In the log this week
* Amateur Radio on the ISS Celebrates 25 Years with SSTV Transmissions
* Contest Spotlight: ARRL Sweepstakes on SSB This Weekend
* Solar Weather Brings Aurora and Challenging Conditions
* MVARC Nets on the Air
* What’s happening with DX?
* Solar Activity Update
* Upcoming Contests
* Interesting Online Radio Content
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Amateur Radio on the ISS Celebrates 25 Years with SSTV Transmissions
Image Courtesy https://ariss-usa.org/ARISS_SSTV/
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is celebrating 25 years of operation with continuous transmission of Slow Scan TV (SSTV) images from November 12 through November 19. ARISS started their operations on November 13, 2000 with the ISS Expedition-1 Crew and have continued to make contacts with about 200,000 students, educators, and enthusiasts every year with people in orbit. ARISS encourages any decoded SSTV images to be uploaded to the ARISS SSTV gallery at https://ariss-usa.org/ARISS_SSTV/ and you can also see the images that have been received by others. SSTV is being transmitted on 145.800 MHz except when there are scheduled contacts with schools and current transmitter status can be found at https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html. ISS passes can be calculated at https://www.amsat.org/track/?lang=en&satellite=ISS. It is always fun to receive a picture from the ISS. Good luck.
Contest Spotlight: ARRL Sweepstakes on SSB This Weekend
Hot on the heels of the CW version two weekends ago, this weekend brings the second installment of one of the oldest and most unique contests on the air: the ARRL Sweepstakes on SSB. The contest starts at 2100 UTC (4 PM EST) on Saturday, November 15 and runs through 0259 UTC Monday (9:59 PM EST Sunday night). The objective of November Sweepstakes is to encourage “self training in radiocommunications” with a focus on message passing. To that end, Sweepstakes has one of the most involved contest exchanges on the air. The exchange includes a serial number (starting with 1), a precedence, your Call Sign, and your ARRL/RAC Section, and a Check (consisting of the last 2 digits of the year the operator was first licensed). Those precedence values include “Q” for Single Operator QRP, “A” for Single Operator Low Power (5-100 Watts), “B” for Single Operator High Power (>100 Watts), “U” for any Single Operator Unlimited Power Category, “M” for Multioperator stations, and “S” for School Clubs. So as an example, for me my exchange for a 1 person 100 Watt station for my 30th contact would be “30 A N2EC 90 VA”.
As you can imagine, this really ups the challenge, and acts as more of a simulation of an actual emergency message passing operation than your average contest. Stations in the Sweepstakes can work no more than 24 of the 30 hours. If you work more than that time, only the first 24 hours of QSOs will be counted. Any “off time” needs to be at least 30 consecutive minutes without operating (and listening counts as operating in the rules). Logs need to be submitted within 7 days after the event is over and can be sent electronically in Cabrillo format (which is the preferred method) or via mail. Certificates for top operators will be issued for each ARRL/RAC section and division and all overall and division winners will get a plaque. Participation pins and coffee mugs are also available for purchase.
The CW version was quite busy and I had a blast making contacts with 149 stations in a total of 62 sections. SSB promises to be a lot of fun this year as well. This is a great way to test your mettle and operating skill, so give it a go this weekend and have some fun. Rules and more information can be found at https://www.arrl.org/sweepstakes. Good luck!
Solar Weather Brings Aurora and Challenging Conditions
Photo Courtesy Richard KE4WLE
There have been a lot of solar storms in the last week which brought widespread Aurora to Northern latitudes. The picture above was taken by my friend Richard KE4WLE in Ohio during one of the storms. The conditions were quite extreme with G4 level storms being experienced and Kp index values of 8. In addition to the light show, the storms had wide-ranging impacts. Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket mission to Mars with two NASA ESCAPADE spacecraft was postponed due to the geomagnetic effects of the aurora. Additionally, radio propagation was severely impacted with R1 to R3 radio blackouts reported and auroral flutter being heard on the HF bands. In the podcast version of Amateur Radio News and Notes you can hear what some of that auroral distortion sounded like on the evening of November 11th in a QSO I had with N3VO on 40 meters. The forecast is looking more favorable in the days ahead for communications, but it was certainly an exciting week for space weather.
MVARC Nets on the Air
* 2 Meter FM Net: Tuesdays at 7 PM [146.655/- MHz (141.3 Hz PL Tone) ]
* 2 Meter Digital Net: Immediately Follows 2 Meter FM Net [146.655/- MHz C4FM]
* MVARC Slow Speed CW Roundtable: Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 AM [3.565 MHz CW]
* MVARC Cherry Tree Net: Saturday and Sunday at 8:30 AM [3.920 MHz LSB]
What’s Happening with DX
There will be a good amount of DX on the bands this week. Stations on the air include Palau (T88MZ), Saint Kitts (V47JA), Benin (TY0RU), Togo (5V7RU), Chatham Islands (ZL7/LZ1GC), Burundi (9U1RU), Tanzania (5H3MB), Ghana (9G5ZZ), Uganda (5X1XA, 5X1DF, 5X7W), Madagascar (5R8IC), Mali (TZ4AM), Rodrigues Island (3B9KW, 3B9/M0CFW), Gabon (TR8CR), Colombia (HK3JCL), Marcus Island Minami Tori Shima Islands (JG8NQJ/JD1), Solomon Islands (H44MS), and Antarctica (DP0GVN, FT4YM).
A calendar of DXpeditions can be found at https://dxnews.com/calendar/
Solar Activity Update
As we go to press the Solar Flux Index (SFI) was 156 and the estimated sunspot number was 104 with 8 numbered sunspot regions visible from Earth. Over the last week the SFI has remained about the same. Solar activity has been at low levels in the last 24 hours. The geomagnetic field was at unsettled to severe storm levels and the Kp index reached 7 yesterday. The solar wind peaked at 999 km/s. Solar activity is predicted to be at high levels with the G1 to G2 (Minor to Moderate) storm conditions today with conditions calming by the end of the day with quiet to unsettled levels Saturday and Sunday until a coronal hole high speed stream arrives bringing likely G1 storm conditions. The chance of solar radiation storms at the S1 or greater level is at 40% today through Sunday. R1 to R2 radio blackouts are expected in the near term with a predicted probability of 70% today through Sunday. R3 or greater blackouts are possible with a 30% chance predicted today through Sunday. There is a chance of 6 meter propagation so keep an eye on the band and spotting clusters to be ready for the next time the magic band does its thing. Despite the current stormy conditions, it remains a fantastic time for amateurs to get on the air and work the world.
Good sources of real-time solar information include https://www.spaceweatherlive.com/ and https://solarham.com/. A good overview of conditions can be found at https://dx.qsl.net/propagation/. To see D-layer absorption data and associated radio blackouts, visit https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/d-region-absorption-predictions-d-rap. To see real-time Maximum Usable Frequency (MUF) and Critical Frequency (foF2) information from radiosonde data, visit https://prop.kc2g.com/.
Upcoming Contests
On the contest calendar this weekend we will see the ARRL Sweepstakes on SSB as mentioned earlier as well as the Ham Spirit Contest, the All Austrian 160 meter Contest, the REF 160 Meter Contest, the South American Integration Contest on CW, the Feld Hell Sprint, the RSGB 1.8 MHz Contest, the Fists Sunday Sprint, the Homebrew and Oldtime Equipment Party, and the Run for the Bacon QRP Contest. As always the K1USN SSTs, MSTs, and CWTs will also be on the air.
The full contest calendar with events and exchanges can be found at https://www.contestcalendar.com/weeklycont.php
Interesting Online Radio Content
John AE5X unboxes a new Apache Labs Anan-10E -
Walt K4OGO builds and tests a Bobtail Curtain Antenna -
Simon VA7BIX builds an antenna with parts from AliExpress and gets on the air -
Matt M0DQW takes a look at the Antuner ATR-1000 Antenna Tuner -
Michael KB9VBR reviews the Alpha Antenna HexTenna -
Vince VE6LK shows a tool to eliminate ground loops on USB connections -
Jasonoid bulds a Harbor Freight Power Station -
Mellow Labs hacks a cheap multimeter to give it WiFi capability -
Ben VE6SFX shows the new antenna wire he made with nickel coated carbon fiber in a paracord sheath -
Vince VE6LK tests out Ben VE6SFX’s new antenna wire/paracord -
Mike K8MRD goes POTA activating in rough conditions -
Vince VE6LK takes a look at the Little Dude 6 Mast -
Steve KM9G tests out some attenuators -
Mike M0MSN starts setting up a radio van -
Matt M0DQW looks at the latest ATS Mini V4 receiver -
Craig KM6LYW shows “a day in the life” as a amateur radio operator -
Rob N1NUG looks at a digital microscope -
Josh KI6NAZ tries out the VGC BMH-88 Bluetooth Mic with multiple rigs -
Mike K8MRD shows some silicone cable ties for organization -
That’s it for this week.
Best 73,
Ed
N2EC
