PRIEST'S OTHER FAITH WAS IN RADIO WAVES

Father Jozef Murgas, the scientist, painter and priest born in what is now known as Slovakia, was a man of enduring curiosity and deep faith. Ordained in 1888, he served the church in what was then the Kingdom of Hungary until he answered a call to service in the United States. In 1896, he arrived in the mining community of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, which has a strong Slovak population.

The priest, whose many studies included astronomy, botany and electrotechnology, held another cherished faith -- a strong belief in his experiments in radiotelegraphy. Some historians say that his development of a wireless transmission method known as "The Tone Method," which he patented, paved the way for the development of Morse Code. In 1905 he publicly tested it, successfully sending signals between towers in Wilkes-Barre and Scranton, about 20 miles, or 32 kilometers, away.

That historic transmission will be recreated on the 15th of November by the Murgas Amateur Radio Club K3YTL at King's College and amateur radio station W3USR at the University of Scranton. The event, organized in partnership with the Slovak Heritage Society of Northeastern Pennsylvania, will be live streamed on YouTube and Facebook and will be available for viewing later on the club's YouTube Page.

The day will also mark the 50th anniversary of the club that honored the pioneering priest by adopting his name as their own.

SILENT KEY'S GIFT ENDOWS LIBRARY DEAN CHAIR AT ALMA MATER

A native of Iowa, Gary Swenson, KA2HAN, served in the US Army for 30 years before retiring as a colonel in 2005. Before entering the military, he had earned his master's and doctoral degrees in economics from Iowa State University.

His lifelong love of learning and reading carried through into his amateur radio career -- and now prominently into his legacy. Gary became a Silent Key this past June unexpectedly when he had a heart attack at the age of 75. His estate is funding the establishment of a Dean of Library Services on the university campus. The library is a cornerstone of the university, with more than 2.3 million physical items in its collections and another 2 million e-books as well as access to online publications in various disciplines. According to the university website, more than 1.5 million downloads of the campus' scholarship and research projects are completed each year from its digital repository

The library services' inaugural dean, Hilary Seo, said the gift would [quote] "benefit future generations of students well into our next century of service." [endquote] That educational mission is consistent with much of what Gary did after retiring from the military: he tutored at a community action center near his home in the state of Virginia and was active with the Mount Vernon Amateur Radio Club.

MOUNTAIN RADIO CHALLENGE TESTS SKILLS, PROPAGATION

What started as an experiment between two teenagers in Australia testing the range of their walkie-talkies later grew into a test of CB radios' range in young drivers' cars. The activity, which began formally in 1987, is known as the Mountain Radio Challenge and it is a test of what a radio operator can accomplish using only line-of-sight communications.

This year's challenge is taking place on Saturday the 29th of November. Instead of school kids on beaches, this growing challenge attracts CB radio operators on 27 MHz and amateur radio operators on the ham frequencies, many of whom are also activating SOTA summits.

Tony Lock, the founder and event director, told Newsline in an email that the very challenge that began long ago between him and a schoolmate has since expanded to several groups on hills within his home state of Victoria and has expanded to Tasmania, South Australia and New South Wales.

The objective is to transmit a predetermined relay message in one direction, from one operator to the next, and a responding message back in the reverse direction.

According to the event website, although ham radio operators will not be participating in the message relay itself, their presence on the mountains is still useful because the hams can help with operator coordination and, of course, if there is a need for emergency communications.

For details about participating, see the link the text version of this week's newscast at arnewsline.org

ISS MARKS 25 YEARS with SSTV TRANSMISSIONS

Get ready for a celebration in the sky: Amateur Radio on the International Space Station is marking its 25th year by transmitting 12 different images on SSTV from November 12th through to the 20th. The images, which will honor Scouting, are to be sent on 145.800 MHz every two minutes. There will be a scheduled interruption on the 16th of November for an educational contact with Azerbaijan.

2 RECEIVE YASME EXCELLENCE AWARD FOR WORK WITH YOUNG HAMS

Two US amateurs have been recognized by the Yasme Foundation for their ongoing contributions to young amateur radio operators in helping them develop technical and operating skills.

Ed Engleman, KG8CX, is being honored for his work with the YACHT program, which serves young amateurs. YACHT is an acronym for the Young Amateurs Communications Ham Team, which connects young radio operators around the world to form friendships and share their experiences.

Don Jones, K6ZO has been recognized for his ongoing work training and supporting young operators in rural Malawi. One of the teenage operators from Don’s training sessions was recently added to the team of DXpeditioners who are going to Andaman and Nicobar islands in the Bay of Bengal next year.

Both hams will receive the Yasme Excellence Award, which was established in 2008 by the foundation. The announcement was made on the 30th of October.

In the same announcement, the foundation’s board of directors said that Yasme has also made a grant to support the RM Noise project, which employs artificial intelligence to remove noise from SSB and CW reception.

SILENT KEY: QUICKSILVER RADIO PRODUCTS' JOHN BARTSCHERER, N1GNV

Many customers in the amateur radio community knew him simply as “John Bee,” but John Bartscherer (Bart Shearer), N1GNV, was also known for his Connecticut-based business, Quicksilver Radio Products, and his personable demeanor. He was a visible presence at hamfests and activities with the Meriden Amateur Radio Club. Before starting Quicksilver more than 20 years ago, John had been the advertising manager for the ARRL’s publication, QST. Licensed in 1989, John and his club also ran the Nutmeg Ham Fest, the New England ARRL State Convention in Hartford.

John became a Silent Key on Saturday the 25th of October while hospitalized.

His longtime friend and part-time employee, Peter Freiler (Fry-Lurr), W1AIR, told Newsline that the business remains open while the family copes with its grief. He said that Quicksilver’s longterm plans were unclear.

Peter said that John found great joy in meeting with fellow amateurs at Dayton and at New England’s regional NEAR-Fest, which he particularly loved attending. He said that he often spent more time just chatting with visitors than trying to sell them anything -- which, given his friendly nature, was not surprising.

SILENT KEY: ORIGINAL SOTA ENTHUSIAST, ROBERT JOHN HANNAN, G4RQJ

Robert John Hannan, G4RQJ, was not just one of the best-known and longest-serving members of the SOTA community but perhaps one of its best loved. He was there in 2002 when SOTA was a dream realised by so many outdoor enthusiasts who believed that combining radio with a bit of adventure would be a peak experience in every sense of the word.

Rob became a Silent Key on the 25th of September in the Risedale St Cuthberts Nursing Home. His death was reported recently on the SOTA Reflector.

Even as poor health began to hamper his activities, Rob's enthusiasm remained strong. His final activation, made in 2018, was number 916. Even away from the summits, his was a particularly familiar face at the annual Norbreck Rally in Blackpool, where accompanied by his wife Audrey, he staffed the SOTA stand and greeted visitors warmly.

The SOTA Reflector post noted that his cheerful and caring demeanor was as present on the air as off the air. The post said: [quote] "Whether answering your call as a chaser or in summit-to-summit QSO, he always sounded as though he was having the time of his life and was absolutely delighted to hear from you." [endquote]

Rob was 84.

AUSTRALIAN BAND PLAN GETS SWEEPING REVIEW

Regulatory changes and shifts in on-air activity are two of the major drivers behind a wide-ranging overhaul being considered for Australia's ham bands. The WIA's Technical Advisory Committee opened a community consultation on the 17th of October and is expecting hams who have made requests over the years to formally weigh in on these proposals until the deadline on the 12th of December.

The proposed changes accommodate growth in the use of new modes and new areas of interest, particularly those involving the use of digital technology. They include revising ATV segments based on widespread adoption of Digital ATV modes; a review of repeater sub-bands considering the growth of digital voice hotspots on 2m and 70cm. Band plan data for the Microwave bands between 24 and 134 GHz are also being reviewed.

On HF, the proposal will try to achieve better alignment of band plans, including 630 metres and 160 metres.

A comprehensive list can be found at the link in the text version of this week's newscast at arnewsline.org The WIA is seeking responses only from licenced hams and clubs based in Australia. Revisions are expected to be published by the end of the first quarter of next year.

PROPOSED SATELLITE WOULD PROVIDE 'SUNLIGHT ON DEMAND'

The FCC's Space Bureau has been asked to approve a proposed launch next April for a satellite in non-geostationary orbit that will deploy mirrors to provide "sunlight on demand," according to the company's website.

Reflect Orbital, a startup company based in California, filed its application this past summer for a license for what it hopes will be the first of 4,000 mirrored satellites that it wants to place in low-Earth orbit by 2030. The April launch is being eyed for a demonstration satellite which will carry a mirror that measures 18-by-18 meters, or 60-by-60 feet. Sunlight's reflection by that envisioned constellation would extend daylight beyond twilight by as much as four hours, increasing solar-power production to locations where Reflect Global has customers.

The company says that its technology supports clean-energy generation - but astronomers, biologists and other scientists have raised questions about the prospect of light pollution on human and animal health and the ability to study the skies effectively.

Astronomers in particular have said that lighting up dark skies would impede their work, which uses sensitive cameras. According to published reports, Reflect Orbital recently began working with astronomers to minimize the mirrors' impact. on them. Meanwhile, scientists have observed how nocturnal species' lives can be disrupted and perhaps imperiled by artificial light during the night.

This past May, the US Air Force awarded the project a $1.25 million Small Business Innovation Research contract to support its progress.

WHY HAVE A QSO WHEN YOU CAN HAVE A CONCERTO?

When the musician-composer duo of Brian Eno and Beatie Wolfe launched their new album, "Liminal," on the 10th of October, they really launched it, in every sense of the word. On Facebook, Brian Eno described the pair's musical partnership as [quote] "exploring an intimate and unfamiliar new sonic world" [endquote]. So what better venue for it than some far-away sonic world? The pair beamed the album into space via microwave transmission five days after its release. At the helm of Liminal's liftoff was Nobel Prize-winning physicist Robert Wilson operating the Holmdel Horn Antenna in New Jersey which had played a role in helping prove the Big Bang Theory.

The microwave horn antenna, as it turns out, is a well-tuned instrument of music as well as science. For Beatie Wolfe, this was actually its encore performance. Robert Wilson helped broadcast a previous album of hers in 2017, a work known as "Raw Space."

Music, the universal language, is now the universe's language. Even NASA has got into the act. In 2008 the space agency marked its 50th anniversary by sending a recording of the Beatles' "Across the Universe" into deep space. Last year its Deep Space Station 13 radio dish antenna in California beamed the first hip-hop song into space, Missy Elliott's "The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)."

This past May, the European Space Agency broadcast a Vienna Symphony Orchestra performance of Johann Strauss' "Blue Danube Waltz" from its radio antenna in Spain at the speed of light in the direction of the Voyager 1 probe.

This is the never-ending journey of music. It is now surrounded by constellations and CubeSats, dancing with the stars.

ASTRONOMY TRADE FAIR TO DEBUT AT HAM RADIO FRIEDRICHSHAFEN

If your plans next year include attending Ham Radio Friedrichshafen in Germany, you may want to set aside a day to consider some sky-gazing that has long been a companion to amateur radio. Astro, an astronomy trade fair is making its premiere next year. The exhibition center that will be home to the large ham radio trade fair from June 26th through to the 28th will also be welcoming amateur astronomers and technology hobbyists on June 27th. Space is being set aside in Hall B1 for the trade fair focusing on astronomy, astrophotography and related activities, giving hams and others many more worlds to explore.

EVENT MARKS 50 YEARS SINCE LAKE SUPERIOR SHIP TRAGEDY

Fifty Novembers ago, a storm stirred over Lake Superior and the USS Edmund Fitzgerald, a ship with 29 men aboard, was swallowed up by the raging water. That tragedy in the American Midwest claimed the lives of the entire crew; they share their final resting place with the doomed iron-ore carrier.

These men are not buried and forgotten, however; their friends, relatives and former neighbors are among those who participate every year in an on-air tribute organized by the Stillwater Amateur Radio Association. Hams will be calling QRZ as WØJH from the 7th of November through to the anniversary date of the ship's sinking, November 10th.

Special events chair and past president Dave Glas, WØOXB, told Newsline that connections to this ship have emerged almost every year for the two decades of this event. A distant cousin of club member Curtis Letch, KFØPSC, was among the fatalities: Blaine H. Wilhelm, was 52 and the ship's oiler. Dave told Newsline: [quote] "Over two decades of operating our special event, we’ve made contact with 1,000 hams average per year worldwide. Mostly throughout North America. There’s often someone who tells us of a connection they’ve had with one of the lost crewmen." [endquote]

The hams will operate from Split Rock Lighthouse State Park. The ship had passed that lighthouse on the day it made its final trip.

For details about modes, frequencies and times - or instructions on how to get a certificate - see QRZ.com.

'WAR OF THE WORLDS' SPECIAL EVENT REMEMBERS MARTIAN 'INVASION'

The fictional Martians may not have have their antennas tuned but members of the Delaware Valley Radio Association did as 16 operators called CQ for several hours in a public park in Grover's Mill, New Jersey, the site where the original broadcast radio drama played out in 1938. This was the club's fourth year hosting the event as station WØW [W ZERO W], and it was timed to coincide with the original late October airing.

There is a monument in the park honoring that broadcast, which put Grover's Mill on the map - but the hams' activation in the park may have left a lasting impression too:

Unlike the invading Martians, the visitors here came in peace. Cyclists participating in the township's "Martian Bike Ride" and other members of the public stopped by to get a close-up look at what amateur radio is all about. One young person even got on the air and logged one of the 159 QSOs that were made, according to Martin Crabtree W3PR.

Anyone saying "take me to your leader" would have been introduced, of course, to club president Martin - that's Martin, not Martian - who was outfitted appropriately in foil-covered fedora. Other hams wore antennae - but in this case, none of them were tuned for any transmissions except, perhaps, those from Mars.

RSGB TEAM HONORED BY BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY

Newsline congratulates the team at the Radio Society of Great Britain's National Radio Centre. They were selected for the 2025 Sir Arthur Clarke Education and Outreach Team Award for their work advancing knowledge into amateur radio satellite communications. The British Interplanetary Society conferred the award which was accepted by RSGB General Manager Steve Thomas, M1ACB; NRC Coordinator Martyn Baker, G0GMB; and NRC Volunteer Brian Hardy, G4BIP.

HAM TO CHAIR COLLEGE'S NEW ELECTRICAL AND COMPUTER ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

Starting in the fall of 2026, students at Western Washington University will be able to enroll in programs in the new Electrical and Computer Engineering Department and to pursue studies in the school's first engineering graduate program. The courses were previously housed within the school's Department of Engineering and Design.

The Zero Retries Newsletter, which reports the development in its latest edition, said that Janelle Leger, dean of the College of Science and Engineering, credited student and industry demand as the primary reasons for creation of a new department. She said the move is being made with support from the state to create the degree programs. Majors will select from four programs, which include wireless networking and signal processing focus, as well as AI, electronics and energy.

The professor chairing the new department is Andy Klein. On the university website, the professor writes that having a standalone department will pave the way to creating partnerships and internships with companies and generate more internships for students. Andy Klein is an amateur radio operator who received the callsign KG7WFT in July.

LATVIAN HAMS CELEBRATE 100 YEARS OF BROADCAST RADIO

The hams who are calling CQ as YL100LR until the 2nd of November are sharing the story of Rigas Radiofons, which went on the air in 1925 with a 2 kW transmitter, two 45-meter-high antenna towers and equipment purchased from France. From its studio inside a post office building in Riga city, the state-owned station began its life on the air with a two-hour broadcast that included the Puccini opera, "Madame Butterfly" and a speech by Minister of Transport J. Pauluks.

The evolution of radio broadcasting in Latvia is closely tied to that of amateur radio there: When the Latvian Radio Society helped create the Radio Subscribers Law, they created a category for radio experimenters who eventually became the nation's hams. From the start, hams were big supporters of the newly created broadcast station. In fact, by 1926, a spare transmitter at the station was being used for ham radio communications. The relationship remains strong to this day and many amateur radio operators in Latvia are also broadcast radio professionals.

REPORT: LITTLE OR NO SECURITY FOR SATELLITES' SENSITIVE TRANSMISSIONS

Using a commercially available satellite dish, a team of researchers at two US universities confirmed the lack of security protecting the at-times sensitive content being broadcast from satellites. The teams at the University of Maryland and UC San Diego said that they easily tapped into geostationary satellite transponders sending private consumer data, internal corporate communications, voice and SMS transmissions from mobile phones and - perhaps most disturbing - military transmissions that were particularly sensitive.

The research teams released their findings on the 13th of October and the contents were carried by the website Wired. They said that the satellites’ extreme vulnerability was discovered with the use of nothing more than off-the-shelf radio equipment that is widely available on the market.

The teams concluded that at least half of the geostationary satellites carrying such data do not have effective encryption in place, leaving the contents of the transmissions accessible to hackers and others with the ability to monitor them.

According to the report, the researchers alerted many of the satellite operators after the discoveries were made. They wrote, in their report: [quote] “In several cases, the responsible party told us that they had deployed a remedy.” [Endquote] They included WalMart, T-Mobile and KPU. They note that remediation was still going on for other affected parties and, as such, the team did not identify them in the report. In the meantime, they said, end users are able to encrypt their network traffic via a Virtual Private Network and, on mobile devices, the use of end-to-end encrypted apps.

HURRICANE MELISSA SPURS HAM ACTIVATIONS

As Newsline went to production, Hurricane Melissa was still a developing story in the Caribbean. The Category 5 storm had already done catastrophic damage to parts of Jamaica as it continued its rampage through the region. The Hurricane Watch Net was active on 14.325 MHz and 7.268 MHz and advising all other traffic to avoid those frequencies The VOIPWX.net was monitoring calls for help and Skywarn weather reports from impacted areas. Many reports came from the Caribbean Digital Amateur Radio Service and other amateur radio stations who relayed information from Jamaican News Radio as well as local ham stations. Newsline will be following amateur response to the storm and its aftermath.

ON DXPEDITION, A PILEUP OF THINGS GOING WRONG

Operating from the Manihiki Atoll in the North Cook Islands had been the shared dream of five hams from the Western Washington DX Club. They weren't just activating the 68th most wanted DXCC entity; they were dreaming of pileups.

The pileups they got were the unwanted pileups of malfunctions which began not long after they put the callsign E51MWA on the air on the 9th of October. Twelve hours in, their solar plant experienced a voltage loss and they were unable to start their backup generator. The team went QRT for several hours. Back on the air during the next few days, they suffered the failure of a power strip, they lost the use of one radio and then the high-power bandpass filters for 17 and 12 metres failed to work.

The final blow to their dream came on the 14th of October with a local power outage. The team got their backup generator started but then the generator and the power station's building both caught fire and were destroyed.

It was time to go home to Washington state for Rob N7QT, Brian N9ADG, James KC7EFP, Robin WA7CPA and Jack N7JP. The sixth operator, Violetta KN2P, a 21-year-old contester, was also scheduled to move on. She was headed to the PJ2T youth-led operation in Curacao for the CQWW SSB contest.

The team's plan had been to be on the air at Manihiki until October 20th. Instead they posted a message on their website on the 14th. [quote] "Without power options the team has no choice but to go QRT." [endquote] Six days ahead of schedule, it was over. As they packed, they added one more thing to their cargo: big plans that they alluded to in a message on their website. They wrote [quote] "As the team packs equipment for return shipment to the US, we are already thinking of the next DXpedition." [endquote]

SCOTTISH MICROWAVE ENTHUSIASTS PREPARE FOR ROUNDTABLE

Microwave fans, whether they're newcomers or longtime enthusiasts, are preparing to attend the 13th Scottish Microwave Round Table on the 1st of November at the Museum of Communication in Burntisland, Fife.

The roundtable will have available microwave test facilities available and attendees will be able to purchase components and other items. The GM4LBV Trophy will be presented as part of an annual construction competition held in memory of Scottish microwave enthusiast John Eaton. It bears the callsign of John, who became a Silent Key in 2012.

For details about the event or registration information, see the link in the text version of this week's newscast at arnewsline.org