XPost: rec.radio.amateur.moderated, rec.radio.amateur.policy, rec.radio.info

********************************************
The ARRL Letter

Published by the American Radio Relay League ********************************************

November 16, 2023

John E. Ross, KD8IDJ, Editor <news@arrl.org>

ARRL Home Page <http://www.arrl.org/>ARRL Letter Archive <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> IN THIS ISSUE

- ARRL Hails FCC Action to Remove Symbol Rate Restrictions
- 2023 ARRL November Sweepstakes Continues
- The University of Scranton Amateur Radio Club, W3USR, Got a Facelift
- SKYWARN Recognition Day Is Ready to Go
- Amateur Radio in the News
- ARRL Podcasts
- Announcements
- In Brief...
- The K7RA Solar Update
- Just Ahead in Radiosport
- Upcoming Section, State, and Division Conventions

ARRL HAILS FCC ACTION TO REMOVE SYMBOL RATE RESTRICTIONS

ARRL reports that Monday, November 13, 2023, the FCC Commissioners
unanimously voted to amend the Amateur Radio Service rules to replace
the baud rate limit on the amateur HF bands with a 2.8 kHz bandwidth
limit to permit greater flexibility in data communications.

"The Federal Communications Commission today adopted <https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-amends-amateur-radio-rules-greater-flexibility>

to incentivize innovation and experimentation in the amateur radio
bands by removing outdated restrictions and providing licensees with
the flexibility to use modern digital emissions," announced <https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-adopts-rules-modernizing-amateur-radio-service-foster-innovation>

the FCC.

"Specifically, we remove limitations on the symbol rate (also known as
baud rate) -- the rate at which the carrier waveform amplitude,
frequency, and/or phase is varied to transmit information -- applicable
to data emissions in certain amateur bands," concluded the FCC Report
and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking <https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-amends-amateur-radio-rules-greater-flexibility>

(DA/FCC # FCC-23-93; WT Docket No. 16-239) adopted November 13, 2023.
"The amateur radio community can play a vital role in emergency
response communications, but is often unnecessarily hindered by the
baud rate limitations in the rules."

Consistent with ARRL's request, the amended rules will replace the
current HF restrictions with a 2.8 kHz bandwidth limit. "We agree with
ARRL that a 2.8 kilohertz bandwidth limitation will allow for
additional emissions currently prohibited under the baud rate
limitations while providing sufficient protections in the shared
RTTY/data subbands," concluded the FCC Report and Order.

ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, hailed the FCC's action to remove
the symbol rate restrictions. Roderick stated that "this action will
measurably facilitate the public service communications that amateurs
step up to provide, especially at times of natural disasters and other emergencies such as during the hurricane season. Digital technology
continues to evolve, and removing the outmoded data restrictions
restores the incentive for radio amateurs to continue to experiment and
develop more spectrum-efficient protocols and methods while the 2.8 kHz bandwidth limit will help protect the shared nature of our bands. We
thank Congresswoman [Debbie] Lesko (AZ-08) for her efforts on behalf of
all amateurs to get these restrictions removed."

In a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM), the FCC proposes to eliminate similar restrictions where they apply in other bands. "We
propose to remove the baud rate limitation in the 2200-meter band and
630-meter band... and in the very-high frequency (VHF) bands and the
ultra-high frequency (UHF) bands. Additionally, we seek comment on the appropriate bandwidth limitation for the 2200-meter band, the 630-meter
band, and the VHF/UHF bands." ARRL has previously expressed its support
for eliminating the symbol rate limits in favor of bandwidth limits
where they apply on the VHF and UHF bands but suggested that the
bandwidth limits themselves be reviewed in light of today's technology
and tomorrow's possibilities. Similarly, when eliminating the baud
limits on the 2200- and 630-meter bands, consideration should be given
to what, if any, bandwidth limits are appropriate.

The new rules will become effective 30 days after being published in
the Federal Register <https://www.federalregister.gov/>. The FCC will
announce a period for public comment on the additional proposed changes
based upon publication of the FNPRM in the Federal Register. No date
has been set for publication.

2023 ARRL NOVEMBER SWEEPSTAKES CONTINUES

The second part of the ARRL November Sweepstakes is for phone contacts,
and it begins Saturday, November 18 at 2100 UTC, and runs through
Monday, November 20 at 0259 UTC.

The contest objective is to support amateur self-training in radiocommunications, including improving amateur operating skills,
conducting technical investigations, and intercommunicating with other amateurs. Amateur stations in the US and Canada (including territories
and possessions) exchange information with as many other US and
Canadian stations as possible on the 160-, 80-, 40-, 20-, 15-, and
10-meter bands. All stations may operate for no more than 24 of the 30
hours, and scores will be calculated from contacts logged during the
first 24 hours of operation.

This year's Sweepstakes includes some updates:

- The Radio Amateurs of Canada <https://www.rac.ca/changes-to-the-rac-field-organization-effective-january-1-2023>

(RAC) updated several of their Sections, which means there are now 85
Sections participating. RAC replaced Maritime (MAR) by making New
Brunswick (NB) and Nova Scotia (NS) individual Sections, Greater
Toronto Area (GTA) was renamed Golden Horseshoe (GH), and Northern
Territories was renamed as Territories (TER). These changes impact the
Sections lists for RAC events, as well as ARRL Field Day and ARRL
Sweepstakes.

- Single Operator and Single Operator Unlimited entrants can
participate using the Limited Antennas Overlay. With this overlay,
operation is limited to the use of single-element antennas, such as a
single vertical, an end-fed wire, or a single dipole antenna no more
than 50 feet above ground at its highest point. The antenna(s) may
cover multiple bands, as in the case of multiband verticals and dipoles
with fan or trap constructions.

There were 262 plaques awarded for 2022 November Sweepstakes. What's it
take to earn a high score or win a plaque? Check out the scores and
winners from previous years at contests.arrl.org
<https://contests.arrl.org> for the phone <https://contests.arrl.org/ssph/articles/> and CW <https://contests.arrl.org/sscw/articles/> results.

A complete list of rules can be found www.arrl.org/sweepstakes <https://www.arrl.org/sweepstakes>

THE UNIVERSITY OF SCRANTON AMATEUR RADIO CLUB, W3USR, GOT A

FACELIFT

With a grant from Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) <https://www.ardc.net/> for almost $200,000 and private donations of
more than $20,000, the University of Scranton Amateur Radio Club in
Scranton, Pennsylvania, has installed new amateur radio equipment and
antennas for its station, W3USR.

A crane lifts an antenna into place for W3USR's new location. [Photo
courtesy of Byron Maldonado, University of Scranton]

The station is now located on the fifth floor of the university's
Loyola Science Center and features state-of-the-art operating positions
with heavy-duty controllers, all-mode transceivers, speakers, desktop microphones, and other components that allow students to operate on
amateur radio frequencies. A 40-foot tower with a high-frequency
antenna for 14, 21, and 28 MHz has been installed, as well as VHF/UHF
satellite and microwave antennas -- some with rotating mounts.

The ARDC grant was awarded to the university's Physics and Engineering Department Assistant Professor Nathaniel Frissell, W2NAF, and the
private donations were made by Dr. Mary Lou West, KC2NMC; Ed Hayes,
N6XEM, and Jeff DePolo, WN3A.

Dr. Frissell said the impact of the new station means everything to the
club. "When you can bring a group of students into a new facility like
this one, the impact makes a lasting impression that will allow them to
fully experience amateur radio," he said.

Dr. Frissell added that the first radio contacts have been made, and
the station is working on 10, 15, and 20 meters with additional
installation work remaining. An additional room on the same floor holds equipment and antenna connections and, will be used as a lab for
controlled HamSCI <https://hamsci.org/> space research projects. The
new capabilities of W3USR will also allow for ongoing and future HamSCI research projects to be undertaken by Dr. Frissell and university
students.

W3USR was founded in the spring of 2020 with a mission to educate
students on the ionosphere and the importance of radio communication.
The club regularly participates in the ARRL Collegiate Amateur Radio
Program. <https://www.arrl.org/WeWantU>

SKYWARN RECOGNITION DAY IS READY TO GO

The 2023 SKYWARNâ(tm)¢ Recognition Day (SRD) is December 2 from 0000z to
2400z.

The event honors all SKYWARN storm spotters and amateur radio operators
for their contributions to the National Weather Service (NWS) during
severe weather. Amateur radio operators also provide vital
communication to the NWS and emergency management when normal
communications fail.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) <https://www.weather.gov/crh/skywarnrecognition?fbclid=IwAR1UNO0LepJtMvU_YhcuwWUf3eZ6Hd-iMFVYQ-kssXYEDrnH522kOkkWPTI>

website is now updated with the SKYWARN registration form, mapping
form, and rules and information you'll need to check in for this year's
event.

It's important to review the following event resources on the NOAA
website:

- Operating procedures

- Participant registration lists

- SRD 2023 contact log sheet

- SRD 2023 NWS office contact log sheet

- SRD 2023 NWS operational details

- Social media planning document

SRD was developed in 1999 by the NWS and ARRL. Amateur stations
exchange contact information with as many NWS stations as possible on
80, 40, 20, 15, 10, and 6 meters, plus the 2-meter and 70-centimeter
bands. Contacts are also permitted using repeaters. Non-amateur radio
spotters can exchange information with NWS offices using social media.

To learn how to become a trained NOAA storm spotter visit Spotter
Training (weather.gov) <https://www.weather.gov/pdt/spotterTraining> .

In 2022, more than 5,000 spotters participated in SKYWARN Recognition
Day.

AMATEUR RADIO IN THE NEWS

ARRL Public Information Officers, Coordinators, and many other member-volunteers help keep amateur radio and ARRL in the news <http://www.arrl.org/media-hits>.

"Homecoming complete for Detroit Lakes Amateur Radio Club <https://www.dl-online.com/news/local/homecoming-complete-for-detroit-lakes-amateur-radio-club>"

/ Detroit Lakes Tribune (Michigan) November 6, 2023 -- The Detroit
Lakes Amateur Radio Club is an ARRL Affiliated Club.

"Amateur radio operators test skills at statewide disaster drill <https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/communities/ascension/amaeteur-radio-operators-test-skills-at-statewide-disaster-drill/article_b01cfd22-74ef-11ee-808c-4b39f3241ced.html>"

/ The Advocate (Louisianna) November 7, 2023 -- The Ascension Amateur
Radio Club is an ARRL Affiliated Club.

"Antenna goes up for student-run HAM radio station at University of
Scranton <https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/antenna-goes-up-for-student-run-ham-radio-station-at-university-of-scranton/ar-AA1jJntM>"

/ WNEP (Pennsylvania) November 10, 2023 -- The University of Scranton
Amateur Radio Club, W3USR.

Share <newsmedia@arrl.org> any amateur radio media hits you spot with
us.

ARRL PODCASTS

On the Air
Sponsored by Icom <http://www.icomamerica.com/en/>

The Value of Contest Clubs

"Contesting encompasses so much of the hobby," says seasoned contester
Craig Thompson, K9CT, "from station building, learning how to operate, understanding propagation, knowing the rules, learning from your
peers," that there's something in it for every ham radio operator. As
current member and former president of the Society of Midwest
Contesters, Craig knows the ins and outs of running a contest club and
ensuring that the value proposition makes sense to the average member.
In this episode, Craig talks about why you might want to get involved
with a contest club, what it entails, and how these specialized clubs
stir up on-air activity that benefits every ham. This discussion
extends the November/December 2023 On the Air, "Joining a Contest
Club," by Leanna Figlewski, KC1RMP.

ARRL Audio News
Listen to ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news>,
available every Friday. ARRL Audio News is a summary of the week's top
news stories in the world of amateur radio and ARRL, along with
interviews and other features.

The On the Air podcast is available on iTunes. The On the Air podcast
and ARRL Audio News are also on blubrry -- On the Air <https://blubrry.com/arrlontheair/> | ARRL Audio News <https://blubrry.com/arrlaudionews/>.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

The 16th annual Santa Net <https://www.cqsanta.com/> will be on the air evenings at 7:00 PM CT between Thanksgiving and Christmas on 3.916 MHz.
Check in is taken 30 minutes before the net begins. Youngsters can talk
to Santa at the north pole using strategically placed operators who
relay the voice of Santa. The Santa Net is a team effort by The 3916
Nets <http://www.3916nets.com/> members, and they're expecting over
1,000 contacts this year. The Santa Net is also streamed live on
YouTube
<https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnNhXbexBDlvlnlz9jQkIvA/live>.

IN BRIEF...

The Bridgerland Amateur Radio Club <https://barconline.org/> in
northern Utah provided amateur radio communications support for the
2023 Bear 100 Endurance Run on September 29 - 30. Overall, 74 amateur
radio operators participated -- 58 aid station operators, six data team operators, and 10 net control operators assisted alongside a multitude
of other volunteers that staffed the aid stations. Because of the
event's remote location, Winlink, packet radio, and five Starlink
systems were used to aid in the transfer of data and eliminated most
traffic on the repeaters, except for emergency and priority
communications. Thanks to Assistant Traffic Manager of the ARRL Utah
Section Tyler Griffiths, N7UWX, for the information.

The SETI Institute <https://www.seti.org/>, a non-profit scientific
research organization, recently announced that they recceived a
philanthropic gift of $200 million from the estate of Franklin Antonio,
N6NKF (SK). The funding will be used to detect signals of life and
intelligence in the universe. Antonio, who passed away in 2022, was a
long time ARRL Member and is best known to radio amateurs as the author
of the, Instant-Track orbital tracking software that AMSAT sold for
many years. Phil Karn, KA9Q, says, "Franklin's personal involvement in
the SETI Institute as an engineering consultant took them a long way in
the few years he was involved."

THE K7RA SOLAR UPDATE

Tad Cook, K7RA, of Seattle, Washington, reports for this week's ARRL Propagation Bulletin, ARLP046:

Solar disk image taken November 16, 2023. [Photo courtesy of NASA
SDO/HMI]

Solar activity was lower this week, November 9 - 15, 2023, with the
average daily sunspot numbers dropping from 89.7 to 80.1, and the
average daily solar flux from 151.7 to 133.8.

If those numbers seem a little low lately, we should check the bulletin
from the same week last year. In the November 18, 2022, bulletin, the
average daily sunspot number changed from 79.8 to 72.3, so a year later
we are definitely trending higher.

Geomagnetic indicators were also lower, with the planetary A index
changing from 22.3 to 10.4, and the middle latitude A index from 14.6
to 8.6.

A single new sunspot group appeared on November 10, another on November
12, one more on November 13, and another on November 14.

The predicted solar flux is 120, 118, 116, 120, and 122 on November 16
- 20; 125 on November 21 - 22; 135 on November 23 - 25; 140, 148, and
152 November 26 - 28; 155 on November 29 through December 1; 152, 150,
148, and 145 on December 2 - 5; 140 on December 6 - 8; 145, 135, 130,
and 125 on December 9 - 12, and 120 on December 13 - 15.

The predicted planetary A index is 10 and 8 on November 16 - 17; 5 on
November 18 - 19; 8 on November 20 - 21; 5, 12, 18, 20, and 12 on
November 22 - 26; 8 on November 27 - 28; 5 on November 29 through
December 3; 10, 16, 12, and 10 on December 4 - 7; 5 on December 8 - 9;
8 on December 10 - 13, and 5 on December 14 - 18.

Check this site for an update of current conditions on various bands: https://dr2w.de/dx-propagation/

Sunspot numbers for November 9 - 15, 2023, were 93, 93, 85, 78, 85, 86,
and 41, with a mean of 80.1. The 10.7-centimeter flux was 138.7, 143.9,
141.5, 137.2, 132.7, 123.8, and 118.9, with a mean of 133.8. Estimated planetary A indices were 12, 10, 5, 12, 16, 6, and 12, with a mean of
10.4. The middle latitude A index was 8, 7, 4, 10, 5, and 11, with a
mean of 8.6.

Send your tips, questions, or comments to k7ra@arrl.net.

A comprehensive K7RA Solar Update is posted Fridays on the ARRL
website. For more information concerning radio propagation, visit <http://arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals> the ARRL Technical
Information Service, read
<http://arrl.org/the-sun-the-earth-the-ionosphere> "What the Numbers
Mean...," and check out <http://k9la.us/> the Propagation Page of Carl Luetzelschwab, K9LA.

A propagation bulletin archive <http://arrl.org/w1aw-bulletins-archive-propagation> is available. For customizable propagation charts, visit the VOACAP Online for Ham Radio <https://www.voacap.com/hf/> website.

Share <k7ra@arrl.net> your reports and observations.

A weekly, full report is posted on ARRL News
<http://www.arrl.org/news>.

JUST AHEAD IN RADIOSPORT

Yearlong -- ARRL Volunteers On the Air <https://vota.arrl.org/> (VOTA).
See the State Activations Schedule for weekly W1AW Portable Operations <https://vota.arrl.org/w1awPortable.php>, including:

- November 15 - 21 -- Alaska W1AW/KL7

- November 15 - 21 -- Washington W1AW/7

- November 15 - 21 -- Mississippi W1AW/5

- November 22 -- None, Thanksgiving Week

- November 29 - December 5 -- Rhode Island W1AW/1

- November 29 - December 5 -- Florida W1AW/4

- November 29 - December 5 -- Delaware W1AW/3

UPCOMING CONTESTS:

- November 16 - 17 -- Walk for the Bacon QRP Contest (CW)

- November 16 -- NAQCC CW Sprint (CW)

- November 16 -- NTC QSO Party (CW)

- November 18 - 19 LZ DX Contest (CW, phone)

- November 18 -- All Austrian 160-Meter Contest (CW)

- November 18 -- REF 160-Meter Contest (CW)

- November 18 - 19 -- South American Integration Contest (CW)

- November 18 -- Feld Hell Sprint (digital)

- November 18 -- RSGB 1.8 MHz Contest (CW)

- November 18 -- ARRL November Sweepstakes Phone <https://www.arrl.org/sweepstakes>

- November 19 -- FISTS Sunday Sprint (CW)

- November 19 -- Homebrew and Old-time Equipment Party (CW)

- November 19 - 20 -- Run for the Bacon QRP Contest (CW)

- November 22 -- SKCC Sprint (CW)

Visit the ARRL Contest Calendar <http://www.arrl.org/contest-calendar>
for more events and information.

UPCOMING SECTION, STATE, AND DIVISION CONVENTIONS

- November 18 - 19 | Fort Wayne Hamfest and Computer Expo, <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/fort-wayne-hamfest-computer-expo-arrl-central-division-convention-1>

hosting the ARRL Central Division Convention, Fort Wayne, Indiana

- December 8 - 9 | Tampa Bay Hamfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/tampa-bay-hamfest-arrl-west-central-florida-section-convention-2>,

hosting the ARRL West Central Florida Section Convention, Plant City,
Florida

- January 6 | Ham Radio University <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/ham-radio-university-arrl-new-york-city-long-island-section-convention>,

hosting the ARRL New York City-Long Island Section Convention,
Brookville, New York

- January 12 - 14 | ARRL Puerto Rico State Convention <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/arrl-puerto-rico-state-convention-2>,
Hatillo, Puerto Rico

- January 19 - 20 | Cowtown Hamfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/cowtown-hamfest-arrl-north-texas-section-convention-3>,

hosting the ARRL North Texas Section Convention, Forest Hill, Texas

- January 27 | Winterfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/winterfest-arrl-midwest-division-convention-3>, hosting the ARRL Midwest Division Convention, Collinsville, Illinois

Search the ARRL Hamfest and Convention Database
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests> to find events in your area.

HAVE NEWS FOR ARRL?

Submissions for the ARRL Letter and ARRL News can be sent to
news@arrl.org. -- John E. Ross, KD8IDJ, ARRL News Editor
<news@arrl.org>

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Amateur Radio News and Information

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