********************************************
The ARRL Letter

Published by the American Radio Relay League
********************************************

March 7, 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

- Bob Heil, K9EID, Silent Key
- FCC Job Opportunity for Recent Engineering Graduates
- Solar Eclipse One Month Away
- Bob Vallio, W6RGG, Named ARRL Honorary Vice President
- Amateur Radio in the News
- ARRL Podcasts
- Announcements
- In Brief...
- The K7RA Solar Update
- Just Ahead in Radiosport
- Upcoming Section, State, and Division Conventions

==> BOB HEIL, K9EID, SILENT KEY

The man who defined the sound of live rock 'n' roll music and brought
audio engineering principals into mainstream amateur radio use, Dr. Bob
Heil, K9EID, has passed away at the age of 83.

He was an ARRL Life Member and in the ARRL Maxim Society. A Facebook
post from Heil Ham Radio paid tribute to their founder: "Bob fought a
valiant, yearlong battle with cancer, and passed peacefully surrounded
by his family."

Heil founded Heil Sound in 1966, through which he created the template
for modern concert sound systems for musicians like the Grateful Dead,
The Who, Joe Walsh, and Peter Frampton.

The talk box used on iconic live record Frampton Comes Alive! was
Heil's design. His audio engineering products have been featured in the
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and he was honored in 2007 with the Parnelli
Audio Innovator Award for his impact on the live sound industry. "My
life has been about achieving great sound, whether on the concert stage
or in the amateur radio world," Bob Heil recounted in 2022
<https://www.arrl.org/news/heil-sound-changes-hands>. "I've watched
Heil Sound go from a regional sound company to a world-class microphone
manufacturer. This company has been my passion," he said.

Parallel to his commercial and artistic success in live music, was his
passion for amateur radio. He was active in ham radio from a young age,
and he merged his expertise in audio engineering with his love for
radio. Heil Ham Radio was founded to produce microphones, headsets, and
other gear for radio amateurs with an emphasis on high-quality audio.

Heil was known as a mentor who enjoyed helping others find success in
ham radio.

Recently, his grandson Charlie Hartley, KF0OOP, became a licensed
ham to surprise Heil for his birthday. The pair attended the ARRL
Midwest Convention
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter?issue=2024-02-01#toc02>/Winterfest in
St. Louis, Missouri, on January 27, 2024.

Heil was a generous donor to amateur radio organizations, including
ARRL. Recently, he donated a host of new audio gear
<https://www.arrl.org/news/heil-ham-radio-donates-equipment-to-w1aw> to
the Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Station, W1AW.

His generosity and kind nature will be missed by many, including ARRL
Director of Development Kevin Beal, K8EAL. "Bob was a titan in many
areas. He was generous with his time, offered keen insights, and had
the heart of a philanthropist in the ARRL Maxim Society," Beal said.
"He was a gentleman to his core, making friends easily and everywhere
he went, from rock stars to captains of industry. I consider it a real
privilege to have become a friend to him, too, all because of amateur
radio."

Heil was known for his passion for AM operations. He served for many
years as an on-camera host of the Ham Nation podcast. Tributes to Heil
have been flooding social media, including from his co-hosts.

ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, said Heil's passing is a
significant loss. "Bob Heil's technical achievements that brought
high-quality audio to amateur radio pale in comparison to his
generosity and willingness to help his fellow ham. He's long been known
as someone eager to help mentor and teach. His legacy on our hobby will
be long-lasting. Our thoughts are with his loved ones."

An obituary for Heil may be viewed at this link
<https://kurrusfh.com/obituaries/robert-bob-g-heil/>.

==> FCC JOB OPPORTUNITY FOR RECENT ENGINEERING GRADUATES

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has a job opening that
might be a good opportunity for recently graduated amateur radio
operators who have knowledge of the spectrum and RF.

This is a Recent Graduates position in the FCC's Pathways Program, and
it will be located in the FCC Office of Engineering and Technology
(OET) in Washington, DC. Applications are being accepted for
engineering graduates who earned their degree in 2022 or later. For
veteran applicants, earlier graduates qualify based upon their military
service, including students expecting to graduate in May 2024.

There will be on-the-job training for the position. Some of the duties
range from performing propagation analysis of terrestrial, satellite,
and/or airborne systems, to evaluating the emission characteristics of
various transmitters to validate coexistence with neighboring systems.
Projects may involve various computer software engineering and
scientific applications. Applications are being accepted through July
2, 2024, and a complete job description and required qualifications can
be found at https://www.usajobs.gov/job/767902700.
<https://www.usajobs.gov/job/767902700>

==> SOLAR ECLIPSE ONE MONTH AWAY

A total solar eclipse that will be seen across North America will occur
on Monday, April 8th. It will be the last of its kind in the US for the
next 20 years.

Hams across North America are asked to participate in a study about
how the ionosphere functions by getting on the air to help scientists
in a series of ionospheric experiments.

Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation (HamSCI) has presentations for
hams interested in participating on Wednesday, March 27 at 8;00 PM
(Eastern) - 5:00 PM (Pacific)*, and that same day at 10:00 PM (Eastern)
- 7:00 PM (Pacific)*. Both 30-minute presentations will held on Zoom
and they will feature HamSCI's Festivals of Eclipse Ionospheric Science
(FoEIS). The presenters will take your questions during the
presentations.

Here is the link to the presentations
<https://scranton.zoom.us/j/286316405?pwd=QWdwMlFPbDlYeXg5ZDg1dmYzeFdCUT09#success.>.

The program will start by covering HamSCI's basis and purpose, and
quickly move into why they are conducting experiments, how hams and
shortwave listeners (SWLS) can participate, and what they hope to learn
from the event. Along the way, they will discuss why the science behind
the event is important to users of the high-frequency radio spectrum -
including amateur radio operators!

Learn about the HamSCI's eclipse-focused operating events:

- Solar Eclipse QSO Party <https://hamsci.org/seqp-faqs/> (SEQP)
- Gladstone Signal Spotting Challenge <https://hamsci.org/gssc-faqs/>
(GSSC)
- Medium Wave Recording Event <https://hamsci.org/mw-recordings/>
- Time Delay of Arrival (TDOA) Event
<https://hamsci.org/tdoa-event-2024/>
- Grape 1 Doppler Receiver Project <https://hamsci.org/grape1/>

Maritime Mobile Planned

During the solar eclipse, John Landrigan, KA4RXP, will be operating in
the SEQP as a maritime mobile off the coast of Mazatlán, Mexico, at the
beginning of the total solar eclipse as it transits the Maritime
provinces of Canada. Look for KA4RXP/MM around 14.265 MHz.

==> BOB VALLIO, W6RGG, NAMED ARRL HONORARY VICE PRESIDENT

Robert B. "Bob" Vallio, W6RGG, has been honored by the ARRL Board of
Directors as an Honorary Vice President.

In a motion that passed with an extended standing ovation, the Board
awarded the honor at their Annual Meeting in January 2024.

The motion honored Vallio's lifetime of service to ARRL and amateur
radio. He was first licensed as a Novice with the call sign WN6RGG in
July 1952, and he later upgraded to General class as W6RGG in 1953. He
has held an Amateur Extra-class license since its inception in 1968.

His tenure of service to ARRL started 46 years ago. He served as
Communications Manager of the ARRL East Bay Section from 1978 to 1983,
Section Manager of the East Bay Section from 1984 to 1999, Vice
Director of the Pacific Division from 2000 to 2003, Director of the
Pacific Division from 2003 to 2017, and Second Vice President of ARRL
from 2018 to 2023.

The motion continued, in part:

Robert B. Vallio has also served diligently as a member of the
Executive Committee numerous times, a member of the Programs and
Services Committee, a member of the Administration & Finance Committee,
and many more.

Vallio has been active in a number of high-profile DXpeditions, and he
is an active contester.

==> AMATEUR RADIO IN THE NEWS

ARRL Public Information Officers, Coordinators, and many other
member-volunteers help keep amateur radio and ARRL in the news
<http://www.arrl.org/media-hits>.

" "HAMFEST" IN CAVE CITY MAKES WAVES THROUGH THE COMMUNITY
<https://www.wcluradio.com/2024/03/02/hamfest-in-cave-city-makes-waves-through-the-community/>"