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The ARRL Letter

Published by the American Radio Relay League
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January 11, 2024

John E. Ross, KD8IDJ, Editor <news@arrl.org>

ARRL Home Page <http://www.arrl.org/>ARRL Letter Archive
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>Audio News
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> IN THIS ISSUE

- ARRL Responds to FCC Proposals
- 2024 Orlando HamCation Awards
- ARRL Kids Day a Success in Nebraska
- Winter Field Day 2024
- "Marty on the Mountain" Engstrom, N1ARY (SK)
- Amateur Radio in the News
- ARRL Podcasts
- Announcements
- In Brief...
- The K7RA Solar Update
- Just Ahead in Radiosport
- Upcoming Section, State, and Division Conventions

==> ARRL RESPONDS TO FCC PROPOSALS

ARRL responded <https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/10109180409437/1>
(PDF) to the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) request for
comments on removing the symbol (baud) rate restrictions that apply to
data communications on the LF bands and the VHF and UHF bands below 450
MHz. The FCC also requested comments on the bandwidth limits applicable
to those bands.

The FCC's action follows their 2023 decision to remove the symbol
(baud) rate limits on the 160- to 10-meter amateur bands. Those limits
were replaced with a 2.8 kHz bandwidth limit, a move ARRL had long
advocated for.

The FCC's Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking sought comments on
updating the other amateur bands on which its symbol (baud) rate limits
continue to throttle faster data rates. The subject bands are the LF
bands (2200 and 630 meters) and the VHF and UHF bands below 450 MHz. In
its comments, ARRL strongly agreed with the FCC's proposal to remove
the symbol (baud) rate limits on the remaining bands.

Read more about ARRL's comments on ARRL News.
<https://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-responds-to-fcc-proposals>

The public period for reply comments remains open until January 22,
2024. An ARRL guide to filing comments is at:
https://www.arrl.org/arrl-guide-to-filing-comments-with-fcc

==> 2024 ORLANDO HAMCATION AWARDS

The HamCation® Awards committee has announced the 2024 Orlando
HamCation recipients of the Carole Perry Educator of the Year and the
Gordon West Ambassador of the Year awards. Both awards will be
presented at the 2024 Orlando HamCation <https://www.hamcation.com/>,
which is hosting this year's ARRL Florida State Convention, on February
9 - 11, 2024.

Lewis Malchick, N2RQ, is the recipient of this year's Carole Perry
Educator of the Year Award. Malchick holds an Amateur Extra-class
license and is co-founder of the ARRL School Club Roundup
<https://www.arrl.org/school-club-roundup>, of which he's been active
with for more than 25 years. He formerly taught chemistry at the
Brooklyn Tech High School, where he's an advisor to the school's
Amateur Radio and Wireless Tech Club, W2CXN. Malchick is the trustee
for the Stuyvesant High School Amateur Radio Club, W2CLE, the
chairperson of the Long Island Mobile Amateur Radio Club (LIMARC)
Education Committee and has participated in five ARISS contacts. He's
spent his lifetime educating children and adults about amateur radio.

The Carole Perry Educator of the Year Award was first awarded at the
2019 HamCation to its namesake, Carole Perry, WB2MGP, in honor of her
work as an educator and teaching students about ham radio. It is given
annually to individuals who've made outstanding contributions to
educating and advancing youth in amateur radio.

The 2024 Gordon West Ambassador of the Year Award winners are Fred,
AB1OC, and Anita Kemmerer, AB1QB. The Kemmerer's hold Amateur
Extra-class licenses and are active in the Nashua Area Radio Society
<https://www.n1fd.org/> promoting amateur radio instruction, youth
outreach, and STEM education. Together, they've created and helped grow
Ham Bootcamp <https://www.n1fd.org/ham-bootcamp/>, a program
encouraging more than 900 hams to learn new skills. They're active in
the club's training and licensing events, along with Tech Night, which
complements club meetings. Their participation in STEM activities
includes high-altitude balloon launches, foxhunts, and ARISS contacts
for many schools.

Fred Kemmerer is the ARRL New England Division Director, and he chairs
and contributes to several subcommittees. Anita Kemmerer serves the
Division as an Assistant Director for mentoring and new ham
development.

The Gordon West Ambassador of the Award was first awarded the 2023
HamCation, in honor of West's contributions and inspiration to the
amateur radio community. It's given to individuals who represent and
inspire others and who embody the amateur radio spirit by making
outstanding contributions to the amateur radio community.

HamCation has been sponsored by the Orlando Amateur Radio Club, W4PLB,
since 1946, and is held annually on the second weekend of February.

==> ARRL KIDS DAY A SUCCESS IN NEBRASKA

The Bellevue Amateur Radio Club <http://www.bellevuearc.org/> and the
Science Club at Yates Illuminates <https://www.yatesilluminates.org/>
teamed up to offer the youth in Omaha, Nebraska, with an opportunity to
get on the air for ARRL Kids Day.

The event occurred on Saturday, January 6, 2024, at Yates Illuminates,
a former elementary school that is now a culture and community center.
Amateur radio operators Dudley Allen, KD0NMD; Terry Gampper, N0BXQ;
Frank Jozwiak, KB0EOR, and Mike Terneus, WB0BEE, served as volunteer
operators and were extremely patient coaches who nurtured the kids'
curiosities of talking on the radio. Dozens of youths as young as 4, as
well as young-at-heart Bob Hutton, 91, used the event call sign to talk
to amateur radio operators across the country and around the world.

Parents were impressed with Kids Day. One parent said, "The event
organized by the Yates Illuminates Science Club was a perfect blend of
education, technology, and community spirit. My kids were thrilled to
delve into the world of amateur radio, thanks to the expert guidance of
the Bellevue Amateur Radio Club. They learned about radio technology
and how to contact other young radio enthusiasts across the country.
This hands-on experience in communication technology was not only fun
but also incredibly educational."

The final highlight of the day came as each child received their
certificate of completion. Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America were
all represented as the country of birth or the original nationality of
the youth participants, and they talked with amateurs as far away as
England and Canada.

ARRL Kids Day is already planned for next year, and the Yates
Illuminates Science Club will continue to help youth learn the basics
of electrical circuits, electronics, and radio propagation, as well as
how to make homebrew antennas. Foxhunts, the integration of a course in
radio, and other applied scientific learning opportunities (such as
wildlife tracking and rescuing, aviation and space research, and
communications) are also planned.

More stories and photos of ARRL Kids Day can be found on the ARRL
Contest Soapbox <http://arrl.org/contests/soapbox>.

==> WINTER FIELD DAY 2024

Winter Field Day (WFD) <https://winterfieldday.org/index.php>,
sponsored by the Winter Field Day Association, is scheduled to run from
1900 UTC on Saturday, January 27, through 1859 UTC on Sunday, January
28.

WFD is held on the last full weekend in January and is a communications
exercise that can be worked from the comfort of your home or in a
remote location. You can participate by yourself, with your friends and
family, or with a local club.

WFD is open to participants worldwide. Amateur radio operators may use
frequencies on the HF, VHF, or UHF bands and are free to use any mode
that can faithfully transmit the required exchange intact. Similar to
ARRL's Field Day, bonus points are earned in several ways, including
from using non-commercial power sources, operating from remote
locations, making satellite contacts, and more.

WFD is designed to help increase your level of preparedness for
disasters and for you to improve and practice your operating skills in
winter environments, as the potential for freezing temperatures, snow,
ice, and other hazards present unique operating conditions.

Also, remember to mark your calendar for 2024 ARRL Field Day on June 22
- 23. For additional information, visit Field Day (arrl.org)
<https://www.arrl.org/field-day>.

==> "MARTY ON THE MOUNTAIN" ENGSTROM, N1ARY (SK)

Avid radio amateur, Marty Engstrom, N1ARY, of Fryeburg, Maine, has
become a Silent Key. He died on January 4. Generations of New England
television viewers
<https://www.sunjournal.com/2024/01/05/marty-on-the-mountain-longtime-mount-washington-weatherman-marty-engstrom-dies-at-age-86/>

may know him as Marty on the Mountain from his weather reports on
camera for WMTW-TV from the station's transmitter site on Mount
Washington in Gorham, New Hampshire.

Engstrom was known to quip that he was not intentionally in the weather
business: "I'm a TV engineer, not a meteorologist!," he would say.
Engstrom served the viewers of New England for 38 years.