Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2394 for Friday September 15th, 2023 Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2394 with a release date of Friday September 15th, 2023 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1. The following is a QST. Hams in Belgium gain new 8-metre access. Wideband communications gets tested above 100 GHZ -- and there's a new challenge facing the recovery of the wireless from the Titanic's wreckage. All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2394 comes your way right now. ** BILLBOARD CART ** HAM DEPLOYMENT UNCLEAR IN MOROCCAN, LIBYAN CRISES JIM/ANCHOR: We begin this week with two developing stories: the aftermath of a 6.8 magnitude earthquake in Morocco on September 8th and deadly massive flooding in northeast Libya. According to reports from Region 1 of the International Amateur Radio Union, there was no apparent organized amateur radio deployment in Morocco where the quake death toll was reported to be in the thousands. The IARU continues to monitor the situation. Meanwhile, ham deployments were considered less likely in Libya, where floods from a storm left more than 5,200 dead. According to the IARU website, Libya does not have an active member amateur society. Newsline will update these stories as circumstances warrant. (IARU REGION 1) ** US MILITARY EXPLORES WIDEBAND ABOVE 100 GHZ JIM/ANCHOR: Despite their potential for use in communications, radio frequencies in the terahertz and sub-terahertz ranges - that is, those above 100 GHz - are considered underutilized. The United States Air Force is about to share its plans for a radio they are hoping could change all that. Kent Peterson KCØDGY tells us about it. KENT: A project in the works in the US Air Force Research Laboratory is exploring the potential that radio frequencies above 100 GHZ have for secure wideband communications. The military is looking to develop an ultra-broadband radio that can adjust output power, data rate and even carrier frequency and are hoping to find defense contractors in the industry who can assist with the project. Although frequencies in those ranges, which can be used for 6G communications, have a high level of atmospheric absorption that can restrict how far the transmissions travel, the military is hoping to capitalize on the frequencies' ability to accommodate secure channels. The Air Force is hosting an informational day for the industry next month and will be looking for defense contractors who are US citizens to get on board the project. Early experiments have already proven successful, according to a report on the Inside Towers website. Last December, communication was achieved at frequencies higher than 300 GHZ during flight experiments by the Air Force, which has been exploring these options for almost a decade. This is Kent Peterson KCØDGY. (INSIDE TOWERS, MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS) ** US GOVERNMENT BLOCKS SALVAGE OF TITANIC'S WIRELESS JIM/ANCHOR: In the latest chapter surrounding controversial salvage operations at the wreckage of the Titanic, the US government is challenging a company's plans to recover the doomed ocean liner's wireless telegraph. JACK: The planned recovery of the Marconi wireless telegraph from the wreckage of the doomed luxury liner Titanic is being blocked by the United States government, citing federal law and an agreement with Great Britain that the ship should be treated as a gravesite. The salvage company RMS Titanic Inc., based in Georgia, had announced its plan to visit the wreck site next May to recover items - including the radio and telegraph used to send the distress call in 1912. Attorneys for the U.S. government claim the expedition would violate a pact with Great Britain that classifies the wreckage as a memorial. The government also maintains that the salvage trip would violate protections that the US Congress granted the TItanic site. The RMS TItanic company has particular interest in the Marconi room, where messages in Morse Code were transmitted, signaling that the ship was damaged after striking an iceberg in the North Atlantic while enroute to New York from Southampton, England. RMST, which had been granted salvage rights earlier by the court, told the Associated Press recently [quote] "The company will continue its work, respectfully preserving the memory and legacy of Titanic, her passengers and crew for the future generations." [endquote] The company plans to put the radio in an exhibit that tells the story of the lost liner. In May 2020, the court gave RMST permission to recover the radio because of its historical significance but the US government challenged the plans for the expedition that year. The expedition was called off. This is Jack Parker W8ISH. (ASSOCIATED PRESS) ** HAMS IN BELGIUM HAVE NEW 8M ACCESS JIM/ANCHOR: There's new access on the 8M band for amateurs in Belgium. Jeremy Boot G4NJH tells us more. JEREMY: Hams in Belgium have been given privileges on the 40 MHz band, joining radio operators in South Africa, Slovenia and Ireland with 8-metre access. The Belgian regulator informed the UBA, the Royal Belgian Amateur Radio Union, that hams with a Class A operating certificate, the HAREC licence, are granted the use of frequencies between 40.660 and 40.690 on a secondary basis. Operators' power is limited to 5 watts ERP and operating bandwidth cannot exceed 3 kHz. Hams will also be required to keep a log of all transmissions and must submit it to the regulator at year's end. The UBA had petitioned the BIPT some time ago to grant this limited portion of the band for amateurs' use and, following a period of consultation, anticipated that the regulator would favour it. This is Jeremy Boot G4NJH. (UBA WEBSITE, WIA) ** EXPERIMENTAL LOW-PASS FILTER MAKES DEBUT IN LONDON JIM/ANCHOR: A different kind of RF filter has just been introduced by a defense company in Sweden to assist in military communications. Again, here's Jeremy Boot G4NJH. JEREMY: It is being called the Ultra-Lightweight Camouflage Screen-Frequency Selected Surface, and it introduces a new capability for soldiers' communications in the field. It is a filter that permits certain radio frequencies to pass through the mesh of a camouflage net protecting military vehicles. The surface, which is not yet in service, was introduced by the Swedish defense company Saab earlier this month. Saab says that until now, camouflage nets' ability to reduce enemy sensors' detection of equipment has also prevented GPS signals and other communications passing through, jeopardizing soldiers who then must move out of camouflage cover to perform certain tasks. At times that has even meant sticking antennas through the mesh in order to transmit or receive signals. Johan Jersblad, a Saab senior development engineer, told reporters that the surface functions as a low-pass filter, which allows transmitted or received signals to penetrate the camouflage screen but retains the screen's ability to be undetected by higher-frequency radar. The surface was on display for visitors at the DSEI Defence Exhibition held in London from the 12th to the 15th of September. This is Jeremy Boot G4NJH. (DEFENSE NEWS) ** SPECIAL EVENT CELEBRATES HISTORIC TOWN'S 275TH BIRTHDAY JIM/ANCHOR: So what do three sons of William Penn - founder of the state of Pennsylvania in the United States - have to do with a special event station being activated in the town of Reading [pronounced REDDING]? Mark Abramowicz NT3V has the story. MARK: While history records William Penn as the man who established the American colony first known as Penn’s Woods and later Pennsylvania, it was his sons – Thomas, Richard and John - who laid out the first streets of the town of Reading, just north and west of Philadelphia. The city is celebrating its 275th birthday this year thanks to the work of the Penn brothers. On Saturday, Sept. 23rd, members of the Reading Radio Club will mark the occasion by activating the club’s call sign - W3BN - as a special event station. Club members will put three HF stations on the air from the Reading area for a 12-hour-period to commemorate the town’s historic milestone. Reading’s storied past includes the Reading Railroad, breweries, pretzel-making, and the first factory outlets. It is also recognized as home to one of the nation’s most successful minor league baseball teams long associated with the Philadelphia Phillies. But Reading is best known for its Pagoda, an actual reproduction of a Japanese structure, which was built atop Mount Penn overlooking Reading in the early 1900s. The popular tourist attraction became a historic landmark and a symbol for the town. There's more about the Reading Radio Club’s special event station and how you can get in on the fun at QRZ.com. Search for W3BN. And check out the colorful certificate that will look great on the wall of your shack. In Reading, Pennsylvania, I’m Mark Abramowicz, NT3V. ** BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including the K2ADA repeater in Ocala Florida on Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m. ** BUYERS REPORTEDLY INTERESTED IN HAMTESTONLINE JIM/ANCHOR: The popular online instruction program HamTestOnline may not be going out of business after all. The creator and owner of the company, John W1AI (W-ONE-AY-EYE) announced earlier this year that he was planning to retire and would be shutting the website unless a purchaser came forward to continue the license-exam coursework that John had begun. John announced in his most recent newsletter that several organizations have since expressed an interest and that he would be negotiating with one of them soon. He said it was his hope that HamTestOnline would be able to ultimately continue without interruption. (HAMTESTONLINE) ** SILENT KEY: ARRL FORMER DIVISION DIRECTOR DAVID COONS, WT8W JIM/ANCHOR: A former director of the ARRL's Great Lakes Division has become a Silent Key. We hear about him from Stephen Kinford N8WB. STEPHEN: A radio amateur with a long history as an ARRL, club and Hamvention volunteer has become a Silent Key. Dave Coons, WT8W, died on the 2nd of September. Throughout his long association with the ARRL he had served as vice director and director of the Great Lakes Division and was a Volunteer Examiner through the ARRL's VEC. Locally, Dave was a leader in the Ohio amateur radio community, serving as president, vice president and secretary of the Dayton Amateur Radio Association through the years. At Dayton Hamvention he was chairman of the Flea Market Committee and was on the Communications Committee. His volunteer spirit won him the Frank J. Kirkpatrick Memorial Award in 1993 from the Clark County Amateur Radio Association, where he was also a member. Dave was a veteran of the Korean War and served in the United States Navy. He was a retired postmaster of the Miamisburg, Ohio post office. Dave Coons was 92. This is Stephen Kinford, N8WB. (ARRL, DAYTON DAILY NEWS) ** HAMS REUNITE WOMAN WITH PARENTS AFTER 16-YEAR ABSENCE JIM/ANCHOR: In India, amateur radio operators have helped a young mother locate her parents, ending 16 years of searching for one another. Jason Daniels VK2LAW brings us those details. JASON: A 27-year-old woman in India who had been taken by a relative from her parents' home in West Bengal 16 years ago has ended her long search for her family with the help of local radio amateurs. The West Bengal Radio Club was contacted by authorities and was able to make the reunion happen. The woman had been living in Rajasthan with her husband and three children. According to a report by the Indo-Asian News Service, the husband told police he first encountered the woman as an 11-year-old girl alone and weeping at a railway station, asking where her parents had gone. A close relative had reportedly taken her from the home in the hopes of having her find a better life. The husband told police recently that he took the young girl to his own home, where he was living with his mother at the time, and tried without luck to trace her family. He told police that the girl remained in the home but that she did not become his wife until much later - and that it was the wish of his dying mother that he marry her. The news report said that the woman confirmed the man's story to the police, saying that her husband has treated her well. The West Bengal Radio Club was able to make the necessary connections back in West Bengal after the authorities contacted them, providing photos and copies of an official government identity card. Ambarish Nag Biswas, VU2JFA, the club's secretary, told Newsline in a text message that after the hams located her family, mother and daughter were reunited on September 7th in a video call. He said that, upon seeing one another, both began crying. This is Jason Daniels VK2LAW. (DAIJIWORLD.COM, IANS, AMBARISH NAG BISWAS, VU2JFA) ** GERMAN RADIO CHANNEL TO DEBUT FULLTIME AI PROGRAMMING JIM/ANCHOR: Earlier this year, Newsline told listeners about a US radio station on the West Coast that had begun using AI to replicate the voice of a popular DJ by using something called RadioGPT. A channel in Germany has just taken that technology a few steps further. Here's Andy Morrison K9AWM with the details. ANDY: Artificial intelligence is now responsible for fulltime programming on Antenne Deutschland, which calls the format Absolut Radio AI. The DAB+ multiplex channel in north-central Germany is using Radio.Cloud, which the broadcaster has already been using in its online streaming version. The AI is capable of providing the on-air voice as well as scheduling the necessary breaks and other elements. The broadcaster's managing director told the RadioWorld.com website that they are hoping to eventually find a nationwide market for the programming. This is Andy Morrison K9AWM. (RADIOWORLD.COM) ** WORLD OF DX In the World of DX, Sajid, VA3QY, is on the air as A22EW from Botswana from the 16th of September to the 8th of October. He will be on 20 through 10 metres and possibly 6m. QSL via eQSL. Be listening for special callsigns during the 2023 Rugby World Cup hosted by France. The games will continue through to the 28th of October. The callsigns are TM23RBY, TM23RUGB and TM63RWC. See the QRZ.com pages for the individual calls for QSL details. Don, M0CVZ is active holiday style as 6Y5DH from Jamaica, IOTA number NA-097, through to the 30th of September. He is using SSB on 40, 20, 17, 12 and 10 metres. See QRZ.com for QSL details. (425 DX BULLETIN) ** KICKER: A GRAND IDEA FOR A NET JIM/ANCHOR: Our last story for this week is about family and the future of radio. For some amateurs who are old enough to know the joy of being grandparents, showing the grandkids another big joy - radio - makes for a natural combination, as we hear from Jim Meachen ZL2BHF. JIM: On Sunday, the 1st of October, the magic hour will be 3 p.m. local time in New Zealand. The magic frequency will be 146.625 MHz -- and the magic combination for Peter Henderson, ZL1PX, will be the company of his grandsons, Alex and Dan, sitting with him in his radio shack. October 1st is Grandparents Day in New Zealand - so earlier this year, Peter, who is vice president of the Franklin Amateur Radio Club, thought that hams in ZL might make good use of that special occasion to pass on the joys of amateur radio to the very youngest generation. Amateurs throughout New Zealand will be getting on their local 2m repeaters to kick off the first Grandparents/Grandkids Net in each region. Peter will be using the callsign ZL1SA on his local repeater in the Auckland region. After everyone has checked in, the young and the young-at-heart will take turns sharing their best grandparent joke, best grandchild joke, stories about their grandmum or granddad - and so on. Peter suggests starting the day by inviting the grandkids over for Sunday dinner first. Once the meal is done, it will be time for the net. Ah, but what if you don't have a grandchild? No problem: Peter suggests that you borrow one! This is a chance to create a memory and - as Peter says, who knows? Maybe even create the next generation of amateurs who, one day, will be grandparents sharing amateur radio with grandkids of their own. This is Jim Meachen ZL2BHF. (PETER HENDERSON, ZL1PX, WIA, NZART) ** DO YOU HAVE NEWS? If you have a piece of Amateur Radio News that you think Newsline would be interested in, send it on! We are not talking about advertising your club's upcoming hamfest or field day participation, but something that is out of the ordinary. If so, send us a brief overview via the contact page at arnewsline.org. If it's newsworthy and we would like to cover it, we'll get back to you for more details. Meanwhile, visit our website to learn more about the Amateur Radio Newsline haiku challenge. Use the entry form on our website and please follow the rules for writing your three-line haiku. NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Amateur Radio Daily; Ambarish Nag Biswas, VU2JFA; ARRL; the BBC; CQ Magazine; Dayton Daily News; David Behar K7DB; 425DXNews; HamTestOnline; Indo-Asian News Service; New Zealand Amateur Radio Transmitters; Peter Henderson, ZL1PX; Radio World; Royal Belgian Amateur Radio Union; shortwaveradio.de; Wireless Institute of Australia; and you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. We remind our listeners that Amateur Radio Newsline is an all-volunteer non-profit organization that incurs expenses for its continued operation. If you wish to support us, please visit our website at arnewsline.org and know that we appreciate you all. We also remind our listeners that if you like our newscast, please leave us a 5-star rating wherever you subscribe to us. For now, with Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and our news team worldwide, I'm Jim Damron N8TMW in Charleston West Virginia saying 73. As always we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2023. All rights reserved.