POLAR OBSERVATORY TO HOST HEISS ISLAND DXPEDITION

The RI1FJL Russian DXpedition Team to Franz Josef Land has announced that they have received permission from the management of the Ernst Krenkel Polar Observatory allowing the six operators to stay at the base on Heiss island during their activation. Heiss island, IOTA number EU-019, is the world's northernmost DXCC. The Franz Josef Land archipelago is in a glacial region about 870 kilometres, or 540 miles, from the North Pole,

Reporting on the DX World website, team leader Vasily, R7AL, said that the group now expects to depart on the 7th of August with an estimated arrival date on the island on the 15th.

FIRESATS LAUNCHED TO TRACK WILDFIRES FROM THE SKY

The trio of microsatellites described as "fire towers in the sky" have been launched. As planned, Firesat-1, -2 and -3 were launched on the 7th of July. The project is supported by the Earth Fire Alliance and its goal is to track various types of wildfires across five continents. As reported earlier on Newsline, the satellites have received support from a $26 million grant from the Bezos Earth Fund and have the support of Google. The nonprofit Earth Fire Alliance is hoping to have enough satellites in place eventually so that every point on the planet will be seen every 20 minutes.

SPAIN'S WILDFIRES SPARE DEEP SPACE NETWORK STATION

Following the evacuation of personnel from a Deep Space Network ground station imperiled by wildfires in Spain, NASA has announced that the site has avoided major damage. The site, known as the Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex, is run jointly by NASA and the European Space Agency.

NASA's press secretary Bethany Stevens announced on social media that on July 25th, antennas and buildings appeared to have been spared fire-related damage, which affected mainly vegetation and paved areas The agencies will take more comprehensive looks later, as allowed by conditions.

The site west of Madrid, which has five 34-meter antennas and a 70-meter antenna, is one of three stations in the Deep Space Network. The others are near Canberra, Australia and in Goldstone, California. Both of those sites were actively communicating with spacecraft of as July 24th but the antennas at the Madrid station are - for now - off the air. It was unclear when the antennas would be operational again. The cooperative nature of the three sites permitted the California station to pick up initial responsibility for communications before transferring that to the station in Australia.

PAPERS NEEDED FOR ZERO RETRIES DIGITAL CONFERENCE

The Zero Retries newsletter will host its second annual digital conference on Friday, October 16th and is asking for submissions of technical papers to be published in the conference proceedings. Technical papers should deal with projects, techniques or experiments that identified and solved problems. Authors submitting papers needn't be present at the conference to have their work published. The first day of the Zero Retries Digital Conference takes place on the opening day of Pacificon 2026. For more details about technical papers - or the conference itself - visit the link that appears in the text version of this week's newscast at arnewsline.org

MILITARY JAMMING EYED AS FACTOR IN FATAL PLANE CRASH

Federal investigators are looking at the role that scheduled GPS interference testing at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico may have played in the deadly crash of a light medevac airplane, killing the two pilots and two nurses on board. The plane was en route to picking up a patient. Five minutes before its crash into a mountain on May 14th, one of the pilots alerted an air traffic controller that they no longer had GPS signals.

According to several media reports, an air traffic controller requested that the military cease its tests of GPS interference - and the military complied -- but testing resumed after the controller learned that the pilot was able to complete the flight visually. A report in the IEEE Spectrum said that the preliminary findings do not state whether the air-traffic controllers let the pilots know that the jamming had been halted - or that it had started up again.

These findings were contained in a preliminary report released in June by the National Transportation Safety Board. Investigators do not expect to reach any final conclusions until next year. The US Army site in New Mexico site is known to conduct tests on spoofing and jamming systems and the US Federal Aviation Administration confirmed to an IEEE investigative reporter that jamming was also a concern during incidents in 2021 that led several close calls, or aircraft flying off course, in the region.

INTERNATIONAL DOG DAY AND CAT DAY TEAM UP

Ham radio teams in Latvia, the UK, the US, the Netherlands, India and Germany will be calling CQ on behalf of abandoned, abused and homeless pets around the world – and to advocate for adoption and humane treatment. In the spirit of friendship and the shared love of animals, they will be looking to raise awareness and hear one another’s stories.

The hams calling CQ are animal-lovers themselves who know the power of rescue because many have been deeply involved in organized animal-welfare efforts or have included a rescued dog or cat in their family.

All operators will be on the HF bands using CW and SSB to encourage conversational exchanges. Dog-station callsigns will include YL1DOG, GB4DOG, VU2MGS, DLØDOG, PDØØDOG and KØDOG. Cat stations will be calling CQ as DLØCAT, GB4CAT and DAØCAT.

For operating details and information about award certificates, follow the links in the text version of this week’s newscast at arnewsline.org.

You can also visit the QRZ.com page of YL1DOG.

UK'S LEADING OBSERVATORY EARMARKED FOR SHUTDOWN

The Jodrell Bank Observatory, which gathers data about the galaxy from seven radio telescopes across England, has lost government funding for the project and faces closure. The network, known as e-Merlin, is earmarked for shutdown following an announcement by UK Research and Innovation that it was ending financial support for the research and that all scientific work at Jodrell will be halted on the 1st of April 2028.

The observatory in Cheshire has also been home for seven decades to the massive 76-metre Lovell radio telescope. Jodrell Bank has been a foremost figure among astronomy centres worldwide and was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

FATHER-AND-SON DXPEDITION TEAM ADDS AN APRS MISSION

While providing the gift of DX contacts to people hunting him and his 13-year-old son on the air, Darek SP9DLM, will also be delivering something more: He will be establishing and launching the region's first APRS network, along with APRS LORA gateways. Using the callsigns UK/SP9DLM and UK/SN9GM, respectively, Darek and Greg, SN9GM, will be calling QRZ through to the 15th of August. Darek told Newsline that he was surprised - and pleased - with Uzbekistan's approval of their license because it is something rare.

Father and son have a busy agenda off the air, too: Once they arrive in Tajikistan, Darek will connect with local radio amateurs and donate equipment to launch an APRS network. Darek told Newsline that he has worked elsewhere with local hams, providing donated equipment -- often paid for from his own finances and with the help of donations. He said that his efforts have launched networks in countries where APRS did not previously exist: Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Sri Lanka, and Egypt.

He wrote: [quote] "I am involved in promoting APRS, and in particular APRS LORA. In Poland, during the initial period of creating the APRS LORA network, I was responsible for launching approximately 70% of all gateways." [endquote] He said the process began gradually and spontaneously, like a snowball effect.

He said that now, with the growing availability of APRS, more hams can launch balloons with APRS trackers and not risk losing track of them anymore.

SILENT KEY: NOTED DXER, KIYOSHI "KAN" MIZOGUCHI, JA1BK/VP6BK

Kiyoshi "Kan" Mizoguchi, JA1BK/VP6BK, was inducted into the CQ DX Hall of Fame in 1987 in recognition of his many roles in advancing the challenges of DXing. His death on May 23rd of this year was recently reported. Kan's name was well-known for both identifying and activating new DXCC entities, such as the Chesterfield Islands, Ducie Island, Swains Island and the Marquesas. Kan was also known for establishing the ARRL's DX Log Archive programme, an effort to preserve paper logs from DXpeditions considered rare and significant.

A leader in the ham radio community, he also had an impressive tenure as director of IARU Region 3. He served in that post from 1968 until 1975.

Kan was 93.

COMMITTEE RE-EVALUATING RESULTS OF WRTC 2026 COMPETITION

The WRTC Organising Committee has announced that they have found discrepancies contained in competitors' log files from the event, which was held in early July in the UK. Mark Haynes, MØDXR, organising committee chairman, released a statement on the 27th of July saying that an emergency meeting had been held and the judging committee had been instructed to conduct a re-analysis of the logs, since the findings could affect the teams' finishing positions. The statement appears on the event's website.

Mark said: [quote] "Whilst we do not want this to take a long time, I have instructed that this must be a thorough and complete re-analysis to enable the results to reach a position of absolute conclusion" [endquote] He added that [quote] "WRTC has no place for foul play." [endquote] He was not specific about what suspected actions are believed to have interfered with the results. Discussion threads on the WRTC's groups.io reflector have said that pirated callsigns affecting multipliers are among the elements being scrutinised.

2026 YHOTY FINDS FUN IN OUT-OF-THIS WORLD EXPERIENCES

Carsten Glasbrenner KQ4SJM of Brookville in central Florida was almost speechless when he learned in a recent phone call he had been selected as this year’s YHOTY.

CARSTEN: You’re kidding! That’s awesome!

MARK: Carsten, who is 14 and holds a General Class license earned in May 2024, took his Technician test at the age of 11. He is the son of Drew and Merete Glasbrenner. Carsten gives his dad, KO4MA, credit for planting the seeds that sprouted into an early interest in amateur radio – specifically, satellites and using

radio to take advantage of atmospheric changes to talk to people far away.

CARSTEN: Talking through a technological box in space. But, also 2-meter e-skip, and tropo, which was really cool, and some HF.

MARK: Carsten says he was pretty nervous making his first satellite contact just a month after earning his General and called on dad for some help.

CARSTEN: I hadn’t learned completely how to point and polarize the antenna yet. So I was more talking and he was helping me out through what I was going to say since FM satellites are rather quick so it’s kind of

hard to understand when you’re first doing them. So he was helping me out with the call signs, what to say, what to copy and what grid square I was. I didn’t know what grid square we were in yet.

MARK: Carsten says his interest in sharing his new-found hobby with other young people led to invitations to speak at Hamcation and the Dayton Hamvention and earned him a position as AMSAT’s youngest ambassador.

This past March, Carsten’s proposal to get more young hams working satellites became a reality. It’s called Students On the Air days and they’re held the first and third Tuesdays of each month.

Carsten has activated a number of rare grid squares in the short time he’s

been active. Carsten has well over 100 satellite contacts in the log and says he’s looking

to make many more. He begins high school this fall and says his interest in

kit-building, especially soldering components, might set him on the path to

electrical engineering.

From all of us here at Amateur Radio Newsline, Congratulations Carsten!

I’m Mark Abramowicz NT3V.

SKEETER/ANCHOR: Carsten will be presented the award at the Huntsville Hamfest on Saturday, August 22nd in the Von Braun Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

FOUR YLs AWARDED YLRL SCHOLARSHIPS

Four young top achievers are receiving scholarships from the Young Ladies Radio League to support their continued studies. The Ethel Smith K2LMB Memorial Scholarship is being awarded to Grace Papay, K8LG, who is being recognized for the second year in a row with this scholarship. The third-generation ham and top contester is also a satellite enthusiast. She was the first recipient younger than 21 to receive the AMSAT Grid Master Award. The Michigan resident is studying electrical engineering at Cedarville University in Cedarville, Ohio. Amateur Radio Newsline named her its Young Ham of the Year in 2024.

Last year's Young Ham award recipient, Katie Campbell, KE8LQR, has been chosen by YLRL for its Mary Lou Brown NM7N Memorial Scholarship. An avid contester and CW op, Katie has been active as assistant youth coordinator for the ARRL's Ohio Section. Her commitment to other young people in ham radio has included roles with Youth on the Air for the Americas and instructor for the Long Island CW Kids' program.

Sabrina Mol, WS8EMT, is receiving the Martha Wessell KØEPE Memorial Scholarship. A student at Columbia Southern University, where she is majoring in emergency management, she credits amateur radio with introducing her to emergency communications.

A recent high school senior from Michigan, Kanushi Desai, KE8RNA, will be attending Johns Hopkins University to study electrical engineering with the help of a YLRL scholarship. Kanushi serves as the ARRL Michigan Section's youth coordinator and she is vice president of the Midland Amateur Radio Club. She also edits their newsletter.

Congratulations, everyone!

TAKING THE CHALLENGE ON 12 METERS

Twelve metres is typically not known as the most popular band for most operators and so Ian, EI3LH, is posing a challenge that is rooting for this presumed underdog of bands. He has launched an activity known as "Midnight Runners." It's a challenge to operators to use CW or SSB only to complete 12 contacts on the band during a single operating session - a field activity such as a POTA, SOTA, Lighthouses or Beaches on the Air. Likewise, chasers at home can qualify to be Midnight Runners by logging their own dozen contacts with the portable stations.

Sorry, but there are no grand prizes. Those who succeed in the mission do get a reason to feel grand anyway - they receive a membership certificate declaring them one of the proud "Midnight Runners" -- and right now there aren't many.

Ian writes in his blog that this activity is his way of raising the profile of the 12-meter band which he believes is often forgotten among CW and sideband operators. He said that the concept was born as a result of a discussion about 12 metres that took place on the SOTA Reflector.

If you complete your "twelve-on-twelve," be sure to let Ian know by contacting him at midnight@ei3h.eu (midnight at ei3h dot EU) and send a text list of your QSOs, with all the details.

Since this is a new venture, who knows? You may end up getting membership number 12....as well as a virtual pat on the back from Ian.

ADVOCATES FOR DISABLED ATHLETES GETS BOOST FROM AMATEURS

Inside the communications trailer of the Twin State Radio Club, a handful of hams operated at several stations, always ready for the just-in-case moments that can happen when people run or ride horses along a long wooded trail in Vermont for 30 hours or more. As they have done for 34 years, the hams were supporting the Vermont 100, a fundraising challenge which drew 500 participants between the 18th and 20th of July. The runners and riders maxxed out their endurance and determination in support of Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports, which promotes accessible activities for athletes with visual and mobility impairments. The course had 10 aid stations and four horse holds - with amateurs present at each.

Rob Mather N1XSS, communications lead for the event, told Newsline that the course was well-covered by amateur radio thanks to the Connecticut Valley FM Associaton's 2-meter repeater high atop Mt. Ascutney. Several hams are also part of the Green Mountain Bike Patrol, which also provides medical support along the course. The trailer was equipped with public service radios as well that could contact the regional dispatch center in an emergency.

Rob told Newsline this isn't the end of the successful run - not for the team of 60 hams or the participants out on the trail. He said: [quote] "We do it all over again in September for the Vermont 50." [endquote] That's another fundraiser. If you wish to be part of the action, contact Rob via his email address at n1xss@mather1.com [PRON: En One Ex Ess Ess at MatherOne dot com] His email address also appears in the text version of this week's script at arnewsline.org

NEVADA TO GET 'WORLD'S MOST SENSITIVE' RADIO TELESCOPE

Construction is about to begin for a radio telescope known as the Deep Synoptic Array considered the most sensitive of its kind to date. The project is being led by Caltech, the California Institute of Technology, and is planned for the Nevada desert. According to the Caltech website, the telescope recently passed its final design review, allowing building to begin on what will ultimately be a collection of 1,650 radio dishes covering an area of 12 by 10 miles, or 20 by 16 kilometres.

Scientists expect the Deep Synoptic Array to have the ability to collect and identify more radio sources in any given day than any radio telescopes currently in operation. The researchers said they expect its initial survey to note nearly 1 billion objects emitting radio waves. Its special functions will include the study of pulsars, black holes and fast radio bursts and it raises hopes that it will detect other transient events that have gone undetected until now.

HAMSCI NEEDS OPERATORS FOR METEOR SCATTER QSO PARTIES

HamSCI is looking for radio operators to be calling CQ on 10 and 6 metres using the digital mode MSK144 or simply to serve as passive monitors during two upcoming meteor showers. The first are the Southern Delta Aquairiids between the 29th and 31st of July, followed by the Perseids between the 12th and the 14th August. HamSCI is hoping to receive data collected on 28.145 MHz and 50.260 MHz, especially any .WAV files of de-codes and operator contact logs from WSJT-X.

These are not the last of this year's parties, however. The final meteor scatter QSO party will be during the Geminids between the 13th and the 15th of December.

For operating hours and other details about how to help generate propagation data during these events - which are also friendly competitions - visit the link in the text version of this week's newscast at arnewsline.org

SILENT KEY: JERRY LEBOW, K2SMC, BROADCAST OWNER, EMERGENCY-ALERT ADVOCATE

Jerry LeBow, K2SMC, had a firm foothold in radio on both the commercial and amateur side. Licensed as a ham since 1955, he made his living in the broadcast world. He was a cofounder of the Sage Broadcast Group of stations, which had properties in the northeastern and Midwestern US. He was also a longtime member of the Society of Broadcast Engineers.

Through his company, Sage Alerting Systems, he manufactured equipment that became widely used to transmit emergency warnings for governments and for the petrochemical industry. In 1994, he became involved in the FCC's efforts to make the transition from its older Emergency Broadcast System to the newer Emergency Alert System.

Jerry was 81.

'BROADCAST DATACASTING' EYED FOR DELIVERY OF US WEATHER ALERTS

It's known as broadcast datacasting - the distribution of data using digital television - and it's showing promise for the National Weather Service as an alternative means of getting the word out.

According to a report on the tvtechnology.com website, the NWS is working with the broadcast datacasting specialist Spectra Rep, to evaluate how the technology can provide a redundant pathway for delivering NOAA weather audio and other data during emergencies.

The transmitted data would be undetected by viewers, according to the SpectraRep website.

Broadcast datacasting has been around for quite some time and originated with closed captioning that appears on many TV screens. Broadcast datacasting is also in some European countries although European TV employs different systems than those used in the US, such as Digital Video Broadcasting and Digital Audio Broadcasting.

NOAA said that the research will help strengthen Weather Radio and broaden access to its information across the country.

YOUNG OPERATORS TO LEAD 'MILESTONE' DXPEDITION TO CHRISTMAS ISLAND

Young radio operators will be planning, leading and operating the VK9XY DXpedition in November and December of this year through a partnership between the Pacific Islands DXpedition Group and Youth on the Air. Although young operators have been part of previous activations, including 3D2Y remote from Rotuma and PJ6Y on the island of Saba, the Pacific Islands group is calling this next operation "a milestone."

The lead operator will be Max Freedman, N4ML. Max and his team will have veteran DXpeditioners Gregg Marco, W6IZT and Glenn Johnson, WØGJ, as on-island advisors. Making the announcement on July 20th, the team said the young operators will include Connor Black, W4IPC; Tyler Schroder, NT1S; Lukas Bartkus, LY7J; and Urgent Jere, 7Q6UJ -- and that many of them were part of the two previous DXpeditions.

They will be on the air for about 18 days, starting around the 16th of November.

WHEN AN ANTENNA CAN OUTFOX CRIMINALS

The late Swiss radio amateur, Rudolf Baumgartner HB9CV, might never have been able to predict, more than 70 years ago, the popularity that his simple, portable antenna would gain among enthusiasts of amateur radio direction-finding.

Known widely as the HB9CV antenna, his design has offered fox-hunters the ease of grab-and-go usage, making it a go-to antenna for low-power VHF signal-hunting in the field.

Rudi would be pleased to see it being used by hams who want to out-fox the fox, but imagine his reaction upon learning that the simple two-element antenna has also been used to outfox criminals.

A recent episode of the UK-based TV programme, "Trace, Track, Get My Car Back," aired on BBC-One, showcased recently how versatile this popular transmitter hunter can be when vehicles, including rental cars and even building-site machines, go missing -- that is to say, when they are stolen. While typically, many companies outfit their vehicles with GPS for tracking, when that is shielded, the system defaults to an RF-based backup for the last mile. That's when car-recovery experts - in this case, from Global Telemetrics - are deployed with Rudolf's reliable creation.

Like eager hams on a fox hunt, they begin their careful search. Unlike eager hams, there are no trophies or certificates but it's something of a prize anyway if they locate the vehicle before it can be shipped out of the country.