh District Emergency Coordinator John Meyers, N4GNL, of Covington, Kentucky, says AT&T has agreed to spend some $100,000 to set up a VHF repeater, a UHF repeater, antennas, and a shack with air conditioning and heat at one of its cellular telephone sites. Other sites will be equipped as receive-only sites and tied back to the repeater. As part of the deal, the Northern Kentucky Amateur Radio Club agreed to cover the electricity and phone bills. Meyers says he's already gotten four Northern Kentucky counties (Campbell, Boon, Kenton and Pendelton) plus the City of Falmouth to pitch in for the utilities at the sites.
Meyers says ham radio was the only means of communication for the first four days of the floods. Many of the club's members remained on duty to help out during the flood recovery. Hams' efforts during the flooding attracted the attention and respect of local governmental officials and of AT&T, which saw the possibility of a mutually beneficial arrangement. AT&T had been hoping to gain access to several possible cellular telephone antenna sites that had been off-limits. With the ham equipment on board, however, the cellular sites gained emergency communication status--just what was needed to get the moratorium lifted on their use by AT&T. "The marriage came together really good," Meyers said this week. "AT&T needed some sites, and hams needed the coverage."
In addition to the Kentucky repeater, AT&T also plans to set up a similar emergency system for hams in Southwestern Ohio, which also suffered from this year's flooding. Meyers says AT&T's total commitment is in the area of $300,000. When it's all in place, Meyers says, a huge region in Northern Kentucky, Southwestern Ohio and Southern Indiana will be accessible using a 2 W hand-held transceiver.
If all goes as planned, Meyers hopes to throw the switch on the first new repeater site in Edgewood, Kentucky, by year's end. Great Lakes Director George Race, WB8BGY, has been invited to take part. Courtesy the ARRL Newsletter
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