Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2412 for Friday January 19th, 2024

Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2412 with a release date of Friday
January 19th, 2024 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. Vandals destroy an Oklahoma radio tower.
Text-messaging from space is now a reality -- and learn about a Cold
War bunker that's still getting on the air. All this and more as
Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2412 comes your way right now.

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BILLBOARD CART

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VANDALS DESTROY OKLAHOMA RADIO TOWER

PAUL/ANCHOR: We begin this week's report with the deliberate
destruction of a radio tower in Oklahoma. A tower is the most visible
sign of an active radio station and this tower belonged to a commercial
broadcast station subsequently knocked off the air by thieves seeking
copper. Ralph Squillace KK6ITB has that story.

RALPH: Country music station K95.5 suddenly and unexpectedly went
silent on the 15th of January, its tower in ruins in a field not far
from its Oklahoma studio. As the Chocktaw County Sheriff's office began
its investigation, Will Payne of the Payne Media Group, which owns the
station, assessed the scene, which he described in a Facebook video as
one of "catastrophic damage." The video showed the tower down in the
field, its guy wires cut as a means of taking its top section down. The
nearby generator had been totaled. Wires were ripped out everywhere.
The transmission lines, containing a wealth of copper on the inside,
had been cut in several places. Payne Media Group made an appeal on
Facebook to listeners and to the public in general to be on the alert
for anything that might provide the sheriff with additional clues.

As Newsline went to production it was not clear when the station with
the callsign KITX, would be back on the air serving northeast Texas and
southeast Oklahoma. Listeners were being directed to its streaming
programs at K955.com

This is Ralph Squillace KK6ITB.

(PONCACITY.NOW, FACEBOOK)

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TEXT-MESSAGING FROM SPACE BECOMES A REALITY

PAUL/ANCHOR: Newly launched Starlink satellites have successfully been
put to the test, making text-messaging from space a reality for SpaceX.
We have the details from Kent Peterson KC0DGY.

KENT: It works. Text messages have been sent successfully on a mobile
phone network in the US using Starlink satellite service. The test of
the direct-to-device, or D2D, service took place on the 10th of January
using the network of T-Mobile USA. This was the first step in realizing
the plan by SpaceX to bring this service to a wider commercial market.

The trial run took place only days after Starlink's first satellites
for D2D were launched and deployed. The company declared shortly
afterward: [quote] "The system works," adding that it has partnerships
as well with mobile operators in Australia, Japan and Canada.
Commercial availability is expected to begin later this year and the
company is hoping voice, data and service for the Internet of Things
will commence in 2025. The premiere of D2D via Starlink comes as a
number of manufacturers of smartphones are preparing to produce devices
with D2D service as well. Apple's iPhone already make this service
available with the iPhone 14 in partnership with satellite operator
Globalstar.

This is Kent Peterson KC0DGY.

(CNBC)

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CLASS LICENSE STRUCTURE ARRIVING IN AUSTRALIA

PAUL/ANCHOR: In just a few short weeks, hams in Australia who
previously held an apparatus license will become holders of the new
class license. Graham Kemp VK4BB has that update.

GRAHAM: The Australian regulator has sent letters to hams announcing
that the transition to the new class licence structure takes effect on
the 19th of February. The letter permits hams with valid apparatus
licences to continue operating under the same band and licence
conditions as before and assures hams who renewed the apparatus licence
after the 9th of December that they are eligible for a pro-rated refund
if they surrender the apparatus licence on or after the 19th of
February.

The ACMA plans to check every five years that assigned callsigns are
still being used as authorised. Calls with a one-year expiry, such as
special event callsigns, and those calls with a VK0 or VK9 prefix, will
receive additional instructions in February regarding either renewals
or expirations.

These changes, which the regulator announce last year, also mean that
there are no fees for the licences. The ACMA will also take oversight
of the administration of amateur radio licence exams and callsign
issuance previously delegated to the Australian Maritime College.

This is Graham Kemp VK4BB.

(ACMA)

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VERY LOW POWER DEVICES MAKING GAINS ON 6 GHZ

PAUL/ANCHOR: The FCC is giving greater privileges on 6 GHz to very low
power devices. Jack Parker W8ISH tells us what's going to happen next.

JACK: Following a recent FCC ruling that allows VLPs - very low power
devices - to operate on many of the 6 GHz frequencies, the regulator is
seeking comments on additional rules that would grant higher-power VLPs
access to the band as well under certain operating conditions.

The rules for short-distance operation over high-connection speeds take
effect on the 4th of March. Businesses including Amazon, Microsoft,
Hewlett Packard and Google have been eager to make use of this part of
the spectrum, which will become home for IOT, or internet of things,
applications. These include wearable devices, short-range mobile
hotspots, healthcare monitors, virtual reality devices and in-car
connectivity.

Innovation, however, is expected to rev up among businesses who have
been waiting for this kind of spectrum availability. The FCC has asked
for comments on the proposed rules to be submitted no later than the
7th of February, with reply comments to be filed no later than the 8th
of March. Two of the main questions under consideration are whether
higher-power VLPs should be given access to additional parts of the 6
GHz spectrum and whether a higher-power class of VLPs should be
established.

A link to the FCC document appears in the text version of this week's
AR Newsline report.

[DO NOT READ: https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-23-86A1.pdf]

This is Jack Parker W8ISH.

(FCC)

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ARISS ANNIVERSARY CONFERENCE FEATURES 3 ASTRONAUTS

PAUL/ANCHOR: The 40th anniversary conference of Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station features a lineup of three influential
astronauts. The latest to be added to the lineup is NASA's Tony
England, W0ORE, who is the first astronaut to transmit Slow-Scan TV
from orbit - and the second astronaut to operate amateur radio from
space. Tony joins the program with conference keynote speaker Richard
Garriott, W5KQW, son of NASA's Owen Garriott, W5LFL, the first ham to
make a QSO from space. The group also includes Bill McArthur, KC5ACR,
who played an active role in the Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment.

The conference is being held at the Kennedy Space Center from the 22nd
to the 24th of February. Its focus is the positive impact of ham radio
on human spaceflight.

(AMSAT, ARISS)

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PREPARE NOW FOR WINTER FIELD DAY

PAUL/ANCHOR: Winter Field Day is a worldwide event that is taking place
on January 27th and 28th. Despite its name, participation should leave
you with a good warm feeling, as Patrick Clark K8TAC explains.

PATRICK: Preparedness counts more than points do during Winter Field
Day and organizers are encouraging ham radio operators worldwide to use
the opportunity to sharpen their portable emergency communications
skills. Snow, ice, freezing temperatures and other cold-weather hazards
are part of the environment as hams get on the air using the HF, VHF
and UHF bands and via digital voice. This year, "bonus points" are
being reclassified as "objectives," and anyone activating is being
encouraged to achieve as many objectives as they can.

The maximum power allowed is 100 watts PEP and stations operating QRP
are encouraged to transmit at less than 5 watts on CW or less than 10
watts on phone.

The organizer, the Winter Field Day Association, is also encouraging
the use of Winlink emails. Although the basic exchange contains simply
callsign, location, class and category, operators are being asked to
consider including temperature, weather conditions and signal reports.

For details or to register your station, visit winterfieldday.org
-that's one word "winterfieldday dot org"

This is Patrick Clark K8TAC.

(WINTER FIELD DAY ASSOCIATION)

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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
the KV3B repeater in Rockville, Maryland on Sundays after the net at
7:30 p.m. local time.

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HAMSCI WORKSHOP TO REVIEW ANNULAR ECLIPSE FINDINGS

PAUL/ANCHOR: With October's eclipse behind us and April's eclipse ahead
of us, the citizen scientists' group that has been studying both is
inviting hams and researchers to its next workshop to discuss some
findings. Andy Morrison K9AWM tells us how to get on board.

ANDY: Professional scientists and radio amateurs are being invited to
HamSCI's sixth annual workshop, which will present findings yielded by
ionospheric data collected during the annular solar eclipse last
October. The workshop will be held on March 22nd and 23rd at Case
Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. The citizen scientists'
research group will also share how it is getting ready for the solar
eclipse taking place on the 8th of April. This will be a total eclipse
for the Cleveland area.