The Illuminator

June Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Carbon Amateur Radio Club will be on Thursday, June 18, at 7:30 p.m. at the Emergency Operations Center in Nesquehoning. We will be finalizing our plans for Field Day.

Note that some of the gang meets at Albi’s Restaurant at the intersection of Routes 93 and 209 at 6:00. If you get the chance, stop by for some “good eats” and camaraderie!

See you at the meeting!

Looking for New CARC Newsletter Editor

The Carbon ARC is looking for someone to take over the editing, printing, mailing, folding, spindling, and mutilating of the club newsletter, The Illuminator. Bob, K3PH, has been doing this for a little over eight years now and would like to pass the torch over to someone who can bring the newsletter into the 21st century!

Bob is willing to work with the next editor to show him/her “the ropes.” But, this is a golden opportunity for you to take the newsletter and make it what you want it to be!

In any case, Bob plans to retire as of September.

Treasurer’s Report

By Steve Walters, K4IKM

As of the May 21, 2009 meeting, the treasurer’s report was as follows:

Previous Balance	$806.83
Generator Payment	$25.00
Dues	$30.00
P. O. Box Rental	-$42.00
Postage	-$2.94
Closing Balance	$816.89

Carbon Amateur Radio Club

Regular Meeting Minutes

May 21, 2009

The CARC monthly meeting was officially called to order at 19:35 with N3WXO (President), W3SG (Vice President), K4IKM (Treasurer) and KB3PQR (Secretary) presiding.

The April Meeting minutes were motioned to accept by K3PH and seconded by N2HCS and carried by the club to accept as posted in the newsletter.

The Treasurer report was motioned to accept by KW3K and seconded by W3MF and carried by the club to accept as posted in the newsletter.

Old Business:

The location for Field Day 2009 was discussed and agreed upon by the club. The location for this year’s Field Day will be Country Junction located on Route 209 in Lehighton.

K3PH has asked for someone to take over the duties of the Illuminator. If anyone is interested in taking over the newsletter please let us know via e-mail or at the club meeting.

New Business:

KB3BYT discussed his interest in the several methods available to promote the club and hobby to the community.

WB3W expressed his concerns to the club about the antenna and feed line situation up at the W3HA repeater. These major concerns included the availability of replacement parts and repairs of the current antenna.

A motion was made by KW3K and carried by the club for the purchase of a vertical antenna as a replacement for the current antenna up at W3HA.

Repeater Update:

We have received the repaired Astron power supply for W3HA.

The meeting was adjourned at 20:29.

Riley Hollingsworth to Speak at Lehigh

The Delaware-Lehigh Amateur Radio Club (DLARC) will present “An Evening with Riley Hollingsworth, K4ZDH, on July 9, 2009 at Lehigh University. The presentation is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Packard Laboratory Building on West Packer Avenue.

Advance sale tickets are available for $3.00 or for $5.00 at the door. As Riley’s speeches usually sell out, it might be advisable to order tickets in advance.

Tickets are available by mail by sending a check and a self-addressed business-size envelope to:

DLARC

P. O. Box 3026

Easter, PA 18043

Additional information is available on the DLARC web site: http://www.dlarc.org, or by contacting Bob Green, KE3AW, at ke3aw at arrl.net, or by telephone at 610-432-8286.

ARRL Field Day Tips and Techniques that Everyone Can Use

(From the ARRL Letter)

[Editor’s Note: I provide this article with a little apprehension — some of what Sean says is very useful, but some of it is really not good technique. I will intersperse my comments where I feel them necessary.]

Many amateurs treat ARRL Field Day (June 27-28) as a contest, even though it isn't one http://www.arrl.org/fieldday. But if your idea of Field Day fun is to go for the highest score possible, ARRL Contest Branch Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X, offered the following suggestions at the ARRL Field Day Forum at the 2009 Dayton Hamvention.

1) You will get many more stations in your log by calling CQ than by tuning the dial and answering CQs; however, if you're calling CQ and not getting any replies, keep calling. Most major contesters call CQ for several minutes at a time before giving up. Giving up after three or four CQs is giving up too soon.

2) Keep your CQs short and to the point: "CQ Field Day, CQ Field Day, Whiskey-One-Alfa-Whiskey, Field Day." Wait about 5 seconds between CQs — this gives stations enough time to answer you.

[Editor’s Note: Short CQs are a very good idea. Personally, I prefer one “CQ Field Day” and the callsign twice, but whatever works for you. And, there are times when a 1x2 CQ is too long! Judge by band conditions. Oh yes, I usually don’t wait 5 seconds, more like 3. Want to see how fast you can lose your “run” frequency?]

3) Use standard phonetics. "Cute" phonetics don't always get through and they can confuse newer operators.

4) When working a station, you should give your exchange information only once and keep it simple. "Whiskey-One-Alfa-Whiskey, copy three Foxtrot Connecticut, QSL?" If they didn't get all of the exchange, they will ask for a repeat.

[Editor’s Note: Can I just pull my hair out now? No wonder we keep hearing this kind of operation on the bands! There is no need for the word, “copy” and there is certainly no need for the word, “QSL?” — this is extraneous fluff that wastes time. If you are calling CQ and someone answers you, just say, “Whiskey One Alpha Whiskey, Two Alpha Eastern Pennsylvania” or, if you are answering someone else’s CQ, just say, “Two Alpha Eastern Pennsylvania.” In the latter case, there is no need to send his call, as he already knows you’re talking to him. Don’t waste his time and yours sending his call.]

5) If you are running a pileup: Once you have pulled a call out of the pileup, give your exchange information first. Here's an example: "Whiskey-One-Alfa-Whiskey, copy 3F Connecticut, QSL?" Don't ask for the calling station's information first — this will reduce any sense of rhythm and timing in the pileup.

[Editor’s Note: See Editor’s Note for item 4. Forget about “copy” and “QSL?”]

6) If you get a pileup of stations and can't make out an entire call, listen for one letter and ask for it specifically: "The station with Delta only, go ahead."

7) When you get the other station's information, keep your acknowledgment simple. "QSL, thanks, QRZ Field Day from Whiskey-One-Alfa-Whiskey."

[Editor’s Note: See comments for item 4, above. The acknowledgment is too long. “Thanks, Whiskey Three Hotel Alpha.”]

8) Find a comfortable pace for you and maintain that pace. You will tire quickly if you are screaming into the microphone or trying to work stations too quickly. This leads to inefficiency.

9) Use a headset with a boom microphone and a foot switch — this frees up your hands to log QSOs. Writing or typing with a mike in your hand slows you down.

[Editor’s Note: Yes, a headset with a boom microphone is the only way to fly! Throw the hand mikes and the desk mikes out the window! However, I abhor foot switches and know very few contesters who use them. Foot switches have a tendency to “walk” during use, and it wastes time and effort trying to find them when you need to transmit. If your radio has VOX, use it! Oh, it doesn’t work right? Well, get out the manual and adjust the VOX gain, delay, and anti-VOX until it does work right!]

10) Go for as many bonus points as you possibly can. Numerous opportunities exist, from copying the Field Day message to sending traffic to using natural power for QSOs.

These tips should help maximize your score on Field Day. Remember: No matter how you choose to enjoy Field Day, maximize your fun, however you define it.

[Editor’s Note: Have you ever worked 100+ QSOs in an hour? That’s fun!]

Changes to ARRL VHF/UHF Contest Rules Now in Place

(From the ARRL Letter)

The League's Programs and Services Committee has approved recommendations made by the ARRL's VHF-UHF Advisory Committee (VUAC) http://www.arrl.org/contests/vuac.html to change two rules in the ARRL's VHF/UHF contest program. These changes are in effect immediately, and include the 2009 June VHF QSO Party, scheduled for June 13-15 http://www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2009/june-vhf.html.

The first change concerns the Limited Rover category. The ARRL Programs and Services Committee accepted the VUAC's proposal that Limited Rovers may now compete on only the four lowest frequency bands available for any given contest. For the January, June and September VHF Contests, this means 6 and 2 meters, as well as 222 and 432 MHz. For the August UHF Contest, this means 222, 432 and 902 MHz and 1.2 GHz. QSOs on other bands can be made by Limited Rovers, but they will not count toward the Limited Rover's score and will be considered a checklog. "We have already applied changes to the log-checking software that will adjust the Limited Rover's QSOs above the lowest four bands to zero-point QSOs," said ARRL Contest Branch Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X.

The second change concerns the ARRL UHF Contest http://www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2009/uhf.html. For the first time, Kutzko said, the ARRL Awards Committee voted to add Club Competition to the UHF Contest, beginning in 2009. "This is something that the VHF/UHF community has been asking for for quite some time," he explained. "The VUAC made their recommendations and the Awards Committee agreed. We hope to see VHF/UHF clubs across the country help increase participation and get involved with this fun contest."

According to Kutzko, these changes come on the heels of the redesign of the June VHF QSO Party Plaque Program. "In the past," he said, "plaques in the June VHF QSO Party have been awarded for first through tenth place in any category, regardless of location. As any VHFer will tell you, there are radical differences in propagation from one part of the country to another. We decided the plaque program needed to be based on Division, just like every other plaque program that the ARRL offers, not position in the standings."

Kutzko explained that the Programs and Services Committee agreed with this recommendation and voted in favor of it: "This change in structure recognizes the Division-level competition that takes place in the June VHF QSO Party, sometimes under conditions of little to no propagation."

June VHF QSO Party plaque sponsorships are available for all entry categories in all 15 ARRL Divisions, Canada, Mexico and DX. If you or your club is interested in sponsoring a plaque ($75, including shipping charges), contact ARRL Contest Branch Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X, via e-mail kx9x@arrl.org and he will help you find a plaque that's right for you or your club to sponsor.

ARRL Propagation Bulletin

Propagation Forecast Bulletin 23 ARLP023

From Tad Cook, K7RA

Seattle, WA June 5, 2009

To all radio amateurs

It is so great to see some real Cycle 24 sunspot activity this week. Instead of a phantom that pops into view one day and is gone the next, we have sunspot 1019, which has persisted for five days, so far. Emerging on Sunday, May 31, the resulting daily sunspot numbers through June 4 are 15, 23, 19, 17 and 17. This is a Cycle 24 spot, and at high latitude too, which is an indication of a new cycle spot.

Meanwhile, the low solar wind and quiet geomagnetic conditions continue. Currently spot 1019 is about to fade, although it is still a few days away from crossing the eastern limb to the far side. NOAA and the US Air Force expect geomagnetic conditions to continue to be quiet, and a planetary A index around five is predicted until June 29. Predicted solar flux values are 72 for June 5-6, then 74 on June 7-13.

Geophysical Institute Prague predicts quiet geomagnetic conditions June 5-8, quiet to unsettled June 9-10, and quiet again June 11.

Time now to look at our 3-month average daily sunspot numbers to spot trends. It looks like the numbers are up, slightly.

The three-month average of daily sunspot numbers for January through April was 2.4, 2.3, 1.5 and 2. The last number, centered on April, is the sum of all daily sunspot numbers for March through May, divided by the number of days.

Since 2007, the 3 month moving average has been:

Jan 07 22.7

Feb 07 18.5

Mar 07 11.2

Apr 07 12.2

May 07 15.8

Jun 07 18.7

Jul 07 15.4

Aug 07 10.2

Sep 07 5.4

Oct 07 3.0

Nov 07 6.9

Dec 07 8.1

Jan 08 8.5

Feb 08 8.4

Mar 08 8.4

Apr 08 8.9

May 08 5.0

Jun 08 3.7

Jul 08 2.0

Aug 08 1.1

Sep 08 2.5

Oct 08 4.5

Nov 08 4.4

Dec 08 3.7

Jan 09 2.3

Feb 09 2.1

Mar 09 1.5

Apr 09 2.0

The average daily sunspot number for just the month of May was 4, which indicates a nice trend following the March and April 3-month averages.

David Witkowski, W6DTW of San Jose, California was happy to see the reports of night time 20 meter propagation from N6CAS, and notes that on May 20 he worked LY1000A (Lithuania) at 0405z, ES1QD in Estonia at 0612z on May 22, and OH5LF (Finland) at 0635z on May 23. He worked them all using 100 watts and a vertical antenna. He wrote, "I told some friends here in San Jose that I'd worked Europe barefoot at 11:00pm local time and a few of them gave me the 'Oh yeah, sure you did' look. Thanks for vindicating me."

David continued, "Regarding the question of "dead" versus "unoccupied" bands; I wrote a blog article recently on this topic. (See http://sparqi.blogspot.com/.) During Summer Es I used to listen to 28.4 and/or tune from 28.3-28.5 to check for openings. Recently I made the discovery that listening on CB channel 38-LSB (27.385) is a much better way to do a quick check for openings; I have monitored stations from all over the western US burning up "38 lower" well into late evening, while 10 meters sits idle. Many times there is propagation; we're just not using it."

Howard Estes, WB4GUD of Franklin, North Carolina also likes to check Citizens Band activity for a 10-meter propagation indicator. He wrote, "I agree with W1ZI, the bands aren't dead, we're just lazy. How often do you scan a band, don't hear anything, and go somewhere else? I've started checking the CB channels for activity. If I can hear the Big Frog Gigger in LA (that's lower Alabama), probably 10M is open to somewhere."

Mark Lunday, WD4ELG of Hillsborough, North Carolina wrote about a June 1 E-skip opening on 6 meters that still continued at 0400z on June 2. "I worked 12 stations on CW and SSB across the Midwest on 6. Also, had some multi-hop on 10 meters using WSJT JT65A and heard Oregon. Second night in a row that I was hearing Es late at night on 10 meters using WSJT weak-signal propagation."

Mark said he likes to use DX Sherlock, at http://tinyurl.com/5qwvu2.

Bill Turner, W4WNT of Matthews, North Carolina has good luck lately with PSK on 20 meters, even when there are no sunspots. He is running 25 watts into a G5RV at 25 feet, and on May 21 at 0345z he worked Peter, ZL1PWD who reported working 12 stations that day.

Erik Jacobsen, KB9BNY of McHenry, Illinois sent a message titled, "20-meter PSK31 has been on fire this week." He wrote, "Tuesday, with the sunspot number at 19 and the solar flux at 72, 20 meters nicely opened up for world wide communication. I participate in the PSK reporter network (http://psk.gladstonefamily.net/pskmap.html). Basically, when a reporting station receives the de callsign callsign pattern, the location of the transmitting station is then plotted on a map. When I checked the map on Tuesday morning, I saw a Pakistani station, two New Zealand stations and a Japanese station plotted. It just goes to show you how well 20 meters can perform with a small amount of power (usually under 30 watts), a narrow-band signal, and relatively modest solar conditions."

He continues, "I preserved the map for historical purposes at http://tinyurl.com/June2-map. Tuesday's total monitoring take for a 24 hour period was 30 countries. I occasionally blog my PSK reporter observations at http://20meters.blogspot.com. My current PSK reporter map can be viewed at http://tinyurl.com/kb9bny-map."

Thanks, Erik! Great stuff.

Again this week we have a book recommendation. Bill Scholz, KB1SGY of Greenwich, Connecticut advises checking out "The Sun Kings; The Unexpected Tragedy of Richard Carrington and the Tale of How Modern

Astronomy Began."

Bill writes that this is "an engaging book by Stuart Clark that describes, in great detail, how the great astronomers of the 19^th century linked sun spots, solar flares, auroras and magnetic storms. An excerpt from the flyleaf: 'In September of 1859, a cloud of seething gas engulfed the Earth and a blood-red aurora erupted

across the planet. Around the world, telegraph machines burst into flames, while compasses reeled as if struck by a massive magnetic fist. No one knew what could have released such strange forces upon the Earth - no one, that is, except the amateur English astronomer Richard Carrington.'"

He continues, "It's a great read and I recommend it highly if you're interested in the connection between these phenomena."

Last week's bulletin mentioned a consumer communications product out of Japan that would require text messengers to learn Morse code. We asked if anyone could decode the Japanese in a graphic on a web page talking about the product, and Brett Graham, VS6BG says it is just a banner ad for a television show. He thought the product might be for real, but checked with JA3USA, who thought it was an April 1 joke. But Brett says, "The idea does have something going for it."

In last week's bulletin we presented some confusing text regarding scientific notation and numbers representing the area covered by sunspots, at least it confused me. I was worried about it, so I checked with K9LA, who got me on the right track. But K1SFA at ARRL HQ was concerned when she got it from me, so she passed it on to a ham who is an astronomer for a fact check. Somehow it got changed back to the way I had it in the first place, before getting input from K9LA. So at this point I can't correct it, although I believe K9LA had it right. More later.

If you would like to make a comment or have a tip for our readers, email the author at, k7ra@arrl.net.

For more information concerning radio propagation, see the ARRL Technical Information Service web page at,

http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html. For a detailed explanation of the numbers used in this bulletin, see http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/k9la-prop.html. An archive of past propagation bulletins is at, http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/prop/.

Monthly propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve overseas locations are at http://www.arrl.org/qst/propcharts/.

Instructions for starting or ending email distribution of this bulletin are at http://www.arrl.org/w1aw.html#email.

Sunspot numbers for May 28 through June 3 were 0, 0, 0, 15, 23, 19, and 17 with a mean of 10.6. 10.7 cm flux was 67.7, 68.2, 68.5, 68.5, 72.5, 71.9, and 72.5 with a mean of 70. Estimated planetary A indices were 7, 5, 3, 3, 3, 2 and 4 with a mean of 3.9. Estimated mid-latitude A indices were 5, 4, 2, 3, 2, 2 and 4 with a mean of 3.1.

ARRL DX Bulletin

DX Bulletin 22 ARLD022

From ARRL Headquarters

Newington CT June 4, 2009

To all radio amateurs

This week's bulletin was made possible with information provided by NC1L, PF4T, PY2WAS, QRZ DX, the OPDX Bulletin, DXNL, 425 DX News, The Daily DX, Contest Corral from QST and the ARRL Contest Calendar and WA7BNM web sites. Thanks to all.

LESOTHO, 7P. Alexander, UX4UL and Ivan, UR9IDX are QRV as 7P8A and 7P8R, respectively, until June 10. Activity is on all bands. QSL 7P8A via UY5ZZ and 7P8R via UR9IDX.

MALDIVES, 8Q. Tom, PF4T will be QRV as 8Q7TB Embudu Island, IOTA AS-013, from June 8 to 24. Activity will be on 40 and 20 meters using SSB. QSL direct to home call.

BAHAMAS, C6. A group of operators are QRV as C6AMS from Nassau on New Providence, IOTA NA-001, until June 14. This includes possible activity from Lighthouse WLOTA LH-1115. QSL direct to NA6M.

ANGOLA, D2. Vasiliy is QRV as D2QMN and has been active using RTTY on 20 meters around 2000z. QSL via RZ3EC.

SOUTH COOK ISLANDS, E5. Nigel, G4KIU now lives in Rarotonga, IOTA OC-013, and is QRV as E51SC. He is active on 80 to 10 meters using SSB, RTTY, PSK31 and some CW. QSL to home call.

IRELAND, EI. Members of the Galway Radio Experimenters Club are QRV as EI09VOR until June 6 in celebration of the Volvo Ocean Yacht Race which takes place in Galway. Activity is on 30, 20 and 17 meters

using CW and SSB. Activity is from the Mutton Island Lighthouse, ARLHS IRE-107. QSL via EI8DD.

FRANCE, F. In commemoration of the 65th anniversary of the ''D-Day landings'' in Normandy special event station F/ON6JUN/p is QRV from Ranville until June 8. In addition, special event station TM6SME is

QRV from Emondeville until June 14. QSL via operators' instructions.

SAINT MARTIN, FS. John, K9EL is QRV as FS/home call until June 12 while on vacation. Activity is on 80 to 10 meters using CW, SSB and RTTY in his spare time, QSL to home call.

ITALY, I. To commemorate 100 years of the Nobel Prize for Physics of Guglielmo Marconi, Alfredo, IK7JWX is QRV as IY7NGM and IY7NGM/p until the end of 2009. Activity is on all HF bands and 6 meters

using all modes. QSL via IK7JWX.

SVALBARD, JW. Jan, OK1JK, Jiri, OK1JST, Pavel, OK1IPS and Jiri, OK1IEC are QRV as JW/homecalls from Longyearbyen, IOTA EU-026, until June 15. Activity is on all bands using CW, SSB, RTTY and PSK. QSL to home calls.

NETHERLANDS, PA. Special event station PA6JEROEN is QRV until June 14 in celebration of the 800-year-old bell tower of St. Jeroenskerk in Noordwijk. QSL via PA7DA.

FERNANDO de NORONHA, PY0F. A group of operators will be QRV as ZY0F from June 10 to 15. Activity will be on 160 to 10 meters, including 60 meters, using CW, SSB and digital modes. QSL via PY2WAS.

DODECANESE ISLANDS, SV5. A group of operators will be QRV as SX5LA from Levitha Island, IOTA EU-001, from June 8 to 14. QSL via SV1GRM.

BERMUDA ISLANDS, VP9. Alex, W5YDX will be QRV as VP9/home call from Hamilton Parish from June 10 to 24. Activity is holiday style generally on 20 and 17 meters. QSL to home call.

ASCENSION ISLAND, ZD8. Dean, KJ4GNB is QRV as ZD8DC and has been active on 20 meter using SSB. His length of stay is unknown. QSL to home call.

THIS WEEKEND ON THE RADIO. The SEANET Contest, NCCC CW Sprint Ladder, Digital Pentathlon, Wake-Up. QRP Sprint, DigiFest, VK Shires Contest, UKSMG Summer 6-Meter Contest, RSGB National CW Field Day, IARU Region 1 CW Field Day, Alabama QSO Party will certainly keep contesters busy this upcoming weekend. The NAQCC Straight Key/Bug Sprint and RSGB 80-Meter Club CW Championship are scheduled for June 10. Please see June QST, page 80 and the ARRL and WA7BNM contest web sites for details.

June 2009