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.

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BILLBOARD CART

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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)

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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 KC0DGY 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 KC0DGY.

(INSIDE TOWERS, MILITARY & AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS)

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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)

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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)

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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)

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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.

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BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur
Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including
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