DELARANEWS

Ham Radio News

…because we don’t live in a vacuum

Revitalization of Field Services with

New Organization

The Field Services that ARRL HQ provides to its member- volunteers is now in the spotlight with a reorganization and a fresh start to Section Manager and Affiliated Club engagement! The backbone of ARRL, and the Amateur Radio Service, is the expansive field organization of volunteers. This is especially true of our Board members, our "first among peers," who provide leadership to this vast network of engaged volunteers. During a marathon series of Zoom calls on Wednesday, June 9 with ARRL Section Managers and most ARRL Board members in attendance, the restructuring of the Field Services organization at HQ was announced. Bob Naumann, W5OV, who has a lifetime of experience as a radio amateur from contesting, to public service, to working with a number of well-known industry retailers, is now serving as the Director of Operations following the retirement of Norm Fusaro, W3IZ. Mike Walters, W8ZY, who has been involved with field volunteers for many years and is currently the Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC) for Connecticut, is now serving as the Field Services Manager. Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, who was managing Field Services, remains responsible for Radiosport and is also taking on the role of Regulatory & Advocacy following the retirement of Dan Henderson, N1ND. The meetings went on to discuss the focus the ARRL Board has placed on Field Services, working to create a new standing committee to oversee its revitalization and growth. Also discussed were the initiatives being undertaken with Section Managers to foster collaboration, share content, undertake projects, and set expectations. The first project will be a focused census that a dozen Section Managers across the country will be driving with local clubs to understand the disparity between the ever-growing number of licensed hams versus the unchanging number of active hams. We are very excited to turn the page and begin this new chapter for Field Services, and to continue forward with our digital transformation of ARRL.

International Space Station to be in

Cross-Band Repeater Mode for

Field Day

The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) cross-band repeater will be available for ARRL Field Day, June 26 - 27. Contacts will count toward Field Day bonus points as satellite contacts and Field Day contacts. Field Day rules limit stations to one contact on any single- channel FM satellite. Note that contacts made during Field Day by ISS crew would only count for contact credit, but not for satellite bonus points. ISS cross-band repeater contacts are also valid AMSAT Field Day satellite contacts. The ARISS cross-band repeater uplink is 145.990 MHz (67 Hz tone), with a downlink of 437.800 MHz. ARISS suggests that those unfamiliar with the ISS repeater may want to practice with it prior to Field Day. ARISS had planned to switch modes to the Automatic Packet Reporting System (APRS) during the second week of June, but this won't happen until after the first ARISS school contact following ARRL Field Day. The ARISS ham station will be off-air during spacewalks on June 16 and June 20. -ARRL Letter

WSJT-X Version 2.4.0 Now Generally

Available, Version 2.5.0 on the Horizon

WSJT-X version 2.4.0 is now available in general release. According to co- developer Joe Taylor, K1JT, WSJT-X version 2.4.0 includes the new digital mode Q65. This protocol is designed for two-way contacts over especially difficult propagation paths, including ionospheric scatter, troposcatter, rain scatter, TEP, EME, and other types of fast-fading signals. "On paths with Doppler spread more than a few Hertz, the weak-signal performance of Q65 is the best among all WSJT-X modes," the Quick Start Guide asserts. WSJT-X version 2.5.0-rc1 (beta) has been released. According to the Release Notes, in version 2.5.0, "the Q65 decoder has been enhanced to measure and compensate for linear frequency drift in Q65 signals." Q65 uses 65-tone frequency-shift keying and builds on the demonstrated weak-signal strengths of QRA64, a mode introduced to WSJT-X in 2016. Q65 offers user message and sequencing identical to that in FST4, FT4, FT8, and MSK144. It includes a unique tone for time and frequency synchronization. As with JT65, this "sync tone" is readily visible on the waterfall spectral display. In addition, Q65 provides a sensitive "sync curve" near the bottom of the waterfall window. Testing showed that Q65 will enable stations with a modest Yagi and 100 W or more and to work one another on 6 meters at distances up to around 2,000 kilometers on most days of the year, in dead band conditions. For the complete announcement, see the WSJT-X website. Read an expanded version.

Separate SATERN Nets Now Operational

On June 2, The Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN) launched a new SATERN International SSB Net on 14.325 MHz. Net sessions will take place Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 11 AM Central Daylight Time, in cooperation with the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN), which has used 14.325 MHz for many years during its own activations. Just down the band, another net sporting the same SATERN acronym -- the Strategic Auxiliary Team Emergency Readiness Net -- has established itself on SATERN's former frequency of 14.265 MHz. The latter net was organized by Lee Glassman, WA5LEE, a former manager of the original SATERN. The Salvation Army made the distinction clear in its announcement launching the new SSB net on 20 meters. "The new SATERN organization (Strategic Auxiliary Team Emergency Readiness Net) is not associated with The Salvation Army," SATERN National Committee Chair Michele Heaver told ARRL. "At this time, SATERN (Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network) is no longer associated with Lee Glassman and does not support his new efforts with the Strategic Auxiliary Team Emergency Readiness Net. This is a breakaway organization." The SATERN split will entail a new "updated and revised SATERN website" in the near future, The Salvation Army (TSA) said in its announcement. The new SATERN under Glassman has established its own web presence. On his QRZ.com profile, Glassman, an Assistant Emergency Coordinator for South Texas District 14 Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES), cited "a conflict of ideals." Among other things, he said he was put off by a building list of requirements imposed by TSA that included credentialing and background checks. Glassman told ARRL that the net retained the SATERN acronym because it was familiar to net users, "plus the fact that TSA pretty much decided to dissolve the daily 20-meter net with no plans to replace it, and we did not wish the regulars to be kept hanging. We changed what the acronym stands for. We also have a pending trademark on the name and logo." "We do not disparage TSA, nor do we permit others to do so," Glassman said. "We wholly encourage everyone to support TSA, ARES, ARC, and any other group that they wish." Glassman lists himself as co-manager of the Strategic Auxiliary Team Emergency Readiness Net, along with Ned Griffin, KL7QK. The net's stated purpose is to provide backup communication support during disasters. The "original" SATERN -- the Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network -- is a fully integrated Salvation Army program within The Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Services (EDS). It was organized in 1988 by Major Patrick McPherson, WW9E (SK). -ARRL Letter
DELARANews

Ham Radio News

…because we don’t live in a vacuum

Revitalization of Field Services

with New Organization

The Field Services that ARRL HQ provides to its member-volunteers is now in the spotlight with a reorganization and a fresh start to Section Manager and Affiliated Club engagement! The backbone of ARRL, and the Amateur Radio Service, is the expansive field organization of volunteers. This is especially true of our Board members, our "first among peers," who provide leadership to this vast network of engaged volunteers. During a marathon series of Zoom calls on Wednesday, June 9 with ARRL Section Managers and most ARRL Board members in attendance, the restructuring of the Field Services organization at HQ was announced. Bob Naumann, W5OV, who has a lifetime of experience as a radio amateur from contesting, to public service, to working with a number of well- known industry retailers, is now serving as the Director of Operations following the retirement of Norm Fusaro, W3IZ. Mike Walters, W8ZY, who has been involved with field volunteers for many years and is currently the Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC) for Connecticut, is now serving as the Field Services Manager. Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, who was managing Field Services, remains responsible for Radiosport and is also taking on the role of Regulatory & Advocacy following the retirement of Dan Henderson, N1ND. The meetings went on to discuss the focus the ARRL Board has placed on Field Services, working to create a new standing committee to oversee its revitalization and growth. Also discussed were the initiatives being undertaken with Section Managers to foster collaboration, share content, undertake projects, and set expectations. The first project will be a focused census that a dozen Section Managers across the country will be driving with local clubs to understand the disparity between the ever-growing number of licensed hams versus the unchanging number of active hams. We are very excited to turn the page and begin this new chapter for Field Services, and to continue forward with our digital transformation of ARRL.

International Space Station to be

in Cross-Band Repeater Mode for

Field Day

The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) cross-band repeater will be available for ARRL Field Day, June 26 - 27. Contacts will count toward Field Day bonus points as satellite contacts and Field Day contacts. Field Day rules limit stations to one contact on any single-channel FM satellite. Note that contacts made during Field Day by ISS crew would only count for contact credit, but not for satellite bonus points. ISS cross-band repeater contacts are also valid AMSAT Field Day satellite contacts. The ARISS cross-band repeater uplink is 145.990 MHz (67 Hz tone), with a downlink of 437.800 MHz. ARISS suggests that those unfamiliar with the ISS repeater may want to practice with it prior to Field Day. ARISS had planned to switch modes to the Automatic Packet Reporting System (APRS) during the second week of June, but this won't happen until after the first ARISS school contact following ARRL Field Day. The ARISS ham station will be off-air during spacewalks on June 16 and June 20. -ARRL Letter