Ham Radio News
…because we don’t live in a vacuum
First-Time Exam Applicants Must
Obtain FCC Registration Number
Before Taking Exam
Beginning May 20, 2021, all amateur examination applicants will
be required to provide an FCC Registration Number (FRN) to the
Volunteer Examiners (VEs) before taking an amateur exam. This
is necessary due to changes the FCC has made to its licensing
system.
Amateur candidates who already have an FCC license, whether
for amateur radio or another service, and already have an FRN
may use the same number. All prospective new FCC licensees,
however, will be required to obtain an FRN before the
examination and provide that number to the volunteer
examiners on the Form 605 license application. An FCC
instructional video provides step-by-step instructions on how to
obtain an FRN through the FCC's COmmission REgistration
System (CORES).
The FRN is required for all new applicants to take an amateur
exam and is used afterward by the applicant to download the
license document from the FCC Universal Licensing System
(ULS), upgrade the license, apply for a vanity call sign, and to
submit administrative updates (such as address and email
changes) and renewal applications.
In addition, after June 29, all applications will be required to
contain an email address for FCC correspondence.
Applicants will receive an email directly from the FCC with a link
to the official electronic copy of their license whenever a license
is issued or changed. ARRL VEC suggests that those without
access to email should use the email address of a family
member or friend. Licensees will be able to log in to the ULS
using their FRN and password to download the latest version of
their license at any time. The FCC no longer provides paper
license documents.
-ARRL letter
I can see Russia from my shack…
Russian Robinson Club Announces
Activation of Rare IOTA Islands in
the Aleutians
The Russian Robinson Club (RRC) has resumed its plans to
activate rare Kiska Island (IOTA NA-070) and Adak Island (IOTA
NA-039) in Alaska's Aleutian Islands chain in July for Islands On
The Air (IOTA) enthusiasts. Plans to activate these islands in 2020
were called off because of COVID-19 concerns.
The uninhabited Kiska Island (52.06° N, 177.57° E) lies in the
North Pacific's treacherous Bering Sea, which RRC calls one of
the most intense patches of ocean on Earth and where strong
winds, freezing temperatures, and icy water are the norm. The
island also features the prominent conical Kiska volcano. Kiska
Island is a National Historic Landmark and part of the Aleutian
Islands World War II National Monument and the Alaska
Maritime National Wildlife Refuge (AMNWR). Permission to visit
is required from both Alaska's Maritime National Wildlife Refuge
and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
The KL7RRC team plans to have a minimum of two stations on
the air on 40 - 6 meters, SSB, CW, and FT8. Operators will place
special emphasis on the difficult trans-polar path to Europe.
The 56-foot aluminum sailing vessel Seal will make the 1,000-
mile journey along the Aleutians to Kiska with a stop at Dutch
Harbor to pick up Tim, NL8F, and the gear sent in advance to his
location. The team will continue sailing west to Adak Island,
where some team members will activate Adak Island on June 30 -
July 3. The SV Seal will pick up the entire crew there, which will
have flown in by July 3. Then, they hope to arrive at Kiska and be
on the air as KL7RCC on July 7 - 12, before the return sail to Adak
and flights home. Additional KL7RRC activity may take place from
Adak July 14 - 16.
Donations are welcome. QSLs for KL7RRC (Kiska Island NA-070)
and KL7RRC (Adak Island NA-039) are via N7RO. All donors will
receive direct QSLs.
Updates will be posted on the Russian Robinson Club website. --
Thanks to Hal Turley, W8HC, via The Daily DX
A slot is open for a fifth operator. Contact team leader Yuri,
N3QQ, if interested.
Wooden Satellite to Launch by Year's End
[No, really, this is not the ~April~ issue, -ed]
The WISA Woodsat project, being sponsored by plywood supplier WISA in an
unconventional PR initiative, is poised to place a wooden satellite into orbit by
the end of the year. The idea is to test the suitability of treated wood as a low-
cost and widely available material for space applications. The IARU posting for
Woodsat indicates that several amateur radio experiments will be on board as
well as photo downlinking, including selfies.
The wooden satellite is based on a basic, versatile CubeSat format, Kitsat,
which is designed with educational use in mind. It retails for just $1,500. Based
in Finland, the Woodsat project began with students across the country
contributing parts to a CubeSat launched by balloon. The satellite will be a 10-
centimeter cube weighing 1 kilogram, covered on all sides by coated birch
plywood from WISA Plywood. Nine small solar cells will power the satellite,
which will orbit at an altitude of 500 - 550 kilometers.
As the sponsor explained, "WISA Woodsat will go where no wood has gone
before. With a mission to gather data on the behavior and durability of
plywood over an extended period in the harsh temperatures, vacuum, and
radiation of space in order to assess the use of wood materials in space
structures."
Once in orbit, Woodsat will be able to extend a selfie stick to capture
photographs of the wooden box as it hurtles through space at 40,000
kilometers (24,800 miles) per hour. This will allow the mission leaders to
monitor the impact of the environment on the plywood.
The satellite would downlink its telemetry and images from two cameras using
amateur radio frequencies.
"The wooden satellite with a selfie stick will surely bring laughter and goodwill,"
added mission manager Jari Mäkinen of Arctic Astronautics. "Essentially, this is
a serious science and technology endeavor. In addition to testing plywood, the
satellite will demonstrate accessible radio amateur satellite communication;
host several secondary technology experiments; validate the Kitsat platform in
orbit, and popularize space technology."
An April 23 Engineering and Technology article has more information. -- Thanks to
AMSAT News Service via JoAnne Maenpaa, K9JKM; E&T, and the IARU
Almost as remote:
Intrepid-DX Group Adds Second Physician
for Trip to "Cold and Inhospitable" Bouvet
Island
"Bouvet is like the Mount Everest of DXCC entities," 3Y0J DXpedition co-leader
Paul Ewing, N6PSE, said. "It is among the most challenging entities to activate
due to significant transportation costs and personal sacrifices required by the
team to make the 42-day round trip. Fortunately, Bouvet is not our first
mountain." The DXpedition's website describes Bouvet as, "a cold and
inhospitable place." At 54° S, Bouvet Island, a sub-Antarctic island in the South
Atlantic and a dependency of Norway, is the most remote place on Earth.
Ewing announced recently that Mike Crownover, AB5EB, a veteran emergency
room physician, has joined the 3Y0J DXpedition team to pair with ER doctor Bill
Straw, KO7SS. The DXpedition is set for January - February 2023, but the
planning stage to activate the second-most-wanted DXCC entity is well under
way, with the team researching polar-quality tents and equipment and
discussing antenna specifications with various manufacturers.
"We will make careful choices to help us meet the demand for Bouvet
contacts," Ewing said. The 3Y0J team has set a goal of making at least 100,000
contacts from Bouvet. "3Y0J will be a DXpedition with a focus on good, fast, and
accurate operating. QSO rates will be very high," Ewing said. "We have
assembled a team of strong operators who will strive to work everyone. We will
focus on CW/SSB/digital for the 10 - 160 meter bands. Our goal is to match our
VP8STI/VP8SGI achievement with 135,000 contacts made."
Ewing said that in the later stages of the DXpedition, operators will use "proven
techniques" to work the weakest of callers. "We will also use techniques to
work the youth in our audience," he added.
No real-time log search will be available, but 3Y0J will upload to Club Log and to
M0OXO Log Search each day, Ewing said.
The DXpedition has an estimated budget of $764,000, with each team member
contributing a minimum of $20,000 each. In April, ARRL awarded a Colvin Grant
of $5,000 to the Intrepid-DX Group to help in funding the 3Y0J DXpedition.
Ewing and ARRL member Ken Opskar, LA7GIA, will share DXpedition leadership
duties.